Star Wars: Episode II: Attack of the Clones

*All posts in the Star Wars Canon series contain minor spoilers

 

“The shroud of the dark side has fallen. Begun, the Clone War has.” Yoda, Star Wars: Episode II: Attack of the Clones

Written by: R.A. Salvatore

Published: April 23, 2002

When does Attack of the Clones take place? 22 BBY

Synopsis:

Political unrest sweeps through the Republic as more and more star systems join Count Dooku’s Separatist movement. Debate sparks on whether the Republic should create an army in case this unrest leads to war. In strong opposition of a Republic army, Senator Padmé Amidala soon finds herself the target of an assassination attempt. Assigned to her protection from the Jedi Council are Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker. Now Anakin struggles between his Jedi oaths and forbidden love as the galaxy prepares for the impending battle of dark versus light.

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I enjoyed the Attack of the Clones novelization much more than The Phantom Menace. There were a lot of extra scenes and the dialogue wasn’t as word for word the same as the movie as it was for The Phantom Menace. Some of the extra scenes included quite a bit about Shmi Skywalker and the Lars family. I appreciated the look into Shmi and Owen’s relationship and how close they were despite Shmi only being his step-mom for a few years. Shmi’s capture by the Tusken Raiders is more detailed which makes it even more heart-wrenching and the book shows how Cliegg really did everything he could to try and save her. Another of my favourite bonus scenes were the ones with Padmé’s family. Readers met her sister and nieces near the beginning of the book, and then when Anakin and her return to Naboo, we met her parents as well. I enjoyed seeing this other side of Padmé’s as well as getting a closer look of Naboo. Other extra scenes included ones with Jango and Boba Fett, as well as Obi-Wan and Mace Windu. Some of these bonus scenes were even supposed to be in the original film, but were cut before Attack of the Clones hit the theatres.

I thought Padmé and Anakin’s love story was better written in the novel. Padmé’s point of view, her thoughts and reasonings, are more deeply explored and her falling for Anakin doesn’t quite seem so forced as it can come across in the movie.

I found the pacing of the book a bit odd, and it might have been because there were so many extra scenes near the beginning, but the entire Geonosis plot happened very quickly. There was no expansion of the droid factory, arena, battle, or lightsaber fight scenes as there was with so much of the rest of the story. Only the very basics of who was there and what they did and said were written. To go along with this, Count Dooku is not nearly as ominous in the book as he is portrayed in the film. His ideals just seem like a threat to the Republic, but he doesn’t seem like the new big bad Sith to threaten the Jedi. Count Dooku is such a mystery, and I think if I hadn’t read Dooku: Jedi Lost I would have been very confused by his history with the Jedi. Considering this book came out almost two decades beforehand, I think it was lacking in some Dooku history.

I am also still confused why Count Dooku straight out tells Obi-Wan that the Republic is being controlled by a Sith lord, but the Jedi still can’t figure it out? That has always bothered me in the movie and a good explanation was not really given in the book beyond “Don’t trust Dooku.”

Have you read the Attack of the Clones novelization? Do you enjoy the book or the movie more?

 

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Complete list of Star Wars Canon Novels