Roderick: "Will we see the Falcon in Episode 1 of the Prequels? Or will it appear in one of the later Prequel Episodes? Although there have been some rumours about this on the Web (some of which where definately false!), nothing is certain. Christopher McElroy is convinced will see the Falcon in the Prequels and wonders if we can reconstruct an approximation of the Prequel Falcon. He mailed his suggestions to me and to someone I believe to be the ultimate expert on the web regarding the Millenium Falcon: Robert Brown.  
Robert Brown is not only the author of some hilarious pictures on John Cox "SW Pants" page, but also the webmaster of an incredible website about the Millenium Falcon, with a stunning amount of information about the "fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy"  
Here's Christopher's letter and Robert Brown's reaction. You can mail me your own thoughts about the Prequel Falcon, and if there are some artists among you who are inspired by the descriptions of Christopher and Robert Brown: send in your version of the Prequel Falcon! Your artwork will certainly be displayed here!"  

> FEB 5  

Christopher McElroy wrote: "I've been hit with some inspiration. We KNOW the Millenium Falcon is going to appear at some point in the Prequels -- if not Episode One, then certainly Episodes Two and Three. I'll go a step farther and reiterate my belief that Ben Kenobi will be the surprise captain of the Falcon, with the CGI creature Jar-Jar Binks as co-pilot. Now, we all know the Falcon will not look the way we remember it. Using what we know about both the Falcon's history and the Prequels' general look, I believe it may be possible to reconstruct a fair approximation of the Prequel Falcon. Mr. Brown, I'm including you in this letter because you are THE pre-eminent expert on the Falcon, and your expertise would be much appreciated in this project.  
   
>From where I'm sitting, here's what we COULD change:  
   
Looking over the Falcon model, there are several plates not painted white. In fact, they're either burnt orange or gunmetal gray. I'm assuming those are the Falcon's original colors. The reconstructed paint job would likely be irregular as hell. The cockpit would likely need simplifying, with windows removed or rearranged. Possibly something like the early "linear" Falcon's cockpit.  

The navigational dish and gun turrets would need to be replaced with more ornate, "Flash Gordon" style versions. The extra cargo space on either side of the gun turrets leading to the airlocks could be eliminated to give the ship a flatter, more rounded saucer shape. I'm guessing the Falcon to be about 30 years old at the time of the Prequels. Possibly originally owned by Ben's father. Built as a stock freighter, it would still be like that, with only the two early gun turrets added (no underside swivel gun). I doubt Ben was a smuggler, so the engines could be earlier, less fast versions. (the raised engine platform with the six vents could also be removed for a flatter saucer shape)."

Here are Robert Brown's comments:  
   
> We KNOW the Millenium  
> Falcon is going to appear at some point in the Prequels -- if not  
> Episode One, then certainly Episodes Two and Three. I'll go a step  
> farther and reiterate my belief that Ben Kenobi will be the surprise  
> captain of the Falcon, with the CGI creature Jar-Jar Binks as co-pilot.  

I've always felt there may have been something in that line "My father was a navigator on a spice freighter" ... so maybe Anakin is assistant to Ben or someone else on the ship?  

> Now, we all know the Falcon will not look the way we remember it. Using  
> what we know about both the Falcon's history and the Prequels' general  
> look, I believe it may be possible to reconstruct a fair approximation  
> of the Prequel Falcon.   

EXCELLENT idea! :)  

> Mr. Brown, I'm including you ....  

you're *WAY* too kind! - happy to help, its fascinating! :)  

>> From where I'm sitting, here's what we COULD change:  
> Looking over the Falcon model, there are several plates not painted  
> white. In fact, they're either burnt orange or gunmetal gray. I'm  
> assuming those are the Falcon's original colors.   

its been suggested that these plates are "add-ons" - extra armour. in fact if you buy into the apocryphal novels then thats exectly what they'll be as soon as Ann Cripins next HanSolo book hits the shelves (she contacted me about this stuff a while back - she's gonna say solo ripped some armour from an old freighter or something)  

so, IF thats true, then the colours on the plates maybe have no bearing on the original colour of the falcon ... maybe.  

> The reconstructed paint  
> job would likely be irregular as hell.  

another reason to doubt it ... the factory paint job is probably smooth.  

> The cockpit would likely need simplifying, with windows removed or  
> rearranged.   

less control panels certainly .. maybe those ones behind and above the pilot & co-pilot ... BUT then again, these are the ones operated in the battle of endor by the extra two cockopit crewmen .. perhaps they were always there!  

