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The very first Star Wars trilogy (of which there will now be four pieces, go crazy) used a very poor gamut of coloring of the heroes. As in fantasy: there are infallible heroes in shining armor, and there is absolute evil. This is not a drawback, the format required it, and in general the oldest Star Wars is a space western fairy tale, where there is no place for halftones.

Times have changed, one canon grew, was killed and gave way to a new one. And it no longer has such a deep abyss between good and bad guys. , for example, shows the most important episode in the history of the galaxy from the point of view of the Imperial Special Forces, and from this angle, the stormtroopers no longer look like stupid minions in plastic armor.

In the new canon (and in the old one, this was not uncommon), supporters of the Empire often turn out to be characters that are ambiguous, charismatic, and in many ways even positive.

One of the few characters from the old canon that made it into the new version of the Star Wars universe. No wonder: Thrawn is almost the most popular and well-developed hero of the setting, despite the fact that he almost did not get a place in games and movies.

Thrawn's real name is Mittʼrauʼnuruodo, and he himself belongs to the Chiss race, harsh blue-skinned humanoids who managed to survive in the mysterious mess of the Unknown Regions. Their state, the Chiss Dominion, also existed there, quite out of touch with the affairs of the rest of the Galaxy. Thrawn rose to prominence in the Dominion, which by then had discovered an unknown threat in the depths of the wildest regions of the Unknown Regions. Its scale turned out to be so great that the Dominion began to look for allies in the rest of the Galaxy.

At one time, the Republic seemed to the Chiss a very unreliable ally, mired in corruption, civil war and ready to sabotage the discussion of any important issue bureaucratically. After the transformation of the Republic into the Empire, the Chiss changed their minds. Thrawn was presented as an exile from the Dominion and “slipped” into the imperial forces so that he would fit into their hierarchy and thoroughly studied.

And so it happened. Thrawn - scary to think! - fooled Palpatine himself, but he himself became an object of interest, because the Sith Lord was looking for some answers in the Unknown Regions (more on this in our material on the First Order). As a result, Thrawn began his career in the Imperial Navy: first at the military academy and as a weapons systems officer on a cruiser, and in the future he reached the rank of Grand Admiral.

Thrawn seemed to personify his native Unknown Regions: frighteningly cold-blooded and cunning, he was always several steps ahead of his rivals and allies, and he could recognize someone else's disguise by a couple of circumstantial clues, like Sherlock Holmes. At first, he hunted for smugglers, and when the cells of the uprising began to unite in the Alliance, Thrawn destroyed them too.

Thrawn's personality best describes his visit to the Lothal Arms Factory, when the Grand Admiral forced one of the workers to personally test the speeder bike, overclocked to maximum speed. The bike exploded and killed a worker who was - surprise - a member of a rebel cell. Thrawn later deduced the location of the Rebel headquarters and moved closer to victory.

His talent as a commander and scout was limited only by the writers of the Star Wars Rebels animated series, because without their intervention, Thrawn would have put an end to the resistance. It's a pity! This refined admiral, connoisseur of art and manipulator worthy of the Emperor, more than anyone else deserved complete triumph. The finale of Thrawn's career has not yet been revealed - ahead of the end of the fourth season of "Rebels", where he has an important role, the book "Thrawn: Alliances" and other works of the new canon.

Wilhuff Tarkin

Grand Moff Tarkin, played by the magnificent Peter Cushing, appeared in the very first film of the epic as a laconic executioner, ready to blow up an entire planet in order to complete the task. And his unwillingness to leave the Death Star at the moment of a decisive attack on it is exhibited more as self-confident stupidity than courage. However, Wilhuff Tarkin's position was not in vain.

Wilhuff came from a noble family, but did not become a caressed darling of fate, thirsting only for the fulfillment of his whims. His father brought up the young Tarkin in severity, not allowing him to soften, as is often the case with children of noble families. He survived the survival test on his home planet and later joined the Republic's judicial department.

