Spoilers for The Book of Boba Fett
The Star Wars sequel trilogy saw the destruction of the New Republic’s main systems by the First Order, and now the Disney+ shows like The Book of Boba Fett are starting to explain how the New Republic was defeated so easily. It had already become clear that the New Republic was inactive and foolish, even in the sequel trilogy. The newer Disney+ shows, however, have managed to expertly expand upon this concept and set them up for their failure years before it happened.
The Mandalorian, and now The Book of Boba Fett have shown viewers a slew of stories, characters, and locations set in a previously unseen era, while seamlessly tying in various parts of Star Wars lore. Elements of the New Republic are being dropped into the new Disney+ shows, showing their presence in the galaxy, making the New Republic’s sequel trilogy fate even worse. Ultimately, however, as fun as all of the references and interactions with the New Republic are, there is a key underlying tone that hints at their weakness, and why they are doomed to fail.
While not explicitly said out loud, there are major hints of corruption within the New Republic. Star Wars famously mirrors the beats of real-life history on a frequent basis, from the Vietnam war to the rise of the Nazi party in Germany. It seems as if the New republic somewhat mirrors Weimar Germany, the weak democratic transition state between the German Empire and the Nazi Regime. In the case of Star Wars, the New Republic is the weak democratic transition state between the Galactic Empire and the First Order. Moff Gideon’s past is a mysterious one, as he was believed to have been executed for war crimes by the New Republic, as Cara Dune says. However, he is very much alive and prominent, hinting that the Republic’s bureaucracy is weak and corrupted with Imperial sympathies, mirroring the Weimar republic as its real-life counterpart.
Aside from potential corruption and institutional weakness, it seems as if the New Republic doesn’t have the desire, nor the manpower to secure the galaxy. The Empire was willing to clamp down on its occupations across the galaxy with military force and brutality, whereas the Republic’s presence in the outer rim has been limited to small patrols of X-wings. While one of the pilots himself has shown a keen eye for spotting Imperial movements in the outer rim in The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett equally shows their lack of desire to fill out reports. These teases of the canceled Dinsey+ spinoff, Rangers of the New Republic are a fun nod, but also prove that the New Republic doesn’t pay enough attention to the ongoing events outside of the Galactic Core, and even those that do care seemingly don’t have the patience to do their work properly.
This policy (or lack thereof) by the New Republic at first glance looks like mere negligence and seems to do little more than shrink the scope of their influence in comparison to their predecessor. As the sequel trilogy demonstrated, and now shows like The Book of Boba Fett work to set up, this negligence allowed the rivals of the New Republic to build up with relative comfort in the outer rim. The Mandalorian Season 2 has already hinted at the emergence of a new threat growing in the unknown regions, with Grand Admiral Thrawn set up as a villain, not to mention the various other imperial remnants shown to still be occupying other worlds in the outer rim, many of whom are under Moff Gideon. While the New Republic isn’t under direct threat, this seems to be more because the enemies of the Republic have chosen to bide their time, not because they are weak.
Ultimately, with enemies growing in power and influence in the Outer Rim, all while the New Republic pays little attention to this growing threat, their incompetence and weakness become clearer and clearer. Ultimately, with shows like The Book of Boba Fett shedding a light on this new era of political chess in the Star Wars universe, it’s beginning not only to show how the Empire transformed into the New Order but how the New Republic was defeated so easily.
