Traviss, Karen: Star Wars: Republic Commando: Hard Contact
Star Wars: Republic Commando: Hard Contact (2004)
Written by: Karen Traviss
Genre: Science Fiction
Pages: 293 (Mass Market Paperback)
Series: Star Wars
Why I Read It: I'm on a mission to catch up on all the Star Wars Expanded Universe novels that I missed since late 2005. The first step is to read all of the books I bought but never read, and then once I catch up with those, I'll go and buy the books I missed and then read those. Whatever happens with the movies now that Disney's in charge, Star Wars was my first SF-nal love, and I've missed these books and these characters.
The premise: ganked from BN.com: As the Clone Wars rage, victory or defeat lies in the hands of elite squads that take on the toughest assignments in the galaxy-stone-cold soldiers who go where no one else would, to do what no one else could. . . .
On a mission to sabotage a chemical weapon research facility on a Separatist-held planet, four clone troopers operate under the very noses of their enemies. The commandos are outnumbered and outgunned, deep behind enemy lines with no backup-and working with strangers instead of trusted teammates. Matters don’t improve when Darman, the squad’s demolitions expert, gets separated from the others during planetfall. Even Darman’s apparent good luck in meeting an inexperienced Padawan vanishes once Etain admits to her woeful inexperience.
For the separated clone commandos and stranded Jedi, a long, dangerous journey lies ahead, through hostile territory brimming with Trandoshan slavers, Separatists, and suspicious natives. A single misstep could mean discovery . . . and death. It’s a virtual suicide mission for anyone-anyone except Republic Commandos.
Spoilers, yay or nay?: Yay. And I also want to point out: there will be spoilers, at any given moment, for the entire run of Star Wars books up until the date the current book was published. So if the Star Wars are something you want to get into, stop now and read THIS instead. I don't recommend anyone reading this review unless they've read the book I'm reviewing now, due to aforementioned spoilers, so stop now or -- if you have read the book -- carry on!
Discussion: Given that I've read Traviss' original fiction and enjoyed her Wess'Har series immensely, I was rather looking forward to seeing what she had to offer the Star Wars universe. I will say, up front, that I'm aware that there is CRAZY DRAMA attached to Traviss' name and Star Wars, and one day, I'd like to know what it is. But not until I'm finished reading all the EU books Traviss has written for the franchise. This will allow me to make my own opinion of Traviss' work in the world, and I'll better be able to put the DRAMA in context. Also, I'll avoid spoilers.
At any rate, the opening was promising. SUPER promising. I loved the first person POV, and was really looking forward to reading the novel in that format. Sure, it's not a traditional format for Star Wars, but I like reading first person POV, and what better way to suck me into a series populated with characters I don't know (let alone a series based on a game) than by giving me a first person POV?
Unfortunately, that was just the prologue, and the rest of the book is spent with the traditional third-person POV, alternating between Darman (the first person POV from the prologue), Niner (head commando), Etain (a Jedi Padawan who's not very good), and Hokan (the Mandalorian antagonist of the piece).
When it comes to reading the prequel novels, I always try to put myself in the mind of a regular SF reader, because short of the world-building, nothing is familiar to me. Okay, not always: sometimes I do know the characters from the prequel movies, but usually, it's a blank slate with some familiar place names and Jedi mixed in. So I try to base my reaction to the book as if it were an original SF novel. I'm not sure if that's the best route to go or not, but that's what I do.
So with that in mind, I'll say this: I don't read a lot of military SF. It doesn't tend to hold my interest, so that made reading Hard Contact something of a challenge. The basic plot, to recover a scientist and the virus she was creating, was cohesive enough. It made sense in light of the larger story happening in the SW universe, and unlike some based-on-a-game SW books I've read, I didn't feel like the action was put in place just to emulate the gameplay itself. Everything felt organic enough for the context, and the end, when Hokan was tricked and killed from behind, was actually nicely brutal for the SW universe.
But the novel didn't engage me the way I'd hoped. I think some of that can be attributed to the fact that while this wasn't Traviss' debut novel, it was her very first tie-in novel (as far as I can tell), so it stands to reason that she was still learning the ropes of not only the universe she was writing in, but also learning the ropes of how to write a tie-in to begin with.
I'll definitely say that of the SW game book spin-offs I've read (this, The Ruins of Dantooine, and The Force Unleashed), this is the best one. I really appreciated the characterization that went into it, especially among the Commandos themselves, and Etain was quite sympathetic. I did have some qualms about her, however: she wouldn't have been out of place among Luke Skywalker's Jedi -- conflicted, feeling weak in the Force and not sure where her talents lie -- but she didn't quite fit into my view of the Repubic Era Jedi. After all, she's been training since birth, right? Her conflicts and inabilities and problems seemed to be better suited for a much younger Padawan, someone who's still learning. Not a woman who's an adult, and while I don't know her age, it seems to me she should be beyond this. However, given that she had such a solid arc of growth, I'll forgive it. I also really liked that the one thing that earns her respect in the eyes of the Commandos is also the one thing the Jedi frown upon (page 195):
Right then Niner didn't care if she had less idea of guerrilla warfare than a mott. She possessed one fundamental element of leadership that you couldn't teach in a lifetime -- she cared about those she led.
She had earned her rank on the strength of that alone.
There's also good moments of humor, such as on page 229:
"There's three things you should never believe -- weather forecasts, the canteen menu, and intel."
Maybe that's only amusing because of the weather I've been experiencing this year, but still. Cute. :)
I was amused that every chapter started with some kind of soundbite: an excerpt from a report, or an interview, something that frames the upcoming chapter and also gives an outsider view on things. It's a trick that Traviss used in all of her Wess'Har books, so seeing it here tickled me. I also liked Traviss' use of description and how she allowed her characters to interact with the environment. It sounds simple, but some writers just want to paint the picture of the setting, and then just let their characters do their thing without ever referencing the setting again. Traviss integrates, and given that setting integration is something I'm constantly struggling with in my own fiction, I liked seeing it here.
The book did raise an interesting question for me: I figure that each successive book will follow this unit. The real question is, will Etain make a return appearance? It'd be nice if she did, and it'd set up a great conflict for later down the road when the "Kill all Jedi!" order comes through the pipeline. Don't spoil me! I'm just speculating. :)
The book also had a solidly good ending, especially for Etain.
My Rating: 5 - It's a Gamble
It's a low rating, sure, but it's not a bad book. It's just going to be a hit or miss for Star Wars readers. Traviss is a good writer, but you can tell she's getting her feet wet here, and since I've already read her Wess'Har series, I had higher expectations than normal. I'd hoped this would wow me, but it didn't. That being said, of all the Star Wars game adaptation books I've read, this is by far the best. Which is good, because this is the one with the most books, so I've got several ahead of me. I did enjoy the work Traviss did in creating distinctive personalities for her clones, and the way the Omega Squad was put together provided nice character-revealing moments and inner sources of conflict. So there's good arcs here, character-wise. I just kept zoning out during the more tactical/military stuff, which doesn't bog down the book, but it doesn't make me want to turn the pages any faster either.
That being said, for someone who wants to get into Star Wars books but wants to start with the prequel Era, and if they don't care about not having the Jedi as the focus, this would be a great place to start. My expectations were just a tick too high, but now that I know what to expect, I'm sure the next installment will be fine.
Cover Commentary: Obviously heavily inspired by the art of the video game, at least it's not awkwardly blocky. It's nothing that'd inspire me to pick up the title if I wasn't a Star Wars fan (and even when I was reading SW books on a regular basis, I didn't get this), but it definitely screams military SF, and that's a good thing, given the content of the book.
Next up: Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor