SWNN Retro Review: Tales of the Jedi (Part Two: Ulic Qel-Droma and the Beast Wars of Onderon, The Saga of Nomi Sunrider, & The Freedon Nadd Uprising)
SWNN Retro Reviews is a brand new series of articles that covers stories across all media in what is now referred to as the Legends continuity, the non-canon pre-Disney era of the explanded universe, which includes all Star Wars media outside of the films themselves.
In Part One of our first Retro Review, we covered the first two chronological story arcs in the Tales of the Jedi series, written by Kevin J. Anderson. In Part Two, we will be covering the next three arcs in the chronology of the series: Ulic Qel-Droma and the Beast Wars of Onderon, The Saga of Nomi Sunrider, and The Freedon Nadd Uprising by Tom Veitch.
Whereas the Golden Age and the Fall of the Sith story arcs took place about five thousand years prior to A New Hope, during a conflict that is known as the Great Hyperspace War, the remainder of the series covers the events leading up to and during the Great Sith War a thousand years later. In classic Star Wars style, the three stories we are covering in this review were actually the first ones published in the series, even though they take place chronologically after the events of the stories covered in Part One of this review.
The first two stories published in this series, Ulic Qel-Droma and the Beast Wars of Onderon and The Saga of Nomi Sunrider were collected together in a five-issue run simply titled Tales of the Jedi. It was not until these were released later in trade paperback that these five issues were referred to collectively as Tales of the Jedi: Knights of the Old Republic.
Shortly after the conclusion of this mini-series, a two-issue sequel was released under the title Tales of the Jedi: The Freedon Nadd Uprising. Together, these three story arcs tell a unified story that leads into the Great Sith War and introduces us to most of its key characters. Veitch also uses this series to explain the origins of some elements and characters that he first created for the Dark Empire series in 1991.
In an effort to avoid confusion with another comic series set in the same time period with a similar title (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic) by John Jackson Miller, we will refer to these stories under the names of the story arcs from this point on.
(plot descriptions from Wookieepedia)
Ulic Qel-Droma and the Beast Wars of Onderon from Tales of the Jedi by Tom Veitch (1993)
A thousand years after the defeat of the armies of the Sith Lord Naga Sadow, three Jedi apprentices—the brothers Ulic and Cay Qel-Droma and the Twi’lek Tott Doneeta—are busy learning the ways of the Jedi from Master Arca Jeth on the planet Arkania. Following a lightsaber training match, in which Ulic demonstrates his skill with the blade, Master Jeth gathers his three apprentices to tell them the history of a planet called Onderon; thousands of years before, Jeth explains, the atmospheres of Onderon and one of its four moons, the moon of Dxun, briefly came into direct contact with one another, thus allowing the native flying beasts from the jungles of Dxun to migrate to the surface of Onderon.
Even though the primitive native Onderonians proved to be easy targets for these gigantic animals, the Onderonians eventually learned to hunt the great flying beasts which had invaded their world. Jeth continues by explaining how the arrival of the Dxun beasts forced the primitive tribal cultures of Onderon to evolve into a modern civilization, establishing themselves in the walled city of Iziz, thus allowing for an easier defense against the flying beasts.
As the city of Iziz grew, so did its laws and customs. As part of these customs, criminals are cast out into the wild, beyond the protection afforded by Iziz’s walls. However, these criminals eventually learned to tame the flying beasts, and managed to organize themselves into war bands against city of Iziz.
These exiled criminals, who Master Jeth explain were called “Beast Riders,” eventually found themselves in open warfare with the forces of Iziz in a conflict which would come to be known as the Beast Wars. This conflict, the three apprentices learn, had been raging for hundreds of years, and the Onderonian royal family had requested the aid of the Jedi to help bring an effective end to the conflict. Following this, Arca Jeth explains that he had been chosen as the Jedi Watchman for the Onderon system, and that he is going to send his three apprentices to Iziz to help bring about a peaceful end to the Beast Wars.
At first, Ulic, Cay, and Doneeta are surprised at this revelation, but then jump on the chance to prove themselves on their first mission. The trio depart Arkania and soon arrive at Iziz on Onderon, where they are granted an audience with Queen Amanoa, who is the ruling monarch at that time. However, during their meeting with Amanoa, several Beast Riders burst through the large palace windows and attack the Jedi and Royal Guards. During the ensuing struggle, a special unit of Beast Warrior Commandos enters the fray and manage to kidnap Princess Galia, daughter to Amanoa.
