How did the Star Wars‘ Rebellion start as first seen in Star Wars: Episode IV? According to the author of a new prequel to next month’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the answer goes all the way back to the rise of the Empire and the hated prequel trilogy.
James Luceno, writer of Star Wars: Catalyst — A Rogue One Story, places the roots of the rebellion even further back in the timeline.
“Catalyst begins a few months after the start of the Clone Wars, and the Separatists referred to in the [publisher’s official] description are in fact aligned with the Confederacy of Independent Systems,” Luceno told The Verge, referring to the conflict (and antagonists) seen in Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith.
“A direct link can be made between the Rebellion and the former Separatists, who, in the wake of the Republic victory, never received reparations promised by the Empire, and remained ostracized — and in many cases occupied — while the Empire spread its tentacles far and wide,” he explained. “Instead of fairness, the galaxy fell victim to fear of the Empire’s ever-expanding military. The absence of the Jedi Order — their fire gone out of the universe — left many worlds without any recourses to counter injustices.”
