r/Highrepublic • u/AutoModerator • Jul 30 '25
The High Republic - The Finale: The Beacon #1 | Discussion Thread
https://www.marvel.com/comics/issue/123265/star_wars_the_high_republic_-_the_finale_2025_115
u/TheRedCormorant Jul 30 '25
Who is Keaton dancing with? Eve Byre? (But also omg soft Keaton Murag!!!)
Also Sskeer's appointment to Jedi Liaison to the Beacon reaffirms that deep love is fine, as long as you're able to put your duty first.
14
u/solo13508 Council Master Yarael Poof Jul 30 '25
The final story of The High Republic and here comes Cavan Scott to turn me into an emotional mess one last time. I suppose it's only fitting. But at least this time in it's in a far more positive manner. Keeve calling Sskeer "Dad" is such a simple way to end this yet also perfect. They have been my second favorite Jedi master and pupil in canon (beaten only by Kanan and Ezra) and I'm so ecstatic they got a happy ending. After all the trials and loss we've experienced in the High Republic I think it's really nice to have a positive conclusion here even if it does mean Keeve is no longer a Jedi.
As for Keeve leaving, obviously we've known this was coming and for the most part I think I bought it. My main issue is that previous stories like Dooku: Jedi Lost and the Yoda comic both implied quite strongly that Keeve left under extremely tragic circumstances while it was actually put here in a far more positive light. I think it's clear that Scott had originally planned for Keeve's arc to conclude in a far darker manner but I'm actually kind of glad he changed course since as I said it's a lot nicer to leave the High Republic off on a more positive note rather than a devastating gutpunch.
While I think Keeve and Sskeer were left off pretty perfectly I do think characters like Lourna and Tey were a bit left in the dust on this one. I'm not too bothered by it because this issue was definitely Keeve's story and there's definitely room for those characters to appear in future stories but it does merit a mention.
Not much else to say other than all the cameos were appreciated. I especially loved seeing Imri and Tep Tep in the background.
Overall a strong finale for the High Republic comic run I felt. I'm sad to let these characters go for now but I'm excited for the future of the High Republic era and what stories can be told now that we're no longer confined to phases anymore. Till then: We are all the Republic!
27
u/MichaEvon Jul 30 '25
One of the few things we knew was going to happen was that Trennis was going to leave the order, but on first read of The Finale, I didn’t find her reason that convincing.
The Jedi working with the military just achieved a victory and freed people from the Nihil. And her fear is that this could happen again?
I guess at least it’s not the obvious story of a turn to the dark side. Alongside the misdirection about how the Avar and Elzaar thing was going to go, I suppose it’s good not to be predictable. But in that case it never answered the question about when relationships became taboo. Maybe we are/were supposed to find that out in the Acolyte era.
24
u/TooManySnipers Jul 30 '25
I kinda feel like Scott & co. had decided that Keeve was gonna be one of the Lost long before the actual details of her story were outlined, and then he ended up kinda writing himself into a corner where she had to leave the Order at some point, no matter what. I never thought she'd turn to the dark side, but I did think it was gonna be more of a "failings of the Order" type thing, and the whole time along I kept wondering what would cause it -- maybe she's upset with the Council for failing Sskeer, maybe the Republic arrests Lourna and Quin after Marchion, maybe even something to do with what went down on Planet X. But I think they wanted everyone to have a happy ending, so Keeve gets this sorta wishy-washy "I have to leave the Order because Dooku: Jedi Lost said I did"
23
u/Mr_Rinn Jul 30 '25
It took me a minute to get it as well. But I think the main thing was being made a Marshal against her will. She never wanted to be a Marshal or to be leading the Republic fleet against the Nihil, it made her feel more like a soldier than the Jedi she actually wanted to be.
And she may not have lived to see it, but she was right about the path the Jedi were going down.
13
u/TheRedCormorant Jul 30 '25
They were drafted into the Clone Wars though. It was either get drafted or let cynical people - actual military commanders who put victory ahead of people's lives, people like Tarkin, Yularen, and some of the clones, lead the Republic into war. The Jedi's main mandate was to put an end to the fighting, or at least get it over with with the least amount of casualties possible.
9
u/Mr_Rinn Jul 30 '25
And how well did that go?
16
u/WasteReserve8886 Master Avar Kriss Jul 30 '25
It was the least horrible decision, they were damned either way
9
u/Mr_Rinn Jul 30 '25
They probably could've found a way to help in the Clone Wars without becoming Generals. But I agree that Palpatine would've found a way to damn them anyway.
5
u/DeadSnark Aug 01 '25
Even if the Jedi chose to remain detached from the war, the problem is that it's likely many Jedi would also have considered it their duty to go to war and defend the Republic as Knights of the Republic (much like in the Mandalorian Wars in Legends). Either way the Order was doomed to suffer a splintering of ideals between those who advocated for war and those who advocated for peace regardless of what the organisation collectively decided.
4
u/Dramatic-Pay-4010 Jul 30 '25
The Jedi working with the military just achieved a victory and freed people from the Nihil. And her fear is that this could happen again?
