User blog comment:Brandon Rhea/THE CHOSEN ONE: First four chapters released!/@comment-1169345-20120929131947

So yeah, I read the first four chapters of Star Wars: Episode I - The Chosen One (the novel about me) last night and I have to tell you it does not fail to live up to the hype that surrounded this story the last three years, particularly the promotion this past month.

The story is surprisingly engaging, well-detailed and flows better than the hate within the Emperor aboard the Death Star II. This version of The Chosen One shows tremendous growth within Rhea as an author and his team of editors. The past three years have been well-spent honing his craft. Looking back at his first attempts at writing this story (which are still buried within the archives--I mean the mainspace--of Star Wars Fanon) and reading the version we are seeing unfold now, you can definitely see the improvement in character development, description, word choice and dialogue. Brandon can sit back with a smile on his face because this is the best iteration of Chosen One I have read to date--so far.

Now on to the nitty-gritty, MASSIVE SPOILERS AFTER THE JUMP.

SPOILERS, THIS IS THE POINT OF NO RETURN!!!!!!!!!

All right, now we get to the meat and potatoes, the main course, the pièce de résistance, the food related cliché!

My review of the first TCO release will be positive, to be markedly blunt about it. This story has information packed up the yin-yang and feels like a rewarding adventure itself, all of it in a mere 28 pages or so. The story--as has been revealed--starts off in unorthodox fashion by nixing the usual opening aboard one spaceship or another. It DOES mention space with its opening lines, but quickly pans down to the desolate, barren desert--the real setting.

After painting a vivid picture of the scenery and sounds of the desert and creating a personality for the setting unto itself, it briskly shifts focus to a mysterious figure and his thoughts. One gets a clear picture of what the figure is seeing, feeling, doing...a hallmark of Brandon's remarkable improvement in character description and development. You can almost feel the fear the character, revealed to be Michael Lars, is feeling come off the page or screen. The ever present threat of the sand people (also well-developed, you have a clear understanding of who and what they are and the threat they represent) behind him and the drama of their little race to Anchorhead creates a riveting opening salvo for this story.

This leads me to my first satisfied reaction to TCO, the introduction to the Darklighter name. Everyone familiar with Star Wars knows the surname Darklighter, but that isn't why I like its inclusion. I like it because it shows a care to source material that came before it, namely my fondness for the Biggs Darklighter character from the very first film. It shows a respect for Star Wars, this is also present in the choice for the character's given name Deak which was used in the treatments for Star Wars before the final draft.

Deak appears to be another good addition to the story, although I felt his character to be lacking somewhat in character development that I chalked up to lack of actual "screentime", I have more than enough faith to believe he will be fleshed out as the story progresses.

The opening scene and the resultant rescue by Deak for his nephew (WHOA MY GOODNESS) is not just a filler or a way to open the story, it truly impacts the rest of the story and I feel will come to a head much later on, particularly because a rival of Michael is a spoiled underling of Deak who works for the oppressive ruling body (Teh lols cause they are Hutts) and because there has been a past occurrence of Deak dealing for his family's sake. That is a dynamic that could explode in a huge way.

Once we make it through, we follow Michael as he moves to a cantina in town. There he reflects on his family's misfortune and reputation among the denizens of the city until a friend--and possible mentor--named Ray'kele enters the frame, stage right. This middle-aged man and Michael share a warm greeting and friendly chit-chat which serves as development and as a background to events that preceded the opening. Rhea sprinkles this effective double use of dialogue throughout. Even with all this important dialogue that helps with shaping the characters and giving out information, it is the closing statements of Ray'kele to his young friend that will have the most profound impact. The tidbit given out by this seemingly minor character, (to this point) before he leaves, is the first discernible reference to the title and the ultimate destiny of Michael himself, it is the first reference to a messiah, to a Chosen One in the saga itself. This exchange is sure to be key to the overarching story.

Once Michael's mentor leaves, he delves into more important backstory through the use of a journal named Beyond the Rim. We are given the name of his father and introduced to Michael's desire to leave his desert home for great and greener pastures.

