Heir to the Empire Week: Part 2-- Characters

 I think one of the things Zahn does better than almost any other EU author is integrate the OT characters with his own. I generally lean into more original character heavy EU (OP Luke gets tiring quickly), but the use of the original cast works here, and is fitting for a jumping off point into the broader EU.

Original Cast:

Luke- Still looking for a Jedi Master to finish his training. He's really not much more skilled/competent here than he is in Jedi despite training Leia. Most of the abilities he exhibits are marginally stronger (if at all) than their OT counterparts (he can jump, he can do telekinesis, he has better telepathy with Leia, he has a vision...) This works great for his character arc. C'Boath can try to seduce him to the Dark Side later in the trilogy and he can't steamroll everything, but it does seem a bit odd that he seems to have developed less in the half decade since Jedi than he did in the yearish between Jedi and Empire.

Han- Married Leia! Got her pregnant! Is vaguely respectable now! ! Still a scoundrel! This really isn't a Han book. He makes a good showing where he shows up (Sluis Van) but he's very much supporting cast.

Leia- Is a Jedi now! While Luke seems to have barely developed off screen, she seems to be about where he was in Empire, building her own lightsaber. Leia gets to do a lot more in the later books in the trilogy, but she still puts in a fair showing here, doing the politics thing with Mon Mothma and Borsk Fey'lya.

Lando- Has a mining operation on a planet that you can't get to because the sun is so hot. (They build giant space umbrellas with active cooling and the mining complex walks around to stay in the night side.) I guess he gets it via Sabacc, since I doubt insurance paid for his losses on Cloud City. "What weird business venture is Lando on?" is a fun early EU game to play.

Chewie and the droids: Don't do a ton, honestly. Zahn does write C-3PO less annoyingly than most of the preceding authors at least.

Newbies:

Mara Jade- I think Zahn overplays his hand on the mystery here. Who else would she be but some kind of Imperial secret agent with her vendetta against Luke. Making her Force sensitive and slowly bringing her abilities out is nicely done. She'll continue to have a major impact throughout the rest of the EU.

Borsk Fay'la- Can't have a plot about starting a new government without a slimy rival faction guy. I think some of the other authors that get their hands on him later actually do a better job with him, as Zahn's portrayal leans all the way through one note scumminess into anti-Bothan racism. Manny Bothans died for those plans, man.

Talon Karrde- Is in a weird place Wild Card was one of the original titles for Heir (too close GRRM's crappy super hero universe) and Zahn clearly wants to let Karrde have some fun. He's a pretty big deal in Heir, capturing Luke, dealing with Thrawn, etc. By the end of the trilogy he starts to fall behind Han and Lando as smuggler guy #3.  It feels to me like Zahn had him in a bigger role earlier and either pared him back to give the rest of the cast more room, or maybe Lucasfilm reined him in to feature the OT protagonists more. He'll get some use in the rest of the EU, but I think Booster Terrik fills the "extra scoundrel" role better. 

Joruus C'baoth- Plays a great foil to Thrawn as the "crazy supernatural" villain to his "Genius mundane calm" one. He's reasonably stable here, but he'll get more interesting as the trilogy progresses. Zahn will spin his wheels here a bit, with his constant "BRING ME SKYWALKER!" He's in a bit of a rough spot since he can't out scheme Thrawn, and he can only chuck Force Lightning so many times without going totally over the top.

Gilad Pellaeon- Page for page, I think Pellaeon manages to eke out more screen time than anyone else on this list besides Mara Jade. Which is pretty impressive for a Dr. Watson with a dead Sherlock. At this point, he mostly exists to marvel at how smart Thrawn is, but he'll slowly become important as a "good" Imperial officer as the Remnant becomes less all evil all the time.

Mitth'raw'nuruodo- The man, the myth, the legend. The namesake of the trilogy. Everybody loves Thrawn! I think Heir is actually where he peaks in his "study art, make zany genius plans," shenanigans. By Dark Force Rising his Katana fleet heist starts to happen too off screen, and by The Last Command the plans get dumber. The raids on Nkllon and Sluis Van both let him flex his tactical muscles while giving the New Republic a real fighting chance (even a somewhat pyric victory).

Tomorrow, plot or something? Who knows! (Not me)