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Star Wars: The High Republic

Star Wars: The High Republic, initially revealed under the working title Project Luminous, represents an expansive and ongoing multimedia undertaking, prominently showcasing the creative output of authors such as Cavan Scott, Claudia Gray, Charles Soule, Daniel José Older, and Justina Ireland. This project employs diverse storytelling mediums, encompassing comics, novels, and audio dramas, to weave a unified narrative situated within the High Republic Era, a period occurring two centuries before the events depicted in Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace. Soule has characterized The High Republic as an expansive and interconnected "mega-story."

While the official launch of the project occurred in 2021, the initial publicly available material bearing the project's branding emerged in December 2020, specifically in the form of a short story. The project's details were originally unveiled at a press conference held on February 24, 2020, with the original plan being to commence its release later that same year. However, the launch was subsequently delayed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

History ‡

Development

The concept for what became Project Luminous originated with Lucasfilm Publishing's creative director, Michael Siglain. In the summer of 2018, Siglain reached out individually to each of the authors, inviting them to collaborate on what he initially referred to as the All-Star Initiative. When meeting with Cavan Scott, Siglain disclosed the project's existence over breakfast during San Diego Comic-Con 2018, but he refrained from revealing the identities of the other participating authors at that time.

Ireland, Gray, Soule, Older, and Scott at Skywalker Ranch

Several months later, in September 2018, all five authors who had committed to Project Luminous were brought to Skywalker Ranch in California. There, they began expanding upon the story's framework beyond its initial parameters. They were joined by both the Lucasfilm Publishing editorial team and the Lucasfilm Story Group. During their multi-day stay, the majority of their time was dedicated to discussing the project, although they also had the opportunity to view a 4K presentation of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope. They subsequently returned to Skywalker Ranch in March 2019 for another visit, during which they watched a 4K version of Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back.

Marketing

The official announcement of Project Luminous occurred the following month, during the Lucasfilm Publishing: Writers Roundtable at Star Wars Celebration Chicago on Monday, April 15, 2019.

The High Republic concept art by Phil Noto

The official reveal of Project Luminous, now known as Star Wars: The High Republic, took place on February 24, 2020. In the announcement trailer, James Waugh, Lucasfilm's VP for Franchise Content and Strategy, explained that, with the impending conclusion of the Skywalker saga following the release of Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker, the publishing division of the company enlisted authors with prior experience in tie-in materials. These authors were granted the creative license to broaden the scope of Star Wars narratives beyond the confines of the films and the Skywalker family. Pablo Hidalgo of the Lucasfilm Story Group, who participated in the Project Luminous writers' room, described the initial stages as providing the writers with a blank canvas, empowering them to select their desired subjects and timelines. This process ultimately led to the concept originating from one of Obi-Wan Kenobi's earliest lines in A New Hope, which referenced the Jedi as "the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic." Michael Siglain further elaborated that the narrative truly coalesced around the central question: "What scares the Jedi?"

The project benefited from the involvement of several Lucasfilm personnel, including Jason D. Stein, a creative executive, and Jeffrey Thomas, a senior illustration manager.

Phase I

Star Wars Insider disclosed its plans to publish a series of High Republic short stories, exclusively within the magazine, commencing with "Starlight: Go Together" in Star Wars Insider 199.

On January 5, 2021, the day before The High Republic was launched with Charles Soule's Del Rey novel, Light of the Jedi, (which was initially scheduled for release on August 25 of the preceding year), a live stream was broadcast on YouTube. The live stream was hosted by Kristin Baver and featured the five High Republic authors, as well as Michael Siglain, Director of Creative Franchise for Disney–Lucasfilm Press. The panel included a trailer, a discussion among the authors about their collaboration, cover reveals and details for upcoming stories, and concept art. Additionally, Siglain revealed that the story would be structured into three distinct phases:

  • Phase I: Light of the Jedi (January 2021 to March 2022)
  • Phase II: Quest of the Jedi (October 2022 to May 2023)
  • Phase III: Trials of the Jedi (October 2023 to July 2025)

During the same announcement, Michael Siglain confirmed that new stories would be released on a monthly basis. He also announced a web series called The High Republic Show, hosted by Krystina Arielle, which would air bi-monthly and provide in-depth explorations of the creative process behind The High Republic, including interviews with the authors, artists, and publishers involved in the initiative.

