With LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy – Pieces of the Past arriving on Disney Plus on 19th September, the official site take a look at one of the unexpected stars of the show, a green-furred lepus carinvorus who feels like a deep cut, but who has been a part of the Star Wars galaxy since 1977. We’re talking Jaxxon, and Lucas Seastrom takes a look at the galaxy’s most notorious meat-eatin’, rocket-riding rabbit.
By issue eight, published in November of 1977, Han Solo and Chewbacca had set off on their own after the Battle of Yavin. Visiting the planet of Aduba-3, a group of local farmers recruit the smugglers to help defend their humble village from attack by Cloud-Riders. Thomas and Chaykin were likely aware that Lucas had taken significant inspiration in creating Star Wars from Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa. Issue eight of the Marvel series started a new trend of Star Wars stories modeled on Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai (1954) – with more recent entries including the episodes “Bounty Hunters” from Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2010) and “Sanctuary” from The Mandalorian (2019).
Among the six “down-on-their-luck spacers” recruited by Han and Chewie are the Starkiller Kid, Don-Wan Kihotay, Amaiza (“den mother” of the Black Hole Gang) and a Lepi – which can only be described in Earth-parlance as a human-sized, green rabbit – known as Jaxxon, or “Jax for short, which I ain’t,” as he put it. In his introduction, the unassuming character easily overpowers a brutish alien who tries to cut in front of him to meet Solo.
“I ain’t no rodent,” Jaxxon assures his cohort in true wise-guy fashion. “I’m more what ya call yer basic lepus carinvorus[sic] a meat-eatin’, rocket-riding rabbit ta you, junior!” (Just don’t try to offer him space carrots.) Jaxxon is a formidable opponent with a fondness for landing powerful kicks, wielding two blasters, and exclaiming “Holy Hutch!” His starship is appropriately known as the Rabbit’s Foot.
