Originally posted by: C3PX
So who was it that insisted that Chewie die? That is interesting. Anyway, Chewie had always been kind of a background character. He has always kind of been the family pet. Killing off Luke, Leia, Han, or even Artoo or Threepio would have been a bigger deal. Chewie is actually the very logical choice. If they did it so we would be afraid they might kill Luke, why not go the extra mile and actually kill Luke and let Chewie live. Killing a secondary character doesn't equate killing off the hero.

I believe Luke was off limits per Lucas. I don't remember what the reason was for Leia and Han, but I believe it had something to do with them being more important. They basically tried to find a character that would have an effect on everyone. Chewie was picked and Lucas approved. It was up to the author to decide how he died. It was the publishers that insisted a major character die. They felt that there wasn't enough drama in the books anymore. They wanted us, the readers, to actually be afraid because a major character could die.

Artoo and Threepio weren't felt to have enough weight. They're simply droids. Yes, they've been around for a while and everyone's attached to them, but would their "deaths" have the same impact that another character's death would? Probably not.

As far as I can tell, they haven't killed any other major characters (or should I say the big 3, Luke, Leia, and Han). They've killed off major EU characters (I believe Jacen Solo was killed or was it Anakin Solo?), but they haven't killed off any other movie characters. Luke is dead in the new Legacy comic, but it's set in the distant future and he died of natural causes, he wasn't killed.

Again, it goes back to the previous comment. It was done to make Star Wars "more real". Star Wars is suppose to be fun. If we want real, we'll watch the evening news.