Admiral Ackbar

Backstory Admiral Ackbar was best known for his appearance in the film Return of the Jedi, the final entry in the original Star Wars trilogy. However, before the May 1983 debut of that film, the character made his first chronological appearance in the Star Wars newspaper comic strip by Archie Goodwin and Al Williamson. the strip ran in newspapers across the United States from November 1982 to January 1983. an alien species of fish-like, amphibious humanoids with salmon-colored skin, webbed hands, high-domed heads, and large fish-like eyes, and who can breathe both on land and underwater. Ackbar demonstrates his tactical abilities by agitating water monsters in a ploy to raise the sunken Falcon from a mud swamp. a world almost entirely covered by water, where his species built giant floating cities. Ackbar is the leader of his home town, Coral Depths City, when forces from the Galactic Empire invade and nearly destroy the planet. Despite the Mon Calamari's attempts to make peace, the Imperial forces destroy several of their cities, steal their technology, and enslave its population. During this time, Ackbar learns much about both the Empire and military tactics in general, as well as about the Rebel Alliance and the Death Star, a moon-sized superweapon Tarkin is developing at the time. Ackbar takes detailed notes about what he observed with the hopes of eventually escaping back to his people and using the information against the Empire. Ackbar is freed from captivity during a failed attempt by Rebel forces to capture Tarkin. He joins the Rebel Alliance, Starting with the rank of Commander, Ackbar helps design the B-wing, a powerful line of starfighters. This success prompts Rebel leader Mon Mothma to promote him to Admiral, news he reacts to heavily due to the weight of the responsibility. He rises up the ranks until Mothma promotes him to commander of the entire Rebel fleet and head of military operations, as well as one of her top advisers. Ackbar personally leads the assault from his flagship, the Mon Calamari cruiser Home One. On Palpatine's order, Imperial forces launch a massive counterattack against the Rebel fleet with TIE starfighters and Star Destroyer capital ships, which leads Ackbar to realize that the fleet is heading into a trap. The Clone Wars , which is set roughly 20 years before the events of the first Star Wars'' film. Ackbar appeared in the first three episodes of the fourth season of the animated series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, which is set roughly 20 years before the events of the first Star Wars film. In the show, Ackbar is a chief adviser of the Mon Cala king, Yos Kolina, and captain of the Mon Calamari royal guard, where he hones the abilities that later serve him as an Admiral. Attempting to spark a civil war on the planet, the Separatists use Quarren insurgents to obstruct Mon Cala Prince Lee-Char's succession to the throne, and Ackbar attempts to protect Lee-Char and rally the Mon Calamari people as a battle for the planet begins. Sequel trilogy (2015), which was released 32 years after Return of the Jedi''. Admiral Ackbar appeared in the first two films of the Star Wars sequel trilogy, which were distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures after The Walt Disney Company acquired Lucasfilm in 2012. His character is retired from military service before the events of the films, but Leia Organa convinces him to come out of retirement to fight against the First Order, a military dictatorship that was formed from the remnants of the original Empire. He regains his prior rank of Admiral and serves as one of the leaders of the Resistance, a paramilitary organization led by Leia, who is now a General. Ackbar is in command of the Resistance fleet, with the Mon Calamari cruiser Raddus as his flagship. Ackbar is widely respected by the Resistance personnel as one of the few living commanders to have faced the Empire during the height of its power. Members of the cast and crew were particularly excited to film a scene with Ackbar. Ben Rosenblatt, a co-producer with The Force Awakens, said having Ackbar on the set was "the moment that meant the most to me, personally", adding: "Security has been so tight, we're not allowed to take pictures or anything, but I had to take a picture of Ackbar on set and show it to my brothers because we loved Ackbar." Gary Whitta, a writer who has worked on several Star Wars projects, said: "When I went to the set of The Force Awakens, the first thing I had to do was put on the Admiral Ackbar mask, and I did. It was a big deal, and I've always loved that character." In the trilogy's second film, Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017), Ackbar leads the Resistance as they evacuate their base on D'Qar, and orders the ships to jump to hyperspace to escape the First Order. The First Order fleet pursues the Resistance, sending