Recent Star Wars comics have revealed how Jabba the Hutt became the greatest of the Hutts. The Hutts were a force to be reckoned with in the Outer Rim for centuries, with even the Jedi reluctant to challenge them. Their power was centered around the so-called “Spice Triangle,” three overlapping hyperspace routes that allowed smugglers to ferry spice across the galaxy. The desert planet Tatooine was situated near the Triellus Trade Route, making it a key planet – and Jabba the Hutt claimed it as his home.
It’s long been clear Jabba had grown in power and influence by the time of Return of the Jedi, because he seemed able to operate entirely independently – without oversight from the Hutt Council. The Book of Boba Fett has revealed it took the Hutts five years after Jabba’s death to claim Tatooine once again, suggesting his death left the Hutts in chaos. But just how did Jabba become such a significant figure in the Hutt crime cartel?
Jabba’s rise first began some 200 years before Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, but ironically his ambitions led him to disgrace. As seen in Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures, a plot by Jabba was foiled by the Jedi of the High Republic Era, and no doubt it took him some time to regain his prestige after he was ransomed back to the Hutts by a race called the Hynestians. That perhaps explains why Jabba settled on Tatooine, a planet near to these key trade routes but not actually situated on them. Jabba’s empire flourished during the Dark Times of the Empire’s reign, and he gave himself the title “Grand Warlord of the Outer Rim.” But Jabba understood all too well that Palpatine’s Empire was greater than his own, and he couldn’t afford to draw too much attention to his actions. He certainly couldn’t afford to report the irritating Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, who kept interfering with Jabba’s activities, as seen in Marvel’s 2015 Star Wars series.
![Star Wars: How Jabba Became The Greatest of The Hutts](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Star-Wars-Jabba-the-Hutt-Empire-Han-Solo-comics.png)
Not every Hutt was comfortable with this truth. The High Seat of the Hutt Council, Lord Bokku, joined the secret criminal syndicate called Crimson Dawn – but, as told in Marvel’s “War of the Bounty Hunters” comic book event, this brought the Hutts to ruin. Operating on the orders of Crimson Dawn’s leader, Lady Qi’ra, Bokku commanded Hutt forces in one system to open fire on an Imperial flagship. Darth Vader’s response was swift and brutal, with the entire Hutt Council slaughtered. Jabba no doubt took advantage of the power vacuum to ascend among the Hutts, and the comics have shown him attempting to placate Darth Vader rather than seek retribution.
This certainly explains why Jabba became so influential by the time of Return of the Jedi: all the other Hutt leaders had been killed, and Jabba was probably the highest-ranking Hutt left. But Jabba was himself killed by Princess Leia shortly after rising to such a position of prominence, no doubt leaving the Hutts rudderless, their most competent leaders all gone. Jabba the Hutt may have placated the Empire, but he earned the wrath of the Rebellion, and the Hutts had been catastrophically weakened by the time the Star Wars original trilogy ended.
Key Release Dates
Rogue Squadron
Release Date:2023-12-22