Hey Bookworms! Here is the pinned comment I promised in the video. If you want to read *JUST* the New Jedi Order, I recommend *AT LEAST* these basics first: - The Thrawn trilogy (Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command) - Jedi Academy trilogy (Jedi Search, Dark Apprentice, Champions of the Force) - I, Jedi - Hand of Thrawn duology (Specter of the Past, Vision of the Future) If you want a streamlined, no filler run through the New Republic Era to Fate of the Jedi, I’d do this: - The Thrawn trilogy (Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command) - Jedi Academy trilogy (Jedi Search, Dark Apprentice, Champions of the Force) - I, Jedi - Hand of Thrawn duology (Specter of the Past, Vision of the Future) - The New Jedi Order (19 books, starting with Vector Prime) - Legacy of the Force (9 books, starting with Betrayal) - Fate of the Jedi (9 books, starting with Outcast)
You should read the Old republic Novels Darth Bane Trilogy and the Darth Plagueis books there really good also read the Revenge of the Sith novelization the best Novelization of a Film I have read.
Thanks for this list Mike. I’ve read most of the X Wing books in high school and loved them. I just got back into wanting to read Star Wars and this list is going to help! Looking forward to getting back to my childhood love! Would love more Star Wars content from you!
Mike, this was a really helpful guide. I remember when the first Thrawn trilogy was released and it helped reinvigorate interest in Star Wars. I think i will check out the Thrawn trilogy.
Darth Plaqueis is one of the best star wars books for me because its a like a missing side of the episode 1-3. you learn how sidious was build up to the point when he takes control of everything.
I know youre not an audiobook guy but the EU is being rereleased in chunks unabridged with sound effects and music. A space battle is being narrated and youll hear laser blasts and ship sounds. Really good.
For those curious: there is a book that takes place between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back called Honor Among Thieves by the Expanse's own James S. A. Corey and it is DEFINITELY worth the read, especially if you're into both the EU and the Expanse. It's in the old canon, one of the very last of them.
@@tom-u8k6yI refuse to believe that, blue aliens were a recipe for success for avatar, Star Wars wouldve gone gang busters if they had a new trilogy with the chiss ascendancy
Very helpful, as usual, Mike! The original Star Wars film trilogy was a defining element of my childhood, and I'm still a fan, but I never ventured into the books for fear they could never live up to the films. Your enthusiasm for the Expanded Universe might convince me to give them a try someday!
I was never a huge fan of the movies. They are good, but I was never obsessed. I read the first book in the Darth bane trilogy, and am now obsessed! There is a philosophical approach and depth in exploring the dark side vs the jedi. Super interesting!
I don't think anyone of that generation didn't feel the permanent imprint of those movies in their DNA. When I thought we were clearly never getting another movie, these became FACT for me.
I like the Darth Plagueus book. If one ever wondered about the perspective of the sith and their ideology then this book will not disappoint. Such a brilliant origin for Palpatine and Darth maul along with, obviously, Darth Plagueus. If they just had used Plagueus as villain in the sequels then it would have tied up all the trilogies nicely together.
It's fun to hear someone else talk about how much they enjoy the EU. My brother read most of these pretty religiously when they came out when he was in high school and I wasn't much of a reader then but he kept me filled in on the story but I'm working on reading them all now lol. I'm also looking forward to you reviewing "Rogue Squadron" but I think one point of clarification on that: the X-wing series is actually set between Return of the Jedi and the Thrawn Trilogy if I remember right, except for the last 2 books which are post- Last Command.
I started with the thrawn trilogy and really enjoyed it. I picked up all 19 books in NJO, hunted down some 1st editions. Last year I wanted to dive into NJO, but I am going to read Jedi academy first. Thanks for recommending these Mike, I’m in your younger demographic and didn’t even realize that Star Wars had such a good book continuation. Disney has dropped the ball with their movies/shows for me to the point that I don’t watch/care about them and this definitely makes me enjoy stars wars still.
This was MASSIVELY helpful, and, really, the breakdown I've been searching for ever since I brought home my first Star Wars book from work almost 20 years ago (still unread). Thank you! I've heard the same thing about Rogue Squadron, so that's what I latched onto as the place to start, but now I'm thinking it would be fun to go more chronological with it, gearing up for Thrawn as the payoff (I'm a completionist to a fault). This is awesome - I can't wait to dive deeper into this world. I just needed the structure. :D
I love videos like this because it just grows the EU community more and more. The EU is just amazing. I remember leaving the theater after episode 9 came out feeling so disappointed in what Disney did with this awesome franchise. I remember i watched a ton of rewriting videos on the sequels an a bunch of the mentioned the EU and i remember looking into the EU and just being amazed by just how vast it was. Your video was one of the many i watched about the EU and i can proudly say that i took you on your word and i read the Thrawn trilogy last year and now I’m on book four of the NJO. Thank you for opening this universe to me.
9:05 I would agree that the Thrawn Trilogy is the best place to start. Since it was written before almost all of the other EU stuff (it came out around 1992 - only 8 years after Return of the Jedi) most of the other books have a chance to reference them. Books that come later in the Star Wars chronology all reference the events/characters of these books. Books that precede them in the Star Wars chronology frequently foreshadow them. Doing a re-read of X-Wing (which in the timeline comes earlier) they make jokes about the Katana Fleet for instance. Had you not read Thrawn you wouldn't get the reference.
Hi Mike 👋 I have always been a Star Wars nerd as far back as I can remember! The first ever Star Wars that I have seen in the cinema was, in fact, Attack of the Clones back in 2002 and I remember that I wasn't able to recall what happened because I slept through the entire thing! Not exactly my fault because I was just 4 years old at the time in 2002!! However fast forward to 2005, I saw Revenge of the Sith and it was the best cinematic experience I had ever been! I do agree that Episodes 7 to 9 had basically shattered my love for what is really canon after the events of Episode VI: Return of Jedi because of how Darth Caedus was my absolute favorite character which resulted with me as a 13 year old in 2011 when I became obsessed with Darth Caedus during 2008 to 2011 to the point that I actually was excited that Luke will be starting his Jedi Academy. Ever since December 2019, I have a love-hate relationship with Star Wars because I cannot stand it why Luke has become jaded and exiled himself out of disappointment. However, recently just last year around December 2023, my long-lost love for Star Wars made fall in love with the narrative after I saw the original trilogy paperback in the bookstore. So far, as of now, I currently owned the three-in-one paperback Original Trilogy novel, Prequel Trilogy (also the three-in-one paperback), Labyrinth of Evil, Clone Wars, and I am planning to add and read Heir to the Empire if I ever get to buy it this Christmas. Watching your video about the original Thrawn Trilogy, I am grateful because I changed my mind, Force Awakens is not episode VII but it is Heir to the Empire!!!
You’re the one who got me interested Mike. I have around 20 books in the EU which I haven’t started yet but plan to soon. Thanks for the insightful video.
