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The Sunrider family was a famous Human Jedi family of the Galactic Republic.

Family Tree

Jev Sunrider[2] ♂
A Sunrider male[2]
Andur Sunrider[1] ♂Nomi Sunrider[1] ♀
Vima Sunrider[1] ♀
(4 generations)[4]
Vima-Da-Boda[5] ♀
Neema-Da-Boda[6] ♀

Behind the scenes

"No, it wasn't a myth, and the issue is still there with using the name 'Sunrider.' "
Sue Rostoni, Executive Editor of Lucas Licensing[7]

From 1993 to 1998, Dark Horse Comics published Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi, a comic book series composed of eight story arcs. Five of the eight arcs featured the characters Nomi and Vima Sunrider, a Jedi Knight and her young daughter. Nomi was a principal character in four arcs, while Vima took center stage as a Jedi apprentice in 1998's Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi - Redemption.[8][9][10][11][12] Nomi's husband Andur Sunrider briefly appeared in 1993's Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi – The Saga of Nomi Sunrider,[1][13] and his grandfather Jev Sunrider was mentioned in the 1996 sourcebook Tales of the Jedi Companion.[2] These members of the Sunrider family were referenced in several other works of Star Wars media published throughout the 1990s.[14][15][16]

At some point in time, legal issues began to arise over Lucasfilm's use of the name "Sunrider."[17][7] It remains unclear to the public who the offended party was, but fans have speculated that a lawsuit was filed by the Jeep Corporation,[18][19] who manufacture a trademarked jeep soft top called "Sunrider."[20] However, this rumor has not been verified by any Lucasfilm employees, and has additionally been contested by Star Wars author Kyle Jewhurst. According to Jewhurst, Dark Horse Vice President of Publishing Randy Stradley has reported that the legal issues arose from Tales of the Jedi author Tom Veitch having used the name "Sunrider" in another work.[21]

Knights of the Old Republic concept art of Vima Sunrider

Knights of the Old Republic concept art of Vima Sunrider

When the 2003 video game Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic was in development, Vima Sunrider was slated to be one of its protagonists, but the legal issues prompted the development team to instead create a new character named Bastila Shan.[17][22] The game is set thirty years after the final story arc of Tales of the Jedi and references Nomi several times, but only once by her last name.[23] That instance was an oversight by the development team. They were also forbidden from using the name in the game's 2004 sequel, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords.[17]

Presently, the legal issues continue to exist, but do not preclude the appearance of a Sunrider within Star Wars media, nor the use of the family name. The latter is permissible within the body of a text where it cannot be confused with any other trademarked product, but cannot be used in a book's title nor be attached to an action figure.[7] Nomi has been mentioned by her full name in several novels and sourcebooks published since Knights of the Old Republic,[24][25][26] although Star Wars: The Old Republic, an MMORPG released in 2011, refers to her as "Nomi-Da-Boda" and refers to both Vima and Andur only by their first names.[27] Both Nomi and Vima[28] were originally set to star in a 2012 novel,[29] but the book was eventually canceled, reportedly due to "changes in direction and concepts in the overall publishing plans."[30]

Appearances

Nomi Sunrider

Nomi Sunrider

Sources

Notes and references

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Tales of the Jedi 3
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Tales of the Jedi Companion
  3. Crimson Empire III: Empire Lost 1
  4. The Essential Guide to Characters states that Vima-Da-Boda was the "great-great-great-granddaughter" of Vima Sunrider. This establishes there were four generations separating the two.
  5. The Essential Guide to Characters
  6. Dark Empire endnotes (Part 3: The Alliance is Finished!)
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 StarWars.com Thread: Books, Comics, & Television VIPs on the StarWars.com Message Boards (September 30, 2008) (original site is defunct)
  8. Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi – The Saga of Nomi Sunrider
  9. Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi – The Freedon Nadd Uprising
  10. Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi – Dark Lords of the Sith
  11. Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi – The Sith War
  12. Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi - Redemption
  13. Tales of the Jedi 4
  14. Star Wars: Dark Empire II
  15. Dark Apprentice
  16. Junior Jedi Knights: Vader's Fortress
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 Premium-Era-real So where is Vima Sunrider during the Kotor story? by Chris Avellone on Obsidian Forum Community (February 23, 2005) (backup link archived on August 1, 2016)
  18. What KOTOR characters would you like to see in …. KOTOR? (post by Leto II) on the Jedi Council Forums' Literature board (May 1, 2006) (backup link).
  19. StarWars.com Untitled Nomi Sunrider Novel by Alex Irvine *Speculation* on the StarWars.com Message Boards (September 30, 2008) (original site is defunct)
  20. Premium-Era-real Sunrider™ Jeep Tops on jeepsandstuff.com (backup link archived on June 8, 2008)
  21. "Mandorla" – Alex Irvine TOTJ/KOTOR/Nomi Sunrider 2011 Hardcover (post by Lord Hydronium) on the Jedi Council Forums' Literature board (September 19, 2008) (backup link)
  22. Databank title Shan, Bastila in the Databank (original site is defunct)
  23. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
  24. Coruscant Nights I: Jedi Twilight
  25. The New Essential Chronology
  26. Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force
  27. Star Wars: The Old Republic, Consular storyline
  28. Blogger-Logo Stomping on YetiKeeping An Eye On… Alex Irvine on Blogspot (backup link)
  29. StarWars.com The Expanded Universe VIPs 3.0 on the StarWars.com Message Boards (January 28, 2011) (original site is defunct)
  30. Facebook icon Star Wars Books (@starwarsbooks) on Facebook (post on February 29, 2012) (backup link)
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