A New Beginning for Star Wars

Today Disney and Lucasfilm confirmed what many guessed days after the announcement of Episodes VII-IX: the new films along with any new supplemental materials will ignore the established Expanded Universe. Going forward the stories of all films, TV shows, comics, video games, etc. will be overseen by a group at Lucasfilm. As previously reported, the signs that this would happen have been there for months but now its official: all post Episode VI Expanded Universe material are now non-canon.

The announcement posted on StarWars.com assures fans that stories from the old universe will still be available for purchase as ‘Star Wars: Legends.’ Furthermore, elements from the old universe will influence new material beginning with the upcoming animated series Star Wars: Rebels. In other news Wookieepedia, the Star Wars Wiki, announced via tweet that they do not plan to delete articles pertaining to stories and characters that are no longer canon but will likely have to reorganize its content.

Fans of the Expanded Universe may be upset; disheartened knowing that stories and characters they became invested in no longer matter. On the other hand, a fresh start could benefit the franchise. Consider Disney’s track record with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A new trilogy and a revival of supplemental stories could create a new generation of fans ready to travel to a galaxy far, far away.