Hija/Legends

"There goes another pod, sir. Instructions?"

- Hija

Hija was Human male and a lieutenant of the Imperial Navy during the rise of the Galactic Civil War. He was one of the chief gunnery officers aboard Darth Vader's flagship, the Imperial I-class Star Destroyer Devastator. Hija served under Captain Bolvan and later under the captaincy of Mulchive Wermis.

Biography
The Human male Hija was a member of the Galactic Empire's Navy during the Imperial Period. By 7 BBY, he served under Captain Bolvan as a lieutenant aboard the Imperial I-class Star Destroyer Devastator, the personal flagship of Lord Darth Vader. Hija was in charge of the gunnery stations of the ship, when the Devastator arrived to the Mid Rim planet Falleen as a part of Vader's exploration tour visiting Imperial weapon development projects. After hearing Bolvan's report on an accident in a research facility and the following spread of a flesh-eating bacterium, Vader called Hija and commanded him to prepare for the orbital bombardment of the planet. Hija fired on the facility and everything within 40 kilometers to prevent the further spreading of the leaking bioweapon. Amoung the 200,000 Falleen casualties was the family of Prince Xizor, later leader of the Black Sun criminal organization.

In 0 BBY, during the battle of Tatooine in the Galactic Civil War, Hija still served as a chief gunnery officer of the Devastator, under the direct command of the now gunnery captain Bolvan, while the ship was commanded by Captain Mulchive Wermis. After the capture of the Tantive IV, Senator Organa's CR90 corvette, several escape pods attempted to flee the doomed vessel. Hija spotted the one rode by the protocol droid C-3PO and R2-D2, the astromech droid carrying the plans of the DS-1 Orbital Battle Station, but, since no life was detected on the escape pod, he was ordered by Captain Bolvan to hold his fire to conserve power.

Personality and traits
Hija has a necessary skills and traits to complete his training at the Imperial Academy, and he was promoted to recognize his doing.

Behind the scenes
"I played a star ship Captain in Star Wars. I said the line ´There goes another one.´"

- John Forgeham

Hija was played by John Forgeham in A New Hope. The character first appeared in the novelization of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, ghostwritten by Alan Dean Foster and first published in December of 1976 by Del Rey. "Hija" is the Spanish word for "daughter," although this character is male. In the Revised Forth Draft of A New Hope, Hija is addressed as "Chief Pilot", altough he managed the weapons.

Hija's uniform, like that of Captain Bolvan, may have been the original standard uniform for Imperial gunners, before the universal adoption of the Death Star gunner uniform. Note that in the novel Death Star, only the Death Star gunners wear the distinctive helmets, not the gunners aboard Star Destroyers.

In the first series of the British Sitcom 'Spaced' Simon Pegg's character Tim Bisley argues that it is possible to attribute the events of the entire Original trilogy to Hija, as if he had have fired upon the escape pod, Luke would never have met Obi-Wan, never have met Han Solo, and never have rescued Leia.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope novelization
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope

Notes and references
Hija Hija