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Continuity & Analysis

Star Wars: Droids - The White Witch (1985) [E1]
R2-D2 and C-3PO join the racing team of Thall Joben and Jord Dusat.
Star Wars: Droids - Escape Into Terror (1985) [E2]
The team journeys to Annoo in search of a new hyperdrive.
Star Wars: Droids - The Trigon Unleashed (1985) [E3]
The Fromm Gang won't rest until they get the Trigon back.
Star Wars: Droids - A Race to the Finish (1985) [E4]
The team prepares to enter the Boonta Speeder Race.




CONTINUITY
These four episodes form a single storyline about the Trigon Project. Droids takes place 15 years before Episode IV.
The planets Ingo, Annoo, and Boonta are seen for the first time. Three worlds are seen in these episodes:

The theme music to this series is entitled In Trouble Again: "Steppin' softly in a danger zone, no weapon in my hand. It's just this brain,
designed by man. It's got me in trouble again, in trouble again. I put my life in jeopardy, in the service of my friends. I wouldn't care
but it's a dangerous affair. Cause I'm in trouble again, trouble again. In trouble, in trouble, in trouble."

- R2-D2 and C-3PO were last seen in Episode III, set four years earlier, where Senator Organa turned them over to his ship's captain Raymus Antilles.
At some point, seemingly recently, they were lost or captured while on some errand, leaving them in the possession of someone who evidently
gambled them away. As C-3PO narrates, "we're lost in a game of chance to a new master who turns out to be a smuggler, then we're tossed
overboard with the stolen goods whilst he gets himself arrested." Unless Captain Antilles was the one who gambled them away, which seems
unlikely, the two had a brief stint serving a new master, before being lost in a bet to a smuggler, called Zevel Hortine in legendary material. He
attracted the attention of a local patrol of starfighters, leaving his jettisoned cargo strewn in orbit and raining down on Ingo, including the droids.


Why do C-3PO and other droids blink in this series? He shouldn't, and it is a bit silly considering that he never blinks in
live-action and doesn't seem to have a droid version of eyelids. The blinking cartoon version of C-3PO is far more emotive
and friendly, and as this is a cartoon the creators naturally expected a largely young audience, and wanted their main
character to come off as a bit more human and approachable than C-3PO's usual one blank expression. Most animals
with eyes communicate a great deal with their eyes and their blinking, and it was probably a deliberate decision by
the creators to have all droids with eyes blink in this series. Technically speaking it should be considered a continuity
error, but considering that this does actually add a great deal story-wise from the audience perspective, it would be
detrimental to the story not to have included this. This droid blinking was first seen in The Tale of the Faithful Wookiee,
the animated short in The Star Wars Holiday Special, which was in many ways the inspiration for this series.
The creators of this show liked the effect, and adopted it as standard. Despite their successful use of their creative
latitude in a cartoon, C-3PO does not blink, nor do most droids with the artificial equivalent of eyes.


- Ingo is a sparsely-populated planet located in the Bortele Sector, in the Slice region of the Mid Rim, relatively near to the boundary of the Outer Rim.
The planet has a breathable atmosphere for Humans and others, however it is desolate and has no native ecosystem. The surface is rocky, and
in many places covered in corrosive acid salt. The landscape has been shaped by wind and salt erosion, as well as metor activity which have left
significant cratering. It has long been settled by spacefaring races including Humans. At this time, members of the Annoo-dat crime family
the Fromm Gang operated a secret facility in the Vaj desert. One region of concentrated rock formations is known as the Jarl forest.


- Droid sentimentality is not limited to fond 'feelings' about friends, but also to the memory of those who are departed. Believing R2 to have perished,
C-3PO mourns him, giving him a brief eulogy praising his virtues. It may be in part C-3PO's desire for proper protocol in honor of the deceased,
however C-3PO's simulated emotional-complex seems to have felt the need to pay tribute to the depth of the loss despite being alone.
Main Article: Droid Intelligence

- C-3PO's primary concern after being so disrespectfully treated by his last master is to find a new one, asking the universe rhetorically, "where is a master
when you need one?" and practically begging Thall and Jord that "we so desperately need a master." Droids of every model have two primary
'desires', the first is to be able to do what they were designed and programmed to do, and the second is to be of service to someone. Droids
with no master are usually eager to find a new master, not only to serve but to be looked after. Droids require power, maintenance, and at times
repair, and are not designed to operate on their own indefinitely. In the context of the Imperial society of the SW galaxy, droids are meant to
represent the peasant class, having absolutely no social mobility and therefore no hope of being anything other than a laborer. In this context,
most peasants would prefer the safety, security, and work opportunities provided by a landholder to scrounging on their own. Droids take this
one step further, as they are not only socialized to be workers, they are in fact artifacts which have no other intended purpose than labor.

