Warning! This post contains spoilers for Star Wars #49Star Wars Has revealed the true fate of the planet Alderaan, radically changing its destruction by the first death star as seen in A new hope. In Marvel’s canonical Star Wars Comics set between The empire strikes back And Return of the JediPrincess Leia Organa and Luke Skywalker embark on a deeply personal journey. It’s also one that ends on a surprisingly positive note for those who shared Leia’s homeworld.
in Star Wars #49 By Charles Soule and Jethro Morales, Leia and Luke face Zahra, a personal rival of Leia’s who was once Grand Moff Tarkin’s protégé. Despite losing her Imperial command after their last meeting, Zahra began leading a band of raiders who helped her set a trap for the Alderaan princess involving a targeted strike against the recently revealed “Survivor Fleet”, a secret sect of the Alliance which is comprised of Alderanian. Refugees. While Zahra implies that she destroyed the entire fleet before being defeated, the end of the issue reveals the truth about Leia’s people:
While Zahra captured one ship for her trap and managed to destroy some of the survivors’ fleet, the bulk of the survivors escaped her raiders with Zahra lying to Leia to simply cause her pain. Likewise, it is also revealed that the surviving fleet chose to disband and seek new life with its people who want to be more than just survivors of Alderaan.
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The destruction of Alderaan was only the beginning
The wrath of the empire was so much further
While the disbanding of the Survivor fleet is a good thing at this point in the Star Wars timeline, it was certainly needed in the immediate aftermath of Alderaan’s destruction. This was because the Empire had decreed that the planet’s death had to be complete. This meant that the Imperials hunted down any Alderanians who were not on the planet at the time of its destruction and were living as refugees.Effectively making them fugitives too.
Keeping this in mind, the need for the surviving fleet is absolutely critical to keep the remaining Alderanians safe, as well as the remnants of their history and culture. While they are technically part of the Rebel Alliance’s military reserves, the surviving fleet is constantly moving, its location only known to a select few to maintain its secrecy from the Empire. However, it seems the time has come for Alderaan’s people to truly begin life again (Something that should become easier with the Galactic Civil War nearing its end with the imminent Battle of Endor).
Alderaan is not a place in the Star Wars galaxy…
It is a people
The decision of Alderaan’s surviving fleet to disband and start living their lives somewhat resembles the end of the MCU Thor: Ragnarok. Despite Asgard’s physical destruction, its people were saved. Likewise, they later began new lives on Earth as seen in future MCU projects.
so too, Alderaan lives on in the Star Wars Galaxy, even without its physical planet. At the same time, it is decided that Alderaan can still survive even if its people choose to loosen their grip on the unique identity of refugees to become more. This is a very compelling arc for Princess Leia and her people, especially as Marvel nears its end with this era of storytelling, as new Star Wars comics are on the way that will be set after Return of the Jedi.
Star Wars #49 is now on sale from Marvel Comics.