Star Wars has produced many iconic villains over its four-decade history, most notably Darth Vader and the Emperor. One of the best villains had never been seen in a live-action project until recently. That changed with the 6th episode of Ahsoka: Welcome, Grand Admiral Thrawn!
Thrawn, whose full name is Mitth’raw’nuruodo, is an exciting contrast to the usual Star Wars villains. He is a ruthless strategist, who would never impulsively pick up a lightsaber. Instead, he uses his razor-sharp mind to trap and outplay his enemies.
31 years before Ahsoka, Thrawn led a brilliant Star Wars trilogy that was erased from canon
Thrawn is a member of the Chiss species. Blue skin and red eyes: Sometimes it might give the impression that he comes from the Avatar universe. Thrawn has been in the galaxy far, far away for a while now. However, until now it only existed in printed and animated form. The key work: the Thrawn trilogy.
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Lars Mikkelsen as Grand Admiral Thrawn in Ahsoka
The Thrawn trilogy is a household name among Star Wars fans. Many who only follow the franchise through the films and series may have never heard of it. The Thrawn trilogy is about a book serieswhich was published by the American author Timothy Zahn between 1991 and 1993.
The Thrawn trilogy includes:
There is also the Hand of Thrawn two-parter:
The plot of the Thrawn trilogy is set after the events of Return of the Jedi and focuses on the Main characters of the original trilogy: Luke, Leia and Han. Thrawn appears in the story as the big villain who carries on the legacy of the Empire, even though the Emperor and Vader are long gone.
Without the Thrawn trilogy, the Star Wars franchise would have fallen asleep in the early 1990s
The Thrawn trilogy is considered one of the best Star Wars stories ever and should not be underestimated for the survival of the franchise. The books were published at a time when Star Wars was popular in pop culture virtually no longer played a role. But Thrawn sparked a new hype in book form in the early 1990s.
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Grand Admiral Thrawn and his entourage in Ahsoka
Officially, the Thrawn trilogy is no longer part of the Star Wars canon. After Disney bought Lucasfilm, the entire film was sold in 2014 Expanded Universe (i.e. all Star Wars stories apart from the movies and The Clone Wars) deleted from the canon. Now they exist separately under the Star Wars Legends-Banner.
The irony is bitter: Before George Lucas brought the star saga back in a big way with the special editions and prequels, the Thrawn trilogy not only ensured that Star Wars had a pulse. The books expanded the franchise’s mythology and brought new iconic characters emerged – and then they were wiped out.
Two completely new Thrawn trilogies have now been created in the official Star Wars canon
Only in the past few years has Lucasfilm gradually brought the villain back into the official canon. Zahn has now written two new Thrawn trilogies that are in keeping with the canon.
The New Thrawn Trilogy (In the Service of the Empire):
The Thrawn Prequel Trilogy (The Rise):
The first appearance in the new Star Wars canon took place at the start of the third season of Star Wars Rebels. Until the finale, Thrawn was then as Antagonist in the animated series present. The Ahsoka series on Disney+ now follows on from this finale. Thrawn is played by Danish actor Lars Mikkelsen, who brought the character to life with his voice in Star Wars Rebels.
Star Wars: When is Ahsoka Episode 7 coming to Disney+?
Slowly but surely we are moving towards the finale of the series. The 7th episode of Ahsoka will be released on September 27, 2023 on Disney+. If you get up very early (or stay up very late), you can watch the episode as early as 3:00 a.m.
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