- Jord has a personal version of the bubble ejection system which deploys from his belt and temporarily wraps him in a bouncy airbag suit allowing
him to slow his momentum without breaking his body against the ground. This system was used during the Republic era in starships as
an in-atmosphere ejection system which surrounded both the seat and passenger, seen in The Clone Wars 'Bounty Hunters' (S2E17).


- The Annoo-dat are a reptilian species who are greenish-blue in color with some of their scales changing color according to their moon. This species
is relatively long-lived compared to Humans, with Sise Fromm the senior member of the Fromm Gang being described as 900 years old. In canon
this species' homeworld is Annoo, which is where the main body of the species is found. In non-canon material a different race was called
the Annoo-dat and described to have originated on a different planet now called Annoo-dat Prime. As a result, Lucasfilm decided to start
calling the Annoo-dat the 'Ret' species, also called 'Annoo-dat Blue' to distinguish them from the other Annoo-dat, who are said to have
conquered their homeworld, called Gelefil, which was renamed Annoo and is still called this in the time of these episodes. According to this
supplementary material, that species is now few in numbers and not found on Annoo. As that race is not yet canon, none of that backstory
is necessarily canon either. Based on canon, these Annoo-dat are the only ones, and either way their homeworld is at least now called Annoo.

- Trigon One is a mobile, orbital weapons satellite which is hyperspace capable. Described as having the firepower of vessels a thousand times its size,
this relatively small weapons platform has a more powerful reactor and weapons array than any orbital defenses seen during the Clone
Wars. Tig Fromm later claims if the lasers were fully powered it could take out a whole planet, however its firepower is not nearly
comparable to a Death Star, which could blast a physical planet into dust and small chunks. This station is capable of engaging multiple
targets in orbit, as well as targeting facilities on a planets surface. Left unchecked, it could destroy everything on the surface of a planet.

- The White Witch is Jord and Thall's racing landspeeder. It is a heavily modified C/L-82 landspeeder, manufactured by Mobquet Swoops and
Speeders, a significant repulsorcraft manufacturer owned by Tagge Company, and which had facilities on at least Teyr and Corellia.


- C-3PO says that since the Fromm Gang tracked them at night, they must be using IR sensors. Infrared, or heat detecting scopes are technology
familiar to modern-day Earth, and should be an ancient technological development in the SW galaxy. This is yet another indication of how
most scanning technology in SW is not very much more advanced than technology we would be familiar with. While much science in this
era of the galaxy is far beyond that of present day Earth, it may be there is no better way to 'scan' than using light waves and sound waves,
no matter how advanced a civilization's understanding of physics. Most scanners in SW are relatively simplistic.
Main Article: Scanners, Sensors, and Cloaking Devices

- Tig Fromm's chair in his office appears to teleport him from elsewhere in the facility into his seat. He is not actually shown leaving one location
and appearing in another, but at the very least the chair appears empty, then it activates as it slides forward and there are flashes of energy,
and Tig appears in his seat. This may in fact be a teleporter. Tig's branch of the Fromm Gang is high-tech oriented, and in Episode IV
Luke suggests C-3PO might "teleport me off this rock", which C-3PO only comments on by suggesting he isn't very knowledgeable about
such things. It could be that "teleport" something is an idiom, and Luke is suggesting essentially something imaginable but impossible.
Since teleporting and teleporters are never seen elsewhere or mentioned again in SW, much like the cloaking device it is best if future SW
material continues to ignore these technologies rather than attempt to explain or explore them. If the technology is introduced as
functional and safe, it makes it absurd in future stories that well-equipped forces don't utilize these things all the time, undercutting all
the great SW stories that have already been produced. At the same time, it is possible that teleportation is part of the universe, and that
it is a proven concept, but one that has limited utility. There could be any number of reasons, including incredible expense, unreasonable
power requirements, general lack of safety, and certainly limited range, or a combination of many factors. Whether Tig teleported into
his chair or not is immaterial to the story and does not come up again here, thus can be written off as an ignorable detail if one wishes.


