History Literature / StarWarsBrotherhood

** At one point, the Jedi Initiates discuss [[Recap/StarWarsTheCloneWarsS5E7ATestOfStrength Huyang]] (who was voiced by Creator/DavidTennant). According to their stories, the Gathering's Professor arrived at the Jedi Temple centuries earlier...by crashing into it in a [[Series/DoctorWho blue box]]. Chen confirmed on Twitter the ''Doctor Who'' in-joke was one of his favorite Easter Eggs.

** A variation with Anakin and Obi-wan. Despite having been Master and Apprentice for a decade, their relationship has always been one of tension and bickering. A key part of ''Brotherhood'' is showing how Anakin's elevation to Knighthood allows him and Obi-Wan to begin transitioning out of their strained working relationship and into the relaxed brotherly camaraderie and bond of ''The Clone Wars'' cartoon and the final Prequel film.

* FakeStatic: Anakin resorts to this to get Mace Windu off their backs during his and Mill's rescue flight to Cato Neimodia. Mace is ''not'' amused.

* HiddenDepths: Anakin offers some genuinely deep, thoughtful insight [[spoiler: to Mill during the denouement about his own experiences and flaws and it helps Mill make the decision not to pursue Knighthood.]]
** Both Obi-Wan and Yoda especially are surprised to see such remarkable self-insight and mentoring coming from ''Anakin'' of all people. [[spoiler: From Yoda's thoughtful reaction afterward, the implication (or alternately interpretation) is that this may have been what put the idea in the Grand Master's head of assigning Ahoshka to Anakin during ''The Clone Wars''.]]

* MirrorCharacter: Ketar Nor is very much one for Anakin. He's young, idealistic, chafing at the tutelage of his older, experienced mentor. [[spoiler: Like Anakin, he gives int his rage and it nearly leads to the same kind of bloodbath Anakin inflicted on the Tusken Raiders'' -- though ''unlike'' Anakin, he's stopped in time.]]

* SpiritualSuccessor: To Martha Wells' ''[[Literature/StarWarsMasterAndApprentice Master and Apprentice]]''.

* SecretKeeper: Chen offers his own take on why Obi-Wan, despite clearly having figured out what Anakin and Padme were to each other by ''Revenge of the Sith'', kept shtum and never openly confronted him before Episode III. [[spoiler: Obi-Wan saw his own would-be relationship with Satine Kryze in theirs and reflected on how, despite never pursuing it, it had shaped both him and Satine for the better in the years since. He hoped Anakin and Padme would be able to do the same for one another, yet still accept Anakin's future was ultimately with the Order.]]

* YouWereTryingTooHard: Anakin's knighting, and their initial wartime separation, gives Obi-Wan the insight he needs to realize he was guilty of doing this to his Padawan. Obi-Wan wanted to honor Qui-Gon's dying wish and be the best Jedi he could be for Anakin. It's only now, with distance and hindsight, that Obi-Wan understands he overcompensated and tried too hard to emulate ''his'' definition of an ideal, best Jedi. It ''never'' occurred to him to wonder or even ask what ''Anakin'' considered to be ''his'' definition of an ideal, best Jedi (i.e. Qui-Gon), or to adjust his thinking and teaching style accordingly. Obi-Wan feels genuine regret and sadness at this, wondering how much of the last 10 years of friction and conflict between them could've been avoided if he'd had this epiphany sooner.

* YouKilledMyParents: A variation. [[spoiler: Ketar holds the Republic responsible for his parents deaths at a pirate attack in Republic space -- a voyage they were only on because of a desire to showcase Neimoidian culture on Corsucant to try and challenge the galactic stereotypes against Cato Neimodia (and which backfired).]]

* YouKilledMyPrarents: A variation. [[spoiler: Ketar holds the Republic responsible for his parents deaths at a pirate attack in Republic space -- a voyage they were only on because of a desire to showcase Neimoidian culture on Corsucant to try and challenge the galactic stereotypes against Cato Neimodia (and which backfired).]]

