The true perfection ofGrand Admiral Thrawn’sfinal moments inStar WarsLegends is going to be very hard for the current and canonical timeline to beat. In the previous (and now non-canon) timeline, Thrawn received a dynamic demise that was truly worthy of his character, having been one of theExpanded Universe’sbest villains. While he’s quickly become one of the new canon’s best as well, it may prove difficult to give Thrawn an end that tops what’s already been seen in Legends.
Debuting in Timothy Zahn’s book trilogy of the early 90s, Thrawn was relegated to the non-canon Legends in 2014 like so many other stories and characters when Disney rebooted the entire timeline aside from the core movies and shows. However, Thrawn was brought back to the canon thanks to 2016’sStar Wars Rebels, and 2023 saw his live-action debut as one of the New Republic timeline’s biggest villains, mirroring elements of his original introduction while existing in a very different narrative.However, the officialStar Warscanon is going to have a hard time topping Thrawn’s final words from Zahn’sThe Last Command(1993).
Grand Admiral Thrawn’s Legends Defeat Is So Perfect
There Are Two Ways To Interpret Thrawn’s Final Words
For all his impressive logic and impressive skill as the Empire’s greatest tactical mind,Grand Admiral Thrawn’s efforts were undone, and his life ended with a major betrayal in Legends, one generated by the Rebels themselves. While Palpatine’s alien death commandos known as the Noghri had been loyal to Darth Vader for years, Leia revealed the truth that the Empire were not their saviors but instead their secret slavers. As such, The Noghri allied themselves with the New Republic, and Thrawn’s personal Noghri bodyguard Rukh stabs the Grand Admiral in the back. This motivatesThrawn’s surprising and poignant final words to Captain Pellaeon:
Thrawn was sitting upright in his chair, his face strangely calm. In the middle of his chest, a dark red stain was spreading across the spotless white of his Grand Admiral’s uniform. Glittering in the center of the stain was the tip of Rukh’s assassin’s knife.
Thrawn caught his eye; and to Pellaeon’s astonishment, the Grand Admiral smiled. “But,” he whispered, “it was so artistically done.”
The smile faded. The glow in his eyes did likewise … and Thrawn, the last Grand Admiral, was gone.
Interestingly,there are two primary waysStar Warsfans have interpreted Thrawn’s final words, and both are quite compelling. The first is that Thrawn was admiring the way in which his plans were all undone by Leia and the New Republic. He respected the artistic nature of how the tide was turned out of his favor in ways he couldn’t predict ahead of Rukh’s betrayal that took his life.
The second is that Thrawn was admiring/lamenting his own work and all the effort he’d put into his campaign, only for his masterpiece to go unfinished due to his demise.Either way, Thrawn’s final words in Legends perfectly speak to his character. It’s certainly a testament to Zahn’s impressive writing, who likely intended for dual interpretations withthis very strong ending for such a dynamicStar Warsvillain.
Can Star Wars Canon Beat That Iconic Moment?
It’s Going To Be VERY Hard to Top
Now looking at the establishedStar Warscanon, it certainly looks as though Grand Admiral Thrawn is being positioned to become just as big of a villain in thecurrent New Republic timelineas he was in Legends.The character is largely the same; a brilliant tactician with a high degree of appreciation for art and respect for his opponents' strategies. That said, the events of his demise will likely be quite different for many reasons, including the fact that Rukh died in theStar Warscanon well before the events of the original trilogy.
As a result,one would hope that Lucasfilm will find a way to keep Thrawn’s final words the same. His death will undoubtedly occur under different circumstances in the newStar Warscanon. However, those last sentiments from theGrand Admiral in Legendsare far too perfect to pass up in their entirety.
Grand Admiral Thrawn
The only alien to ever ascend to the rank of Grand Admiral, Thrawn is a strategic genius who hails from an isolationist race known as the Chiss. Thrawn’s motives are enigmatic, but his tactical brilliance made him a vital asset for the Empire. Jedi Padawan Ezra Bridger successfully defeated Thrawn during the Battle of Lothal, resulting in Thrawn’s exile to the distant planet Peridea in another galaxy, but the Grand Admiral has now returned.
