More probing even than the questions of Rey’s parentage, Snoke’s identity, or how in the name of physics Finn ended up with Poe’s coat is yet another inscrutable mystery with which viewers struggled throughout The Force Awakens: that of C-3PO’s new red arm. An arm so red that you may not have recognized him at first glance (or so the ever self-effacing protocol droid is likely to think). At long last, we’ve received an answer to our quandaries about Threepio’s rouge appendage—an answer in the form of a comic book!
The Star Wars special, C-3PO: The Phantom Limb, hits shelves today, as you may have read about in the latest installment of our weekly Pull-List. Not only does the issue earn distinction as one of Benjamin Bailey’s spotlighted worthwhile reads of the week, but it deigns to reveal a rather eventful and emotionally dense story behind why and how everybody’s second favorite OT droid (sorry, dude—still better than R5-D4!) ended up with a crimson prosthetic.
Note: Spoilers follow for Star Wars: C-3PO: The Phantom Limb
Courtesy of Gizmodo, the story introduces a protocol droid named Omri, who joins Threepio’s all-automaton rescue mission of Admiral Ackbar from the clutches of the First Order. Despite starkly different ideologies—Threepio, consistent to his character, boasts a pride in his willingness to serve his organic masters, while Omri laments the control humankind has over a droid’s body and mind—the two eventually come to a tacit understanding of one another, prompted by the shared trauma of knowing they’ve had their memories erased.
While Omri unearths some of Threepio’s hidden demons, Threepio manages to soften his comrade to the point where Omri willingly sacrifices his life to save Threepio — but not before Threepio loses his arm to the wrath of a tentacled monster — and a batch of information of great value to the Rebellion. From there on, Threepio’s sports that inimitable vermillion ulna in tribute to the droid (who shone red in a forgotten, “purer” lifetime) who gave his life for the cause.
Quite a classy act for a fellow who once damned his closest friend to die alone in the deserts of Tatooine in a fit of passive aggression.
Want even more Star Wars theories? Watch our breakdown of the latest Episode VIII rumors on Nerdist News:
Image Credits: Disney, Marvel Comics
Michael Arbeiter is the East Coast Editor of Nerdist. Find him on Twitter @MichaelArbeiter!
