Star Wars 501st: An Imperial Commando Novel |  | Author: Karen Traviss
Publisher: LucasBooks
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Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 888
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Pages: 464
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 6.8 x 4.1 x 1.2
ISBN: 0345511131
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.92
EAN: 9780345511133
ASIN: 0345511131
Publication Date: October 27, 2009 (New: Last 30 Days)
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Product Description
The Clone Wars are over, but for those with reason to run from the new galactic Empire, the battle to survive has only just begun. . . .
The Jedi have been decimated in the Great Purge, and the Republic has fallen. Now the former Republic Commandos–the galaxy’s finest special forces troops, cloned from Jango Fett–find themselves on opposing sides and in very different armor. Some have deserted and fled to Mandalore with the mercenaries, renegade clone troopers, and rogue Jedi who make up Kal Skirata’s ragtag resistance to Imperial occupation. Others–including men from Delta and Omega squads–now serve as Imperial Commandos, a black ops unit within Vader’s own 501st Legion, tasked to hunt down fugitive Jedi and clone deserters. For Darman, grieving for his Jedi wife and separated from his son, it’s an agonizing test of loyalty. But he’s not the only one who’ll be forced to test the ties of brotherhood. On Mandalore, clone deserters and the planet’s own natives, who have no love for the Jedi, will have their most cherished beliefs challenged. In the savage new galactic order, old feuds may have to be set aside to unite against a far bigger threat, and nobody can take old loyalties for granted.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 10
 Great start for a new series November 19, 2009
Brian T. Evans (Gary, In)
This is a great read if you are familiar with Hard Contact (Star Wars: Republic Commando, Book 1) and the Star Wars Republic Commando series by the same author. If you haven't read the Republic Commando books you will be completely lost in this one. This story centers around several previously outline plots from the R/C series. It's a great look into new The Galactic Empire after order 66. The main story is what happens to the Clone Commandos and rouge Jedi. I hope the Author continues the series and brings the same technical detail and great story telling from her previous work. Karen Traviss moves the plot along and doesn't drag on and on. Her books always brings the characters to life. four stars in my opinion.
 A great addition! November 17, 2009
Erika (California)
Warning: spoilers for previous REPUBLIC COMMANDO books.
I won't even pretend I remember everything that happened in the last Republic Commando book. Big events (Dar has a baby, Fi was brain dead, Sev's MIA), points of suspense (clones have accelerated aging)--those are easy to recall, but tiny details that set up larger, looming, and very far off in the future plot lines fall away pretty easily: the significance of Death Watch, Arla Fett, Gilamar, etc... The problem with these books is the amount of intricate information and the large cast crammed into 400 some odd pages that beg for sequels and long, satisfying arcs. These are books I definitely need a Dramatis Personae to help jog my memory.
501st did not have a Dramatis Personae.
In a lot of ways, these books remind me of Timothy Zahn's on the scale of character and growth Traviss writes into her cordoned off area of the Expanded Universe. It makes her books fascinating, but that depth comes at the cost of my attention span between releases which have been teased out too far apart for my tastes. Then again, with more time to write, Traviss has always delivered books I can't get enough of.
In 501st, there's so much set-up and introduction of new characters and potential plot lines that it makes me even more upset most of them probably won't be explored, if at all, by Karen Traviss or anyone. With only one more Imperial Commando book left, I can only guess what gets left behind (Death Watch?? Melusar??). The end of Order 66 was, predictably, with the order to execute all Jedi on command. Etain is dead; Niner and Darman are part of Vader's new Imperial 501st legion of elite stormtroopers; Skirata's running a rogue clone daycare; Uthan must tackle the tricky and problematic accelerated aging process; Jango Fett's sister is under the watchful eye of the Skirata clan and may or may not be legitimately insane. Suffice to say: there's a lot going on before we even get into this latest book.
To put it bluntly: all of this is still a problem in 501st. This does not detract from the book at all. Let me tell you why.
501st is ultimately a rescue mission. Skirata's gone uber protective of his boys and can't stand having Darman and Niner separated from their family, especially because Darman has yet to see Kad with the knowledge that he's the baby's father. Jaing's figured out how to remotely get Dar and Niner's attention and an extraction plan is set up. This fuels the steady backdrop of the story, it's the heartbeat that keeps the plot in suspense because it's Traviss writing and the chances of something going wrong or our--and the character's--hope of getting out, getting out alive, getting out alive and making it home, getting out and making it home in one piece are slim; if bad stuff's going to happen, it will happen. The only question is what; when is always at the most crucial, poignant moment.
