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David Wadey has shared new concept art from the art book Doug Chiang: The Star Wars Legacy (available from Amazon). It shows a stunning battle over the skies of Coruscant, with the First Order conducting kamikaze tactics by crashing Star Destroyers on the city-planet. In the concept art, one is striking the old senate building.
The associated text reads:
“During the spectacular battle above Coruscant, Star Destroyers would have been used in a devastating way. ‘Coruscant was always described as an extremely fortified planet, so we wondered how the First Order could effectively attack it,’ Chiang recalled. ‘One concept was to use kamikaze Star Destroyers to obliterate entire districts.’”
The Battle of Coruscant Would Have Been the Perfect End to the Skywalker Saga
There’s something wonderfully appropriate about ending the Skywalker saga with a battle over Coruscant. The ecumenopolis was introduced in The Phantom Menace, where it was already subtly portrayed as the galaxy’s dark center, the place where the Sith threat has secretly taken root. In Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine deliberately staged the Battle of Coruscant to sacrifice Dooku and seduce Anakin Skywalker to the dark side. It is, therefore, so very fitting for the Empire reborn – the First Order – to be defeated over Coruscant.
The First Order tactic is actually adapted from the old Star Wars Expanded Universe, where an alien race called the Yuuzhan Vong successfully conquered the planet. They nudged Coruscant’s defensive orbital platforms out of orbit, dropping them on Coruscant and causing untold devastation. The First Order’s kamikaze tactic is likely even more destructive, since the Star Destroyers could have been flying at speed – perhaps even jumping into hyperspace when crashing down, duplicating The Last Jedi‘s Holdo Maneuver. The key difference, of course, lies in the fact the First Order strategy would have destroyed their own military too; it’s clearly a last resort.
Trevorrow’s script wasn’t perfect, of course. It feels far superior to The Rise of Skywalker, but Duel of the Fates nevertheless had some odd character arcs, and ironically felt as though it indulged in fan service in other ways that would have alienated general audiences. Still, the Battle of Coruscant seen in this concept art is absolutely breathtaking, and it’s a real shame we’ll never have the chance to see it.
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