| Title | : | Dooku: Jedi Lost (Star Wars) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780593102824 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Audiobook |
| Number of Pages | : | 7 |
| Publication | : | First published April 30, 2019 |
| Awards | : | Audie Award Multi-Voiced Performance (2020) |
Delve into the history of the sinister Count Dooku in this audio original set in a galaxy far, far away….
Darth Tyranus. Count of Serenno. Leader of the Separatists. A red saber, unsheathed in the dark. But who was he, before he became the right hand of the Sith? As Dooku courts a new apprentice, the hidden truth of the Sith Lord’s past begins to come to light.
Dooku’s life began as one of privilege—born within the stony walls of his family’s estate, orbited by the Funeral Moon where the bones of his ancestors lie interred. But soon his Jedi abilities are recognized and he is taken from his home to be trained in the ways of the Force by the legendary Master Yoda.
As he hones his power, Dooku rises through the ranks, befriending fellow Jedi Sifo-Dyas and taking a padawan of his own, the promising Qui-Gon Jinn—and tries to forget the life that he once led. But he finds himself drawn by a strange fascination with the Jedi Master Lene Kostana, and the mission she undertakes for the Order: finding and studying ancient relics of the Sith, in preparation for the eventual return of the deadliest enemies the Jedi have ever faced.
Caught between the world of the Jedi, the ancient responsibilities of his lost home, and the alluring power of the relics, Dooku struggles to stay in the light—even as the darkness begins to fall.
Dooku: Jedi Lost (Star Wars) Reviews
-
Dooku: Jedi Lost is a phenomenal listening experience
for any Star Wars fan. You know who you are!!
One of the first pieces of the Disney Canon timeline, this quick audiobook essentially tells the origin story for Count Dooku.
Many of us only think of Dooku as the Dark Lord of the Sith, but he was once a powerful Jedi, who eventually succumbed to the pull of the dark side.
The narrative actually begins with his Sith Apprentice, Asajj Ventress, who yearning to learn more about her mysterious master, delves into his past to discover what turned him into the man she knows.
Asajj's investigation follows a timeline through many formative moments in Dooku's life. Most importantly, the Reader learns of the reasons he became disillusioned with the Jedi.
I loved getting a glimpse into Dooku's past, from being abandoned by his father prior to acceptance to the Jedi Temple, to his relationships with his sister and Jedi contemporary Sifo-Dyas, to his selection and training by Master Yoda.
There's no denying Dooku was an extremely motivated, highly intelligent and strong-willed young man.
The force was very strong with him, but I could definitely understand his perspective as to his disillusionment with the Jedi Council.
This production is absolutely incredible. The full cast, the sound effects and musical score all contribute to bringing this story to life.
Absolutely recommend!!!
-
A great book. I was a little worried as it is re screenplay version of an audio book. However with all the "narration" scenes. It gave just as much insight into what the characters were thinking.
This is the prequel to the Master & Apprentice some of the passages on this book fit in perfectly with the Qui Gon and Dooku, or the parts with Real.
I am not a fan of the watered down more politically motivated Jedi of the Disney era of Star Wars. So this made me empathise with Dooku's disillusionment with the Jedi of around him. They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions, this is definitely true in this book. We see Dooku with the best of intentions stepping closer and closer to the dark side.
I am a reminded a bit of the Smallville series. As much I as never liked that series, I did like Lex and even though I knew he was going to turn evil, I kept hoping it would not happen. This is similar here I knew Dooku's destiny but I like the character I did hope it would not happen.
If I had one complaint about this book it is I did not see the exact moment that Dooku fully turned. We see the meeting with Palpetine but not the final corruption. In fact the penultimate chapter was Dooku's most heroic moment.
This is a great book and history of a great character. I was not even a huge Dooku fan at the start of this book, but the story is awsome and really does the character justice. -
The Dark Side of the Force is strong in this book!
THE COUNT OF SERENNO
This book is the written script for this story that it was initially presented as audiobook. I am quite glad that they decided to print a readable version of it.
Count Dooku is one of the most complex characters made, but sometimes people don't appreciate or understand his relevance in the Star Wars universe since his time on screen on the movie episodes was limited, but if you have watched the animated Clone Wars series, you can realize how powerful character is, since he didn't turn evil just for the sake of it, but his reasons to turn to the Dark Side of the Force were well based from his point of view and due the situations that he needed to dealt with.
Heir of the House of Serenno. Padawan of Master Yoda. Close friend of the infamous Syfo-Dias. Attracted in more than a way to Jedi Master Lene Kostana. Jedi Knight. Jedi Master. Member of the Jedi Council. Teacher of Qui-Gon Jinn. Student of Darth Sidious. Dark Lord of the Sith. Teacher of Assajj Ventress. Teacher of General Grievous. Teacher of Savage Opress. Leader of the Separatist Forces.
Just naming his endless roles and titles in life, you can realize how complex and diverse character he was, and therefore how insteresting life he had, and how crutial impact his existence was not only by himself but to others, also key in the political ambiance of the Galaxy.
Assajj Ventress has her own convulted history with Dooku, and in a moment where both are in fair terms, Dooku opened himself and told her about his roller-coaster past.
The story of Count Dooku is finally told and it's here. -
First of all, this is not a book, so let's get that out of the way immediately.
This is an "audio drama," six hours long, performed by a full cast. I have to state upfront that I loathe this medium, and so you should take my review and rating with a HUGE grain of salt if you're someone who likes audiobooks or audio shows. I am no judge of voice acting, so I will say only one single thing on that score: the Ventress voice was nearly perfect.
Aside from the inherent grating, campy weirdness of listening to an audio drama at all... the biggest downside of this story is the narrative structure. It is a dual storyline, one following Ventress in the present day, and one exploring Dooku's backstory through flashbacks to various points in his life. Ventress's storyline is by far the smaller one; her mission is simple and straightforward, and I would say probably a solid 78% of our air time is spent on Dooku's flashbacks.
The flashbacks themselves are fine. I don't enjoy them as much as I liked being with Ventress, but they do provide the important canon details I was after and lay a lot of good groundwork for Dooku as a character. The problem is that the story uses the gimmick of Dooku's daily holo-messages to his sister as a vehicle to propel us into his past. And then a journal that Ventress somehow finds in a desk drawer, which conveniently picks up where the holo-messages left off, and then the end of the story is supplied by his sister herself.
This just came off to me as incredibly weird and absurd. The story tries to excuse the ridiculousness of Dooku having a JOURNAL by having him claim to have purposefully left all these things for Ventress to find. But why? He gives Ventress the holo-messages in the first place ostensibly so that it will help her on her mission -- but it ends up playing no role in that! And why should he want Ventress to understand HIM or see his backstory? It's never explained, and Dooku's nature as a prideful and private person makes it seem completely out of character.