The suspense of Darman and Niner's rescue is sustained by the everyday fears and worries of the Skirata clan as everyone attempts to cope with the "end" of the war. Their transition to "peacetime" roles mirrors the Republic's transition to the Empire: the same, yet different in ways not entirely satisfactory. Skirata has attracted a "colony of the damaged and dispossessed" (p. 346) and the psychology of the characters is a jumbled mess of loss, loneliness, guilt, fear, and uncertainty. Not surprising to me, the dynamics between each of the characters is where Traviss really gets to flex her talent. She's not just a military writer, she brings an emotional and contrary perspective to each psyche. Traviss even debates the philosophical merits of Jedi vs. Mandalorians with the hypocrisy evident in Skirata's practices and moral stands. There's a lot of concessions in this one that I think may attract readers who take arms against the literary "anti-Jedi" stance the Mandalorian culture exudes. I hesitate to claim that with any sort of finality because any concessions made are tempered with the ever-influenced opinion of newcomers finding welcome on Mandalore. Ny muses my point succinctly: "Skirata had spectacular double-standards, and the extraordinary thing was that they convinced her [...] But when she stood back, all she could see was how many qualities--and terrible flaws--Mandalorians had in common with Jedi." (p. 372)
By way of explanation, it isn't just Ny who begins to notice this but, grudgingly, Skirata himself. Djinn Altis and his ragtag band of hippie, free-loving Jedi make lots of strategic cameos, inserting themselves into the plot and their ideals into the hearts of the entire Skirata clan. With Etain's death still so fresh, the new perspective is bittersweet, but welcoming all the same.
Really, 501st takes an engaging detour from the action of the Republic Commando trilogy. I found it interesting and necessary: here finally are the psychological exploration we've been missing for new characters and relationships flung together over a long, hard war. The actual reprieve of peacetime is reflected in the struggle of each character to deal with the blows dealt them by the Republic and Separatists both. Nothing is answered or resolved; so much is left open for future books. The big disappointment is dreading which threads will have the opportunity to jockey for attention in the next, and last, book: Death Watch, Melusar, Dar and Niner finally coming home, or Djinn Altis.
There's so much to each of these books I can't express just how bummed I am that we're losing the richness of the series. But don't use that as a reason not to read this one. Knowing there's got to be plot to forfeit for the next book since it's now the last does make events a little more bittersweet, but you're not saying goodbye to everyone just yet. There's still one more. If I say that enough times, it might make me less sad. Despite that, I can't wait to see how the series finally wraps up.
Another excellent work by KT November 11, 2009
Sean C. OConnor (Phillipsburg, NJ)
Imperial Commando: 501st gives us a look into the early days of the Empire, just at the end of the Clone War, and not all is well across the galaxy. Several systems don't recognize Imperial Authority, and the Jedi Purge is underway. Instead of making those the plot, however, 501st makes those into somewhat background events, coming to forefront only when the impact the people we've come to know through the Republic Commando series. There's a great sense of everyone being adrift in the aftermath of the Clone War, from fugitive Jedi, deserting soldiers, to loyal commandos who are effectively behind enemy lines even in their own headquarters. The novel shows how the different individuals find something new to anchor themselves, even momentarily.
I have to admit, I was happy to see the return of one of the characters I'd liked best from a non-RC novel. Scout, a young Jedi Padawan survived the purge with two strikes against her in the Jedi Order: a weak talent for telekinesis, and a working mind. Mandalore lives up to it's promise of being a clean slate for people who adopt it's culture, and the collection of misfits under Kal Skirata certainly could all use one. While this story may feel short on action, it deals with the important issues of what happens when the shooting stops but the war isn't over, and how someone who's only known war adapts to an uneasy peace. There is no doubt the clones themselves are at the mental breaking point and an unexpected tragedy rings all too true with real-world veterans, even those of seemingly minor conflicts.
I really cannot wait for the next and final Imperial Commando book, and am very disappointed that there aren't going to be 7 or 8 more afterwards.
