The Book of Boba Fett is shedding new light on the Star Wars universe, revealing further details about a galaxy far, far away. The newest episode, ‘Chapter 3: The Streets of Mos Espa‘ though had a particularly intriguing line that may have made one of the most universally reviled entries in the franchise canon.
In the new episode of the sci-fi series, the titular bounty hunter turned kingpin of crime gets a new pet to go with his palace, a rancor – the fearsome creature Jabba the Hutt tried to feed Luke to in Return of the Jedi. During the episode, Boba spoke to the beast’s handler discussing several misconceptions about the rancor’s nature, even revealing that it’s possible to ride them if they trust you.
Upon hearing this, Boba immediately declares he wants to ride his new pet to the shock of the handler. When questioned on the wisdom of this, Boba cryptically replies, “I’ve ridden beasts ten times its size.” But what is he on about? In the original trilogy, we never see Boba riding around on a giant monster, nor do we in The Mandalorian.
So what’s Boba on about? Well fun fact in his very first appearance Boba Fett does, in fact, ride a monster. No, not in Empire Strikes Back; that was only Boba’s first film appearance. He actually debuted in the much-maligned Star Wars Holiday Special.
The special, which was released around Christmas time in 1978, featured all our favourite Star Wars characters as they celebrated Life Day. It was made up of live-action and animated vignettes, one of which was a Boba Fett cartoon. This short had Boba meeting Luke and trying to capture him for Darth Vader.
During the cartoon, Luke is attacked by a huge monster resembling a pink brachiosaurus. Boba manages to wrangle the beast though leaping on its back and riding it away from Luke in an attempt to trick the young Jedi into trusting him.
Could Boba be referring to this strange cartoon creature? We can’t think of any other animal the bounty hunter has ridden? So the question is, did Disney just make Boba’s first appearance in the Star Wars Holiday Special canon?