Thrawn

Grand Admiral Thrawn is a fictional character in the Star Wars franchise. Introduced in the 1991 Timothy Zahn novel Heir to the Empire, he is an Imperial military commander who has taken control of the Galactic Empire's remaining forces five years after the events of the 1983 film Return of the Jedi. Thrawn subsequently appeared in multiple works in the Star Wars Expanded Universe. Though Lucasfilm rebranded the expanded universe works as Star Wars Legends in 2014 and declared them non-canon to the franchise, Thrawn was reintroduced in the third season of the 3D CGI animated television seriesStar Wars Rebels. The character will also be featured in a 2017 novel titledThrawn.

Thrawn faces off against classic Star Wars characters Luke Skywalker,Princess Leia, Han Solo, Chewbacca, and Lando Calrissian in the Thrawntrilogy (1991–93), but is ultimately defeated. He is seemingly resurrected in theHand of Thrawn novels (1997–98), and his backstory is explored in various other novels, short stories, comics, and video games. Thrawn has been called one of the most significant and popular characters in the Legends continuity, and several Star Wars action figures and other merchandising have been produced of the character.

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Character[edit]
Thrawn first appeared in the 1991 Timothy Zahn novel Heir to the Empire, the first installment of what became known as the Thrawn trilogy.[1] He is a Grand Admiral in the Imperial Navy,[2][3] and categorically "the most brilliant of the Emperor's minions".[4] A member of the alien Chiss species, Thrawn is described as a tall, solidly built humanoid with blue skin and glowing red eyes who wears the white uniform befitting his rank.[2][3] He has risen in power thanks to his "tactical brilliance and cunning", and has been described as "one of the most threatening antagonists" in the Star Wars universe.[5] He is an unparalleled military strategist and tactical genius who has made extensive study of military intelligence and other cultures, and the Thrawn trilogy finds him commanding the remnants of the Imperial Fleet in a series of stunning victories against the New Republic.[6] IGN described the character as "diabolical, brilliant and ruthless".[7] Zahn describes Thrawn's command style as considerably different from that of Darth Vader and other typical Imperial commanders; instead of punishing failure and dissent, Thrawn promotes creativity among his crew and accepts ideas from subordinates. Referencing Zahn's annotations in the 20th Anniversary Edition of Heir to the Empire, John Booth wrote in Wired that Zahn "created and developed Thrawn as a character [by] deliberately establishing the Grand Admiral as a villain who leads not by coercion and fear but through valuing strategy and loyalty".[8] Zahn explained in 2008 that Thrawn's version of the Empire is different than that of Palpatinebecause Thrawn does not have Palpatine's megalomania and xenophobia.[9]Calling Thrawn and Mara Jade his favorite of the characters he created, Zahn noted in 2006 that writing the Grand Admiral "provides the intellectual challenge of trying to come up with new, clever, and (hopefully) workable tactics and strategies".[10]

Expanded Universe works[edit]
Novelist Timothy Zahn created Thrawn in his 1991 Star Wars novelHeir to the Empire.

Introduced in the Thrawn trilogy (1991–93),[1] Thrawn became a fan favorite and subsequently appeared in multiple works in what became known as the Star WarsExpanded Universe, including novels, comics and video games, through 2006.[2][3]He is often cited as one of the most popular characters in the franchise.[2][3] Star Wars Rebels executive producer Dave Filoni said of the character in 2016, "You couldn't have grown up a Star Wars fan without encountering Thrawn in Heir to the Empire. It was a dark time when there weren't any more movies, and it blew our minds that there could be more."[2] The Thrawn trilogy itself is widely credited with reviving interest in the Star Wars franchise.[10][11] In 2010, Star Wars: The Clone Wars creator Filoni expressed interest in using Thrawn in that series.[12] Some fans of the bestselling Thrawn series had long hoped the books would be adapted, and after the 2012 announcement that The Walt Disney Company had acquired Lucasfilm and planned to produce film sequels to Return of the Jedi, Zahn commented that if material from the expanded universe was used in the films, "we'd all be thrilled to death".[11]

With the 2012 acquisition of Lucasfilm by Disney, most of the licensed Star Wars novels and comics produced since the originating 1977 film Star Wars were rebranded as Star Wars Legends and declared non-canon to the franchise in April 2014.[13][14][15] Though Lucasfilm made it clear that new media would "not tell the same story told in the post-Return of the Jedi Expanded Universe", it was also established that "creators of new Star Wars entertainment have full access to the rich content of the Expanded Universe."[14] Acknowledging that Thrawn had long been considered by Lucasfilm when developing projects, Filoni later said in 2016 that in particular the character had been on his list of potential villains when developingStar Wars Rebels.[16]

