Side note: To understand the Chiss, it helps to have read Specter of the Past, Vision of the Future, and most importantly, Survivor's Quest.

Timeline: 5 years after The Phantom Menace.

"Interesting," Thrawn murmured. "I seem to have miscalculated."

The moment I read this line in Timothy Zahn's Outbound Flight, I knew that Thrawn was instantly one of my new favorite characters, and I went straight to my computer to start this blog. This story is about so much more than a doomed exploration by a weak Republic, but more so the introduction of events that would forever shape its destiny, and those of the key players in the future.

As we all know, Thrawn is one, if not the most feared Imperial leader in history. He is a brilliant tactician with goals and ambitious too complicated to map out. He's always one step ahead of you and makes Jedi look like high school freshies lost on their way to homeroom.

But how and why is he like this?

SPOILER ALERT!!!!




__________________________________________________________

As a young man, Mitth'raw'nuruodo (Thrawn is his core name), of the Eighth Ruling Family, is commander of the Springhawk, Picket Force Two of the Chiss Expansionary Defense Fleet. He seems to have many of the traits we know him by, I.e. a cool head in battle, class and sophistication, rapid learning skills, an uncanny ability to analyze art, and tactics that would make you run yourself into the ground. He is constantly at odds with the ruling families of the Chiss Ascendancy because of his belief in pre-emptive strikes against your enemies. The Chiss policy is to not attack until you have been attacked first. He comes into contact with Jorj Car'das, who, ironically, will end up being Talon Karrde's boss ( Thrawn Trilogy/Duology, people, pick it up), a constant thorn in Thrawn's side. What implications does this have, you ask? Well, we see that, along with his military genius, he has a bit of a rebel side to him. It's him against the rest of his people, and he is always over-stepping his boundaries to the chagrin of the Chiss brass. Who else has these traits? None other than Thrawn's sub-conscious protégé, Talon Karrde.

This could be the reason I like young Thrawn so much. I love Karrde, best EU character created besides Mara Jade and Grand Admiral Thrawn.

Why, though, was Thrawn so obsessed with this taboo idea of a pre-emptive strike?

It's because he has more than a cold, ruthless attitude. He has a heart, and a soul, and we find that out during certain parts of the book. He will not simply stand back and let future enemies, like the Vagaari Slavers, live without justice. He, along with everyone else, appreciates admiration. This is evident at the end of the story.

Now, I strongly believe that Thrawn's motivation for the near takeover of the New Republic was to whip them into shape for the impending dangers that Thrawn knew of in the Unknown Regions. Case in point, the Yuuzhan Vong. Thrawn knew that the New Republic was done for if the Vong were to invade. He mentioned a fierce battle with them on the edges of Chiss Space. He was spot on. The New Republic was caught with their pants down. Did they heed Thrawn's not-so-subtle warning? He rolled over 'em like nothing before, yet they did not learn from Thrawn that it was a huge test, in which they failed miserably.

Then they paid for it.

Dearly.

I knew full well the fate of Outbound Flight, but Zahn told the story in a way that you forget about the tragedy until it hits. Brilliant is all I can say. Why did Thrawn destroy such a benevolent idea such as Outbound Flight? What was Outbound Flight's secret agenda? Was Thrawn manipulated? Impossible, Thrawn could never have been manipulated. Or could he have been...? Did Thrawn have mercy? DID HE PUSH THE BUTTON?!?

I don't want to give away too much.

This story gives us that kind of heart-wrenching back story that we got in the prequels with Anakin Skywalker. Does it do Thrawn's character justice? Only the reader can decide. I know that I respect Thrawn even more after reading this book. His morals...? pay tribute to his character. An idealist with a soft side, now where have we seen that before? It makes the character out to be so much more than what he seems to be on the outside.

To truly understand the inner workings of Thrawn, and why he does what he does, you must read this book. Any true Thrawn or Zahn fan will realize that this book is classic Zahn. Buy it. Read it. Love it. You will not regret it. I'll put a 100 % guarantee on that.

It's the most gut-wrenching Star Wars story I have read to date. It's like Gladiator. You know Maximus dies in the end, but you wish that it will turn out differently each time you watch it. It is by far the saddest Star Wars story to date, besides the fall of the Republic. It leaves you with a yearning to know more about everything about the book, and you will not soon forget about it. I will definitely re-read this book several times.

Also, for anyone that's read and loved Survivor's Quest, Outbound Flight, needless to say, answers all of your questions.

Part II comes tomorrow. I hope you will enjoy it. I sincerely hope you enjoyed part I, and I encourage you to read this book. Don't just read it, Love it. Put the Star Wars movie soundtrack of choice on and enjoy Outbound Flight with John Williams' masterpieces taking you further into that galaxy far, far away.