When Disney bought Lucasfilm in 2012, the Star Wars franchise was forever changed. Fans were divided over Disney’s movie additions to the saga, and for a time, Star Wars entered a dark age of a series of controversial films. However, when “The Mandalorian” released exclusively on Disney+, fans were treated to a new kind of experience. The first Star Wars live action TV show was awarded with many major awards and was a success. Several media news sites such as Screenrant and numerous social media posts even claimed that the Mandalorian had revived Star Wars. But is this still true in 2023?One thing that Mrs. Maureen Martin ‘92, chair of the social studies department, said she enjoyed about the Star Wars shows was “find[ing] out more about characters that you only saw very briefly in the movies.”
This was the appeal of several Star Wars shows such as “The Book of Boba Fett,” in which fans were promised that a popular character would get a more fleshed out story beyond what was originally shown in the movies. However, theology teacher Mr. Brian Hansen ‘11 sees a problem with these shows: there are several plot holes. One such example was lightsaber stab wounds being fatal in the original movies but in newer shows, considerably less so.
He said that for those who loved the Star Wars “story since its conception, it’s causing those individuals to distance themselves from the new [shows].”
Within days after this article was pitched, a trailer was released for season three of Star Wars cartoon “The Bad Batch.” Shows keep releasing on Disney+, sometimes within the span of a couple months, and this could be part of the problem.
“Star Wars is bigger than just one person,” said Mr. Hansen. Fans care about Star Wars. It is even synonymous with some fans’ childhood. So when directors release shows on a deadline and do not take the time needed to make it good, it ruins it. That is the true problem. Instead of putting shows up every couple months, there could be just one show every year. Taking the time needed to make Star Wars shows not just good, but great could be what the franchise needs to get up again.