Thrawn trilogy[edit]
In Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire (1991), master tactician Grand Admiral Thrawn plots to destroy the New Republic despite their numerical advantage over the remaining Imperial forces. He sets his sights on the Wayland storehouse of the late Emperor Palpatine, which contains a massive array of Spaarti cloning cylinders and a working cloaking shield. To this end, Thrawn and his subordinate Gilad Pellaeon, captain of the Imperial Star Destroyer Chimaera, enlist the help of smuggler Talon Karrde and his second-in-command Mara Jade to obtain several salamader-like creatures called ysalamiri. Thrawn uses the ysalamiri, which possess the natural ability to disrupt the Force, to subdue the storehouse's guardianJoruus C'baoth, a twisted clone of a Jedi Master whom the Grand Admiral had killed years before. C'baoth offers his allegiance in exchange for two acolytes to bend to his will: Darth Vader's twin children, Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa Solo. Thrawn sends some of his Noghri killers to capture Luke and a pregnant Leia, but their attempts repeatedly fail. Leia defends herself from one attack, and is surprised when the Noghri suddenly surrenders. Thrawn launches his first offensive, a series of hit-and-run attacks into New Republic territory, and then steals a complement of mole miners from Lando Calrissian's mining operations on Nkllon. In need of warships, and with his previous tactics having forced over 100 lightly manned ships to be stationed at the Sluis Van shipyards as he planned, Thrawn invades. His stormtroopers use the stolen miners to board and hijack the ships, but they are thwarted when Lando is able to seize control of the miners remotely. The Grand Admiral withdraws his forces, but thanks to Thrawn's plotting, his New Republic nemesis Admiral Ackbar is soon arrested for treason.[6][17]

Thrawn discovers the existence of a lost fleet of 200 Dreadnaught ships in Dark Force Rising (1992). Meanwhile, Leia learns that the Noghri serve the Empire because they revere her late father, the insidious Vader, who they believe saved their planet Honoghr from ecological disaster. Leia convinces them that they have been deceived and effectively enslaved by the Empire, and they switch sides. With Ackbar temporarily neutralized as a tactical opponent, Thrawn leads an army of clones to claim the so-called "Katana fleet", outmaneuvering Luke, Lando, and Han Solo.[4][18]

In The Last Command (1993), Thrawn uses his new fleet, manned with clones, to mount a successful offensive against the New Republic. Seizing one planet after the other, the Grand Admiral soon immobilizes the galactic capital world, Coruscant. He has placed multiple cloaked asteroids around the planet, but through a ruse he has led the New Republic leadership to believe that Coruscant is surrounded with them. Learning of the deception, the Republic fleet attacks the Imperial shipyards at Bilbringi to capture a device that can find the cloaked asteroids, but Thrawn's forces crush them. Meanwhile, Luke and Leia lead a group to destroy the cloning facility on Wayland. Just as Thrawn and Pellaeon learn that the Noghri aided in the attack on Wayland, Thrawn's own Noghri bodyguard Rukh kills the Grand Admiral—whose last words are, "But ... it was so artistically done." With all hope of victory dashed by Thrawn's death, Pellaeon orders the Imperial forces to retreat.[6]

The Hand of Thrawn[edit]
Zahn's Specter of the Past (1997) finds Thrawn seemingly resurrected ten years after his death when he reappears to lead the decimated Imperial forces against the unstable New Republic.[6][19]

In Vision of the Future (1998), the Grand Admiral is revealed to be an impostor named Flim, employed by Moff Disra to motivate the Imperial troops. Major Grodin Tierce, the clone of a former stormtrooper imbued with Thrawn's tactical intellect by the Grand Admiral himself, strategized that the false Thrawn could also be used to rally support for the Empire and intimidate the New Republic. The tactic is successful until Admiral Pellaeon and the smuggler Talon Karrde—on opposing sides but desiring peace—expose Flim. Meanwhile, at a fortress called the Hand of Thrawn, Luke and Mara discover a gestating and near-complete clone of Thrawn, which is killed during their escape.[6]

Other novels[edit]
Thrawn appears as a captain in the 1997 William C. Dietz novella Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire.[6]

In Survivor's Quest, Zahn's 2004 sequel to Vision of the Future, Luke and Mara journey to investigate the wreckage of Outbound Flight, a Jedi expedition destroyed by Thrawn years before.[9][20] Newly discovered by the Chiss, the remains turn out to be the lure in a trap laid by the bloodthirsty Vagaari to avenge themselves on the Chiss.[21]

