This post was originally published on Audible.com.
In 2016, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story hit theaters, offering fans a fresh perspective on the familiar space opera. With realistic on-the-ground battle scenes and a chilling glimpse into the power wielded by the Galactic Empire in the early days of the Galactic Civil War, Rogue One brought with it a new sense of gravity. In addition to acting as a prequel to the Skywalker saga’s first installment (Episode IV: A New Hope), the film introduced us to Rogue One, the titular squadron that retrieved and delivered the Death Star plans to the Rebel Alliance. Among those rebels were Captain Cassian Andor, droid K2-SO, Guardians of the Whills Chirrut Imwe and Baze Malbus, Imperial defector Bodhi Rook, and, of course, Sergeant Jyn Erso.
Warning: The following article contains major spoilers for the Star Wars franchise. Please note that this character guide is based on the current canon as defined by Lucasfilm.
Who is Jyn Erso?
Jyn Erso is one of the protagonists of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The daughter of Galen Erso, she served as a Sergeant with the squadron Rogue One after a difficult childhood spent struggling to survive. Jyn was born in 21 BBY to Galen and Lyra Erso. Shortly after the conclusion of The Clone Wars, Jyn and her parents moved into an apartment in the Project Celestial Power complex on Coruscant after Galen took a position in what he thought was a project sourcing alternate energy from kyber crystals. Upon realizing that this mission was a front for constructing a massive superweapon, the Erso family fled the Empire and found shelter on Lah’mu. Unfortunately, they could only remain in hiding for so long; the Empire recaptured Galen, killed Lyra, and left Jyn newly orphaned and on-the-run.
They'd sent a Star Destroyer for her father...
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Jyn was taken in by Saw Gerrara, an insurgency leader, who raised the girl as his own and enlisted her in his group, the Partisans. As such, Jyn grew up knowing how to fight, fire a blaster, and engage in covert operations like forgery and the use of code operators. She found companionship and a sense of family with others in the group, but after being abandoned on a mission that went wrong on Tamsye Prime, Jyn grew bitter and detached. Shortly thereafter, she found warmth again in the homestead of Akshaya Ponter, who acted as a sort of surrogate mother, and her son, Hadder, who quickly became Jyn’s first love. After both are killed by the Empire, Jyn is once again hardened and forced to turn towards street crime just to survive.
