Better Late than Never
(My experience in the Expanded Universe)
By: Adam Bryant (Bryant’s Nerd Pub)
Edited by Kelsey Warren-Bryant
I’ve always loved Star Wars, but I was never an avid reader growing up. I grew up a
generation with such an abundance of Star Wars novels and comics that, needless to say, I missed out on a lot. The writing at the time delved into so many topics that I would have been interested in, such as the sequel to Return of the Jedi, or the ancient times of the Knights of the Old Republic. All I had read at the time that pertained to the expanded universe, or “legends,” was an essential characters guide that only gave me brief insight to what happened to our heroes such Han, Luke, & Leia post the
Battle of Endor.
It was when Disney announced that they would not be following the already published
stories that I became intrigued. I ordered the Dark Horse produced comic “the Dark Empire”
trilogy from Amazon, because I wanted to compare the old stories with the new Disney
canon.
Little did I know that was only the start of a journey into an entire galaxy of literature.
I was a grown man in my late twenties with decades worth of stories to catch up!
Admittedly, it was hard to know where to start.
Still, after seeing “The Force Awakens,” I dove into the novels alternating between legends and canon such as “Shadows of the Empire,” “Lords of the Sith,” “The Han Solo” trilogy, “From A Certain Point of View,” “Death Troopers,” and “Kenobi.” But it wasn’t until after the film “The Last Jedi” came out that I decided learn as much as I could about the pre Disney canon, especially the old Sith Lords.
I had a hard time separating the legends stories from the canon movie series in the beginning. In truth, it was hard to give the legends stories my full attention knowing that
they had nothing to do with the main storyline of the movies I loved. I also felt overwhelmed.
Again, there were dozens of legends books to catch up on, and I had a very late start! It wasn’t always easy. Still, I became dedicated to expanding my knowledge of the Star Wars
universe outside of canon. The further I pushed myself to into the expanded universe, the more I admired their originality and writing styles.
When I came across “Darth Plagueis” by James Luceno, that became the bait on the hook
for me. I loved seeing the Star Wars universe from the eyes of a Sith Lord not seen in the
films. His influence over Sidious that brought forth the events of the prequel era also made me better appreciate “The Phantom Menace.” I’m proud to say I have a much different perspective now on that film. But Plagueis’ story sparked my interest in the Sith Lords, and I was excited when I found out that I could download the original Knight of the Old Republic game on my tablet. After many hours, I finally completed
KOTOR, and then I read “Revan” by Drew Karpyshyn, the sequel to famed video game.
After catching up on a few canon books (from my reading list), I am now currently reading the Darth Bane trilogy to better understand the Sith practiced “Rule of Two” method and how it lead to the events of the films.
With all the books I’ve listed since starting my legends journey, it may sound like I’ve read
a lot, but I’ve barely dipped my toes in the water in the eyes of many other dedicated Star Wars readers. Though my legends knowledge dims in comparison to so many of my friends on YouTube, discussions with The Geeks Attic, Matt Wilkins, Stupid Chainsaw Productions, etc. have me even more excited to pursue my goal to read the expanded universe. I just love the Star Wars universe, and whether legends or Disney canon, I want to know more. I may have had a late start, but in the words my favorite Jedi
knight . . .
“Your focus determines your reality.” -Qui-Gon Jinn