And so begins the story of how Finn – ack! I can’t even be smarmy about it. Top 1% of his class, he’s the most accurate, the smartest, the bravest, the most loyal and a natural leader – he is this to all, Rucka informs us, except to himself. For each part of the review, I’ll discuss briefly how that said, my experience with each story was largely positive, and if you go into your reading of this with the above in mind, you may very well find the experience to be quite enjoyable.Ī cerebral story that leads almost directly into the events at the beginning of The Force Awakens, it details Finn’s otherness, of how he doesn’t belong amidst the identical ranks of stormtroopers – because he’s the perfect stormtrooper. It may not have delivered precisely, or as fully, what I wanted, and if that’s what you’re looking for, you may be displeased. I wanted to learn more about the galaxy at large. And speaking of this particular one, I thought it – which may or may not have been done by Phil Noto – to be rather beautiful and a piece of art in and of itself.Īs for what’s beyond the cover, I want to make something clear: I came to this book, rightly or wrongly (mostly wrongly) with some expectations. THIS IS YOUR FINAL SPOILER WARNING.įirst off, we’ve all heard the phrase that ‘you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover’ this may or may not be true, but it doesn’t say anything about judging the cover itself. PLEASE NOTE: There will be mild spoilers of the book, and due to the nature of the stories, these ought to be treated as spoilers for the film, as well. As such, I thought it best to focus on each story, as is, rather than review the book as a whole (though I will do a little of that). Star Wars: Before the Awakening by Greg Rucka, published by Egmont, is a collection of three short stories, with each centred around our new Big Three of Finn, Rey and Poe.
Review: Star Wars Before The Awakening (or, Star Wars Asleep)