 Good, Not Great, A Bit of a Letdown... November 10, 2009
G. Hernandez (Converse, TX United States)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was kinda disappointed by this novel. Every other one in this series has been excellent. To me it just seemed like a place holder for the next novel. Very little action, and a whole lot of "Where do my loyalties lie?" type of philosophy that we read about in Order 66 and True Colors. A bit of a disappointment, hopefully the next novel is better. (And the last, I'd hate to see another "New Jedi Order" type of monstrosity)
Improvement over Republic Commando, but not by much. November 5, 2009
SOCL
4 out of 8 found this review helpful
Karen Traviss is at it again, back into Fandalorian land with Clan Skirata, Mando'ade, the clones, and what is supposedly a book about "Imperial commandos". I've been critical of Karen Traviss for sometime now, first for the utter disappointment that was TRIPLE ZERO, followed by the messy disaster of TRUE COLORS, and her inappropriate Mandalorian-fetish-ridden entries into one of the strongest pieces of Star Wars literature, the Legacy of the Force novel series. Here we have Ms. Traviss return to what she enjoys: her favorite band of trusty Mandalorians who can do anything and everything, and boo Jedi. Yeah, sounds childish, but that's about the sum of the logic. Throughout this novel series, from TRIPLE ZERO, through TRUE COLORS and ORDER 66, and now 501ST, we have Ms. Traviss use the backdrop of commandos and the military to advance her own fan-propaganda against the Jedi and in favor of her version of Mandalorians. This isn't to say her take on the Mandos isn't interesting and ultimately enriching to the Star Wars universe, it just messes with...well, everything, but continuity in particular. Being a self-proclaimed fan and supporter of the retcon, rather than taking the existing "history" and working with it or around it, Ms. Traviss simply chooses to ignore this and rewrites it to fit her own vision. We saw the first inklings of this in REVELATION when she hinted at rewriting Spar's history as Mandalore, only to have it reveal itself fully in ORDER 66, leaving Fenn Shysa's history and recollections a bigger and more tangled mess than what Lucas did with ATTACK OF THE CLONES. So, fine, Ms. Traviss delights in using the retcon - she certainly isn't the first (e.g. Lucas himself) - but what gets at me is the *way* she uses it. It's not about clearing up some points here or there, helping ease confusion over events or people, or out of necessity for a plot point; no, it's none of these things. It's done to blatantly advance her own point of view of what Mandalorians ought to be - no other reason, not to mention her view on the Jedi and Force-users in general. To this end she employs the character Kal Skirata, the huggable Mandalorian warrior who somehow isn't scared by his past and war, coming out without a scratch and very little PTSD to become the universe's number one father, with all of his hatred, anger, bitterness, and bigotry. What we have then is a character who epitomizes Traviss' view on the topic, reflecting every dislike about this or that, all justified because, hey, he's Kal'buir *AND* he's a Mando...so it's cool he hates people for who they are while all the while saying that Mandos don't judge people...despite the fact their word for "traitor" is the same for anyone who isn't a Mandalorian...
Without going into more gritty details about the nuisances the Mandalorians - once the epitome of warriors, now family men and women who live strange contradictory lives - this book is really divided into two parts. The first is just the wrapping up phase and legacy of TRIPLE ZERO and TRUE COLORS, as well as the more Fandalorian parts from ORDER 66: the Adventures of Kal Skirata & the Household of Misfits. This is clearly the part Ms. Traviss relishes, splurging over page after page of this Mando cultural tidbit or that bit of history - all quite interesting, but utterly useless. It truly drags the first half of the book done, making the forays into the Imperial Army and the 501st's Imperial commandos all the greater a relief, and this is the part Ms. Traviss ought to have worked on more, for therein lies the second phase of the book. This phase concentrates on Niner and Darman, trapped "behind enemy lines" within the new Special Operations Unit of the 501st Legion on Coruscant, doing their old jobs for the same people, just under a different name: Imperial commandos. Alas, Ms. Traviss doesn't take us back to that action-backed drama that was HARD CONTACT (her first foray into the Star Wars universe), with barley two moments of action and little to no character development. Here, like the Legacy novels, we see that one obsession has hurt her characters, so that the only character with any development is Darman, and that only comes near the conclusion of the novel. Niner is left in the role of babysitter, though with a bit of strength from previous roles, while anyone else they cross paths with come across us uncomplicated. Even the poor commando Ennen is left in the dust so that when his untimely end comes, it's not really a sad moment so much as a passing occurrence. Perhaps this was done purpose to emphasize the way Niner and Darman refused to connect with him the way they had with the rest of Omega Squad, but given Ms. Traviss' track record for sacrificing valuable page-time for Fandalorianland, it's hard to see that. In many ways, at the end we are left with characters who have only proceeded two literary steps in the span of an entire novel - hardly a great achievement considering all that can happen in a single novel (reference Troy Denning's TATOOINE GHOST for a great example of this).