Now comes satisfying moment #2. We get another reference to the source material that came before him, this time it is reconstructed in a surprising, but no unpleasant way. We learn of the existence of a Banai. The great twist is that this Banai plays a role that is the complete opposite of his canon counterpart. Instead of being the great best friend, he is the mortal enemy and rival of one Michael Lars. Joshua (Improvement over the name Kitster) Banai plays the first major obstacle in Michael's journey if you discount the Raiders at the beginning. He and his two cronies play the easily unlikable antagonists of innocent Michael.

The greatness of this scene doesn't come from the seemingly cliche bully, but from the main character. We see the first instance of true flaw and failure on the part of Michael. He isn't a perfect little angel that has no character flaws, no skeletons in his closet; he is a true blue human being with failings like you and me. It flares up upon the incessant goading of his enemies and he gets into a brawl. Not only do we see a temper, but we witness a bit of rashness and hatred from ol' Michael.

Needless to say he gets pulverized (no Mary Suing out of this one thankfully) and only lives to tell about it due to the cavalry in the form of an ex-girlfriend. An ex-girlfriend that is currently the girlfriend of his arch-rival who works for his uncle who works for the Hutts, the oppressive government (an impressive web of tension and possible conflict already! OH MY FORCE!).

Incoming! We satisfied moment #3. More instance of character flaw, this in the form of seductress Sara Jade, ex-girlfriend. She represents vice and lust to the pinnacle. Sara brings out the jealousy, pettiness and lust from within Michael. She brings out all of the worst traits in the main character and fools him into not realizing that she is subverting and corrupting him. She is inviting him to become like her, to become a stain of himself, to give in to primal urges and defeat everything he wants and believes in. In this first release she plays the true villain, a femme fatale of a less sinister order.

After showing resolve and rebuffing her calls to destroy his integrity and morals he heads home. Before returning home we get even more intriguing and informative background on the situation he and the citizens of Anchorhead find themselves in, but more importantly we get more insight into the psyche of Michael and see the corrupt Sara did to him already. His dreams to be free and leave home have been subverted by Sara and left him embittered.

Finally home, we catch the first interaction with his adoptive father and see how truly close they are and the importance of Luke, his father in his life (he father was mentioned several times earlier). We here background on Deak and Luke and gain information that could lead to the obstacle/problem I mentioned earlier when talking about Deak.

Afterward we catch up with an angry and frustrated Michael (once more bringing back down to Tatooine). In comes possibly the most intriguing character aside from Michael and possibly the biggest welcomed departure from canon character you will experience. We meet a jovial and almost impish Owen Lars. He is by no means similar to his movie counterparts and it is a welcomed change. We see life and character to a person known for being overbearing and flat with emotion. He already has the believability that he would willingly do anything for his brother, sorely missed in the films. He is also one part of the strongest developed relationship and dialogue in this release. He and Michael were the most fun to read and the best done. In fact, I'd say that little scene between the two annihilates anything from any of Brandon's drafts past and present. One note: excellent homage to A New Hope in their little scene together.

The dream sequence was not the most impressive to me, I can understand that it might get better once more of the story is revealed, but I didn't care for it from the standpoint of judging the release for the release and not the entire novel.

Here we get the second to last major show of flaw in this content drop. Michael, still affected by the seduction and influence of one Sara Jade, resolves to steal alcohol (an illegal item) from his father and head out toward his ex-girlfriend's home. Again, showing flaw is a big 'yippee' for me since it distances the character from Mary Suedom.

He gets there to find a devastated and distraught Sara emotionally wrecked from Joshua Banai dumping her. Upon that revelation, Michael shows his last major bout of imperfection when he is joyous over the news. He quickly consoles her and shows his intention for visiting Sara, which only granted the latter a temporary reprieve from her distress.

Michael takes Sara out to a spot the two are familiar with and become intimate again, sharing and reflecting on experiences the two had with and without each other. It concludes with a heartfelt story from Michael which included the first mention of Jedi.

In a show of true growth as an author, Brandon pulls the rug right out from under the situation and moves the story on in an important and meaningful way, this time with Sara leaving Michael hanging; emphasizing her less than decent nature and Michael's naivety and imperfection.

Brandon ends on an exciting cliffhanger that promises more action and fun to come. Star Wars: Episode I - [s]I'm[/s] The Chosen One does not disappoint out of the gate. It is as golden as the sands of Michael's home planet.