The adult series included:

The Young Adult novels included:

The junior novels included:

Phase II

On January 4, 2022, on the eve of The High Republic's first anniversary, the five authors reunited on an episode of The High Republic Show to discuss the remaining projects of Phase I (which concluded on March 2 with the release of the final issue of Cavan Scott's Star Wars: The High Republic (2021) and Charles Soule's Eye of the Storm), and to reveal initial details about Phase II. Four new authors were announced as additions to the initiative: Zoraida Córdova, George Mann, Tessa Gratton, and Lydia Kang. The original five authors also unveiled their new projects, such as Daniel Jose Older's new High Republic Adventures being the first new Dark Horse Comics series since 2015, Cavan Scott returning to a Star Wars: The High Republic (2022), and Soule following his Eye of the Storm series with the origin story Star Wars: The High Republic — The Blade about Phase I character Porter Engle. The five authors also disclosed that Phase II would be set 150 years prior to the events of Light of the Jedi.

The adult series included:

The Young Adult novels included:

The junior novels included:

Phase III

During the Star Wars Celebration in London in April 2023, the High Republic panel provided the initial details regarding Phase III. It was confirmed that a new author, Doctor Aphra comic writer Alyssa Wong, would be joining the initiative. She will contribute a short story to the Tales of Light and Life anthology and co-write the middle-grade novel, Escape from Valo, with Daniel José Older. Similar to Phase I, Phase III will center around three novel trilogies (one adult series, one young adult series, and one junior novel series).

The adult series will include:

The Young Adult novels will include:

The junior novels will include:

Furthermore, starting in December 2023, Cavan Scott's Star Wars: The High Republic (2023) comic series will continue, while the Star Wars Insider short stories, now entitled Tales from the Occlusion Zone, have been penned by Phase II author Lydia Kang.

The Celebration event also revealed that the High Republic character Vernestra Rwoh is slated to appear in the live-action series, The Acolyte.

Era references ‡

Foreshadowing

The High Republic was initially referenced in the April 30, 2019 audio drama Dooku: Jedi Lost by Cavan Scott. It was first explicitly identified as the High Republic Era in the January 8, 2020 comic issue The Rise of Kylo Ren 2 by Charles Soule.

Also mentioned in Dooku: Jedi Lost are Padawan Klias Teradine and Jedi Master Trennis. The audio drama asserts that Teradine discovered the Archive of Forbidden Artifacts and was subsequently expelled from the Jedi Order, while Trennis became one of the Lost Twenty who departed from the Jedi Order. Teradine later appeared as a character in flashbacks within Scott's comic miniseries The High Republic Adventures — The Monster of Temple Peak, where it was revealed that he had a history with the series's protagonist, Ty Yorrick. Keeve Trennis is a Jedi character featured in Scott's The High Republic comic series, and she is intended to be Master Trennis from Dooku: Jedi Lost.

The Nihil raiders were first mentioned in the comic story "The Lost Stories, Part 1," written by Scott and published in Star Wars Adventures (2017) 30 by IDW Publishing on January 29, 2020.

Starlight Beacon received an indirect mention in the comic Star Wars (2020) 2, written by Charles Soule and published by Marvel Comics on January 29, 2020. Its name was officially revealed during the project's announcement on February 24, 2020.

A female Jedi depicted in a holocron in The Rise of Kylo Ren 3, a comic written by Soule and illustrated by Will Sliney and released on February 12, 2020, was confirmed by Soule to be Avar Kriss, a character in The High Republic: Light of the Jedi.

In the announcement trailer for the High Republic project, concept art of entities labeled "Nameless" was displayed. These beings were initially mentioned in Claudia Gray's novel Master & Apprentice, which was released on April 16, 2019. They were also included in two of Cavan Scott's works, specifically the aforementioned Dooku: Jedi Lost and the fourth issue of the comic series Star Wars Adventures: Return to Vader's Castle.

Chelli Aphra observed that murals of the Rings of Vaale featured High Republic iconography.

