With Ahsoka promising to adapt some key elements of the Heir to the Empire book trilogy, Star Wars has been digging a lot into its old canon, now labeled "Legends". That's been an old request from old fans for a long time, from when it was first announced that Disney would be replacing what was then called "Expanded Universe" for a newly rebooted canon, developed entirely by Lucasfilm itself. For years, that made the most conservative fans angry, seeing how the franchise was stumbling to find its ground in movies and, now, it seems they're about to get what they asked for, as the culmination of the so-called "Mando-verse" is headed to the movies with Dave Filoni as director and Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen) as the main villain.
This is certainly a win for sectors of the Star Wars fandom who've been particularly bitter since the conclusion of the Sequel Trilogy in the theaters in 2019. Back then, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy even argued that "there's no source material" to guide where the franchise goes, and many fans started making memes about the immense stuff available on Legends, clearly asking for it to be produced. While there are certain stories that could (and maybe even should) be adapted because they are that good, writing original stories should still be the priority, and adaptations should be contained to a minimum.
How Much Have We Seen of 'Legends' Already?
What's contradictory in how people ask for more Legends adaptations is the fact that we have already seen plenty of it. Since The Force Awakens came to screens, people started identifying concepts and premises from the old Expanded Universe quite often. In fact, since The Phantom Menace, as George Lucas himself incorporated a lot of Legends lore to fill empty gaps, like names of planets and minor characters. So going back to this ancient corner of Star Wars knowledge isn't new or innovative, it's been happening for quite some time.
But, since the focus is always on Lucasfilm canon after the Disney acquisition, let's focus on that. When The Force Awakens came out, it was impossible not to connect the dots between its plot and a classic Legends storyline, the Legacy of the Force saga. It narrates the events of the Second Galactic Civil War, one side led by Darth Caedus, while another was led by our old heroes and their remaining offspring. Caedus' original name was Jacen Solo, and he was a son of Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher). A prominent and powerful Jedi, he fell to the Dark Side of the Force after (among other things) coming into contact with an ancient Sith warrior. Sounds familiar? That's because Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) is a reflection of Jacen Solo, with his own original twists. Both apprenticed under Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and were responsible for his exile, and both were part of their own dyads of the Force: Ren with Rey (Daisy Ridley) and Caedus with his own twin sister, Jaina Solo.
And, although it might not be the best comparison, The Rise of Skywalker also drank from the Legends fountain. The idea of Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) never dying and coming back as a clone was first introduced in the Dark Empire comics, when his resurgent Empire nearly destroyed the New Republic, much like the Sith Eternal/Final Order in the movie. Another concept used was that of a hidden fleet, which the Heir to the Empire novels explored with the Katana Fleet.
Even Ahsoka itself is not necessarily bringing new stuff to the table, as Grand Admiral Thrawn had already made his jump from Legends to the new canon in the animated series Star Wars Rebels. And we could go on, because there are plenty of Legends references in Rogue One and Solo, too, and in every TV series so far. What's happening for the first time now, it seems, is the actual adaptation of a storyline from Legends into canon with Heir to the Empire in Ahsoka. Of course, it's not possible to do an exact adaptation, and this version will bring in characters of the Mando-verse as the heroes, but, once Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) herself said the words in the trailer, we all knew what would happen.
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Why Lucasfilm Should Stick With Original Stories
When Kathleen Kennedy mentioned back in 2019 that there was "no source material" to adapt Star Wars from, there are two important things to consider before rebuking her claim. First, she's one of Hollywood's greatest filmmakers and worked with George Lucas plenty of times. She definitely knew about Legends even before taking over as Lucasfilm president, so we're not talking about someone who's new to the franchise or the industry in any way. Second, she was not hired to adapt stories, she was hired to make new stories. If Disney decanonized the Expanded Universe — and even rebranded it "Legends", implying they are not canon — when she was appointed, it's only logical to conclude that those stories couldn't be adapted like the old fans want.
Legends should be used as it is currently being used, as a source of reference for lore that's not directly connected to actual storytelling, and this is for a simple reason: these stories already exist. They have already been told, and, thus, are nothing new. Do you think Darth Caedus is a better character than Kylo Ren? Legacy of the Force will always be there for you, just pick up the novels and read. Do you want to see characters like Revan and Bastilla Shan? Knights of the Old Republic isn't going anywhere, just pick it up and play. They may even make it to canon eventually, but in a fresh way, so don't expect new things to be like they were in the past, that's not it works.
So far in the Disney canon we have had amazing original stories told, with original concepts, like The Last Jedi, Rogue One, and even the early seasons The Mandalorian. In fact, there's a whole show especially based on the premise of cooking up fresh stories, showing how it's possible to expand upon the franchise and create original stories, which is Star Wars Visions. It's always possible to bring new things to the table, and it will always be better to have that as a starting point, too, because it doesn't erase what came before. Sure, we'd like to see people like Dash Rendar and other characters made canon, but those stories will always have their spaces, while new ones need to be given their own space, or else we'll never have them in the first place.