When Tarkin met the ambitious Naboo Senator Palpatine, his fate was sealed. Still a young Sith, recognizing Tarkin's potential as a cruel manager, he took him under guardianship. Wilhuff received the post of governor of his home planet Eriadu, and then higher positions, in which he became increasingly convinced of the helplessness of the Republic, its rotten nature and the omnipotence of the Jedi Order, which was increasingly coping with the peacekeeping role. When Palpatine staged his coup, Tarkin wholeheartedly supported the Imperial order, for which he was rewarded.

Tarkin was very useful to Sidious. The selfishness of a Sith is the worst quality for an administrator who has to deal with a lot of issues regarding the population of the entire Galaxy on a daily basis. Why the hell did he, the Sith Lord, give up some furry Wookiees on a planet overgrown with forests?! That is why Wilhuff Tarkin became the Grand Moff, the third person in the Empire, and judging by his influence on politics and the economy, the first in general. It was he who was entrusted with the construction of the ultimate weapon - the Death Star, and he brilliantly coped with the task, although he overlooked the "constructive diversion" left by engineer Galen Erso.

Tarkin's power was so great that he could boss around Darth Vader, and it's hard to tell how much Palpatine relied on Wilhuff's advice to run the Empire. Perhaps Tarkin would have kept it after the death of Palpatine, if he had not died in orbit around Yavin?

Alexander Kallus

The empire, like any totalitarian state, spent a lot of money on the secret police. The Imperial Security Bureau - that was the name of their analogue of the NSA, the FSB and MI-6: a power structure with a lot of powers and even more myths around this organization.

Alexander Kallus was a devoted agent of the ISB, thus the ideal of a Chekist: a warm heart, a cold head, clean hands. Kallus served the Bureau not out of bloodlust or lust for power, but primarily because he hated lawlessness, and the Emperor, through propaganda, was in his eyes a symbol of law and order. And Kallus considered the growing movement of rebellion to be a collection of terrorists threatening peace and tranquility. But in the depths of his soul, Alexander was nevertheless vain and longed for recognition, regarding each of his successes in the service as a reward in itself.

Artist: lorna-ka.

Therefore, Kallus did not leave the field service, turning down several offers for a promotion. Kallus was always on the front line with his subordinates and displayed the ruthlessness worthy of a field agent - including to his agents.

However, in Kallus' soul, over time, a contradiction grew between the Imperial ideals that he himself cultivated, and those ugly methods that the Empire used. Is it possible to restore order by genocide? Should the law kill everyone in its path? The farther, the more broken Kallus became.

In the end, Alexander began to secretly help the rebels in their endeavors when he became convinced that their image in imperial propaganda and their real appearance were infinitely far from each other. Long enough Kallus remained a double agent, risking not only his career but his life - even Thrawn noted that Kallus had a "rebellious heart". Soon they came for him, and Kallus finally ran to his new friends in the Alliance.

Siena Rea and Thane Kirrell

Artist: lorna-ka.

In a recent campaign overview Star Wars Battlefront II (2017) you could make sure that the plot of the game does not open up new sides of the Empire (read all the spoilers in Denis Mayorov's review). It's funny, because among the literature on "Star Wars" there are much richer and more controversial plots. Even in those novels that are considered teenage!

This is a good story told in Lost Stars: in it, the hero is not forced to take the side of the rebels, just to keep his positive coloring.

Thane and Siena are Romeo and Juliet as they would be if they were born in a galaxy far, far away. They have been friends since childhood, and since their planet was occupied by the Empire, they have shared a passion for space and flying. Together they entered the Flight Academy, but the sabotage that happened there showed the difference in their outlook on life.

After completing their training, they were assigned to different ships: Thane was lucky enough to become a TIE fighter pilot aboard some unknown station, and Siena was assigned to Darth Vader's flagship. Since then, they have looked at the Empire from different points of view. Thane defected shortly after the explosion of the Death Star, when his frustration reached its peak - he was convinced of how unfair the Imperial rules were, allowing slave labor. After meeting in their secret hideout, Thane and Siena, who had long been in love with each other, finally parted: the young man considered the overthrow of the regime the only way out, and the girl believed that the Empire would have a chance if good people remained in its ranks. So they parted.

