Star Wars Legends

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Title: Star Wars Legends
Creator: Various
Date(s): 2014-ongoing
Medium: novels, video games, comics
Fandom: Star Wars
Language:
External Links: Timeline of Legends Books on Wookieepedia

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Star Wars Legends refers to the professional works that were made non-canonical in 2014, following the purchase of Lucasfilm by Disney and the announcement that the EU had been cancelled. No new works would be released and all previously released material (which was rebranded as the Legends continuity) was now non-canon. In advance of the release of the sequel trilogy, it was announced that a new expanded universe of canon books would be published.

Franchise canon is now the nine movies of the prequel, original and sequel trilogies plus The Clone Wars television series, plus material released after April 2014; however elements of both Expanded Universe and Legends works appear in canon, including characters, locations and history.

Legends Works

Comics

(Full list of Star Wars comics here - via Wikipedia)

Dark Horse

  • Tales from the Rancor Pit (November 2022) - graphic novel
  • Tales from the Death Star (September 2023) - graphic novel

Marvel

Having purchased Marvel in 2009 and then Lucasfilms in 2012, the comics licence returned to Marvel and a new line of comics began to be released in 2015 . For a full list of releases, see the Wikipedia entry

  • Star Wars 108: Forever Crimson (2019) - 80th anniversary issue continuing on from the last issue in 1987

IDW Publishing

  • Star Wars Adventures (2017-2022)

Online Publishing

  • SkyeWalkers: A Clone Wars Story StarWars.com (2015)

Video Games

Books

The following works were either EU works republished after April 25, 2014 or were released since under the Legends label[1] by Penguin Random House Books[2]:

  • Heir to the Empire (1991, Legends reprint 2021)
  • The Han Solo Adventures by Brian Daley (compendium released 1992)
  • Splinter of the Mind's Eye by Alan Dean Foster (1986)
  • The Lando Calrissian Adventures by L. Neil Smith (compendium released 1994)
    • Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu (1983)
    • Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon (1983)
    • Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of ThonBoka (1983)
  • The Jedi Academy Trilogy by Kevin Anderson (1994)
    • Jedi Search
    • Dark Apprentice
    • Champions of the Force
  • The Truce at Bakura by Kathy Tyers (1994)
  • The Courtship of Princess Leia by Dave Wolverton (1995)
  • Tales from Mos Eisley Cantina by Kevin Anderson (1995)
  • The Crystal Star by Vonda McIntyre (1995)
  • Tales from Jabba's Palace by Kevin Anderson (1995)
  • Children of the Jedi by Barbara Hambly (1996)
  • Darksaber by Kevin Anderson (1996)
  • Tales of the Bounty Hunters by Kevin Anderson (1996)
  • Shadows of the Empire by Steve Perry (1997)
  • The New Rebellion by Kristine Kathryn Rusch (1997)
  • Tales from the Empire by Peter Schweighofer (1997)
  • Planet of Twilight by Barbara Hambly (1998)
  • I, Jedi by Michael A. Stackpole (1999)
  • Tales from the New Republic Peter Schweighofer and Craig Carey (1999)
  • Saboteur (Darth Maul short story) by James Luceno (2001)
  • Rogue Planet by Greg Bear (2001)
  • Cloak of Deception by James Luceno (2002)
  • The Approaching Storm by Alan Dean Foster (2003)
  • A Forest Apart by Troy Denning (2003)
  • Tatooine Ghost by Troy Denning (2003)
  • Star Wars Galaxies
    • The Ruins of Dantooine by Voronica Whitney-Robinson (2003)
  • Fool's Bargain [novella] by Timothy Zahn (2004)
  • The Hive [short story] by Steven Barnes (2004)
  • Clone Wars Novels
    • Medstar Book 1: Battle Surgeons by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry (2004)
    • Medstar Book II: Jedi Healer by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry (2004)
    • The Cestus Deception by Steven Barnes (2005)
    • Jedi Trial by David Sherman and Dan Cragg (2005)
    • Shatterpoint by Matthew Stover (2007)
  • Survivor's Quest by Timothy Zahn (2004)
  • The Dark Lord Trilogy (compendium 2008)
    • Labyrinth of Evil by James Luceno (2005)
    • Revenge of the Sith (novelization) by Matthew Stover (2005)
    • Dark Lord - the Rise of Darth Vader by James Luceno (2006)
  • Boba Fett: A Practical Man [short story] by Karen Traviss (2006)
  • Outbound Flight by Timothy Zahn (2007)
  • Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter by Michael Reaves (2007)
  • Allegiance by Timothy Zahn (2007)
  • Death Star by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry (2008)
  • The Complete Star Wars® Encyclopedia by Stephen J. Sansweet, Pablo Hidalgo, Bob Vitas and Daniel Wallace (2008)
  • The Force Unleashed by Sean Williams (2009)
  • The Force Unleashed II by Sean Williams (2011)
  • Millennium Falcon by James Luceno (2009)
  • Crosscurrent by Paul Kemp (2010)
  • Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor by Matthew Stover (2010)
  • Knight Errant by John Jackson Miller (2011)
  • Riptide by Paul S. Kemp (2011)
  • Shadow Games by Michael Reaves and Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff (2011)
  • Red Harvest by Joe Schreiber (2012)
  • Scourge by Jeff Grubb (2012)
  • Choices of One by Timothy Zahn (2012)
  • Winner Lose All--A Lando Calrissian Tale by Timothy Zahn (2012)
  • The Last Jedi by Michael Reaves and Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff (2013)
  • Scoundrels by Timothy Zahn (2013)
  • Crucible by Troy Denning (2013)
  • Star Wars: Empire and Rebellion
    • Razor's Edge by Martha Wells (2013)
    • Honor Among Thieves by James S.A. Corey (2015)
  • Fate of the Jedi: Outcast (2010)
  • The Essential Legends Collection
    • Maul: Lockdown by Joe Schreiber (2014)
    • Shatterpoint by Matthew Stover (2021 reprint)
    • Kenobi by John Jackson Miller (2022)
    • Darth Plagueis by James Luceno (2022)
    • Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter by Michael Reaves (2022 reprint)
    • Death Troopers by Joe Schreiber (2022 reprint)
    • Yoda: Dark Rendezvous by Sean Stewart (2023)

