Star Wars has made its way back to the small screen this summer thanks to the new series of animated shorts called Star Wars: Forces of Destiny. The latest to hit the web stars Princess Leia as she makes her way around Echo Base on Hoth. Unfortunately, she (along with Chewbacca and R2-D2) run into a particularly nasty wampa, and things get heated on the ice planet. Check out Leia and Chewie vs. a wampa in the new Forces of Destiny short!
The Forces of Destiny shorts have been answering questions about the Star Wars universe all week, and "Beasts of Echo Base" just answered a question I never knew I had: could anybody do better than Luke when it comes to dealing with wampas on Hoth? Apparently, yes! Both Leia and Chewbacca are better than Luke at not being mauled by wampas. No bacta baths for them! Who knew?
"Beasts of Echo Base" shows Leia and R2-D2 searching for Chewbacca on Hoth, circa Empire Strikes Back. Chewie ran into a wampa while digging out the corridors for Echo Base, and he needed Leia to step up and bravely distract the giant snow monster while he and R2 fixed a door that would lock it inside. Despite her lantern going out, Leia managed to outwit (and outrun) the wampa and escape.
Now I have to wonder if there was a back way out of the cave where Chewie and the wampa met. If not, the wampa may have starved to death, which we probably will not see in an upcoming episode of Forces of Destiny. If there was a back way, however, maybe this wampa escaped and retreated to a den, far away in the snow... until Luke and his tauntaun wandered into its territory. Whether there was a back way out of that cave or not, hopefully Leia went back to put a "DO NOT ENTER" sign on the door.
This wampa short marks the second time we got to see Leia in action as a Forces of Destiny heroine. Her first episode finally answered a super-specific question many of us have had about a certain Return of the Jedi plot point. The other two heroines who have starred in Forces of Destiny shorts so far have been Rey and Ahsoka (who reunited with Anakin and Yoda). There are many shorts still to come, as we know characters like Padme, Hera Syndulla, Jyn Erso, and Sabine Wren will show up in shorts of their own. In fact, we already know that Hera's involvement in one short will answer a huge question question from Star Wars Rebels, and we haven't even seen her on Forces of Destiny yet!
The Forces of Destiny shorts have been released daily this week on the Disney YouTube page, and a special half hour event will air on Disney Channel on July 9. Be sure to tune in to catch more Star Wars action while we wait for Star Wars Rebels Season 4 and The Last Jedi to be released. Our summer TV schedule can guide you to your other viewing options as well.