I know the story needed to create some reason to tell Dooku's life story, but I can't help feeling there had to be a better possible reason than this. The journal and holocomm just seemed completely artificial, something you have to handwave because the author needed it to be that way, not because it actually makes any sense in-universe. Having to hear so many characters doing silly first-person narration of lines that, in a book, would be part of the scene-setting prose ("I stepped out onto the plain, the wind caressing my face--") didn't help, either.
This was the biggest stumbling block I ran into, trying to enjoy this story. I am vitally interested in gathering up whatever new Star Wars knowledge Lucasfilms sees fit to disseminate, and I did learn QUITE a bit from this book about Dooku and the time before the prequel trilogy. This is probably as far back in the history of the post-Ruusan Jedi Order that I personally have ever ventured, and it was a very interesting journey. The few shoutouts and tie-ins with Master and Apprentice were certainly noticed and appreciated.
Overall, the experience of hacking my way through this six-hour-long ordeal was a test of my commitment. I don't know that it was worth it, necessarily, but I'm at least glad it's over.
Some notable things:• Weird how Dooku spent so many years being Yoda's padawan and yet Yoda shows up in this book like seven times and it's almost always in brief scenes where he's on the Council. You don't get the sense that Dooku and Yoda really cared about each other at all, and the story certainly doesn't invest in their relationship.
• Rael Averross! I was glad to see him show up because I love him, and he and Dooku's relationship is definitely a high point. His extremely deep cowboy voice is a little... weird, especially when Dooku's voice is about half as deep as it should be, but still. Rael!
• The Bogan Collection. First of all... what the HECK is this?
• Dooku's childhood in the Temple gives off MAJOR Harry Potter vibes. Weird classes with eccentric teachers? Sneaking into the restricted section of the Archives? Grudge matches with fellow students? Leaping to immediate and poorly-founded conclusions about people being evil? Sith bestiary? Check, check, and check.
• KY NAREC. There were far fewer Ventress backstory details than I was hoping to get in this story, but I love the ones we were given. And I love Ky Narec even though he wasn't real. I hope to see him again.
• Dooku and Sifo-Dyas's friendship is one of the best parts of this story, and it makes the fact that Dooku would eventually murder him twice as sad.
• This "Dooku and Qui-Gon were extremely close" thing that new canon has created continues to be extremely intriguing. It almost gives me a completely different perspective on Qui-Gon, and I'm still not totally sure how I feel about it.
• The entire Jedi Order is a freaking mess. It's just... an absolute disaster. There's so much chicanery and drama going on it's almost hard to keep track of.
• Lene Kostana... It's a little bit odd, because when she first showed up I was like oh, she's cool! She's a maverick and a dissenter with good ideas! But then she kept showing up, almost taking the emotional place of Yoda as Dooku's mentor, and everything she did just seemed to get more and more shady. Now that I've finished the story, I look back and see her being selfish and unstable and obsessive and possibly dangerous... but the narrative never actually seems to sour on her? Very conflicted. Is she meant to be sympathetic? Is she meant to be seen as contributing to Dooku's eventual Fall? You know, it was really unclear.
• Jenza was great. It was obvious what her eventual fate would be, but I liked her a lot as a character. I don't understand why Dooku would become the heir of Serenno with his brother dead, when Jenza was right there?
• Dooku almost comes off as the most reasonable person in the Jedi Order, which is interesting for a story chronicling his Fall to the Dark Side. Although I suppose it makes sense, given that most of it is told through his own eyes, and he is almost certainly an unreliable narrator. -
The dialog is empty, the plot consists of an unfocused collection of minor/ unremarkable events that involve Dooku without explaining his transformation; the book’s basic promise and goal delivers abject failure, provided the fact that the author gives you no window into dooku’s thoughts, emotions, motives, and argued reasons for abandoning the order and becoming a dark lord of the sith. Furthermore, the story omits any interaction with sith/dark side philosophy, artifacts or figures; delving into none of his training with Darth Sidious... The high quality cast and vocal performance is squandered on yet another unmemorable clone wars episode.
-
Dooku: Jedi Lost is an audio drama script by Scott Cavan that follows Count Dooku from childhood through his leaving the Jedi Order and taking up the mantle (or cape) of leadership on his home world of Serenno. My preference would have been to listen to the audio version, as it was intended to be experienced; but I’m at the mercy of the public library, and what they added to the collection is the hardcover script, not the audio.
Having read the book, however, I think it might be the clearer option anyway. Cavan tells the story through narration and flashback, and sometimes these go three layers deep—someone narrating about a flashback in which someone else narrates another flashback. I can imagine this could get confusing, especially since so few of the characters are recognizable voices from the movies and TV series.
I found the book surprisingly engaging and intriguing. The pre-prequel era is shaping up well so far, with this story and Claudia Gray’s Master and Apprentice. It feels exhilarating to get a glimpse into a past era that hasn’t yet been explored in movie or TV form. Cavan writes with a natural flow, giving the right spaces to each character. He doesn’t labor over lengthy descriptions of battle scenes but gives just enough detail to picture what we need to know (even reading it off the page, without the benefit of sound effects).
What I like about the pre-prequel era so far is the space that’s left for more stories that take place during the same years. Rael Averros is an interesting character who was introduced more fully in Master and Apprentice. I’d like to see more stories featuring him. I also liked Lene Kostana, a Jedi Master and sort-of mentor to Dooku who investigates Sith relics and history and seems to walk a fine line between the light side and the dark side. It’s an interesting idea to bring into Star Wars—that a Jedi could be a “traditionalist,” seeking wisdom and disciplines from ancient times. There’s a lot of space to write more about Lene, and I hope a good author does so.
The book has some awkward aspects, but they are at this point relatively minor criticisms. The main one is that SW writers are going to have to be careful that writing about youngling life in the Jedi Temple doesn’t turn into Hogwarts. The childhood scenes in this book were very Hogwarts, and that feels not quite right for SW—in part because it makes me wonder about the point of bringing people to the temple when they’re infants. If this doesn’t make them somehow different from ordinary kids growing up, then what’s the point? Might as well bring them to the temple when they’re 5, or 10, or even older, when they and their families can make more informed choices.
The other awkwardness is Dooku’s personal development. Because this story has to cover most of his life, his changing perspective toward the Jedi Order has to take much longer than seems reasonable. He saw enough of the duplicity and dishonesty among the Jedi early in his life to push him away in a more radical way, much sooner. Here it seems a little odd that he should be skeptical of the Jedi at the time that he’s also a revered teacher, mentor to two padawans, and a member of the council. I was also disappointed that he leaves the Jedi without explaining anything to Qui-Gon.