Their story culminated during the Battle of Jakku, when Siena Ree commanded the Star Destroyer Striker and Thane Kirrell served with the New Republic forces. The Smasher was boarded, and Siena sent it directly to the surface of the planet so that it would not get to the enemy.

Thane broke through to the captain's bridge and forced his beloved to use an escape pod, after which she was arrested by Republican forces. But even the human conversion in captivity (instead of the expected torture) and the patronage of Thane could not sway Siena to the side of the New Republic.

And the Razor is still lying on Jakku, left to be plundered by scavengers like Rey.

Sinjir Rath Velous

Of all the heroes of this material, Rath Velus experienced the most difficult childhood. He endured abuse from his mother for years and still managed to have warm feelings for her. Living in constant fear made Sinjir sensitive to other people's emotions and behavior, and himself - embittered and cunning. These qualities helped him become a loyalty officer in the IBB.

And while the rest of the Bureau's divisions hunted outside enemies, the loyalty officers watched their own colleagues, looking for any little thing that could be interpreted as a lack of loyalty, sabotage or betrayal. The officers of this service were trained with special cruelty, teaching both torture and countering it. Singir received this training under Officer Cid Uddra. And later he proved his skills by extorting from the lieutenant of the Imperial Navy Alster Grove the names of his accomplices in a conspiracy whose goal was nothing less than the overthrow of Palpatine.

However, the loyalty of Sinjir himself was questionable. After the death of the second Death Star, he went on the run, stealing the identity and ship of one of the rebels, and then joined the New Republic, and in much the same position. Only now he was preying on the Imperials, who scattered across the Galaxy with each day of the weakening of the decapitated Empire, as well as its agents in the Republican Senate and other organizations. Chancellor Mon Mothma liked his talent so much that she appointed Sinjir as her personal adviser, and in fact - a personal spy and provocateur.

Sinjir Rath Velus was not really loyal to either the Empire or the Republic, and was simply trying to improve his position as much as possible. His cynical outlook on life allowed him to go over to the side of the rebellion without remorse and serve those whom he had only recently hunted. Therefore, many did not like him, because it was precisely such opportunists who once allowed the Republic to be turned into an Empire.

Artist: SpikeSDM.

The new Star Wars canon is expanding so rapidly that it's getting harder and harder to keep track of its events. Fortunately, among the authors of this universe there are enough talented writers and screenwriters who make all sides of the conflict equally bright. On the big screen, this is not so noticeable, because mass cinema avoids halftones so as not to confuse the viewer. And we will be waiting for new Star Wars games for a long time.

"Tradition", or as we call it - "canon", includes scripts, films, radio shows and novelizations. Some works appeared thanks to the original ideas of George Lucas, the rest were invented by other authors. But, between us: we read everything, and much is taken into account when building a common sequence of events. The complete list of published works contains a huge number of plots with many branches, variations and parallel lines, surpassing any well-developed mythology in number.

To understand the canons and the universe as a whole, you need to consider Star Wars as a collection of stories written by different people and "documenting" the "events" that happened. Although some stories are more authentic than others, they are all considered part of a common "story". But it should be remembered that all stories are nothing more than stories: they contain many errors and inconsistencies, since they were told by different people who had their own ideas about how to tell stories.

One can compare this situation with ancient Greek and Roman mythology, or with the legends of King Arthur. Like Star Wars mythology, they are composed of separate, albeit related, stories told by different authors at different times.

Canon Research[ | ]

Canon Research Papers were published by Will Brooker (English), which refers to the Star Wars Encyclopedia by Stephen Sansweet (English).

According to Sansweet, the films as they were created by Lucas are canon (three films at the time of Sansweet's statement). "Close" to the canon are authorized adaptations: novels, radio shows, comics. "Almost everything else" is "quasi-canon".