Kylo Ren and other TIE fighters after the MC85 Star Cruiser Raddus, on which Ackbar and other senior Resistance leaders are aboard. First Order TIEs open fire on the main bridge of the Raddus, causing a massive explosion and blowing all occupants into the vacuum of space. Ackbar is killed, along with everyone else on the bridge except for Leia, who is saved by her use of the Force. Although Ackbar had no lines of dialogue during his death scene in the film, the comic book adaptation of The Last Jedi revealed that his last words were: "Torpedoes inbound. It's been an honor serving with you all." Whitta, who wrote the comic book adaptation, said he was saddened Ackbar died so quickly in the film, so he wanted to give him "a little bit of a moment before he dies". He was originally planned to appear in Rogue One (2016), a standalone anthology film separate from the sequel trilogy. During the initial screenwriting process, he appeared leading a space fleet during the climactic space battle at the end of the film. However, he was removed in later script revisions and his part replaced by Admiral Raddus, who, in an homage to Ackbar, was also a member of the Mon Calamari species. Other Star Wars media Although his role in the Star Wars films was relatively brief, Admiral Ackbar became a prominent character in the Star Wars Expanded Universe, which encompasses all licensed stories in the Star Wars universe outside of the nine main feature films, such as novels, comic books, video games, and television shows. With the 2012 acquisition of Lucasfilm by The Walt Disney Company, most of the licensed Star Wars novels and comics produced since the originating 1977 film Star Wars were rebranded as Star Wars Legends and declared non-canon to the franchise in April 2014. Legends continuity Ackbar was a central character in Strike Force: Shantipole, an adventure book for use with the Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game released in June 1988 by West End Games. Set before the chronological events of Return of the Jedi, the book portrayed Ackbar's secret development of the B-wing starfighters and his efforts to recruit the Verpine, the alien species building the ships, into the Rebel Alliance. In the storyline, the B-wings are designed in a research facility on an asteroid named Shantipole, and the project is nearly compromised by an Imperial spy, forcing Ackbar and other characters to repel an Imperial attack and escape. Ackbar appears in Dark Empire, a six-issue comic book series that detailed the resurrection of Emperor Palpatine, as well as Luke Skywalker's brief conversion to the dark side of the Force. In the comics, Ackbar and Mon Mothma attempts to lead the Rebel Alliance through the crisis, and Ackbar later organizes a response when his home world is attacked by the Empire's new superweapons, the World Devastators. In the Star Wars novels written between 1991 and 1998, He was a signatory on the formal declaration of the New Republic and one of nine individuals to join the New Republic Provisional Council, the initial governing body of this new form of government. Ackbar is part of the many mop-up operations that targets the Empire's dwindling territories, and the defeat of Imperial warlord Zsinj. Before his death, Zsinj brainwashes several aliens and forces them to make assassination attempts against several high-profile Rebel leaders, including Ackbar. Ackbar appeared in the Heir to the Empire trilogy of books written by Timothy Zahn and published from 1991 to 1993, which were widely credited with rejuvenating interest in Star Wars at the time. In those books, which are set five years after Return of the Jedi, Ackbar is instrumental in working with Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa, and Mon Mothma in reestablishing the New Republic and defeating Grand Admiral Thrawn, the new leader of the remaining forces of the Empire. Borsk Fey'lya, a political rival of Ackbar, exploits this and has him arrested and placed on trial, but Han Solo and Lando Calrissian obtain evidence that proves his innocence, and he is restored to his military position. Ackbar played a prominent supporting role in the Star Wars: X-wing series of novels, which detailed Ackbar leading the successful campaign to recapture the capital planet of Coruscant, among other events. Ackbar played a supporting role in the Jedi Academy Trilogy, a set of novels by Kevin J. Anderson released in 1994 and set two years after the Heir to the Empire trilogy. In those novels, Ackbar's personal starfighter crashes on the planet of Vortex in an incident that kills numerous innocent aliens and nearly kills Ackbar himself. In disgrace, he resigns from his post and retires to his home planet. It is later revealed that the crash was the result of Imperial sabotage, and Leia tries to persuade Ackbar to return to military service. Ackbar retires from military