star Wars is a franchise known for its amazing weapons. After all, it’s ideal there in the title! There are lots of fantastic tools in the series, ranging from hand-held blasters to planet-destroying mega weapons. and let’s not forget the famous lightsaber! However, there were lots of amazing weapons in the original canon, known as Legends. Unfortunately, when Disney gotten the series in 2014, they made their canon, and lots of interesting details were lost. major characters like Mara Jade were Legends, while plot details like the Jedi Academy became a thing of the past. Disney replaced lots of of these original aspects with their version of events. even so, the current Han Solo & Chewbacca comic series is bringing something from Legends into the canon.
This isn’t the first time something like this happened. There are lots of amazing things from the Legends canon that Disney have successfully brought into their canon. For example, everyone’s much-loved blue-skinned enemy, Thrawn, became canon with the show star Wars Rebels. He even got a book series that in-depth a lot more about his life in a way the Legends canon didn’t. So, it comes as no surprise that a weapon from a Legends video game has finally become part of the Disney canon with Han Solo & Chewbacca. Disney has chosen a pretty amazing one. Spoilers ahead for the current issue of this comic book.
Originally, the blaster came from the Jedi Knight video game. Activision and LucasArts first released this game in 1995, although they have recently ported it to consoles like the Nintendo Switch. In the game, players got to learn about the life of Kyle Katarn. Katarn was originally a member of the Empire’s Stormtroopers. However, he left to join the Rebellion.
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Jedi Knight video Game
Image: Lucasfilm/Disney
Once he joined the Rebellion, Katarn became a Jedi Knight, battling alongside Luke’s new Jedi Oder. Unfortunately, Katarn has been stuck in the Legends canon considering that 2014. any individual who’s seen the sequel trilogy will see the parallels between Finn and Katarn and Kanan Jarrus from Rebels. even so, with the current issue of Han Solo & Chewbacca, Disney has brought an aspect of Katarn back to the canon.
Marc Guggenheim wrote the current issue of the comic, while David Messina serviced the artwork. In this most current issue, we saw Khel Tanna attempting to scare Han Solo using a blaster. Which blaster is it? Well, it’s only Kyle Katarn’s signature K-16 blaster! However, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen this weapon. In fact, it appeared in the 2015 video game star Wars Battlefront. despite this, the canon status of the video game is a little unsure. By including the blaster in the canon comic Han Solo & Chewbacca, Disney has made it clear that the weapon is now canon.
Nevertheless, in the Legends canon, this weapon wasn’t particularly amazing. In fact, users couldn’t even use it to get through Stormtrooper armour unless they fired it multiple times. It’s unclear if the Disney canon follows this inability, although we reckon it’s likely. The fact that Tanna uses it in Han Solo & Chewbacca suggests she’s not someone who gets into a lot of scraps with the Empire. This blaster is just one of lots of blasters in star Wars. a lot of fighters in the series use these weapons, although the lightsaber is the most famous weapon. Each blaster is different from the next, with its power and firing capabilities. just like guns in the real world!
Han Solo & Chewbacca Comic
Image: Lucasfilm/Disney
The a lot of powerful blasters can easily destroy enemy forces, whilst things like the K-16 blaster might take a few shots before doing some damage. It’s unclear if Disney will modify the power settings of the blaster for Han Solo & Chewbacca. However, we’re not sure why they would do this. including this weapon in the comic could indicate that Kyle Katarn might come back into canon. Unfortunately, it would be rather unlikely – but not impossible!
The Han Solo & Chewbacca comic series happens before the events of A new Hope. In fact, it’s around 2 to 8 years before the battle of Yavin. As such, Jabba the Hutt doesn’t work with the empire yet, nor is Han Solo battling with the Rebellion. Instead, Jabba hires Khel Tanna to get Solo back for him, although this won’t happen. The fact she has this weapon shows that Tanna is probably on the Empire’s side, or at least one of its allies. Bringing this weapon back to this series is a great nod for the fans.