Brooker suggests that the canon be expanded to include works created by "key members" of the Star Wars creative team (such as Daredevil Caravan: An Ewok Adventure, which Lucas himself was among the writers). Brooker himself notes the difficulties of this approach, which in fact introduces a slightly lower level of canonization than the epic itself, using the example of the film Star Wars. Holiday Special". On the one hand, Lucas was one of the writers and Boba Fett appeared in the film for the first time. However, if this film, later rejected by Lucas, is accepted as canon, then Chewbacca has a wife, Malla, which contradicts the rest of the canon.

Brooker points out even greater problems with the inclusion of "authorized" works in the canon, when the brutal scene of killing Obi-Wan Kenobi by Darth Vader in an authorized Marvel comic directly contradicts the scene from the film where the lightsaber only strikes the empty Jedi clothes.

Even within the original trilogy, questions about canon arise with the changing versions of the films themselves. Sansweet therefore highlights the 1997 version of the first trilogy, "the only guaranteed answer." Brooker asks the question: if we consider that the additions made in 1997 entered the canon, then what are the scenes that were filmed, but not yet included in the series, although we know about their existence? If in the 1997 version the Outrider (eng. Outrider, see Star Wars spaceships) began to take off (English)), then did Dash Rendar, his pilot, enter the canon? And if Rendar entered the canon, then did other elements of the "Shadows of the Empire" also enter it? (English) or do they remain a figment of Steve Perry's imagination? Did Chewbacca shave his head for disguise?

Brooker notes that fans of the series are more strict about canon and it is possible that their definitions are better than those of Sansweet.

Canons and the Expanded Universe[ | ]

When it comes to absolute canon, the real history of Star Wars, you need to go directly to the movies - and only the movies. Even the novelizations are just an interpretation of the events of the film, and although they largely correspond to the ideas of George Lucas (he worked closely with the authors), the methodology used to write the books allows for minor deviations. The novelizations are being written in parallel with the shooting of the film, so the descriptions of the details sometimes do not match. However, the novelizations should be considered very faithful reproductions of the films.

The further the work goes from the plot of the film, the more interpretations and fiction appear. LucasBooks has been diligent in maintaining the integrity of the Star Wars Expanded Universe, while remaining free to stylistic variation. Artists portray Luke Skywalker not always in the same way. Writers give characters different characteristics. Some features of different types of works also play a role: in comics, the description of events implies less dialogue and a different plot line. Video games add the interactivity needed for the gameplay. So do role-playing and card games, which attribute certain characteristics to characters and events, making them playable.

An analogy can be drawn: every published Star Wars work is a window into the "real" Star Wars universe. Some windows are more foggy than others. Some completely distort the picture. But in each there is a particle of truth. As the great Obi-Wan Kenobi said: "Many of the truths we believe in depend heavily on point of view".

The editor in the 6th issue of the magazine "" develops the idea of ​​the place of printed sources of the Expanded Universe:

Canons is an authorized list of books that the editors of Lucas Licensing consider to be an authentic part of the official Star Wars history. Our goal is to present a continuous and unified history of the Star Wars galaxy, insofar as it does not contradict or undermine George Lucas's understanding of the saga as outlined in the films and screenplays.

Holocron of Integrity[ | ]

S-canon- "secondary canon", materials used or ignored by the authors according to the situation. This includes mostly older work, such as many comics in the "" series, released before attempts to maintain integrity, as well as other things that "might not quite fit." Many elements of the S-canon pass into the C-canon through inclusion in new works by integrity-conscious authors, although many other works (like "") were taken into account from the start and thus have always been C-canon.

N-canon- "non-canonical" works. Alternative versions of the story (for example, stories published under the brand name "") and anything that directly contradicts elements of higher canons. Only N-canon has not been recognized as canon by Lucasfilm.

Disney Canons [ | ]

In October 2012, The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm for US$4.06 billion.

From Claudia Gray's novel Star Wars: Bloodline, we finally learned what happened to the heroes of Star Wars between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, and how the Galaxy Far Away came to such a life.

