Yoda concept art revealed for Star Wars: The High Republic

Catch the first glimpse of Yoda in the Star Wars: High Republic era.

With the recent end to the Skywalker Saga, the Star Wars universe is set to expand backward a couple hundred years with Star Wars: The High Republic. The highly anticipated multi-publisher initiative, which is scheduled to begin releasing in early 2021, will explore the galaxy far, far away about 200 years before the Skywalker Saga through comic books, adult and young adult novels, and children’s books.

Star Wars has always been a story with a deep mythology and a complex history, and The High Republic will show the galaxy as we’ve never seen it before. Long before the threat of the Sith and the galaxy-wide devastation of the Clone Wars, the galaxy was protected by countless Jedi Knights. This will be the Jedi Order in its heyday.

Star Wars reveals the High Republic’s connection to the Skywalker Saga

And now we know that one of the oldest and most beloved characters to grace the screen in the Skywalker Saga will be a part of The High Republic. According to StarWars.com, Yoda will feature prominently in Daniel José Older’s Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures comic book series, which will be published by IDW Publishing.

Fans have likely been anticipating Yoda’s inclusion in The High Republic for some time, given the character’s age during the events of the original trilogy. “For 800 years have I trained Jedi,” Yoda told Luke in The Empire Strikes Back, so it only makes sense that we’d see him in some capacity in the events taking place 200 years before this.

In an interview with StarWars.com, Older had this to say about his incarnation of the famed Jedi Grandmaster:

"While he’s already a respected member of the Jedi Council at this point, we meet Yoda in IDW’s The High Republic Adventures series doing what he loves best: looking out for the young folks — in this case, a group of Padawans traveling around the galaxy to learn the ways of the Jedi with a hands-on approach. The Force study abroad program, basically."

A Yoda for a new generation

It will be fun to see Yoda unencumbered by the challenges we’ve seen him face before, during, and after the Clone Wars and facing some earlier challenges that will surely help to shape him to become the Jedi Master we already know and love. It will also serve to introduce the character to a new generation of younger fans through the comic book medium.

Star Wars released the concept art for Yoda’s look in The High Republic, and although he’s 200 years younger, he still looks similar to his appearance in The Phantom Menace. Lucasfilm art director Troy Alders said about the design, “Well, Yoda is not that much younger — around 700 years old instead of about 900. But we thought that with it being hundreds of years earlier, he would definitely have a different outfit, maybe even more than one.”

The final design for The High Republic Yoda combines the artistic talents of concept artist Iain McCaig, who worked on Yoda’s design in The Phantom Menace, Disney Publishing illustration manager Jeff R. Thomas, and Grant Griffins, who created the art for Star Wars: Dark Legends.

Griffins’ concept art for the slightly younger-looking Yoda was released exclusively on StarWars.com (linked in the tweet above), but fans will have to wait to see Yoda in action when Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures releases in 2021.

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