On the advice of a coworker back in the early 2000's I started reading the Star Wars EU basically anything around the timing of the original movie trilogy and forward. Rogue Squadron was fun. Original Thrawn Trilogy was fantastically amazing. Vector Prime blew my mind, the scene where the legacy character dies and the long-term effects it had on the other characters because of how it went down. Unifying Force, again blowing my mind, and that whole series I was so intrigued by Vergere. The biggest takeaway I have is that if you paid really close attention, and could remember, there were minor things/items/people in books across the series that impacted things 20 books later. The overall massive storyline in the EU was my favorite. I ended with the end of Fate of the Jedi, partially because of getting married/starting a family and partially because of the loss of canonization. I know they don't do well in the analytics, but I still love watching these videos. Thank you.
Hey Mike- I apologise if you’ve touched on this before, but do you partake at all in the new Disney made ‘canon’ novels? (Eg. High republic series, and the new Rise of the Red Blade standalone). Cheers 👍🏻
I've only watched the movies (EPs 1-9), watched TCW and Andor, and played some games, never really engaged with the 'bonus' material even as a prequel kid, but since the EU's resurgence I've become interested and maybe I'll get some nostalgia from that era
Great help, Mike. I’m so burned out on Disney Star Wars and have finally let go of hope. I need to remember what a good Star Wars story feels like again, even if it will make me sad it’s not cannon or I will never see something like that on the screen. Thanks from one Star Wars fan to another. May the force be with you 🙏
I remember buying Heir to the Empire for my Dad on Father’s Day. And then the next 2 books the following Father's Days. Totally self serving because I'm not sure he ever read them 😂
I dont think there can be any books in the EU that are as bad as the High republic series Disney has going on right now... its rough. I collect the new canon books in hardback and honestly i have so much invested in them now, between time and money, its hard to stop reading them.... but there was so much in the EU that disney just disregarded and thats a kick in the teeth to anyone who grew up with this series.
The X-Wing books are a great place to start if you really like starfighter pilots. The series takes place in the 5 year gap between Return of the Jedi and the Thrawn Trilogy. And you don't need much knowledge of the Universe except the original movies. The big is the second book, Wedge's Gamble, shows how the New Republic took over Coruscant. So yeah, lots of good Star Wars going on. It does focus more on Wedge and the new Rogue Squadron he starts but that doesn't take away from how good it is. There is also the Wraith Squadron books that are a spin off of these that take place after right after these. Wraith Squadron was more covert ops first pilot second but still really good.
Read Thrawn trilogy based on your old video Mike and then read Outbound Flight due to the mentions about it in the Thrawn books (highly recommend if you haven’t read it, C’Baaoth is a great character in it). That’s where my Star Wars reading ends so far as I have so many other things I wanna read but I’ll follow your recommendations when the chance arises, maybe when First Law is over
I’m actually listening to the Audible version of Darth Plaqueis now. I’m not new to Star Wars but I’m new to the Expanded Universe (Legends). I got into it because I’m done with Disney Star Wars. The books I’ve read are Thrawn Trilogy: Heir to the Empire Dark Force Rising The Last Command --- Darth Bane: Path of Destruction Rule of Two Dynasty of Evil --- Revenge of the Sith novelization
Thanks for making this man! As someone who grew up in the prequel era, I actually started with Legacy of the Force and some of the YA / kids’ book novels in the new republic era. I loved the Jedi Academy books, and maybe because the prequels were still new at the time I loved the legacy of the force callbacks to the prequel era. But in retrospect I should’ve read chronologically. Always awesome to see someone still talking about old EU stuff, thanks for having this channel and making vids about the Legends/EU canon!
6:00 A lot of us got exposed to "Shadows of the Empire" because the video game was released as one of the original 4 or 5 Nintendo 64 games. It was very popular and generally follows the storyline of the book.
Really glad this video popped up in my feed. I haven't read the expanded universe books in a while but was thinking of diving back in, this was a great refresher. I don't hate the new stuff but my sequels will always be the original Thrawn Trilogy and the Dark Empire comics from Dark Horse. Thanks, Mike! I've been enjoying your channel a lot lately.
The new jedi order is probably one of the things I'm most interested in. I read the first book in the Darth bane trilogy and I loved it! There is also a trilogy that is basically a griddy war novels that sound interesting (my brain went blank and forgot the name). But new jedi order sounds incredible!
The new Jedi order series was great imo I’d def recommend. It’s a lengthy series but has some truly great books in it and the final book serves as a great conclusion imho
The Expanded Universe (because that is what I will always call it) provided hours of enjoyment for me in the past, and they still do. For the prequel era, I cannot recommend 'Darth Plaugeis' enough, as it really fills in a lot of background on the Sith taking over the republic. Timothy Zahn cannot write a bad Star Wars novel as far as I am concerned. On my recent re-read, I was surprised how much 'Hand of Thrawn' leads up to the New Jedi Order. It was something I didn't remember on my initial read. I ended my Star Wars reading with New Jedi Order, because the ending just felt so nice. I have heard 'Fate of the Jedi' ties back to a lot of stuff from pre- New Jedi Order, so they would be stuff I would maybe read someday, but it is not high priority. Great video Mike! Thanks for the effort you put into this video, and hopefully new readers will check out the EU. May the force be with you!
I have been craving new and risk taking Star Wars content as I have only seen the Disney stuff really. Someone told me about Jacen and Jaina and I had to know more! I finally got inspired to read Heir to The Empire and I find it so good. I went out to the used book stores yesterday and started collecting these! It’s so much fun to find them. Great video! Excited to keep going! 🎉
I love the Star Wars EU. From The Han Solo Adventures all the way through Fate of the Jedi, I enjoyed them all. Thanks for the video, and the walk down memory lane. As a side note, the graphic novel adaptations of the Thrawn Trilogy are beautiful, and worth a look.
Really enjoyed this review. I'm reading the high republic series and it's my first dabble into star wars in print form. I really love sci fi and star wars but honestly had heard the comments that it was crap. Now I'm in this battle in my head whether or not to read heir to the empire or thrawn within Disney canon. Because, I don't want the let down you feel. But I also don't want crap. I've been warring in my head for months.
It's cool to know that other people read Star Wars. I have a book that's called the Rise of Darth Vader that I will be reading soon. I plan to start to read it May 4th. I like your R2D2 cup. The force is strong in this video.
5:00 The X-Wing series is pretty solid. While it's technically a longer series (something like 9 books) it's not really one long complete thought. The first four books were written by one author as a complete thought (and a complete series). Afterward, a new author took over at book 5 and introduced completely new characters and just called it "X-Wing Book 5" and so on. After a few books though it goes back to the original author and those are something of a sequel to both series. So it's very confusing. I would highly recommend the first 4 books. That takes you through the fall of Coruscant and some very interesting political elements (including the Empire engaging in biological war with a targeted pandemic).
Great video, friend. I have been a Star Wars fan since my childhood in Nigeria and I'm currently rewatching Clone Wars and buying EU novels🎉🎉Just finished book one of the Bane trilogy and am also reading the prequel novelization. The Stae Wars lore is so amazing and well crafted byuxas and all those awesome writers👍Whenever i hear people say the Prequels were bad because of politics abd that politics has no place in Star Wars, I am always confused🤔 Lucas' great world building is also what made this franchise so awesome.
