Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Captain Phasma lead the way toward the Last Jedi…
Much like its predecessor The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi will follow suit with a series of novels leading up to its release. Andrew Sugerman, executive vice president of Disney’s publishing and digital media, made the announcement in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly.
Announced were a total of four new adventures, that will fill in the gaps of some key characters who will be featured in The Last Jedi.
During the promotion of the Force Awakens, Captain Phasma was front and center as what was expected to be a major character in the film. Unfortunately; fans were not given much, and Phasma was thrown into a trash compactor at the end of the film ( how does she escape by the way?)
Phasma had the coolest attire and action figure, in my opinion, but outside of looking cool, didn’t offer fans a whole lot of depth in the Force Awakens. She was shown to be brutal in the opening scene of the film, massacring the entire Tuanul village on Jakku. However; Phasma was overshadowed by Stormtrooper FN-2199, nicknamed “Nines, who stole the show in a scene with Finn with his famous “traitor” line.
This new novel will go into the details of the rise of Phasma through the ranks of the First Order.
According to Siglain: “It cuts between the present and the past and shows her as this fearsome warrior on this brutal world that she was on. The First Order comes to that planet, and she sees a great opportunity when they arrive.”
A Phasma comic will also be released, which was announced in June.
This novel will be the first release kicking off the Journey to the Last Jedi, hitting book shelves on September 1st, 2017.
Princess of Alderaan by Claudia Gray
Recently, Claudia Gray introduced us to Bloodlines, a political thriller featuring Leia, taking place about six years prior to the Force Awakens. This time, Gray will take us to the past, from the time of Leia’s teenage years. “As for exploring the ‘long time ago’ aspects, the past informs the future. There are still many unanswered questions, and we’re looking to fill in some, but not all, of those blanks,” Siglan explains.
In Star Wars Rebels, we are given a brief glimpse into those years, as Leia teams up with the Ghost crew on a mercy mission on the planet of Lothal. There is also a very touching moment between Ezra and Leia, which shows the softer side of the Princess.
Princess of Alderaan also releases on September 1st, 2017.
The Legends of Luke Skywalker by Ken Liu
Like Rey, how many of you think of Luke Skywalker as a myth? This novel will shed some light on the legend of Skywalker, but also keep readers guessing. How much of Luke’s heroic journey is fact or fiction?
According to Siglan: “This book is a book that goes into some of those stories that were told, some of those legends of Luke Skywalker. Are they true? Well, maybe. Maybe not.”
So far, the only post Return of the Jedi Luke adventure we have is in the Shattered Empire comic, showing Luke on a mission collecting very important Jedi artifacts.
Outside of a mention of him here and there by Leia in Bloodlines and the Aftermath trilogy, we don’t know much about Luke post Return of the Jedi.
The novel will be narrated through the point of view of Liu, a space flea-like alien, who is journeying to a casino called Canto Bright, discussing the legend of Skywalker with a bunch of rowdy kids.
Next: How to Navigate The Star Wars Universe Like a Jedi Master
The Adventures of Luke Skywalker will hit stores October 31st, 2017.
Canto Bright will also get its own story, with a release on December 5th, 2017, concluding The Journey to The Last Jedi.