Demanding that the Jedi find and rescue her daughter, Amanoa sends the three apprentices outside of Iziz to pursue the fleeing Beast Riders. Accepting Amanoa’s demands for help, Ulic, Cay, and Tott Doneeta journey into the Onderon wilds, and eventually make their way to Kira Fortress, the forest citadel of Beast Lord Modon Kira. There, the Jedi discover that Galia’s kidnapping is actually an elaborate plot planned by herself and Oron, Modon Kira’s son. The kidnapping, they explain, took place so that Galia can be rid of the dark influence of her mother and the Onderonian royal family, and also so that she could marry Oron.
Explaining how her family had been influenced by the dark side for generations, beginning with a fallen Jedi named Freedon Nadd, Galia and Oron are able to enlist the help of Ulic and his companions in overthrowing the current government of Iziz. Believing that a peaceful resolution to the Beast Wars should be attempted, the Jedi, Galia, and Oron Kira make their way back to Iziz and are able to speak with Amanoa, pleading that she help bring an end to the war.
Despite their intentions, the Jedi and their allies are expelled from the royal hall by Amanoa, who had called upon the dark side to drive them away. Sensing that the peaceful solution has failed, Modon Kira gathered together the various other Beast Lords from across the whole of Onderon, and together, the combined armies of the Beast Riders attack the city of Iziz. The battle turns into a fierce affair, in which Cay Qel-Droma’s left arm is cut off, and Amanoa is forced to retreat below the royal palace to the tomb of Freedon Nadd.
Meanwhile, having sensed that his apprentices were in trouble, Master Jeth travels to Onderon and arrives during the Beast Riders’ assault on Iziz. Using the art of battle meditation to help turn the tide of the fighting against the dark side forces of Amanoa, Jeth is able to bring a swift victory to the Beast Rider armies. Joining his apprentices, Galia, and Oron in the royal palace, Master Jeth confronts Amanoa in the dark side tomb of Nadd.
Overwhelmed by the power which Jeth possessed, Amanoa is instantly killed by the effects of the light side of the Force. Following the death of Amanoa, Princess Galia and her new husband Oron Kira take their places as the new rulers of Onderon, thus effectively bringing an end to the Beast Wars which had plagued the planet for generations.
The Saga of Nomi Sunrider from Tales of the Jedi by Tom Veitch (1993-1994)
About 4000 years before A New Hope, the Jedi apprentice Andur Sunrider, along with his wife Nomi, their daughter Vima, and their droid A-3DO leave their home on the planet H’ratth in order to seek out the reclusive Jedi Master known as Thon on Ambria in the Stenness system. Having been sent by his old Master, Chamma, to learn from Thon, Andur carries several rare Adegan crystals which he was to present to Thon as a gift from Chamma.
Midway through their trip to the Stenness system, the Sunriders stop at a hyperspace terminal to gather food and supplies for the final leg of the journey to see Thon. During their time at the hyperspace terminal, it is discovered by Bogga the Hutt, a known crime lord, that Andur is in possession of several rare Adegan crystals. Wanting the crystals for himself, Bogga orders his gang of thugs to attack the young man and bring the crystals back to him.
Bogga’s gang managed to surprise and kill the young Andur, but are unable to gather the Adegan crystals from the corpse. Following his death, Andur reappears as a Force ghost to his wife Nomi, telling her to pick up his fallen lightsaber and defend both their daughter and herself. Through her dead husband’s insistence and knowledge that she is Force-sensitive, Nomi is able slay two of the criminals and send the rest fleeing. She then gathers up Vima, A-3DO, and the crystals, and departs once again for Ambria.
Having arrived on the desolate world of Ambria, Nomi orders A-3DO to stay behind with their ship, the Lightside Explorer. Bringing Vima along, Nomi sets out to follow her feelings in the hopes that they would lead her to that whom she sought—Jedi Master Thon. Eventually making her way through the harsh deserts of Ambria, Nomi and Vima encounter a lone being riding atop a fierce-looking beast. Knowing that this being is a Jedi, Nomi follows him back to his modest dwelling, a small farm in the middle of the desert.
Meanwhile, at the order of Bogga, who still wants the elusive Adegan crystals, several gangsters manage to track Nomi to Ambria, where they find A-3DO inside the Lightside Explorer. Believing that the crystals they sought are inside the ship, the thugs shoot A-3DO while in the process of looking for the hidden treasure, unaware that Nomi has taken the crystals with her. Following their quarry’s trail to the dwelling where Nomi and Vima are, Bogga’s men are confronted by Nomi’s host. However, the Jedi is overwhelmed by the sheer number of thugs. Despite the apparent advantage held by the gangsters, the beast which Nomi had seen the Jedi riding intervenes in the struggle.