In 2014, Disney announced that the Expanded Universe was no longer considered Star Wars canon. To provide the creators of new films with maximum creative freedom, the events of books, comics, games and other works based on the saga were deleted from the history of a distant galaxy. Until the release of The Force Awakens, we didn't know what was happening to the galaxy and heroes after the Battle of Endor. The books and comics that came out before the premiere contained only bits of information. For example, from Claudia Gray's novel Lost Stars ("Lost Stars"), one could learn that at the Battle of Jakku, the Empire suffered a decisive defeat from the New Republic.

But even the seventh episode itself was stingy with details about the three decades separating it from Return of the Jedi. We met old heroes, but learned little about how their fates unfolded after the victory over the Empire. They saw the First Order and the Resistance clash, but were left in the dark where they came from. We learned that the new Jedi order had died before it could be reborn, but could only guess why. The creators of the new canon decided to postpone the answers to these and many other questions until later.

And now that “later” has arrived. In May, Claudia Gray's novel Bloodline ("Blood Ties") was released, the action of which takes place about six years before The Force Awakens. The book sheds light on many questions about the era of the New Republic and the lives of the heroes. We have collected the most interesting and important information for you.

The paths of the heroes parted

The main character of the novel was Senator Leia Organa Solo. For a quarter of a century, she has remained one of the largest political figures in the New Republic and enjoys universal respect. Leia herself, however, is tired of politics and is thinking of saying goodbye to the senatorial chair and traveling with her husband around the galaxy. Leia was never able to learn the Force, and the princess's personal life can hardly be called exemplary.

A quarter of a century after the Battle of Endor, Khan and Leia are still married, but have long been living separately. They still love each other, but they couldn't get along together. And Khan's passion for adventure took its toll - he became a space racer, and then a race manager. He parted ways with Chewie - he returned to his home planet of Kashyyyk and healed like an ordinary Wookiee. Leia regularly communicates with Khan on the HoloNet, but they practically do not maintain contact with her son.

During the course of the novel, Khan appears several times in the form of a hologram and in one short episode - in the flesh.

Luke didn't really revive the Jedi

Ben at the time of the novel is twenty-five years old, and he is still learning Jedi wisdom under the wing of his uncle Luke Skywalker. But both Leia and Han have not spoken to Ben and Luke for a long time and do not know where they are now and what they are doing.

After defeating the Empire, Luke Skywalker set about rebuilding the Jedi Order. He preferred to train a new generation of knights away from the main planets of the galaxy. It seems that for twenty-five years, Luke has not prepared accomplished knights, and even more so masters who would lay the foundation of a new order. At least, the Jedi do not play any role in galactic politics, and Luke himself, even in the eyes of the powers that be, has become a semi-legendary figure.

There is a political struggle going on in the galaxy

At first glance, there is no special job in the New Republic for the Jedi. After the death of Palpatine, the Empire did not last long. The lost battle for Jakku was the last straw after which the regime fell. Since then, relative peace and stability have reigned in the galaxy, and the war and the era of the Empire are perceived only as pages of history. The surviving ships of the Imperial Navy have simply disappeared - no one in the New Republic knows where, and no one seems to care.

Political conflicts have replaced armed conflicts. For the time being, they were avoided due to the charisma and authority of Mon Mothma (senator of the Old Republic and leader of the Rebels during the Civil War era), but now she has retired, and a bitter struggle broke out between the two parties in the New Republic Senate. Populists like Leah advocate for giving systems autonomy.

Centrists, on the other hand, are in favor of a strong central government - about the same as it was in the Empire. They remember with nostalgia, if not about all, then about many orders of the Empire and strive to revive them. Many party leaders collect items from the imperial era.

Vader ruined Leia's career

The centrists manage to push through the introduction of a new government post - the First Senator, endowed with much more powers than the chancellor. Leia becomes the Populist candidate, but on the eve of the election, her political opponents manage to get an incredible compromising evidence.