Excellent recommendations!!! Please! Do more videos about this topic! I can add to the recommendation of the best of the EU, this trilogies and books: -Darth Bane trilogy -Vader trilogy (laberint of evil, episode 3 of Matthew Stover, Darth Vader Dark Lord) This is not trilogy, they're like 5 or 6 books but are very good -Republic commando series (and imperial commando) And the single book: -Darth Plagueis And as a recommendation to someone who love the EU, please, read this books! Are excellent! Cheers!!! 😁
For those people who are a bit younger, who grew up with the prequels being their Star Wars. Hell, I'm 35 and Phantom Menace came out when I was about 13, so I would probably consider myself in that group. Anyway, the series that I would recommend starting with, especially if you like Mandalorians, is the Republic Commando series by Karen Traviss. It starts just after episode 2, with the main protagonists being a squad of clone special forces and their jedi officers. The jedi are the weaker in the force, just barely qualifying as jedi knights levels of force ability, so they're closer to being normal people than the Council members, which makes them more relatable. The clones are a mix of hyper trained competence and sheltered innocence at the start of the series, being less than ten years old and spending all those years being trained on Kamino. By the end, they're fully aware of the shitty deal they've been given - shortened life spans, lack of choice, being used as a slave army, etc. The last book in the series is titled Order 66, and obviously it's about the fall of the Republic and the events around Order 66 from the perspective of these special forces clones. The next series, Imperial Commando, was never finished, due to George Lucas changing Mandalorian history when he made them pacifists in the Clone Wars animated series. It's still worth reading because you get to see the events that directly followed the fall of the Republic and the first days of the Empire. There is a TH-camr named Josh Adams, who has been doing the audiobooks of the series, with legal permission to do so, and is doing them one chapter at a time. He's well into the second book now and has been doing an incredible job of them.
i actually really remember liking some of the older republic books outside of the loved Revan books. Red Harvest and Dawn of the Jedi weren’t insanely new in ideas, but they painted a cosmopolitan universe better than i think is done with the new High Republic books
Thrawn trilogy is definitely the best place to start because it gets you hooked! I had no interest in an X-wing series but after reading the Thrawn trilogy I just wanted more good star wars content. Also Darth Plagueis is a book that really stood out to me as one of the better star wars books. It's called Darth Plagueis, but there is a ton of time dedicated to a young Palpatine which is really fantastic stuff.
I highly recommend Dark Empire and Tales of the Jedi to anyone who is interested in the origins of the Old Republic era. Those stories laid the groundwork for that era, and Dark Empire is actually a lot better than people perceive it to be based on it's premise. It actually managed to bring Palpatine back in a way that didn't tarnish Anakin's sacrifice since it is Luke and Leia's final test before they can come into their own as Jedi without someone like Obi-Wan, Yoda, or Anakin to step in and protect them. It's where Luke's new Jedi order starts, and that alone makes Anakin's sacrifice mean something.
A website called Yoda’s data pad has both timelines. You can also click on a character’s name and get their timeline. When I jumped back in I started with Han’s time line. I remember when Heir to the Empire came out (had the whole trilogy in hardback, sadly I decluttered them) I read that in a day. It really is one of the best trilogies. I also love AC Crispins’ trilogy. The other Han Solo stories from Brian something were ok and Lando’s story was also ok. I never read the Jedi academy but the first three are sitting on my shelf. I’ll get to them at some point. Anyway, loved the video. Have a great weekend.
The X-Wing series is one of my favorite stories of Star wars it takes place between return of the Jedi and hair to the empire and fills in a lot of gaps in between and is the introduction of my second favorite Jedi corran horn. Also it's best to have seen return of the Jedi to get a better understanding of one of the pilots
I've been taking a break from my beloved Star Wars world for a while now because of some nasty stuff I've experienced from some "fans", and I wanted to get back into the world again. I think I shall go ahead and start with the Thrawn trilogy. Thank you for this, Mike. Much, much appreciated! Fans like you are who I love interacting with. :)
I never bothered going through and figuring out what was in the EU and do all of that research, so this video is going to be that reference point for me. This will single-handedly guide me through most of the EU, since I've always wanted to, so I appreciate you taking the time to make the video Mike!
this is really helpful! I have never dipped into Star Wars books because I had no idea where to start or what was happening. This will be a great reference for future reading!
Here’s a fun fact about The Legacy of the Force series. The length of time between it and A New Hope is roughly the same amount of time between A New Hope and The Force Awakens
Love the Star Wars books, was a much needed way to get a Star Wars fix during all the years when there wasn’t much available as film or tv development of Star Wars was years away
I plan on reading every sith, dark jedi & thrawn book/comic. So far I've read darth plagueis (my favorite sith), darth bane path of destruction (my favorite star wars story/experience). Next up rule of 2😁
Just ordered Heir to the Empire and Shadows of the Empire to start out with. I gave up on trying the EU after reading the first Bane book by Drew Karpashyn as I couldn’t stand his writing style, but this helped bring back that spark of interest. Thanks!
Been into the eu ever since found the heir to the empire for 50c in a antique store. Perfect entery. I really enjoyed the old republic era with books like the Bane trilogy, Revan and more. Very keen to start reading books in the post original trilogy era! Great video
I started with the x-wing series when I was in high school. That’s back when I dreamed of being a fighter pilot. Then I kinda jumped around. The Thrawn trilogy, The Courtship of Princess Leia, The New Jedi Order. Traitor in The New Jedi Order is still to this day one of my hands down favorite books!
Great video! As a huge Star Wars EU fan it makes me happy to see others who enjoy its stories and lore and characters. The ROTS novelization Darth Plageuis and new Jedi order as well as Thrawn and bane trilogies are my favorites, and I love Stover and Lucenos EU works. I plan to read outbound flight next I am really interested to hear about Thrawn before the empire
For my part, I wanna thank you for the Star Wars content. I love your passion and dedication to it, and I will always be happy to watch you talk about it.
The Darth bane trilogy is hands down my favorite books written for StarWars such an amazing character. Also any thing old republic is amazing… Sith and Jedi were so powerful back then so many forgotten techniques and all
My husband has read all of the EU books and loves them. I wasn’t ever interested in reading them before, because I wasn’t the huge Star Wars fan he is, and after that sequel trilogy 😩. This just gave me a new excitement for Star Wars! These sound so interesting. I would love to know more about the MCs in the movies, so I think reading this might be just what I need to fall in love with that world.
I have been wanting to read Star Wars EU for a bit but I always was nervous to but honestly you sold me on a bunch of books that isn't the Thrawn trilogy and I appreciate these recommendations.
I owned all those books and loved them but gave all of them away after Phantom Menace, I had a huge Star Wars reject after that movie, to this day! I kinda wish I kept them. Had hardcovers and trade paperbacks, I could sell them now. I watched the whole video, that's how much I love your channel.
Don’t deprive yourself of RA Salvatore because of one bad flavor, the Drizzt books are good fun dnd fantasy and echoes of the 4th magic wasn’t my cup of tea but a lot of people liked it (personally I enjoyed spear bearer more but it’s a light read). 17:55 why not? Disney pulled a 40 year time skip and it worked out fine!