service before the beginning of The New Jedi Order series of Star Wars novels, It is revealed in The Unifying Force (2003), the final novel of the New Jedi Order series, that Ackbar dies of old age shortly before the end of the war, after which he receives a grand memorial service. His death, which occurs 29 years after the events of the first Star Wars film, does not occur within the prose of the novel; rather, the characters are notified that his death occurred. Ackbar has appeared in several Star Wars video games, starting with the 1993 LucasArts space simulation computer game Star Wars: X-Wing, Ackbar made an appearance in Star Wars Galaxies, an MMORPG developed by Sony Online Entertainment and first released in 2003. The game is set shortly after the events of the first Star Wars film, and Ackbar has a rank of Captain. Ackbar can be played as a hidden character in the Nintendo Wii version of the 2008 video game Star Wars: The Force Unleashed if the player entered the cheat code "ITSATWAP". Official canon Admiral Ackbar appeared in Star Wars: Aftermath, a 2015 canon novel by Chuck Wendig set immediately after the events of Return of the Jedi. During one passage, Ackbar made an impassioned speech, warning his fellow officials in the newly formed New Republic that while the Empire suffered a heavy loss with the death of Emperor Palpatine and the destruction of the Death Star II, the Empire was still a threat and the war was not yet over. In the novel, Ackbar participated in the New Republic's efforts to seek out the remnants of the Empire hiding in the Outer Rim region of the galaxy, and he communicated with his colleague Wedge Antilles before Antilles' disappearance on the planet Akiva, where much of the book's story was set. In ''Empire's End, Ackbar commanded the New Republic fleet during the Battle of Jakku, a decisive victory that resulted in the destruction of the Empire and the end of the Galactic Civil War. In an interview with USA Today, Wendig said Ackbar was his favorite established Star Wars'' character to write for in the novel: "One of the great things about the universe is that we have all of these characters who get a small amount of screen time but who impact us in huge ways. .. Ackbar for me was always this amazing, grizzled war veteran, and getting to inhabit him and his voice for the new book made me pretty giddy." Ackbar appeared briefly in the 2017 Star Wars Battlefront II video game developed by EA DICE. During the prologue of the story mode, in which Imperial agent and the game's protagonist Iden Versio has infiltrated a Mon Calamari cruiser, a hologram of Ackbar discussing the Rebel Alliance's plans to attack the second Death Star is briefly visible. A Mon Calamari named Aftab Ackbar, Admiral Ackbar's son, was created to appear as a minor character in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019), the final film in the sequel trilogy. He was created as a result of early script conversations between The Rise of Skywalker co-writers J. J. Abrams and Chris Terrio, who provided the voice for the character. Terrio was a fan of Admiral Ackbar and said he "went into mourning a bit" when the character was killed. The miniseries is set after the events of The Last Jedi, and features Leia Organa and her allies visit Mon Cala to seek allies and resources for the Resistance. Aftab assists her, and it is revealed that Admiral Ackbar was seldom present for Aftab's childhood due to his military career, but Aftab studying all of his battle tactics and still felt a strong connection to his father. during which he pilots a B-wing starfighter. ==Characterization==

Ackbar is portrayed as a military genius, with a masterful grasp of warfare tactics and strategy, a forward-thinking vision, and is widely admired and respected by his troops. and tends to be cautious and conservative, as demonstrated by his initial call for a tactical retreat during the Battle of Endor upon learning that it was a trap. He prefers to personally lead major assaults, fearlessly flying into the battlefield along with his soldiers. Ackbar is resourceful and uses outside-the-box methods to improve himself as an officer. For example, in the novel Aftermath, Ackbar practices with melee weapons against holograms of Imperial stormtroopers. Though he acknowledges that he is unlikely to face melee combat as a high-ranking officer, he engages in the practice because he feels staying proficient in fighting techniques helps him stay sharp, flexible, and ahead of his enemies. Ackbar also studies various forms of weaponry and fighting, and has strong design skills, made evident by his role in designing the B-wing starfighter. Ackbar is also regularly portrayed as wise, with a noble personality and a quiet but firm temperament. Rising from humble beginnings, he is a peaceful being who is forced to learn war due to tyranny of the Empire, and never stops working for peace despite understanding the necessity of war. Despite his success as a warrior, his actions are usually shown to be tempered by justice, honor, and concern. In the Star Wars sequel trilogy and other media set around that time period, Ackbar is portrayed as more gruff in his older age, during which he commands officers many years or even decades younger than him, sometimes referring to them as "fry". His dedication to his career and duty left little time for a personal life or romances, and as a result he does not have a family of his own, with the exception of two nieces. ==Concept and creation==