> Possibly something like the early "linear" Falcon's cockpit.  

maybe.  

the ships insides will have a helluva lot less loose cables and stuff lying around of course, and maybe those "cream" wall-lining cushions would be everywhere.   

> The navigational dish and gun turrets would need to be replaced with  
> more ornate, "Flash Gordon" style versions.   

there may be no guns at all perhaps .. but I think there'd probably be some .. maybe a single barrel each.  

the "dish" could be a rectangular one - like the Blockade Runner! would be poetic justice, as the Runner l;ost its round one to the falcon when the designs changed! ;)  

> The extra cargo space on  
> either side of the gun turrets leading to the airlocks could be  
> eliminated to give the ship a flatter, more rounded saucer shape.  

I'd tend to disagree with this one .. I think these "arms" are an integral part of the design .. they are the ships main entrance/exit/loading facilities ... just about every version of the falcons early designs had them, or something VERY close to them.  

remember, the earlier falcon will be a workhorse, not a racehorse - "smooth" doesnt matter much! (just my 2c) :)  

> I'm guessing the Falcon to be about 30 years old at the time of the  
> Prequels. Possibly originally owned by Ben's father.   

is he correllian? - doesnt have to be but maybe?  

if she's already 30 yrs old then she'll be a *bit* beaten up already, but nowhere near as much as now!  

> Built as a stock freighter, it would still be like that,   
> with only the two early gun turrets added (no underside swivel gun).   

I agree (see above)  

Anne Crispin also now says that the swivel gun is an add on (at my insistance) .... and while she has Han adding it BEFORE the first film, I managed to convince her to have it "break down" till after the first film, so we can all be surprised by it in the 2nd film! :)  

> I doubt Ben was a smuggler, so  
> the engines could be earlier, less fast versions. (the raised engine  
> platform with the six vents could also be removed for a flatter saucer  
> shape)  

no THAT makes some sence - *BUT* the YT-2400 "outrider" also has vents ... so unless he went for exactly the same kinda mods as solo, then these vents are an integral part of the original design style of the YT series. Perhaps there'd only be one row of them?  

some more ideas:  

• The rear area around the vents will have less "guts" on it /... but still retain *some* vents and the machinery for moving the flaps up and down. the drive would still be a "slot" - not those silly "jets" that WEG suggest.
• the "holes" in the hull and mandible would either not be present or have flush-fitting hatch covers.
• The paint job would probably be the standard greys BUT with some striping (like the blockade runner perhaps?)
• AND - the general "look" would be somewhat smoother ... imagine: what would a Y-wing look like if the fairing on the cockpit was extended down the whole length of the craft? ... that's probably what they looked like originally before the rebs started tinkering with 'em!
• The "guts" in the side walls probablty remain to some degree since all SW ships (even shiny Imp ones) have *some* rough bits ... there's virtually NO "shiny" ships in SW - (except in the comics etc).
• BIG MAYBE: perhaps the "original" rader dish sat where the upper gun turret is now?

EZ9D9 wrote: "I don't necessarily thing it will be the "Falcon" but just an other YT-1300. Surely there has to be more then just 1 out their in the galaxy.  However if it is in fact the Falcon, we know that the class 0.5 hyperdrive was a Solo modification, as well as the smuggling compartments.  We also know Han added the retractable blaster to aid in his get-aways.  The gun turrets are there but not the quad lasers that we know, most likely duel cannons.  I beleave the concussion missile tubes will be present.  There are probably some stuff that I left out that Han did to "upgrade" the Falcon from the original, but they're just a few things that might be different."

Now the idea of the Falcon showing up in the prequels thrills me to bits, but I don't think Ben or Anakin could possibly have owned it or worked on it previously.  When Han asks "You've never heard of the Millenium Falcon?", Ben replies "No, should I have?".  Of course, he could be lying to them.  At bare minimum, one would expect some sort of recognition or acknowledgement of the fact that Ben's been on it before.  Same goes for Anakin/Vader.  If the ship plays any kinda important role for him in the prequels, it makes no sense that he wouldn't show any sign of recongition of it in the current trilogy.  Of course one might say that the ship only got its name after the prequels, but then what's to identify it to audience as the famous Millenium Falcon and not just some other YT-1300 correlian freighter?  If the ship does appear in the prequels, it can't interact with any of the major characters who interact with it in the current trilogy.  There are a few possible exceptions.  R2 may have seen it before, nothing in the current trilogy would dispute that fact as we are seldom shown what R2 is thinking or feeling.  I like someone's suggestion that it belongs to the character that becomes Boba Fett, or maybe it was Jabba's at one time, or Yoda's.  The current trilogy doesn't give any oppertunity for any of these characters to gush over fond memories of the freighter, unlike Ben and Anakin who have ample oppertunity when the ship is first shown to them, on Tatooine and on the Death Star, respectively.  