I decided a couple of days ago that I was going to start The EU with Shadows of the Empire. I’ve always wondered how Luke went from being in hospital to where he started in Return of the Jedi.
Started rocking my old Bantam Spectra books and will likely search out more books in the future. Tried splinter of the minds eye and now I'm checking out the SW tales books.
Your videos inspired me to go back and read the (original) EU books starting from Truce at Bakura. This was a lot of fun. Gave me a little more structure. I am trying to do it in chronological order
A little late to this video but better late than never. I actually just started with The Last Command of the Thrawn Trilogy and in a few days I will likely need to figure out where I am going to next. I am debating Shadows of the Empire, X-Wing series or the Jedi Academy trilogy. I am leaning towards either the first two. I will agree that starting at the Thrawn trilogy is the best spot to start. I actually took your advice about a year ago and got the trilogy and now just getting around to finishing it up and glad I did. I have enjoyed it a lot!
I'd say that the Corellian Trilogy should be read for (aside from the fun story) Centerpoint Station, which informs a lot of things later on. Fate of the Jedi is definitely worth a read, provided you're all right with numerous unresolved threads, even with Crucible to cap it off. Thanks for spreading the EU love, even if the movies don't do as well!
Haha! Thanks for the video. I read Truce at Bakura in the 90s and decided Star Wars books weren’t for me. I still have my Thrawn trilogy paperbacks. Maybe it’s finally time to give them a shot.
Oh man, what great memories!! I remember being so excited when Heir to the Empire came out. I immediately bought it, and my dad read it right after I finished it. After that, i had to fight to read every book first. LOL. I think we read the second simultaneously--him bending the pages (gah!) and me using a bookmarker. He flat out stole the third one from me. But at least he finished it in a couple of days, so I didn't have to wait too long. The next Thrawn series was a repeat of that dynamic. Heh. I've read several of the other ones you mentioned as well. Now, I have to go dig them out for some nostalgia reading this week. Mara Jade! Thrawn! Talon Karrde! The Thrawn trilogy will always rule!!! I am not interested in replacing them with a new EU.
That was awesome Mike and extremely helpful, thank you so much. I was totally lost when it came to the SW books yet loved the movies, so now I have watched your video, I am excited to start with the solo trilogy and go from there. 😁👍
X-wing baby, X-wing. It's right up there with some of the best of the EU, and I've read everything through NJO. Can't wait until you get into Book 1: Rogue Squadron by Stackpole. Mike, you didn't mention that the publisher starting putting "Essential" on some of the Legends books. It's interesting that they're still paying attention, even in this small way, to those older books.
@@chadjarnigan214 It was announced, with Kathy Jenkins the director of Wonder Woman, but then later they said she was not doing it. Total silence after, so I think it's a movie concept that's on the shelf for now. Too bad, because it could be amazing!
Hey Mike, thanks for the Star Wars vid! My favorite star wars EU series is X Wing by Micheal Stackpole. Takes place between Return of the Jedi and the Thrawn trilogy.
dark Empire was pretty good too that's when did takes place after Return of the Jedi but before Timothy Zahn did his books a lot of stuff they are became tropes for the expanded universe for years afterward it's also a good place to start if you don't start with the Timothy Zahn trilogy
Great video. Nostalgia is real with the Young Jedi Academy series I read as a kid. It’s been fun rediscovering these books slowly over the years. I would add in a few Old Republic titles that you didn’t mention, but that is arguably my favorite era as I lived on the KotOR games.
If someone wanted to read non jedi stories The Xwing/Rogue Squadron books are a good start. I think they are pretty fun action adventure. Corran Horn was the main character and is a bit of Luke stand in. Outside of Timothy Zahn they were some of my favourite books but I never been an Anderson fan. FYI the novelization of A New Hope was ghost written by Alan Dean Foster who wrote Splinter of a Minds Eye.
Kevin J. Anderson's Darksaber novel has nothing at all to do with the Mandalorian darksaber. The book was about a Hutt who builds a new super weapon which is called the Darksaber. It's basically a Death Star superlaser. Great book though, one of the first I read as a kid that got me into the EU.
Great stuff, Mike! Completely agree with you. Literally everything you state is exactly how i feel about these books. I wish Disney had used some of these books for episodes 7-9 instead of what we got
Man this was awesome. I'm saving this video. I grew up with the original trilogy films but have only read a couple Thrawn books up to this point. This will be a great reference for me to start dipping into this world of books more in the future!
Awesome video, Mike! I started with The Thrawn Trilogy and went from there. The EU gave me female heroes that the books we were assigned to read always seemed to lack. I remember "I, Jedi" being the first time my mom allowed me to buy a hardcover instead of making me wait for a softcover.
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Hey Bookworms! Here is the pinned comment I promised in the video.
If you want to read *JUST* the New Jedi Order, I recommend *AT LEAST* these basics first:
- The Thrawn trilogy (Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command)
- Jedi Academy trilogy (Jedi Search, Dark Apprentice, Champions of the Force)
- I, Jedi
- Hand of Thrawn duology (Specter of the Past, Vision of the Future)
If you want a streamlined, no filler run through the New Republic Era to Fate of the Jedi, I’d do this:
- The Thrawn trilogy (Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command)
- Jedi Academy trilogy (Jedi Search, Dark Apprentice, Champions of the Force)
- I, Jedi
- Hand of Thrawn duology (Specter of the Past, Vision of the Future)
- The New Jedi Order (19 books, starting with Vector Prime)
- Legacy of the Force (9 books, starting with Betrayal)
- Fate of the Jedi (9 books, starting with Outcast)
I loved the original Thrawn trilogy as well. I remember getting them through a sci fi book club mailing group.
You should read the Old republic Novels Darth Bane Trilogy and the Darth Plagueis books there really good also read the Revenge of the Sith novelization the best Novelization of a Film I have read.
THANKS A MILLION!!! I desperately needed this.
Thanks for this list Mike. I’ve read most of the X Wing books in high school and loved them. I just got back into wanting to read Star Wars and this list is going to help! Looking forward to getting back to my childhood love! Would love more Star Wars content from you!
Mike, this was a really helpful guide. I remember when the first Thrawn trilogy was released and it helped reinvigorate interest in Star Wars. I think i will check out the Thrawn trilogy.
Darth Plaqueis is one of the best star wars books for me because its a like a missing side of the episode 1-3. you learn how sidious was build up to the point when he takes control of everything.
Yeah Plageuis was fantastic both the book and character it serves as a great episode 0
Plagueis was never EU
I couldn't agree more. I even think it would've made a better Episode I.
Hahaha I clicked on this video so I could ask "How's the Darth Plaugueis novel?" and this is the first comment I see.
Also the Darth Bane trilogy and Old Republic books
I know youre not an audiobook guy but the EU is being rereleased in chunks unabridged with sound effects and music. A space battle is being narrated and youll hear laser blasts and ship sounds. Really good.
As someone who never has time to sit and read anymore, I greatly appreciate the Legends audiobook rereleases right now.
can you tell me where to find these audio books and who they're made by?