The fact is that Leia and Luke did not tell anyone except Han the truth about the identity of Darth Vader. Even Ben Solo doesn't know he's related. Leia waited for the right moment to tell her son whose grandson he was. Just didn't wait. Bail Organa's old message to his adopted daughter falls into the hands of one of the centrist senators, in which the ruler of Alderaan reveals to Leah who her own father was. By making this information public, the centrists put an end to Leah's reputation and political career. Ben, on the other hand, apparently learns about Grandpa Vader from the galactic news.

And thinking...

First Order and the Resistance

A distant galaxy does not yet know about the existence of the First Order. Only a few centrist leaders who support the secret organization are aware of it. She is still kept in the shadows, acting by proxy. With the help of criminal cartels and independent armed groups, the First Order extracts the resources it needs and destabilizes the situation in the galaxy, preparing its way out.

While investigating the activities of the cartels, Leia begins to realize that some powerful force is behind them. At the end of the novel, after leaving the Senate, the princess, along with old comrades in arms like Admiral Ackbar, recreates the Resistance in order to prepare to repel a new, as yet unknown threat. This brings us to the events of The Force Awakens.

The New Republic is not yet aware of the existence of the First Order.

It will soon be three years since the Star Wars Expanded Universe was declared "Legends" and replaced by a new unified canon. After these years, the author of The World of Fiction and a longtime Star Wars fan bitterly states that he does not like the new canon, to put it mildly.

He sent the expanded universe to the landfill

The same book

Maybe I'm the wrong Star Wars fan, but I (and I'm not the only one) fell in love with a galaxy far, far away not because of the movies, but because of the books. On a cold and gloomy day in April 2001, I bought a nice black volume in a bookstore with the promising title Han Solo at Stars' End. I had no idea who Han Solo was or what Stars End was, but the title promised adventure and space adventure, and I bought it. I bought one book, then three more, and another, and another ...

Then there were cassettes with films that in the pre-Internet era had to be searched all over Moscow for about a year, the premiere of "Attack of the Clones" and "Revenge of the Sith" in cinemas, the game Star Wars Episode I on the PlayStation, the first purchased issue of "World of Fiction" with Darth Vader on the cover… But it all started with books.

I have never separated the Expanded Universe from the movies. For me, they were two parts of a single whole. Books, comics, and games kept my love of Star Wars alive for years after Revenge of the Sith, when the Star Wars movie story seemed to be over. Therefore, when, first in the Clone Wars series, and then in the new canon, the creators of my beloved universe began to openly ignore that part of it, thanks to which I fell in love with Star Wars, I felt offended.

Once upon a time, the Expanded Universe was as canon to fans as the movies. And now half of the people in this picture, as it were, do not exist.

Intellectually, I understand that the "legendarization" of the Expanded Universe was inevitable. Hundreds of books and comics, thousands of developed plots significantly limited the creative potential of the creators of the new canon. In addition, no one formally forbids returning elements of the Expanded Universe to canon, as they did, for example, with Grand Admiral Thrawn ... Still, I'm not satisfied.

At one time, the Expanded Universe saved Star Wars by awakening people's interest in the saga again. She deserved more respect. And fans who have been buying Expanded Universe stories for thirty years deserve to know how the adventures of the heroes they love will end, what will happen next with Jaina Solo, Ben Skywalker and Allana Solo, what will be the last adventure of Han, Luke and Leia - and much, much more.

He ineptly uses the old canon

The old Expanded Universe is still not only a supplier of ideas and characters for the new canon, but also a "cash cow" for the owners. Books and comics of the old canon continue to be republished under the "Legends" die, some of their ideas are reflected in new books, comics and even films. Well, Grand Admiral Thrawn has become the biggest fan service in the history of the saga.

When Dave Filoni announced Thrawn's appearance in the third season of the Rebels animated series at the Star Wars Celebration in London, the audience erupted in applause. When fans mourned the loss of the Expanded Universe, the name of the blue-skinned admiral came up most often in conversation. By bringing him back into canon, Filoni in one fell swoop gained new credibility from the fans and got rid of the main source of their discontent.

That's just ... Thrawn is not the same!