So in the end, at best I think the ol'ship will simply make a cameo. Not quite as brief as the Outrider  in ANH:SE, just long enough for everybody in the audience to go "HEY! IT'S THE FALCON! COOL!""

As far as Ben flying the Falcon, that seems unlikely since Kenobi himself said in ANH he had NEVER heard of the Falcon.  Of course, the Falcon could end up in the prequels somewhere else or in the background somewhere."

TexasFett wrote: "Before seeing what Jom wrote I was thinking the same thing as him, Ben should remember his ship, but now I am not so sure.  The line he used as proof that is wasn't Ben's made me think what if Ben was just supprise by finding the current owner of his ship.  Jedi are not very emotional and we already know he was trying to hide his (and Darth's) past from Luke, I think it is very possible that is why he didn't react as we expect.  

I really like what Mahecht@bgnet...edu said about a GL interview "the Millennium Falcon is like the white hat from westerns - it is always with the good guys."  I have never heard that myself, but it sounds good for the Falcon.  

As for the Falcon only having a cameo, I disagree, while I don't think it should be in most every space scene, just a cameo wouldn't be worth it.  

Finally, I don't think the Falcon will be changed much, remember Han is a smuggler (as in illegal activities), it wouldn't be a good idea to make very many visible changes from the stock YT-1300.  What point would having hidden weapons be to a ship that can be instantly recognized by its extensive visible modifications.  Even a transport ship needs weapons to keep pirates away, but I am sure Han (or some previous [smuggler?] owner) added several and made the rest bigger, better, more powerful.  My other reason for thinking it will look very similar is what point is there for GL putting it in if it isn't easily recognizable."

However ... owners : not Obi-Wan, simply for the ANH reasons already mentioned (though of course, that scene was written in '76 when the prequels were just filler). I don't really see Anakin as a one-time owner, although there *is* that TESB line "No, captain, they're alive", which we all know is because Vader is close enough to his quarry to sense them through the Force, but what if it was reinforced by a previous experience of the ship ? !!  

Similarly, the Boba Fett lead : he decides to hide in the Imperial fleet's garbage because he not only knows the pilot, but also the ship ? And his pursuit of Han would be all the sweeter if it was a personal vendetta.  

Or it could belong to Jar-Jar. Or to Panaka, or be bought/hired by him, for the princess' escape. This latter suggestion could be valid in order to slip through the invasion blockade in a non-descript freighter.  

I would also agree that there is no point in radically changing the design of the Falcon, or its name, if it becomes unrecognisable. And I  also applaud the www.synicon.com.au sites for info !"

Fergus213 wrote: "I hope this doesnt disappoint everyone too much, but the picture of the falcon that got this rumor started ( the one with the familiar looking hairy co-pilot standing in front ) is just an old Ralph McQuarrie concept drawing. its right there in several of the art collections. While I dont doubt the possibility that the falcon may make a brief cameo for nostalgia's sake, i certainly doubt it will play any major part. besides, we all know that Solo got the falcon in a bet with Calrissian. I got a chance to talk to Billy Dee himself last weekend in orlando and as far as he knows, there's nothing to do with Lando in the prequals. Personally, I think we see enough falcon in 4-6 and I for one am looking forward to new ships to capture my imagination and interest as much as that noble smugglers' craft did way back when."

• FEB 23

I used to own a sports car (named Firebird) when I was young, but then I sold it.  If you came up to me ten years later and said to me, "I'm the Captain of the Firebird, and it made the quater-mile in under 4 seconds." Then I would look at you the same way Obi-wan looked at Han (yea right, I used to own that car and I know it never went that fast). Now if you thought I knew something I wasn't telling, you might ask if I heard of the Firebird.  Not wanting to give anything away, I would innocently reply, "No, should I have?"  

I believe that Obi-wan owned the "Falcon" in his younger days.  
   
When the Falcon was caught in the Death Star tractor beam, Han said he wouldn't give up without a fight.  Ben said there were alternatives to fighting, as if he knew about the hidden compartments.  Maybe he knew about them because years earlier he used them to smuggle the Lady Skywalker to safety.  Once safe, wouldn't he have to get rid of the ship to avoid being found?  Perhaps he scrapped it.  Years later it was purchased from the junk yard by a young smuggler eager to make a name for himself. He then lost the ship to Han in a sabbac game.  Later Lando would boast that the Millinium Falcon was the,"fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy!"

