Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Tales of the Underworld episode 4 - 6.Cad Bane's (Corey Burton) origin story has finally been revealed by Star Wars movies, filled him out, but Bane was always a "mysterious stranger" type. Now, however, 16 years after he was created, Cad Bane finally has an origin story.

Even in the Star Wars Legends continuity, Cad Bane's origins were a bit of a mystery. We had a few vague references to him being trained by Jango Fett and a brief comic where he met one of his old friends from Duro, but we knew almost nothing about his life before becoming a bounty hunter. Tales of the Underworld changed that completely and showed us everything from Cad Bane's childhood to his first murder. In doing so, it changed the mysterious gunslinger into a tragic and fatally flawed character who was consumed by greed and vengeance.

Cad Bane Grew Up On The Streets

Bane Was Originally Named Colby & Was A Street Urchin On Duro

As Tales of the Underworld displayed, the start of Cad Bane's story was truly unremarkable. He was just a poor child living on the streets of (presumably) Duro, and he had to scrap and claw for every morsel of food he ate. Tales of the Underworld also revealed that Bane's real name is Colby, and that he was best friends with another Duros named Niro. They would raid garbage cans together, antagonize local shopkeepers, and even trick unsuspecting droids into surrendering all their groceries. It was a difficult, but enjoyable, life for Colby.

It's possible that Tales of the Underworld takes place on New Tayana, a city which orbited the Duros home planet of Duro in Star Wars Legends.

That is, until Lazlo entered the picture. After watching Colby and Niro at work, Lazlo offered them an "investment" in their criminal careers. Then, Lazlo had Colby and Niro run a distraction for him as he eliminated one of his local competitors, but Niro was captured by the police. As Niro was captured by the police, Lazlo declared that Colby was part of the "family," which changed his fate forever. Colby presumably lived with Lazlo's gang thereafter, and he eventually took on the moniker of Cad Bane.

Cad Rose Through The Ranks To Become A Crime Boss

Bane Commanded Some Of Lazlo's Crew Even After Years In Prison

Eventually, Cad Bane grew in prominence and importance. He rose through the ranks of Lazlo's gang and even started a relationship with a Duros woman named Arin. In Tales of the Underworld episode 5, Lazlo was shot down by a marshal, and Bane effectively took over as leader of the gang. Cad returned to his childhood neighborhood on Duro and faced down the marshal that killed Lazlo. Niro, however, had taken a different path from Bane, and he arrested his childhood friend for killing the marshal. To Bane's dismay, Arin stole his blaster to keep him from dying in a shootout, and Bane went to prison.

Cad Bane's mentorship to Lazlo also revealed the origin of many of his most iconic attributes. Tales of the Underworld heavily featured Lazlo wearing a leather jacket and metal-plated hat, and he often chewed on toothpicks, and it seems Cad Bane was trying to emulate his father figure. Bane even used Lazlo's hat as his own, which he wore throughout the Clone Wars and up to his death in The Book of Boba Fett.

Vengeance Became The Focus Of Cad Bane's Life

Bane Wanted Revenge For Lazlo & Arin & It Consumed Him Completely

After years of imprisonment at Niro's hand, Cad Bane's life was consumed by vengeance. In Tales of the Underworld episode 6, Bane hatched a plan to return to Duro, face off against Duro, and get revenge for what he perceived as Niro and Arin betraying him. However, what Bane didn't know is that Niro and Arin began a romantic relationship after he was arrested, and Arin died years before he was released from prison on a technicality. That didn't stop his thirst for vengeance, though, and Bane ended up shooting Niro dead.

Cad Bane's quest for revenge quite literally cost him everything: his only love, his best friend, and his only son.

As Niro drew his final breaths, he revealed another key piece of information Cad Bane missed out on during his time in prison. Arin was pregnant when Cad was arrested, and he had a son named Isaac. Niro raised Isaac as his own son, so when Cad killed him, Isaac saw his biological father as a monster. Cad Bane's quest for revenge quite literally cost him everything: his only love, his best friend, and his only son. Once he killed Niro, Bane had nothing left, and he left Isaac to pursue his life as a legendary bounty hunter.

Does Cad Bane's New Origin Story Work?

Cad Bane's Origin Story In Tales Of The Underworld Is Better Than I Could Have Expected

I'm writing this article while periodically looking at three Cad Bane action figures proudly displayed on my desk. Cad Bane is one of my favorite parts of modern Star Wars, and it's far from an exaggeration to say that I'm obsessed with him. When I first heard of Tales of the Underworld, I was elated to get more Cad Bane content, but I was quickly concerned that Lucasfilm and Disney might ruin the "mysterious stranger" aura that surrounds him. I'm exceptionally glad to report that Star Wars didn't just maintain Cad Bane's aura, it handled his origin story better than I ever hoped it could.

Everything about Cad Bane's story in Tales of the Underworld blew me away. Bane's reasoning for becoming a bloodthirsty, greedy bounty hunter feels natural and earned. His revenge against Niro and his devastating revelation about Isaac feels like the perfect explanation for his constant search for bigger and better payoffs and even his willingness to take contracts against children. The entire three-episode arc reminds me of the classic Western movies I love; I couldn't help but be reminded of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Cad Bane has always been a classic Western villain, and Tales of the Underworld gave him the perfect Western origin story to match.

Tales of the Underworld took a character who, even in Legends, was very loosely defined, and turned Cad Bane into a tragic character who lost everything to greed and revenge.

Before Tales of the Underworld, Cad Bane's origin story was nebulous at best. For the majority of the time he's been around, Cad Bane has just been a greedy but exceptionally skilled bounty hunter. It made him a cool and mysterious character, but that characterization also made him one-dimensional. Tales of the Underworld changed that completely. Cad Bane is no longer just a greedy gun for hire; he's a complex person with a tragic history and more than enough reason to trust credits over other people.

I value Cad Bane's role as the mysterious, Lee Van Cleef-esque figure in Star Wars, but this origin story is simply too good to bemoan his loss of ambiguity. Tales of the Underworld took a character who, even in Legends, was very loosely defined, and turned Cad Bane into a tragic character who lost everything to greed and revenge. It fits perfectly with both Bane's narrative in the variety of shows he's appeared in and with Star Wars' larger fight between good and evil. I don't know if I'll ever stop singing Tales of the Underworld's praises.