Some fan art focuses on enjoying the worlds and characters that have already been established in any given story. Other times, it might put more of an emphasis on adding clever extras and hypothetical scenarios to the lore. The popularity of Marvel's What If…? series on Disney Plus has proven that this idea isn't just exclusive to the fans. But that doesn't mean those devotees aren't still cranking out super creative new ideas, as seen by this Star Wars fan.
In possibly one of the most official-looking fan creations out there, one particularly adept Star Wars lover has designed an upgrade for the series' favorite fast and fragile starships, the TIE Fighters. Those who enjoy a passing familiarity with the specs of these little fighters may already know that the Empire's most abundant vehicles tend to move so nimbly due to the lack of several systems that other ships tend to find rather crucial. One such system is a shield generator, much like the one at the center of the Battle of Hoth in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. But the other is the hyperdrive, dooming any wayward pilots to always take the scenic route instead of jumping to light speed like all the cool kids.
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That's where YouTube artist EC Henry comes in. Using his rendering skills and wonderfully nerdy mind, he devised a new method to give TIE Fighters their own hyperspace capabilities in a way that's completely lore-friendly. Much like the hyperspace rings used by Jedi starfighters, most notably by Obi-Wan in the conspiracy-laden Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, the new tech would clamp onto any given TIE Fighter and take care of the light speed jumps. Afterward, the device could simply be discarded, which would result in a lot of space littering, but that kind of seems like something the Empire would largely be cool with.
But EC Henry didn't just stop at the design. He went into full detail on why it not only wouldn't go against any of the Empire's protocols but even how it would actually be more cost-effective to make these hyperspace rings disposable than it would be to keep maintaining them over the years. Now that's a special kind of dedication.
It would honestly make perfect sense for the Empire to employ such technology. To say nothing of the explanations mentioned earlier, it's just another piece of Republic tech that the Empire would end up repurposing. The Jedi starfighters were direct precursors to TIE Fighters, after all. So why not use every part of the buffalo, as it were?
Regardless of how things might have been, EC Henry created that unique kind of fanwork that might not seem like a huge deal at first but is so incredibly impressive due to how perfectly it fits into the lore. That's one heck of an accomplishment, and he deserves a hug for it, just like how that hyperspace ring hugs the TIE Fighter. It's oddly adorable in that fascist space dictatorship way.
The Star Wars saga is now available on Disney Plus.
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Source: EC Henry/YouTube