Zahn's 2006 novel Outbound Flight, a prequel to Heir of the Empire, is set fifty years before Survivor's Quest.[22] It follows the story of the doomed titular expedition, led by Jedi Master Jorus C'baoth, that is attacked by a young Chiss commander named Mitth'raw'nuruodo—informally known as Thrawn.[9][23] In the story, an Imperial fleet comes across the Chiss for the first time. The alien commander, Thrawn, is able to handily defeat the Imperials despite inferior weapons and numbers. Supreme Chancellor Palpatine seeks to destroy the Outbound Flight, and he and his agent Kinman Doriana convince Thrawn that the ship and its Jedi pose a threat to the peaceful future of the galaxy. Thrawn agrees, hoping to get C'baoth to turn back before taking more drastic action. The Jedi refuses and Thrawn fires on the ship, but Doriana launches an assault that kills every Jedi and sends the Outbound Flight careening to its destruction on a nearby planet. Thrawn's brother Thrass and Lorana, the sole surviving Jedi, sacrifice their lives to save what survivors they can. Thrawn is reprimanded by his Chiss superiors for his hostile behavior, and summoned back to his home planet Csilla.[6] Publishers Weekly called Thrawn the "true star" of the novel, noting that his attack on the ship, secretly influenced by Palpatine's agents, "insures his own eventual exile from his race and sets other sinister wheels in motion".[24] Zahn said of writing the novel, "as always, it was immensely fun to play tactics with Thrawn".[10] Though StarWars.com suggests that in Outbound Flight, Thrawn is "too smart and basically decent to become the servant of Palpatine that he later becomes".[10] Zahn explains:

Short stories[edit]
Thrawn, exiled by the Chiss to an inhospitable planet, is found by the Imperial Captain Voss Parck in "Mist Encounter" a short story by Zahn that was originally published in Star Wars Adventure Journal #7 (August 1995).[25][26] Parck realizes Thrawn's value as a strategist and decides to bring him to the Emperor.[6] In "Command Decision", a November 1996 short story by Zahn published in Star Wars Adventure Journal #11, Thrawn is an Admiral in the Imperial Navy with Parck as his subordinate.[27] Thrawn orchestrates a plan to locate a Rebel base in "Side Trip" by Zahn and Michael A. Stackpole, published in Star Wars Adventure Journal #12 (February 1997) and #13 (May 1997), and reprinted in the November 1997 anthology Tales from the Empire.[28][29] The success of this mission earns him the command of Darth Vader's Noghri commandos.[6] Zahn's novella "Crisis of Faith", published with the 20th Anniversary Edition of Heir to the Empire on September 6, 2011, is set immediately before Heir to the Empire and pits Thrawn against the alien warlord Nuso Esva.[8]

Comics[edit]
In the 1997 Dark Horse comic X-wing Rogue Squadron 25: The Making of Baron Fel, set four years after A New Hope, Imperial pilot Soontir Fel participates in an ambush on a Rebel convoy. He realizes that the operation was planned by the "alien Admiral" Thrawn, who is given no acknowledgment by Vader or the Emperor. Fel understands that such reliance on an alien undercuts the xenophobic foundation of the Empire, and Thrawn goes unrewarded after the successful mission.[30]

Video games[edit]
In the "Tour of Duty III" segment of the 1994 space flight simulator/combat computer game Star Wars: TIE Fighter, then-Vice Admiral Thrawn establishes order in a "wild" system at the frontiers of the Empire. The game expansion packs Defender of the Empire and Enemies of the Empire follow the story of how Thrawn thwarts the efforts of the traitorous Grand Admiral Zaarin to depose the Emperor, and Thrawn is promoted to Grand Admiral in his place.[6][31][32][33]

Thrawn later appears in Forces of Corruption expansion pack for the 2006 real-time strategy game Star Wars: Empire at War.[34][35]

Star Wars Rebels[edit]
With the sequel film Star Wars: The Force Awakens in production, in April 2014 most of the licensed Star Wars novels and comics produced since the 1977 film Star Wars were declared non-canon to the franchise.[13][14][15] However, Star Wars Rebels executive producer Dave Filoni announced at the London Star Wars Celebration in July 2016 that Thrawn would be reintroduced into the franchise in the third season of the Rebels series.[2][3][36] The character debuted in the season 3 premiere, "Steps into Shadow",[37][38][39] which aired on September 24, 2016.[40]

Though in Legends works Thrawn was mostly used in post-Return of the Jedi storylines, Rebels takes place five years prior to the events of the original 1977 film.[2] After seeing an advanced clip from the series, Zahn told StarWars.com, "even that short bit was awesome, and just a bit surrealistic. Authors don't get to see our creations come to life very often, and it was a real treat to see a walking, talking Grand Admiral Thrawn".[41]

Acknowledging that Thrawn had long been considered by Lucasfilm when developing projects, Filoni said that in particular the character had been on his list of potential villains when developing Rebels.[16] He explained that unlike how the characterAhsoka Tano has been a foil for Darth Vader in previous seasons of Rebels, "There's no one to defend [the Rebels] against Thrawn. We want to treat him like a big time villain, as much as Darth Vader, but on the strategic, military side of things."[16]

In "Steps into Shadow", Thrawn is the commander of the Seventh Fleet, recently promoted to Grand Admiral for crushing a rebel insurgency without regard for civilian casualties. He is brought in by Imperial Governor Arihnda Pryce to help destroy the series' eponymous rebel cell. A patient tactician, Thrawn allows the rebels to escape, intending to manipulate them into orchestrating the complete downfall of their own rebellion.

