2020 was a year. That might be selling it short, but we can all look back and either say “holy crap, how did we survive?” or we can be thankful for what 2020 gave us. In particular for Star Wars, it was a very important year. We got a new multimedia push from Lucasfilm, there was a second season of The Mandalorian, and of course all those announcements from the Disney Investor’s Meeting. But was there anything that you might have forgot? After all, January feels like twelve years ago, let alone, twelve months. These are the top ten Star Wars stories of 2020.

10. Star Wars: Squadrons Blasts Onto Gaming Consoles

Squadrons was a long time coming for fans of Star Wars games. We’ve had a bit of a drought of great games, and an even larger drought of great flight combat games. Luckily EA had Squadrons up their sleeve. While we might not be getting a sequel to Squadrons any time soon, it showed just what a flight combat game in the Star Wars universe was all about. For fans of the X-Wing and TIE Fighter games, this was a breath of fresh air.

9. Jake Lloyd’s Health Update

Jake Lloyd

While it’s never good that someone has problems, getting help is the first step to recovery. All the way back in January, his family let the world know that he’d be getting help for Schizophrenia and moving closer to his family. All of us in the Star Wars community are rooting for Lloyd and his road to recovery. Star Wars is lined with redemption stories, so hopefully Jake joins the likes of Ahmed Best and Hayden Christensen.

8. The Mandalorian Sweeps The Emmy Awards

Not only was the show nominated in EIGHTEEN categories, on award night, they took away five wins. This just goes to show that Star Wars TV is alive, well, and here to stay. The Mandalorian‘s quality shined bright on our screens and the people who worked tirelessly on it, have some gold to show for it. Without it, who knows where we’d be today in regards to Star Wars‘s future.

7. The Empire Strikes Back Takes The Top Slot At The Box Office, 40 Years Later

With the pandemic shutting down releases for new movies, back when it was a little bit safer, theaters were running old movies. One such movie that saw a load of traction, was The Empire Strikes Back. After forty years, the film took the top slot at the box office. It’s the likely consensus for “Best Star Wars film” and deserves that top slot after all those years.

6. The Mandalorian Soldiers On For Season Three Through COVID-Protocols

The story of the year is obviously the COVID-19 pandemic that is still sweeping the world. Productions around the world were halted. Shows that were in the middle of their runs, had to stop. But a glimmer of hope came in August. Due to the way that The Mandalorian is filmed on a sound-stage with a projected background, the show would have an easy time starting and keeping production safe for season three. COVID-19 might have brought the world to a halt, but it couldn’t stop The Mandalorian.

5. The High Republic Kicks Off A New Era Of Star Wars

Star Wars: The High Republic; light of the jedi
Image: Lucasfilm Publishing

What started off as the mysterious “Project Luminous” turned into The High Republic. Lucasfilm Publishing dropped a bomb on Star Wars fans with the announcement of an entire new era hundreds of years before the Skywalker Saga. We’re getting plenty of inventive, and new Star Wars content from this era already, this announcement was just the beginning!

4. Star Wars: The Clone Wars Season Seven Ties The Series Up

The CLone Wars
Image: Lucasfilm Ltd.

It may have happened earlier in the year, but the impact of The Clone Wars is felt on our screens to this day. The Mandalorian season two has plenty of nods to the animated series. In addition, anytime we get the end of a wonderful story like this, it’s hard for fans to accept. But season seven of The Clone Wars was a perfect cap, and a poignant way to end the series.

3. David Prowse Leaves Behind A Titanic Legacy

The man behind Darth Vader wasn’t just a great man, he was an inspirational man. David Prowse, died in late November and left a hole in Star Wars fan’s hearts. A bodybuilder, a voice of reason to look both ways before you cross in England, and of course the greatest villain in film history, he will be missed by fans around the world.

You always remember the bad guys.

David Prowse

2. Boba Fett Returns To Live-Action Star Wars In The Mandalorian

It was a dream of many Star Wars fan. To have the legendary bounty hunter Boba Fett grace our screens once again. It seemed like it would just be the realm of fan fiction, but instead we got something that I don’t think fans expected. Boba Fett was not only in a new Star Wars property, but he was given more character development than ever before. Leave it to Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni for crafting a narrative around one of the most popular characters and building upon his legacy.

1. Disney Shows Us Star Wars Is Here To Stay, Announces So Many New Shows/Movies

So many… new shows.

We got so much new Star Wars news from the Investor’s Day meeting, that it was hard to keep up with. It’s an exciting time for Star Wars, not only are we getting all these shows and movies, but we have other projects like The High Republic to look forward to. For the doom and gloom crowd out there, they sure are quiet now.

2021 And Beyond For Star Wars

The outlook for Star Wars seemed a bit bleaker at the beginning of the year. While it was a crazy year for all of us, Star Wars gave us plenty of things to look forward to. But it also allowed us to look back to the past, and fondly remember times of childhood and youth. That really is the crux of what Star Wars means to all of us. So here’s to an exciting 2021 and beyond for Star Wars.

For more on any other general pop culture, make sure to check back to That Hashtag Show.