Advantaged by the element of surprise, the beast is able to trample several of the pirates, thus forcing the remainder of the gang into retreat. Safe for the time being, it is soon revealed that the being whom she had met was actually a Jedi Knight by the name of Oss Wilum, and that it is the fierce-looking beast who actually Master Thon.
Under the guidance of Thon, Nomi begins her training as a Jedi Knight, alongside Oss Wilum. While the Jedi training continues on Ambria, a ship of Bogga the Hutt’s is hijacked by the pirate Finhead Stonebone, who is intent on capturing the valuable ore which was contained aboard the ship. However, Bogga himself, aboard his flagship Enforcer One, is able to thwart Stonebone’s plans and captures both him and his pirate gang.
Believing that Bogga was going to execute him for his crimes, Stonebone was surprised when Bogga decides that the pirate and his gang would pay for their crimes by traveling to Ambria, where Stonebone was to kill Master Thon and anyone with him, and retrieve the Adegan crystals which had previously eluded Bogga’s best efforts. Stonebone, as the leader of both his pirate crew and several thugs of Bogga, leads an attack on Thon’s homestead, and manages to capture Thon due to Nomi’s reluctance to engage in violence following her husband’s murder.
However, upon realizing that Thon is not going to fight back, in order to show her the path of the Jedi, Nomi decides to use her Force abilities to attack Stonebone and the rest of his gang. Through the combined efforts of Nomi and the freed Thon, the pirates are soon driven from Ambria, never to return again.
The Freedon Nadd Uprising by Tom Veitch (1994)
Following the defeat of Queen Amanoa in the bowels of the Iziz palace, Jedi Master Arca Jeth, along with various other Jedi and Beast Riders, attempts to move the sarcophagi of Freedon Nadd and Amanoa to the jungle moon of Dxun. During the funeral procession, the group is attacked by the Naddist dark side army, soldiers of the dark side cult which worshipped Freedon Nadd. The attackers are led by the large armored Dark Jedi Warb Null, and proceed to lay siege to the procession.
During the attack, the sarcophagi of both Nadd and Amanoa are stolen by the Naddists, while Null holds off the several Jedi Knights by engaging them in lightsaber combat. With their intended targets secured in their grasp, Null and the Naddists retreat aboard their groundboring war machine, and escape back into the ground beneath Iziz.
Realizing that darkness still reigns on Onderon, Jeth, Ulic Qel-Droma and Queen Galia approach the apparently ailing King Ommin, father to Galia and husband to the late Amanoa, for assistance in finding the Naddists. However, using Sith magic taught to him by Nadd, Ommin is able to knock Jeth unconscious, while Qel-Droma and Galia are confronted by the spirit of Freedon Nadd and his right-hand subordinate, Warb Null.
Although Qel-Droma kills Null, Ommin has enough time to spirit Jeth away. In the aftermath, Qel-Droma puts forth a call for aid—the Jedi leadership responds by sending several Jedi, including Nomi Sunrider, to help extinguish the Freedon Nadd Uprising. Meanwhile, two aristocratic cousins, Satal and Aleema Keto, creators of a dark side cult known as the Krath, venture to the Galactic Museum on Coruscant in search of dark side knowledge.
Although they manage to steal a Sith spellbook, they cannot read it, and decide to set out for Onderon in hopes that the Naddists would help them. The Ketos are eventually granted an audience with Ommin, and the old man gives Satal the gift of a Sith amulet. With the amulet, Satal and Aleema find that they can read the contents of the book.
While Ommin is meeting with the Ketos, the Jedi reinforcements from Ossus arrive on Onderon and join the battle alongside their fellow Jedi already there. Along with a Republic attack fleet, the Jedi storm the fortress and free Jeth, and are again confronted by the spirit of Freedon Nadd. Realizing that Ommin can no longer be a vessel for his means, Nadd withdraws his dark side influence from the old man, causing Ommin to die.
After a brief war of words with Jeth, the spirit of Nadd once again retreats into his sarcophagus. With the death of Ommin, and the apparent defeat of Nadd, the Naddist rebellion is effectively put down by the Republic and Jedi forces. Following this, the sarcophagi of Ommin, Amanoa, and Nadd are all successfully transported to Onderon’s fourth moon of Dxun, and interred there by the Jedi.
