Where Could Qi'ra Return Again?
Solo: A Star Wars Story, in my opinion, is in a category of its own making. It is a favorite of mine due to its unique direction and refreshing ideas away from the heavy-hitting events of the main storyline, much like how the future project titled The Acolyte could be. I think the origin of Han was done well and I wish we would get to see Alden Ehrenreich play the smuggler again (we won't, however, as Lucasfilm just announced this week that they are straying away from recasting iconic characters). That is not who I am here to talk about. The question that has been on my mind since I first saw Solo has always been "When will we see Qi'ra again?"
Qi'ra, played by the stunning Emilia Clarke, was introduced as Han's romantic partner in the first few moments of the film. Disaster struck and we see Qi'ra separated from Han. As the movie moves along, establishing Han's military past and introducing our favorite furball, Chewbacca, we did not catch another glimpse of her for a while. It made us question what happened and whether Qi'ra was going to reappear on screen again. Finally, she reappeared in the narrative, but not in the way you expect. She was now a full-fledge femme fatale, helping Dryden Vos run his criminal empire, Crimson Dawn. The adventure ensued and we got a massive reveal in the final moments of the film as Qi'ra and Han’s paths diverge. She solidified the movie’s running theme of "trust no one" and left to meet with none other than Darth Maul, Crimson Dawn’s shadow leader above Dryden Vos. That was the last time we see Qi'ra, aside from a small episode of Forces of Destiny.
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Since Solo: A Star Wars Story, fans have been clamoring to get Qi'ra back on screen. Personally, I thought that we would see Emilia Clarke make a surprise cameo, or even a mention, in The Book of Boba Fett. Of course, I was disappointed but still enjoyed the show. She is certainly my favorite non-Force user. Despite not being Force-sensitive, Qi'ra has been trained in the ways of Teräs Käsi, a form of hand-to-hand combat meant to be used against Force users. She is equipped with the tools needed to defend herself and it has been noticed by Darth Vader himself in her recent comic runs. That gives her a notable reputation of strength and solidifies her as a unique and impressive character that does not need to draw on outside influences for fighting. Being that she rose through the ranks of a crime syndicate to lead said organization, stole from a reputable figure, and kicked a Sith Lord around a bit while also forming a good relationship with the leader of the Rebellion, I would say Qi'ra is absolutely incredible.
I do have the pleasure of reminding you all that Qi'ra IS in fact rumored to be returning, it is just a matter of when. Currently, there is a good collection of stories that Qi'ra could potentially follow but there is one that absolutely sticks out above all the rest and that is the rumored Darth Maul Disney+ series. The series was announced last year but we have yet to get an update since. It is worth reminding again that this is still a rumor, so it could go any which way! It simply makes the most overall sense for Qi'ra to return in a series that could potentially focus on Maul's time as a crime syndicate leader. We saw small instances of this in the final season of The Clone Wars and it would be great to see it again in a live-action setting.
Currently, Qi'ra's last known location in the timeline of our favorite galaxy far, far away was before the original trilogy and after The Clone Wars. That leaves plenty of open space for a story to take place. My favorite comic book series Crimson Reign, which debuted in December 2021, already paved the way. Qi’ra’s story will fit right into the current theme of "the rebellion will be televised," especially since Qi'ra's part in the Rebellion allowed her to quite literally cross paths with Leia.
The best place for her to appear is between where Solo left off (13 BBY-10 BBY) and The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi began (3- 4 ABY). If my math is correct, this puts Qi'ra at the age of 35- 36 if she was 18- 22 years old during the events of Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Qi’ra has grown up quite a bit and has come into quite a successful criminal empire after the death of her previous boss Darth Maul. We could see her thriving on her own or we could see her relationship grow with Lando Calrissian (played by Donald Glover in Solo). After all, Lando is also supposed to be getting his own Disney+ project, and I am sure their paths would cross paths again. Either way, Qi'ra is a fantastic and well-rounded character that deserves far more screen time and I hope we get to see what has come of her sooner rather than later!
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Source(s): Digital Trends, ScreenGeek, Digital Spy