The Han Solo Trilogy

The Han Solo Trilogy

The cover of The Han Solo Trilogy omnibus edition.
The Paradise Snare The Hutt Gambit Rebel Dawn
Author	Ann C. Crispin
Genre	Science fiction
Publisher	Bantam Spectra
Published	1997-1998

The Han Solo Trilogy is a trilogy of science fiction novels set in the Star Wars galaxy. The series serves as a prequel to the events of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. The trilogy follows Han Solo's origins and his life before the events depicted in the original Star Wars trilogy. The trilogy was written by Ann C. Crispin. The books were released June 1997, October 1997, and March 1998 respectively.

Additionally, this trilogy brings both the Adventures of Lando Calrissian and Han Solo Adventures trilogies into chronological context with the Star Wars expanded universe timeline, whereas before, the time periods of these trilogies were somewhat more ambiguous, being known only to have occurred "sometime prior to" the events of A New Hope. This is done by allowing for Solo and Lando Calrissian to be absent from this trilogy's main story during certain periods.

With the release of the three Star Wars prequel films starting in 1999, and of a copious amount of Expanded Universe material which followed in its wake, some of the stated information about minor and minimal characters of the trilogy (ex: the origins of Boba Fett) became inaccurate and as such necessitated a retconned explanation (for example the false Boba Fett background was explained as a "smoke screen" planted by Fett himself, eager to hide his father's involvement in the Clone Wars).

The trilogy begins 10 years before the events of the first film, and follows the adventures of a young Han Solo from his childhood as a street urchin picking pockets to survive to his days as a competitive racing pilot, up until the very moment when he approaches the table in the Mos Eisley Cantina where Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker are waiting with Chewbacca to arrange passage to Alderaan, as depicted in A New Hope.

Most of the adventures revolve around phony "spiritual retreats" operated by a horned Hutt subspecies named the T'landa T'il, where "pilgrims" from all over the galaxy are lured with the promise of spiritual solace and contemplation only to be brainwashed in submission, put to work in glitterstim refining labs and ultimately sold as slaves to the Hutts.

Solo arrives on one such world answering to a job offer as interstellar pilot and discovers the truth about the T'landa T'il scam, later falling in love with one of the duped pilgrims, Bria Tharen, and risking his life to free her.

Bria loves Solo as well, but can't adapt to living without the euphory-inducing "exultation" ritual, and thus the pair separates. Their paths cross several time in the following years, until Bria, having become a Rebel Alliance operative, sacrifices her life to protect information about the first Death Star's weak spot, thus setting in motion the events of A New Hope.

Books

The Paradise Snare

Nineteen-year-old Han Solo, a skilled swoop pilot, escapes his life of petty thievery under crime lord Garris Shrike and acquires transport to the exotic planet Ylesia, the site of a fanatical religious colony. Using a false identity, he takes a job as a pilot. He discovers that the religious colony is merely a front to hide the illegal slave trade on the planet, and helps one of the slaves, Pilgrim 921 or Bria Tharen, to escape. Before they leave the planet, he steals a number of valuable artifacts from the high priest's collection, intending to sell them for profit. He falls in love with Bria, but realizes that, due to his shady past, he will never be accepted by Bria's aristocratic parents. Bria goes with him to Coruscant, wanting him to join the Imperial Academy. Han is unable to retrieve money from the sale of the stolen goods, however, and Bria leaves him, knowing he will not be able to support her. Han, although broken-hearted, has his retinal patterns changed and takes on his own identity, deciding to follow her wishes and join the Academy. Han is fully accepted by the Academy, however his past catches up with him with Garris Shrike. Shrike is killed by a bounty hunter, who in turn is killed by Han. He disguises himself as the bounty hunter, and goes off two days later to Carida, the Imperial military training world.

The Hutt Gambit

One of the central conflicts of the story is the Battle of Nar Shaddaa, which is fought between the Galactic Empire and an alliance of smugglers and mercenaries.

In the wake of an attack on Rampa II by one of the groups that would go on to form the Rebel Alliance, Emperor Palpatine instructs each sector's Moffs to end the smuggling of contraband. In response, the previously ineffectual Moff who governed Hutt Space, Sarn Shild, proclaims that he will restore law and order to Hutt Space. This announcement is met with dismay by the Hutts, and clan leader Jabba the Hutt plans to bribe Shild into sparing the Hutt homeworld, Nal Hutta. Towards this end, the Hutts pay Han, by now a smuggler and erstwhile Imperial officer, to travel to Imperial Center and bestow gifts upon Shild. However, Shild informs Han that he intends to launch an orbital bombardment campaign against Nal Hutta's moon, Nar Shaddaa, the home of millions of smugglers and their families. Shild also intends to blockade Nal Hutta until the Hutts agrees to military occupation and the presence of customs inspectors.

