Having been a long time Star Wars fan, I
sometimes take it for granted that when there is a new movie, comic series,
novel or television series, I will be at least somewhat familiar with the
setting, timeline, and possibly some recurring characters. Generally the
overall story won’t be something I’m completely new to, because even when
something new does come out, chances are that particular part of the timeline had
been previously explored in the Legends books/comics—so even if something isn’t
canon anymore, I will be comfortable with the state of galaxy at that time.
When Lucasfilm announced that they had
decided to branch off of the episodic films and make a standalone, I didn’t
feel the confusion that a lot of the more casual fans did. To be honest, I was
confused as to why they were confused. The first time I experienced a casual
fans confusion was at my work right before Rogue
One’s release, when a guy approached me all confused by the fact that Rogue One: A Star Wars Story wasn’t Episode VIII, and the realization
that Rey wasn’t going to be in this one gave him pause at seeing Rogue One. I couldn’t for the life of
me, understand why this was confusing. Rogue
One was being promoted as the movie where the Death Star plans are stolen
for at least a couple years. I mean doesn’t everyone listen to a dozen Star
Wars podcasts, watch The Star Wars Show religiously every Wednesday, and read
the Star Wars Insider like it’s the Bible? I come to find out, amazingly enough
most people don’t do these things. Strange.
Getting back to the actual “story” part of
Rogue One, I went to see Rogue One back on January 2nd for my fourth
time with family. My sister’s friend has never seen any Star Wars movies, and
had no idea what to expect. But it’s a standalone right? What’s to know? After
the movie was over, and I’m done wiping my eyes, I asked her what she thought
of it. She replies, “Eh, I don’t know any of the backstory so…” My internal
voice heard a different language. Something like Latin mixed with Khmer and
Zulu. Huh? You shouldn’t have to know any of the backstory! Right? Right?
This all lead me here. Lucky you. I
couldn’t help but think, maybe these Star Wars “stories” are meant for us
uberfans more than the regular Jack and Diane living in the heartland. Maybe
these Star Wars stories are more alienating than I originally thought. What an
interesting thought. Will making these kinds of “standalones” that aren’t
really “standalones” hurt Lucasfilm? Of course there are enough of us uberfans
out there to offset any turned off by the unfamiliarity, but it would be
unfortunate if that were to happen. I love it when new fans are brought in and
then motivated to watch the rest. Like last year for example, when my other
sister saw The Force Awakens. She is by no means a fan of
Star Wars at all, but she enjoyed The
Force Awakens enough to want to borrow my Blu-ray versions, and watch the
original trilogy; and even check out parts of Episode I and III.
To wrap it up, from my point-of-view, I
feel pretty confident when and where each event in Star Wars takes place, but
sometimes I forget that most people aren’t like me (or you if you’re reading
this). All these different movies can get confusing, especially if they continue
to jump around in the timeline. How many people will be wondering why Lucasfilm
is making a Han Solo movie? I thought he died in Episode VII?
It’s something to think about anyway. Let
me know what you think.
Eric Onkenhout @EricOnkenhout
The Bearded Trio - The Site For Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, John Williams and a whole lot more.
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