For those curious: there is a book that takes place between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back called Honor Among Thieves by the Expanse's own James S. A. Corey and it is DEFINITELY worth the read, especially if you're into both the EU and the Expanse. It's in the old canon, one of the very last of them.
I love the Zahn "Thrawn" trilogy. WHY couldn't Disney just use the plot from that set of books?!
Thrawn is an amazing antagonist, as you say.
Because the actors were too old to play themselves in the movies
@@TheChosenOne66501 you could have had the same/similar plot with the new characters
@@antjwilliams87 you right
Doesn't pass the bechdel test and other box ticking exercises would be my guess.
@@tom-u8k6yI refuse to believe that, blue aliens were a recipe for success for avatar, Star Wars wouldve gone gang busters if they had a new trilogy with the chiss ascendancy
Very helpful, as usual, Mike! The original Star Wars film trilogy was a defining element of my childhood, and I'm still a fan, but I never ventured into the books for fear they could never live up to the films. Your enthusiasm for the Expanded Universe might convince me to give them a try someday!
I was never a huge fan of the movies. They are good, but I was never obsessed. I read the first book in the Darth bane trilogy, and am now obsessed! There is a philosophical approach and depth in exploring the dark side vs the jedi. Super interesting!
@@Dylan13Collins Cool!
@@Dylan13Collins Star Wars really knows how to to Multimedia done right
And in My opinion Star Wars is the Greatest Multimedia Franchise ever
@@bradley8575 I would be Incline to agree. The scope is also unmatched in what I've read so far.
I don't think anyone of that generation didn't feel the permanent imprint of those movies in their DNA. When I thought we were clearly never getting another movie, these became FACT for me.
I like the Darth Plagueus book. If one ever wondered about the perspective of the sith and their ideology then this book will not disappoint. Such a brilliant origin for Palpatine and Darth maul along with, obviously, Darth Plagueus. If they just had used Plagueus as villain in the sequels then it would have tied up all the trilogies nicely together.
The Darth Plagueis book is a must read. It’s one of the most important books pre-The Phantom Menace. It really makes that film make much more sense.
@@AspyreFGC yeah so true!
Wedge is such a great character in the books. The Rogue Squadron novels are definitely worth the read!
It's fun to hear someone else talk about how much they enjoy the EU. My brother read most of these pretty religiously when they came out when he was in high school and I wasn't much of a reader then but he kept me filled in on the story but I'm working on reading them all now lol. I'm also looking forward to you reviewing "Rogue Squadron" but I think one point of clarification on that: the X-wing series is actually set between Return of the Jedi and the Thrawn Trilogy if I remember right, except for the last 2 books which are post- Last Command.
Agreed as someone who loved the EU it’s great for me to see others who share my enthusiasm for its stories
I started with the thrawn trilogy and really enjoyed it. I picked up all 19 books in NJO, hunted down some 1st editions. Last year I wanted to dive into NJO, but I am going to read Jedi academy first. Thanks for recommending these Mike, I’m in your younger demographic and didn’t even realize that Star Wars had such a good book continuation. Disney has dropped the ball with their movies/shows for me to the point that I don’t watch/care about them and this definitely makes me enjoy stars wars still.
This comment is to just say thank you for the video. I'm glad to find a decent video on where to start the SW series.
Hope it helped!
June 1st a New Jedi Order buddy read is starting on the Sarah Reads discord. Feel free to join.
Mike after what the mouse did to Star wars I haven't been interested in Star wars at all. Thank you for this, maybe I can enjoy it again.
This was MASSIVELY helpful, and, really, the breakdown I've been searching for ever since I brought home my first Star Wars book from work almost 20 years ago (still unread). Thank you! I've heard the same thing about Rogue Squadron, so that's what I latched onto as the place to start, but now I'm thinking it would be fun to go more chronological with it, gearing up for Thrawn as the payoff (I'm a completionist to a fault). This is awesome - I can't wait to dive deeper into this world. I just needed the structure. :D
Always happy to help!
I love videos like this because it just grows the EU community more and more. The EU is just amazing. I remember leaving the theater after episode 9 came out feeling so disappointed in what Disney did with this awesome franchise. I remember i watched a ton of rewriting videos on the sequels an a bunch of the mentioned the EU and i remember looking into the EU and just being amazed by just how vast it was. Your video was one of the many i watched about the EU and i can proudly say that i took you on your word and i read the Thrawn trilogy last year and now I’m on book four of the NJO. Thank you for opening this universe to me.
9:05 I would agree that the Thrawn Trilogy is the best place to start. Since it was written before almost all of the other EU stuff (it came out around 1992 - only 8 years after Return of the Jedi) most of the other books have a chance to reference them. Books that come later in the Star Wars chronology all reference the events/characters of these books. Books that precede them in the Star Wars chronology frequently foreshadow them. Doing a re-read of X-Wing (which in the timeline comes earlier) they make jokes about the Katana Fleet for instance. Had you not read Thrawn you wouldn't get the reference.
Hi Mike 👋 I have always been a Star Wars nerd as far back as I can remember! The first ever Star Wars that I have seen in the cinema was, in fact, Attack of the Clones back in 2002 and I remember that I wasn't able to recall what happened because I slept through the entire thing!
Not exactly my fault because I was just 4 years old at the time in 2002!!
However fast forward to 2005, I saw Revenge of the Sith and it was the best cinematic experience I had ever been!
I do agree that Episodes 7 to 9 had basically shattered my love for what is really canon after the events of Episode VI: Return of Jedi because of how Darth Caedus was my absolute favorite character which resulted with me as a 13 year old in 2011 when I became obsessed with Darth Caedus during 2008 to 2011 to the point that I actually was excited that Luke will be starting his Jedi Academy.
Ever since December 2019, I have a love-hate relationship with Star Wars because I cannot stand it why Luke has become jaded and exiled himself out of disappointment.
However, recently just last year around December 2023, my long-lost love for Star Wars made fall in love with the narrative after I saw the original trilogy paperback in the bookstore.
So far, as of now, I currently owned the three-in-one paperback Original Trilogy novel, Prequel Trilogy (also the three-in-one paperback), Labyrinth of Evil, Clone Wars, and I am planning to add and read Heir to the Empire if I ever get to buy it this Christmas.
Watching your video about the original Thrawn Trilogy, I am grateful because I changed my mind, Force Awakens is not episode VII but it is Heir to the Empire!!!
The Hutt Gambit is one of my favorite Star Wars books ever
Thrawn Trilogy is so good. Also love the Darth Bane Trilogy and others. So much still left to explore such as NJO!
Years ago I found a bunch of them at a thrift store I got all of them for 2.00. They were wonderful. I still have them
You’re the one who got me interested Mike. I have around 20 books in the EU which I haven’t started yet but plan to soon. Thanks for the insightful video.
