Once and for All: Is ‘Star Wars: Droids’ Canon?
“Steppin' softly in a danger zone / No weapon in my hand / It's just this brain, designed by man / It's got me in trouble again”
We are going on a decade of Disney-era Star Wars and there are still questions fans have about what is (and is not) canon in Star Wars. (Honestly, it sometimes feels like the series asks that question itself *cough cough* Rise of Skywalker *cough*)
Perhaps the most interesting of these canon dilemmas are the animated shows of the 1980s—like Star Wars: Droids.
What is Star Wars: Droids?
Star Wars: Droids (also known as Star Wars: Droids: The Adventures of R2-D2 and C-3PO) is a short-lived animated show from 1985 that followed the adventures of C-3PO and R2-D2—before we met them in A New Hope (or as it was known then Star Wars).
It was the “sister show” to the Ewoks cartoon show, which featured Wicket and co. going on magic adventures. It ran for one season and had one 48-minute special.
Is it canon?
Honestly, the ‘canonicity’ of this show has been in question since The Phantom Menace revealed that R2-D2 and C-3PO previously belonged to Luke and Leia’s parents, Padme Amidala and Anakin Skywalker.
Technically, there is very little in the show that outright contradicts the prequel canon, and you can actually see some hints of what was yet to come in this show; instead of the Boonta Eve Classic Podrace, there’s a “Boonta Speeder Race.” They mention planets and species from the prequel trilogy like Toong, Tund, and Bogden, and the design of Jann Tosh‘s wheel bike was later used for General Grievous’ bike in Revenge of the Sith.
Perhaps most interestingly, there’s an episode called “Revenge of Kybo Ren,” which features a black-helmeted space pirate by the name of Gir Kybo Ren-Cha or “Kybo Ren,” meaning someone on The Force Awakens’ development team must have watched and liked this show.
The Clone Wars also had a few droid-led episodes that seemed to be references to this show that featured R2 going to a droid spa, 3PO attempting to establish a democracy amongst a group of Lilliputians (after he and R2 (literally) crush their dictator), and R2 saving a Republic military conference from an attempted starship bombing.
On Disney+, the show is categorized with the additional label of Star Wars: Vintage. So, in terms of how canon is, I would say it’s probably not canon anymore, but was canon for over a decade, and should certainly be considered part of the Star Wars multiverse.
Then, what is Star Wars: A Droid Story?
Star Wars: A Droid Story seems to be the canon remake of Droids, a bit like how the 2008 CGI Clone Wars replaced the 2003 2D Tarkovsky Clone Wars.
Very little has been said about it since it was announced, but it seems likely Anthony Daniels will reprise his role, as he has done with most Star Wars animation. The show is being developed by Industrial Light & Magic and Lucasfilm Animation and will premiere on Disney+, though a date has not yet been announced.
“This epic journey will introduce us to a new hero, guided by legendary duo R2-D2 and C-3PO,” is the only description of the plot, thus far, and so we do not know when in the timeline it will be taking place.
Still, longtime fans will eagerly await the next time we will be able to see our old droid friends, R2 and 3PO.
(featured image: LucasFilms)
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