A novel rumor? How very… Well, it’s been a while. With Del Rey teasing James Luceno’s Tarkin today, up sprang a good amount of speculation that his EU mistress Natasi Daala may make an appearance… And a rumor that we could see Mara Jade in this book as well.
The Daala part is pure speculation, but I can see her as a firm maybe. It would be nice to see the character redefined to be less of a grab-bag of lame sleeping-her-way-to-the-top stereotypes – there’s really only room for improvement, and it’s not like they can make her president in this time period. Despite how many books they kept bringing her back for in the old EU, she’s not really what I would consider to be a significant character, which gives them that much more leeway. (Whether Luceno is the one to make those improvements… Well, it could be worse, I guess.)
But Mara Jade, as Luke Skywalker’s wife and a character with a still-significant fanbase all her own, is perhaps the most-high profile EU character who could (possibly) connect to the sequel trilogy, and an appearance in the new canon at this early point will rocket expectations sky high. (Do we really need more of that? Aren’t expectations for Episode VII high enough already?) My first instinct – that they’d put Mara in to kill her off earlier in the timeline – would just be cruel to fans that are still (occasionally) somewhat bitter over Legacy of the Force. Better no Mara than to kill her off all over again.
Now, some seem to think Mara could be the ‘new ally’ in Heir to the Jedi, and while I don’t think that’s the case either, it’s at least a book that a fair share of Mara fans may pick up – which I’m not quite sure is the case for Tarkin.
And, of course, any hints leading to Mara (and even Daala) could equally apply to Shira Brie. You can’t say the early EU didn’t have a type.
Obviously I’m not really putting much stock in this rumor, but if this was a ploy to make me at least skim the ARC when it comes in – well done.
I’m telling you: Mara takes over as the Daala character, and Luke’s wife will be the former mistress of Tarkin.
Oh yes, I can already feel the anger unleashed at Luceno… :D
If anyone read Brian Wood’s Star Wars – I thought it was maybe implied that Ensign Llona was Mara Jade?
Has this come up before?
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Llona
Wood’s Star Wars comic is part of Legends, the old EU, not the new canon. The only new canon thing Dark Horse has (that we know of) is that upcoming Darth Maul comic based on The Clone Wars scripts.
Not saying she can’t be Mara undercover, but Llona, whoever she may be, is not a part of the new canon and thus likely irrelevant re: Tarkin.
Yes, understood that re: canon status of the comic.
Just had a Rebellion era Mara feel to the character – pops up as the ‘aide’ to Colonel Bircher as soon as he arrives on the Devastator at the Emperor’s order. Red hair (duh), young, with her face mysteriously obscured for most of their interaction.
I’d rather have her reintegrated into the canon that way than as a Daala-replacement.
You’d be surprised how many people still don’t…
Sounds more like Daala than a Mara – or there’s always Shira. But who knows.