ORLANDO, Fla. — The Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge land at Walt Disney World has a sly connection to both the new Disney Plus show “The Mandalorian” and the animated program “Star Wars Rebels” — if you can catch it.
The setup: Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is a new land located in Disney Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World (there’s also a Disneyland version of the same land). The land immerses guests into the Black Spire Outpost on the fictional planet of Batuu, which exists in the “Star Wars” cannon and folklore. Cast members play fictional merchants, travelers and citizens of the Black Spire Outpost, a shipyard for smugglers and travelers on the edge of the galaxy.
The store: Several of the locations inside the park include restaurants and merchandise stations. There are a slew of small stores inside the marketplace portion, which sell Disney “Star Wars” products, including Jedi robes, plush dolls and cards for Sabaac.
- One of the small stores includes a small cage with a small, catlike creature at its center. The cat is nestled in the center, cuddling with a plush Porg doll (the adorable creature from “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”). It’s totally fake but it’s made to look realistic as though it is really there. But this is no cat — it’s a loth-cat, which is a pretty legendary figure in “Star Wars” culture.
Loth-cat: The character first appeared in “Star Wars Rebels” on the planet Lothal, which is a main planet on that show. The cat appeared several times throughout episodes of the show.
Recently: The cat made a live-action appearance in “The Mandalorian.” During the show’s fourth episode, titled “Sanctuary,” Mando and Baby Yoda walk through a small town and come across a loth-cat, who hisses at Baby Yoda.
Bigger picture: This is only a small example of how “Star Wars” products are beginning to integrate together. Something seen in an animated show has now appeared in a live-action show and in the fictional Disney location. Disney is surely working to blend all of its Star Wars products together, revealing many at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.