Warning: contains spoilers for Star Wars #28!As powerful as Jedi like Luke Skywalker are, the majority of Star Wars' Rebel heroes are not Force-sensitive. Admiral Ackbar and Wedge Antilles are such figures, who nevertheless proved their worth with exceptional combat skills and tactical judgment. In the case of leadership, however, Star Wars just demonstrated why no-one has surpassed Mon Mothma.
Near the end of the Clone Wars, Mothma - along with Bail Organa and Padme Amidala - was already set to rescind Palpatine’s powers as the Chancellor. But when Palpatine instead transformed the government into the Galactic Empire, she would spend the majority of her political career inciting acts of resistance against the Imperial regime before openly denouncing the violence and horrors of Palpatine’s fascist empire. From Rebels through Return of the Jedi, Mothma led the Alliance during the Galactic Civil War. She is ultimately most remembered for being a key figure in the Battles of Endor and Jakku, which ended the war.
How exactly Mon Mothma inspired the Alliance to go up against impossible odds is showcased in Star Wars #28 by Charles Soule and Andrés Genolet. In an effort to help topple the Empire, Crimson Dawn double agents and Imperial defectors Jon and Bevelyn Melton, and their two children, flee to the safety of the Rebel Alliance with crucial information to deliver. They’re escorted safely to the hidden Rebel fleet by Luke Skywalker, who debriefs Alliance High Command on some awful news - the construction of the second Death Star.
Mothma Leads the Rebellion with Hope
With Admiral Ackbar, general Hera Syndulla, and Mon Mothma together on the bridge of a Nebulon B Frigate, Luke reveals the information that the Melton family risked their lives to expose. The reveal of the Empire's next super-weapon silences the room and leaves Ackbar and Syndulla with a look of utter horror. Mon Mothma breaks the tension claiming that they can destroy it, saying with a bright grin !If we could do it once, we can do it again." The core of the Rebellion has always been one built on hope, and although Hera and Ackbar are leaders who inspire, even they are subject to the feeling of terror associated with the planet-destroying weapon. The fact that Mon Mothma was the only one who didn’t flinch at the thought of facing the Death Star’s threat yet again proves that she is the beacon of hope that guides the Rebel Alliance.
While her status as a diplomat, and later chancellor, doesn’t make her quite as popular as Jedi like Ahsoka Tano or hero pilots like Han Solo, Mon Mothma’s ability to inspire and organize a galaxy-wide revolution makes her arguably the most significant Rebellions figure of them all, as the outcome of the Star Wars original trilogy couldn’t have happened without her unflagging hope.
Star Wars #28 is available now from Marvel Comics.