This month I would like to spotlight the first (but not last!) pet in this series that is not a creature made of flesh and blood but rather of circuits and sparks. One of the numerous droid pets in the game, thet M4-Y7 Astromech is a perfect choice on account of its seasonably and Santably appropriate color scheme.
There are many Astromech pets in SWTOR, and it is tradition in the game to award players who log in during the Star Wars “holiday” of May the 4th with a droid companion; until recent years it was an Astromech of varying colors. Other Astromech pets can be found on the cartel market and for sale on the GTN and from the Galactic Seasons token vendor, but this particular version is no longer available.
R2-D2 and T3-M4
Astromechs or Astro-droids are the most iconic robots in Star Wars, and the first of these, Artoo-Detoo, is undoubtably the most famous robot in pop culture. Despite, or perhaps because of being only able to communicate through beeps and whistles Artoo instantly became one of Star Wars‘ most beloved characters. Astromechs in Star Wars lore have many variations including the red, ill-fated R5-D4 from Episode 4: A New Hope, the squat, surly and patched together C1-10P “Chopper” from Star Wars: Rebels and the orange, roly-poly BB-8 from the sequel trilogy.
When it came to establishing the Old Republic, Astromechs would also play important roles. T3-M4 was a key companion to Revan and Meetra Surik in both Knights of the Old Republic games, and players of Star Wars: The Old Republic will, of course, be familiar with the redoubtable and resourceful T7-O1, who eventually joins every character in their adventures across the galaxy.
T7-O1 and M4-Y7
Both T3 and T7 are designed to suggest that they are early iterations of the famous Astromech design, with boxier shapes and fewer attachments and built in accessories. I’ve always liked the fact that T7 seems to be wearing a backpack; it is certainly stuffed with ammo, spare parts and snacks for himself and his companions.
The most striking design difference between Artoo-Detoo and his Old Republic counterparts is that his legs are angled backwards but the legs of the Old Republic droids lean forward, and their third (or fourth) “feet” are attached to the rear of their chassis. This change reminds me of two things, first of all, animals. The design of T3, in particular, echoes the profile of a sitting dog, something very appropriate for Revan’s best buddy. But this change in angle of the droid orientation also brings to mind other associations, specifically that of an Olympic sprinter getting ready to race out of the starting blocks. If R2-D2 seems laid back by comparison, then good ol’ T7-O1 and M4-Y7 are clearly raring to go!
Dewey and Huey
The origin of these droids extend back even beyond the first Star Wars movie. George Lucas has said that part of the inspiration for R2-D2 came from the “service drones” Huey, Dewey and Louie from the little remembered 1972 science fiction movie Silent Running, directed by special effects pioneer Douglas Trumbull. From this starting point, Ralph McQuarrie created several designs that would eventually become the Astro-droids of Star Wars.
There is one last element of the Astromech worth mentioning: R2 units both in the movies and in the Old Republic tend to have a single, large glowing eye, not unlike the unblinking HAL-9000 from Stanley Kubrick’s seminal 1968 classic 2001: A Space Odyssey.
HAL, totally not spying on you
Now, look, I’m not saying that M4-Y7 is plotting to kill you, but if you happen to encounter the Astromech on a flight deck, perhaps it would be wise, especially these days, to be mindful of whether you’ve been naughty or nice this past year.
For my part, I want to wish all my readers a happy, healthy and warm holiday season. I hope everyone gets to ring out the end of the year in good company with good food. Look for the next Pet of the Old Republic on New Year’s Day!
I”m glad you did one on an atromech, those are my most commonly used companion pets. I feel like it’s easy to explain why my character would want one of thsoe on hand as I am breaking into an enemy facility. A tiny taun tain not so much.
I didn’t realize that George Lucas drew inspiration from the service drioids in Silent Running, but it absolutely makes sense. I saw the movie when I was a kid, and those droids are pretty much all I remember from it. I think pretty much any kid will immediately want one.
A little off topic, but the opening ten minutes of the original Star Wars is absolutely brilliant. Focusing on these two drioids that bicker with eachother like an old married couple, and only being able to understand half of the conversation (the other half being in some machine language we can’t understand) is really efficient worldbuilding. It conveys a lot about the universe without having to tell us about it and makes us really intrigued to learn more. The way that the narrative opens out from their perspective, and pretty much keeps opening up and out until the final stretch is a fine bit of filmmaking that I don’t think gets enough credit.