On the advice of a coworker back in the early 2000's I started reading the Star Wars EU basically anything around the timing of the original movie trilogy and forward. Rogue Squadron was fun. Original Thrawn Trilogy was fantastically amazing. Vector Prime blew my mind, the scene where the legacy character dies and the long-term effects it had on the other characters because of how it went down. Unifying Force, again blowing my mind, and that whole series I was so intrigued by Vergere. The biggest takeaway I have is that if you paid really close attention, and could remember, there were minor things/items/people in books across the series that impacted things 20 books later. The overall massive storyline in the EU was my favorite. I ended with the end of Fate of the Jedi, partially because of getting married/starting a family and partially because of the loss of canonization.
I know they don't do well in the analytics, but I still love watching these videos. Thank you.
I started with the Darth Bane trilogy and I have no regrets with that decision!
Hey Mike- I apologise if you’ve touched on this before, but do you partake at all in the new Disney made ‘canon’ novels? (Eg. High republic series, and the new Rise of the Red Blade standalone). Cheers 👍🏻
I've only watched the movies (EPs 1-9), watched TCW and Andor, and played some games, never really engaged with the 'bonus' material even as a prequel kid, but since the EU's resurgence I've become interested and maybe I'll get some nostalgia from that era
Great help, Mike. I’m so burned out on Disney Star Wars and have finally let go of hope. I need to remember what a good Star Wars story feels like again, even if it will make me sad it’s not cannon or I will never see something like that on the screen. Thanks from one Star Wars fan to another. May the force be with you 🙏
I remember buying Heir to the Empire for my Dad on Father’s Day. And then the next 2 books the following Father's Days.
Totally self serving because I'm not sure he ever read them 😂
I started with Thrawn back in November and I got hooked, immediately, and have been working through the New Republic stuff ever since
Thrawn Trilogy and AC Crispin trilogy were both great!
I dont think there can be any books in the EU that are as bad as the High republic series Disney has going on right now... its rough. I collect the new canon books in hardback and honestly i have so much invested in them now, between time and money, its hard to stop reading them.... but there was so much in the EU that disney just disregarded and thats a kick in the teeth to anyone who grew up with this series.
The X-Wing books are a great place to start if you really like starfighter pilots. The series takes place in the 5 year gap between Return of the Jedi and the Thrawn Trilogy. And you don't need much knowledge of the Universe except the original movies. The big is the second book, Wedge's Gamble, shows how the New Republic took over Coruscant. So yeah, lots of good Star Wars going on. It does focus more on Wedge and the new Rogue Squadron he starts but that doesn't take away from how good it is. There is also the Wraith Squadron books that are a spin off of these that take place after right after these. Wraith Squadron was more covert ops first pilot second but still really good.
Heir to the empire truce at bakura or vector prime are the best starting points
Read Thrawn trilogy based on your old video Mike and then read Outbound Flight due to the mentions about it in the Thrawn books (highly recommend if you haven’t read it, C’Baaoth is a great character in it). That’s where my Star Wars reading ends so far as I have so many other things I wanna read but I’ll follow your recommendations when the chance arises, maybe when First Law is over
I’m actually listening to the Audible version of Darth Plaqueis now.
I’m not new to Star Wars but I’m new to the Expanded Universe (Legends). I got into it because I’m done with Disney Star Wars.
The books I’ve read are
Thrawn Trilogy:
Heir to the Empire
Dark Force Rising
The Last Command
---
Darth Bane:
Path of Destruction
Rule of Two
Dynasty of Evil
---
Revenge of the Sith novelization
Can't recommend Republic Commando by Karen Traviss enough. Very clone centric series and the Mandalorians who trained them.
Thanks for making this man! As someone who grew up in the prequel era, I actually started with Legacy of the Force and some of the YA / kids’ book novels in the new republic era. I loved the Jedi Academy books, and maybe because the prequels were still new at the time I loved the legacy of the force callbacks to the prequel era. But in retrospect I should’ve read chronologically. Always awesome to see someone still talking about old EU stuff, thanks for having this channel and making vids about the Legends/EU canon!
Glad you enjoyed it!
This takes me back. I loved the EU when I was high school.
6:00 A lot of us got exposed to "Shadows of the Empire" because the video game was released as one of the original 4 or 5 Nintendo 64 games. It was very popular and generally follows the storyline of the book.
Really glad this video popped up in my feed. I haven't read the expanded universe books in a while but was thinking of diving back in, this was a great refresher. I don't hate the new stuff but my sequels will always be the original Thrawn Trilogy and the Dark Empire comics from Dark Horse. Thanks, Mike! I've been enjoying your channel a lot lately.
The new jedi order is probably one of the things I'm most interested in. I read the first book in the Darth bane trilogy and I loved it! There is also a trilogy that is basically a griddy war novels that sound interesting (my brain went blank and forgot the name). But new jedi order sounds incredible!
On the Sarah Reads discord, we're starting a buddy read on June 1st.
@@PnutButtaJllyMan 👀
The new Jedi order series was great imo I’d def recommend. It’s a lengthy series but has some truly great books in it and the final book serves as a great conclusion imho
The Expanded Universe (because that is what I will always call it) provided hours of enjoyment for me in the past, and they still do. For the prequel era, I cannot recommend 'Darth Plaugeis' enough, as it really fills in a lot of background on the Sith taking over the republic.
Timothy Zahn cannot write a bad Star Wars novel as far as I am concerned. On my recent re-read, I was surprised how much 'Hand of Thrawn' leads up to the New Jedi Order. It was something I didn't remember on my initial read.
I ended my Star Wars reading with New Jedi Order, because the ending just felt so nice. I have heard 'Fate of the Jedi' ties back to a lot of stuff from pre- New Jedi Order, so they would be stuff I would maybe read someday, but it is not high priority.
Great video Mike! Thanks for the effort you put into this video, and hopefully new readers will check out the EU. May the force be with you!
I have been craving new and risk taking Star Wars content as I have only seen the Disney stuff really. Someone told me about Jacen and Jaina and I had to know more! I finally got inspired to read Heir to The Empire and I find it so good. I went out to the used book stores yesterday and started collecting these! It’s so much fun to find them. Great video! Excited to keep going! 🎉
I love the Star Wars EU. From The Han Solo Adventures all the way through Fate of the Jedi, I enjoyed them all. Thanks for the video, and the walk down memory lane. As a side note, the graphic novel adaptations of the Thrawn Trilogy are beautiful, and worth a look.
Really enjoyed this review. I'm reading the high republic series and it's my first dabble into star wars in print form. I really love sci fi and star wars but honestly had heard the comments that it was crap. Now I'm in this battle in my head whether or not to read heir to the empire or thrawn within Disney canon. Because, I don't want the let down you feel. But I also don't want crap. I've been warring in my head for months.
It's cool to know that other people read Star Wars. I have a book that's called the Rise of Darth Vader that I will be reading soon. I plan to start to read it May 4th. I like your R2D2 cup. The force is strong in this video.
Hey Mike! Thanks so much for the recommendations. Really started my Odyssey into the Star Wars Expanded Universe
5:00 The X-Wing series is pretty solid. While it's technically a longer series (something like 9 books) it's not really one long complete thought. The first four books were written by one author as a complete thought (and a complete series). Afterward, a new author took over at book 5 and introduced completely new characters and just called it "X-Wing Book 5" and so on. After a few books though it goes back to the original author and those are something of a sequel to both series. So it's very confusing.
