Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force (Star Wars)

I’ve always been a fan of Star Wars (as cliched as that sounds, especially given the current state of the franchise), I’ve loved the franchise for as long as I can remember, and I find it’s mythos particularly interesting.... having said that, I am overall not pleased with the way the franchise has evolved under Disney at all (don’t dismiss me just yet, I promise I not going to start ranting or trashing the new films or anything like that, I’m just establishing my current perception) so once I realized that I wasn’t on-board with the current Star Wars, I started looking for my fix on other sources, and in the end, I have to be grateful to Disney because otherwise I wouldn’t have gotten so much into the Extended Universe (aka Legends) as I have now.Before the sequel trilogy, I had just read some excerpts on a few books here and there, then a lot of things happened with the franchise and I started looking somewhere else, so to I go into this used book store, and I find an old copy of “Heir to the Jedi” (Star Wars at its finest btw), I read it, and that’s when The EU really got me good.Now then, Jedi vs Sith, unlike Heir to the Jedi, is not so much a Novel, but more of a treaty on the larger Star Wars mythos. Here they discuss multiple traits, customs and traditions of both the Jedi and the Sith Lords, but they also take a peek at various very interesting characteristics of other force sensitive beings and societies. This book is, in my opinion, a absolute “must-read” for anyone that wants to know more about the lore of the galaxy far far away.It doesn’t matter if you love or hate the current Star Wars, whether you think TLJ is a masterpiece, or you dream of (figuratively) slapping Rian Johnson for murdering you favourite franchise, Jedi vs Sith goes great lengths to shed some light on many obscure details surrounding the millennial battle between the light and dark side.Even if this is not considered canon anymore, I seriously doubt that Disney will ever go as much into detail as to delve into the nature of the living force, especially from the perspective of different cults and religions both known and unheard of even in the Lucas era, so if you want to take a dive into the deeper lore of Star Wars, this is an great place to start.

This is book that every Star Wars fan should have it. I like the design, the wisdom that contains and the timeline that starts from earlier days of the galaxy's civilisations. I bought and I am very happy to add it to my Star Wars collection.Worth for money, good printed quality and takes you time as much as you read.

I'd grade this book on two levels. First, I'd give it 5 stars for the illustrations. Chris Trevas and Tommy Lee Edwards have produced some of the most stunning Star Wars artwork in this volume. They depict scenes from the movies in semi-mythological styles, and also bring to life key characters from the Expanded Universe. Some of this artwork has already become canon (indeed, most of the pictures on Wookiepedia of EU characters are either from book covers or this book). So, even though this isn't an art book, the illustrations alone are worth the price of admission.Unfortunately, I did find the text to be a bit lacking. I've personally never been a big fan of in-universe journals or memoirs from key characters. They always come off as fan fiction or just diminish the character. I mean, is a Sith Lord going to seem nearly as threatening after reading his diaries? This is a tough style of fiction to pull off, and Jedi vs. Sith just isn't the right place for it. The text is OK overall and has some amusing stories about the origins of the SIth and Jedi, but I prefer the third-person style of the Essential Atlas.Overall, I'd definitely recommend this book for Star Wars fans, ESPECIALLY if you're into the Expanded Universe.

Un libro imprescindible para todo fan del antiguo universo expandido (de antes de que Disney decidiera que Rey era un personaje más interesante que Mara Jade). La única advertencia que hago es leerlo con sumo cuidado, ya que hace spoilers muy grandes sin apenas aviso previo, de manera que todo aquel que no haya leído todo el material del universo expandido debe leerlo con cuidado si no quiere enterarse antes de tiempo de aspectos vitales de la trama general de este enorme universo.

Truly a brilliant book! For me personally the “non canon” stories are the true telling of the Jedi and Sith history. This really feels like a historic account and detailed look at all the elements of Jedi/Sith cultureSuch a great read and a great companion to all the legends books and the Lucas era films and games too!

Highly Recommended A Must for any fan or collector, one of the best books ever been produced for the star wars series.This item is written by Ryder Windham, Chris Trevas and Tommy Lee Edwards. The latter is responsible for most of the illustrations that are nothing short of incredible.Very cleverly written, the authors have written the book like a guide on the basics and advancements of all jedi and sith from the perspective of the most recent Jedi historian "Tionne Solusar", who is the most recent Jedi scholar and historian at the moment in the star wars universe.This book covers everything from the beginning of the sith to the most important battles, holicrons to ancient scrolls and tombs, how to construct a lightsabers, fighting forms, sith sorcery, force understanding, to the prophecy of the chosen one. It goes through characters in detail and the host of images are new, fresh and epic.There are wonderful tales of hero's and villains. After each piece of information there is a synopsis by the Jedi historian "Tionne Solusar".All in all a wonderful book. Alot of new info, images and well worth the money.A 10/10, as good as "Book of the Sith" or "Jedi Guide".

It's a good book well sourced and well written - it's a shame a lot of the content is now non-canon - as it's way better than a lot of what is. I have it four stars as it's occasionally not detailed enough and while it does add some new info mainly presents info from other sources - which to be fair is it's main goal (and is successful at this). Great illustrations - some liberties though

Jedi Vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force is the first completely brand new topic for an Essential guide for a very long time. The last couple of years have seen produced updated versions of the old topics such as The New Essential Guide to Characters. Here we have an amazing guide told as if it was an in-universe source itself. The narrator or writer in-universe is Jedi Master Tionne 40 years After the Battle of Yavin (ABY). It is set in the aftermath of the fifth book of the Legacy of the Force novel series "Sacrifice". It is meant as a guide to Jedi of the time to better understand the Jedi and Siths intertwined history and their beliefs.The most impressive thing about this guide has to be the superb artwork by Chris Trevas and Tommy Lee Edwards. The art covers the entire Star Wars saga from the time of the ancient origins of the Jedi & Sith right up to the Jedi Wolf Sazen and Shado Vao of 130 years ABY. Some of my favorites are the two page spread by Tommy Lee Edwards of the final duel between Luke Skywalker and Lumiya and also the beautiful Conclave of the Jedi Order on Zonama Sekot by Chris Trevas. This magnificent art is combined with a very well written body of text with dozens of articles written from the perspectives of Jedi and Sith from throughout the saga all bound together under the premise described above. This guide is fantastic whatever your preference is in the Star Wars timeline as all gets a good level of coverage in terms of both text and artwork. It also gives numerous little juicy bits of information in matters ranging from the new Knights of the Old Republic comics to where and when did Luke and his new Jedi Order find all this historic information.This is a must have for any Star Wars fan from someone wanting to learn more about the universe to a super fan who owns everything with Star Wars written on it. Its also a very good length meaning you can dip in and out of it for weeks and still come across something new that you had not seen before. A massive well done to Ryder Wyndam, Chris Trevas and Tommy Lee Edwards.

This is one of those books you wouldnt buy unless you were at least a fan of Sci-fi/fantasy nevermind the franhise itself. That said it is a great addition to any fellow Star Wars geeks and an easy pick up for new comers