Star Wars has come a long way since A New Hope premiered in 1977, and these 10 changes to some of Star Wars’ biggest mistakes are the very best throughout Star Wars movies and TV shows. Star Wars’ best movies have given viewers plenty to love, but, in truth, the franchise has received significant criticism over the years as well. While some of the backlash has been underserved, Star Wars, like any franchise, has made some missteps over the years.

Luckily, as the Star Wars timeline has grown, the franchise has found ways to ameliorate some of the damage done with earlier poor decisions. In fact, many of Star Wars’ most recent shows and movies have intentionally fixed prior mistakes. Here are the 10 best changes Star Wars has made throughout its nearly five decades.

10

Star Wars Has Introduced Non-Sexualized Twi’leks

Twi’lek Characterization Was Problematic From The Beginning

It’s no secret that Twi’leks in Star Wars have been sexualized from the very beginning. In fact, in the original Star Wars trilogy, the Twi’lek woman Oola was Jabba’s slave before Leia, and her outfit was equally revealing—and her situation was equally degrading—as Leia’s came to be. However, while this was a one-off with Leia, it became a trait of Twi’leks in the franchise. Even in the prequel trilogy, when Star Wars introduced Twi’lek Jedi Aayla Secura, the sexualization continued.

As recently as Star Wars: The Clone Wars, this remained the issue, as one of the clones, Cut Lawquane, deserted the Republic and married a Twi’lek woman, Suu Lawquane. Suu, like the Twi’lek women before her, was wearing incredibly revealing clothing. However, Star Wars: The Bad Batch corrected this history with Suu, improving her outfit significantly. Even more than that, Star Wars Rebels introduced Hera Syndulla, a Twi’lek Rebel pilot, who not only wasn’t sexualized but also was incredibly fierce and talented.

9

Ahsoka’s Questionable Outfit Was Replaced

Ahsoka Received Similar Treatment To Twi’lek Women At First

Unfortunately, like many Twi’lek characters, when Ahsoka Tano was introduced in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars movie, her outfit was very revealing. She was essentially wearing just a tube top and a skirt. Not only was this impractical because she was a Jedi who needed to fight in a war (reminiscent of Aayla Secura’s odd outfit choice in the same circumstances), but it was also extremely odd because she was just a teenager.

Thankfully, Ahsoka’s design improved with time. Her red tube top and skirt were replaced with a red outfit that covered significantly more skin, and, eventually, she acquired a completely new blue outfit that looked constructed for battle. Unfortunately, this new outfit didn’t come until after Ahsoka, like Leia, had a slave outfit of her own. Star Wars has since improved Ahsoka’s appearance that much more, though, as she is now donning her Ahsoka the White outfit, reflecting her status as a true Jedi.

8

The Clones Became More Than Just Obedient Soldiers

The Bad Batch Made The Clones So Much More

The clone troopers have always been an odd part of Star Wars for a number of reasons. For one, it’s always seemed strange that the Jedi so willingly accepted soldiers meant for them despite not understanding their true origins. However, the Jedi’s acceptance of the soldiers has also seemed odd because it doesn’t seem at all in keeping with the Jedi way.

With the clones having such little autonomy and effectively being created just to serve the Republic, it would make sense for the Jedi to reject the idea of using them. However, in the prequel trilogy, the Jedi accepted the clones readily and never addressed the moral issues with doing so. While The Clone Wars then fleshed the clones out somewhat, it wasn’t truly until The Bad Batch that the clones received the full acknowledgment they truly deserved. In fact, as a major rarity in Star Wars, The Bad Batch even gave many clones a happy ending.

7

There’s Officially Underwear In Space

Carrie Fisher’s Major Complaint Has Been Addressed

George Lucas’ comment to Carrie Fisher that she couldn’t wear a bra because there is no underwear in space has become famous, but, while it’s funny now, it wasn’t a joke at the time. In fact, this was a legitimate rule George Lucas had, and it’s clear that it bothered Carrie Fisher enough that she continued to bring it up throughout her life. It’s also little surprise why she would have taken issue with it; the absence of a bra and the white dress Leia donned in A New Hope is certainly enough cause for discomfort.

Luckily, Star Wars has long since abandoned this rule. In fact, outfits for live-action women in Star Wars movies and TV shows have improved significantly. Not only Twi’lek women but also women throughout the franchise have begun to wear outfits more in keeping with their role in Star Wars, which has led to less sexualizing, revealing clothing overall.

6

Star Wars Has Proven The Force Doesn’t Belong To The Jedi

Many Other Force-Sensitive Beings Have Emerged

Star Wars has been trending in this direction for quite some time, but more recent shows and movies have confirmed that the Force doesn’t belong to just the Jedi. The Clone Wars and Rebels did considerable work in this area, including groups such as the Nightsisters of Dathomir and the Mortis Gods. Force-sensitive beings such as Bendu have also been introduced, further revealing how expansive the Force truly is.

