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Star Wars in the 2010s: Looking at the years 2013-2015

By Thomas Willoughby

LAS VEGAS - MAY 29: Actor Ray Park's Darth Maul character from "Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace" is shown on screen while musicians perform during "Star Wars: In Concert" at the Orleans Arena May 29, 2010 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The traveling production features a full symphony orchestra and choir playing music from all six of John Williams' Star Wars scores synchronized with footage from the films displayed on a three-story-tall, HD LED screen. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS - MAY 29: Actor Ray Park's Darth Maul character from "Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace" is shown on screen while musicians perform during "Star Wars: In Concert" at the Orleans Arena May 29, 2010 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The traveling production features a full symphony orchestra and choir playing music from all six of John Williams' Star Wars scores synchronized with footage from the films displayed on a three-story-tall, HD LED screen. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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BURBANK, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 28: (L-R) Producer Dave Filoni, actress Ashley Eckstein, and producer Simon Kinberg arrive at the Disney XD’s ‘Star Wars Rebels’ Season 2 finale event at Walt Disney Studios at Walt Disney Studios on March 28, 2016 in Burbank, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)
BURBANK, CALIFORNIA – MARCH 28: (L-R) Producer Dave Filoni, actress Ashley Eckstein, and producer Simon Kinberg arrive at the Disney XD’s ‘Star Wars Rebels’ Season 2 finale event at Walt Disney Studios at Walt Disney Studios on March 28, 2016 in Burbank, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images) /

A quiet year for the franchise, 2014 was very much a year for endings. The Clone Wars: The Lost Missions released on German television in February, and on Netflix in the US and Canada in March. The season, 13 episodes long, sought to tie up the beloved animated series.

Culminating in a three-episode arc following Yoda, the season dealt with some pretty heavy stuff. The episodes were ultimately released on DVD and Blu-Ray in November, but only in the US, Canada, and Germany.

Lucasfilm, if you’re reading this, can you please release the season in the UK. Look I know it’s compatible, but. Just save me some import fees or something.

In a move that still touches the nerves of some fans, the Lucasfilm Story Group made the controversial decision to make the expanded universe to that point non-canon. Every story told outside of the six live-action films, The Clone Wars, and the upcoming Rebels series, was no longer considered part of the Star Wars story. Those tales weren’t lost entirely; they were re-branded under the “Legends” banner, and certain element would be re-purposed into canon. More on that later.

The new canon would begin that August, with prequel to Rebels, titled “A New Dawn”. A second titled following the life of Grand Moff Tarkin, titled “Tarkin”, followed in November.

Ahead of its formal premiering in October, four Star Wars Rebels short released to introduce fans to their new heroes. “The Machine in the Ghost”, “Art Attack”, “Entanglement”, and “Property of Ezra Bridger” helped fans get to know the crew we’d spent the foreseeable future with. The hour long “Spark of Rebellion” aired in the US, and the adventures of Ezra Bridger, Kanan Jarrus, Hera Syndulla, Sabine Wren, Zeb Orrelios, and Chopper the astromech were formally underway.

As the year drew to a close, fans were treated to the first teaser trailer for Episode VII. Now officially titled “The Force Awakens”, the trailer is up there as one of the single greatest pieces of marketing out there, and I won’t have anyone tell me otherwise. Character cards for Rey, Finn, BB-8, and Kylo Ren appeared on starwars.com, giving us our first look at the next wave of big screen heroes and villains.

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