- When listing their rival criminal gangs, Tig mentions "Jabba, Arnat, or one of the other gang leaders." This gives us an idea of who was operating
in the early days of the Empire in the Slice region of the Rim. Jabba is a known mainstay, and while nothing is known about Arnat, it is clear
that some of the larger crime syndicates in the galaxy developed in later SW material are not their rivals. As Annoo and the Fromm facilities
are in territory adjacent to Hutt Space, and this area was relatively lawless and gang-controlled even before the Empire was established,
these seem to be the regional players in this contested area, as opposed to the big, entrenched galactic crime outfits.

- Thall has a lightsaber about which he explains, "I did some repair work for a stranger a long time ago. He never came back to pick up his speeder.
This was in it." While a long time ago could mean during or before the Clone Wars, this seems to be a remnant of Order 66. Either the client
was a Jedi who was killed or went into hiding elsewhere, or the client was someone who got their hands on an ownerless lightsaber after
the Great Jedi Purge. Of course, there are many other less likely possibilities, but being only four years since Order 66 makes it most likely
that this nearly impossible to obtain weapon was so poorly looked after.

- The Fromm secret facility uses a system of subterranean service tunnels which handle all of the base's primary utility concerns other than
power distribution. The tunnels are seen to transport refuse cylinders, are used as the primary elevator shafts, and contain intersections
capable of moving large cargo to a desired portion of the base, referred to as the heavy loading area. Multi-purpose service tunnels like
these may be a usual feature of a facility of any size, as they streamline internal transit utilities into a single harmonious system.

- Droid cruisers are repulsor-based flying combat droids armed with heavy laser cannons. They are large enough to carry power sources sufficient
to operate their cannons in rapid succession, but small enough that they can be produced in effective numbers. As seen in combat, they are
vulnerable to counterattack, but working in concert are very effective against ground-based targets.


- The Fromm tower droids fire self-guided exploding sentry droids, the same explosive droids which were first seen patrolling the restricted zone at
the beginning of the episode. These are suicide remote droids, which are nothing more than intelligent flying spheres packed with explosives.
Based on their design, this technology is one of a few that suggest Tig acquired much of his technology from the now defunct Techno Union.
These droids should be used a lot more in later SW, as they are a cheap way to take out enemy forces without risking one's own.


Why is C-3PO being used as an astromech? As is typical for him in other material, he specifically mentions in this show
that he dislikes spacetravel, and that he isn't a very good mechanic, which is R2's specialty. R-series droids are called
astromechs because they are designed to work in and on spaceships, even when in space. C-3PO isn't particularly
agile on solid ground, at least he has taken the precaution of tethering himself to the ship. Nevertheless, while he is
finishing his part R2 is just standing there. At this point in SW, it wasn't fully established that protocol droids would be
unlikely to be used in this way, and indeed, this was only done so that he can mess up and move the story forward.


- The repair kit R2 is holding has a gravity amplifier on it, so that it won't float away if bumped when doing repairs in space. This excellent addition
to the show suggests further what was already clear from other SW material: gravity generating technology in this era is extremely compact,
extremely durable, and requires only very small and independent internal power sources to operate.


What causes the apparently disconnected hyperdrive unit to 'float' away? It seems whatever work they were doing
required them to completely isolate the hyperdrive unit and work on it on the hull, as it is too large to be brought
inside. For no apparent reason, it starts to 'float' away, quite rapidly as well, and shortly after C-3PO does the same.
As there is no air in space, there is no way to 'swim' back if one's inertia starts to 'float' someone or something away
from an object like a ship, however there is also no breeze or air to cause an object at rest against another to
suddenly move away. Objects must be pushed or pulled to move in space. As it is made of some types of metals,
as is C-3PO, it is possible some kind of electromagnetism is intended to be the cause, but it seems unlikely that
wouldn't have effected the ship's hull in the same way. The scene doesn't really make very much sense in terms of
physics, but the characters don't seem shocked or overly concerned that their hyperdrive magically 'floated' away.


- The Sand Sloth is 'stopped', as in not accelerating, in interstellar space in order to make repairs including on their hyperdrive. When they lose their
hyperdrive, Kia suggests going to Annoo to pick one up. In order to reach even the outskirts of a starsystem from interstellar space, ships
must be able to travel faster than light in regular space without experiencing the effects of relativity, specifically time passing at a slower
rate on the ship than in the rest of the galaxy. This was first seen in Episode V where the Millennium Falcon flies from Hoth to Anoat
and then all the way to Bespin without traveling through hyperspace. It seems that ships in SW can travel at light-speed in both
regular space and hyperspace, with the latter covering large distances significantly faster. Nevertheless, in regular space this still allows
ships without a working hyperdrive to reach planets within a limited range of a few thousand light-years.
Main Article: Hyperspace Travel

- Kea Moll's mother lives on Annoo, which as shown is well-colonized by Humans, despite being the homeworld of the Annoo-dat. The Infrastructure
seems typical of a Rim world colonized by Core civilization, and the only official seen is a Human. The Annoo-dat are technologically sophisticated,
however they may have become so after being colonized. This region was first colonized by the Core over 20,000 years before these events.

