The Aliens of the Cantina

In Star Wars humans are often the heroes and in a Galaxy full of aliens, the aliens are usually reduced to a small montage scene in each film. In the films few aliens ever wonder into the spotlight. Only a few names of species have entered public consciousness (Wookiee, Ewok) and even for a Star Wars fan, knowing all the species names can be impossible. Many times when reading Star Wars books I recognize the species name, but can’t quite imagine what it looks like. That is why I’ve made it my mission this summer to try and get to know at least 100 Star Wars species really, really well. Isn’t that what everyone wants deep down inside? To be more fluent in Star Wars speak? Just me?

The Aliens of the Cantina

Ithorian

 One of the more noteworthy species in the Mos Eisley Cantina is the Ithorian (specifically an Ithorian named Momaw Nadon). When the Ithorian was released as a toy in 1978 by Kenner it was called “Hammerhead” and even modern day Funko Pop releases identify Nadon as “Hammerhead”. And why not? Ithorians certainly bare a resemblance to a Hammerhead Shark. In addition to the Cantina Scene, Ithorians appear in the Galactic Senate throughout the prequels. One Ithorian even shows up as a Jedi in the 2-dimensional Clone Wars cartoon, where it is revealed that the species can use their powerful throats to expel a violent hurricane of air out of their neck slits as a means of defense.

Aqualish

Star Wars fans will recognize Ponda Baba as the individual who lost an arm to Kenobi in the Mos Eisley Cantina. However, the name of Baba’s species, “Aqualish”, is probably more obscure to fans. The 1978 Kenner action figure line identified Ponda Baba as “Walrus Man” and he didn’t get a proper name until 1989. Over the years, there has been continued confusion about the hands of Aqualish species. In behind the scene pics of the original Star Wars film, Ponda Baba was shown with flipper like hands, but when he loses his arm to Kenobi’s lightsaber, the arm is furry with a wolf-like claw at the end. So are Aqualish mammals or amphibians? Furthermore, the Aqualish in the prequel films seem to have multiple eyes, like a spider. So perhaps Aqualish are actually more arachnid? Ultimately, the old expanded universe explained that there were at least three subspecies of Aqualish found on the planet Ando. This way the Aqualish could be wolf-like, walrus-like, or spider-like. (Just go with it.)

Rodian

Almost all Star Wars fans know Greedo by name and most know that Greedo is a Rodian. Even after Greedo’s death, viewers will spot several Rodians running around the original trilogy and the prequel trilogy. A rare yellow-orange skinned Rodian was even featured in “Solo” as one of Enfys Nest’s cloud riders. Though Rodians are supposedly reptilian, some have the ability to grow a mohawk hairstyle. The most famous (and first) example of this was Greeata Jendowanian, the rodian singer from the Special Edition of Return of the Jedi.

Devaronian

Though a Devaronian appears only briefly in “A New Hope” and never ventured into any other films, the species is quite common in the Expanded Universe. It is no coincidence that Devaronians resemble the Devil. Short on time and budget, the costume department of Star Wars utilized a second-hand devil costume. Though the species looks pretty evil, many Devaronians ultimately wind up working alongside the good guys. It should be noted that only male Devaronians sport horns. Female Devaoronians are harder to identify but they do have two round bumps on their foreheads in place of horns.

Duros

Among all the aliens in the Star Wars galaxy, Duros most resemble the Little Green Men of 1950s UFO tropes. According to the Expanded Universe the Duros do sort of fit into that description. They were navigators and one of the galaxies first space-faring species. On the set of “A New Hope” the two Duros characters were referred to as "Goggle-Eyes". Current fandom will probably recognize the bounty hunter Cad Bane as the most famous example of the Duros species. It seems that Lucas felt connected to the species because he would use their design as a basis of the Neimoidian species for "The Phantom Menace".

Talz

Wookieepedia states that Talz are four-eyed furry faced creatures from Orto Plutonia- although back in 1976 during filming the crew just called the character “Four-Eyes” or “Spiderman”. Like most of the Star Wars species depicted in this article, Talz never got a species name until a 1989 sourcebook for the Star Wars roleplaying game. Another Interesting Fact: Talz use their smaller set of eyes on top for day vision, and the larger set of eyes underneath for night vision.

Jawa

Jawa’s are probably best known as droid scavengers, though some are depicted just hanging around Mos Eisley, inside Chalmun's cantina, or in Jabba’s palace. Jawa’s are an enigmatic species because no one really knows what they look like underneath their robes. Their glowing-eyes tell us that Jawas are not human (as opposed to Tusken Raiders who probably are human). Many sources imply that they are a rodent-like species. In the Star Wars films, Jawas are only ever seen on Tatooine as they are native to the planet. In the original film, many Jawas are played by children, though the diminutive the actor Jack Pervis did portray the chief Jawa.

