Book Review: ‘Star Wars Jedi: Battle Scars’
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Star Wars Jedi: Battle Scars is the book that sets out to bridge Jedi: Fallen Order and Jedi: Survivor. Jedi: Battle Scars describes the post-Fallen Order adventures as targeting the Haxion Brood bounty hunters and the Empire. Author Sam Maggs gives Jedi: Fallen Order fans what they wanted with small portions of love by Cal mentioning his time wearing a pink poncho, or BD-1 creating a loving friendship with the adopted boggling from Bogano. After Cal and Cere’s encounter with Darth Vader on the Fortress Inquisitorious, the Mantis crew have sat on their laurels while living on the run for about two and a half years.
The book develops each member of the Mantis crew by defining what they want out of the Galaxy. First, Cal must overcome his attachment to his Mantis family, as attachment is forbidden for any member of the Jedi Order. Cere still holds herself accountable for the fate of Trilla, her former padawan. Merrin must overcome the loss of her Dathomiri magik. Lastly, Greez suffers from the loss of a limb and must find a way to endure the trauma accrued over time.
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The largest criticism of Jedi: Battle Scars is Cal Kestis’s power scaling with other Force Users. Cal Kestis was able to take on powerful Force users like ex-Jedi Master Taron Malicos. Later, Cal would struggle with fighting the Ninth Sister but would ultimately overcome the much larger adversary. However, Cal could not beat the Fifth Brother in a one-on-one lightsaber duel.
More than that, in Jedi: Battle Scars the Fifth Brother does not utilize an official lightsaber form and heavily relies on his natural brute strength, which Cal Kestis can overcome with his speed and agility. The Fifth Brother ultimately dies on Malachor at the hands of Darth Maul; essentially locking the Fifth Brother’s power level under Maul, Ahsoka, and eventually, Kannan Jarrus but not Ezra Bridger. There is, however, a discrepancy with where Cal fits in as a flourishing Jedi Knight.
After the loss of Trilla, Cere walked away from being a Jedi. So when Cere knights Cal with the lightsaber of her fallen Padawan Cere begins to connect with the force again. Sadly, the trauma of a fallen Padawan will remain with Cere and is explored through the Fifth Brother. Cere will inevitably try to save any inquisitor as to her they are misfortunate brainwashed children that deserved better. Each encounter with an Inquisitor is another chance to allow all the pain that follows with thoughts of Trilla to resurface and further wound Cere. This encounter with the Fifth Brother explores acceptance and how Cere must forgive herself for Trilla.
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One enjoyable aspect of Jedi: Battle Scars is the development of Merrin’s Dathomiri magik. In Jedi: Battle Scars Merrin can use the Chant of Resurrection and suffocate Purge Stormtroopers with the ichor from her magic. Merrin uses the Chant of Resurrection in cool ways by reanimating fallen foes and cracking jokes about the reanimations. But Merrin isn't able to perform the chant frequently nor reanimate as many dead as Old Daka. Merrin spends much of her time in the book overcoming her benevolent nature with the use of Dark Side Force powers.
Another negative note, however, is that the plot is tied to Merrin’s romance with the Stormtrooper Frett. Merrin is the sweetest Dathmiri Nightsister and does not deserve the hardship given by Frett’s antics. Frett is a Stormtrooper who is an Imperial analyst after a device called the Shroud. This character is utterly unredeemable as Frett plays with Merrin’s heart, breaking Merrin’s heart at every available opportunity by being mistrustful.
Frett does this by initially trauma bonding with Merrin over their shared traumatic past. In Merrin's case, that means delving into the loneliness she experienced on Dathomir after the Purge. Next, Frett would conceal her true motives about why she hired Cal and the Mantis crew. Frett withholds vital information about the Shroud's origins and How Frett is connected to it. It would not be Frett’s Imperial past that let tensions flare up on the Mantis, but Frett’s inconsistent lying instead and Greez’s natural mistrust of the Imperial Stormtrooper. Ultimately, Frett’s dishonesty and cowardice would cost Greez his arm.
For most of the ride, Greez has overcome his addictive gambling habits and routinely focuses on his grumpy uncle act, watering the terrarium, or making the Mantis crew delicious food. However, this serves as the focal point of what Greez wants. Greez is worried that their luck is going to run out and quite frankly he would like to sit around the table on Life Day and enjoy a meal with his Mantis family. Greez’s frustration is solidified when Cal and Merrin take on yet another mission to do some real damage to the Empire. This mission would cost Greez a part of himself but also allow him to decide for himself the value he places on family and what that means to Greez.
Jedi: Battle Scars is an entirely skippable but enjoyable adventure that does not have galaxy-wide repercussions. However, this book is still a classic Star Wars adventure! And it goes without saying that fans of the first game will enjoy most, if not all, of the character development in the book. If you plan on picking up Jedi: Survivor, you might want to order a copy of Jedi: Battle Scars as well.
Rating: 6.8/10
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