Fandom

Reaction to Decanonization of Legends

Star Wars fans expressed a range of emotions and opinions following news that the EU was to be rebooted. Some fans were angry that 30 years of canon was been thrown away. Some planned to boycott Disney's new sequel trilogy in protest. Others were dismayed at the loss of the EU but looking forward to what would hopefully be a better trilogy than the prequels.

Many fans were cautiously optimistic that the EU could form the basis for the new trilogy and Canon EU books, and were hoping that they would see fan favorite characters again. This seemed to be the case when Grand Admiral Thrawn appeared in Star Wars Rebels and the Canon EU. In fact some fan theories after the release of The Force Awakens were heavily influenced by Legends stories.

Still other fans were happy to see the EU rebooted; pointing to the varied quality of Legends stories.

I love the Expanded Universe. It’s a weird kind of love that you get with this sort of fandom; I kept with it through some of the absolute worst fiction I have ever read, and many books that could I barely bring myself to call mediocre and, yes, even those rare gems that make it all worth it. But I’m also okay with letting it go. [3]

Discussion on Tumblr following news of the cancellation (2014):

This is honestly the best we could have hoped for. This is the greatest respect being paid to the EU while moving ahead in a new path.

This is Ben and Mara without a fungus that is healed by magic tears.

This is Grand Master Luke without turning to the dark side twice and killing the cloned emperor like 17 times.

This is a New Jedi Order without the authors flat out GUESSING what the “old” Jedi order was like.

This is Leia and Han and the Solo kids without being kidnapped 38 times, where Anakin and Jacen don’t randomly swap destinies mid-series because of a “change of direction”.

This is the galaxy in which the entire cast of characters don’t start taking crazy pills as soon as Legacy of the Force starts.

I love the EU for the characters it gave us, but JFC a lot of the stories are terrible, and I can’t shed a tear at seeing them go.[4]

Just because there are a few bad ideas in a story doesn’t mean the whole thing is bad. I.E. Midichlorians. Wtf was that. And Jar Jar Binks. And casting Hayden Christensen as Anakin. Does that mean we should reboot all of the prequel trilogies? Yeah, there might have been some bad story lines, but that’s the case with any franchise that big. There’s no need to wipe the slate, just because the writers were too lazy to do some research on the EU.[5]

Discussion on Reddit (2017):

The movies are what got me into Star Wars, but I've spent so much more time in the Expanded Universe. I love it more than the films and it will always be my canon. People think that my Disney movie boycott must be hard for me, that I have to fight temptation with each new release, but it's the easiest thing in the world to not go see the films.[6]

I'm still bummed out too. I don't care about canon, I don't care if the EU is considered fan fiction, it was the unceremonious halt that has always bugged me. No more stories with Jaina or Jag or Ben or Allana... no more pre-NJO stories about Luke and Mara, it all just stopped.[7]

I grew up on the EU, like, I remember reading those grade school level books about Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan between Episodes I & Episode II, I felt like I WENT TO the Jedi Academy on Yavin IV, and I re-read Anakin Solo's death like five times because I was so filled with grief (and I still managed to read Star by Star in one day). I loved what is now Legends, and would be thrilled to get new stories in that world.[8]

