William Shakespeare's The Jedi Doth Return

The third in the series of books that retell the Star Wars films as Shakespearean plays, this offers a delightful read for those who fall in the center of the Venn Diagram of Star Wars and Shakespeare fans. It’s a fun concept and the artwork throughout is wonderful.

As someone who reads Shakespeare for fun and loves Star Wars, I was truly excited to pick this up, however, I found the constant monologuing far more tedious than in any of the Bard’s plays. The characters seemed to unnecessarily describe the action when the preceding dialogue had already done so succinctly enough. In the end, it turned out I liked the idea of the book more than the book itself. Your mileage may vary.

Ian Doescher finishes his brilliant Shakespeare/Star Wars mash-up trilogy on a high. By this point, it's difficult to know what to say in a review, because everything that was good about the first two books is also present here in The Jedi Doth Return. Both the Shakespearean dialogue and the Star Wars immersion are top-drawer, and the grin that I had on my face in anticipation of this final book only widened upon actually reading it.

I particularly enjoyed Doescher's additions to the original story - the lament of the rancor keeper, the numerous eloquent asides and monologues and, also, the return of the two genre-savvy guards to lampshade the Emperor's plan. There are, as in the previous books, numerous references to Shakespeare's show more plays: I particularly enjoyed the subtle reference to Birnam Wood and Dunsinane from Macbeth on page 113. But there are also a fair few Star Wars in-jokes for knowing fans; for example, on page 58 Luke calls on the ghost of Obi-Wan to explain why he did not tell him Darth Vader was his father. In an aside, and in a winking reference to the much-maligned Star Wars prequels, Obi-Wan says:

OBI-WAN
[aside:] I never did imagine that, in death,
I would be call'd upon to justify
The words I spoke in life. 'Twas well I spoke
Not of the midi-chlorians to Luke,
For then he would have endless questions still.

It is this sense of humour (note the book's dedication at the start) and sheer enjoyment which comes through in Doescher's writing which makes it such a delight to read. Of course, it helps that Doescher has a poet's mind (the wordplay and juxtaposition is quite ingenious, particularly the pray/prey on page 85 and the repeated use of the word 'move' on page 91) and a strong appreciation of storytelling. In his afterword, he rightly points out that parts of the original Star Wars trilogy are "masterful film moments, and utterly Shakespearean." (pg. 163). Above all else - the humour, the eloquence, the sheer enjoyment - I think that the thing of greatest value I'll take from Doescher's trilogy is just that: the similarities between Shakespeare and Star Wars and, really, most of the stories we tell each other. These books have given me a greater appreciation of the tropes that all good stories share, and allows me to view Shakespeare in particular in a different light.

Because it is the final book, Doescher also takes the opportunity to provide a few mischievous little teasers as to what is up next (for him, or for the Star Wars franchise?). I for one sincerely hope that Doescher writes again. It wouldn't even have to be a Shakespeare mash-up because, as I said above, he is a strong storyteller and has a poet's mind. The books in his trilogy are genuinely great works and perhaps don't even deserve to be labelled as 'mash-ups', since they are so much better than anything else in that genre. Like the original Star Wars films, Doescher's books are so good you will lament that there are only three of them.

LEIA
New hope did guide our first adventures, aye,
Until the Empire harshly struck us back,
But then our noble Jedi hath return'd
And all ensur'd our victory was won.
LUKE
We stop, e'en as our epic play doth end,
To thank thee for thy gracious company.
Our star wars now are ended, for a time -
The song of peace bursts forth in perfect rhyme. show less

Ian Doescher's facility with the Shakespearean pastiche is in no way diminished in this, the third (or sixth) and final (or not) entry in his dramatic adaptions of Star Wars. If this particular entry shines less brightly than the others, it is only because the source material presented less fertile ground, especially in the opening acts. The choice to maintain all of the original Huttese (and other foreign language) dialogue was an odd one. It might stage well, as indeed it did in the film itself, but it was much less engaging to read. The Ewoks were handled more adroitly, although a given reader's tolerance for them and their antics is no doubt in direct proportion to their love for the Ewoks in general.

It's all in good fun, though, show more and I have enjoyed the ride. If he writes the prequels, I'll read them too. show less

I’ve had the pleasure of reading all three volumes of Ian Doescher’s Shakespearean Star Wars trilogy and have delighted in each book. Now, as his trilogy closes with “The Jedi Doth Return,” I can appreciate the Shakespearean elements in George Lucas’s original films. Darth Vader’s redemption and return as Anakin Skywalker are perfectly suited to Shakespeare’s work and Doescher brilliantly adapts the drama and suspense of “Jedi” into this format. The dialogue is perfectly paced and Doescher uses various character’s asides to fill in character development that the novels typically added in prose, such as Lando Calrissian’s desire to redeem himself following the events of “Empire.” Additionally, Doescher plays show more homage to famous dialogue from the film, the best incident of which is Admiral Ackbar yelling out, “O rebels, do you hear? Fie, ’tis a trap!” Various other lines reference famous works of Shakespeare, including “Julius Caesar,” “As You Like It,” and “Hamlet.” Like Doescher, “Jedi” was always my favorite film in the trilogy since it is where the audience sees the story come full circle and Luke and Darth Vader’s stories have a near perfect conclusion. Doescher does the film justice and adds a new level of insight that challenges the reader to rewatch the movies as a form of English literature rather than simply popular entertainment.

“New hope did guide our first adventures, aye,
Until the Empire harshly struck us back,
But then our noble Jedi hath return’d
And all ensur’d our victory was won.” show less

The idea of turning the Star Wars movies into Shakespearean plays is genius. I have enjoyed the entire series of these so far. In some cases, including Return of the Jedi, I think the Shakespearean version is actually an improvement on the original.

If you're a Star Wars fan, you really should check out this series. I enjoyed these books enough to hope that a Shakespearean prequel trilogy is in the works, because I suspect Doescher could make those stories not suck.

An excellent conclusion to the trilogy. Doescher really brings the characters alive, R2 is a lot of fun. The monologues add depth to a number of characters, and the random guard chats provide some humorous details. Included were a number of direct Shakespeare references which were fun to see in a new context.

Whether or not you're a fan of Shakespeare, if you are a fan of Star Wars, this is a GREAT book. The best part is that it begs to be read aloud. If you're as familiar with original trilogy as you should be, you can open the book to any page and quickly pick up where in the story you are and hilarity ensues. A fun book, fun book. I will be buying the first two in the series post-haste! Mayeth the Force be with Thee!