Alright, so 2016 has come and gone and we all have to admit – it was an EPIC year for Star Wars fans. Not only did we enter the year riding the high of The Force Awakens, the film that firmly reestablished Star Wars in all of our hearts and minds, but as the year progressed we were treated to tons of amazing Star Wars content! The second season of the animated series Rebels ended on an amazing yet bittersweet moment as Ahsoka Tano and Darth Vader finally faced off. Then in season three we’ve been treated to a great, more grown up story progression, the addition of Grand Admiral Thrawn, and the continued presence of Maul just to name a few things. On the literature side of things Marvel gave us the conclusion of the Darth Vader series (which ended on a super high note), and the Poe Dameron series which I’m very much enjoying. In addition to those we got the Han Solo mini-series, the introduction of the Dr. Aphra series, as well as the ongoing Star Wars series (while hit-and-miss, has overall been pretty strong). And how could we forget the stellar novels we got in 2016 – from Catalyst, to Ahsoka, to Aftermath: Life Debt, and oh yes, Bloodline (!!!!), Star Wars fans had little to complain about. The story group really has the new canon moving in the right direction and I for one could not be happier with where we are at heading into 2017.
Having said that, I am going to lay out some bold predictions (ok, and some no-brainers….) for the Star Wars franchise as we move through 2017. Feel free to comment below and/or hit me on the contact page if you want more info on these or if you just wanna give me a hard time, I can take it, hahaha. So here goes, in no particular order:
- We are going to look back and remember Rogue One being even better than we think it is right now. I can’t tell you how awesome I think Rogue One is. Or maybe I can, peep my review…. I’ve seen it five times as of writing this, and it gets better and better each and every time. I will be shocked if it isn’t in the top three of every hardcore Star Wars fans rankings a year from now, after we’ve had time to process just how freaking amazing it was, start-to-finish.
- Rian Johnson is going to deliver a much different saga film than we are used to. I know that there is a certain feel that Lucasfilm wants to preserve in the Star Wars saga films, and I get that. Having said that, I think Rian Johnson (the writer and director of Episode VIII, if you didn’t already know) is going to think outside the box and give us a saga film that looks and feels very different than what we are used to. Watch Looper if you don’t believe me, then get back to me….
- A major character on Rebels is going to die before the end of the year. Yeah, this seems like a no-brainer to me and most of the Rebels fans I talk to. The question is, who?? My money is on Kanan or Zeb. Thanks to Rogue One we know it won’t be Hera or Chopper, and I can’t see it being Ezra or Sabine at this point, either. Either way, the stakes need to be upped, and I feel strongly they will be – most likely at the end of season three.
- Aftermath: Empire’s End is gonna rock! The Aftermath series got off to a rocky start to say the least, but rebounded well with Life Debt. We are set up for an epic finale which I am hoping will set up TFA nicely in regards to the Empire fleeing into the Unknown Regions and becoming the First Order, the mystery of Gallius Rax, the mystery of Jakku, and the fate of Grand Admiral Rae Sloane (an AWESOME character, in my opinion). I can’t wait for this book.
- We will find out the story group’s plan for Leia moving into Episode IX. Well, duh, we will obviously know Leia’s general fate by the end of 2017 as we will all have seen Episode VIII by the end of the year, but I’m guessing the filmmakers will take it a step further and give us some insight as to how they plan to use Leia in Episode IX. My money is on CGI and the same technique’s they used to bring Tarkin and young Leia to life in Rogue One. I simply do not see them killing her off in Episode VIII because Carrie Fisher passed away. I am sure her estate will give their blessing, and let’s not forget Disney and Lucasfilm just collected a $41 million dollar insurance policy due to her death. That should be more than enough $$$ to bring Leia to life in a meaningful role in Episode IX.
- The third Anthology film, due to release in 2020, will finally be officially announced. Ever since Josh Trank was canned from the Boba Fett Anthology film, things have been up in the air regarding the third film in the series. I for one am hoping the powers that be have scrapped the idea of a Fett story altogether, but according to recent rumors that may not be the case. I REALLY want an Obi-Wan film, like REALLY. So do most other fans I talk to. And if we can’t get that, please just give us a brand-new, original story – not a Boba Fett film. Either way, my guess is we will start to hear some concrete news on the film sooner in 2017 rather than later.
- Lucasfilm will formally announce one of two new projects – a live action TV show or a new animated show. The time is now for Disney and Lucasfilm to move forward with a live action Star Wars series in my opinion. However, if it were up to me I would do a limited run of eight to ten episodes a season, and change up the storyline every year to keep it fresh. Use Netflix, Hulu, or the like to showcase it, and make it GOOD. This way they could attract A-List talent every year without a huge commitment. Hell, if they don’t give us the Obi-Wan Anthology film, give us a ten episode run in a premium television format. I’m sure Ewan would be down – hell, he’s practically begging at this point. I also think there’s another animated show in the works, but I’m not sure if we will get a formal announcement on this in 2017 or not. There has to be something being worked on, as animation takes so long to produce, and there have been multiple rumors on who is working on it. Who knows, maybe we will get lucky and both projects will get announced! One can hope, right? I mean, Rebellions are built on hope!
- We will not find out who Rey’s parents are. Yeah, sorry, I just don’t see it happening in Episode VIII. I think there will be more hints, but I don’t see them spilling the beans until Episode IX. My money is still on her being related to both Obi-Wan and Luke, but that is obviously just speculation at this point, duh….
- Darth Revan will finally make his (or her) way into the new canon. Maybe a bit of a reach here, but it’s time to go ahead and consummate this. Everyone wants it, let’s just get it over with. Hell, if not an Obi-Wan Anthology give us a Revan one, set 3000 years before the events of A New Hope. I would LOVE to see that on the big or small screen. People freaking love Revan, let’s just rip the band-aid off and make it happen, ok Lucasfilm??? K, thanks!
- We will find out Ahsoka’s fate. The season finale of the second season of Rebels left things very open-ended in regards to fan favorite character, Ahsoka Tano. I think the story group will let us in on exactly what happened to her after her fateful confrontation with her old master-turned Dark Lord of the Sith on Malachor V. Her story deserves to be finished, and knowing how near and dear to Dave Filoni’s heart her character is, I personally have little doubt they’ll clear her fate up by the end of the year – either via Rebels, a comic series, or another novel.
So yeah, there it is. Nothing Alderaan shattering there, but I think 2017 is going to be an interesting year for Star Wars and the fanbase. And I say bring it on!
~Todd
