Since May, we’ve known that C-3P0 has had gone through some replacement parts in the three decades since the end of Return Of The Jedi. Now, Marvel promises that they’ll tell us exactly how that happened. Really.
In December, Marvel Comics will publish a one-shot comic, C-3P0, written and drawn by James Robinson and Tony Harris. The story “follows ‘golden rod’ on a solo adventure leading up to his appearance in Star Wars: The Force Awakens — and reveals what led to this change in appearance.”
This is a little ridiculous, and when Disney announced that they were going to be getting rid of the Expanded Universe
On the surfacea, this doesn’t look to be any different than ABC trumpeting the LOST episode Stranger In A Strange Land as an important milestone by examining the backstory of Jack’s Tattoos. C-3P0 having a red arm isn’t exactly that notable, given that he was introduced with an off-color part (a silver leg), and later, without exterior plating.
The basic takeaway is that the new Expanded Universe isn’t going to be all that much different from the old one. There were plenty of stories that explained away even the smallest details of the Star Wars Universe: just look at the Tales from Jabba’s Palace and Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina anthologies, content that didn’t really add anything consequential to the larger story at hand. While there were some excellent stories in those anthologies, and where this comic might be perfectly fine, I was hoping for more from the new story group.
Image credit: Starwars.com / Marvel Comics