Thrawn from the animated series is similar to Thrawn from the books only in that he is blue

Formally, in "Rebels" we see exactly the same character that Timothy Zahn described. Blue skin, red eyes, white uniform, title, love of art, is considered an unsurpassed tactical genius ... But in fact, for half of the third season, Thrawn did not show his genius. For a dozen episodes, he has been trying to cope with the elusive Ghost team, but there is no result. The writers of The Rebels simply cannot show Thrawn in all its glory - otherwise the series would have to be ended already in the first episode of the third season due to the death of the main characters. However, it would be a small loss.

He's just boring!

With the cancellation of the Expanded Universe, a galaxy far, far away lost thousands of years of history, hundreds of planets, races, heroes and events at once. Instead... nothing came. The old canon was also not built in a day, but it expanded the world, there were dozens of stories in it that had nothing to do with films or were only indirectly connected. These stories complemented the galaxy, made it alive and diverse, and most importantly - they were interesting!

Books and comics of the new canon, as a rule, do not expand the universe, but only serve as additions to the main product - films and series. In the Expanded Universe, there were adventure novels from the X-Wing series about brave fighter pilots, a detective thriller "Shadow Games", a noir trilogy "Nights of Coruscant", its own version of "Heart of Darkness" and "Apocalypse Now" - "Vulnerable Point", zombie- Horror Stormtroopers of Death...

These books started the Expanded Universe

The new canon cannot boast of anything like that. Here, all books are either prequels to something, or novelizations, or adaptations, and independent stories are mostly found only in comics. And then most of the comics are devoted to the gap between the fourth and fifth episodes - an era that has been referred to in the Expanded Universe once ... five hundred.

Timothy Zahn's Thrawn Trilogy laid the foundation for the entire post-Endor period of the Expanded Universe, spoke about the state of affairs in the galaxy, introduced iconic characters, and introduced readers to one of Star Wars' greatest villains. Chuck Wendig's Aftermath, which was supposed to introduce fans to the post-Endor period in the new canon, falls short of Zahn's books on every count. There is no galactic scope, no interesting and well-developed characters, no logical explanation for why the Alliance won. Aftermath is boring and uninteresting, while Heir to an Empire is still considered one of the best Star Wars books.

He divided the fans

This icon now means "What you read may be cool, but it doesn't matter to the universe"

Some fans reacted calmly to the "legendarization" of the Expanded Universe, but the rest ... Some took the change in its status as a reason to declare jihad on the new canon. They are boycotting new productions, writing petitions online, and flooding the offices of Lucasfilm and Disney with demands to return RV to canon. The latter, on the contrary, extremely meticulously study every book and comic book in the store: what if this is not a new canon, but “Legends” and they accidentally buy “printed fan fiction”? For both of these categories, the canonicity of history has suddenly become more important than its quality, and they cannot agree among themselves.

He contradicts himself

The decision to "legendarize" the Lucasfilm Expanded Universe was explained by the desire to avoid contradictions between various works in the future. To keep track of contradictions, a special unit was created - the Story Group. But she didn't succeed.

Already in the first works of the new canon, Luke twice "for the first time" uses telekinesis - in the novel by Kevin Hearn "The Heir of the Jedi" and the comic book by Jason Aaron "Star Wars". In the same series of comics, Luke finds Obi-Wan Kenobi's diaries, where he describes Yoda's appearance in detail - how did Luke in the fifth episode not recognize the future teacher? In Claudia Gray's novel The Lost Stars, the first target of the Death Star is Alderaan. But by that time, Rogue One was already in development, and the story team should have known that the battle station would have other targets - Jed and Scarif. The novelization of Revenge of the Sith mentions that Depa Billaba turned to the dark side during the events of the novel "Vulnerable Point", and according to the Star Wars: Kanan comic book, Depa remained on the side of the light until the end of the war and died after Order 66.

