In 1991, author Timothy Zhan introduced a new villain to the Star Wars universe: Grand Admiral Thrawn.
In his debut appearance in Zhan’s book Heir to the Empire, Thrawn has gathered the remnants of the Empire and prepared it to fight the New Republic. Our familiar heroes Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa, Lando Calrissian and Chewbacca try to prevent Thrawn from gaining an advantage over the New Republic.
The original three books featuring Thrawn later became known as the Thrawn Trilogy. In addition to Heir to the Empire, the trilogy contained the books Dark Force Rising and The Last Command. The trilogy was released over a period of three years, prompting interest in what became known as the Expanded Universe of Star Wars.
In addition to Thrawn, the trilogy also introduced one of the most popular female characters in Star Wars lore: Mara Jade. Mara was once known as The Emperor’s Hand and served at his pleasure. Her main goal throughout the trilogy is to kill Luke Skywalker in revenge of her former master’s death. However, Mara is often forced to put aside her hatred of Luke because she is forced to work with him, usually because she needs to survive.
Meanwhile, the trilogy also introduced Han and Leia as a married couple. At the start of the trilogy, Leia is pregnant with twins, and they are born early in the third book. Jaina and Jacen Solo don’t have prominent roles in the story but protecting them is a catalyst for many of Leia’s actions during the story.
The Thrawn trilogy is certainly an enjoyable series to read. Thrawn is a much more dangerous villain than Vader or The Emperor because he doesn’t use the Force. Instead, his most powerful weapon is his mind, and his military genius makes him far more formidable than his predecessors.
Easily the most interesting dynamic of the trilogy is between Luke and Mara. Despite Mara declaring her intent to kill Luke, he does not see her as a major threat. In fact, he spends much of the three books trying to convince Mara to let go of her hatred. It’s similar to how he works to redeem Vader in Return of the Jedi, though here it’s much less personal than his motivations for Vader. In the books, Luke is simply trying to be a good person as he tries to convince Mara to let go of her hatred.
While the Thrawn trilogy is now part of Legends and thus no longer considered canon, the Grand Admiral himself has made his way back into the canon. Thrawn first appeared in Star Wars Rebels as the main villain for the final two seasons. He also appeared in live action for the first time in the Ahsoka series, played by Lars Mikkelsen (who voiced the character in Rebels). Thrawn is set to appear in the miniseries Tales of the Empire, due out on Star Wars Day, May 4th.
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