This book introduces Sifo-Dyas, the character previously only mentioned as the Jedi who ordered the clones from Kamino. It’s interesting to get to know him—a mystic who is mentally tormented by prophetic visions—but we don’t see when, how, or why he orders the clone army. In fact, it seems that at the point when he should be doing so, he is nearly incapacitated by his mental anguish. I hope this gets explained further in another book.
So: lots more stories to write about these years. But this was a fun start and makes me look forward to more. -
4.5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum
https://bibliosanctum.com/2019/05/13/...
Star Wars audiobooks are always a treat to listen to, but audio dramas are on a whole other level. Performed by a full cast and available only as an audiobook, Star Wars: Dooku: Jedi Lost is an immersive experience that puts your right in the middle of the action and makes you feel like you are in a Star Wars movie, watching all the events and action play out around you.
Since the release of the prequels and the character’s first appearance in Attack of the Clones, the origins of Count Dooku AKA Darth Tyranus has been shrouded in mystery and plagued with questions. We know that he was a former Jedi and a Padawan of Yoda’s before he became the Count of Serenno and the Leader of the Separatists. But what happened in between? What was his childhood like, and how did he fall out with the Jedi leading him down the path to the dark side?
Dooku: Jedi Lost seeks to address all of that, by taking listeners all the way to the beginning when our main character was just a boy at the Jedi Temple, where he is just one of many younglings brought to Coruscant by seekers scouring the galaxy for force-sensitives. He hasn’t even been chosen as an apprentice by Yoda this point, but while on an excursion with his fellow students to the planet of Serenno as part of a cultural exchange presentation, Dooku discovers something about his personal history that will forever change the way he views the Jedi and himself.
I should also mention that all of these past events are told in flashback because Dooku: Jedi Lost is a frame story which places us some time during the Clone Wars when Dathomir Nightsister and dark Jedi Asajj Ventress was still an acolyte to Count Dooku, working as his assassin. Chafing under the Sith lord and tortured with visions and voices in her head, Ventress is given a new assignment to track down a new target—someone close to the Count’s own heart. As she makes her way to Serenno to fulfill her task, Ventress learns more about Dooku and catches glimpses of the most defining moments of his life with the Jedi.
Along with the recently released Star Wars: Master & Apprentice by Claudia Gray, new canon offerings like this one are proving to be a blessing for fans who want to know more about prequel era. Clocking in at a mere six hours and twenty-one minutes, this audio drama is nowhere near as long as the series’ typical novels, but it still packs a lot of content. Besides the emotional decisions and the political ramifications that led Dooku to turn his back on the Jedi and take up the mantle of his forebears, this audio drama also delves deeper into his personal relationships including that of his close friendship with Sifo-Dyas as well as his apprenticeship with the famed Yoda. Eventually, of course, Dooku also reaches the rank of Master Jedi and becomes master himself to a hot-headed young Padawan, Qui-Gon Jinn.
Written by Cavan Scott, the story is well-plotted and developed. However, as entertaining was it was, I can’t really see the history of Count Dooku being all that exciting to anyone but the most hardcore of fans. Luckily though, the story isn’t the only reason why people pick up audio dramas. After all, the best and most notable aspects of this format are the audiobook production values and technical qualities, as well as the incredible performances. And I’m pleased to say that in this area, the creators of Dooku: Jedi Lost went all out. Sounds are used to great effect, and musical snippets from John Williams’ brilliant score inject another emotional layer to the experience. Then there’s the incredible talent of all the voice actors and actresses. Compared to regular audiobooks, audio dramas typically demand a lot more acting from their narrators because there is less descriptive text, and so every spoken line has to contain a lot more information in the way it is delivered. For the most part, I feel the cast gave a spectacular performance.
All I can say is, yes please to more Star Wars audio dramas! I can see so much potential for future tales that will work great for this format. Dooku: Jedi Lost is worth checking out for the exquisite audio experience alone, and fans also get a surprisingly in-depth study into one of more enigmatic characters of the Star Wars universe.
Audiobook Comments: If you’re not familiar with audio dramas, some time may be needed to ease into the format. Narrated by a cast of twelve, there are a lot of characters to keep track of, but each voice is distinct enough thanks to the talented readers. Although everyone gave a strong performance, some were better than others. Ironically, Euan Morton’s performance as Dooku was pretty average, though to be fair, he’s portraying a younger version of the character in addition to trying to fill the shoes of some very big names including Christopher Lee and Corey Burton who voiced the character in The Clone Wars and various other Star Wars projects. But standouts in this audio drama include Orlagh Cassidy as Asajj Ventress, Sean Kenin as Sifo-Dyas, Carol Monda as Lene Kostana, Saskia Maarleveld as Jenza, Jonathan Davis as Qui-Gon Jinn, and Marc Thompson as Yoda. -
3.5
“Live alongside corruption for too long, and you no longer notice the stench. The Jedi cannot help the slaves of Tatooine, but they can help the slavemasters.”
...
Dooku: Jedi Lost is a welcome addition to the Star Wars universe, and an astounding audiobook listening experience! Truly, the production value was stellar.
In this story, we're following two perspectives: Ventress, as she partakes in a mission under her new master, Count Dooku - otherwise known as the Sith Lord Darth Tyranus. We also follow Dooku, and learn about his time in the Jedi. Watching him grow from a young padawan to an eventual Jedi Master, this novel documents his growing disillusionment with the Jedi Order, and his eventual fall to the dark side of the force.
Learning more about Dooku's past, and his relationship with the Jedi, was one of the best parts of this book to be sure. Surprisingly, Dooku was a likeable man, and his growing misgivings with the Jedi council made sense to me. During Dooku's time, the Galactic Republic was at its height, and the senate was intrinsically linked with the Jedi. Therefore, the Jedi Council were not wholly separate from the politics of the Republic, which ultimately complicated their abilities to aid those that needed help. As a Jedi Master, Dooku felt frustrated with the Council's complacency and hesitancy to act, which I completely understood. Yoda is a well-loved, venerated character in Star Wars canon, but Dooku: Jedi Lost brought his character into starker relief. Yoda was wise, but his judgement was also clouded by pride, and complacency. The Jedi were too convinced of their own power, too unwilling to consider a more nuanced approach to the nature of attachments.
These flaws within the Jedi Order ultimately severed Dooku from their ranks, and I really enjoyed Scott's exploration of Dooku's relationship with his sister. The added Sith Lore also brought a lot of intrigue into the story as well.
Ventress is a character that I'd love to read more about in other canon novels. Her backstory, and history with the Jedi, added a layer of tragedy to the story that I wasn't expecting. In a way, Ventress is somewhat of an anti-heroine. She's a dark-side force user, sure, but there is a sizable amount of humanity beneath her cold-hearted exterior that surprised me, and I can't wait to see more from her in future canon novels.