- Annoo is a terrestrial planet located in the Tharin Sector, in the Slice region of the Outer Rim, in an area which was historically influenced by nearby
Hutt Space. The planet supports a native ecosystem, and is the homeworld of the reptile-like Annoo-dat species. While significant portions of
the planet are seemingly barren wastes, much of the planet is pleasant and verdant, and obviously has access to significant quantities of water.
The planet no doubt hosts countless Annoo-dat settlements, as well as colonial cities and towns, and at least one spaceport. In non-canon
material, the planet was originally known as Gelefil, and was renamed Annoo in honor of a conquering species from a nearby planet far back
in galactic history. Whether that is canon or not, at this point in history it is theoretically part of the Empire, and likely formerly the Republic.
As seen at Demma Moll's complex, the planet is ideal for farming, and likely is a contributor to regional agricultural trade.



A couple of 'background' ships were thrown in which are continuity errors, seemingly chosen because their unique
hull geometry is very other-worldly, because this increases familiarity with the original trilogy films, and because
the creators weren't concerned with the context of their appearances. The worst example of this is a B-Wing
fighter shown landing at the spaceport on Annoo, over a decade before it was developed as a secret project for
the Rebel Alliance. Of course, none of this backstory was established at the time this show was created, so these
appearances can be written off as unimportant details, however it is clear they didn't put a great deal of thought
into this either, as the B-Wing is flying backwards with its engine in front. This is also seen in 'A Race to the Finish',
where the Fromms' Lambda-class shuttle flies correctly at first, but then flies backwards into hyperspace.


- All visitors to Annoo must register with spaceport officials. Jord remarks, "It's taking longer to register than it took to fly here." This indicates both
the relative ease of interplanetary travel as well as the stringent controls on immigration and tourism even in the Outer Rim. Organic beings
are processed in one line while droids must wait in a separate line, which C-3PO considers to be discrimination.

- Amongst the numerous unidentified aliens in line to register at the spaceport appears to be the first canon example of a Bothan, a species first
mentioned in Episode VI. The Bothans are mammalian humanoids with fur, pointy ears, and an elongated snout. This would be their only official
appearance in canon thus far. Their homeworld is the planet Bothawui which is located at the heart of a region known as Bothan Space. Despite
decades of legendary material about the Bothans, disney-Lucasfilm wishes to be ambiguous about whether they are a separate race or simply
Humans from Bothawui, in case they decide to do a story about the Bothan spies and don't want their main characters to be furry aliens.


- Kea's blaster looks like a pipe more than a firearm. This 'pipe-blaster' has an end which is closer to being a box shape where the muzzle is located. This
is similar to most basters in this series, which primarily are box-shaped and straight rather than having a handle. It is not known which company
manufactures this and the 'AAP-2 Blaster Box', but since all of these stories take place in the Slice region of the Rim, it may be a regional concern.


Why is C-3PO so willing to try using martial arts, and why is he so keen to hit things in this series? Obviously Demma's
speech inspired him to take a stand for freedom, however in the SW films and other material C-3PO always comes off
as constantly afraid of his own fragility. It seems that after having his memory of serving Senator Amidala wiped from
his mind, he has forgotten that he is not a droid of action. This is a refreshing change for C-3PO, as it makes him much
more helpful in pressure situations, and he seems ever willing to kick things, knock into things, or use his own body as
a projectile. He still doesn't actually get to use his martial arts moves at first despite wanting too. Eventually, after
an unscrupulous droid threatens R2, C-3PO loses his restraint and heroically knocks him over.


- Gravik-nez is a form of martial arts used for hand-to-hand combat, said in supplementary material to have been created on the planet Affa,
the very planet C-3PO was to have originated on centuries earlier in George Lucas' original backstory ideas for him in 1977. As C-3PO is
not very limber, his attempts meet with mixed results, and apparently the funny hand motions he makes when trying to fight something
off in the SW films are part of his attempt at mimicking this form, which emphasizes solid stances and arm based attacks.

