In a recent episode of Star Wars Resistance, a fantastic one entitled “Descent,” Resistance spy Kazuda Xiono finally is able to get a message out to the Resistance asking for help, and he soon receives a reply.
As CB-23 later plays the message for Kaz in the company of others, General Leia Organa explains that they unfortunately cannot send any support. In doing so, she urges Kaz to join the Resistance at their secret base if he can. Here’s the entirety of Leia’s message:
“Kazuda, I have received your message. Our forces are few and divided, and as much as it pains me to say, we have no ships to spare. I’m sending the coordinates to the location of our next base. If you can leave Castilon, join us. You should know that throughout the galaxy many people are fighting oppression in any way they can. You are not alone, Kazuda. May the Force be with you.”
Knowing what we do of the films, it’s not surprising that this small Resistance isn’t able to send help. What I want to focus on instead here is Leia’s line about their next base. As Star Wars fans are wont to do (guilty as charged!), every line can and will be analyzed. So naturally, a segment of Star Wars fans was immediately curious as to what Leia meant, but the hard part is that there’s no clear and obvious answer.
Here’s the question: what base was Leia referring to?
I have mainly seen fans suggesting three options. I’ll list them here, though I’ll reject one of them (you’ll see why).
- D’QAR. This is the base we see the Resistance occupy during The Force Awakens and evacuate at the beginning of The Last Jedi. I think the natural assumption of the casual viewer is probably that this is the base Leia is referring to. The problem, however, is that Leia says she’s sending the coordinates of “our next base” (emphasis mine). We do not know for sure how long the Resistance has been at D’Qar, but based on the Poe Dameron comic and other media it sounds like they’ve been there for at the very least several months already, and quite possibly longer. It’s pretty strange wording, then, for Leia to indicate she’s sending the coordinates to the next base if she’s referring to the base the Resistance has already occupied and worked out of for a significant period of time.
- CRAIT. Another suggestion that I’ve seen a few fans suggest is that Leia is referring to Crait, but I think this option can be rejected outright based purely on The Last Jedi. In that film, the Resistance emerges out of hyperspace after evacuating D’Qar, and it’s made clear that they need to find a new base. But then the First Order attacks, and eventually they’re forced to head to the nearby planet of Crait, where an old Rebel base is, to hide. We get no indication in the film, therefore, that arriving at Crait was pre-planned; it seems that it’s entirely dependent on the dire circumstances of the moment.
- A FUTURE LOCATION. Since this surely wouldn’t be referring to the base on Crait and since the wording makes it seem like it’s not D’Qar, perhaps the most logical option is that it’s referring to a future location. The problem with this view is that this episode takes place right before TFA and therefore the Resistance wouldn’t need to be evacuating D’Qar yet because they don’t know what’s coming. However that problem can be easily explained by the reality that Leia surely is always scouting for future base locations, or at the very least has a working knowledge of potential hideouts. It also wouldn’t be surprising if she wants the option of jumping around so as to be harder to catch, and additionally with the Resistance aware of the threat of the First Order, Leia may have a backup plan (or several). So even though this would take place before there’s even a need to leave D’Qar, Leia having backup base locations isn’t surprising. Of course, in order for this to be correct, however, it’d have to mean that Leia was already planning on leaving D’Qar before the events of TFA, since she’s going to send Kaz to their next base. But if Leia has another place in mind, many fans have speculated that it’s Batuu – both because Jarek Yeager has a history with the planet (so as to create more storylines for season two) and because of Galaxy’s Edge opening up later this year. That’s a solid guess, but we’ll have to wait and see.
Ultimately, it’s not a big deal what Leia is referring to exactly, and I’m sure the majority of fans didn’t even think twice about it. The wording of Leia’s message, however, creates some difficulty to know what base she’s referring to, and I don’t think any of the options fit perfectly without some other questions. But I definitely think that the third option is preferable, as it’s not at all a stretch to suggest that Leia was constantly thinking and preparing for future bases.
Star Wars Thoughts 