The audiobook is the way to go if you're looking to read Dooku: Jedi Lost, and I'd highly recommend it. The production quality is so good, and each of the voice-actors bring these characters to life beautifully. There's also music, sound-effects, and a compelling cinematic quality to the narrative that all added to the reading experience immensely. Truly, reading this felt like watching a Dooku origin film. I was so immersed!
That being said, I would've liked to have seen a more cohesive progression of Dooku's eventual turn to the dark side. This book primarily follows Dooku's time as a Jedi Knight, to Master, until he eventually leaves the Order, but we don't see much of his transition from Count of Serenno to Darth Tyranus. The reasonable, kind man that we see in Dooku's backstory starkly contrasts Dooku in the present time of the story, as he fulfills his role as Ventress' new Master. The ending to this story was abrupt, and a little unsatisfying, if I'm being honest. It should have been longer, and I felt like so many elements of the ending were missing. Maybe that's just my ignorance when it comes to Star Wars lore (I haven't watched The Clone Wars yet. Whoops.), but the ending should've been satisfying regardless.
Despite my misgivings with its conclusion, I thoroughly enjoyed Dooku: Jedi Lost, and I highly recommend the audiobook if you're a Star Wars fan! -
"I sense the Dark Side!"
Dooku: Jedi Lost is unlike anything else that has been released with regards to Star Wars. Among the slew of new canon books, comics, art books.. Del Rey and Penguin Random House Audio created this audio-only release written by Cavan Scott. It's a combination of an audiobook and an audio dramatization that features a full cast. As Scott has said on Twitter, it's like a movie for your ears!
Admittedly, I am not the biggest fan of audiobooks. I find it difficult to concentrate when there is just one narrative voice, plus I struggle to focus without the words in front of me. This year, in an effort to incorporate more reading (HELLO INSANE TBR), I've been attempting audiobooks again. I've.. actually gotten through a few! GO ME!! Now, the reason that I've been even remotely successful in completing three audiobooks is because they have all been audio dramatizations with full casts and each contained a cinematic quality to them. It helps that the scripts in question are X-Files and Star Wars.. two of my favorite things OF LIFE. I wasn't about to miss out on a new Star Wars story just because it is audio-only! I'm glad to have stepped outside of my comfort zone a bit. Especially because I was able to enjoy this story that features one of my all-time top Star Wars characters, ASAJJ VENTRESS!!
Dooku: Jedi Lost follows Asajj as she trains under Dooku and uncovers why he left the Jedi Order. It jumps throughout different time periods in Dooku's life - as a little boy, a teenager, a young man and then onto his role as Jedi Master. This is the mysterious Count Dooku's origin story. Finally!
To see.. ahh.. read.. erm.. HEAR Dooku's progression into the dark Sith was quite something. It's incredibly insightful to see just what went on with Dooku and how he went from being one of the best Jedi's the Order had seen, to what lead to the events that unfolded in The Phantom Menace.
This helps to fill in some of the prior gaps and gives us a deeper understanding of Dooku. Through his personal relationships with Sifo-Dyas, Qui-Gon Jinn, Yoda, Ventress and his family.
"Tears pricking my eyes.."
Although some of the voice actors felt a little off within their respective roles, I thought Marc Thompson did a wonderful job with Yoda and that Orlagh Cassidy absolutely nailed the Asajj portrayal!
I appreciate all of the attention that is being paid to the prequel era as of late. It's about time that we explore these stories.. there is still so much more to discover in this timeline! -
Well, this was certainly interesting: a script for an audio drama that details the rise and ultimate fall of one Count Dooku. Conceptually alone, I couldn’t resist giving this one at least a peek, and I’m so glad I did: “Dooku: Jedi Lost” rocks.
There’s two things that writer Cavan Scott does that makes “Dooku: Jedi Lost” work as well as it does. The first might seem obvious, but it’s crucial: he tells a really, really good story. Jumping across all periods of time and interlinking various characters – some familiar, some new – Scott crafts a web that’s surprisingly ambitious, while also being sure to include plentiful nuggets of lore for the diehard fans (there’s one particular interaction at about the ¾ point that I can pretty much guarantee will have “Star Wars” nerds completely spazzing).
The second thing he nails is the character of Dooku himself. Having gotten to know Dooku from “Attack of the Clones” and “Revenge of the Sith,” as well as his regular role on “The Clone Wars” television series, we as “Star Wars” fans have built up a pretty specific idea of who the Count is by this point: smug, entitled, ambitious. Not only does Scott’s characterization FEEL like the Dooku we’ve become so familiar with over the last 20-some years, but in looking at Dooku’s early, pre-“Attack of the Clones” life, he also manages to provide readers/listeners a with a clearer sense of how exactly Dooku fell to the Dark Side and became the onscreen baddie we’ve loved to hate for nearly 20 years now (can you believe that “Attack of the Clones” is almost that old already???). It’s character development that feels both earned and obvious in the absolute best way, making a character that was already pretty complex all the more fascinating. -
Since 2002, Count Dooku has been somewhat of an enigma, with very little backstory revealed. We know that Yoda was his master and that he trained Qui-Gon Jinn. And some of his motives and how he fell to the dark side have not always been as clear as they could have been. So when this audio drama Star Wars: Dooku: Jedi Lost was announced, I got pretty excited that we would get more backstory for him in canon. Clocking in at 6 hours and 21 minutes, Cavan Scott's story provides glimpses at various points in Dooku's life, from his teen years as a padawan up to his departure from the Jedi Order. All of this is told in a framed narrative, with the present day being sometime during the Clone Wars, as Asajj Ventress learns more about her Sith master and also hears the voice of her deceased Jedi master Ky Narec. While I did enjoy this audio drama and appreciate having more light shed on Dooku's past, I feel that this story could have been longer, and maybe even released as a trilogy so that more material and insight could have been added.
One of the characters featured in Jedi Lost is Sifo-Dyas. This is a character who's always felt odd to me. When I watched Attack of the Clones at age seven and a half and first heard Obi-Wan say "Master Sifo-Dyas was killed almost ten years ago," as well as "When my master first contacted you," I thought that Sifo-Dyas was just another name for Qui-Gon Jinn. But no, he's actually another Jedi who gets a bit more explanation in the Expanded Universe. But it was not until 2014 when The Clone Wars episode "The Lost One" provided a canonical explanation of what he was all about. And even then, it can be a bit confusing. Even after seeing a vision of Sifo-Dyas in a later episode, complete with a voice, he has not really felt like a character to me so much as an unnecessary extra step in Darth Sidious' grand plan. (Sifo-Dyas even owes his existence to a typo in the Attack of the Clone script which originally had "Sido-Dyas" as an alias for Sidious.) But in this audio drama, Sean Kenin's voice brings him to life. We see him and young Dooku exploring the Jedi Temple, and how the two of them are worried about visions of the future that allude to the Clone Wars and Order 66. So this is a positive aspect.
