This article contains spoilers for Star Wars #18.
Tie-in comics to break Leia's hope.
But there is, of course, a crucial difference between the roles played by Luke and Leia. Luke was a Jedi, devoted to the light side of the Force, and for him the battle was deeply personal. In contrast, Leia was a politician and military leader who was fighting to overthrow a corrupt system. Both spoke hope into the Rebel Alliance in their own different ways, inspiring countless acts of heroism by their example. Leia's role meant there were many occasions where she had to make morally dubious decisions, ones that Luke would flinch from.
Charles Soule and Ramon Rosanas' Star Wars #18 is a case in point. In the aftermath of the "War of the Bounty Hunters," Lady Qi'ra - leader of Crimson Dawn, the organization Darth Maul founded to help bring down the Empire - approaches her with an offer. She reveals Han Solo is still alive, his carbonite-frozen body transported to Jabba the Hutt in fulfilment of Boba Fett's mission. In return for the information, Qi'ra offers the help of Crimson Dawn in bringing down the Empire. "I can be useful to the Alliance in many ways," she tells Leia, "and you need all the help you can get." The issue's end makes it clear Leia has reluctantly accepted the alliance.
Princess Leia doesn't know the history of Crimson Dawn. She has no idea Darth Maul formed them as a weapon to get close to the Empire and bring them down, and Lady Qi'ra seems to have chosen to continue the mission. What's more, Qi'ra knows more about the Empire than the Rebels do; she's well aware the Emperor is in fact a Sith Lord, the one who engineered the Clone Wars and brought down the Republic. And she's gathered weapons that mean even the Sith would be wise to fear Crimson Dawn, dark side relics even Palpatine doesn't seem to know exist.
Leia's decision to ally with Crimson Dawn was logical, but ironically it's the kind of compromise that meant she could never be the one to finally end the Emperor's reign. Palpatine could never be defeated by the likes of Crimson Dawn because they were attempting to use the dark side against the one who considered himself its master. In contrast to Leia's willingness to work with Darth Maul's Crimson Dawn, it would be Luke Skywalker's redemptive love - the purest manifestation of the light side - that brought the Star Wars original trilogy to an end.