Chadra-Fan

Another tiny species of the Star Wars galaxy is the Chadra-Fan. Though Chadra-Fan resemble bats, they have no wings and are not capable of flight. They do, however, have very powerful senses (seven of them). Kabe is the female Chadra-Fan that appears in “A New Hope”. She seems pretty innocent, which is why I was surprised to learn that Obi-Wan Kenobi sliced her in half in the 1976 novelization of Star Wars. Apparently in the novel Kabe had been working with Ponda Baba and Dr. Evazan and it was Evazan that lost his hand while Kabe and Baba were sliced to pieces. Poor Kabe.

Bith

Most fans would immediately recognize the Bith species as being members of the band "Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes". Though the EU states that Bith often worked as engineers, scientists, and consultants, the Bith that we commonly see in the films are musicians. Their knack for complex instruments and music may be due to their large brain size. Bith also lack eyelids which makes them particularly unsuitable for desert dwelling (sorry Figrin D’an). Though Bith are supposedly incredibly peaceful, there were at least two Bith Sith lords, including Darth Tenebrous- who was the master of Darth Plagueis- who was the master of Darth Sidious- who was the master of Darth Vader.

Gotal

Feltipern Trevagg is a Gotal tax collector who appeared in “A New Hope” On the set of the film, the alien was nicknamed “High Tundra”, due to his goat-like horns. The cones on the head of a Gotal are actually naturally occurring electro-magnetic sensors that aid them in hunting. Though Trevagg is the only Gotal appearing in any of the Star Wars films, Gotals are quite common throughout the EU including in “The Clone Wars” and “Rebels”.

Arcona

Arcona were a race that was not even on my radar when I set out to write this blog. Despite the fact that the first alien we see in the cantina is an Arcona, the species  was never a part of any action figure lines when I was growing up, so I never gave much notice to the Arcona. Hem Dazon is the specific Arcona in the Mos Eisley Cantina and he would eventually get his own action figure in the 21st century after receiving the most votes in a Star Wars insider poll. According the Old Expanded Universe, Arcona actually had poor eyesight despite the fact that their eyes are huge. Apparently their compound eyes are similar to insects and Arcona actually use a different photoreceptor organ (commonly mistaken for their nose) to detect the heat patterns of living beings. Who knew?

Shistavanen

Two wolfman halloween masks were used during the filming of “A New Hope”. One wolfman could be seen with his eyes glowing in the dark (later known as Arleil Schous the Defel). Another wolfman (called “Hyena-Man” on set) can be seen talking to a worm-like creature. Eventually “Hyena-Man” would be known as Lak Sivrak, the Shistavanen Wolfman. Lucas, however, seemed embarrassed by both wolf-like creatures. In the 20th anniversary edition the wolfmen are gone, replaced by new aliens that look nothing like wolves. The Defel is replaced by a reptilian species called a Sarkan. Lak Sivrak, the Shistavanen Wolfman is replaced by an elephant-looking species called a Pacithhip. Lucas seemed to like Pacithhips because he also placed them in the “Return of the Jedi Special Edition” and each of the prequels. However Pacithhips never really caught on in the old Expanded Universe and haven’t been part of the Disney EU at all. Shistavanen are still popular, however, so keep an eye out for these fanged warriors.

One Dozen and Counting

Though the cantina scene was brief, there are a lot of aliens packed into that bar. I was only able to mention the most famous ones in this blog. But next time you read a Star Wars book or comic or watch an episode of a Star Wars cartoon, pay attention, you will probably catch a glimpse of one of these incredible creatures. I will be back next week with the "Aliens of Empire"

Star Wars Aliens

The Aliens of the Cantina

http://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-aliens-of-cantina_1.html

The Aliens of “The Empire Strikes Back"

http://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-aliens-of-empire-strikes-back-what.html

The Aliens of Jabba’s Palace

http://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/07/aliens-of-jabbas-palace.html

The Aliens of Max Rebo’s Band

http://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/08/the-aliens-of-max-rebos-band.html

The Aliens of the Battle of Endor

http://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/08/the-aliens-of-battle-of-endor.html

Flipping Heads

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/09/flipping-heads.html

The Aliens of the Phantom Menace
https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/10/aliens-of-phantom-menace.html

The Aliens of Attack of the Clones

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/12/aliens-of-attack-of-clones.html

The Aliens of Revenge of the Sith

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/12/aliens-of-revenge-of-sith.html

Expanded Universe Aliens
https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2018/12/10-species-from-old-expanded-universe.html

Aliens of Podracing

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/01/boonta-eve-classic-20th-anniversary.html

Aliens of Ralph McQuarrie

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/01/one-1970s-ralph-mcquarrie-painting.html

Aliens of  The Force Awakens
https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/02/aliens-of-force-awakens.html

Aliens of  Rogue One

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/02/aliens-of-rogue-one.html

Aliens of  The Last Jedi

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/03/aliens-of-last-jedi.html

Aliens of  Solo

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/03/aliens-of-solo.html

Aliens of  Endor

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/08/aliens-of-endor.html

The Most Obscure Aliens of the Original Trilogy

http://roadto7.blogspot.com/2020/02/the-most-obscure-aliens-of-original.html

Aliens of the Mandalorian

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/12/aliens-of-mandalorian.html

