This article contains spoilers forStar Wars: The Force Awakensand many of the books and comics.
Because we had enough to go on.
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Mind you, I dont care about continuity at all.
What matters is a great story, andThe Force Awakens prudishness towards solid answers prevents it from being one.
Which doesnt make sense when your at the tail end of a66-year fictional history.
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Of course,The Force Awakensonly had 135 minutes to tell its story.
(The film was actually cut down in a way that created even more ambiguous story elements.)
Or else, why should we care about the new EU at all?
It would have been nice to see the New Republic a bit more fleshed out before the movie.
Who were its major players, both at the Senate and behind the scenes?
What were its flawsbesides a debilitating inability to see an impending threat?
Claudia GraysBloodline, which focuses heavily on Leia, will probably flesh things out a bit more.
What did Lukes new Jedi Order look like?
I do think that this was one mystery worth keeping for the film.
What is Lukes connection to Lor San Tekka and the Church of the Force?
Actually, we dont actually learn the characters name in the movie…
Apparently, Tekka even helped Luke search for certain secrets of the old Order afterReturn of the Jedi.
Did Tekka help Luke find the first temple of the Jedi?
If so, I want to see that adventure.
What was Snoke up to before the events of The Force Awakens?
I dont have such a big problem with the mystery surrounding Supreme Leader Snoke.
Theres always another villain lurking in the shadows in any fictional universe, especially one calledStar Wars.
Vader and Lukes relationship was the real emotional center of the duel on the Death Star II.
The Emperor was just a cackling demon.
Having been around since before the rise of the Empire, the scarred Snoke has an evident history.
The EU could begin to explore that to make it set up further revelations in the next movie.
What was Maz Kanata up to before the events of The Force Awakens?
On top of that, she somehow acquired Lukes first lighstaber after he lost it on Bespin.
Who is this character and how does she have such a strong knowledge of the Force?
Theres definitely a story there.
Maybe Chuck Wendig will put that inAftermath: Life Debt?
Why did Ben Solo turn to the Dark Side?
Im not saying that we needed a big Ben Solo adventure.
A mention that the character existed, or perhaps a scene of him as a boy would have sufficed.
Then the emotional impact of Bens fall to the Dark Side would have really hit home.
Why did Darth Vaders revelation that he was Lukes father pack such a punch?
His fathers real fate was a heart-shattering twist.
How did Han and Leia fail him as parents?
How did Han disappoint his son?
Knowing some of this stuff would have made for a much stronger reveal.
How did Temmin Wexley find his way to the Resistance?
And what happened to his mother, Norra?
How was the Millennium Falcon stolen?
This just sounds like a fun story Id like to read.
How did he slip away with Hans most prized possession?
Where is Lando Calrissian?
Lando was a vital part of the Original Trilogy and continues to be a popular character with fans today.
So why no Lando?
It would be fun to see him up to his old tricks.
I suggest an ongoing comic!
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Is Mon Mothma dead?
If not, where is she?
Seriously, is she already dead by the time the First Order blows up her beloved New Republic?
Because we dont actually know what shes up to at that point.
Mothma has always been the most prominent galactic figure on the edge of real importance to fans.
No one actually cares about Mothma, right?
What kind of kickback did she receive?
What politicians tried to undermine her?
Did her choices actually doom the fledgling New Republic?
What did the post-Concordance Empire look like?
How did it turn into the First Order?
Those Imperials eventually formed the First Order.
It couldnt have been easy, though.
Surely, there was some in-fighting involved during the Empires re-organization and re-branding.
As MarvelsDarth Vaderseries has shown in the last year, those are often the most fun.
Who are the Knights of Ren?
Do they have anything to do with the Acolytes of the Beyond?
How come theyre not around to kick Resistance butt in the movie?
Supreme Leader Snoke doesnt sound like the kind of malevolent leader who holds back.
After all, he did blow up the entire New Republic in a single scene.
But more importantly, who are the Knights of Ren?
Are they meant to be the successors of the Sith, a new cult of dark side users?
Interestingly enough, the one shot we see of the Knights assembled reveals that only Kylo carries a lightsaber.
Theres one guy carrying a staff and a few equipped with rifles.
This remains to be seen.
What happened to Rogue Squadron?
The galaxys elite fighter squadron is nowhere to be seen inThe Force Awakens.
Instead, we got Poe Damerons Black Squadron.
Is Rogue Squadron exclusive to the Rebellion or did a new incarnation serve the New Republic?
Id like to know why theyre not around anymore.
What were Poe and Finn up to before The Force Awakens?
Theres also a bit about Poes mission to find the Skywalker map inBefore the Awakeningby Greg Rucka.
But what was Poes life like before the war?
Hes been a Stormtrooper since pretty much day one.
Even his earliest chronological appearance sees him training to become a First Order soldier.
How did Captain Phasma become the coolest-looking Stormtrooper ever?
According toThe Visual Dictionary, Phasmas armor was salvaged from a Naboo yacht once owned by Emperor Palpatine.
Her rank is also a bit misleading.
How did General Hux rise to power?
Hux was one of the more cookie-cutter villains in the movie.
So there must be more to the characters motivations than just blowing stuff up.
Maybe he wants to make his dad proud.
It must bother him a little.
How did the First Order build Starkiller Base?
Id love to read about the fake science (and the secret operation) required to build it.
It might even make for a pretty greatStar Warsspy book.
Why isnt Rae Sloane part of the First Order?
To her, the fall of the Empire leaves the galaxy tumbling into chaos.
Most importantly, shes not really cut from the same mass-murdering cloth as Tarkin and Vader.
Shes a soldier trying to win a war, even if shes supporting the wrong cause.
So why dont we see Rae Sloane at the head of the First Order table?
Did she change her mind along the way?
I cant imagine the First Orders mission statement wasnt appealing to her.
Oh, and theres still the matter of who her mysterious superior was at the end ofAftermath.
Was that actually Snokes first appearance?
Either way, we should get some answers, and I bet Wendigs working on it.
Why is Jakku suddenly the most important place in the galaxy?
Or is that Ahch-To?
So whys Jakku so important?
Why was Rey abandoned there?
Im guessing well find out more about that inEpisode VIII.
Ahch-To sounds like the new Dagobah, the place where a Jedi Master will train a new hero.
And like Yodas place of exile, it has a history with the Force.
Whos in charge on Tatooine?
What happened to Coruscant?
Might Tatooine even be enjoying a period of peace under a benevolent leader?
An interlude section inAftermathteases that there might even be some sort of law and order on the planet now.
Coruscant was the capital of both the Repubic and the Empire throughout the first six films.
Whats happened to it since the fall of the Empire?
So whats life like on the planet thats no longer number one?
The Force Awakenscorrectly excluded these planets from its story, but that doesnt mean the Expanded Universe has to.
John Saavedra is an associate editor at Den of Geek US.
Find more of his work onhis website.
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