Impact on non-High Republic stories

The High Republic has contributed additional context and background to the Star Wars universe, especially regarding the Jedi Order. According to editor Tom Hoeler, it adds more "texture" to the canon history of the galaxy, allowing the High Republic Era to "ripple forward" and influence later eras, similar to how many other Star Wars works function. John Jackson Miller's 2024 novel The Living Force is separate from The High Republic, and Hoeler assured readers that familiarity with The High Republic is not necessary to enjoy it, but it does build upon the foundation established by the initiative.

In The Living Force, the planet Kwenn served as the location for the Grand Renewal, an environmental restoration project undertaken during the High Republic era under the leadership of Master Oppo Rancisis. This project involved transforming mountains of tailings, slag, and rubbish into artificial islands known as the Gem Cities of Kwenn. The Grand Renewal was considered one of the Great Works initiated under Supreme Chancellor Lina Soh. The Jedi also established an outpost on Kwenn's Sanctuary Mount. Furthermore, Master Yaddle draws a parallel between the Jedi Order's bicentennial celebration on Kwenn and public events organized by the Jedi in Kublop Springs on the planet Tenoo, which made its debut in the 2023 animated television series Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures.

The High Republic is briefly mentioned in Chris Kempshall's 2024 reference book Star Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire, which is presented as an eponymous history book by Resistance historian and academic Beaumont Kin. Kin described the High Republic era as a period in galactic history when the state aimed to be a unifying force and the population and Jedi sought to move the galaxy forward. He criticized some historical studies on that period for focusing too much on idealism and overlooking the erosive agendas of certain senators and the Republic's initially slow response to the Nihil pirate groups, who caused significant civilian casualties before they were defeated. Despite these shortcomings, Kin argued that the High Republic era showed that the galaxy and its various institutions could be rallied against "emerging menaces." The memory of the High Republic inspired attempts to reform the Galactic Republic during its last century prior to the Clone Wars and the emergence of the Galactic Empire.

The Great Work appears in the 2024 live-action television series Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. It is first mentioned in the premiere episode "This Could Be a Real Adventure" as a government work program on the remote planet of At Attin. It is unknown whether the Great Work is connected with Supreme Chancellor Lina Soh's Great Works program, which first appeared in Charles Soule's 2021 novel Light of the Jedi. At Attin is also identified as one of the lost Jewels of the Old Republic that is considered a legendary location by the time of the New Republic Era in the third episode "Very Interesting, As an Astrogation Problem". In the final episode "The Real Good Guys", At Attin's Great Work is identified as the Old Republic Mint, with the planet's adult population being trained to operate it. It is run by the Supervisor, a droid inhabiting a tall tower in the heart of At Attin's main city. The Supervisor kept the population ignorant of developments in the wider galaxy including the Jedi Purge and the transformation of the Old Republic into the Galactic Empire.

Related media ‡

The Chinese-language web novel The Vow of Silver Dawn, which began releasing chapters on December 17, 2020, is also set near the end of the High Republic Era. The short stories "A Bitter Harvest" and "A Coruscant Solstice," published in Dark Legends and Life Day Treasury respectively, are set during the era. The Star Wars Adventures 6 comic strip "Tales of Villainy: The Gaze Electric" was written by Older and focuses on the Nihil, being set before The High Republic Adventures (2021) 1.

The reference book Star Wars: Jedi Artifacts provides extensive information about artifacts from the High Republic Era, although it is not considered part of the official multimedia project. The one-shot comic Life Day 1 features the short holiday story "Deck the Halls," written by Justina Ireland. It is set following the events of The High Republic: The Rising Storm, and focuses on Jedi Master Nib Assek and her Wookiee Padawan Burryaga Agaburry investigating Drengir activity on Kashyyyk.

The 2023 Disney+ preschool animated series Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures is set during the High Republic Era. The 2024 Disney+ live-action series The Acolyte is set late in the High Republic Era and features the Jedi Vernestra Rwoh.

Promotional

  • The High Republic Free Digital Sampler [82]
  • Characters of Star Wars: The High Republic [83]
  • Star Wars: The High Republic Show [8]
  • The High Republic – The Edge of Balance/Guardians of the Whills [84]

Sources

Notes and references

External links

Appearances

This article uses content from Wookiepedia, under CC-BY-SA 3.0.