May the Force be with you all! Geeks of Doom will be posting a couple of Star Wars articles today, May 25, for Universal Day of the Jedi, which celebrates the anniversary of the release of the first Star Wars movie.

This year, Universal Day of the Jedi also celebrates the anniversary of Timothy Zahn‘s novel, Heir to the Empire. The initial release of this novel 20 years ago this month is significant, because it was quite literally groundbreaking: its impact would open the floodgates for an amazing deluge of Star Wars novels and comics – turning the Expanded Universe into an EXPANDING Universe.

Zahn’s Thrawn Trilogy, of which Heir to the Empire is the first part, is widely regarded by many fans as one of the best series of Star Wars books to ever have been released. Some fans even consider the trilogy to be the equivalent of the closest we may ever get to a Star Wars Sequel Trilogy. Timothy Zahn has continued his journeys into the Expanded Star Wars Universe through the years – exploring deeper into the history and legacy of Grand Admiral Thrawn, the continual growing relationship between Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade, and also the mysteries behind the enigmatic Outbound Flight.

I figured with this month being the anniversary of Zahn’s masterpiece, and also with today being Universal Day of the Jedi, it would be a good opportunity to take a look back at some of the finer examples of Star Wars novels over the years.

May the Force be with you all! Geeks of Doom will be posting a couple of Star Wars articles today, May 25, for Universal Day of the Jedi, which celebrates the anniversary of the release of the first Star Wars movie.

Throughout the history of the Star Wars film saga, we’re taught that there are only two perceptions, or sides, of the Force: the side embraced by the Jedi, and the Dark Side as flaunted by Sith Lords. While the “good vs. evil” motif works well in the films, the Expanded Star Wars Universe explores the Force in depth, where fans have learned there is more than meets the eye than just the light side and the dark side.

Indeed, while George Lucas was painting in very broad strokes of black and white when it came to the Force, which added much to its vague and enigmatic nature in the Original Trilogy, subsequent authors and writers have since looked deeper into the shades of gray. As the Jedi continue forward to embrace the light side, and the Dark Jedi and Sith Lords continue their growth in the dark side, we find more characters and cultures that have very differing philosophies of the Force.

Let’s take a look at these different points of view…