These new novels reintroduce the blue-skinned Chiss as a brilliant tactician and a worthy, more strategically adept successor to Emperor Palpatine. While that original trilogy of novels was decanonized when Disney bought the Star Wars franchise, Thrawn was reintroduced in Star Wars: Rebels, and given a series of new novels also penned by Zahn. Zahn’s books filled readers in on what happened to the Galactic Empire in the years after the death of Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine - sort of. The novel and its two sequels which - later known as the Thrawn trilogy - took place shortly after Return of the Jedi. Grand Admiral Thrawn is an Imperial officer who was first introduced to the Star Wars universe in Timothy Zahn’s 1991 novel Heir to the Empire. In case you aren’t caught up on the wider, non-movie Star Wars canon, here’s a brief introduction to Thrawn, and everything you need to know about one of Star Wars’ most beloved villains. While fans had been expecting one of them, when a beloved character mentioned Grand Admiral Thrawn, just about everyone was surprised. The Mandalorian season 2 episode 5 was chock full of references, in-jokes, and returning characters.