• FEB 25

I would like to quot a passage from "The Hutt Gambit"   
["So why were u lookin' for me in the firts place?  You mentionrd needing a pilot?"    
"Thats right.  I was playing sabacc over on Bespin a week or so ago, and one of the players threw in a marked for his ship. High-stakes game, it was."  
"And you won the ship," Han guessed.  
"That's right.  But I've never piloted one."]   
So that rules out Landa buying the falcon, if you wanna go by that.  And when u say Ben knew about the smuggling compartments because he owned the ship is wrong when Han added them for his own use.  Besides Han was a smuggler, so Ben is gonna assume that the compartments are there."

• FEB 27

        "Chewbacca here is first mate on a ship that might suit our needs."  

Now there are a lot of ships in Mos Eisley, and it seems to be the Falcon itself that Ben is interested in, rather than the crew. "A SHIP that might suit our needs." Why take the Falcon? We know, especially from the SE,  that the Outrider, and presumably a lot of other, faster, better ships than the beat-up old hunk of junk, are in town. Now if we think that Ben already knew the Falcon, a lot of things start coming together.   

        Han:    "You've never heard of the Millenium Falcon?"  

        Ben:    "Should I have?"  

        Han:    "She's the ship that did the Kessel Run in under twelve parsecs."  

Okay, I know this suggests that Ben doesn't know the Falcon, if you take it literally, but remember, Ben's playing the old fool, and if you can show one time when he does actually tell the truth, I'd be surprised. Also, note his rather amused expression. Solo is - at this stage at least - an unknown, a boastful kid, not much different from Luke, but a little more worldly-wise. General Obi-Wan Kenobi, on the other hand.... I wouldn't be surprised if we did see the Kessel run in the prequels, with Ben Kenobi aboard. Now the Kessel Run is a - if not THE - spice run, and what did Owen and Beru tell Luke that Anakin "the best star-pilot in the Galaxy" Skywalker was?  

        "Navigator on a spice-freighter."  

Hmmm. Which spice-freighter?  

Also, note how Artoo is already able to drub Chewie at holo-chess. Has the droid played before? And bear in mind two more things. First - we know - check out Rick McCallum in SW Galaxy 13 - that Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon have a ship, which everyone has kept very quiet about, that will presumably play a big role in the prequels. And secondly, as far as Lucas is concerned, he can ditch anything outside of the 3 existing films. That includes the "YT-1300 light stock freighter" designation. The Falcon is a 1930s Bentley, not a '70s Ford. And thus, all the associated WEG 'facts' go out the window. Personally, I think Robert Brown's page and Ann Crispin's books are great, but the information they're working with is sometimes not so perfect - 5 mile long SSDs and Republic-class ships that look like yesterday's lunch - so I wouldn't be surprised if the .5 engines and the smuggling compartments appear in the prequels (and of course promptly get rationalised by having the Falcon gutted and repaired by Lando or possibly whoever owns the ship between Qui-Gonn/Ben/Anakin and him).  

        "I just got a funny feeling. Like I'm gonna see her again."

• FEB 28

• MAR 18

• MAR 20

I understand the protest against seeing the Falcon. However, I think one of the 
underlying theories of Star Wars is that "everything is connected." The ship 
has its own life (Star Wars is about life, not technology) and so can affect 
the fate of the galaxy just as much as a short robot who can't talk in a way we 
can understand. 

I expect to see the Falcon in some capacity. I just hope they don't use that 
pancake-like model that they used for the Bespin SE scenes."

• APR 27

        ...how do we know that Obi-Wan has never seen the Falcon. When Han asks 
him has he heard of it, he doesn't say "no", simply "should I have". 
When Han says she was the ship that made the Kessel run etc., look at 
Obi-Wan's face, its like hes saying"Wooo, the Kessel Run!!!...wow, big 
deal, you should have seen what we got it to do..." 
        ...also when they first see the Falcon, when Han says "I've made a few 
special modifications myself.", look at Obi-Wan's face again, he saying 
'yep, no shit'. 
        ...I hope the Falcon does turn up in the prequels in one way or 
another, preferably in pristine condition... 
  

        ...We'll know soon enough..."

• MAY 12

        also i think the facon cgi model in the besbin scenes looked brilliant
so i dont know where the this pancake business came from"