Just when you thought you knew everything there was to know about Solo: A Star Wars Story, a fan with the skillset of a Bothan spy comes across something intriguing that links to A New Hope and beyond.
We all know Dr. Evazan, right? The Mos Eisley Cantina patron who gives Luke Skywalker a hard time and ends up coming a cropper at the hands of Obi-Wan’s lightsaber. Well, The Art of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story details subservient half-headed beings known as The Decraniated, who were seen as servants onboard Dryden Vos’ yacht in Solo.
Described as the result of “ghastly medical techniques perfected by a fugitive surgeon known to inhabit the Holy City,” it can only point to Evazan, who along with henchman Ponda Baba, accidentally bumped into Jyn Erso and Cassian Andor of Rogue One in the Holy City of Jedha.
Whereas that appearance by the doctor seemed hemmed in and unnecessary fan-servicing (can the guy really only say three different sentences?), this background detailing is rewarding for any deeply-invested viewer. Details such as this would largely go unnoticed if not for visual guides but they allow Solo to add further texture to the Star Wars Universe, similarly to L3’s tie-in to the Original Trilogy.
A New Hope saw Dr. Evazan as a bit player, but like so many others, he got the Extended Universe treatment across a series of books. His story details a promising surgeon, whose penchant for creative surgery leads to madness, murder and a bounty on his head which ironically, leads to his own disfigurement.
Interestingly, The Decraniated reminded this fan of Lobot, Lando Calrissian’s right-hand man from The Empire Strikes Back. Here’s hoping that’s something we get to see in a possible Solo: A Star Wars Story sequel.