Bonus Aliens

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/04/bonus-aliens.html

The Five Subspecies of Nikto

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-five-subspecies-of-nikto.html

151 Aliens
https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/05/151-aliens-how-many-do-you-know.html

Aliens of Star Trek

https://roadto7.blogspot.com/2019/04/aliens-of-star-trek.html

Solo: A Star Wars Story - A Review

"Solo" is the second non-episodic Star Wars film. These “Star Wars Story” films exist to explore the limits of the franchise. They break the mold of the 'Trilogy' films. They do what the Expanded Universe has been doing for decades- they fill in the gaps, they explore, they try to poke holes in what everyone thinks Star Wars can be.

The Good

“Solo” is a safe film. It gives us what we expect. We see how Han meets Chewie. We see the Kessel run. We see Han win the Falcon from Lando. The film presents us with compelling characters that we care about and then puts those compelling characters into adventurous scenarios. I feel a real connection to every single character in this film (and I can't say that about "Rogue One" or the other prequels). The film has high stakes and consequences. It is both big and adventurous and at the same time it is very, very small. There are no Death Stars to be blown up. There are no battles to be won. There is just a heist. Which is a good thing. It is okay for Star Wars to be humble sometimes. The biggest risk this film took is that it tried to be small. I think it's actually a miracle that Howard and the Kasdans managed to make such a safe film. There isn't much about this film that people can get mad at. There are a lot of things that just... work. 

The Bad

I have no clue how fans will respond to this movie. Fans felt “The Force Awakens” didn’t take enough risks and that “The Last Jedi” took too many. “Rogue One” was a film built on a message of ‘hope’, yet many of the characters felt hopeless and uninspired. So what will the complaints about “Solo” be? I expect the main complaints will be about Alden Ehrenreich. Personally, I thought Ehrenreich did a great job as Han Solo. I mean, his job was an impossible one. To really be Han Solo, you have to be Harrison Ford and no one can actually embody Harrison Ford except for Harrison Ford. So with Ehrenreich, we get a younger, wide-eyed kid. A Solo without a chip on his shoulder. I guess the biggest problem I have is that Ehrenreich’s Solo never really earns that “chip on his shoulder”. Even by the end of the film he doesn’t carry that emotional baggage that we see inside of Harrison Ford’s Solo. So if the Ehrenreich Solo never turns into the Ford Solo… then what was the point of the film?

The Ugly

 I didn’t need to see how Han Solo got his name. I just didn’t need to see it. It sets up something that doesn’t really pay off in the end. I get that he doesn't have a tribe but I don’t feel the emotional arc of this character by the end of the film. I guess Darth Maul is the elephant in the room here. I feel like Maul was totally unnecessary, it took me out of the film, completely. But maybe fandom will disagree with me on this one. I don’t see where they are going with the Maul plot thread. I mean, they already tied up his story with “Rebels”, and they aren’t going to undo any of the “Rebels” stuff, so why are they bringing in Maul? Who knows. One last thing: Han Solo is responsible for forming the early stages of the Rebel Alliance? Did they really have to go there? Couldn’t the Enfys Nest marauders just be a force fighting The Empire? Did they really have to hit the "Rebellion" nail on the head so hard?

The Geeky

I’m sure that fandom will spend the next several months mining the reference-nuggets out of this film. There is a lot. Off the top of my head: They mention that Becket kills Aura Sing (can’t wait for that to show up in a comic or novel). There is a Bossk reference. They mention at least a dozen planets including Scarif and Felucia. I saw a yellow Rodian! Also I'm pretty sure that the guy who looked like Saw Gerrera's henchman (Benthic "Two Tubes") is the same character from "Rogue One". We see Warwick Davis outside of a mask with an actual speaking role. Clint Howard showed up. Also: “I Hate You”, “I Know” is my new favorite dialogue exchange of all time.

Final Thoughts

The film was kind of billed as being a comedic take on a “Star Wars” film. Yet, a lot of the jokes didn’t seem to land. The jokes that do land are funny, but audiences seemed to laugh at the jokes from “The Force Awakens” and “The Last Jedi” a lot more than the jokes in this film. I’m not saying this movie has to be funny to be a good movie, but for a film that was originally directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, it does seem a little bland as far as humor goes. It is notable that “Solo” is the first film where an original trilogy actor does not show up (except for Warwick Davis, but he shows up as a new character). Or maybe it’s not notable… I mean, Chewbacca is still Chewbacca whether its Mayhew or Suotamo under that suit. And Donald Glover makes a pretty good Lando. There is still a lot to tie this to the main Star Wars line, but as we move into the future, we are going to see less and less of the Legacy Actors if not the Legacy Characters.

I liked Solo. The film might even grow on me the way that the other three Disney films have grown on me. Thanks for reading and may Lady Luck be with you tonight.