Star Wars: That Time They Made a Better Han Solo – the Hera Syndulla Breakdown
The history of Hera Syndulla spans all across the ‘Star Wars’ universal lore. She’s a notorious pilot—but who is this Twi’lek Rebel?
Revolutionary, pilot, leader of the Rebellion, and mother—Hera Syndulla has been fighting against the Empire her whole life. Sometimes taking the fight to the very top.
The Origin of Hera Syndulla
Born on Twi’lek homeworld Ryloth to Cham and Eleni Syndulla, Hera grew up during the Clone Wars. She came into her own during the aftermath of war and the rise of the empire. Hera’s father was a revolutionary who fought against the Confederacy of Independent Systems during the Clone Wars. And so Hera grew up with revolution and the fight for independence in her blood.
In fact, when the Empire finally took over and demanded the people of Ryloth to disarm, Hera’s father obliged, ready to live a peaceful life. But Hera wasn’t and tried to help her father’s friend, Gobi Glie, rebel against the Empire. She would only continue rebelling from there.
The Republic’s Clone Army ships inspired her to become a pilot. She even rescued her own droid, Chopper, from a crash during the Battle of Ryloth. Over the years Hera would turn into an unparalleled pilot and go on to join the Rebel Alliance against the Galactic Empire.
Hera Joins the Rebellion
Eventually, her family would fracture when she left Ryloth to join the Rebellion. Meanwhile, her father focused on the Twi-lek resistance movement. This would cause a rift between Hera and Cham that wouldn’t be repaired for years to come.
Hera grew into a top-notch pilot and Rebellion operative. She became an agent of Bail Organa and joined the Rebel network, reporting to the mysterious Fulcrum.
On one of these special missions, Hera met and attempted to recruit Kanan Jarrus while taking on the future Grand Admiral Rae Sloane.
Kanan wasn’t keen to join the Rebels at first, but a common goal forced them to work together. Eventually- and probably mostly to impress Hera- he too joined the Rebel Alliance. Over time Zeb, Sabine, and Ezra would join the crew of The Ghost, forming the rebel cell known as the Spectres.
Hera Syndulla & the Crew of the Ghost
Hera and the crew of The Ghost would undermine the Empire a lot. They did so through weapons-stealing runs, prisoner rescues, infiltration, and various odd jobs.
During this time, Hera would meet some of the most influential and well-known people throughout the galaxy. Her team would even go as far as to acquire a stolen TIE Fighter.
Eventually, these missions would bring her back home to Ryloth, where she would reconcile with her father… While immediately toe-to-toe with Grand Admiral Thrawn for the first of many times.
The crew of The Ghost was eventually successful in their fight against Thrawn. But these last few battles of the Rebels series came with a high cost. First Kanan was killed to give the rest of the team a chance to escape. And then Ezra was lost to an unknown corner of the galaxy when he summoned a pod or Purrgils to help him take Thrawn- and by extension himself- off of the board. Later, Hera would give birth to Jacen, her son with Kanan.
Live Action Adventures
About a decade after the events of Rebels, Hera was working with the New Republic, Jacen and Chopper still by her side. And for a time there was relative peace.
When Ahsoka came to her with information about the possible whereabouts of both Thrawn and Ezra, Hera was willing to help as much as she could without stepping entirely out of line with the New Republic. When Ezra finally did return to the known Galaxy, Hera was there to greet him.
What’s Next & Where Else is Hera?
The Ahsoka series left off on a cliffhanger of Thrawn and Ezra’s return. So we are sure the we will be seeing more of Hera in the future.
But she has also appeared throughout books, comics, and was notably paged by name in Rogue One. Meanwhile, her astromech, Chopper, could be seen zipping around the base.
Hera is known to have had dealings with Doctor Aphra and Sana Starros. She attended Alliance High Command meetings and was stationed on Hoth and Endor. And of course, we known she went on to serve the New Republic after the Galactic Civil War.
Who Played Hera?
In most of her animation appearances, Hera was voiced by Venessa Marshall, but in the Lego Star Wars series she is played by Nicole Oliver.
In the live action series, Ahsoka, Hera was brought to life by Mary Elizabeth Winstead.
Why Is Hera Syndulla’s Son Human?
Jacen is half human and half Twi’lek as his mother is Hera (Twi’lek) and his father was Kanan Jarrus (Human). He does have more human-like features, but his green hair is decidedly not-human and a more likely inheritance from his mother.
Is Hera’s Son a Jedi?
Not yet! And it doesn’t seem like Hera wants him to follow down the same path his father did. But we see Jacen showing signs of a strong connection with the force. So realistically, it’s only a matter of time before we see him training in the ways of the force.
How Old is Hera?
Hera was born in 29 BBY. This makes her about 24 to 28 over the seasons of Star Wars: Rebels and 39 or 40 during Ahsoka.
May the Force be with you, adventures!
