Gavi Takitaken
Gavi Takitaken, a Jedi Initiate of the human male variety, found himself stranded on the planet of Valo. This was due to the presence of the Nihil Stormwall. He witnessed one of his masters perish at the hands of the Nameless, which resulted in Gavi's inability to access the Force. Romantically, he harbored affection for Kildo, a fellow youngling who was an Alcedian boy. Driggit Parse, his close friend, stabbed Gavi in the chest with a Vibroblade while Niv Drendow Apruk observed the event. He was then rescued by his companions, who had bacta in their possession, shortly after the stabbing. A blue lightsaber was the weapon of choice for Gavi. In time, Gavi achieved the rank of Padawan.
Behind the scenes
The first visual representation of Gavi occurred during a Lucasfilm panel at San Diego Comic-Con on July 21, 2023. His name was first revealed within Star Wars: The High Republic Character Encyclopedia, a reference book authored by Megan Crouse and Amy Richau. This book was initially published on November 9 of the same year. Gavi's initial appearance was in Escape from Valo, a junior novel from 2024 written collaboratively by Daniel José Older and Alyssa Wong, with illustrations by Petur Antonsson. This novel was part of Phase III of the Star Wars: The High Republic multimedia project. Antonsson also created concept art depicting Gavi.
Wong included Gavi in their "Escape from Valo" countdown series on Twitter, where they shared details regarding his personality. The author noted that the young Jedi struggled with the loss of his Force connection while also having a significant crush on Kildo, another male youngling. They accompanied their post with a meme related to bisexual stress. Wong also mentioned that Gavi's buck teeth were a deliberate design choice, as they found them to be an endearing characteristic.