* FreudianExcuse: While Ketar raises justifiable anger about the Republic’s disdain towards his people and homeworld, [[spoiler: the revelations from Obi-Wan’s Trial late in the novel all but imply Ketar's grief and anger at the death of his parents during an off-world trip to Coruscant is what’s realty driving his anger and anti-Republic zealotry.]]

** Despite the close bond they form, Anakin will ''not'' mentor or train Mill. [[spoiler: The dramatic tension instead becomes whether or not Mill will survive the events of the novel. She does.]]

** That 'Business on Cato Neimoidia' Obi-Wan was embarrassed talking about during ''Revenge of the Sith'' is resolved here in the Disney Canon (and replaces the ''Legends'' depiction of that incident from James Luceno's ''Labyrinth of Evil'').

** How, where, and why Anakin and Obi-Wan acquired their Clone Wars media-bestowed nicknames of 'The Hero With No Fear' and 'The Negotiatior' in the Disney canon is revealed to be due to the Cato Neimoidia incident.

* CanonImmigrant: The Sun Dragon story from Matthew Stover’s ''Revenge of the Sith'' novelization is re-canonized. Chen acknowledges in the Afterword that Stover’s novelization’s a favorite ''Star Wars'' novel of his.

** Both Obi-Wan and Yoda especially are surprised to see such remarkable self-insight and mentoring coming from ''Anakin'' of all people. [[spoiler: From Yoda's thoughtful reaction afterward, the implication (or alternately interpretation) is that this may have been what put the idea in his head of assigning Ahoshka to Anakin.]]

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: [[spoiler: Obi-Wan not confronting Anakin about his suspicions of his infatuation with Padme or sharing his suspicions with Yoda and Mace.]]

* PlanetOfHats: Invoked and deconstructed. The rest of the Galaxy views the Neimoidians as a whole based on the actions and behavior of the Trade Federation, Lott Dodd, and Nute Gunray. While some values are shared (ex. an ingrained risk/assessment mindset), your average Neimoidians are ''not'' greedy or cowardly and they're ''sick'' of the galactic stereotypes they get labeled with. Part of the novel is Anakin and Obi-Wan realizing their own ingrained bigotry and bias against the Neimoidians and trying to let it go. Obi-Wan gets it, while Anakin has more trouble (due to his emotionalism and enduring anger at what Gunray did to Padme and Naboo).

** Anakin and Padme are still in the honeymoon phase of their marriage and they're doing a less-than-stellar job of hiding that martial glow (as Obi-Wan notices, though he sees it as deep infatuation).

* UngratefulBastard: [[spoiler: Ketar after the climax. Ruug gets him medical treatment to save his life (and had promised not to reveal his role in the attempted bombings if he had surrendered peacefully). Instead, he has the audcacity to call ''her'' a traitor and (off-screen) turns her in for 'treason' for working with Obi-Wan to prove the bombing FrameUp.]]

* YouWereTryingTooHard: Anakin's knighting, and their initial wartime separation, gives Obi-Wan the insight he needs to realize he was guilty of doing this as Anakin's Master. Obi-Wan wanted to honor Qui-Gon's dying wish and be the best Jedi he could be for Anakin. It's only now, with distance and hindsight, that Obi-Wan realizes he overcompensated and tried too hard to emulate ''his'' definition of an ideal, best Jedi. It ''never'' occurred to him to wonder or even ask what ''Anakin'' considered to be ''his'' definition of an ideal, best Jedi (i.e. Qui-Gon), or to adjust his thinking and teaching style accordingly. Obi-Wan feels genuine regret and sadness at this, wondering how much of the last 10 years of friction and conflict between them could've been avoided if he'd had this epiphany sooner.

* YouWereTryingTooHard: Anakin's knighting, and their initial wartime separation, gives Obi-Wan the insight he needs to realize he was guilty of doing this during his Padawan's training. Specifically, Obi-Wan wanted to honor Qui-Gon's dying wish and be the best Jedi he could be for this young desert urchin. It's only now, with distance and hindsight, that Obi-Wan realizes he overcompensated and was trying too hard to emulate ''his'' definition of an ideal, best Jedi. It ''never'' occurred to him to consider or even ask what ''Anakin'' considered to be ''his'' definition of an ideal, best Jedi (i.e. Qui-Gon), or to adjust his thinking and teaching style accordingly. Obi-Wan's left with genuine regret and sadness, as he wonders how much of the last 10 years of friction and conflict between them could've been avoided if he'd had this epiphany sooner.

