The Star Wars Legends continuity recontextualizes Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace in a multitude of fascinating ways. The Star Wars Legends continuity has been a mostly discontinued alternate Star Wars timeline since April 2014, but before then, it was the official Star Wars canon, enhancing and expanding the franchise mostly through non-movie material. By 1999, what was known as the Star Wars Expanded Universe at the time added to The Phantom Menace’s lore, and later Legends-era works would continue to recontextualize and enhance one’s viewing experience for the first Star Wars prequel movie.

Among the earliest Legends-era works were Marvel’s original Star Wars comics, which bridged the gaps between the original trilogy movies and continued the adventures of their heroes after Return of the Jedi. The Star Wars franchise experienced a slight lull in content in the late 80s, but the resurgence of iconic Legends-era works throughout the 1990s kept interest in Star Wars alive between trilogies. Even as an alternate timeline, Star Wars Legends changes the way one sees The Phantom Menace in the following ways.