The Last Command 30 Years Later

 I am late to the party for the 30th anniversary of the release of The Last Command. But, I didn't finish the novel until early June of 1993, and now it's early June of 2023. So what better time to go over the conclusion to what many today consider the true sequel trilogy, and how it set the table for future Star Wars adventures to follow!

Instead of a recap of the story, I want to go over how the main characters develop as the trilogy goes on. Not just the new characters who were introduced, but also Han, Leia and Luke as well. Even if you're reading this, but haven't read the original Thrawn Trilogy it should be easy to follow along. The characters I'll cover from the novels will be Grand Admiral Thrawn, Joruus C'baoth, Talon Karrde and Mara Jade.

Grand Admiral Thrawn

In the 1st chapter of Heir to the Empire, Thrawn shows he's a tactical genius. His interest in art is what helps him understand his enemies. But over the course of the trilogy, the non-human Thrawn suffers from an all too human condition: arrogance. As Thrawn readies the Empire for an attack at the Bilbringi Shipyards, his perfectly laid out trap, his arrogance gets the best of him. His bodyguard, Rukh, and his people the Noghri have changed sides. In the final moments of the battle, Rukh murders Thrawn, and the Empire loses their last, best hope to defeat the New Republic. Thrawn would later pop up in the Hand of Thrawn Duology, albeit an actor made to look like him. But at Thrawn's base on the planet Niruan, Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade destroyed a clone of Thrawn. This trilogy set up Thrawn as one of Star Wars best villains, and he even continues on in a different form under Disney, but he's still quite deadly, and formidable.

Talon Karrde

When I first read Heir to the Empire, I envisioned Mungo Boabob from Droids as Karrde. The comic series made him look more like Tom Selleck with a thick beard. Karrde starts out as someone out for himself and his organization. Karrde does business with both Republic and Imperial worlds, but eventually chooses to aid the Republic, and build on an idea started by Han Solo and Lando Calrissian. While it would take another decade and 2 more Timothy Zahn novels, Karrde became a full partner to the New Republic and played a big role in preventing a civil war which would have torn the New Republic apart. In a way he is what Han Solo might have been had he not met Luke and Ben Kenobi, but like Han, in the end he chooses to join something larger than himself, and the perceived selfishness Talon shows melts away at the end of The Last Command. He even brings Leia to Wayland to help rescue Han, Lando, Chewie, Mara & Luke at the end of the novel.

Han Solo & Leia Organa-Solo

Han and Leia are pretty much in the same boat. Leia is trying to restore the New Republic. Han is trying to put together a Smuggler's Alliance to run cargo to New Republic worlds so that the military can use ships to combat the Empire. Leia is also pregnant with twins, who are born on Coruscant. In addition to their duties, Han and Leia become parents in The Last Command, with Han leaving to stop Thrawn's cloning center. But it's Leia's arrival that saves the heroes. Their journey as parents to Jacen and Jaina Solo, and later Anakin Solo (born in Dark Empire II) leaves the Republic with hope for the future, although we know the tragedies that Han and Leia go through later on, but this is where the Solo kids begin their journey.

Joruus C'baoth

The clone of Jedi Master Jorus C'baoth (why clones have an extra 'U' is one I still haven't heard a good explanation for), it's clear in HTTE that he is insane. But in The Last Command we see just how insane, and dangerous he truly is. He takes over General Covell's mind, and erases his personality, and everything about him. He makes Covell a slave, and when his access to the Force is cut off by the Ysalamiri, Covell dies. Basically, C'baoth wants people to be totally subservient to him, as his prime self (Jorus) felt Jedi were superior to other beings. Think Magneto from the X-Men, but totally insane. He creates a clone of Luke Skywalker (Luuke Skywalker) but is taken down by the combined efforts of Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa-Solo, and Mara Jade. His attempt to corrupt Luke in the prior novel Dark Force Rising was just a glimpse into his insanity.

Mara Jade

Mara grows tremendously over the course of the trilogy. She's a former servant to the Emperor, aka The Emperor's Hand. And her last assignment for him was to infiltrate Jabba's Palace and kill Luke Skywalker. She failed at the latter, but was haunted by dreams of Palpatine saying to her "YOU WILL KILL LUKE SKYWALKER!". But Mara kept putting that off as she kept needing Luke's help to get out of certain situations over the course of the 3 books. However, during that time, Mara was willing to let Luke confide in her his worries about training not only his recently born niece and nephew, but training Jedi in general. She let Luke begin her training on their way to Mount Tantiss on Wayland, and while battling Luuke Skywalker, she finally fulfilled Palpatine's last command and ended her Palpy fueled dreams for the rest of her life. Of course Mara would earlier risk her life for Jaina and Jacen Solo when she noticed an Imperial team infiltrate the Palace and was framed for letting them in. These novels built the love for Mara Jade that even now still holds up, so much so that in the early 2000's she ranked 20th in Star Wars Top 20 characters list despite not appearing in any of the movies!

Luke Skywalker

Luke's journey shows progression from wondering if he was meant to train a new Jedi Order to one who knew he had to begin training a new Jedi Order. Luke's doubts are first shown when Han suggests to Luke that Leia needs her own lightsaber (he builds one for her), and he remembers Obi-Wan saying "I thought I could train him just as well as Yoda. I was wrong." When Luke meets C'baoth in the 2nd book, he realizes his insanity would preclude him from training, but he believes he can still heal his mind for him to be able to. But what I really enjoy is his interactions with Mara Jade. His vulnerability when telling her his doubts about training Jedi make him more relatable, and well, human. In the end, Luke is not only ready to train new Jedi, he gives Mara Jade the lightsaber that once belonged to him and his father. This Trilogy did more to establish the real Luke Skywalker that Star Wars fans to this day still recognize, and hope to see again one day.

Thanks for reading! I don't often get into Star Wars Legends materials as often as I would like but I enjoy talking about it! Please copy my link and post on your social media accounts so I can get more readers, thank you!