* YouWereTryingTooHard: During the novel, Obi-Wan comes to understand that this was a key mistake he made as Anakin's Master. Obi-Wan wanted to honor Qui-Gon's dying wish and be the best Jedi he could be for this desert urchin. However, thanks to distance and hindsight, Obi-Wan now realizes he was overcompensating and trying too hard to emulate ''his'' definition of an ideal, best Jedi. It never occurred to Obi-Wan to consider or even ask what ''Anakin'' considered to be ''his'' definition of an ideal Jedi (i.e. Qui-Gon) or to adjust his thinking and teaching style accordingly. The revelation fills Obi-Wan with genuine regret and sadness, as he wonders how much of the last 10 years of friction and conflict between them could've been avoided if he'd had this epiphany sooner.

. HiddenDepths: Anakin offers some genuinely deep, thoughtful insight [[spoiler: to Mill during the denouement about his own experiences and flaws and it helps Mill make the decision not to pursue Knighthood.]]
*** Both Obi-Wan and Yoda especially are surprised to see such remarkable self-insight and mentoring coming from ''Anakin'' of all people. [[spoiler: From Yoda's thoughtful reaction afterward, the implication (or alternately interpretation) is that this may have been what put the idea in his head of assigning Ahoshka to Anakin.]]

* BadassNormal: Ruug as a veteran Neimodian sniper and black ops commando. Her abilities and marksmanship end impressing even Obi-Wan.

** An ironic variation with Obi-Wan and Anakin. This ''was'' the norm for them leading into, and during, ''Attack of the Clones''. But with Anakin elevated to Knighthood and to equal standing, the two Jedi ironically have just as many difficulties (initially) working together with one another as Jedi equals as they did working together as Master and Apprentice.

** The tragedy of [[spoiler: Ketar's situation is that as an experienced black ops commando, Ruug quickly evaluates Ventress and correctly pings her as trouble. When she sees her stoking Ruug's anger and bigotry, Ruug intentionally tries to keep Ventress and the cadet separated during the investigation. Unfortunately, Ventress uses Ruug's genuine concern for her youthful charge as 'proof' to Ketar that Kenobi has 'corrupted' his mentor.]]

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: As the novel takes place shortly after the Battle of Geonosis and the duel with Dooku, Anakin has just been outfitted with his prosthetic right arm. So he is struggling to adjust to it and to re-calibrate his fighting style.

** Played straight with Anakin and Mace Windu. Elevation to Knighthood and the new reality of the Clone Wars has ''not'' changed Mace's already-low opinion of Anakin. The feeling's still mutual and this friction between them will only get worse over the next 3 years.

** A variation. This ''is'' the norm for Anakin and Obi-Wan at this point in the timeline...and they ironically have just as many difficulties (initially) working together with one another as Jedi equals as they did working together as Master and Apprentice.

** A variation with Anakin and Obi-wan. Despite having been Master and Apprentice for a decade, their relationship has always been one of tension and bickering. A key part of ''Brotherhood'' is showing how Anakin and Obi-Wan transition out of their strained working relationship into the comfortable brotherly camaraderie and bond of ''The Clone Wars'' cartoon and the final Prequel film.

* PlanetOfHats: Invoked and deconstructed. The rest of the Galaxy views the Neimoidians as a whole based on the actions and behavior of the Trade Federation, Lott Dodd, and Nute Gunray. While some values are shared, your average Neimoidians are ''not'' greedy or cowardly and they're ''sick'' of the galactic stereotypes they get labled with. Part of the novel is Anakin and Obi-Wan realizing their own ingrained bigotry and bias against the Neimoidians and trying to let it go.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Anakin has just been outfitted with his prosthetic right arm and is struggling to adjust it and to re-calibrate his fighting style.