The EU had it's minutes of fame and by the time of the buyout it was a bloated mess of contradictions and silly stuff. The stories were mostly concluded anyway. Sure you didn't see Luke battle Sith Lords on his death bed but did we really need more stuff after Crucible? [9]

Discussion on The Toast (2014):

[He] is probably right inasmuch as Lucasfilm was never ever going to use the Thrawn trilogy as a basis for the new movies, no matter how much we secretly hoped they would, so they might as well honestly axe all the continuities they’re never going to use. [10]

Oh well $4.08 billion gives you the right to fuck up any fictional universe. [11]

Oh, no. Oh nononononononononono. This cannot stand. The EU has done many wrong things, but to throw it into the void? To destroy it entirely? No. That would be throwing out the good parts of my childhood and teenager-hood, and, alas, much of my college-hood. That would be jossing my own life, like for real. What? WHAT??????? I knew this Disney thing was going to be bad, I just didn't know how bad. (AM I GOING TO LOSE JAINA SOLO??????????????????????????????) [12]

Fandom's obsession with canonicity (not just Star Wars fandom) is fascinating to me. It's like watching early Christianity forming at an Information Age pace. I'm actually impressed they were able to keep this machine going as long as they did without just giving up and opting for either some ridiculously baroque comic-book-style multiverse or the loosey-goosey Star Trek style continuity, held together by lampshades and string, which only the most insanely dedicated fans would dare try to piece together into a coherent whole. [13]

For me, I was always a selected canon follower when it came to EU, as in, everything that happened before they killed Chewbacca [equals] canon. Everything after (including the actual death) [equals] TOTAL BS. I had to stop reading them because I was too heartbroken. Not because they were terrible, but because they hurt my fragile heart. [14]

Okay, pause. Let’s talk for a second about how weird it is that someone (even if that person is a faceless fictional metaperson like the Disney Corporation) owns Star Wars. How weird is that to you? Rest assured that to me it is far, far weirder. It’s like saying, oh, yes, Disney owns the moon, or the history of the UK from 1910 to 1960. (And now imagine that you grew up in the UK during that time.) And yet at the same time it was only because Lucasfilm owned Star Wars that there was a single coherent universe for me to have all the feelings about the universe that I did, and that I outlined below. So now think about how weird that is. Feeling appropriately unsettled? Good. Unpause.[15]

The Star Wars EU was my gateway drug into nerddom. I still remember watching the movies and just being absolutely captivated. But I was just a kid, and I didn't know how to express the nerd love I was feeling. And there were only three movies. And then a friend lent me a book from the EU (I remember it happening like this, and refuse to believe it didn't: "Hey, hey kid. Wanna another Star Wars hit? Courtship of Princess Leia. It's strong shit."). And I was hooked. It was my first nerd culture experience, and much like your first doctor, it will always hold such a special place in my heart. [16]

Fanworks

Fanfiction

External Links

Fanlinks

AO3

Meta on Decanonization

References

  1. ^ Star Wars Legends - Legends - Wookiepedia
  2. ^ Star Wars - Legends. Penguin Random House
  3. ^ Big Moon Rising: Why I don’t mind if the Star Wars sequels mean the end of the Expanded Universe Club Jade (8-Apr-2014)
  4. ^ Star Wars Legends Tumblr post by ysalamiri, 2014
  5. ^ Reblog of Star Wars Legends by Tumblr user jamesblonde007, 2014
  6. ^ Comment by IndispensableNobody, r/StarWarsEU
  7. ^ Comment by tunnel-snakes-rule, r/StarWarsEU
  8. ^ Comment by Nathanialjg, r/StarWarsEU
  9. ^ Comment by HarvestKnight, r/StarWarsEU
  10. ^ Disney To Rip Out Star Wars EU Continuity “Like A Tumor” by Dan Mallory Ortberg
  11. ^ Disney To Rip Out Star Wars EU Continuity “Like A Tumor” - Comment by Alec
  12. ^ Disney To Rip Out Star Wars EU Continuity “Like A Tumor” - Comment by speakeasybutch
  13. ^ Disney To Rip Out Star Wars EU Continuity “Like A Tumor” - Comment by stuffisthings
  14. ^ Disney To Rip Out Star Wars EU Continuity “Like A Tumor” - Comment by LauraSookDuncombe
  15. ^ The Star Wars Expanded Universe: A Eulogy by Louis Evans]
  16. ^ The Star Wars Expanded Universe: A Eulogy - Comment by ThisiswhyIhavecats]
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