- The security droid in the cargo hold on Sise Fromm's ship has a macho tough-guy ego. When another security droid suggests he isn't strong
enough to pull C-3PO apart, he decides to prove it, ignores C-3PO's pleas to leave him alone, and seems to be looking forward to beating
a protocol droid with no chance of defeating him in combat. His response to R2's insult is to counter R2's words with violence. Just like
in an organic being, this behavior is a combination of this droid's nature and nurture. He has been designed to be a tough-guy, built to
damage other droids or people if necessary, and thus like other droids this created purpose becomes like their instinct, and the thing
which brings them fulfillment. As a security droid, they are also programmed with a limited intellect necessary for their relatively simple
role, but are also programmed to be defensive, territorial, and to maintain control and authority over others. Finally, this droid spends
its time socializing with similarly minded droids, forming his personality around peers who echo these priorities. All of this manifests
itself in a droid's artificial personality as the machine equivalent of a macho tough-guy, with similar but artificial ego issues.
Main Article: Droid Intelligence

- Sise Fromm's ship gets hit by what C-3PO calls a "meteor storm", which is the official SW terminology for a strange occurrence where a dense
collection of meteoroids are traveling at high relative speed through space, but appear to be burning as if they are meteors falling and being
destroyed in the atmosphere of a planet. This is probably just a confused lack of understanding of basic astronomy, as meteoroids are not
burning in space, and do not become meteors until they enter a planet's atmosphere. The ship doesn't appear even to be in high orbit or
close enough to the approach of the planet to be encountering dense enough gas to cause the rocks to heat up and flame from friction.
This means that this is either a region of unusual gas concentration, or this is some phenomenon unknown to our solar system where
some material which is energetic enough to give off energy continuously in the cold of space is simultaneously physically stable enough
not to completely fall apart before posing a hazard to navigation. It is likely the creators just didn't know how meteors work.

- The droid starfighters used by the Fromm Gang are droid-controlled TIE fighters, as evidenced by their characteristic sound and wing design.
This suggests that they are an early TIE design by Sienar Systems, however these ships share significant design elements with Kuat Drive
Yards starfighters like the Eta-2 Actis and the V-Wing, both of which utilize TIE, or twin ion engines, making this the more likely producer
of these early versions of a TIE fighter. These can be automatically flown by a box pilot droid, or can be piloted by an independent droid.


- C-3PO decides to switch on the "subspace receiver", in order to watch this galaxy's version of television. The use of the term 'subspace', which does
not appear in any other SW material, is one of many terms which writers of SW material in the 70s and 80s including the original trilogy
knowingly or unknowingly took from Star Trek. It can safely be assumed C-3PO is referring to hyperspace, as we have seen hypercom
broadcast programs in later SW material, and the malfunctioning unit gets its wires crossed and ends up tuning into Tig Fromm's private
frequency, suggesting that these programs and calls run on the same hyperspace channels, identified in later SW material as Imperial
Holonet. The show C-3PO first tunes into is an astromech western, where a 'native' astromech wearing a head dress has a shootout in
a desert with a 'settler' astromech wearing a brimmed hat. C-3PO calls this R2's favorite program, for reasons which are understandable.
Later, one of the gangsters is shown watching the same show, which has transitioned to a scene where the droids are smoking pipes together.
Main Article: Hyperspace Communication

- The Fromm Gang operates a Lambda-class shuttle, which is a product of Cygnus Spaceworks and Sienar Systems. Widely used by the Empire,
these shuttles were originally sold by Cygnus to private buyers, principally in the Rim. It is possible a T-4a Lambda-class shuttle, which is
armed, however based on the firepower this is either a slightly different model than the T-4a or may have been modified by the gang.

- The Fromm Gang uses a room without gravity as a security measure, in this case to keep R2 and C-3PO out of trouble while in captivity.
This is an obvious and useful security practice which should be used in other SW material more often than not, yet another example
something that is probably left out because it is difficult to film for live action, and makes it more difficult for characters to escape
when the story calls for it. This is exactly why those in a spacefaring civilization would use this tactic as a matter of practice.

