Melbu

Last Updated: 12/4/2023

Name: Melbu

Humanoid: Yes

Classification: Insectoid

Homeworld: Unknown

Coloration: Green, Orange, and Reddish-Brown

Biology: From the neck down, Melbu appeared very Human-like, maintaining the same relative shape, height, and size. Their heads were incredibly large, with two upturned, wrinkly head horns. They also had bulbous, oval, amber compound eyes. The horns on their heads acted as breathing tubes or nostrils, and they require respirators attached to both the top of these tubes and their mouths to breathe on worlds other than their own. Their skin also had a coarse and wrinkled texture, ranging from orange to brown to even green in coloration. Overall, they are very similar biologically to Gand, although there is no yet established connection.

Lore: Nothing is known about the Melbu society aside from the fact that the ones we’ve seen have tend to more commonly belong to bounty hunting, weapon dealing, or other less than savory professions.

Legends/Canon: Melbu only exist in the current Star Wars Canon, introduced in Solo: A Star Wars Story.

Unexplored: As with any nearly completely loreless species, it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what to delve into first. If you want a similar species with much more established lore, you may just want to use a Gand instead. But if you want to lay the groundwork for an entirely new species (i.e. history, planet, society, culture, economy, traditions, etc., the usual, you know), then pinpoint a starting point and go for it with the Melbu. Nearly anything regarding them can be fleshed out and taken in new directions, which does make for exciting revelations and characterization.

Additional Notes: There’s actually kind of a fun history behind this species! The concept artist Jake Lunt Davies (who has become a huge source of information for this site after I initially wrote this article) let his young daughter design a species, and this was how he interpreted what she came up with, breathing and apparatus and all. This definitely makes them at least a little bit more interesting and memorable, and I can appreciate the various inspirations he cited for the finalized design, including gherkins!

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