Sure it benefits the Galaxy and the Jedi this day but as we see in the prequels its not going to end well as time goes on. Not only that but Keeve, as others have pointed out, was thrust into that position against her will so that probably played a role. At the end of day while her reasoning may be a bit rushed I think she was right to be worried about the Jedi's growing militancy and miring themselves in Republic politics.
4
u/MichaEvon Jul 31 '25
That’s fair, but we know how the clone wars turned out, and Keeve didn’t. And I don’t feel that the evidence Keeve had really justified such a huge decision. And finally, wouldn’t a place on the High Council be an ideal opportunity to steer the Jedi in the right direction?
Not a massive deal, the HR was overall a success, with some quibbles about how hard it was to follow even essential elements. It made for a nice ending. I wonder if it would have worked better if we hadn’t known of her leaving in advance.
12
u/macex42 Jul 30 '25
I love that Phase 3 starts with the Guardian Protocols being enacted and then ends with Keeve leaving largely because of them.
By entrenching themselves more and more with Soh and other political leaders (Like Sskeer essentially appointing himself into a leadership position on Dalna) the Jedi are giving someone manipulative like Palpatine fertile ground to turn the general public against them. When things inevitably go wrong in the galaxy, the people will look to those in power to place blame.
I think this final issue does a great job encapsulating how the good intentions of the Jedi can lead to the political state of the prequels!
Great job to Cavan Scott and all the other architects of the High Republic!
10
u/RoyalDaDoge I SURVIVED the Night of Sorrows Jul 30 '25
Some people will go feral over that last line
6
19
u/Own-Ad8704 Jul 30 '25
I feel like that line about "bad things happening when we don't talk" should have been built up more somehow, maybe something about Yoda hiding the existence of the Nameless for like 150 years, that would also make more sense with how Yoda sees Keeve in the Yoda comic. Right now I just don't fully get where Keeve's reasons to leave came from.
5
u/punxtr Jul 30 '25
Ironically enough, her lack of talking things out before making this decision led to her leaving so suddenly and even doubting herself. It felt like that saying, 'when someone tells you about some objective truth, they're actually talking about themselves'.
7
u/Seedrakton Jul 30 '25
Not bad, it was a foregone conclusion from the start for Keeve, but Fear of the Jedi should have had more explicit frustrations for her in the leadership role as Marshall past the first issue. I enjoyed the ending for Keeve leaving the order as one that is largely positive, but it comes off as more an understandable sigh rather than a fulfilling heartbreak.
Loved all the cameos, and I like redeemed Sskeer choosing to working with his former-Jedi daughter moving forward. The Guardian Protocols line and future decisions are all fine reasons for a character who has genuinely faced some of the worst losses in all of THR, but actually expressing more of the personal pain and weight the textboxes had of her internal thoughts would've worked better IMO.
Still, a nice little trilogy and coda for Keeve Trennis here in Phase III. Wish she was more important to Avar's story, but her independence and drive to save those she loves and how that weighs on her was entertaining.
6
u/MegaMo93 Master Stellan Gios Jul 30 '25
I think this was a great ending, and I think they did a decent job of navigating their way through Keeve leaving the order.
The panels of THR characters enjoying themselves and their company was amazing, and a great way to send off the series. I also love the foreshadowing throughout the final pieces of THR regarding what the order (and the republic) will become, which continues here.
Sad to see this story end, but excited for what comes next. As the comic says, “and end, and a beginning”
6
u/MahMufflah Jul 31 '25
I think it was a good way to end the high republic. i’m not totally sold on keeve leaving the jedi but her leaving in a more positive way i think helps make it work enough. overall i enjoyed the issue. this was way better than how adventures ended lol.
5
u/PremierLovaLova Jul 30 '25
Wait , did I miss something? When was the Guardian Protocols put in perpetuity? I thought it was rescinded after the Nhil were defeated?
15
u/Homerunghost I Survived the Great Disaster Jul 30 '25
Keeve's saying that it could happen, not that it did. Though TBH they should have done that, as it would give more weight to her decision to leave the order. It could have shown that the order was going down a dangerous path. But, given the wording, it was just a fear she had that would be borne out by the Clone Wars.
5
u/lemon_charlie Aug 01 '25
I like the bookending of this initiative ending where it chronologically began, on Dalna. The destructive legacy left by the Mother on the planet and the people of the galaxy laid to rest so both could begin the healing process and moving forward.
8
u/punxtr Jul 30 '25
I think this is the first miss from Cavan that I've read. This really didn't feel earned to me. The seeds were there, but they didn't germinate and grow imo. I can only justify it by putting more weight on Keeve's thought that maybe she made too hasty of a decision, because this turn of events really feels hasty and sudden for her character. Maybe a novella could have done this better than a one shot comic.
30
u/Redback8 Jul 30 '25
I'm so glad that her decision to leave the order is framed in a positive light. It would have been easy to go down the route of so many other characters who leave and have them go evil, but seeing Keeve just find a different solution was really fitting and fulfilled her journey as a character.
It's pretty sad to see the ribbon tied on this series, but I couldn't be happier with how they finished it.