An obscure Star Wars villain returns after 40 years

40 years after his conception, the Star Wars villain who never had his day in the sun returns. Admittedly, this is an obscure character even by strict fan standards. It's as unknown as they come, but that only helps make the character's return all the more interesting.

Marvel Comics and Lucasfilm recently announced a new book titled “Star Wars: Jedi Knights.” The book comes from writer Marc Guggenheim (“Arrow”) and artist Madibek Musabekov (“Star Wars”). As for the overall timeline, it takes place around the “Fall of the Jedi” era before The events of “The Phantom Menace”. Aside from the rich story era that the prequels turn out to be, the book's intrigue revolves around Atha Prime's inclusion in the official canon. Readers would be forgiven for not knowing the name, but it's a villain whose roots can be traced back to the mid-80s after the release of Return of the Jedi.

Atha Prime was intended to be an action character released by Kenner to help keep Star Wars alive after the original trilogy ended. With toy sales dwindling, Kenner's idea was to keep the story alive through toys. Atha Prime was meant to be the big bad of this abandoned plot. Editor Mark Paniccia explained a press release how it all came about.

“While developing the series, Mark revealed this deep cut – the antagonist of Kenner's unrealized 'The Epic Continues' toy line. We saw the original design and were immediately sold. What a cool character to add to the canon, and what a perfect book. it's in!”

You can get a glimpse of the previous cover image. In addition to this toy packaging cover, there is also one that touches his large golden helmet. The character also appears on the cover of Star Wars: The Legacy of Vader, which you can also check out below. Pretty important, now Atha Prime joining the likes of “Shadow of the Empire” villain Prince Szyzor as abandoned characters that were later brought into the official canon by Lucasfilm.

This is far from the first time Lucasfilm has brought back an old character in the Disney era. quite famous Grand Admiral Thrawn makes his long-awaited return in Star Wars Rebels before becoming the main villain of “Ahsoka”. The difference here is that Thrawn was part of the very popular “Heir to the Empire” trilogy of novels. The same cannot be said for Atha Prime, known only to the most die-hard fans.

So what exactly is Atha Prime? Of course, the Guggenheim is going to put its own stamp on the hero in his official introduction. This means that Kenner (per Banta's skull) originally described Ahtha Prime as:

“The Emperor's death has unleashed a powerful force long held in exile on the far fringes of the galaxy. Now it moves like a plague, taking control of the shattered remnants of the Empire and re-enslave the newly freed worlds. Atha Prime, Master of Genetics, Ruler of the Dark Worlds and The architect of the Clone Wars is once again on the loose, destroying rebel outposts along the galactic border, his goal is to destroy the Rebel Alliance once and for all and control the Galaxy.

The mention of cloning is interesting a major factor in Palpatine's resurrection after his death in Return of the Jedi. Speaking of which, how will Atha Prime handle things in this age of relative peace in the galaxy? We'll have to wait until the book arrives in March, but the episode synopsis explains that he'll be getting it on with Obi-Wan Kenobi's former master, Qui-Gon Jinn.

“Star Wars: Jedi Knights takes place before The Phantom Menace and features legendary icons from the prequel trilogy like Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda and more, including fan-favorite characters and all-new Jedi. Each exciting issue.” follows another Jedi duo on major missions across the galaxy, united by one of the main threats, a villain targeting Qui-Gon Jinn death, and how will it force the Jedi Order to evolve into a new era?

Those interested can get the full story when Star Wars: Jedi Knights #1 hits shelves on March 5, 2025.