Most recently, The Acolyte has also introduced a brand-new witch coven, the witches of Brendok, who, like the Nightsisters, wield the Force but fall outside the Jedi and Sith binary. Ultimately, this is what has been the best aspect of the introduction of other Force-sensitive beings. These groups and characters reinforce that the Force is so much bigger than just the Jedi or the Sith, and it’s been thrilling to see what this can look like.

5

The Acolyte Put All Jedi In The Same Outfits

The Acolyte’s Jedi Robes Resolved The Issues Of The Past

Although there are very slight variations, for the most part, the Jedi of The Acolyte all wear the same Jedi robes. Not only does this resolve the costume issues of the past—specifically with female Jedi of myriad ages wearing incredibly revealing, impractical clothing—but also, this change makes considerable sense. The Jedi are meant to dedicate their lives to the Force, not get caught up in the more materialistic concerns of clothing and style.

Moreover, the Jedi were discouraged from striking out too independently from the Jedi way; reinforcing one uniform style of dress would be one way to discourage individualism among the Jedi, including the Padawans. Arguably, unique styles could also lead to issues with vanity that would be entirely contrary to the Jedi way. While it’s too late for other Star Wars movies and shows to make this change, it at least is logical that an older, more traditional version of the Jedi Order would have had such a practice.

4

Star Wars Invited Ahmed Best Back In A Better Role

The Treatment Of Jar Jar Binks/Ahmed Best In The Prequels Was Shocking

One of the best things Star Wars has ever done is bring Jar Jar Binks voice actor Ahmed Best back to the franchise. Through no fault of Best’s own, Jar Jar Binks was a highly controversial character in the prequel trilogy, with many finding his voice and personality annoying. Sadly, this led to very harsh criticism being directed not only at Jar Jar Binks but also at Best himself, which only added to the avalanche of backlash the prequels, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace in particular, were receiving.

Thankfully, Star Wars righted this history by having Ahmed Best return to Star Wars in a brand-new role. In The Mandalorian, Ahmed Best played Kelleran Beq, the Jedi who saved Grogu during Order 66. While Ahmed Best clearly still has love for his first character, which is wonderful to see, it’s amazing that he got such a warm welcome back to Star Wars and, this time around, played a Jedi master.

3

The Acolyte Fixed The Neimoidians’ Accents

In The Prequels, The Neimoidians Were Highly Controversial

In the Star Wars prequel trilogy and The Clone Wars, the Neimoidians were frequently antagonists. The Neimoidians were introduced as the group looking to take control of Naboo in The Phantom Menace, and they were immediately revealed to be in Palpatine’s pocket. The worst of them, Nute Gunray, also had a specific vendetta against Padmé, then the Queen of Naboo, who was just 14 at the time. However, these traits were far from the worst aspects of the portrayal of Neimoidians in the prequels.

Rather, the Neimoidians of the prequel trilogy had accents that many found offensive, as they seemed to be modeled off of stereotypes of Asian accents. Thankfully, The Acolyte addressed this problem by getting rid of the prequel Neimoidians accents entirely. In addition to the change to their voices, the Neimoidians also came across as more capable and intelligent, a far cry from their portrayal in the prequel trilogy era.

2

The Tusken Raiders Were Finally Humanized

The Prequel Trilogy Literally Labeled The Tusken Raiders ‘Animals’

In the Star Wars prequel trilogy, the Tusken Raiders were quite literally dehumanized. After being seen only as faceless threats (which really began in the original trilogy), the Tusken Raiders abducted Anakin Skywalker’s mother for seemingly no reason and tortured her to death. When Anakin killed the Tusken Raiders—men, women, and children—he even explicitly called them “animals,” and Padmé did not condemn him for this or even react as though he was wrong.

However, this very flat representation of the Tusken Raiders has recently changed for the better in Star Wars TV shows. In fact, in The Mandalorian, the Tusken Raiders seem entirely changed, particularly when Din Djarin reveals that he can communicate with them via a form of sign language and ultimately even calls upon them for help. Moreover, the Tusken Raiders appeared in The Book of Boba Fett, working alongside Boba Fett, solidifying that there truly is much more to them than the movies showed.

1

Jedi Have Become Truly Diverse

Representation Has Fundamentally Changed With The Jedi

Although it has been the subject of significant trolling online, the Jedi have become more diverse in Star Wars, and that’s a good thing. While this has often meant that the Jedi ranks are now more racially diverse and include more women, it has also meant diversity in a broader sense. As Star Wars has proven with more recent shows and movies, the definition of who can be a Jedi has changed.

This was made clear in Ahsoka, which revealed that the Mandalorian Sabine Wren (who had previously shown no Force aptitude) had been trained as Ahsoka’s Padawan. However, more recently, Star Wars has reinforced that a Wookiee can be a Jedi, despite George Lucas’ initial rejection of this idea, with the first live-action Wookiee Jedi Master, Kelnacca. Truly, throughout the decades, Star Wars has fixed a number of its mistakes, and these 10 reflect the very best changes of them all.