"Rogues, Rebels and Robots" is the ninth episode of the Star Wars radio drama. It first aired on National Public Radio on Monday, April 27, 1981. The episode adapts events of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope taking place aboard the Millennium Falcon as it makes its way to Alderaan. It centers on Luke's initial round of Jedi training and his first lessons on the ways of the Force.
The Millennium Falcon enters hyperspace, escaping the blockade around Tatooine. The passengers settle in for the journey: the droids recharge, and Luke Skywalker and Ben Kenobi look around the ship and discuss what it reveals about the character of the crew, Han Solo and Chewbacca. Ben believes that there is more to Solo than first appears, yet he still feels that his loyalty ultimately is to himself.
Ben leads Luke through a lightsaber drill.
Ben insists that Luke now begin his Jedi training. He explains that revenge, anger, hatred and fear draw power from the Force, but only from its Dark Side. He tells Luke a little about the extermination of the Jedi. And although the Jedi traditionally began their training with a long period of contemplation, due to the urgencies of the moment, Luke will begin with lightsaber training. Ben guides Luke through a set of drills, urging him to feel the Force in his movements and sensations. Luke asks Ben for a practice duel; Ben instead has him practice with a remote that Han keeps for target practice.
Chewbacca, having finished minor repairs to the Falcon, challenges the group to a hologame. Artoo-Detoo takes him up on it, having learned the game while working with a lone attendant at a refueling station. As Ben and Luke get back to the training drill, Ben suddenly feels a disturbance in the Force from the destruction of Alderaan, though he does not know the precise cause. Artoo wins the hologame, angering Chewbacca. Luke resumes training with the remote. Han expresses skepticism about the Force, even after Luke successfully parries the remote's training bolts with his eyes covered by a blast shield.
When the Falcon reverts to normal space, the planet Alderaan is gone. Through the Force, Ben knows immediately that the Empire has destroyed it. A passing TIE fighter confirms the presence of the Empire, and soon all four aboard the ship lay eyes on the Death Star. It catches the ship in a tractor beam. Han prepares to fight a losing battle, but Ben forms a plan to conceal their presence and make the ship look as though it had been abandoned.
"Rogues, Rebels and Robots" parallels scenes in the original film with some changes of emphasis. Less time is spent on the holochess match, which in the film is conveyed almost entirely through visual effects. Instead the episode spends more time on Luke's training and Obi-Wan's lessons about the Force. This furthers the drama's development of a number of themes, notably the nature of the Light and Dark and the value and importance of money, something that Han and Ben debate.
- Star Wars: The National Public Radio Dramatization
- The Making of Star Wars for Radio: A Fable for the Mind's Eye on archive.org