He perverted the main characters of the saga

Han and Leia deserve the "Worst Parents in the Galaxy" award. And the prize must be in the shape of Kylo Ren

In the Expanded Universe, the characters in the original trilogy aren't perfect either. Leia and Han lost two of their three children, with the eldest son turning to the dark side and seizing power over part of the galaxy. And Luke repeatedly failed as a teacher - almost half of his students went over to the dark side. But in RV, the heroes continued to fight for their ideals and held on to each other. Yes, Khan had a period when he was very upset by the death of Chewbacca and left the family for six months. But in the end, he returned to Leah, and then this couple did not part.

What do we see in The Force Awakens? As soon as the smell of fried, Luke and Khan, like the last cowards, dumped to hell, leaving Leia alone to deal with the consequences. Real gentlemen.

It has Kylo Ren

The writers of The Force Awakens, in fact, molded Kylo Ren from three characters in the Expanded Universe. Fallen Jedi Jacen Solo named after Ben Skywalker and dressed as Darth Revan

I understand why the creators needed the image of Kylo Ren. If Dooku, Vader and Grievous were already formed villains, then Ren is still relatively young, he is confused in life, he wants to dissociate himself from the past, to prove to everyone, and first of all to himself, that he is a worthy grandson of his grandfather.

That's just such behavior is justified when the character is seventeen. Kylo Ren, for a second, thirty. At this age, men, as a rule, have already decided on life goals and are working to achieve them. And this one whines and whines like an emo teenager. Are we offered to sympathize with the snotty, eared slobber we see for the first time in our lives and who just before our eyes stabbed the best character in the history of Star Wars?

In part, this story is borrowed from the Expanded Universe, where we were shown the fall into darkness of Jacen Solo. Except we've known Jacen since birth. We literally followed his adventures from the cradle, saw how he grew up, matured, lost friends, gained experience and became a real hero. That is why his fall into darkness was an extremely painful blow. Fans have really become attached to this character. And Kylo Ren ... Kylo Ren, in principle, is not capable of evoking positive emotions.

We must pay tribute to Adam Driver: he treats his character with irony

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If the "legendarization" of the Expanded Universe had been arranged differently, if not all elements of the old canon had been written off "in reserve", but only those that contradicted the new films, the new canon could be forgiven. If its creators offered more interesting, original and just good stories, there would be much less complaints about it. However, in this form, as it is now, it spoils my beloved universe.

The best of the new canon

Admittedly, even in the current Star Wars canon, there are some really worthwhile things that have preserved the spirit of a distant galaxy.

"Rogue One"

This is how a real Star Wars should be. Gareth Edwards perfectly conveyed the atmosphere of the original trilogy and masterfully wove his own story into the narrative. It was really a pity to lose the heroes of Rogue One. This is the first time we've seen a distant galaxy so dark, the war so brutal, and the rebels so ambiguous. And this is good.

Surprisingly, but written for a teenage audience, the novel turned out to be the most serious and adult in the entire new canon. There is a really interesting story here of two heroes whose principles have repeatedly prevented them from living and loving. There are real emotions here: love, resentment, hatred and the desire to serve the motherland. There is a real conflict here, here the heroes have something to lose, and they are forced to make ambiguous decisions. And Gray very accurately conveys the atmosphere of a distant galaxy and extremely successfully fits his novel into the plot of the original trilogy.

Kieron Gillen, Salvador Larocca "Star Wars: Darth Vader"

The gap between the fourth and fifth episodes was covered in great detail in the Expanded Universe. However, Marvel decided that, since the old RV is no longer canon, you can plunge into this period with renewed vigor. Of all the Marvel lines, it was Darth Vader that turned out to be the most interesting and intriguing addition to the canon. We're used to seeing Vader powerful, but in this comic, he's forced to reclaim his position after the destruction of the Death Star. And in this he is helped by several extremely colorful characters - the black archaeologist Dr. Aphra and a pair of battle droids, a kind of dark version of C-3PO and R2-D2.

Rogue One's backstory is written in the best tradition of James Luceno: it is a hard-hitting political thriller that tells about the youth of Galen Erso and Orson Krennic. There are many interesting details and details here, and most importantly, Luceno in between times returns entire layers of the Expanded Universe to the new canon.