Phase Two of The High Republic is wrapping up, and on the short story front, we have reached the end of these particular patrons of Enlightenment. Thankfully, it ends strong but still highlights the weaker story elements of Phase Two.

**Spoilers for The Battle of Jedha, No Such Thing As A Bad Customer, and Last Orders**

No Such Thing As A Bad Customer

Bad things keep happening inside the Jedha bar, Enlightenment, as various guests tied to more high-profile storylines come and go. This time, we have Paternok from Eiram and Kimbral from E’ronoh. Of course, each of them shares their perspective with Piralli (the now lead of these stories), Moona, and Kradon. As we have learned from The Battle of Jedha, Convergence, and Cataclysm, Eiram and E’ronoh citizens blame each other for the war. That hatred did not magically disappear after the wedding of Princess Xiri A’lbaran of E’ronoh and Prince Phan-tu Zenn of Eiram. The two briefly hope for peace, but reality impedes as buildings blow up and the Battle of Jedha starts. 

Meanwhile, Moona is concerned about her girlfriend, Erta, who is out in the chaos, and Keth, who is with the Jedi. Moona is reunited with Erta when the battle literally spills into the bar, with Vildar and Matty (from The High Republic comics). While Vildar pursues his rescue mission, Matty defends the bar and saves Erta, which challenges Moona’s opinions of the Jedi. And just like in previous stories, the regulars and the guest stars work together to protect the patrons (and refugees seeking shelter in the bar). 

Because the Battle of Jedha effects all of Jedha City, Enlightenment had to be involved somehow. Still, there were better ways to incorporate the chaos other than an actual battle inside the bar. Having everyone barricaded in the bar to wait out the war, having no other choice than to talk with each other amid the tensions, would have been more interesting. As it stands, “No Such Thing As A Bad Customer” has similar story beats to “The Unusual Suspect.”

Last Orders

The last story, “Last Orders,” follows in the footsteps of the first story, “New Prospects.” The main difference is the absence of Keth Cerepath. Months after the Battle of Jedha, Enlightenment is recovering from the damage. While the damage is slowly coming together, the wounds remain with the empty bar stool of Keth Carepeth. Piralli is heartbroken over the loss of their friend when Erta and Moona arrive with a box that Moona acquired from a dockworker who said it was a Jedi artifact. The box is sealed shut, and the group cannot figure out how to open it when an unfamiliar figure arrives with a familiar name: Jedi Master Lee Harro. 

Harro was the subject of a nested story in “New Prospects” with prospector Seretha von Beel, who told the group about her spontaneous adventures with the Harro. Now it is Harro’s turn to tell them a story about that box in their possession as he sits in Keth’s seat.

The story takes place during the Old Republic, a rarity in canon when the rise of a Sith Lord named Darth Caldoth concerns the Jedi Order. A brave Jedi Knight, Pelopy Vus, discovers a possible way to defeat Caldoth by creating a prison for him. Caldoth, learning of her plans, sets a trap by feeding her information through various sources. He tricks her into using the dark side to complete her trap, the box, and Vus gets trapped within her own prison. A lesson that Vus failed to understand or question the power she was harnessing and paid a terrible price.

Deeply disturbed, Moona gives the box to Harro, who finishes his drink and heads out of the bar when Piralli stops him. He asks the Jedi if that story really happened, to which Harro asks whether that matters “so long as there was purpose in telling and enjoyment in listening?”

With the Jedi encounter gone, Piralli feels things are slowly returning to normal at Enlightenment. Having the subject of the nested story from “New Prospects” tell his own story was a great bookend, but it does not change the fact that none of these characters left (Piralli, Moona, Erta, or Kradon) are even close to developed. Starting with such a strong character in Keth, whose motivations and aspirations were clear, and ending with these bland canvases is a rare miss for the High Republic publishing team. George Mann wrote all five Tales of Enlightenment stories versus the approach in Phase One, where Charles Soule, Cavan Scott, and Justina Ireland tagged teamed. And with a month between each part, the authors’ unique writing styles and prose helped differentiate the stories. Here they all blur together in a sea of sameness.

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Now that these have ended, I cannot recommend a short story collection edition of Tales of Enlightenment if it gets published. I recommend Star Wars The High Republic: Starlight Stories (released in December 2022) from Phase One because there is a clear narrative and more precise connection to events in Phase One. Part of that was the focus never left the subjects of the specific story and their surrounding relationships serviced how that connection impacts their respective jobs on Starlight. We got new species and backgrounds on wars, past loves from both, and high-stakes confrontations with existing characters and groups introduced in the main novels. But none of this ever took away from the main conflict. However, more than other High Republic content, the Phase Two short stories rely on readers’ familiarity with the novels. 

With the Phase One writers returning for Phase Three, perhaps the trio of Cavan Scott, Justina Ireland, and Daniel Jose Older will take over for whatever setting Phase Three will hold, and the overall story will be more cohesive.