Delusions Of Grandeur

By: Emily Gadek & Kelly Jones
  • Summary

  • Emily and Kelly grew up before Star Wars returned to the big screen—when novels were fans' only hope. Now, they're re-reading them with fresh eyes for plot twists, new characters, and surprisingly apt socio-political themes. Delusions of Grandeur is a podcast about the good, the bad, and the truly bizarre stories of the Star Wars novels.

    delusionspod.com
    Emily Gadek & Kelly Jones
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Episodes
  • Darksaber Ch. 40 - 50
    Dec 25 2024
    Did you ever hear the Tragedy of Dorsk 81 the Cloned? I thought not. It's not a story Barbara Hambly would tell you.

    Dorsk 81 was super good at his desk job, but he was the first Dorsk to ever get bored and he decided to be a space cop instead. He graduated police academy in the most unceremonious way possible and then his best friend forced him to go to a N*zi rally "just to see what they're up to." Turns out, they were up to genocides (duh). But since Dorsk 81 wasn't super populer...lar...back home, the mayor ignored his warnings and now most of their planet is dead. Dorsk 81 himself got internally fried trying to cosplay as Sailor Moon in defense of the Jedi Temple — though he did manage to use the Force to hip check 17 Star Destroyers so hard it sent Gilad Pellaeon's mustache a'quivering. The best we can say about these chapters is: .................the book is almost over. Also, KNIGHT HAMMER. 💀
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    54 mins
  • Darksaber Ch. 30-39
    Dec 18 2024
    Folks, this book is rough enough that maybe even fat free flavor crystals sprinkled on a sarcastic omniscient space clam can't save it. Everyone is getting done dirty in this section, from the entire Wampa race down to Wedge Antilles. Our heroes hop all over the galaxy, finding out things that other people already know and gaslighting their significant others, friends, and/or protégées. Even more upsetting are the gratuitous mentions of Pellaeon's depression mustache. Our hosts dive deep into Crix Madine's baffling uniform to distract themselves from the impossible task of figuring out how much time has elapsed so far in this book (Five years? Two days? The galaxy may never know).
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    58 mins
  • Darksaber Ch. 20 - 29
    Dec 11 2024
    Fair warning: if you identify as a woman or a Mon Calamari, there's not much to appreciate about these chapters. Leia finally gets to go out with her family — to eat a salad. Admiral Ackbar can't even make it past the Corneria mission in Star Fox 64 — despite being a revered war vet. Qwi Xux is supposedly a brilliant scientist — but more importantly, Wedge thinks she's hot. And even though Callista tried to break up with Luke Skywalker, she continues to follow him around the galaxy — enduring Wampa attacks and an endless barrage of stories about his gap year on Dagobah.
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    55 mins

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Somehow, the EU returned...

Though they have a mild tendency to gloss over smaller scene details and give silly(er) names to the galaxies odds and ends, what you most get from them is a real love of the old cannon. They spend precious little time tying things back to the pre- and sequels, and though I've never watched Andor or any of the new shows, the references there are a similarly light touch. Mostly they deal with what's in front of them; the sometimes absurd texts, the wild machinations of the galaxy, the choices of the authors, and of course, the bonkers cover art.

Instead of strictly going though and parsing the text for technical details and inaccuracies, they joyously and with a great amount of humor point out that Lando tricked Luke into drinking Hot Chocolate as his fancy drink. That Wedge is a gawd awful spy from "Space Skokie". That you can't just mind meld with nine week old embryos. Things I never picked up on twenty years ago, and that I'm having an absolute ball discovering a new.

Only caveat to my ironclad recommendation: if you read these for the lightsaber duels and space dogfighting, they summarize fights and battles. Kelly (I think) doesn't follow these actions scenes very well, but they are recapped completely and, as with all other things here, with humor and a clear love of the books*.

It's a blast and I've already made a brother and a few friends into listeners as well.

*Except Courtship of Princess Leia.

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