There are few characters in the pop culture zeitgeist as well known and as beloved as Star Wars' Han Solo - with the just as beloved Harrison Ford somehow getting to play two of the most brilliant heroes in the history of cinema. He manages to be a standout character in three incredible movies with a slew of wonderful creations.
Han is, of course, not perfect though, perhaps what makes him so resonate with fans is that fact. However, across his six-film appearances, there are so many ways in which the scoundrel just gets better and better.
10 Left Corellia
There are no main characters in the Star Wars films who stay on the planet they were born on. Han as a scrumrat on Corellia was no different, escaping the world.
Said escape was not all good, of course, as he had to leave behind Qi'ra and join the Empire, but just getting off Corellia affected his life for the better in the long run, and who knows what his fate would have been if he stayed, or got captured by Proxima's men.
9 Left The Empire
As mentioned, when Han left Corellia, his only option was to join the Empire, which itself is a bad thing, as is the fact he spent a few years in the tyrannical organization.
However, he did leave, he got out, and he by no means held the same values as Imperials. Han seeking out a way to escape the Empire, led him to Beckett and his crew, in turn leading to his life events, including one crucial encounter.
8 Met Chewbacca
That crucial encounter came on Mimban; after getting snitched on by Beckett and taken into custody, Han got fed to what was affectionately known as 'the beast.'
That beast was Chewbacca, and after a brief, one-sided fight between the two, they managed to escape and reach Beckett's crew in time to join them, kicking off one of the greatest partnerships and friendships in the franchise.
7 Got The Millenium Falcon (Twice)
Alongside Chewbacca, the most famous and beloved companion of Han's is the Corellian YT-1300 Light Freighter, better known as the Millenium Falcon.
How Han swindled the ship from Lando was both great and a bit of robbery, and without that ship, who knows if Han would have gotten to the events of the original trilogy. After its loss, getting it back again brought Han to the events of the sequel trilogy also.
6 Found Family
Themes are such an essential thing throughout Star Wars, with one of the most prominent and influential of those being found family, a family that is not necessarily of blood relation but is still family all the same.
Han was out for himself before finding Chewbacca, themselves forming a bond stronger than brothers, and later adding to both their families with Luke and Leia, the droids and then others from the sequel trilogy. This family only served to improve Han's life.
5 Joined The Rebellion
A big part of Han coming to meet this found family and grow both as an individual and with them, was his on-again-off-again relationship with the Rebel Alliance.
It took him a while to fully join the Rebel Alliance, staying to help out before having to leave to pay his debts to Jabba. But getting forced to stay with them and then becoming a Rebel General improved him as a person giving him more of a place and purpose, as well as hugely helped the Galaxy and his relationships with others.
4 Fell In Love With Leia
Romance is such a significant part of Star Wars, with many of the Galaxy's events shaped by romances like Anakin and Padmés. That of Han and Leia though might be the greatest in the entire franchise.
The two have electric chemistry, and when they finally come together in Empire, it improves both characters, with Leia opening up more to her emotions and Han becoming invested and opening his heart to her. While they separate, the love, they share never leaves.
3 Got Free Of Jabba, etc.
One thing that held Han back throughout the entire original trilogy, and nearly got him killed on numerous occasions was his debt to Jabba the Hutt.
One of the best things to happen to him was getting free of his carbon freezing, getting rescued by Leia, etc. and the end of Jabba. Han was able to be with his family and with the Rebel Alliance without the worry of Jabba's bounty on his head.
2 Belief & Optimism
Han Solo has a very rocky relationship with optimism, so very often switching between being a pessimist and optimist. In Solo, he is a definite optimist with all the belief in the Galaxy, but by the time of A New Hope, he is very different.
Eventually, as seen in The Force Awakens, Han has a wholehearted belief in the Jedi and the Force, and even though he has gone back to his old life of smuggling, he still holds optimism at heart, seen in his attitude to Rey, and how he helps the Resistance.
1 Always (Eventually) Embracing The Good In Him
Another thing Han has trouble with is his truly good heart, which lies under a tough, cocky, stubborn exterior, and only comes out on occasion.
As he grows, he embraces that good-natured side more, from helping Enfys Nest, to coming back to help Luke, to then permanently sticking around to help the rebellion. After he and Leia separate and he goes back to the life of crime, halting his progress in this sense. But his ultimate act of selfishness going back for Ben at the request of Leia proves he had already long since embraced that good nature.
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August 04, 2020 at 05:30AM
