DP is excellent but and certainly among the elite pantheon, but I don't think it's a contender for the best novel ever. Although I did have it as #2 once.
YDR, easily.
Best characterization, best prose, sharp dialogue. Yoda, Dooku, and Ventress are never better, the original characters are all strong, most obviously Scout. The only weak part of the book is the shoehorned addition of Anakin and Obi-Wan.
I'd say RotS contends pretty well in terms of characterization. The overwhelming use of hyperbole and interior monologue does force me to take a few points off, though, so I guess Dark Rendezvous does lead there.
Stover's great and so is ROTS, but he has a tendency to abuse purple prose and wax philosophic. Sometimes that has its place, like Traitor. But YDR is much tighter and is still able to convey deep philosophical discussion.
Characterization is still something I'd give to YDR. ROTS is superb with Anakin, Grievous, and maybe Obi-Wan. But Dooku is a colossal misfire and I'd say YDR's Sidious is more memorable than ROTS despite being peripheral to the story. In contrast, pretty much everyone in YDR is compellingly memorable, minus Anakin and Obi-Wan.
I might give ROTS the nod in terms of fight scenes, but that's honesty pretty low on the totem pole for me. Fight scenes are almost always far better portrayed in visual media.
Yeah, Stover's way too verbose in every chapter, lol.
RotS is unquestionably superb with Obi-Wan, lol. And it's Sidious was better, too. Dooku a "colossal misfire"? What?
Actually, the reason I like the RotS novel in terms of fight scenes is because it's less to do with the intricacies (at some points, at least) and technicalities and more to do with the philosophical stakes.
Thrawn Trilogy's good but overrated, IMO. Heir's in the upper echelons of SW novels, probably in the elite pantheon, but not among the very best, as I see it.
Nah, I found YDR's Sidious to be more memorable than ROTS's.
Dooku was infinitely more compelling in YDR than the mustache-twirling xenophobic racist sociopathic snob he became in the ROTS novel.
Yeah, but there again, fight scenes are relatively low on my totem pole for SW novels. I go into it with low expectations.
Maybe, but that owes to the much more epic storyline than the relatively more intimate and low key YDR.
I loved the internal monologues in RotS; reading how each character was feeling and what they were thinking more in-depth was very enjoyable and insightful.
Sep 15th, 2016 01:47 PM
Also, imo is Dark Force rising better, tbh.
