The fandoms first real controversy began with the prequels (if you exclude the “Han Shot First” deal). However, this isn’t about my opinion of the prequels (I love them, btw). This is about what happened 10 years ago, when George Lucas decided he was finished making Star Wars movies and sold the rights of the franchise over to Disney. One of Disney’s first acts was the “decanonization” of anything written after Return of the Jedi (also known as the Extended Universe, or EU for short). Thus begins the Star Wars Canon vs Legends discussion.
Sometimes It’s a Struggle
For the record, I love all of the Star Wars content Disney has created since assuming control. I know that isn’t a popular idea among some fans, but I’m not interested in others opinions of what I should enjoy. Be that as it may, sometimes I do struggle with the content that Disney removed from canon. There are a lot of great stories and cool characters in the Extended Universe which I had hoped to see brought to life (either in live-action or animation).
One example is a trilogy written by Timothy Zahn (colloquially called “the Thrawn trilogy“) and it is excellent. It is the first time we are introduced to Grand Admiral Thrawn, but this series is now considered “Legends”. This is probably the hardest content for me to accept as having been “decanonized”. However, my grief was quickly abated by Thrawn’s appearance in Rebels and his name-drop in The Mandalorian.
Next would have to be Han and Leia’s offspring and Luke and Mara Jade’s offspring. Also, losing Mara Jade (for now) is also disconcerting. Han and Leia have three children, Jaina, Jacen and Anakin Solo. All three are Force sensitive, all three have tragic storylines. Luke and Mara Jade have a son and his name is … Ben Skywalker. It is my belief that Ben Solo (in canon) is an homage these children.
Legends Never Die
There are some folks out there that are die hard Legends/EU fans and they will not let go of that content. I still enjoy the Legends content and I still go back and read those books. It’s a bummer that we won’t see most of this content make a live-action canon debut; but I’m not so upset by it that I can’t enjoy the content that is canon.
I am glad Disney didn’t just toss aside the content and pretend it never happened. I do like the moniker of “Legends” associated with the decanonized content. The thing people should think about is all the Legends content can provide great inspiration for all the future content (which, I believe, it already has). Ultimately we still could see some of it make it to canon, albeit slightly altered. That’s perfectly acceptable.
I had another interesting thought recently. During some actual civil discussion among fans, many have said a “what if” series would be fun. I agree but “what if” is a term already used by comics (i.e. Marvel). However, for Star Wars, calling the series “Legends”, in Clone Wars animation, would be amazing! Come on Disney, let’s make it happen!
Final Thoughts
In the end, I’m satisfied with whatever Disney wants to do. Life is too short to be so caught up in the nit-picky details. It’s JUST a tv show or a movie. I am very passionate about this franchise. I love every bit of this franchise, past, present and future. Having passion about something is great, but you have to be in control. The moment you let your passion control you is the moment you might have an unhealthy obsession.
Personally, I can live in a world where canon and Legends coexist. I have access to the appropriate forms of media to enjoy both when the mood strikes. Whether it’s Canon or Legends, I love ALL Star Wars and I can appreciate all of it – and do you know what that’s like? Well, as Galen Erso would say, “It’s a peaceful life”.
