What's The Story?

What's The Story? was an exclusive feature on the Star Wars fan club website, Star Wars Hyperspace. It gave Hyperspace members a chance to leave their mark on the Star Wars Expanded Universe by allowing them to provide the backstory for certain aspects of the saga; usually obscure background characters or vehicles from the films. Winning entries became official Star Wars lore: published in the Databank and added to the Holocron continuity database. This feature was launched June 24, 2005 and concluded on January 4, 2008, as first hinted by Pablo Hidalgo of Lucas Online. The feature began with the backstory for Tannon Praji, a character from the (then) recently released Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, and, somewhat appropriately, the final entry was Bane Malar, a character from Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, chronologically the final Star Wars film.

The process

 * The submission form was regularly updated presenting a new subject for fans to write about, originally weekly, then in a fortnightly period and finally on the first Friday of every month. Entries were be based on the information and criteria given, and all had to be under 2000 characters in length.
 * Every submission received was read by a panel of judges, with the best marked as finalists. Pablo Hidalgo then selected the winning entry, or merges several entries and edits them into the final product. The Databank was updated with five or six winners at a time, or sometimes, individually.

Later EU appearances and references
A list of What's The Story? aspects that have since appeared in new Expanded Universe material.

Direct references

 * UT-AT, in Guide to the Grand Army of the Republic and Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary
 * Barrow Oicunn, in Underworld Appendix: Swoops, Spice, and Wretched Rogues
 * Grizz Frix, in Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary
 * Corla Metonae, in Star Wars Insider 90
 * Nem Bees, in The New Essential Guide to Alien Species
 * Pax and Trax Bonkik, as Hasbro action figures
 * Hamadryas in Sacrifice
 * 3B6-RA-7 in the StarWars.com Visual Guides
 * Wol Cabasshite in Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force

References within other WTS entries

 * Romeo Treblanc, in and
 * Tannon Praji, in and
 * Rango Tel, in
 * Ottegru Grey, in
 * Cebann Veekan, in
 * Tian Chyler, in
 * Wam Lufba, in

Entries reprinted in Star Wars Insider

 * Tzizvvt and E-3PO in Star Wars Insider 89
 * Dusty Duck and Utapau Shadow Trooper in Star Wars Insider 100

Indirect references

 * Onnelly Praji, presumed to be the daughter of Tannon Praji, in Evasive Action: Recruitment
 * Ongree species information from the Acros-Krik databank entry in The New Essential Guide to Alien Species
 * Tusus Comestibles, connected to Belo Tusus, in
 * Luptoom in
 * A'roFilter, mentioned in
 * Acceptance in Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force

Cut references

 * Bal'demnic; Abel G. Peña mentioned Bal'demnic in Underworld Appendix: Swoops, Spice, and Wretched Rogues, but Lucasfilm cut the reference.

Minor elements introduced
Other elements introduced (or first identified) into continuity through What's The Story? include:
 * A'roFilter
 * Almak
 * Aneesa Dym
 * Bak'rofsen system
 * Beezar Pert
 * Belo Tusus
 * Braha'tok
 * Bryyn Woolery
 * Chesea
 * coolth suit
 * Czerka 84-U hunting rifle
 * Daystar Craft
 * DC0040
 * DC-19 "Stealth" carbine
 * Diva
 * Dornean Braha'ket Fleetworks Conglomerate
 * Eminence
 * Enso
 * Ensolica
 * The Eye of the Beyonder
 * Hamadryas
 * Honorary Elder
 * Imperial Entertainers Guild
 * Ingoda the Hutt
 * Kon'me
 * Layn Wynest
 * Leffingite
 * Luptoom
 * Musikagung
 * Naftrat Odarr
 * New Nozho
 * Org Banelli
 * parental collective
 * Plasma leech
 * Qel-Droma
 * Red Bush Grove
 * Tash Scambras
 * Scri Oscuro
 * Siqo Vass
 * Spanner
 * Sono-class thrust pod
 * symponik
 * Symponik Nabooalla
 * Symponika Crunchen-Grand
 * TechSpan I
 * Torktarak
 * Trax Bonkik
 * Tusus Comestibles
 * Veterned
 * Wol Cabassh
 * Yarlubb River
 * Yuvernian