Films and Fiction

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Andor is once again the subject of some controversy. This time it’s not about whether the show is too “mature”, but rather that it appears to have contradicted previously established canon.

In episode nine of Andor season two, Mon Mothma makes a speech to the Senate, denouncing Palpatine and his manipulation of the truth, following the massacre of civilians on the planet Ghorman. It’s a powerful speech, and a turning point for the fight against the Empire, the only problem is, it’s been shown onscreen before.

In Star Wars: Rebels, season three, episode eighteen, we see a holonet transmission of Mon’s speech, shortly before she’s rescued by Gold Squadron and the crew of the Ghost. There are a couple of other minor retcons beside it, but this is the most egregious, and it raises some questions about the current state of Star Wars “Canon”.

The old Star Wars had a tiered system of canon, so George Lucas and his movies were at the top and could (and did) retcon anything he liked, as is only right; next came TV shows like The Clone Wars; followed by books, video games, etc.

This means that things could be changed on a whim, and if that’s the way things are, then fine. But Disney Star Wars is supposed to have a simple two-tier system. At the top are the films, past and present, and most of the TV shows, along with the books, games, etc., that Disney have created; then there’s Legends, which takes in the old Expanded Universe, Visions, and things like the LEGO shorts.

It’s a simple system, and as it is, nothing should retcon anything else made in the Disney era that’s designated as Canon, but nevertheless, it happens. Dave Filoni is guilty of this with some animated shows nibbling away at events described in the books, which is irritating, but even worse is the way that Andor has outright contradicted something from a mainstream show. Even more ridiculous is the idea that the series can just steamroller over anything it likes, either because it’s live-action, or because it’s somehow “superior” as a piece of entertainment.

I understand that animation is very stylized. Of course characters need to be tweaked a little when they are brought into live-action, and some designs need to be toned down. Likewise, if some events portrayed in animation were recreated in live-action, they would need some subtle alterations to make them look natural. Sometimes, this isn’t done too well, as in the Ahsoka show.

But those are just minor corrections. Star Wars still needs to remain coherent, especially with how interconnected large parts of it have now become, with things like the “Mandoverse”, and Dave Filoni’s primacy in the franchise. It can’t just be constantly changed just because another writer doesn’t want to move around another’s work; I level this at all the creatives who are guilty. There needs to be a central story, a proper, consistent universe, that can’t just be changed because someone thinks it doesn’t fit. Of course there was some delicate maneuvering of events in the OT and prequels, but Star Wars then was much less of a “cinematic universe” than it is now.

Jar Jar Binks exists in the same universe as Cassian Andor and was an important figure in galactic events, and can’t be erased. Neither can the fact that the Ewoks helped destroy the Empire.

If writers want the maximum amount of freedom possible, then they should set their work in a different time, far in the past of future, or in the furthest reaches of the Outer Rim, where there is more detachment from these central stories.

Setting them around the Clone Wars or the Reign of the Empire gives you plenty of good ground to build stories on, and a solid world all ready to play in. But it has to be done with respect for what’s been previously established. Using popular characters like Mon Mothma and Bail Organa comes with responsibility to use them well, and take into account all that’s been written before about them, good, bad and dumb.

Otherwise none of these tales mean anything if they can just be ripped up and discarded as soon as they become an inconvenience to the next writer or showrunner trying to tell their own story with no consideration for anyone else’s. If that’s the case, then there was no reason to de-canonize the old EU, and no reason to get invested in any of this new material, if it’s all just a flimsy canvas that can be erased by the next show that comes along.