Love’s Integral Place in the Star Wars Saga

Han Solo and Leia Organa are one of the most widely known and well-loved couples in the science fiction world. These two main characters are intertwined from the time they meet each other in the prison block of the Death Star until Han’s fateful final encounter with Kylo Ren. Both of their characters evolve independently and their relationship progresses with them. The audience is able to view this relationship in many different settings and even across multiple mediums, all of which provide depth into a dynamic that can sometimes be mistaken as shallow. This mistake often limits the scope of what we can infer from Han and Leia’s relationship in terms of an overarching message from Star Wars.

Relationships are rare in Star Wars; other than Padme Amidala and Anakin Skywalker in the prequels, Han and Leia have the only steady relationship in the saga. While there is no lack of familial ties, this lack of even peripheral relationships can make it seem like the Star Wars universe is all but devoid of love. When thinking of ways to view the films, we have explored lenses such as Gothicism, dualism, and imperialism. However, I am analyzing them pertaining to love. This is what makes Han and Leia’s bond is so integral to the narrative: their evolution reveals how important love actually is in the galaxy and how large a role it plays behind the scenes.

While investigating this idea, I quickly realized that there are two categories that the few pieces of scholarship on this topic fall into; gushing over the perfection of their relationship (Heddle) or trying to portray Star Wars as a romantic comedy (Geraghty). The former topic is understandable, as Han and Leia are both very likable and charismatic characters that carry weight in the story. It is far too shallow though, as I am using their relationship to view the whole saga and not just their interactions. I also disagree with the comparisons to romantic comedy. Although Han, in particular, is used for comic relief every so often, as I stated earlier relationships are simply not prevalent enough in the Star Wars universe to consider it a romantic comedy. I am making an addition in this niche of scholarship, which resulted in me relying almost solely on my analysis of the films and alternate mediums to provide a unique perspective.

Han and Leia do a lot more for the narrative than it seems at first glance. They go a step beyond developing a memorable relationship filled with galaxy-saving moments. They give the audience a window to connect personally with the rebellion, such as the medal ceremony on Yavin, and give us a new lens through which to view the Rebellion against the Empire, as they did on Bespin. This all occurs while they define and exemplify love in Star Wars and give it meaning to the narrative. 

Possibly the most important reason Han and Leia’s relationship was incorporated was to humanize the rebellion and allow the audience to sympathize with their plight. This is emphasized given the fact that they stand out as the singular relationship and both are important pieces of the rebellion. This automatically generates sympathy for their cause, as it draws the audience’s attention to the people in the rebellion and not just their cause as a whole. This is introduced immediately, with Han’s line “What do you think? You think a princess and a guy like me…?” (Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope). The prompt introduction of his feelings puts their dynamic, although currently extremely one-sided, on the table and in the minds of the audience. It also breaks his character of the hardened rogue with a tunnel vision on the reward for the first time, which will have implications to come. However, the audience is originally torn between Han and Luke fighting for Leia. Leia kisses Luke first, creating a friendly rivalry between the two and it seems like Leia is going for Luke until we eventually realize they are siblings. Han and Leia’s connection is reinforced at the end of A New Hope in the medal ceremony scene.

No words are spoken, but the shared gaze combined with Han’s slick wink and a smirk (Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope) conveys the message: there is an obvious connection. Placing this moment at the end of the film allows us to retrospectively look at what took place during the film now that their relationship is on the horizon. We can reevaluate some of their interactions, most notably to me their escape from the Star Destroyer in the trash, and see how their dynamic is developing. It is slow and persistent but not forced, and you can see Han eventually start to get through to her by the closing scene. This sets up The Empire Strikes Back perfectly, as it is the film where we see them develop as a singular unit the most. 

While A New Hope sets the scene for the impending relationship, The Empire Strikes Back expands their reach to the entire Star Wars universe. It begins with the film release poster (“1980 The Empire Strikes Back Posters”), where they are immediately shown in a deep embrace. They are also immediately placed at the forefront to the audience with their interaction in the tunnels of Hoth. The decision to advertise and open the movie with their relationship moves it beyond just Han and Leia, especially given the circumstances. With a looming Imperial attack and the rebels not particularly organized, their relationship can be pulled back to represent the whole rebellion. There are no real, personal, loving connections made by members of the Empire with each other, and it is purposefully portrayed as cold and emotionless. Contrast that with the raging emotions of not just Han and Leia but all of the rebels and how they are portrayed as warmer and more human, and it becomes obvious that love is being equated with the good side. This can be used as a lens to view the entire saga: not just good against bad or rebellion against Empire, but love against hate. Without the sense of love that had been built around Han and Leia’s connection, the fight could be viewed as nothing more than Empire versus Rebellion.

The culmination of Han and Leia’s relationship as we see it is two-fold in The Empire Strikes Back. Firstly we have the famous kiss in the Millenium Falcon while they are on the run from the Empire (Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back). This represents the height of the tension between these two until C3PO interrupts. Interestingly, while I was researching I found a deleted version of this scene where the two embrace for about 15 seconds longer before C3PO comes in.

