Star Wars canon has made Saw Gerrera the Rebellion’s most dangerous member, meaning he draws a comparison to another character from the Legends timeline. Before Disney and Lucasfilm rebooted the Star Wars continuity in 2014, the original Star Wars Expanded Universe presented a different chain of events that created the Rebel Alliance. Now branded as “Legends,” once crucial aspects of the EU no longer apply to the new canon.

However, this hasn’t stopped Star Wars canon from having elements that strongly resemble the original Legends stories. Thanks to a recently released Star Wars book, it’s clearer that Saw Gerrera has become the canon replacement for a character who played a major role in the Legends version of the Rebellion. While these two certainly have differing characteristics, their fundamental roles are similar.

Saw Gerrera Fits The Pattern Of Garm Bel Iblis

Founding members of the Rebel Alliance who went their own way

Saw Gerrera eventually had a falling out with the other members of the Rebellion, much like Senator Garm Bel Iblis in Star Wars Legends. Introduced in 1992’s Star Wars: Dark Force Rising by Timothy Zahn, Bel Iblis was a founding member of the Rebel Alliance alongside Senators Bail Organa and Mon Mothma. However, he eventually broke from the Alliance when he felt Mon Mothma was grabbing too much power for herself.

Over a decade later, Bel Iblis and Mon Mothma finally put aside their differences and worked together to defend the New Republic against Grand Admiral Thrawn. As for Star Wars canon, Star Wars: Reign of the Empire – The Mask of Fear by Alexander Freed establishes that Saw Gerrera, Mon Mothma, and Bail Organa were the original trio behind what would become the Rebel Alliance. Unfortunately, Saw’s path in canon didn’t end the same way as Bel Iblis’ in Legends.

Saw’s Story Ends In A Much More Devastating Way

A rebel leader who died broken and alone

While Bel Iblis eventually made amends with Mon Mothma, Saw never had the same chance. By the events of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Mon and Saw had gone their separate ways, with the former unable to condone the latter’s actions. Saw’s distrust of Mon for her restraint mirrors Bel Iblis’ skepticism of her motives, but Mon has a much greater reason to not work with Saw.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW/ORDER STAR WARS: REIGN OF THE EMPIRE – THE MASK OF FEAR

Saw reluctantly aided the Rebellion one last time when he gave Galen Erso’s message to Jyn Erso, but he died shortly after when the Death Star fired on Jedha. Whereas Bel Iblis lived to serve the New Republic in Star Wars Legends, Saw died a broken man who had pushed many of his closest allies away. As Andor season 2 approaches, it will be fascinating to learn more about Saw Gerrera‘s role in the early days of the Rebellion.

Star Wars

Created by

George Lucas

First Film

Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope

Cast

Mark Hamill, James Earl Jones, David Prowse, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Ian McDiarmid, Ewan McGregor, Rosario Dawson, Lars Mikkelsen, Rupert Friend, Moses Ingram, Frank Oz, Pedro Pascal

TV Show(s)

The Mandalorian, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, The Acolyte, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, Lando, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Star Wars: Resistance, Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures, Star Wars: Visions

Character(s)

Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Rey Skywalker, Emperor Palpatine / Darth Sidious, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka Tano, Grand Admiral Thrawn, Grand Inquisitor, Reva (The Third Sister), The Fifth Brother, The Seventh Sister, The Eighth Brother, Yoda, Din Djarin, Grogu, Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Leia Organa, Ben Solo/Kylo Ren

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