When it comes to the voice of Dooku himself, though, Euan Morton doesn't really sound like Christopher Lee or even Corey Burton in the portions of the story that take place during the Clone Wars. But I think it's fine for the parts of the story where Dooku is younger. In those instances, I don't think he sounds too far off from a younger Christopher Lee. I just would've liked for him to have sounded more like the Count that we know in the present day sections. Meanwhile, when you listen to Orlagh Cassidy, you know right away that she's playing Ventress even though she's not Nika Futterman. Jonathan Davis also sounds pretty good as a younger Qui-Gon Jinn. And Marc Thompson nails it as Yoda, and it was nice seeing what his dynamic with young Dooku was like. However, Dooku's first apprentice, Rael Averros, does not sound quite how I'd imagined when reading the novel Master & Apprentice and keeping in mind that author Claudia Gray fancast Benjamin Bratt. But the character was a nice addition, making this story interface pretty well with Master & Apprentice. Especially since both stories touch upon prophecy as a theme.
There are other new, unfamiliar characters, and their voice actors do a pretty good job. The most interesting new character is Dooku's sister Jenza. Through her, we learn more about life on their homeworld Serenno. Throughout the story, we learn about how Dooku - as well as Ventress - are affected by their relationships with other people. One relationship that I'd been hoping would be explored, however, was Dooku's relationship with Darth Sidious. I really wish that this part of his life could've been covered since Dooku's motives in Attack of the Clones are not 100% clear. Does he want to be a Sith master? Does he actually intend to destroy the Sith once the Republic is gone? Perhaps the answer is already out there, but the point is that Dooku's characterization can feel so convoluted that it's sometimes difficult to get a good grip on what's true about him. My hope is that this audio drama will be well-received enough to warrant the making of another one, perhaps titled Dooku: Sith Found. His training under Sidious is fertile ground that could benefit from some fleshing out.
So, to reiterate, I think that Dooku: Jedi Lost does add to Star Wars lore and is worth a listen. But I do think that it could have done more. But if Star Wars goes on for a really long time, we're sure to something else like this at some point, right? For now, one can only hope. -
THE DETAILS⇣
⇢ 3¾✰STARS✰
⤏ FULL-CAST NARRATION
⤏ WITH SOUND EFFECTS
⤏ SHOULD ONLY BE EXPERIENCED THROUGH AUDIO
⤏ OVERALL, THE STORY FELT LIKE IT WAS MISSING SOMETHING...
⤏ LENGTH OF AUDIO - 6 HOURS, 21 MINUTES
⤏ I LISTENED ON LIBBY THROUGH MY LIBRARY
MY THOUGHTS⇣
I usually add the Kindle version of a book on my Goodreads since Audiobooks never have page numbers of the book. The Kindle version of this book has 469 pages...because it's written like a screenplay. So, if you're going to read this, I suggest you rethink that and listen to the Audio...because it's definitely made for that medium. With a full-cast narration that is either dead on or comes really close to sounding just like the characters in the movies. It was mind-blowing, especially Qui-Gon Jinn...I had to double-check to see if Liam Neeson was one of the narrators...and he wasn't. That crazy-good narration added to the special effects and this audiobook is an experience...even more so than other Star Wars Books.
However, the sound effects can be distracting at times...I often found it difficult to even follow along and I ultimately found the story lacking any real substance because of them. I was, however, completely entertained despite not always knowing what was going on, and that had everything to with the narration.
BREAKDOWN⇣
Narration Rating⇢ 5 STARS
Plot⇢ 3/5
Characters⇢ 4/5
The Feels⇢ 3/5
Pacing⇢ 4/5
Addictiveness⇢ 5/5
Theme, Tone or Intensity⇢ 4/5
Flow (Writing Style/Ease of Listening)⇢ 3/5
World-Building⇢ 3.5/5
Ending⇢ 3/5
-
3.5 stars
This novel has been adapted from the audiobook that was originally released. They kept this story in script format from the audiobook and I really liked how it made the story different to read. Even though I typically do not read novels that are laid out in a script format, it was unique, refreshing, and really captured the emotions that each of the characters felt.
I love a good villain origin story and this one did not disappoint. It really gave you the background and life of Dooku that isn't fully captured in the films. If you like Star Wars enough to read bonus material, I think you'll like this novel and the additional information that it provides.
I can see how this story would make an awesome audiobook, especially if it's multicasted. If it has a multicast, I may recommend listening to the audiobook over reading this script but I still enjoyed reading it nonetheless. -
Actual rating is 2.5 stars.
This is an audiobook set in a galaxy far, far away. In this one, we explore Dooku as a member of the Jedi Academy. This book covers his whole time being a padawan to Jedi Knight and on this journey we see how Dooku loses his faith in the Jedi way.
There were aspects I absolutely loved about this book and some I did not. First off the production is excellent as we get different actors for each role. We also get sound affects and throughout the production snippets of John Williams' iconic musical score. The actress who voiced Ventress was perfect. I wasn't crazy about how the story unfolds in this one. Dooku sends Ventress on a mission and Ventress believes to succeed on this mission she needs to learn more about her master. We get this information thru flashbacks and I believe this story would have worked better if it was told in a linear fashion. I did enjoy the background information we get about Dooku especially how he earns his title of "Count".
I believe this story is more geared to those who would like the background information to characters. This story isn't the most important but it does have some nice points and appearances. We do get appearances from some important characters like Yoda and Qui-Gon and the interactions between Dooku and these characters did bring me satisfaction. There wasn't just enough "oomph" in the story. The production value does make it worth a listen though. -
Ever wanted to know more about THIS GUY?
Dooku of Serenno. The Man, the Sith, the Legend.
Well, this delightful full cast audiodrama will take you more than halfway there. It could easily be subtitled "One Man's Long Journey into Becoming a Completely Disillusioned Knight" as the story using the framing device of a mission assigned to cynical assassin Asajj Ventress to delve deep into the Separatist Leader's formative years and initially stellar career working as a proud member of the Jedi Order.
Ventress got no time for Dooku's issues
Pride goeth ever before the fall, though, and a series of eye-opening and traumatic incidents involving both The Order and his biological aristocratic family (who, it turns out, abandoned him to the Jedi as a "freak" as opposed to the usual custom of the Jedi locating the infant Force User and approaching the family) open the door to him embracing certain aspects of the Dark Side even long before he makes the acquaintance of a certain Galactic Senator from Naboo.
Say what you will about this creep, he's not ageist at any rate.