- At lightspeed, it is 49 minutes for the Trigon to get from Ingo to Annoo. This must be traveling faster than light through normal space, as
the Trigon is not seen to enter hyperspace and is instead flying against the starfield. Based on their proximity, it should take much less
time to travel between the two in hyperspace, however 50 minutes gives us a good idea of the speed of ships making interstellar
journeys without using hyperspace. It is clear that ships in SW can travel many times the speed of light even in normal space.
Main Article: Hyperspace Travel

- Boonta is a desolate but populated planet located in the Suolriep Sector, in the Slice region of the Outer Rim, relatively near to Saleucami and
adjacent to the boundaries of Hutt Space in the century this story is set. Originally named Ko Vari, the planet was conquered around
25,000 years before this show by the Hutts, who took the planet from a regional Human empire lead by Xim the Despot. The planet
was renamed for Boonta the Hutt, who lead the historically significant victory against that empire. Due to the devastation of warfare and
millennia of Hutt occupation, the ecosystem on the planet has long collapsed, however the water cycle on the planet continues bringing
a cloudy atmosphere, rain, and groundwater which can be utilized by the planet's significant colonial population. Boonta's location along
major regional hyperspace routes makes it an important planet to regional trade and travel. Despite its amenities and infrastructure, it also
contains many old, poorly-maintained buildings and modest accommodations typical of frontier regions. The planet is famous as a center
of sport racing in the Rim, and the annual Boonta Speeder Race draws significant crowds and wealthy visitors to the capital city.


- A proto droid is a self-constructed droid made from junk parts, such as Proto One. Like any proto droid, he is primarily built from a single droid,
as the intelligence circuits and enough of a droid to start the building process must be intact at the beginning of its recreation. This droid is
described as very old, and based on its design was probably a Cybot Galactica product, one that would be considered an antique if in its
original form. Proto droids tend to be very independent, as they were discarded and essentially freed from their original purpose, allowing
them to rebuild themselves physically and see themselves as their own maker, designing their own purpose in life.

- Boba Fett was last seen 5 years earlier in 7957 (20 BBY), in The Clone Wars 'Bounty' (S4E20). He is now 17 years old, and already quite famous.
He owes Sise Fromm a favor from some past events, and seeing himself as a man of honor, or at least a business man with a code and
reputation, wishes to repay that debt. He in fact seems eager to no longer owe Sise anything, very likely so that he is free to go after
the bounty Jabba has put out on Sise Fromm for conspiring against him. He agrees to kill Thall for Sise but insists that he will no longer
feel he owes him anything afterward, basically giving Sise fair warning that he is interested in making money. Boba Fett is indeed feared
and well-known, at least in the underworld, and Vlix remarks, "they don't come much worse than him", further evidence that his
ruthlessness is legendary. Fett is shown to be an aggressive hunter who has little concern for collateral damage in the pursuit of his prey.
Whether he intended to turn on the Fromm Gang afterward or not, when Tig's meddling costs him his droid, his speeder, and almost his
life, Fett decides to recoup his costs by capturing the gang to turn over to Jabba. This may be in keeping with his code, as he feels he only
failed due to their interference. It is also clear that Boba Fett is serious about his business, and intends to succeed or at least profit for his efforts.


- Droid 'emotions' include jealousy, an extension of a droid's ability to manifest likes and dislikes, friendships, and a sense of loss or desire. Droids
also manifest clique behavior and class consciousness. C-3PO makes fast friends with another snooty protocol droid, while he is constantly
arguing with or putting down his mechanic laborer friend R2, who really values his friendship. C-3PO tells R2, "It's a pleasure to associate
with a droid of comparable intellect... for a change", and tells his new friend "R2 is a good worker but alas he's not one for stimulating
conversation", with R2 standing right there. C-3PO is too self-absorbed and too busy trying to impress a droid whose opinion he values
to notice his awful behavior towards his friend. All of this is indicative of the larger pattern in droid intelligence and behavior, which is
that they mirror the organic beings which created them, including their flaws and limitations, since they were designed to work and
function in, with, and for organic civilization, and given minds necessary to do this.
Main Article: Droid Intelligence


C-3PO announces to the group, "It turns out that BL-17 and I graduated from the same production facility." When this
story was created, C-3PO had no established backstory, and the creators were working with George Lucas' original
backstory ideas for him, where he was to have been produced centuries earlier on the planet Affa. In Episode I,
C-3PO is seen being built from scavenged parts by Anakin Skywalker, in what seemed to be a retcon of this material
which established his true origins, however in The Clone Wars 'Evil Plans' (S3E8), C-3PO declares that he was once
the protocol droid for the chief negotiator of the Manakron system. Supplementary material has decided that this was
before Episode I, and that Anakin rebuilt him instead of built him. This would make his statement here possible, and
probably fit all three statements. Of course, in Episode IV, C-3PO states that his first job was programming binary
loadlifters, however it is seen in Episode III that his memory of the Republic era was erased at that time, which
makes it far less likely C-3PO would know what production facility he graduated from, unless that information is part
of his base programming. All four of the statements can make sense, but only with a great deal of effort to make it work.


