An 'Old Republic' Introspective

Disney's Next Big Saga is Closer than You Think

Many should not be surprised if they've heard little to nothing about Disney's future plans with Star Wars. Though they have officially revealed the general plan to shoot the Han Solo film, Episode 8 & 9, and a yet to be titled spin off- that's about as far as the current agenda goes. But that's not to suggest it's the only endeavor Disney appears to be organizing. 

Which brings us to the Old Republic. A time period that's been brought up over and over again, without many star wars fans directly realizing what Disney has been shaping in our minds. Episodes 8 & 9 will undoubtedly finish the storyline for the Skywalker saga- at least in regards to to Luke and Leia, but where does Disney go beyond this? Though I wouldn't put it past Disney to flesh out Rey and Finn's storylines over the course of additional Episodic films. I also wouldn't put it past Disney to delve into a more ancient timeline that may effect our hero's, Rey and Finn. Resulting in Disney releasing numbered Episodic films every few years- in the same way that Avenger films are released once the cumulative plot lines from the stand alone films merge. This would provide some breathing room for the episodic films, but also rake in some additional cash for the already profitable franchise. 

For Disney, this could prove to be a very creative way of telling the Star Wars adventure. For the basis of this argument, you could envision an enemy with roots both in the modern Star Wars tale- but also some thousands of years prior. How might this work?

What Does the Canon Tell us?

With so much new content emerging from novels, tv series and movies- what can we say about the Old Republic now, and what might a movie or tv series set in that time be about? For one thing, there's been some major upgrades to the existing timeline.

Official New Canon information will be labeled in Blue.
Where as Old Canon references will be labeled Red.

Hundred Year Darkness (6000+ Years before 'A New Hope')

The Jedi form the first Jedi Temple on Ahch-To, while considering planets such as Coruscant, Ossus and Tython.

Some members of the Jedi began to follow a path to the Dark Side by distorting the force to breed new lifeforms into existence- with the potential to even prevent death. The High Jedi Council demanded these new discoveries be halted immediately, leading to a conflict within the Jedi Order. Eventually the High Jedi Council banished these members, leading them to form 'The Sith' on Korriban, after enslaving the local populace. The term 'Dark Lord of the Sith' was born from this. After the Hundred Year of Darkness and the fall of the Republic due to the massive war among the Jedi, the galaxy was reorganized as the first 'Galactic Republic.'

At some point the 'Darksaber' is created by Tar Vizsla, first Mandalorian inducted into the Jedi Order. After his death, the Jedi kept the saber in their temple.

The Mandalorian War (4000+ Years before 'A New Hope')

A number of wars among the Jedi and Sith transpire prior to this, leading to the Sith to be brought to heel once more and generally considered wiped out.

Seeking the 'Great Last Battle' that legend spoke of, 'Mandalore the Ultimate' seeked to wage a war unparalleled to anything the galaxy had seen before. Mandalorian Crusaders under house Vizsla stole the 'Darksaber' from the Jedi Temple. With this saber, they unified the Manadlorian's under one banner. Attacking the outer rim his forces took large sections of the galaxy under Hutt or minor faction rule, before the Republic could be tempted to protect itself. At this point Mandalore had gained a massive number of resources and was poised to strike hard against the Republic. The ensuing battle for the Republic cost the Republic dearly.

The Jedi however could not be tempted to join the war, leaving the Republic to fight on its own. This did not settle well with a Jedi named Revan and lead to him and other Jedi to take up arms within the Republic military to lead a successful campaign against the Mandalorians. Taking great strides to reclaim territory lost, Jedi Revan became the hero of the Republic.

The Great Scourge of Malachor

The final battle between the Galactic Republic led by Revan and Mandalorian Neo-Crusaders occurred on Malachor V. Here, the canon remains unclear- presumably, at a hidden Sith Temple/Academy, Mandalorian Warriors, Jedi and Republic Troops are turned to stone after the activation of a Sith super weapon contained within the temple. A weapon that if used could destroy all life, by ripping the force from the object itself. The temple itself contained much writing considered to be of 'the old tongue.' 

At around this same time, the end of the war brought about great destruction to the surface of Mandalore, scarring the surface and making it inhospitable to life, it is unclear if the two events are connected, as much information from this time has been tweaked. After the scourge of Malachor, Malachor was deemed off limits by the Jedi. 

Interestingly, Kylo Ren's lightsaber design dates back to this same era.

Jedi Civil War

Following the events of the Mandalorian War, the Jedi find themselves at odds with each other, leading to the Jedi Civil War. Namely, Revan and his apprentice Malik dive into the unknown regions of the galaxy to confront 'a greater evil' they can still sense. Only to discover the Sith Empire. This knowledge corrupts them as they return to the Republic not as hero's but conquerors, intending on taking power over the Republic to protect it from the greater Sith threat looming on the horizon. This plan fails however when Malik betrays Revan and follows his own passions to rule the galaxy.

After these events, there's about 3000 years of history that hasn't been touched on by the new canon. For those reasons, I'll skip over the old canon.

The Jedi Sith War (1000+ Years before 'A New Hope')

In the words of Sio Bibble, "There hasn't been a full-scale war since the formation of the Republic." The Jedi Sith War, a conflict that would see the end of the Sith Order as far as the Jedi were concerned. This war would see the rise of the Sith Order and transformation of the Jedi into a militant power in the Republic once again. The war ended on Ruusan where it was believed all the Sith had been defeated. While in reality, Darth Bane survived and transformed the Sith order with the 'Rule of Two.' This transformation in Sith society would bare fruit in the likes of the Emperor and Vader.

The Dark Age (1,000 Years before 'A New Hope')

A period of slow recovery for the Galactic Republic and it's slow rise to power on the galactic grand stage.

Where Does this Lead Us?

After getting a greater sense of what history lies before us due to what's been filled in behind us, we can quickly see where Disney is choosing to put most of their eggs in this galactic basket. Namely around the events of the Great Scourge of Malachor. What this tells me is they're looking to flesh out details of one of the more interesting parts of Star Wars lore. Perhaps what I love most about this era are that things weren't as 'black and white' as they perhaps are now in Star Wars. For instance, in the old canon it was Jedi Revan and his command that commissioned the creation of the super weapon, not the Sith- and it was Revan's men who used the weapon during battle, killing both friend and enemy in the process.

The changes that Disney appears to be making, or Dave Filoni in this case (as he's been the most invested in Old Republic history as of late) appears to be paving a path for Revan in that they're kindly putting aside stories that previously involved him. That is to say, Revan is a blank slate at this point and forging a new or 'updated' story for Revan will prove even easier if he's burdened by less old canon.

Another fascinating nugget of information is how things seem to align themselves up nicely for a new canon explanation for Mandalore's surface being rendered useless, around the same time a weapon that destroys life is discovered and used at least on Malachore. Are the two events connected? Perhaps. Perhaps not? That question and more may be something Disney is choosing to reveal with Revan. It may even be likely that they're prepping Revan's character to be even more twisted than previously- with not being responsible for the Great Scourge of Malachor- but perhaps responsible for using the same Sith technology to be responsible for the Scourge of Mandalore. Perhaps it wasn't just a battle of thousands of lives Revan would claim, but a planet of millions?

Malachor

Malachor

Malachor