And THAT is my main quibble:
Nonetheless I completely recommend this to Star Wars audiobook fans, the voice work and production values are top notch as always and it was a delight to take a lore-laden trip throughout a sketchily documented life and time period while the Jedi were still at their perceived height and the Republic still seemed impregnable to threats, internal or otherwise. -
Jedi Lost is the first canon Star Wars audioplay performed by a full cast. The (at the moment) audio-only story has an interesting approach but lacks clarity. While the story itself is intriguing, exciting even, I wish there was more focus. We get a skip through Dooku's life and his background while the subtleties of his very unique character were what interested me more.
Characters like Yoda, Rael and Qui-Gon came a little too short in my opinion. However, Syfo-Dias and Lene Kostana (is that how you spell her? who even knows) were what kept me interested the most while listening.
What frustrated me were the technical errors. The voices sounded too similar, time jumps were hard to distinguish and I was struggling to know whether something was thought or spoken. The music was very limited and didn't fit all occasions. Names like Ratattack (again, is this spelled right?) were super confusing because I kept wondering who got attacked by rats until I realised it was the name of the freaking planet.
So, while this story is interesting and keeps you wanting to know more, it's also hard to follow and a bit messy. This audiobook is a fun new experience but there are still things to improve should there be a next one. I'm looking forward to the script but wouldn't listen to this story again without one. -
THE BAD
Dooku: Jedi Lost gives me the same feeling as falling asleep halfway into a movie and waking up right at the ending. It is so unsatisfying. Why go through his whole life and skip over the most important part where he, you know, gets seduced by the dark side? We go from his childhood well into adulthood and he decides to leave the order. The story was excellent and well paced up to this point. Then, we jump over how Sidious seduced him and go to him just cutting people up. No political stuff with the CIS, either. What a waste of time.
THE GOOD
My frustrations are concerning a lack of content; however, the content we actually got was great. Dooku growing up in the Jedi temple and getting into trouble was a nice to see. He eventually figures out who his biological family is and that causes a great source of conflict in his life. The supporting cast was great. The production of the audiobook was fantastic. I also have no complaints about the print version. Cavan Scott can really write an engaging story in this format. Tempest Runner was also really good. I hope to see him write more of these in the future.
VERDICT
In isolation, the sections of his life are 5 stars, but not delving into his dark journey knocks off a star. 4 stars. -
While I didn't like all the voices that went will the roles, it was definitely an interesting look at some of the backstory to Count Dooku, and how he left the Jedi Order. At first, I didn't think I was going to like that it was from Ventress's point of view, but I ended up doing so. This doesn't go into how he turned to the dark side beyond brief flashes here and there (a future one of these or a book, perhaps?) but that was fine - the title is Jedi Lost after all, and it's how he became one of those 12 lost Jedi. Not sure of some things, like where they were going with Sifo-Dyas as an example, but all in all, it kept me listening and was interesting.
-
I am reviewing the full cast audio production of this book (which also is just a screenplay of this audiobook, so be aware of you plan on reading a physical copy or ebook).
This. Was. Awesome.
I am relatively new to StarWars, never was a big fan of the movies, I didn't grew up with it. They were okay, but I never fully understood what was going on.
So a few years back I decided to do the novelizations on audible because I thought this a bit more background and detail description of who is who and what's going on I could maybe like this whole thing.
And yes, I was right. So after the novelizations of Episodes 1&2 I started to watch CloneWars this year in started with this audiobook.
With this having said about my personal Star Wars background (which isn't much, as you saw): I really loved this book. It blew me away. It's the story of Dooku, yes, but told through the eyes of Ventress. We get to know so much about his life, about his time before and being Yoda's padawan, about himself being a master and teacher, about his time at the council, his connection to Serenno, where he comes from, up until the point where he becomes Count Dooku.
This book was done so very well. You don't need to know much about the franchise to enjoy it, I googled a bit to fully understand who is who, but overall this takes place before everything else and it's a great starting point.
The audio production was really well done. It's absolutely one of my favourite audiobook now and even my husband stopped working while we listened to it and really enjoyed it (and he is even less interested in SW than I was).
So, give this one a try! Honestly, it's so worth it! I cannot recommend it enough. -
This was a really fun Star Wars novel set before the Prequels. Really good character study on Dooku with a smaller (unfortunately) focus on Asajj Ventress (my favorite SW character). I don't have a lot else to say about the book. I was a little unsure of it being an audio-only book, but it turned out really great! This was pretty much my first audio book, but I don't think it'll be my last.
-
Cavan Scott’s “Dooku: Jedi Lost” sheds light on a severely under-developed character from the Star Wars prequels. The great Christopher Lee was hired on to provide star power to the George Lucas films, but he was horribly under-utilized in all three films as the Jedi-turned-Sith Count Dooku, a character that was given no backstory and barely even a motivation as a character.
Like “Tempest Runner”, “Dooku: Jedi Lost” is a script for an audio production that I have not listened to. Scott is quite good at this format, and he succeeds at providing something that a lot of the “new canon” stuff has been missing: depth.
The character of Dooku is finally given a back-story and a motivation for his actions.
To be fair, I have not watched the now-classic cartoon series “The Clone Wars” all the way through. (My wife and I are still on the third season. It’s good, and I like what I’ve seen, but we have watched way too many Disney+ cartoons, thanks to my daughter, to want to watch one more cartoon, even if it is Star Wars related. I’m starving for adult shit on TV, which is why I’ve recently become hooked on “True Detective” and “GLOW”.) My understanding is that Dooku is given a bit more screen time on that show than he was in the movies, thankfully.
In Scott’s script, we finally learn that Dooku is a real, honest-to-goodness Count. Born from a royal family on planet Serenno, Dooku was given to the Jedi Order as a child to train as a Jedi. By a weird twist of fate, Dooku discovers his true identity, and it gradually becomes a source of contention between himself and his Master, Yoda. It is not the only source of contention.
Dooku feels that Jedi Order has, occasionally, made errors in judgment regarding what they should or shouldn’t do in regards to being galactic peace-keepers. Yoda tells him that it is not his place to question the decisions of the Jedi Council. Dooku disagrees. One can see the slippery slope toward the anger and hatred that leads him to the Dark Side.
Scott does a very good job of showing Dooku’s progression and evolution over time from Jedi to Sith, and he also demonstrates the many grey areas that legitimately make him question the Jedi’s black and white philosophy. Dooku is that very rare of villains: one that we almost agree with.
Much like “Tempest Runner”, “Dooku: Jedi Lost” demonstrates a maturity in Scott’s writing that has not been demonstrated in many of the other new canon novels I have read. It helps that Scott devotes an entire story to developing one character rather than telling a story with an ensemble cast of characters, none of whom we can relate to because none of them are ever clearly developed. -
Hello there! It's been to long since I've done another review. For those of you who may be wondering what the heck has happened with my New Jedi Order reading, yes, I'm still working on my first time reading of that series. I'm still trying to read
Balance Point, and I guarantee all of you in my tiny audience that I have on this platform that I do intend to see it through, then review it, and then eventually continue onwards to
Conquest (Edge of Victory, #1).
