Luke Skywalker is one of the greatest and most beloved heroes in all of movie history, and the face of an entertainment franchise that's equally popular. Fans of Star Wars who have only seen the movies only know about a few of Luke's adventures, many of which happened outside of what Disney refers to as the Skywalker Saga.
There are nine movies in this collection; the original trilogy, the prequel trilogy, and the sequel trilogy. Luke only plays a major role in the first three movies, appearing only momentarily as an infant in the last of the prequels and acting as a supporting character in the sequels. The Star Wars franchise extends well beyond the movies, and there are plenty of awesome things that everyone's favorite Jedi Master did outside of the movies.
6 Rescued Grogu...
Critics and fans are divided regarding the new shows and movies from Disney using the Star Wars brand, but The Mandalorian is generally a crowd-pleaser. Part of the appeal of the show was Luke's appearance when he comes to the aid of the child, Grogu, and his guardian Din Djarin, also known as the Mandalorian.
Luke was part of the drama that closed Season 2 of The Mandalorian, and although his appearance was intended to be a twist reveal, it wasn't entirely unexpected. Ahsoka Tano speculated that the Child might be able to sense Luke's presence through the Force. There are a few times when this was possible, such as when Grogu came into contact with the Seeing Stone on the Jedi training planet of Tython.
5 ...And Then Lets Him Choose His Own Destiny
It was a heartbreaking moment when Grogu and Din Djarin has to be parted, but Luke Skywalker has good reasons for spiriting him away. Not only was there the danger from the Dark Troopers, but Grogu was strong in the Force, and Luke could take him away to train him.
This storyline continues in the sixth episode of the series The Book Of Boba Fett. Luke is training Grogu in the ways of the Jedi but is unsure of how committed his student is to the path. Ahsoka Tano, who also makes an appearance in this episode, gives Luke some advice about how to let Grogu choose between becoming a Jedi and returning to Din Djarin. Luke takes her advice, and when Grodu chooses his old friend and guardian, he respects his choice and sends him back. That's pretty awesome.
4 Recovered The Jedi Records
These are part of what makes up the collection of "sacred Jedi texts" that were destroyed in the sequels, and although the audience understands that Luke put them there it's not clear where he got them. That's an epic story that happened in a novel called The Courtship of Princess Leia, which is partly about how a rugged smuggler competes with royalty and power to win the hand of a Princess but also tells the story of Luke recovering some important Jedi literature that Yoda left behind 400 years ago.
Luke doesn't exactly just stumble across them, either. He has to battle a fearsome group of Dark Side witches called the Nightsisters to discover their exact location, and when he did, he was inspired to build a new temple and start a new Jedi academy.
3 Freed Mara Jade And Trains Her As A Jedi
When it comes to characters that play a large role in the story and have a wide fanbase even though they only appear in a limited part of the franchise, there's no better example than Mara Jade. Throughout The Thrawn Trilogy, she acts as an antagonist, cursed by the Emporer and haunted by his command to kill Luke Skywalker.
Luke, being the hopeful person that he is, vows to free her from her curse instead of trying to kill her and eventually succeeds. He doesn't act alone, as it's mostly Mara's own incentive and willingness to sacrifice herself that gives her the power to defeat their mutual enemies. She returns again in the Hand of Thrawn Duology as a student at the Jedi Academy to refine her skills.
2 Named The Grand Master Of The New Jedi Order.jpg)
This is another exploit from the novel series that fell down the memory hole. It won't surprise anyone to learn that Luke Skywalker had a number of awe-inspiring titles among various Jedi Orders throughout the galaxy, but what isn't as well known is that at the peak of his power, Luke Skywalker attained the title of Grand Master.
In the New Jedi Order series, Luke Skywalker embarks on a number of adventures that involve living starships and ancient Jedi ruins, and some of his exploits involve his new wife Mara Jade. By the conclusion of the series, he's succeeded in starting a New Jedi Council and is given the title of Grand Master, which is pretty awesome.
1 Farm Moisture
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It's a humble profession, as anyone can see by the environment that surrounded young Luke growing up, but the fact is that people need water to live. It used to be a bit of Star Wars trivia that Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru were farming moisture because there's never a movie scene when anyone actually does this. It's only alluded to in certain lines and never explained.
A lot of the machines and other accessories that are a part of his family's home are related to this profession The two droids they bought from the Jawas were intended to help with the moisture harvest, so this awesome but utterly thankless profession actually sets the whole story in motion.