I would highly recommend the first 4 books. That takes you through the fall of Coruscant and some very interesting political elements (including the Empire engaging in biological war with a targeted pandemic).
Great video, friend. I have been a Star Wars fan since my childhood in Nigeria and I'm currently rewatching Clone Wars and buying EU novels🎉🎉Just finished book one of the Bane trilogy and am also reading the prequel novelization. The Stae Wars lore is so amazing and well crafted byuxas and all those awesome writers👍Whenever i hear people say the Prequels were bad because of politics abd that politics has no place in Star Wars, I am always confused🤔 Lucas' great world building is also what made this franchise so awesome.
Excellent recommendations!!!
Please! Do more videos about this topic!
I can add to the recommendation of the best of the EU, this trilogies and books:
-Darth Bane trilogy
-Vader trilogy (laberint of evil, episode 3 of Matthew Stover, Darth Vader Dark Lord)
This is not trilogy, they're like 5 or 6 books but are very good
-Republic commando series (and imperial commando)
And the single book:
-Darth Plagueis
And as a recommendation to someone who love the EU, please, read this books! Are excellent!
Cheers!!! 😁
My Plane:
1. Thrawn Trilogy
2. Visions of the Past and Visions of the Future
3. Rogue Squadron Series
4. The New Jedi Order Series
For those people who are a bit younger, who grew up with the prequels being their Star Wars. Hell, I'm 35 and Phantom Menace came out when I was about 13, so I would probably consider myself in that group. Anyway, the series that I would recommend starting with, especially if you like Mandalorians, is the Republic Commando series by Karen Traviss. It starts just after episode 2, with the main protagonists being a squad of clone special forces and their jedi officers. The jedi are the weaker in the force, just barely qualifying as jedi knights levels of force ability, so they're closer to being normal people than the Council members, which makes them more relatable. The clones are a mix of hyper trained competence and sheltered innocence at the start of the series, being less than ten years old and spending all those years being trained on Kamino. By the end, they're fully aware of the shitty deal they've been given - shortened life spans, lack of choice, being used as a slave army, etc. The last book in the series is titled Order 66, and obviously it's about the fall of the Republic and the events around Order 66 from the perspective of these special forces clones. The next series, Imperial Commando, was never finished, due to George Lucas changing Mandalorian history when he made them pacifists in the Clone Wars animated series. It's still worth reading because you get to see the events that directly followed the fall of the Republic and the first days of the Empire.
There is a TH-camr named Josh Adams, who has been doing the audiobooks of the series, with legal permission to do so, and is doing them one chapter at a time. He's well into the second book now and has been doing an incredible job of them.
*_Han Solo at Star's End_* and then *_Splinter of the Mind's Eye_* were the two very first books to come out, and I say start with those.
i actually really remember liking some of the older republic books outside of the loved Revan books. Red Harvest and Dawn of the Jedi weren’t insanely new in ideas, but they painted a cosmopolitan universe better than i think is done with the new High Republic books
Thrawn trilogy is definitely the best place to start because it gets you hooked! I had no interest in an X-wing series but after reading the Thrawn trilogy I just wanted more good star wars content. Also Darth Plagueis is a book that really stood out to me as one of the better star wars books. It's called Darth Plagueis, but there is a ton of time dedicated to a young Palpatine which is really fantastic stuff.
I highly recommend Dark Empire and Tales of the Jedi to anyone who is interested in the origins of the Old Republic era. Those stories laid the groundwork for that era, and Dark Empire is actually a lot better than people perceive it to be based on it's premise. It actually managed to bring Palpatine back in a way that didn't tarnish Anakin's sacrifice since it is Luke and Leia's final test before they can come into their own as Jedi without someone like Obi-Wan, Yoda, or Anakin to step in and protect them. It's where Luke's new Jedi order starts, and that alone makes Anakin's sacrifice mean something.
A website called Yoda’s data pad has both timelines. You can also click on a character’s name and get their timeline. When I jumped back in I started with Han’s time line.
I remember when Heir to the Empire came out (had the whole trilogy in hardback, sadly I decluttered them) I read that in a day. It really is one of the best trilogies. I also love AC Crispins’ trilogy. The other Han Solo stories from Brian something were ok and Lando’s story was also ok. I never read the Jedi academy but the first three are sitting on my shelf. I’ll get to them at some point. Anyway, loved the video. Have a great weekend.
The X-Wing series is one of my favorite stories of Star wars it takes place between return of the Jedi and hair to the empire and fills in a lot of gaps in between and is the introduction of my second favorite Jedi corran horn. Also it's best to have seen return of the Jedi to get a better understanding of one of the pilots
I've been taking a break from my beloved Star Wars world for a while now because of some nasty stuff I've experienced from some "fans", and I wanted to get back into the world again. I think I shall go ahead and start with the Thrawn trilogy. Thank you for this, Mike. Much, much appreciated! Fans like you are who I love interacting with. :)
This is very helpful. I've spent most of my time reading the old republic and darth Bane trilogy
I never bothered going through and figuring out what was in the EU and do all of that research, so this video is going to be that reference point for me. This will single-handedly guide me through most of the EU, since I've always wanted to, so I appreciate you taking the time to make the video Mike!
this is really helpful! I have never dipped into Star Wars books because I had no idea where to start or what was happening. This will be a great reference for future reading!
Here’s a fun fact about The Legacy of the Force series. The length of time between it and A New Hope is roughly the same amount of time between A New Hope and The Force Awakens
Love the Star Wars books, was a much needed way to get a Star Wars fix during all the years when there wasn’t much available as film or tv development of Star Wars was years away
I plan on reading every sith, dark jedi & thrawn book/comic.
So far I've read darth plagueis (my favorite sith), darth bane path of destruction (my favorite star wars story/experience). Next up rule of 2😁
Just ordered Heir to the Empire and Shadows of the Empire to start out with. I gave up on trying the EU after reading the first Bane book by Drew Karpashyn as I couldn’t stand his writing style, but this helped bring back that spark of interest. Thanks!
Been into the eu ever since found the heir to the empire for 50c in a antique store. Perfect entery. I really enjoyed the old republic era with books like the Bane trilogy, Revan and more. Very keen to start reading books in the post original trilogy era! Great video
I started with the x-wing series when I was in high school. That’s back when I dreamed of being a fighter pilot. Then I kinda jumped around. The Thrawn trilogy, The Courtship of Princess Leia, The New Jedi Order.
Traitor in The New Jedi Order is still to this day one of my hands down favorite books!
Great video! As a huge Star Wars EU fan it makes me happy to see others who enjoy its stories and lore and characters. The ROTS novelization Darth Plageuis and new Jedi order as well as Thrawn and bane trilogies are my favorites, and I love Stover and Lucenos EU works. I plan to read outbound flight next I am really interested to hear about Thrawn before the empire
Just watched episodes 4-6 and 1-3 again and I’m really itching to jump into these EU books. Thanks so much for this!
For my part, I wanna thank you for the Star Wars content. I love your passion and dedication to it, and I will always be happy to watch you talk about it.