Conception In the original script for Return of the Jedi, Ackbar's appearance was more conventionally humanoid, with blue skin and more physically attractive; Star Wars creator George Lucas later decided he should be an alien creature instead, and gave the film's director, Richard Marquand, the option to pick a look for Ackbar from a collection of about 50 alien designs, despite Marquand's initial insistence that Lucas himself make the choice. Marquand picked a painting by concept artist Nilo Rodis-Jamero of an anonymous alien with no established backstory or personality. Co-author Paul R. Urquhart told the website TheForce.net said the name was taken from Gial Gahan, a Mon Calamari Senator character who played a minor role in the Star Wars: Legacy comic book series. The puppet and mask were created by the "Monster Shop" of Industrial Light & Magic, the motion picture visual effects company founded by Lucas. In close-up scenes of Ackbar that required dialogue, puppeteer Timothy M. Rose sat inside the chest of the character and operated the head like a traditional hand puppet from below. Rose moved the mouth using his hand, while Mike Quinn operated the eyes via cables. and the character's scenes took six weeks to shoot. Occasionally, members of the film crew jokingly referred to the Ackbar character as "Ernie Ackbar", and his name appeared that way on some of the film's progress reports. Although the character was created with the best available puppetry technology at the time, Lucas was not entirely pleased with the final result and felt it was a compromise. According to the book Star Wars Costumes: The Original Trilogy, published in 2014, the original masks used for the Ackbar costumes are "in a fragile state today." During filming of the 2005 Star Wars film Revenge of the Sith, Lucas was so impressed with the animatron mask used on the Mon Calamari character Meena Tills that he briefly considered reediting Return of the Jedi and replacing footage of Admiral Ackbar with an improved mask. This ultimately never occurred. ==Portrayals==

Timothy Rose Timothy Rose had been a puppeteer working on several projects for The Jim Henson Company (including The Dark Crystal), when Jim Henson directed him and others from the company to work on Return of the Jedi. Rose was frustrated by the amount of secrecy on the set, which he felt prevented him and the other actors from having everything they needed to do their jobs as well as possible. Many of Ackbar's scenes were cut from the first film, which Rose said was a disappointment to him "after waiting 30 years to reprise Ackbar". and had unsuccessfully auditioned to voice Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back. He was cast after Star Wars sound designer Ben Burtt approached him in 1983, while Bauersfeld was producing a radio drama with Lucasfilm sound designer Randy Thom and suggested he audition for the part of Ackbar. The recording session took one hour, and Bauersfeld made up the voice on the spot after looking at a photograph of Ackbar, without having any other information about the character. According to Bauersfeld: "I saw the face, and I knew what he must sound like." the video game Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2016), and the Disney attraction Star Tours – The Adventures Continue. Voice actor Artt Butler, who was a fan of Ackbar ever since watching the Star Wars films as a child, portrayed the character in the television series The Clone Wars. Breckin Meyer portrayed Ackbar in the Robot Chicken: Star Wars series, a Star Wars-themed version of the stop motion sketch comedy television series Robot Chicken on Adult Swim dedicated entirely to Star Wars parodies. Meyer, who also wrote for the series, called voicing Ackbar "my favorite (experience) in the history of the world". Meyer said he tries to mimic Ackbar's voice from Return of the Jedi as best he can, but that the humor comes through because "the actual voice is just funny". Robot Chicken co-creator Seth Green said of Meyer's performance: "When Breckin does Ackbar, it splits me every time. No matter what he says, it's always funny." ==Cultural impact==