But ever since I moved out of my parents' house and into my own apartment almost two months ago, I have found myself with longer commute times and I am finally caught up on listening to Critical Role. Now that I can watch the adventures of the Mighty Nein on twitch as the episodes come out every thursday (I'll probably get around to listening to Vox Machina eventually but that's a whole different puzzle to figure out), I decided to use my long exhausting drives too and from work to listen to star wars audio content. And this brings me to the subject of today's review, the audible original Dooku: Jedi Lost.
THE STORY: This audio drama covers a ton of past history for Count Dooku, the iconic prequel era sith villain played by Christopher Lee in
Attack of the Clones and
Revenge of the Sith. In the "present day" it follows Asajj Ventress and Count Dooku in a remote fortress as Ventress is haunted by visions of her dead Jedi Master and she slowly discovers the events of Dooku's past through various means.
THE BAD: As my first experience listening to an audio drama and the first audio drama produced as part of the Star Wars canon timeline, I found this to be a pretty disappointing outing. This could possibly be due to the fact this this is author Cavan Scott's first Star Wars audio drama, and later his first novel when a novel version was released, but I really hope he improves his craft when next year's "The High Republic" project launches (which Cavan Scott is contributing too). I am optimistic due to his experience with Star Wars comics and I'm hopeful due to my overall excitement for The High Republic as a whole, but "Dooku: Jedi Lost" makes me a touch apprehensive.
The main problem that I found here is the story, in that it was too large in scope. Not only did it try to cover so many different beats of Dooku's life, it also was told largely through a second hand perspective. So while it offers some insight into who Dooku is and why he left the Jedi Order, Cavan Scott doesn't spend enough time at any one step of Dooku's history for any meaninful character growth to sink in. Every major step of Dooku's history that this story covers could have been an audio drama/novel of its own, and probably would have made for a better reading/listening experience for it. But instead, I was left with a characterization of Dooku that turned out to not be all that interesting (despite not being out of character from Dooku's other appearances in the prequels, The Clone Wars, and
Dark Disciple). The other characters surrounding him (whether familiar or newly introduced here) were even less interesting.
The other big problem was the casting of Dooku himself. Euan Morton gave it his all and he is fantastic as the male sith inquisitor in Star Wars: The Old Republic, but I found him to be miscast in this project. If this was an audiobook where he was the only narrator I probably would have let this slide. After all, when you have a single narrator doing voices for every character, they can only do so much and you're bound to get an awkward character voice once in a while. But this is an audio drama with a full voice cast- I am sure there is an actor who could have pulled off a more accurate Count Dooku voice, even if established Christopher Lee voice double Corey Burton was unavailable. Bless his heart, he really tried, but Morton's mismatched voice performance constantly took me out of the experience as I continuously forgot that the most important character in this story was talking in a scene.
THE GOOD: This was far from a terrible production even if there were some glaring issues.
Given that this is an audible project, the overall production quality is top notch. Those of you who have experience listening to star wars audiobooks probably expect an experience that offers classic John Williams themes and the instantly recognizable sound effects of lightsabers and firing lasers. And Dooku Jedi Lost is no exception. I must reiterate: despite how much I ragged on Euan Morton's miscasting, he still puts every effort he can to deliver his lines with conviction and capture Dooku's cultured, but haughty, present day personality and the ambitious youngster that Dooku was in his youth.
And the rest of the voice cast is excellent. Orlagh Cassidy is great as Ventress and gets admirably close to Nika Futterman's take on the character in the seven season TCW series. The always brilliant Mark Thompson does a spot-on Yoda. The other cast members do a great job with the limited material they are given for other characters like Sifo Dyas and Dooku's family members.
THE CONCLUSION: Final rating is 3 stars. I was glad I gave Dooku: Jedi Lost a listen, but the miscasting of Dooku himself prevented me from ever getting fully immersed in the experience. I might have considered giving the novel version a shot, but I'm not sure how much more I would have liked it. The story feels more concerned with covering every major stage of Dooku's pre-sith life that lore-steeped fans will recognize, rather than offering a more tightly focused plot that could have offered Dooku a more complex character arc, giving us the listeners a more layered understanding of what drove Dooku to leave the Jedi and perhaps foreshadow is future descent fully to the dark side.
If you are a star wars fan with a boring drive or two ahead of you, and need something to listen to while you're stuck in traffic and/or trying to make your way across a long back country road, check this out if your curious. The iconic star wars sound effects and music and the majority of the vocal performances can serve as a passable diversion. But if you're looking for a more emotionally satisfying story in the star wars universe or a deeper understanding into an iconic prequel-era villain, this probably won't be the star wars experience you're you're looking for. -
This is the fastest book I have ever read. I finished this book with 700 pages in five hours. Through the perspective of Venturous, a Sith assassin, with problems with voices in her head, skims through all the recordings of Former Jedi master, Count Dooku's life. Starting at the age of nine or so and meeting his sister at an event on his homeward of Sereno, the leader of an Outerim clan. Dooku was taken from so many years before. When he came back he caused a lot of trouble, and upsetting his biological father by coming to the planet. He started recording holographic tapes, which outlined almost every day of his life to send to his sister on Sereno. Through this book, you get to understand the relationship between the Jedi and Sifo-dias, Jedi Knight. Dooku, the main focus of the book. Yoda, the Jedi Grand Master. And Sifo-dias's master, Leen. Leading up to Dooku leaving the Jedi order and becoming the count of Sereno. Highly recommend it to all Sith Lords and Jedi Knights out there!
-
“Maybe everything has already been written. None of us have a choice.”
“He did.”
.
.
.
.
Wow. What a fucking book! I’ll admit, I initially only decided to give this one a go because I absolutely adored Master and Apprentice and knew Qui-Gon and Rael Averross appeared briefly in this book. But holy shit— Cavan Scott has blown me away! The audio production was so well done, and I greatly enjoyed Scott’s writing. Overall, my only complaint is that Dooku and Sifo-Dyas did not kiss because maybe if Dooku had a boyfriend he wouldn’t’ve become a fascist. Just food for thought.
Anyway, never did I think that I would end up FEELING things for Dooku, but I absolutely did. Scott articulated his fall to the dark side so well, and the structure of the book was super engaging. Also shoutout to my girl Ventress! Loved the fact that she narrated a lot of it. Definitely going to be reading Dark Disciple as soon as possible! -
Count Dooku was never my favourite antagonist in Star Wars. However, I was always fascinated by his character. His deep voice provided by Christopher Lee was menacing and in the Clone Wars, his story was elaborated more and see this old guy with a curved lightsaber to kick ass was quite a joy.