- Boba Fett's droid BL-17 is a BL-series Battle Legionnaire, an infantry droid built by Baktoid Industries for the Separatist Alliance for use during
the Clone Wars. Described in supplementary material as one of the few BL-series to survive the war, these droids were more intelligent,
better armored, and consequently more expensive than other infantry droids, and were never produced in as large numbers as other
B-series battle droids. Proto One has apparently some prior experience with Boba Fett's devious ally, remarking upon meeting him again,
"If it isn't BL-17, the lowest form of synthetic life to ever crawl across a planet."

- The Boonta Speeder Race is an annual event held on the planet Boonta, which draws contestants, racing enthusiasts, and gamblers from around
the galaxy, particularly from the Rim territories. It is a huge event that draws wealthy elite, and in this era even Imperial bigwigs. This event
takes place the day after Boonta, a holiday commemorating Boonta the Hutt for whom this planet was also renamed, and two days after
the Boonta Eve Classic, the annual podrace held on Tatooine, seen in Episode I. Boba Fett chases Thall into the stadium at the start of
the race, and is so well-known in this region and amongst this crowd that the announcer instantly recognizes him and his "Silver Speeder"
and announces him as a late entry into the race. Thall's expert driving combined with the capabilities of the White Witch allow him
to not only foil Fett's attempt to catch him but to win the race outright.


- Sise Fromm notices that Admiral Screed is in attendance, and remarks that, "everyone's here except the Emperor." This is meant to indicate how
prominent a figure Admiral Screed was at this time, as along with Moff Tarkin, he was widely known as a powerful Imperial leader who was
part of the Emperor's inner circle. Admiral Screed figures prominently in the last storyline of this series and its film, The Great Heep.

- Zebulon Dak was a prominent and wealthy engineer and racing enthusiast who was the founder of the Zebulon Dak Speeder Corporation,
a secondary player in the speeder market whose fast craft were reasonably popular in the Outer Rim and with aspiring racers. Zebulon
attends the Boonta Speeder Race to scout for talent, and offers Thall, Jord, and Kea a job after seeing their speeder and racing skills.
Zebulon's species is one of a few dozen seen in SW material which has not yet been identified in supplementary material.

- Droids appreciate being appreciated, although they are programmed to work without praise or reward. Droids find fulfillment from being able
to do the things they were designed to do, but as their personalities develop, they come to value being respected and appreciated by people
and other droids they work with. A droid's ability to understand friendship is no different from an organic being. R2 and C-3PO abandon their
friends so they can go and have the success they deserve rather than be burdened by the needs of their two droid friends. All C-3PO and R2
wanted were good masters, and they found them, but felt they had to abandon them to pay them back for their friendship.
Main Article: Droid Intelligence

ANALYSIS
The Fromm Gang was a regionally significant organized crime outfit based on Annoo and primarily made up of members of the Annoo-dat species.
They were significant enough to rival Jabba's crime empire, and while their illegal business seems to have been primarily smuggling, it is likely they
were involved in other illicit activities. The Gang was clearly many decades old at the time of these events, if not older, as they are described as being
steeped in the ancient practices of crime families of the Annoo-dat and held together by long-standing family ties. In the early days of the Empire,
the Fromm Gang was lead by Sise Fromm, a shrewd and calculating mob godfather who is feared for his harsh reprisals. His son Tig Fromm
laments his father's traditional approach, stating that "technology is the future of the Fromm Gang, not ancient ties and old world methods."
Tig is an intelligent and creative leader with an eye towards the future, but who is also at times naive and overconfident. His machines continually
fail to deliver on their promised performance. Tig seems to have had some relationship with the Techno Union, which until recently had extensive
operations in this region and developed cutting-edge technology much of which was quite similar to that employed by the Fromm Gang. It is very
likely the Annoo-dat, or at least the Fromm Gang itself, were sometime allies of the Separatist Alliance, which controlled much of this region during
the Clone Wars. The Gang no doubt lost a great deal of prominence in the region after the Trigon affair and its aftermath.