The Darth bane trilogy is hands down my favorite books written for StarWars such an amazing character. Also any thing old republic is amazing…
Sith and Jedi were so powerful back then so many forgotten techniques and all
My husband has read all of the EU books and loves them. I wasn’t ever interested in reading them before, because I wasn’t the huge Star Wars fan he is, and after that sequel trilogy 😩. This just gave me a new excitement for Star Wars! These sound so interesting. I would love to know more about the MCs in the movies, so I think reading this might be just what I need to fall in love with that world.
Thrawn trilogy for sho!
I have been wanting to read Star Wars EU for a bit but I always was nervous to but honestly you sold me on a bunch of books that isn't the Thrawn trilogy and I appreciate these recommendations.
The Thrawn Trilogy is so damn good. My favorite books in the EU.
I owned all those books and loved them but gave all of them away after Phantom Menace, I had a huge Star Wars reject after that movie, to this day! I kinda wish I kept them. Had hardcovers and trade paperbacks, I could sell them now. I watched the whole video, that's how much I love your channel.
Don’t deprive yourself of RA Salvatore because of one bad flavor, the Drizzt books are good fun dnd fantasy and echoes of the 4th magic wasn’t my cup of tea but a lot of people liked it (personally I enjoyed spear bearer more but it’s a light read).
17:55 why not? Disney pulled a 40 year time skip and it worked out fine!
I've read 7 Drizzt books so far and I love them.
I decided a couple of days ago that I was going to start The EU with Shadows of the Empire. I’ve always wondered how Luke went from being in hospital to where he started in Return of the Jedi.
I actually have the Graphic Novel version of the Thrawn Trilogy. I read through Darth Bane trilogy. I’m now reading Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void.
Shadows of the Empire made me a fan of Star Wars.
It got me into reading Star Wars books.
@@virgogaming6488 Same, Outside of V I thought the other two movies were corny but that book made me appreciate the movies and lore.
Thank you so much dude I love the Thrawn trilogy and I’ve been looking for what to read next, but I couldn’t find a clear answer anywhere
Started rocking my old Bantam Spectra books and will likely search out more books in the future. Tried splinter of the minds eye and now I'm checking out the SW tales books.
Your videos inspired me to go back and read the (original) EU books starting from Truce at Bakura. This was a lot of fun. Gave me a little more structure. I am trying to do it in chronological order
A little late to this video but better late than never. I actually just started with The Last Command of the Thrawn Trilogy and in a few days I will likely need to figure out where I am going to next. I am debating Shadows of the Empire, X-Wing series or the Jedi Academy trilogy. I am leaning towards either the first two. I will agree that starting at the Thrawn trilogy is the best spot to start. I actually took your advice about a year ago and got the trilogy and now just getting around to finishing it up and glad I did. I have enjoyed it a lot!
Mike - you need to do a video on just the X-WING books! They're amazing.
I'd say that the Corellian Trilogy should be read for (aside from the fun story) Centerpoint Station, which informs a lot of things later on.
Fate of the Jedi is definitely worth a read, provided you're all right with numerous unresolved threads, even with Crucible to cap it off.
Thanks for spreading the EU love, even if the movies don't do as well!
Haha! Thanks for the video. I read Truce at Bakura in the 90s and decided Star Wars books weren’t for me. I still have my Thrawn trilogy paperbacks. Maybe it’s finally time to give them a shot.
Oh man, what great memories!! I remember being so excited when Heir to the Empire came out. I immediately bought it, and my dad read it right after I finished it. After that, i had to fight to read every book first. LOL. I think we read the second simultaneously--him bending the pages (gah!) and me using a bookmarker. He flat out stole the third one from me. But at least he finished it in a couple of days, so I didn't have to wait too long. The next Thrawn series was a repeat of that dynamic. Heh.
I've read several of the other ones you mentioned as well. Now, I have to go dig them out for some nostalgia reading this week. Mara Jade! Thrawn! Talon Karrde!
The Thrawn trilogy will always rule!!! I am not interested in replacing them with a new EU.
Great video, loved your final thoughts at 20:45 too.
Very informative and very level-headed opinions.
Thanks for the help.
Glad it was helpful!
Good video. I read a fair bit of EU back in the day. Never read the Jedi Academy or New Jedi Order books. I might give those a look soon.
That was awesome Mike and extremely helpful, thank you so much. I was totally lost when it came to the SW books yet loved the movies, so now I have watched your video, I am excited to start with the solo trilogy and go from there. 😁👍
X-wing baby, X-wing. It's right up there with some of the best of the EU, and I've read everything through NJO. Can't wait until you get into Book 1: Rogue Squadron by Stackpole.
Mike, you didn't mention that the publisher starting putting "Essential" on some of the Legends books. It's interesting that they're still paying attention, even in this small way, to those older books.
isnt disney doing a movie Rogue squadron? is it the adaptation from this book or something new? i havent seen much about it yet
@@chadjarnigan214 It was announced, with Kathy Jenkins the director of Wonder Woman, but then later they said she was not doing it. Total silence after, so I think it's a movie concept that's on the shelf for now. Too bad, because it could be amazing!
Hey Mike, thanks for the Star Wars vid! My favorite star wars EU series is X Wing by Micheal Stackpole. Takes place between Return of the Jedi and the Thrawn trilogy.
dark Empire was pretty good too that's when did takes place after Return of the Jedi but before Timothy Zahn did his books a lot of stuff they are became tropes for the expanded universe for years afterward it's also a good place to start if you don't start with the Timothy Zahn trilogy
Great video. Nostalgia is real with the Young Jedi Academy series I read as a kid. It’s been fun rediscovering these books slowly over the years. I would add in a few Old Republic titles that you didn’t mention, but that is arguably my favorite era as I lived on the KotOR games.
If someone wanted to read non jedi stories The Xwing/Rogue Squadron books are a good start. I think they are pretty fun action adventure. Corran Horn was the main character and is a bit of Luke stand in. Outside of Timothy Zahn they were some of my favourite books but I never been an Anderson fan.
FYI the novelization of A New Hope was ghost written by Alan Dean Foster who wrote Splinter of a Minds Eye.
Kevin J. Anderson's Darksaber novel has nothing at all to do with the Mandalorian darksaber. The book was about a Hutt who builds a new super weapon which is called the Darksaber. It's basically a Death Star superlaser. Great book though, one of the first I read as a kid that got me into the EU.
Great stuff, Mike! Completely agree with you. Literally everything you state is exactly how i feel about these books. I wish Disney had used some of these books for episodes 7-9 instead of what we got
Man this was awesome. I'm saving this video. I grew up with the original trilogy films but have only read a couple Thrawn books up to this point. This will be a great reference for me to start dipping into this world of books more in the future!
Enjoy! It's a blast.
Awesome video, Mike! I started with The Thrawn Trilogy and went from there. The EU gave me female heroes that the books we were assigned to read always seemed to lack. I remember
"I, Jedi" being the first time my mom allowed me to buy a hardcover instead of making me wait for a softcover.
I agree the Thrawn trilogy is awesome and a good place to start.
I also really enjoyed the Darth Bane trilogy.