Verdict
What Works:
These stories provide a great deal of background on how the Jedi operated in the glory days of the Old Republic. As with all Star Wars tales where the Jedi are involved, the dark side looms as a constant threat over the established peace. For a thousand years since the defeat of Naga Sadow, the Sith have lain dormant, and this story shows how the Sith once again began to grow in power, which will be fully fleshed out in the final chapters of the series.
I’ve always been a fan of the Old Republic era expanded universe and this series set the foundation for all future stories to be built upon. Having read Veitch’s Dark Empire trilogy, it was also nice to see how this series tied in to that one as well, providing the familial origins of the old Jedi Vima-Da-Boda among many other references. The stories are fun, even though they border a little on the silly side at times, and some of the characters are great additions to the Star Wars universe.
What Doesn’t:
As I mentioned above, some elements do come across a little silly sometimes and at times detract from the believability of the story (as much as a story set a long time ago in a far away galaxy can be believed anyway). These moments, along with a few characters like the triceratops-like Jedi Master Thon and the ridiculously named Finhead Stonebone, don’t really resonate with me as being a true part of the Star Wars universe.
In contrast to the feel of the more recent stories set in this era under the Star Wars: The Old Republic moniker, the expanded universe stories from the early ‘90’s set in this time period sometimes feel like they are part of a different universe altogether. However, this is forgiveable to an extent, seeing as how these events take place thousands of years before the Star Wars that we know from the movies.
You don’t want it to feel exactly the same, and some degree of separation is needed, but it remains that sometimes the stories feel like they don’t really belong in that world. That being said, the stories are pretty entertaining and the characters are very unique and original, which can be viewed as a good thing as well.
So, is any of it Canon?
As with the rest of the stories in this series, the stories themselves are not considered canonical – nor are any of the characters in them (at least to my knowledge). However, as with a lot of the Legends material, several elements have already been brought over into the official canon via other canonical media, and it remains to be seen how much of this story will eventually find its way into the official history books of the Star Wars universe.
Some of these canonical elements of note include the world of Ossus, the planet where the Jedi stored the sum of their knowledge for a thousand years, and the planet of Onderon. Ossus made its first appearance in The Freedon Nadd Uprising. The planet was eventually absorbed into the official canon via the short story “The End of History” by Alexander Freed which appeared in the December, 2014 issue of Star Wars Insider.
The planet of Onderon, along with its capital city of Iziz, was the setting of a four episode story arc at the beginning of the fifth season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars thus securing its place in the canon.
I highly recommend this series to anyone who wants to delve into the existing lore of the Jedi. Canon or not, these stories are a fun read and it will be interesting to see what elements are used from it in the future along with those that have already been grafted in to the official canon. As with all the books in this series – although they aren’t that difficult to obtain – the series is out of print, so the pricetag may not be worth it unless you just really want to add the series to your collection.
Nevertheless, my recommendation to check the series out if possible remains. The entire series, along with a healthy amount of Star Wars comics, previously published under Dark Horse comics can be read digitally as well by subscribers to the Marvel Unlimited service.
Jordan Pate is Co-Lead Editor and Senior Writer for Star Wars News Net, of which he is also a member of the book and comic review team. He loves all things Star Wars, but when he's not spending time in the galaxy far far away, he might be found in our own galaxy hanging out in Gotham City or at 1407 Graymalkin Lane, Salem Center, NY.
Thanks for keeping the great EU alive
cool stuff. if i recall correctly, ulic popped up in the clone wars video game from way back. his force ghost taught anakin a dark side-ish power to help him defeat an old republic era super weapon dooku had dug up.
I never really had much exposure to the EU stuff, but that whole thing with Onderon sounds like a great story that’s really well thought out.
Like, defenseless people + monsters = badasses + thousands of years = city = bandits exiled into monster-wasteland + thousand more years = monster-riding-criminal-badasses attacking city. It’s simultaneously silly, awesome, and logical.
Have all these comics stashed SOMEWHERE in boxes (!)
Great series, although the quality of the artwork tends to vary quite a bit in these particular story arcs. Worth a read regardless, so much groundwork for the history of the SW universe was laid in these comics.
Especially w/ Vima (Nomi’s daughter) turning up under much different circumstances in Dark Empire I…
This is one of my all time faves. Awesome ship designs.
Great article and retro reviews, Hard Case!
Dave Dorman’s covers are masterpieces. I wish the current artists would take their work as seriously as he did.
To be fair it’s equally embarrassing with Marvel/DC these days as well.