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Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary (New Edition)

TFN Review: Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary (New Edition) From DK

Posted by Adam on October 16, 2018 at 11:38 PM CST



With new Star Wars movies come new characters, vehicles, planets and technology, and with so many Star Wars fans poring over every little bit of the screen to glean as much information as they possibly can, the various visual guides and dictionaries that have been released over the years have proven invaluable sources of information.

Which brings us to the latest version from DK books that collects a wealth of content from all of the previous editions from the live-action movie, presented in chronological order, starting in the Prequel Trilogy Era up to the Kallidahin on Polis Massa, then through the Original Trilogy and Sequel Eras. It feels like Lucasfilm got the band back together, given the contributing authors comprise Star Wars luminaries James Luceno, David West Reynolds, Ryder Windham, Jason Fry and Pablo Hidalgo, while new photography has been provided by Alex Ivanov, and "special fabrications" by Don Bies, among others.

The book opens with an introduction that explains the purpose of the Visual Dictionary and the reason for the update, followed by a Galaxy Overview that briefly discusses the different factions that have existed during the time period along with major locations, namely Coruscant, Jakku, Naboo, Starkiller Base and Tatooine. Special Technology provides a general summary of blaster weaponry, lightsabers and droids.

As with previous editions, the different sections cover topics in a variety of ways, with some pages devoted to individuals, others by organization, species or grouped as another type of collective, as well as locations and two The Last Jedi-themed entries in the form of Infiltration and First Order Invasion!

Many of the prominent characters get multiple entries, and not just across the different categories. As you might expect, R2-D2 and C-3PO feature in all three eras, as does Chewbacca, while the likes of Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi span two eras, along with Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess, I mean, General Leia Organa.

Each page is jam-packed with both stock photos and stills from the movies, and the usual accompanying descriptive text and key features highlighted on the promotional photos. The Prequel and Sequel eras both get in excess of 130 pages, while the Original Trilogy section is afforded just over half of that, and we get just a couple of pages devoted to the two standalone Star Wars Stories released so far, along with a handful of references scattered throughout the book.

Nevertheless, there's plenty to appreciate from Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary (New Edition), and it's a fun opportunity to revisit the entire saga in one fell swoop, albeit in condensed form!

This being a new edition, much of this book has been frequently covered in previous iterations, but that being said, there are some great little Easter eggs such as cantina patrons Ponda Baba and Dr. Evazan taken from their appearance in Rogue One, as well as Mark Hamill's three kids who all featured in background roles in The Last Jedi and make it into their second Visual Dictionary!

Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary (New Edition) by James Luceno, Dave West Reynolds, Ryder Windham, Jason Fry and Pablo Hidalgo is priced $40.00 in the U.S. and $52.00 in Canada.

As always, a big thanks to DK Canada, whose Star Wars books you can check out at here. For all of your monthly roundup of Star Wars publishing news, commentary, and discussion on the latest releases in the realm of novels, comics, and magazines, don't forget to listen to Jedi Journals.


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