Critical reception Despite his small role in Return of the Jedi, Admiral Ackbar is considered a fan favorite among Star Wars characters. No. 21 on IGNs list of the Top 25 Star Wars Heroes, Scott Chernoff, a writer for Star Wars Insider, called Ackbar's character "one of the most visually striking and memorable characters introduced in the final installment of the saga". Rebecca Hawkes of The Daily Telegraph credited Erik Bauersfeld in particular with "bringing the much-loved Ackbar to life, imbuing the fish-eyed orange monster with a voice, a forceful personality, and a lasting cult appeal". "It's a trap!" Admiral Ackbar's line, "It's a trap!", which he says during the Battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi, became one of the most famous and beloved lines from the original Star Wars trilogy. The line has become a popular Internet meme, Ben Sherlock of Screen Rant called the line "one of the most memorable quotes in the saga's history, for reasons that are unknown yet somehow obvious, and it immortalized what could've been a forgettable character". Renaldo Matadeen of Comic Book Resources called the line "a pop culture touchstone". "It's a Trap!", the 2011 episode of the animated comedy series Family Guy spoofing Return of the Jedi, took its name from Ackbar's famous line; Ackbar himself makes an appearance in the episode, portrayed by the character Klaus Heissler – a talking goldfish – from the animated series American Dad!. Additionally, a smartphone app was developed with the sole purpose of playing Ackbar's "It's a trap!" line whenever the user pushes a button. In 2018, the comic strip story in which Ackbar made his debut in 1982 was retroactively titled after the character's famous line. Kane likewise thought the death scene was poorly handled, and believed Ackbar should have been given the larger role in The Last Jedi that went to Vice-Admiral Amilyn Holdo, a new character played by Laura Dern. In The Last Jedi episode of the comedic animated webseries How It Should Have Ended, which parodies and reimagines aspects of popular films, Ackbar's character survives the bridge attack after claiming he has to go to the bathroom at the time the bridge is shot, and he assumes control of the Resistance afterward. Cultural references The first Admiral Ackbar action figure was released in 1983, the same year as Return of the Jedi. In 1996, Ackbar was one of the Star Wars characters to receive its own Micro Machines mini-transforming playsets by Galoob. The toy line included miniature versions of the head of each character, which opened to reveal a small set from the film and a figurine of the character itself. The Ackbar playset was sold as part of a collection that also included an Boba Fett and a Gamorrean guard. A Lego figurine of Ackbar was created and released as part of multiple Lego Star Wars toy sets, including with the Lego Home One Calamari cruiser in 2009, the Lego A-Wing Starfighter in 2013, and the Lego Resistance Troop Transporter in 2015. Ackbar's full-sized costume from Return of the Jedi was featured in a 200-piece exhibition of Star Wars costumes, props, and other memorabilia at the Smithsonian Institution called "Star Wars: The Magic of Myth". The exhibit opened at the Washington, D.C. museum complex in 1997 and later went on a national tour that lasted until 2002 and visited various museums, including the San Diego Museum of Art, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Toledo Museum of Art, and the Brooklyn Museum. Ackbar has repeatedly appeared in the Robot Chicken: Star Wars series, Several additional Ackbar skits were conceived but never completed, including one in which he is a Costco greeter, and another in which he contracts gonorrhea from a stripper and is told by a doctor "It's the clap!", in reference to Ackbar's famous line "It's a trap!" Morgan Phillips, an independent hip hop musician and disc jockey, included a song about the character called "Admiral Ackbar Please" on his album Star Wars Breakbeats. In 2010, when the University of Mississippi began a process to find a new mascot to replace Colonel Reb, students Matthew Henry, Tyler Craft, Joseph Katool, and Ben McMurtray started a campaign to have Admiral Ackbar selected. Although their efforts started out as a joke, some students began to seriously push for the idea, while others strongly opposed it and felt it was an embarrassment for the university. Some students went so far as threatening to transfer out of the school if he was chosen, and some prospective parents said they would not let their children attend there. The campaign quickly went viral and received national news media attention. Lucasfilm ultimately declined to give the school the rights to use the character, and issued a tongue-in-cheek statement about the matter which read: "The last time we checked in with Admiral Ackbar he was leading the Rebel Alliance Fleet on a critical mission so it will be difficult for him to show up for the games." A black bear was instead chosen as the new mascot. ==References==