Star Wars Every Order 66 Retcon
Star Wars: Every Order 66 Retcon
Contents
Order 66 was a key moment in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, but non-movie material explains and retcons numerous elements of the sinister directive.
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Order 66 was a pivotal point in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, but various non-movie material, especially Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: The Bad Batch, introduced several retcons to the order. Order 66 was Chancellor Palpatine’s directive to all clone troopers to immediately execute their Jedi Generals on the spot for high treason. The order was one of Palpatine’s most useful tools in initiating the Jedi Purge and his coup that turned the Galactic Republic into the Empire. In both canon and Legends, Order 66 is expanded upon and in many cases retconned, adding to the intricacies and horror of Palpatine’s plans in both continuities.
Officially, the clone troopers were created as an army of elite soldiers and pilots who could back up the Jedi in their war against the Separatists (which was manufactured and orchestrated by the Sith in secret). From their inception, however, they were tools of the Sith who were embedded amongst the Jedi Knights to gain their trust and friendships before Order 66 turned them into their assassins. The directive was a resounding success, nearly eradicating the Jedi Order and leaving few survivors who could pose a credible threat to the Galactic Empire.
Palpatine ensured that the Jedi were tarnished in the eyes of the people as well, scapegoating the order and framing them as the architects of the Clone Wars who conspired to take over the galaxy. The Chancellor, secretly Darth Sidious, effectively planted the seeds of fascism throughout his political career, gradually convincing Republic citizens to accept totalitarian rule by playing on their fears and xenophobia. Like so many other autocrats in reality and fiction, Palpatine convinced his people to deny observable realities. The films portrayed this more than sufficiently, but non-movie material from both timelines reveals the full scope of Palpatine’s political machinations and Order 66, solidifying him as the saga’s ultimate villain.
New Jedi Revealed to Have Survived Order 66
The Star Wars saga films give viewers the impression that only Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi survived Order 66. The two are the only Clone Wars-era Jedi (aside from Anakin) to appear in the original trilogy, so this is understandable. There are few canon Jedi who survived Order 66, and most didn’t entirely fit the definition of Jedi. As revealed in The Clone Wars, Ahsoka was a Padawan who left the order before becoming a Jedi Knight, making her technically a Force-sensitive citizen when Order 66 was activated. Grogu was only a youngling during the Jedi Purge, as revealed in The Mandalorian. Jedi: Fallen Order and Star Wars Rebels explore Imperial Inquisitors, all former Jedi who survived Order 66 by surrendering to the Empire and becoming Sith-trained dark side agents. The former includes a rare exception, however, as Cere Junda was a true Jedi who survived Order 66.
In Legends, there were numerous Jedi survivors of Order 66, aside from Obi-Wan and Yoda. Some, like Ferus Olin or Ylenic It’kla, became allies of the Rebellion and eventual fatalities during the Galactic Civil War. Others, like Qu Rahn and K’Kruhk, isolated themselves for a higher purpose like Kenobi and Yoda. Since the Jedi Order itself was destroyed during the Jedi Purge, this doesn’t detract from Luke Skywalker’s status as the galaxy’s sole Jedi during the events of Return of the Jedi. As Obi-Wan said in Heir to the Empire, Luke wasn’t the last of the old Jedi, but the first of the new iteration.
New Clones Revealed to Have Disobeyed Order 66
The films depicted clone troopers as only a slight step above droids, in terms of independent thought, but canon and Legends sources establish that all Republic clones, from the standard troopers and pilots to the elite commandos and ARC Troopers, possess free will and a generally friendly and altruistic demeanor. This makes their compliance with Order 66 confusing at first but also explains why many clones in both continuities disobey the order. In some cases, clones didn’t receive the order when it was enacted, later choosing to side against the Empire for ideological reasons. In other cases, clones made a conscious decision to do what they felt was right and protect the Jedi they’d fought beside for years.
