- «Alert the Resistance… their missing droid is here!»
- ―GA-97 reports sighting BB-8
GA-97 was an unassuming servant droid who served at the castle of the pirate Maz Kanata on the planet Takodana, but was secretly aligned with the Resistance. In the year 34 ABY, it was present when the smuggler Han Solo entered with the scavenger Rey, the former stormtrooper Finn and the astromech droid BB-8. Recognizing BB-8 as a missing Resistance droid, GA-97 contacted them via their intelligence network to inform them of the astromech's location. Based on the droid's report, Resistance forces were mobilized to travel to Takodana. Before they arrived the castle was destroyed in an attack by the First Order.
Biography[]
- "Your droid is on Takodana."
"Isn't that… Maz Kanata's place?"
"Yup. Two people just walked right in with him. We got a call from one of Threepio's operatives stationed there—GA-97." - ―Leia Organa and Poe Dameron speaking of BB-8
GA-97[3] was a GA[2] servant droid that was aligned with the Resistance during their conflict with the First Order and plugged into their intelligence network.[3] The droid was spending time in the castle of the pirate Maz Kanata on the planet Takodana, when the smuggler Han Solo led a group of three fugitives from the First Order into the structure. Kanata, an old friend of Solo's, recognized the smuggler shortly after he entered and cried out to him, causing everyone in the castle to turn their attention to the new-comers including GA-97[7] and those seated at the fighting droid table he was sat against.[5] After the crowd lost interest, GA-97 turned his attention to the Dengue sisters, a group of three Culisettos gambling on a table nearby.[7]
The sisters' game was interrupted when the dismembered arm of the junk dealer Unkar Plutt landed on their table, having been tossed by the Wookiee Chewbacca after he tore it off defending the scavenger Rey, one of Solo's companions. The sisters tossed the arm away absently and continued with the gambling, but GA-97's attention was drawn to Rey and then her companion, the astromech droid BB-8. Recognizing the astromech as a missing Resistance droid, an internal sequence was activated inside GA-97 which triggered him to send out a compressed signal that was bounced around, coded, decoded, encrypted, and then sent into deep space. The signal was then picked up by the protocol droid C-3PO in the Resistance base on the planet D'Qar. Overjoyed, C-3PO relayed the message that BB-8 was on Takodana to General Leia Organa, who then left for Takodana to collect the droid.[7]
Before the Resistance could arrive, the occupants of Kanata's castle were drawn outside by the sound of the First Order's Starkiller Base firing at the Hosnian system. In the castle's courtyard they stood and watched as it destroyed the whole star system, and the Galactic Senate of the New Republic with it. Almost immediately after the horrific spectacle was over, the First Order attacked the castle and quickly destroyed it. Those that survived the destruction were then spared, when the Resistance arrived and fought off the First Order's troops, driving them offworld.[7]
Characteristics[]
- "If you're a friend of Maz, you're a friend of mine. What's the job?"
- ―GA-97
GA-97 was an unassuming droid with masculine programming. He had a bipedal body, with a power plant in its chest and collapsible legs to allow for compact storage. It had black sensors and red, yellow and green plating.[3] When reporting to the Resistance, GA-97 spoke in an alien dialect.[5]
Behind the scenes[]
GA-97[3] first appeared in Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens, which was released in 2015.[5] Its lines were provided by voice actor David Acord, who also provided the voices of several other minor characters in the film including Sidon Ithano, Teedo and FN-2199.[9] The droid was not identified in the film, but received a name in Star Wars: The Force Awakens: The Visual Dictionary, a reference book written by Pablo Hidalgo and released the same day as the film.[3] The GA-97 model was a puppet capable of walking around when controlled by a team of three puppeteers with a fourth controlling electronic functions.[10]
Appearances[]
- Poe Dameron 9 (Cover only)
- Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens (First appearance)
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens novelization (and audiobook)
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens: A Junior Novel (and audiobook) (Indirect mention only)
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens Graphic Novel Adaptation
- The Force Awakens Adaptation 3
- Poe Dameron 26 (Mentioned only)
Non-canon appearances[]
Sources[]
- Star Wars: The Force Awakens: The Visual Dictionary (First identified as GA-97)
- 2015 Topps Star Wars: The Force Awakens Series 1 (Card: GA-97)
- From "Blast That X-wing!" to "Traitor!": The Voices of Star Wars: The Force Awakens on StarWars.com (backup link) (as Resistance Loyal Droid)
- Star Wars Helmet Collection 19 (Databank A-Z: GA-97–Geonosis)
- Star Wars Helmet Collection 21 (Weapons & Uniforms: Maz Kanata's Castle)
- Star Wars: The Visual Encyclopedia
- Star Wars: Absolutely Everything You Need to Know, Updated and Expanded
- Star Wars: Geektionary: The Galaxy from A - Z
- Star Wars: Build Your Own R2-D2 68 (Droid Directory: Droids of D'Qar Resistance Base & Maz Kanata's Castle)
- Every Droid in Star Wars | Star Wars By the Numbers on the official Star Wars Kids YouTube channel (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Ultimate Star Wars, New Edition
- Every Language in Star Wars Movies | Star Wars By the Numbers on the official Star Wars Kids YouTube channel (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Star Wars: Extraordinary Droids
- "The Search for Skywalker and the Battle of Starkiller Base" — Star Wars Encyclopedia
- Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga – The Official Collector's Edition
- Star Wars Day-at-a-Time Calendar 2023
- GA-97 in the Databank (backup link)
Notes and references[]
- ↑ Ultimate Star Wars, New Edition
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Star Wars: The Force Awakens: A Junior Novel
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 Star Wars: The Force Awakens: The Visual Dictionary
- ↑ Star Wars: Extraordinary Droids
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens
- ↑ Poe Dameron 26
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Star Wars: The Force Awakens novelization
- ↑ Unfinished Business
- ↑ From "Blast That X-wing!" to "Traitor!": The Voices of Star Wars: The Force Awakens on StarWars.com (backup link)
- ↑ Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens — BluRay bonus featurette "Secrets of the Force Awakens: A Cinematic Journey"