Yuuzhan Vong?  More like Yuuzhan Gone, Am I Right?

The Yuuzhan Vong were a fairly controversial addition to Star Wars lore. Apparently the New Jedi Order series of books was hit or miss, and a lot of fans weren't into it. I never read any of that stuff, so I have no basis for a real opinion. But I was always intrigued by what little I knew about the Yuuzhan Vong, but mostly I really liked the concept of an extra-galactic threat needing to be faced down.

The Yuuzhan Vong were stricken from canon when Disney purged the old EU. That was maybe just a flesh wound, as many EU characters and concept have come back into the fold.

In 2015, at Celebration Anaheim, Dave Filoni revealed that he was working on possibly doing just that for the Yuuzhan Vong. He revealed that prior to cancellation, he had plans (including sketches) to re-introduce the species via The Clone Wars. With the recent revelation that The Clone Wars is returning, Filoni could certainly carry out those plans. Now that seems unlikely, as there may no longer be any place in the Galaxy for the Yuuzhan Vong.

Timothy Zahn may have dealt the Yuuzhan Vong a killing blow. He created a new extra-galactic species, named the Grysks, that are part of the Thrawn: Alliances story, and may serve as a de facto replacement for the old EU invaders. Zahn's Grysks have some similarities to the Yuuzhan Vong, although they wield advanced technology, as opposed to the anti-mechanical bio tech favored by the Yuuzhan Vong. The Grysks apparently originate from the Unknown Regions, which is rapidly becoming a storytelling hub in the new cannon, especially as Disney prepares to move on from the Skywalker Saga.

As summarized by ScreenRant.

The future of Star Wars appears to be in the Unknown Regions. Chuck Wendig's "Aftermath" trilogy revealed that Palpatine himself was obsessed with the Unknown Regions, and it's been confirmed that Supreme Leader Snoke himself hailed from this distant corner of space. Star Wars: Resistance is set to explore the secrets of the First Order, presumably including their origin in the Unknown Regions. Perhaps most significantly of all, Star Wars: Rebels ended with Thrawn's vessel lost in the Unknown Regions, with Ezra trapped aboard. The series closed with a scene set after Return of the Jedi, with Ezra's old friends deciding to head out into the Unknown Regions in search of him. Everything points to the Unknown Regions becoming increasingly important to the overarching Star Wars narrative - and the Grysks could potentially be a crucial part of Lucasfilm's plan.

So whether you liked them or not, it seems that the Yuuzhan Vong may be gone from Star Wars canon for good. At least we have a couple of Hasbro figures to show for the whole ordeal.

Get Thrawn: Alliances on Amazon (Sponsor).

---

comments powered by Disqus