No matter what led to their disobedience, the clones who defied Order 66 had a significant impact on the galaxy. Canon’s fan-favorite Clone Officer Captain Rex, as shown in Rebels, became one of the earliest members of the Rebel Alliance, fighting the Empire throughout the Galactic Civil War. In Legends, the standard Clone Trooper Able-1707 became an elite Rebel military operative and saved Luke Skywalker’s life at least twice. The protagonists of The Bad Batch, Clone Force 99, consist almost entirely of clones who disobeyed Order 66, and whose escapades are a frequent thorn in the Empire’s side.
Clone Wars Revealed Order 66 Was Caused by Inhibitor Chips
In Legends, clone compliance with Order 66 was achieved through specialized indoctrination, though the exact details surrounding it are unfortunately quite vague. In canon, however, the exact mechanics of clone brainwashing are fleshed out in detail, thanks to The Clone Wars and The Bad Batch. During embryonic development, all clones receive a brain implant that, upon Order 66’s activation, compels the clones to kill all Jedi (even those perceived as Jedi, such as Ahsoka Tano) and show loyalty towards the Sith and the Empire. Moreover, the control chips change the clones’ personalities, turning them surly and antagonistic. With little regard for each other or anything outside of their orders.
The Bad Batch reveals additional details regarding the chips and their effects. After briefly falling under his implant’s control before having it removed, Bad Batch member Wrecker reveals that while his implant was active, he was fully aware of everything he said and did, but he was powerless to stop himself. This makes Order 66 and the Jedi Purge especially horrifying in canon, as clones couldn’t help themselves as they murdered their friends (or were killed by them in self-defense), only able to watch as prisoners within their bodies all the while. The Bad Batch also reveals that many clones, such as Captain Howzer, gradually overcame the effects of their implants, implying that the control chips’ power over clones was only temporary or could be overridden over time.
The Way Ahsoka Survives Order 66 Was Changed
For better or worse, canon has far more continuity contradictions than its predecessor, Legends. When Legends-era continuity snarls came up, creators always made efforts to clear up the confusion so that all Legends material could exist at the same level of legitimacy as the saga films. Canon has contradicted its continuity on several occasions, making certain events ambiguous. Case in point: Ahsoka’s survival of Order 66 in the 2016 novel Ahsoka was rewritten in the four-part series finale of The Clone Wars. Originally, Order 66 was issued while Ahsoka and Rex were on Mandalore, shortly after their capture of Maul. The former Sith slips away during the chaos while Ahsoka and Rex fake their deaths and depart Mandalore in separate ships.
In The Clone Wars, Ahsoka and Rex are aboard the Republic vessel, the Tribunal, when the order is given. Rex initially tries to kill Ahsoka, but she removes his implant, and the two escape the doomed ship (sabotaged by Maul) in a single Y-Wing. The Clone Wars series finale was epic, heartfelt, and devastatingly tragic, but it, unfortunately, disregards a previously-established iteration of the same story, and the continuity has not clarified which version is canonical. The pilot episode of The Bad Batch similarly contradicts the Star Wars: Kanan – The Last Padawan comic series in regards to Caleb Dume’s survival of Order 66.
Order 66 Was One Of Many Contingency Orders (Legends)
While Order 66 was established in canon to be a secret directive known only to a select few of Palpatine’s underlings, this is not the case in Legends. As shown in Republic Commando: True Colors, Order 66 was not only known to the Republic military (and thus the Jedi), but it was also only one of 150 contingency orders. While the text and specific purpose of most contingency orders are unknown, some of them pertain to emergencies, such as the Supreme Chancellor being incapacitated or deemed unfit to command the Republic. Considering that the clones were specifically programmed to follow Order 66, they were most likely indoctrinated against following any contingency order that could be used against Palpatine.
Order 66’s actual text is extremely ominous, calling for the immediate removal of Jedi by lethal force and the establishment of an entirely new command structure for the Republic. It’s the perfect tool for an aspiring dictator to remove their biggest potential threats and mount a successful coup, all by legal means. Order 66 was notably hidden alongside contingency orders for the Chancellor’s potential need to be arrested, which is probably why no Jedi paid too much attention to it. The Legends-era retcon established that Order 66 was hidden in plain sight, and was one of the order’s many fascinating new details in Star Wars non-movie material.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/star-wars-order-66-retcons/
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