Dash Retcon
I’m not a big fan of retcons, especially when they are just excuses to shoehorn in new major characters; characters that obviously didn’t belong in a scene for any other reason than to let a player relive action from Empire Strikes Back. If I wanted to do this, I would want to do through Han, Luke, Leia, or Chewie… or even one of the Hoth Sergeants or Tech Officers. I’ll run around blowing up Wampas and Imperial forces until my heart’s content. But create a third generation rip-off of Han Solo and stick him into the mix and things start feeling a little less like Star Wars.
Dash Rendar was the hero of the Shadows of the Empire video game for Nintendo 64. His story actually begins immediately before the Empire attacks the Rebels at the Hoth Base. A battle in which he now takes a significant, largely uncredited part (most casual fans don’t even know who Rendar is, or what Shadows of the Empire is! But that’s okay, you aren’t missing much). He not only fends off the Imperial Walkers, but does battle with Snowtroopers and Wampas inside the collapsing Rebel base. You can watch some of this scene via the Youtube link below.
Dash, like his name suggests, is supposed to be a dashing rogue. The Brothers’ Hildebrandt turned him into a 1980s steroid pumping super hero, while the Dark Horse comics opted for a more 90s, grunge inspired, stubble wearing appearance. Both versions however had the same personality. Dash was a charmless Han Solo substitute, most likely introduced to compensate for the lack of any Han Solo during this bizarre multimedia sequel to Empire Strikes Back. That fact he is a cocky smuggler with a high opinion of himself might have been more palatable if, like Han Solo, he was used as comic relief. However, like I said, he lacks any charm to make up for his arrogance and his appearance belongs in the comic universe, nowhere else.
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 (Left) Rob Liefield’s Cable from X-Men, (Above) Tim and Gregg Hildebrandt’s Dash Rendar from the Shaodws of the Empire Card series |
Dash reminds me of one of those over-the-top muscle-bound super heroes from the X-Men comics in the 1990s. Leanne took the liberty of adding the X-Men belt buckle as a subtle joke.
Did I mention that he flies around in what is obviously a ship that is inspired by the Millennium Falcon called the Outrider? His version of Chewbacca is a droid named Leebo who is obviously less insane and heroic and worries his boss might be pissing off the reader / player / listener audience. Poor Leebo. Perhaps, if he’s lucky, he’ll wind up in the Dune Sea and be salvaged by Jawa traders!
Leanne was excited about designing the BMS Dash Rendar and she really didn’t exagerate his look THAT far when you consider how enormous the Hildebrandts decided to make him. Anyway, who needs Dash Rendar when you have Han Solo…. Oh shit… wait! I hope they get Han Solo back soon!
I’ll be paying tribute to the late, Richard LeParmentier “Admiral Motti” in Friday’s upcoming blog.
Whoa… what version of the game is that from? I had the shitty N64 version where all the cut scenes were still frames with text captions.
Still, though, I loved that game.
if you want game slike these from the 90’s that are actually good, great even, then play the jedi knight series starring kyle katarn & co. you can buy them super-cheaply on steam. there’s evena bundle called “jedi knight bundle” that let’s you save more. i totally recommend you buy it! (jedi knight: dark forces II – sequel that has nothing to do with the first kyle katarn game which was only segret agent-stuff, no jedism- jedi knight: mysteries of the sith, jedi knight II: jedi outcast, and jedi knight: jedi academy)
Love the buckle! The subtle inside jokes are always wonderful.
Please, oh please. Tell me there wasn’t a Star Wars/X-Men crossover…
YES YES There was! there was even a Dr. McCoy Joke since both Universes have one.
It’s Chewie’s expressions that are probably going to be the most fun in this strip.
Agreed, but in reading this comic I’ve become a fan of Leia when I wasn’t before.
Is that around when the Power of the Force action figures came out, with the musclebound Han Solo, Darth Vader, Lando, etc.? Those are weird. I wonder what a Power of the Force Dash Rendar figure would look like.
I have seen it. it’s actually not far off from leanne’s version we see here!
Dash Retcon, that’s like going back and making it so Greedo shoots first….
Pssssh, who would do something inane and totally unnecessary like that?
Looks like Dash can draw a sword out of nowhere and Yell “By the Power of Greyskull”. He could definitely fit in on Eternia.
I wanted a version of the game, where all his guns were visible at once. He carried as many as 10 at a time, if I recall correctly.
He looks like Johnny Bravo, but not as smart as JB.
Rendar was so annoying and egotistical he even pissed off the characters (i.e.Luke) in the novelization!
Steve Perry (author of the tie-in novel) obviously hated writing Rendar into his chance at imagining the GFFA. EVERY charater Rendar interacts with hates him. Parry pulls a reverse Mary-Sue and has Luke dislike Rendar immediantely, and basicly say he’s a cheap Han rip-off up front.
I never made the link between rendar and cable, but now that you mention it…
To the BMS creators,
You guys as always know how to make me laugh and giggle with glee at your sense of humor. As you mention Cable from X-Men / Marvel universe, I was hoping you’d throw in Deadpool, the merc with a mouth and have him bust down the 4th wall as his character typically does; in your own style of course.
I realize, you all work hard for us fans and I’m being selfish by asking this, but if you could that would be epic!
Thank you again for always brightening up my week!
Sincerely,
A Walker of the Nightside
Love this strip 🙂
I actually really liked the novel & the n64 game (which totally looked worse than that video!) but I was also in my early teens back then, too, and SOTE was one of the first really good Star Wars games (aside from the venerable TIE Fighter). It was quite obvious that Dash was a Han wannabe, and that many of the scenes were OT rip-offs, but it was still lots of fun.
Mostly, I was just psyched to see the back story to the completely confusing phrase by Mon Mothma about many Bothans dying to acquire plans for DS2. That part, at least, was cool.
My only involvement with SOTE was the N64 game. Which I found awesome and very Star Wars-y. Plus they were coming off a string of solid SNES games who all followed the movie pretty closely.
It never bothered me too much that Dash was a very poor fill-in for Han Solo. Yes, every aspect of him is a lame version of all that is Han Solo, right down to the ship, but the game was good enough and its universe was Star Wars enough for me to (very much) enjoy.
Granted, you started off on Hoth taking down AT-ATs, which was almost insulting when you consider the scope and importance of that scene in the movie and the fact that any major character/heroic act would have been shown or hinted at right there and then. What it did good is bring me to Star Wars places I wouldn’t have gone to as Luke/Leia/Han and give a fresh perspective on the familiar settings (fleeing Hoth, for example). I remember it fondly for it.
It is rather unfortunate that the Dash Retcon includes the idea that, not only did he participate in the Battle of Hoth and take down an AT-AT, but that he was in fact his own gunner.
Personally, I always took the game with a grain of salt I figured two of the three AT-ATs you destroy were the ones actually destroyed by Wedge/Janson and Luke. In addition, logically Dash should have had a gunner, even if Dash appears next to his snowspeeder after the level seemingly alone. After all, Luke was picked up by his X-Wing outside, so why not Dash’s gunner as well.
Essential Guide to Warfare has taken what is essentially a case of fans taking a game too literally and effectively makes cannon his not having a gunner. Personally, I’m just going believe that somewhere out there is a nameless gunner who, like Janson, made a great shot only to have Dash claim he was in that snow speeder alone and take all the credit for himself.
That being said, it was still a fun game.