Star Wars: 5 Legends Characters That Disney Really Should Bring Back
They say Legends never die, and these ones certainly shouldn’t be forgotten!
The old Expanded Universe, now known as Legends, was full of amazing characters– many if whom we miss dearly. Thrawn is the most prominent example of of a classic character that’s been brought back. But how much of Grand Admiral Thrawn’s character stayed the same? He has roughly the same background and personality, but his story has changed quite a bit from the old EU version.
So even if a character is brought back, they probably won’t be 100% the same. And sometimes, characters are name-checked without any background clarity at all, leading us to wonder– are they really the same character?
There are also some characters that we just can’t get back, like Jaina Solo– it just wouldn’t work. But here are five old characters we think could easily reappear in the current Star Wars cannon.
5. Soontir Fel
Soontir Fel was an ace Imperial Pilot and commander of the dreaded 181st Fighter Wing. He’s in the running for best pilot around and a total badass. A Corellain, like Wedge and Han, he ended up married to Wedge’s sister and playing a major role in galactic events, with his descendants eventually coming to rule over the Empire.
There have been a few characters that seem roughly based on Fel that have popped up in the current timeline, but not Fel himself. Fel was a great example of the “Honorable Imperial” who eventually left the Empire, and helped paved a third way.
Current Star Wars doesn’t have a lot of Imperial pilots that last long, or that haven’t defected to the Rebels. It would be easy to work him in as an Imperial ace, who later plays some role in the post-war galaxy. Maybe as a Leader among the Ex-Imperials who don’t align with the First Order?
4. Lowbacca 
Lowbacca was a nephew of the famous Chewbacca and a Wookiee Jedi Knight in the old Expanded Universe.
Now look, Lowbacca, aka Lowie, was a straight up badass. Combing the physical prowess of a Wookiee and a Jedi, something fans had always talked about, made for a terrifying combination. This guy wrecked shop when needed.
He was also a loyal and good friend, and an excellent mechanic. Apparently the combination of Jedi and Wookiee was so OP that Lucas himself said they couldn’t make any more Wookiee Jedi. While Lowie may not be canon anymore, he clearly paved the way for the new Wookiee Jedi Knight that is showing up in the High Republic stuff.
But none of that is why Lowie actually makes this list. See, Lowie had a companion, a small translator droid he wore on his belt so that he could talk to everyone. That’s right, this dude is literally the only person we’ve ever seen in Star Wars that’s adapted their easy-to-use translator tech into a personal, always on, translation device. That’s some big brain stuff right there.
Lowbacca was a pretty cool dude, and Wookiee Jedis are rad. It wouldn’t be hard to bring him back as either one of Luke’s students, who fled when the Academy was destroyed, or a new post-Episode 9 Jedi Recruit.
3. Kyle Katarn 
Katarn is and efficient mashup of the things that make both Luke and Han cool…. or maybe what Han would be if he was also a Jedi.
This makes sense; Katarn came about as the player character in a number of Star Wars video games. And if you’re going to have a single new character be the player, he’s gotta embody all that people like about Star Wars heroes.
Katarn was an Imperial officer who defected and joined the Rebellion. A hotshot gunfighter and pilot, he also developed Force powers. Unlike Luke, he was self thought, but eventually joined Luke’s Jedi order and went on to have a long career. Among fans, he was wildly popular as the hero of the much-loved video games.
2. Exar Kun
Exar Kun was an ancient Jedi from the period shortly before the Knights of the Old Republic era. He eventually fell to the Dark Side, became a Sith Lord, and sparked a galaxy-wide war before his defeat.
But his evil spirit lingered on– and eventually corrupted Kyp Durron, one of Luke’s Jedi students, and nearly destroying the fledgling Jedi Academy.
It’s fairly clear that some elements of the Exar Kun story were stolen for the Sequels, with Kun being replaced by Palpatine/Snoke, and Kylo Ren playing the role of Kyp Durron. But Kun himself has been left out of the canon.
Well, mostly– you can still find references to the character in the quasi-canon Old Republic games. But nothing ties him to the current era, and that’s a shame.
I think Disney really needs to bring him back as a corrupting Force Ghost Sith to bother the newest Jedi– if for no other reason than to keep them from trying to bring Palpatine back again.
1. Mara Jade
Mara Jade is the galaxy’s #1 bad bitch. She was a Force-sensitive human who was recruited by the Emperor early in her life. Indoctrinated into his following, she became one the Emperor’s Hands, an elite agent dedicated to doing his will and acting as an assassin.
After his death, she went into hiding and served with various outlaw and smuggler groups. She had one main goal in mind: carrying out the Emperor’s last command to avenge him by killing Luke Skywalker.
When their paths finally cross, she ends up saving him rather than killing him. And when the Emperor’s lies start to be relieved to her, she lets go of her past.
Over time, Mara falls in love with Luke and the two are married. She then becomes one of the most powerful Jedi Masters in Star Wars history.
She’s long been a fan-favorite and a staple of the old EU. Now we can’t get her back exactly in the same form– marrying Luke and having a kid with him doesn’t really work in the new timeline.
But there’s no reason that they couldn’t reintroduce her as a former servant of the Emperor (maybe an Inquisitor?) who’s on the mend and has a romance with Luke sometime between Episode 6-7. Or leave out the romance; she’s good enough on her own.
Current Star Wars doesn’t really have a lot (or any) surviving evil Force users who saw the light. The few of them two do, like Kylo Ren and Ventress, get killed off. It’s a type of story that would be interesting to see.
Let us know what old EU characters you want to see in the current cannon down below in the comments!
