The third episode of Brian Daley’s radio drama adaptation of the Star Wars sequel Return Of The Jedi airs on National Public Radio stations in the U.S. 
Sentenced to die by digestion in the belly of the Sarlacc, Luke and his friends stage their last stand in a desperate battle aboard Jabba’s sail barges. After blasting their way out of captivity, the Rebels have a new obstacle to contend with – Imperial star destroyers have blockaded Tatooine. Artoo signals the surviving bounty hunters and mercenaries at Jabba’s palace to convince them that the Empire is here for them, and a fierce firefight ensues – during which the Millennium Falcon and Luke’s X-Wing are able to slip away without firing a shot. Luke, with Artoo in tow, splits off to visit Jedi Master Yoda on Dagobah, while the Falcon rejoins the Rebel fleet. Darth Vader arrives aboard the still unfinished second Death Star, and while his presence is enough to stir terror in the heart of the Imperial officer overseeing the station’s construction, Vader brings even darker news: Emperor Palpatine himself is en route to the Death Star as well, intent on personally witnessing the destruction of the Rebellion. And perhaps the Emperor is closer to his goal than he realizes, for across the galaxy, before Luke’s eyes, and before he has completed his training, the last Jedi Master has become one with the Force.
written by Brian Daley
additional material by John Whitman
based on the screenplay Return Of The Jedi by Lawrence Kasdan and George Lucas
directed by John Madden
music by John Williams
Cast: Joshua Fardon (Luke Skywalker), Perry King (Han Solo), Ann Sachs (Princess Leia Organa), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Bernard Behrens (Obi-Wan Kenobi), Ayre Gross (Lando Calrissian), Edward Asner (Jabba The Hutt), Paul Hecht (The Emperor), John Lithgow (Yoda), Brock Peters (Lord Darth Vader), Ed Begley Jr. (Boba Fett), Samantha Bennett (Arica), David Birney (Anakin Skywalker), Peter Dennis (Moff Jerjerrod), David Dukes (Bib Fortuna), Peter Michael Goetz (General Madine), Ian Gomez (Salacious Crumb), Martin Jarvis (Barada), Jon Matthews (Wedge), Natalija Nogulich (Mon Mothma), Mark Adair Rios (Admiral Ackbar), Yeardley Smith (9D9), Tom Virtue (Major Derlin), Ken Hiller (Narrator), with Samantha Bennett, Rick Hall, Andrew Hawkes, Sherman Howard, Karl Johnson, John Kapelos, Ron Le Paz, Joe Liss, Paul Mercier, Steven Petrarca, Jonathan Penner, Gil Segel, Nia Vardalos and Ron West
Notes: A bit of throwaway dialogue in this episode – written well after Timothy Zahn’s Thrawn trilogy of novels – tries to set one foot into the expanded universe when Han says he heard that Lando “almost wrecked the Falcon on Coruscant” – which seems like an insanely dangerous place for anyone to take the Falcon if, as implied in the prequel trilogy, it becomes the seat of the Imperial government. Then again, maybe it’s a different Coruscant, as here the planet’s name is pronounced “chorus can’t.”
LogBook entry by Earl Green