Shild then instructs Admiral Greelanx, the commander of his sectorial fleet, to mobilise his fleet and progress to Nar Shaddaa. However, on the following day, Greelanx receives an anonymous message from Exocomm instructing him to deliberately lose the battle.

As Shild's sectorial fleet assemble near Teth, Han returns to Hutt Space. The Hutts then instruct him to again attempt to bribe the Imperials, this time targeting Greelanx. He infiltrates Greelanx's flagship, Imperial Destiny, at Teth, giving him a platinum ring set with a Bothan glitterstone. In exchange for the ring and a number of valuable gemstones, Greelanx sells his battle plan to the Hutts.

In the meantime, Han, along with fellow former Imperial Mako Spince, recruits the denizens of Nar Shaddaa into a loose fighting unit. Their forces are bolstered when the Hutt mercenaries, led by Captain Renthal, agrees to fight alongside the smugglers. As the smugglers begin repairing and upgrading their ships in preparation for the defense of Nar Shaddaa, Spince and Han devise a battle plan.

The battle takes place as the smugglers prepare for a formation drill. The smugglers are victorious, although more than a quarter of their fleet is destroyed. Shild commits suicide after being summoned before the Emperor for his failure, and Greelanx is summarily executed by Darth Vader for treason shortly after Han returns to his ship with the remainder of his payment. Han listens in on the execution from an adjoining room.

Rebel Dawn

Han wins the Millennium Falcon from Lando Calrissian in an intense sabacc tournament on Bespin. He begins upgrading the freighter into a highly specialized smuggling vessel, and also makes a brief stop with Chewbacca on the Wookiee home planet of Kashyyyk, where Chewbacca gets married. Solo and Chewbacca then embark on a series of adventures that are set in interludes in this novel, but are described more fully in Brian Daley's 1979 trilogy The Han Solo Adventures.

After returning to Nar Shadaa, Han is reunited with his old flame Bria Tharen. While he still has feelings for her, he is reluctant to help her an all-out attack against the slaving colonies on Ylesia. After Bria offers him appropriate compensation, however, Han takes on the mission, with help from Lando and Chewbacca. In the aftermath of the battle, Bria's troopers turn their blasters on Lando and the rest of Han's friends, confiscating all valuables in the name of the Rebel Alliance. Angered, Han threatens to kill Bria if he ever sees her again. Defaced and branded a traitor back on Nar Shaddaa, Lando refuses to believe Han was not involved in the swindle, and punches his former friend in the jaw.

Desperate for money, Han and Chewbacca take a spice smuggling run from Jabba the Hutt (who has inherited his aunt's criminal empire) through the Kessel Run. However, they are met mid-Run by an Imperial patrol, and are forced to abandon their cargo in deep space while the Falcon is searched and escorted to a nearby world. When they come back to look for the cargo, however, they discover it has disappeared. Han tries to explain what happened, but Jabba — in a drug-induced haze — turns his back on Han and demands compensation for the lost spice.

Meanwhile, Bria leads a rebel raid on Toprawa in which Rebel spies transmit the plans for the Death Star to Princess Leia Organa aboard the Tantive IV. Bria and her squadron are all killed in the raid, but the plans are successfully transmitted. This is the "first victory" of the Rebels described in the opening crawl of A New Hope.

On Tatooine, Han tries unsuccessfully to arrange a personal meeting with Jabba, and is increasingly harassed by bounty hunters working for the crime lord. While looking for a card game in which he may be able to win the money needed to pay off Jabba, he briefly encounters Dash Rendar, a character featured prominently in Shadows of the Empire. He is interrupted by news of Bria's death, delivered by Boba Fett, who also informs Han that Greedo (whom Han later shoots at the Mos Eisley Cantina) is looking for him, and may try to kill him. The following day he records a message to Bria's father passing on the news.

He then proceeds to Chalmun's cantina, where Chewbacca has just met with Obi-Wan Kenobi to discuss chartering the Falcon for passage to Alderaan. The book ends as Han sits down to a table where Obi-Wan and Luke Skywalker are waiting, which is exactly the same moment of his first on-screen appearance in A New Hope.

External links

• The Han Solo Trilogy on Wookieepedia, a Star Wars wiki
• Star Wars Cargo Bay Page