Thrawn (2017)[edit]
In a prerecorded video also presented at the July 2016 London Star Wars Celebration, Zahn announced that he was writing a new novel titled Star Wars: Thrawn, to be released by Del Rey Books in 2017.[2][3][36] He later noted that the book would cover several years between Thrawn's "first encounter" with the Empire and the events of the third season of Rebels.[41]

Portrayal[edit]
Denis Lawson narrates the abridged audiobook of Heir to the Empire audiobook,[42] and Anthony Daniels narrates Dark Force Rising and The Last Command.[43] Marc Thompson performs the unabridged 20th Anniversary editions of the Thrawntrilogy audiobooks.[44][45][46] Thrawn is voiced by Tris King the 1994 computer game Star Wars: TIE Fighter,[47] and by Tim Russell in the 1997 audio drama Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire.[48] In season 3 of Star Wars Rebels, Thrawn is voiced by Lars Mikkelsen.[2][3][36]

Reception[edit]
In 2016, Anthony Breznican of Entertainment Weekly called Thrawn a "fan favorite" and "one of the most significant characters to ever emerge from the Expanded Universe",[2] and Brian Truitt of USA Today named the character "one of Star Wars fandom's favorite villains".[3] In 2008, Jesse Schedeen of IGN credited Thrawn and the Thrawn trilogy with "kickstarting" the Star Wars expanded universe",[49][50] and in 2015 Empire suggested that Thrawn's character helped "revitalize and legitmise" the expanded universe when it was failing.[51] In 2014, GamesRadar's Sam Ashurst called Thrawn "hugely popular amongst fans, partly because of his tactical genius, partly because of his progressive attitude to his employees but mainly due to the fact he's got a blue face" and "easily the coolest villain in the Expanded Universe", noting Thrawn's loss as one of the major consequences of Lucasfilm's abandonment of the old expanded universe for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.[52] Emily Asher-Perrin of Tor.com noted in 2016 that as "one of the most popular Expanded Universe villains" and "one of the most threatening antagonists that the Star Wars universe had on hand", the character's removal from canon continuity "had many fans crying foul".[5] Eric Goldman wrote for IGN in 2008, "Diabolical, brilliant and ruthless, Thrawn was an excellent Star Wars villain, following in the footsteps of the likes of Grand Moff Tarkin," adding that "His status as the highest ranking non-human in the Empire was a very interesting aspect".[7] In 2006, Zahn called Thrawn and Mara Jade his favorite of the characters he created.[10] Zahn said in July 2016, "A writer never knows which characters are going to click with the readers, and it was highly gratifying to me that Thrawn captured the imaginations of so many people over the past quarter century."[41]

The character has been on many "top" lists of Star Wars characters, praising his villainy and character. In a list of fifteenStar Wars villains, Schedeen placed Thrawn as second best, beaten by Darth Vader, focusing on his greatness as a commander and tactician.[49] In 2008, IGN ranked him as the tenth best overall Star Wars character, noting his influence in the expanded universe,[53] and UGO listed him as the third greatest expanded universe character the same year.[54] Empirelisted Thrawn fifth in their list of the 25 best of the more obscure Star Wars characters in 2015.[51]

Merchandising[edit]
An Admiral Thrawn 3 3⁄4 inch action figure was produced by Kenner/Hasbro as part of their 1998 Power Of The Force 2Expanded Universe line.[6][55] Another figure was released for the 2008 Legacy Collection, bundled in a "Comic 2-Pack" with a Talon Karrde figure and a Dark Horse Heir of the Empire issue #1 comic.[56] Two versions of Thrawn were produced for the Star Wars Miniatures collectible miniatures game, one for the 2005 Universe expansion,[57] and a second for the 2009Imperial Entanglements expansion.[58] In 2010, Sideshow Collectibles released a sixth scale Thrawn figure, with a command chair as part of the deluxe version.[59][60] A 6.75" Thrawn mini bust was produced by Gentle Giant in 2014.[61] All representations of the character have included a pet ysalamir, except the 2009 miniature.[55][56][57][58][59][60][61]