All that aside, it appears the seeds of darkness Ms. Traviss planted in ORDER 66 are finally beginning to bear fruit, and it doesn't come without some internal conflict. Finally we see clones (smart, reliable clones) with personalities in conflict with Skirata's band, such as Maze the ARC trooper or Ennen and Bry, the Correlian-trained duo. Sadly, as mentioned before, they get little page-time aside from their necessary moments, in the same manner Spar and Sull were both shunned in the previous book. Dissenters in the ranks are clearly unwelcome in Fandalorianland, but maybe their appearance and ebbing importance is a sign of maturation in the writing and the author's vision. We might even venture to say that Ms. Traviss has got her fill of browbeating everyone with her logic ("Mandalorian good. Jedi bad.") and begun to recognize the contradictions and conflicts inherent in this sort of black-and-white world her characters live in, all the way acknowledging that a gray exists (even if they don't understand it). This comes in the character of Ny, Skirata's sudden romantic interest, who is thankfully not a repeat of Besany Warren or even Jilka, whose romances with the clones are written roughshod and without much logic, turning every female character into a barefoot housewife who, despite having been fiercely independent and capable in a past life, somehow doesn't object to being a homemaker, a mother-figure, and a wife, all at the same time. Rather than blindly giving in to the "charms" of Clan Skirata, Ny hesitates, though it's sadly not because of this dangerous and clearly topsy-turvy world they live in, but because of extraneous, mostly insignificant issues. In time, she develops as something of a counterweight to Kal Skirata's self-righteousness, though only with a great deal of hesitation and only in thought and behavior, not in voice or action. Still, the dissension in the ranks was a nice touch, even spreading to golden boy Ordo. Whether this will last is another matter entirely as the great juggernaut that is the Fandalorian world somehow draws increasing numbers of people into its orbit, even if its forced and not always (if ever) logical. Other counterweights exist, though, in the form of a Bardan Jusik who, as the novel progresses, comes to terms with a Jedi past despite his obsession with being a Mandalorian. We also have the character of Scout, the lost padawan, and Kina Ha who, despite playing a nearly insignificant role, puts into question all of Kal and Clan Skirata's preconceived notions, i.e. blatant and excused bigotry. Despite all this, it all suffers from the aforementioned Fandalorianland escapades so that in the end, even the "bad Mandalorians" don't come across as "bad" so much as misguided, and we can't help but feel a smug grin coming from the author throughout.
One final gripe comes from Ms. Traviss' decision to bring in last-minute major plot drivers OUT OF NOWHERE. Usually this happens with randomly-appearing characters, like Besany and Obrim in the earlier novels, Ko Sai and Mij Gilamar, the Nulls, or just about every single extraneous character who has, at this point in the series, become part of the background scenery (didn't see much of Corr, Yayax Squad, Rav Bralor, Levet, or even Fi and, even more so, Atin). So what now, the return of the Death Watch? Okay, so other bits of canon establish that they held out after the Mandalorian Civil War, but one just can't help see this as another ploy. Just one more thing to add to the list of matters Ms. Traviss has picked as being somehow "incomplete" or even "incorrect" in Star Wars continuity and thus is part of her great crusade to save it from the "others" - the aruetiise, if you will - in the franchise. Maybe this will pan out to be something useful, and maybe it won't, like most of the aforementioned (and unmentioned) characters and plot points. They don't create plot holes, but they do leave readers wondering, "Just what happened that [blank]?" Reference the way many people felt after TRIPLE ZERO after the coup performed by Kal'buir and his spoiled Null boys over Omega Squad. All I remember thinking and hearing echoed by other fans was, "What the hell happened to Niner? Bring Niner back!"
In end, though, I'll keep reading these books. If Karen Traviss is one thing, she's good at holding the reader's attention, painful as it at times (or all the time) may be. Her writing and characters having certainly matured since TRIPLE ZERO, giving one the impression that HARD CONTACT was much more a foray job into Star Wars than a devoted work. The characters surrounding Omega Squad are finally coming along, becoming characters unto themselves rather than [insert clone name here]. It's too bad that she doesn't make better use of the Omega Squad characters or of the IMPERIAL COMMANDO title to give us some insight into the workings of a military, but I suppose that this point, to ask for that would be to belabor the point. The series is almost over; in fact, 501ST is Ms. Traviss' second-to-last novel in the Star Wars universe, the final one being the follow-up to this one due out next November (that's 2010 for those of you reading this - HA! - in the later future). What will come from that? Who knows? I won't go so far as to say "Who cares?" like I would have (and did) after TRUE COLORS, but I won't say I'm as excited as I was while awaiting the release of TRIPLE ZERO. This is certainly the second-best novel in the series and I hope the next will usurp the title, but with all its flaws (i.e. the first phase/half of the book), it still only merits this book three, maybe three-and-a-half stars, a little above equal with ORDER 66, but nowhere near the full five stars for HARD CONTACT.
As a final note, if there is a single regret I have about seeing Ms. Traviss go (and there is only one), it's the fact she never had a chance to explore the Mandalorians she loves so much in a dedicated book series rather than in the midst of something else (as she did with the Legacy novels). I suppose that in the end, this series will be her legacy of Mandalorian and Fandalorian -ism, and though its title(s) are deceiving, they are nonetheless that series she seems to have always wanted to write. This far in, with any luck the next and final installment won't require all the history and back story and fan-propaganda that plagued most of the pages of this series and instead serve as a nice and pleasant good-bye.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 10
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