Ventress, on the other hand, was not my cup of tea. This bold-headed assassin was a pain in the ass and I never attached to her. There were interesting moments in the show but I think I enjoyed her character more in the book Dark Disciple than anywhere else.
And now there is this audio drama. I was thrown out of the concept because some of the voices were really similar and the format is somehow limiting but this fall to the dark side was quite enjoyable. The great thing in this story was Dooku himself, his arrogance, belief in himself and his padawans and his friend. To watch a young man full of promise go down the path with an unexpected twist was good.
Unfortunately, I feel like more could have been done with this story. Everything feels rushed and I wanted more but didn't get it. It is a good listen and I want to give it 4 stars but somehow I can't. -
When I first heard of Dooku: Jedi Lost, I was intrigued...but after reading the script I was left wanting. Not only that but most of the story was centered around Asajj Ventress looking through old recordings, messages, and the journal(s) of Dooku. since this was the way it was set up, the story felt like it was ultimately more about Ventress than Dooku.
seeing Syfo-Dias was a treat and getting more details on that era of the Jedi. Crazy how many of the jedi didnt turn into full fledged Sith seeing that many of them were on an ego trip which should've/could've led to the dark side. this story just further showed how old republic jedi were so full of themselves that they couldnt get out of their own way to do the right thing. which is probably why their skill with the force diminished -
Before he was the Count of Serenno, the leader of the Separatist Army and became known as Darth Tyranus, Dooku was a Padawan to Jedi Master Yoda and best friend to Sifo-Dyas. He also served as a teacher to a young Qui-Gon Jinn before leaving the Jedi Order entirely. This is the Dooku that assassin Asajj Ventress is interested in learning more about and how the story in Star Wars: Dooku: Jedi Lost sets down its roots.
Read more at
https://www.geeksofdoom.com/2019/05/2... -
Other than ending in a muted fashion I wasn't expecting, this is all but perfect. It's presented as a script for an audio adventure, but the format doesn't take anything away from this fantastic tale. Count Dooku is a fascinating and mysterious character that was absolutely wasted in the prequel films. This novel gives him the background and character work that he richly deserves.
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Got this on Audible. Need to finish my current audiobook, but the first two minutes of this...DAMN THIS IS EXCELLENT VOICE ACTING HOLY ASJFKDSFKAJERFIKAJWS!!!
Not really a book. More like a radio drama. I wish a printed script were available. -
Long ago, in a galaxy, far, far away….
“Dooku: Jedi Lost” is a gothic saga set in the Star Wars universe.
One thing I love about the Star Wars domain is how vast it is, so much so that any kind of genre fits within it. The films, tv series, video games, comics, cartoons, books, audiobooks, and fanfiction can tell varying stories for all ages: science fiction; science fantasy; space opera; military fiction; action/adventure; horror; traditional romance; and now, with “Dooku: Jedi Lost,” a gothic tale.
This was originally released as an audiobook, then a screenplay. The screenplay is great, but I recommend listening to the audiobook, which is fantastic. The casting of each character is on point, especially the feline voice of the narrator, Asajj Ventress. Like any good gothic, the tale is told in 1st-person-POV. Our heroine resides in dark, dreary castle with a wicked man who completely owns her destiny.
“I hate it here.
I hate the castle. I hate the cliff. I hate the spikes whirling above the forest far below. I hate the moons grinning down at me.
I hate the fact that night after night I stand on this ledge, feeling the breeze against my skin, wondering what it would be like to jump, to drop into the trees.
Would the Force guide me?”
Thus begins the tale of the tormented Sith acolyte and assassin, who is under the yoke of her master, Darth Tyrannus, better known as Count Dooku of the planet Serenno. Taken by Dooku after he had found her in a gladiatorial arena, Ventress is his servant, forced to do his bloody bidding or face the might of his Sith lightning. In the meantime, there is also a ghost in this gothic tale, as Ventress is haunted by the spirit of her deceased Jedi Master, Ky Narek, who torments her with thoughts of the past and of-what-could-be.
The Count has ordered his disciple to listen to holographs & recordings that tell the story of his life, in hopes that they will help her in seeking out his long-lost sister, Jenza. This framework takes us through Dooku’s past, from his time as a youngling, to Padawan apprentice under Master Yoda’s tutelage, to full-fledged Jedi knight and beyond. Dooku has an unusual past for a (former) Jedi: unlike other Jedi, he knew his blood-family and formed attachments to them. Not only that, but he also had a great and lasting friendship with his fellow Padawan, Sifo-Diyas, a relationship that would have a devastating effect upon the galaxy. I won’t delve further into the plot, because while the plot is labyrinthine and twisted, it’s the atmosphere and emotion that really won me over.
The first time I listened to this on Audible, I enjoyed it; the second time I was kicking myself for not initially grasping how awesome it was. This was so much better than the other new-canon book about Ventress, “The Dark Disciple,” which I’ll address
here.
Asajj’s feelings for Dooku are complicated. She hates him yet is caught under his powerful spell. I was never one for shipping fictional characters, however, Ventress is such a sultry, sensual creature that she has great chemistry with everybody she comes in contact with! On “The Clone Wars” animated show, she once skewered a Clone Trooper with her lightsaber as she kissed him sweetly to his death. On that same show, she and Obi-Wan Kenobi had a running flirtation, each one sassily countering the other’s insults with ripostes and occasional double entendres.
Count Dooku, played by Sir Christopher Lee in the films and voiced by Corey Burton in TCW, is such a fascinating character, with an unfortunate sounding name. George Lucas named the character Count Dooku after Count Dracula in honor of his portrayer, Christopher Lee. Seemingly cool, urbane, and stoic, the Count has an aura of great strength and power. He is a semi-tragic figure in that his fate was sealed once he partnered up with Lord Sidious and the Dark Side.
Do not mistake my feelings about Asajj & Dooku for actual romance, because there is none in this story. There is an extremely strong bond between them, one that Asajj yearns to break, but cannot. She is his thrall.
One quibble about this story: I dislike that in the new canon it’s not his former Padawan Qui-Gon Jinn’s death that forces Dooku to leave the Jedi, but his brother’s death that makes Dooku claim his title as Duke of Serenno. It was more touching when Qui-Gon’s death affected Dooku so, and more meaningful to his downfall.
At any rate, if you are a fan of the Darkside, I recommend this audio play. As I said, it’s well-performed and the production quality is as spotless as ever (the Star Wars books are all phenomenal on Audible; even a bad story sounds great on that medium).
Alas, for what could have been for both Asajj Ventress and Count Dooku, two conflicted souls destined for the Dark Side of the Force.
5 stars (upon second listening)
