Catalyst Part 2

[colls]

Welcome to our first of THREE check-in and discussion posts for our Book of the Month.

This month’s book is Catalyst by James Luceno
Part 2: The Pursuit of Peace (ch. 14-22)

Catalyst Part 2

1. Galen remarks that "Dooku was undeniably evil, but the Jedi also need to be held accountable - even historically - for being insular, and locking their secrets away." How does this fit in with the overall narrative of the Jedi for you?

2. What do you think about Has Obitt and his fellow smugglers? What role do you think they'll play in the final portion of the book?

3. What do you think of the 'Legacy Worlds'?

4. Other thoughts?



FYI - There's no need to answer all (or any) of the questions above - they're just talking points to get us started. Informal chatter is more than welcome! In-person book clubs often veer off topic, it's okay if we do as well. :)
All I ask is that you try to avoid spoilers for things past Part I of the book.

Comments

[brokenmnemonic]

1. I'm finding it intersting to see how the Jedi are described by the Empire and perceived by those now living in the Empire with them so recently gone. The comment from Galen surprised me somewhat, but I can see it being one of the perspectives the Empire would like to see propogating. (Also, not looking forward to the implication that the Kenobi series features Jedi who escaped GO66 getting hunted down).

2. I'm wondering how many of Obitt's fellow smugglers will make it out. I like the idea of them being one of the groups that eventually merge to form the active Resistance, but I'm not sure how unified the resistance actually was - from what I remember, Inferno Squad had Saw's unit down as active terrorists, and the mainstream rebels seemed iffy about them as well. Has seems to be acting out of cosncience because of what happened to the Legacy Worlds because of him, and I'd like to have him have a long career of upsetting Moffs.

3. I really like the idea of Legacy Worlds, and the way the Empire is just ripping them apart for resources is heartbreaking.

4. I'm pretty sure that given the timeframe, most of the minor cast and the Salient worlds are going to get ripped apart or killed by the Empire, and the book is already giving me the same feel that Rogue One did. That's having a much stronger impact on me than I expected.

[colls]

(Oh wow.... I forgot to respond to my own post.... LOL)

1. I found the impact of the propaganda fascinating - and how intelligent people (Galen) could get caught up in it because it was a story that fit their own narrative and made them comfortable. Comfortable in a "the war is over, there was someone to blame, we can be safe now" sort of way.
Yes!! I am so excited for the Kenobi series and expect this sort of thing will tie into it, especially with the inquisitors showing up.

2. Randomly, I thought Has Obitt was the same character that we saw in Rogue One (who was like Saw's right hand), but wookiepedia doesn't seem to comment on it.
I think it's interesting how the criminal element handled the shift in power from Republic to Empire.

3. It's a fascinating idea, isn't it? I'm sad that it was introduced just for the Empire to destroy it (and I understand that the entire point was to make the audience sad and mad about the Empire).

4. It's such a great companion piece to the movie. I'm looking forward to rewatching the movie and may have dusted off my vid clips for it in the meantime. :)