Drew Karpyshyn delivers a fun, fast-paced — and mostly forgettable — addition to “Star Wars” lore with the inexplicably titled “Annihilation” (November, hardcover), the fourth book overall, and Karpyshyn’s second, in the “Old Republic” series. Like most of his books, the plot and characters are simple and easy to follow. As makes sense for a franchise built around a video game, “The Old Republic” features a Civil War-style conflict between a Jedi-supported Republic and a Sith Empire, with planets being fought over like game pieces.
Because of the straightforward nature of “The Old Republic,” every entry pretty much stands alone; you don’t need to be privy to the previous yarns, such as Karpyshyn’s own “Revan” (the author also penned the “Darth Bane” trilogy, which takes place much farther along the timeline). However, “Annihilation” makes nice use of previously introduced characters. Theron Shan is a James Bond-esque Republic Strategic Information Service agent who was first introduced in the comic-book arc “The Lost Suns” (which I haven’t read but intend to pick up). The independent operator Tiff’ith, a Twi’lek, is also from that arc; she’s quite entertaining with the way she has just learned Basic and speaks in a childlike manner.
Jace Malcom, the Republic military’s supreme commander, and Satele Shan, the Jedi Grand Master, were introduced in the video game, and Karpyshyn brings them to vibrant life, spurred on the relationships they share with each other and with Theron. New character Gnost-Dural cribs heavily from “Clone Wars” character Plo Koon.
On the Sith side of things, it’s pretty much business as usual: Power struggles and a ship that’s practically a superweapon. Some Sith Lords here are so generic they don’t even get names; others’ names are comical, such as Darth Ravage. I’m starting to sympathize with fans who say “Enough Darths already.” One compelling character is Davidge, the Imperial Minister of Logistics, who uses mathematics to suggest war strategies to his Sith Lords.
“Annihilation” is an easy, brisk read that feels like “Star Wars,” but — like all of the “Old Republic” entries, including the game itself — it feels a little too generically like “Star Wars.” The “Tales of the Jedi” comic series took place around this same point on the timeline, but those stories — helped largely by the art — truly did feel like they took place four millennia before “A New Hope.” Here, the description of Coruscant, for example, could appear just as easily in a post-“Return of the Jedi” story. Overall, “Annihilation” is “Star Wars” played safe.