"The Case for Rebellion" is the twelfth episode of the Star Wars radio drama. It first aired on National Public Radio on Monday, May 18, 1981. The episode adapts events of Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope that take place on the Fourth Moon of Yavin, adding a number of scenes that expand on the original source material. The plot centers on two characters, Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, as both grapple with deciding whether to fight for the Rebels in the coming battle.
Aboard the Death Star, Darth Vader explains his plan to Tarkin: he sacrificed four TIE fighters (and their pilots) in order "to make the Rebels' escape more plausible." Now he is tracking the Millennium Falcon with a homing device and will follow them to the Rebel base. Vader is no longer worried about recovering the Death Star plans: destroying the base is all that matters to him now. Tarkin orders Motti to follow the signal and put the entire station on alert.
Aboard the Falcon, Han Solo and Artoo-Detoo free See-Threepio from a tangle of live wires in which he had gotten caught during the space battle. Han gains a new appreciation for the droids when he learns that Threepio had been hurt helping Artoo extinguish a fire.
Han joins Princess Leia in the cockpit and sends Chewbacca aft to help with repairs. Han boasts of what he accomplished in the rescue, but Leia is not impressed. She is certain that their ship is being tracked. Han asks if they should lay over somewhere to remove the homing device; Leia says that this would only provoke the Empire to destroy more planets. Their only hope is to go to the base, analyze the Death Star plans, and quickly find a way to attack the station. Han insists that he is only helping because he expects payment. This upsets Leia, who leaves the cockpit just as Luke enters. Han senses Luke's attraction to Leia and teases him for it.
The ship lands in an ancient temple on the Fourth Moon of Yavin. Han is struck by the sorry state of the base and snubfighters; Leia replies that it will be people, not things, who decide history. Rebel Commander Willard greets Leia. She informs him that the Death Star is already on its way. Willard agrees with her that their only option is to stay and fight, but he confesses that the Rebels are desperately short on pilots. Willard thanks Luke, Han, and Chewbacca for their bravery during the rescue of the princess, but Han immediately demands his payment. Willard protests that they have no currency to spare; Han says that he will accept precious metals instead. If he is not paid, Han threatens to spread the word that the Rebel Alliance cannot be trusted to do business.
Luke tries to make the case for rebellion to Han and Chewie.
While Willard has techs measure out metals to pay Han and Chewbacca, they go to the pilots' ready room to freshen up before leaving. Luke follows, hoping to convince them to stay and fight alongside the Rebels. Luke says that he is planning to volunteer to join the Rebels as a pilot; Han now tries to talk Luke out of what he sees as a suicide mission. Neither manages to convince the other, and when Luke leaves, both are angry. After Luke, Leia arrives to make the case. Han changes the subject by telling her of Luke's plans to fight. Outwardly Leia agrees with Luke's decision but is noticeably worried.
Luke reports for training to an officer who turns out to be his oldest friend Biggs Darklighter. Biggs has him go into a flight simulator to experience combat in an X-wing fighter. Luke performs well. Leia arrives and, in private, tries to give Luke a chance to back out of the battle. Willard interrupts her when he comes to discuss Luke's performance in the simulator: he was only killed twice - impressive, considering "Biggs was tossing the entire Starfleet" at him. This is good enough to give Luke a place in Red Flight for the coming assault.
By now, Rebel commanders have formed an attack plan that can destroy the Death Star, so Luke and the others attend a briefing on the mission. A precise torpedo hit to a two-meter thermal exhaust port will trigger a chain reaction in the station's reactor system that will destroy it. Other pilots are skeptical that this is possible, but Luke is confident that he can hit such a small target. With the Death Star already closing in, the pilots prepare for battle. Luke and Han say a final goodbye.
Depiction of an X-wing flight simulator from Star Wars 2
"The Case for Rebellion" adds a number of scenes and conversations to the corresponding events from . For the most part, these develop the story of Luke and Han as they make opposite decisions and go their separate ways. These extended scenes include: Han's demands and threats to Commander Willard for his promised payment, Luke's argument with Han in the pilots' ready room, and Luke's training in an X-wing flight simulator. The reunion between Luke and Biggs is similar but not identical to a scene that was cut from the film and restored in the 1997 Special Edition. The radio scene takes place before the mission briefing, while in the film the two reunite as they are boarding their fighters.
Like some other radio episodes, "The Case" uses some terminology that's inconsistent with other Star Wars media. The episode calls Red Squadron "Red Flight" and refers to "photon" rather than "proton" torpedoes, a name from Star Trek.
- Star Wars: The National Public Radio Dramatization
- The Making of Star Wars for Radio: A Fable for the Mind's Eye on archive.org