And at least one cantina discriminates against them. đ
Jay does have a good point. A casual attitude towards the droids is evident throughout the OT. Nobody gets choked up at Threepio being blasted in ESB, itâs more akin to âwho messed up my car?â Han and Leia have no qualms about turning Threepio off when he gets too annoying. I canât see Luke doing that, although he does put both droids into a potentially dangerous scenario in ROTJ. Whether he seriously thought Jabba would take them in trade for Han is up for debate. Rescuing the droids after theyâve fallen into a sand dune is almost an afterthought. And donât forget the droids.
The old Marvel comics often explored the status of droids in the galaxy. Lukeâs relationship with Artoo and Threepio is painted as unusual. When Artoo is severely damaged, (again) and a rebel tech questions whether the repair effort is worth it, (other droids could use salvageable parts) Luke loses his cool. Donât tell me heâs only a machine!
In the Obi Wan flashback issue, Bailâs personal droid is traveling alone, and asks Ben if he would be willing to act as his master, as the spacelines donât know whether to treat unaccompanied droids as passengers or luggage.
One reason Valance the bounty hunter pursues Luke, (besides self loathing of his secret cyborg status) is the bond with the droids disgusts him. He regularly pays to have dilapidated and broken down droids rounded up just so he can to blast them.
Cyborgs apparently are discriminated against too. In the first original issue after the movie adaptation, Han and Chewie get into the middle of a dispute defending a priest whoâs trying to get a dead cyborg a proper burial. The locals donât want him interred in the local cemetery, as heâs not an âorganicâ.
And I would be remiss in not mentioning Senator Greyshade and Master Com, possibly the first ârobosexualâ couple in Star Wars. Stormtroopers in The Wheel storyline are clearly disgusted at the idea of a droid expressing friendship for an organic.