This change alters the whole narrative of Han and Leia in the film. The deleted scene is much more affectionate and most importantly, Leia reciprocates and even initiates a second, longer kiss. The scenes are also framed differently. The deleted scene is further zoomed in, with there being one frame where almost the entire screen is covered by Han and Leia’s faces locked together. We also aren’t able to clearly see Leia walking away as we do in the movie scene. This scene, if it had made it in the final cut, would have eliminated any possible confusion about Leia’s feelings towards Han. However, the scene that makes the movie cut leaves some slight ambiguity on her part given the brevity of the interaction and how we can see Leia quickly leaving. This creates a slight tension which leads to arguably Han and Leia’s most memorable interaction of the whole saga. As Leia finally voices her feelings in the carbon freeze chamber for everyone to hear, Han replies perfectly for the moment.

His line “I know” (Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back) serves the purpose of more like “We know,” as in the whole audience already knows this yet they are both just projecting it for the universe to hear. An interesting detail I found about this scene is that line, which has become one of the most famous quotes from the saga, was not in the script. Han was scripted to respond, “Just remember that, ‘cause I’ll be back” (Nguyen). Harrison Ford’s call to switch these lines resulted in a farewell more fitting of the characters, and one that emphasizes the line “I love you.” This is important because there are Imperial members present in this scene, and this is one of the only times “love” is mentioned explicitly around them, which again makes them look cruel and the rebellion seem like more relatable and humanistic characters.

On the other hand, another element that further drives their relationship to the heart of the narrative is their character growth, and how not only do they change independently of each other, which has already been studied fairly regularly, but how one changes the other. This also directly separates my analysis from something such as Jennifer Heddle’s work, which is a direct appreciation of their relationship as it is. By acknowledging both individual and unified development throughout the saga, it is realized that it is not a perfect relationship as Heddle’s line of thought suggests. Two instances of Han and Leia developing struck me as I was browsing Star Wars media, the first of which refers back to Han’s “I know” line to Leia. On Endor, the two run into Imperial trouble and are cornered. Thankfully Leia is holding onto a concealed blaster, prompting Han to say “I love you” and her to respond “I know.” (Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi) This direct line switch completes the arc of their relationship while also reminding the audience of A New Hope, where Han was moving the relationship almost by himself and how far they have come since then. It also shows Leia’s evolution from a princess in white robes to an experienced soldier and in love with the scoundrel she was previously skeptical of. However, Return of the Jedi does open itself up to criticism on the topic of Han and Leia’s role. They have significantly less of a role in the “galaxy-saving” aspect of the film and keep their hands full fighting sideline battles on Endor. While this could just be Luke completing his journey, it undoubtedly detracts from the suspense and danger this had provided their relationship in the previous two films. This exclusion does not impact their importance in the universe but leaves something more to be desired from their roles in the film.

The second piece of character development I thought to be important comes from the graphic novel Star Wars: Han Solo which details the adventures of Han returning to smuggling after he has been introduced to Leia and the rebellion. His line that stood out to me was “Somethings not right with me. For once, I’m worried about something besides myself” (Liu 67). This line comes as he is stopped at an Imperial holdup and his thoughts dart to Leia and why he did all of this. This ties back into the character arc of Han introduced that I covered in pages 2-3. His self-awareness even soon after he meets her starts to break down this seemingly hardened character into what we see by Return of the Jedi; a loyal, decorated war hero in love with the rugged, army general Princess. This is a vast evolution from A New Hope, such that Han is respected and doing important things for the Rebellion and Leia is reciprocating the feelings towards Han.

There was never any doubt Han and Leia were main characters in the films. However, this thorough analysis reveals they provide a dynamic that proves integral for the entire narrative and is used to exemplify love, a rare theme in the universe. Many scenes from the original trilogy along with deleted footage and graphic novel interpretations provide a solid base for the argument that love is far more important than it seems to Star Wars. Love is a unifying theme in real life and Star Wars both, and one thing rose to my attention when looking at this topic: love always wins. Whether it is on a personal level such as Leia rescuing Han from the carbon freeze, or a holistic picture such as the rebellion defeating the Empire against all odds, love always turns out to win in this story.

 

Works Cited

“1980 The Empire Strikes Back Posters.” https://www.starwarsarchives.com/dt_gallery/1980-posters/

Geraghty, Lincoln. “Love’s Fantastic Voyage: Crossing Between Science Fiction and Romantic Comedy in Innerspace.” ProQuest. Brownsville, Vol. 41 Iss. 1. https://search.proquest.com/docview/234918417?pq-origsite=summon

Heddle, Jennifer. “Han and Leia: Why They’re Perfect Together.” https://www.starwars.com/news/han-and-leia-why-theyre-perfect-together

Liu, Marjorie. “Star Wars: Han Solo.” Marvel, 2017.

Nguyen, Christine. “The Story Behind Han Solo’s Line ‘I Know’ in The Empire Strikes Back.” Vulture, 16 Nov. 2016. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A470428657/ITOF?u=nysl_se_vassar&sid=ITOF&xid=b5cf0b6e.

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Directed by George Lucas, Twentieth Century Fox, 1977.

Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. Directed by George Lucas, Twentieth Century Fox, 1980.

Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. Directed by George Lucas, Twentieth Century Fox, 1983.