Han's past as an Imperial

I'm new at the online Star Wars fandom but my muse got tickled so I started writing an AU fic to ANH. I haven't read any of the EU books (and I don't really intend to start reading them either) but I was using one of the plots from the books that Han used to be an Imperial. However, I noticed a discussion on another board that pointed out some differences between the movies and the books. So now I'm wondering if I shouldn't just ignore the books all together and scratch that piece of information, just make up my own history for Han.

How do most writers around here handle the movies and the books?

 

I usually just write my own history for the character's I'm not familiar with. Someone yet might be able to tell you about Han's EU history though. I'm kind of curious now myself.

 

*nods* I do know a bit about his history from the starwars.com databank but the info is somewhat limited. I'm just wondering if it's wise to use EU canon when I haven't read it. I could probably make the plot work with out. Well, I hope I can make it work. My first Star Wars fanfic and my muse is whacking me around the ears with a very serious plot.

Thanks

 

If you're writing an AU, do whatever you want. Go ahead and use the EU info as you remember it, or overheard it, or adjust it to what you need it to be for your story. That's what's so great about AU. Anything goes and no one can tell you you're wrong or that it doesn't comform with previous information.

From the information I have (from reading the original Han tril, not the new one), Han was in fact an Imperial officer for a short time, after graduating from the Academy. The incident that drove him out and made him bitter, cynical, and a bit of a bad guy is never explicitly stated, but the saving of Chewie's life is in there somewhere.

I hope that helps you a bit.

 

True, you can pretty much do what you want with AU but I always have this urge to try and stay true to canon as much as possible. I do find that the EU has some fairly reasonable ideas for Han's past (it's what comes after the trilogy that sometimes sounds too much like bad fanfic, but that's just a personal first impression).

I can however see Han joining the Imperial Navy and suddenly realising that the whole thing is as corrupted as the enviroment he grew up in.

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Ann Crispin's trilogy: Paradise Snare, Hutt Gambit and Rebel Dawn cover Han's life from 18-30, just before he meets up with Luke and Ben in the cantina. In it, he was originally part of Garis Shrike's criminal organization, sort of gang pressed into petty thievery as a child--he was orphaned before the age of 10 and Garis found him wandering on the streets of Coronet, and picked him up and made him part of his operations. Garis had a Wookiee cook named Dewlanna who helped to raise Han, which is why he can speak Shyriiwook. When Han was 18, he ran away from Garis' organization and worked briefly for the Hutts and their cousins (I forgot the name of that species) before he finally made it to Coruscant and then to the Imperial Academy on Carida. He graduated from the Naval Academy and was made a Lieutenant. During his brief service, he won two Corellian Bloodstripes, one for rescuing Chewbacca (he defied his officer's orders and rescued Chewbacca from a life of slavery, which is how he got thrown out of the Navy), and the other for an unknown act of bravery. Afterward, because he had been blacklisted from the navy it was next to impossible for him to find a decent job, which is how he fell into smuggling as his career.

 

Cool, thanks for the info LP.

Hmmmmm, so Han was forced into a life of smuggling according to EU? Didn't think that far ahead but I guess it makes sense. It does change alot of his characterisation although I guess not a lot of people chose to go that way.

I think I need to process the new info. Thanks!

 

you forgot Bria!

He hitched a ride on a ship that was going to Ylesia and shipped spce around the planet. Ylesia was actually a slave planet and the slavers controlled the pople who went there thinking it was a religious expereince when they were just a bunch of junkies. He met Bria, a slave, and they escaped to Coruscant.
Bria's dad helped him out with some credits to get into the academy.

The rest Padme said

 

I did not forget Bria--I purposely did not want to discuss that cow...

 

Awwww.... poor, dead, backstabbing Bria!

 

Ah yeah, I read a bit about Bria in some fics. She betrayed Han?

 

* Sighs * She was a nutcase who got recruited by these 'religious' freaks on the slave colony of Ylesia. She was drawn to the hypnotic rhythms of the t'landa Til (cousins to the Hutts) who enslaved people this way and made them work in their spice factories. Han's first job when he escaped from Shrike was to fly freighters for the spicers. Later, he met Bria and helped her escape slavery. They became lovers for a while, but then she dumped Han and became this ultra-nutty political activist/rebel. Years later, she ran into Han again and convinced Han to help her carry out a raid/battle on Ylesia promising him and anyone he brought with him a share of the profits of whatever they got off Ylesia; Han hadn't seen her in several years at this time but still cared for her, so he agreed to help her. He also convinced a bunch of his friends to help out, including Lando, promising them all a cut of the profits; but, Bria double-crossed Han later taking all the profits to fund her rebel faction called the Red Hand. Han's friends then blamed him for the betrayal; thus "You've got a lot of nerve coming here, after what you pulled". Anyway, later, Bria's Red Hand faction stole the plans to the Death Star. They had just managed to beam the transmission to Princess Leia's ship when they were trapped by the Imps; Bria then took a cyanide capsule to kill herself and avoid capture.

*shivers*

 

Why I don't read the majority of the EU....

I've only read the original Han Tril by Brian Daley. Good books, but they cover only a year or so of his life before his ill-fated spice run that gets him in trouble with Jabba. They don't talk much about his past, but there's some allusion to it in dialogue between other characters.

 

*pats LP* Sorry for making you explain, hon. But thanks, it's all making sense now

Lilith Demodae, I think my problem is that I don't want the EU to resolve all blanks for me. Esp what happens after the movies is something that I rather leave to my imagination. Esp after I have seen a lot of comments of people who don't like where they are going with Han/Leia. As I've been reading some fics though, I've unavoidedly have begun to learn some of these things. I'm still not sure how to to absorb it though.

 

trouble with Han Solo trilogy is that it has to make room for the Brian Daley books.

The Han Solo trilogy without Han solo, impossible to imagine but it happened

 

The Han Solo trilogy without Han solo, impossible to imagine but it happened

*blinks* Now that doesn't make sense.

 

Actually, AC Crispins DID make room for Brian Daley's books within her books.

Han had another "girlfriend" problem... she was pressuring him into marriage, so he took off for a few years to the Corporate Sector to get away from her. And AC Crispins deliberately "skips" a few years of Han's life when Brian Daley's books happened.

 

Ahh...Salla Zend...another nutcase.

 

I'm getting the impression that Han really hasn't been so lucky with previous girlfriends. Then again, I guess Han has had a few.