While theStar Warssequel trilogy still gets plenty of criticism nearly 5 years after it concluded, I am so glad DisneyStar Warsdidn’t keep thisPrincess Leia Organaplot point from Legends.When Disney boughtStar Wars, countless books, characters, and storylines were removed from the canon and became part of Legends. There was plenty of backlash about this move, both because Disney’s acquisition ofStar Warsmeant that George Lucas was no longer at the helm and because some of these characters and stories were very popular.
The negative reception of Disney taking over the franchise likely contributed to many considering the sequels to be amongStar Wars’worst movies, although much of this criticism also had to do with the treatment of the original trilogy’s three heroes—Luke Skywalker in particular. I agree that there wereproblems with the sequel trilogy, and Luke losing hope in the Jedi and the galaxy was arguably among them, butsome sequel trilogy decisions were so much better than Legends. One sequel trilogy choice regarding Leia’s story in particular was a major improvement for one key reason.
Leia’s Youngest Son Is Named Anakin In Legends
In Legends,Leia Organa and Han Solo had three children: twins Jacen and Jaina and a younger son named Anakin. While it was a nice way to have Anakin Skywalker’s legacy (and redemption) honored, this was a confusing choice even at the time. Unlike Luke, Leia never truly forgave Anakin/Darth Vader for all he had done. That made a fair bit of sense, given Vader imprisoned and tortured Leia and then blew up her entire planet—including her parents—in front of her.
Unlike Luke, Leia never truly forgave Anakin/Darth Vader for all he had done.
While Luke had plenty of reason to resent Vader, he also had the opportunity to see Vader’s transformation back to Anakin Skywalker in the end; Leia never did. This made it more than a little strange that Leia would have chosen to name her son after Anakin. This also raised other issues, as,rumor has it, George Lucas wasn’t all that fond of there being another Anakin inStar Wars.
It’s safe to assume Lucas approved it, given Anakin Solo became a major part ofStar Warsbooks, but it also makes sense that the addition of another Anakin wouldn’t have been preferable in Lucas' mind. Anakin Skywalker was truly one of a kind, quite literally the Chosen One, and having another major character named Anakin in the franchise didn’t quite suit that. It is perhaps for this reason that Anakin Solo ultimately died in Troy Denning’sStar by Star.
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Bail Organa Was Leia’s True Father
Star Wars Canon Has Been Clear That Leia Saw Bail As Her Real Father
Canon has made it even clearer that this Legends choice was all wrong for Leia becauseshe had a much stronger connection with her adoptive father, Bail Organa, than she ever did with her biological father. TheObi-Wan Kenobishow especially revealed how close Bail and Leia were, with Bail even asserting"You are an Organa in every way"to put any thoughts to the contrary to bed. This show was also the first time the genuine love and familial bond between Leia and Bail (and Leia and Breha) was shown on screen.
“Canon has made it even clearer that this Legends choice was all wrong for Leia.”
When the Legends books were written, Leia’s connection to her adoptive parents was only minimally understood. She did seem to recover from their deaths surprisingly quickly, although the same could be said of Luke’s response to Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen dying. Despite her subdued response inA New Hope, it’s become increasingly clear how dearly Leia loved her parents. In fact, Claudia Gray’s canon bookStar Wars: Bloodlineconfirms that Leia saw Bail, not Anakin, as her true father.
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Given how canon has represented Leia’s feelings about and relationships with Anakin and Bail respectively, it would have made very little sense for the sequel trilogy to give her a son named Anakin, as Legends did. Particularly with this added context, in fact,this would have been a major disrespect to Bail Organa and his memory. Anakin Skywalker is unquestionably one ofStar Wars’best characters, but Bail took Leia in, loved her entirely as his own, and raised her into the woman seen throughoutStar Warsmovies and TV shows; he would have deserved this honor the most.
Why Did Leia Name Her Son “Ben,” Not Bail?
Ben Solo’s Name Was A Surprising One
Even with the sequels not giving Leia a son named Anakin, thereby snubbing Bail, it was curious that she chose the name Ben for her son inStar Warscanon. TheObi-Wan Kenobishow worked to explain that as well, however. Based onStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the SithandA New Hope, it seemed as though Obi-Wan and Leia had not interacted between the day she was born and the day she sought Obi-Wan’s help when she was captured by the Empire.
Obi-Wan Kenobirevealed that the two had actually had a major encounter with one another when Leia was 10 years old, wherein Obi-Wan saved Leia’s life (more than once). It is presumably because of this that Leia chose the name Ben, Obi-Wan Kenobi’s alias when he was hiding on Tatooine, as her son’s name.Arguably, this is still a bit of a snub for Bail. Yes, Obi-Wan saved Leia’s life and was a brilliant Jedi, but it remains odd that Leia wanted to honor one person in her life through her son’s name and didn’t choose her father, Bail.
Even so, it was for the best that theStar Warssequel trilogy didn’t give Leia a son named Anakin. In canon, it’s become clear that Leia’s true father was Bail Organa, not Anakin Skywalker, and opinions vary regarding whether Leia ever really forgave Anakin at all. While naming her son Ben still raises some questions, DisneyStar Wars’decision not to namePrincess Leia Organa’sson Anakin made it much better than Legends in this one way.