The Trigon project is a clear example of the consequences of the Clone Wars. Trigon One is itself a masterpiece of military technology which is the inevitable
culmination of the military build up before and during the Clone Wars. The race for superweapons between the Republic and the Separatists combined with
the advanced miniaturization technology developed by the Techno Union made ever more powerful weapons systems available in increasingly smaller payloads.
While this development may have plateaued, it already had changed the military equation in the galaxy to one where the competitive weapons systems were
exorbitantly expensive. The Fromm Gang has vast financial resources, and a plan to use their superweapon to dominate their rivals and take over other
criminal gangs. Trigon One, made possible by miniaturization, has the ability to checkmate the Fromm Gang's opponents and even allow them to conquer
independent worlds, and thus Tig suggests it is a worthwhile investment, remarking, "Expensive? You can't put a price on an entire starsystem." This project
in many ways foreshadows the Death Star project, which inevitably faces the very same debate about its cost versus its ultimate value. The lack of concern
that criminals have for operating openly in this part of the Rim adjacent to Hutt Space is another consequence of the Clone Wars. Republic authority over
much of the Slice region of the Rim waned considerably during the war, and galactic crime syndicates and powerful independent planets in the region filled
the vacuum of leadership with their own influence. Little has changed in this region in the four years since the end of the Clone Wars, and the presence of
the Empire here is still minimal. The Empire, far more concerned with more vital and heavily populated regions and as seen in other SW material, is perfectly
happy to let ruthless and oppressive criminals and slavers do their work for them on rural planets in the Rim, particularly at this early stage in the Imperial
program for the galaxy. Sise Fromm indicates that if the other crime organizations see that the Fromm Gang is weak, they will unite against them, which of
course is exactly what happens when the Gang's plan is exposed and they lose control of Trigon One. This again foreshadows the Death Star, which
itself will be lost to the Empire at the same time that their plan to use it is revealed to the galaxy, causing the Empire's opponents to unite against it.

Despite the Empire's minimal presence in many parts of the Slice region of the Mid Rim and Outer Rim in these times, worlds which were 'member worlds'
of the Republic which are centers of authority in a sector are now all nominally or directly under the Empire. Annoo would seem to fall into the nominally
controlled by the Empire category, as there is little reason to devote significant resources to controlling a remote planet that is continuing to function
without resistance to the Empire. Worlds such as this are safe to leave alone until later periods of Imperial plans when their direct authority will be more
fully and universally established. While the Empire is known to have already increased the need for travel permits and identification by this time, it is very
likely that "all visitors to Annoo must register with spaceport officials" is not a new policy. The planetary government wishes to have records of off-world
visitors, and registering passengers at spaceports is standard procedure for civilized systems. On the other hand, the fact that according to Jord, "it's taking
longer to register than it took to fly here" maybe an indication of the rigorous security measures already required by the Empire. While the Empire is not
yet heavily operating in this region, they nonetheless have many important planets and outposts in every region, and ultimately claim jurisdiction over all
known space. This means there is an undeclared understanding that everything going on is ultimately subject to Imperial scrutiny if it attracts Imperial
attention. The presence of Admiral Screed on Boonta for the speeder race, along with enough other Imperial magnates to warrant Sise's remark that
"everyone's here except the Emperor" is another indication that despite its relative independence this region is ultimately part of Imperial society.

Although the Jedi have been destroyed or forced underground, those who share their values, and believe in freedom and the triumph of good, are still
active throughout the galaxy. Imperial rule leaves most worlds under the control of either overbearing order or chaotic lawlessness. Those that seek to
change the oppressive new political system of the galaxy are at this point in history in a powerless position. Most of the galaxy is still recovering from
the Clone Wars, and are neither equipped for nor interested in fighting another devastating war. Combined with the fact that the changes thus far
introduced by the Empire seem relatively benign to many in the galaxy at this stage, there is little hope of marshaling a threat to the Imperial power
structure in this first decade of its rule. That does not mean that people aren't still standing up for themselves and their neighbors, as is clearly shown
by Demma Moll's rebel cell on Annoo. C-3PO remarks that, "Mistress Kea never told us she was part of the Rebel Alliance", seeming to suggest that
the Alliance to Restore the Republic seen in the original trilogy are already a known operating group. While future material would establish a timeline
that contradicts this, the term Rebel Alliance may in fact already be an informal name given to the loose network of republican forces still operating
in the galaxy. This may also indicate a direct connection to Senator Organa's intelligence network. At the same time, these rebels are not specifically
conducting operations against the Empire, in fact they are only ever shown plotting and fighting against the Fromm Gang. The ethical priorities of
the Jedi and the old Republic are clearly still alive despite both being gone from public life, as shown by Demma's reaction to the programming of
Trigon One to crash into the Fromm Gang's headquarters, saying, "no more satellite weapon, no more stronghold. Let evil destroy itself."
The struggle for freedom and an end to violence and oppression isn't limited to the fight against the Empire, and as Demma says "is everyone's fight."


FURTHER ANALYSIS
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