The Mandalorian Season 3 Just Introduced A Legends Character Central To Grand Admiral Thrawn
This post contains spoilers for "The Mandalorian" Chapter 23 – "The Spies."
One of the most exciting cameos in this week's episode of "The Mandalorian" came in the form of Admiral Gilad Pellaeon. He was one of the main speakers during Moff Gideon's assembly of the Shadow Council of the Imperial Remnant, and was the one insisting on the imminent return of Grand Admiral Thrawn, played in live-action form by Lars Mikkelsen.
Fans of Thrawn may remember the character getting name-checked by the Grand Admiral in "Star Wars Rebels." But the history of Gilad Pellaeon stretches back to the 1991 release of "Heir to the Empire," and promises a lot of surprises in the storytelling to come out of the Mandoverse as Thrawn becomes a major player in the on-screen corners of the galaxy — especially as Moff Gideon continues to jockey for power among the Shadow Council, doing his best to cut down the idea of Thrawn's return.
The Legends of Pellaeon
In the Legends timeline, Gilad Pellaeon served as the Supreme Commander of the Imperial Remnant on the Star Destroyer Chimaera after the New Republic defeated the Empire. When Grand Admiral Thrawn returned to the galaxy, Thrawn assumed command of the Chimaera and installed Pellaeon as his right-hand officer. Pellaeon fought by Thrawn's side through the entirety of the "Heir to the Empire" books, but he was shaken by the death of the Grand Admiral and the defeat of his plans by the New Republic. He kept working with the Imperial Remnant until the invasion of the Yhhuzan Vong, an alien species bent on destroying everyone in the galaxy, regardless of their political leanings.
During that crisis, many years after the events of "Heir to the Empire," he was eventually betrayed by one of his subordinates, shot, and left to die after refusing to join with Jacen Solo for an attack at Fondor. He was well-remembered by the continuation of the Imperial Remnant, and they named not just a Star Destroyer after him, but an entirely new class of Star Destroyer. He was a competent commander and was involved in the "Star Wars" Legends almost from the beginning.
The current canon
When Disney bought Lucasfilm, the Legends timeline went out the window in terms of canon. In the current official timeline, Pellaeon has appeared in two stories. The first is his brief appearance on "Star Wars Rebels," as he had been assigned to Grand Admiral Thrawn's Seventh Fleet. Pellaeon was detached to Lothal and was present when the mystical whale-like purrgil attacked Thrawn's ships and whisked them into unknown parts of the galaxy. Pellaeon's appearance on "The Mandalorian" implies that he has, indeed, made his way back with resources of Thrawn's and knows exactly what's going on.
To learn more of his back story and discover how he came to be loyal to the Grand Admiral, Timothy Zahn's novel, "Thrawn: Treason," is the first place you should go. It tells the tale of Thrawn rooting out traitors in the midst of Imperials, tangling with Director Krennic from "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story," and leads right into the events of the final season of "Star Wars Rebels."
With his appearance here on "The Mandalorian," there's no doubt Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni are working hard to set up Thrawn's resurgence in the upcoming "Ahsoka" show.
"The Mandalorian" is streaming only on Disney+. The finale airs next week. "Star Wars: Ahsoka" debuts on Disney+ in August.