The Star Wars re-watch: The Introduction.
The real Rebellion? It was the friends we made along the way (including the sand).
Ah, Star Wars.
It wasn’t the first big movie franchise but it was (and probably remains) the most impactful - both a lynchpin in the IP-driven age it played a key role in establishing and yet, in some ways, existing entirely outside of it.
“Universe-building”, so to speak, has been throughly distilled into a science by now - though attempting to view Star Wars, as a whole, through such a simple lens is akin to trying to clean a blender post-smoothie.
As delicious as it can be chaotic.
I wasn’t introduced to Star Wars through the movies.
Instead, my first exposure with the franchise was by way of The Clone Wars (2008), the second animated series to detail the events between Episodes II and III (initially concluding in 2014, it returned for a seventh and final season in 2020).
It tracks, though.
I was just a few months old when the first prequel movie, The Phantom Menace arrived in theatres, - six, when trilogy capper, Revenge of the Sith, released in 2005.
So, I didn’t really “grow up” with either of the first two trilogies or with any vested interest, as others have, only watching them years later.
Appreciating them, flaws and all? Absolutely.
But while I would consider myself a big Star Wars fan, I’ve never really bought into the true devotion others have, either - and I do mean that literally (in 2005, a “Temple of the Jedi Order” was established in Texas: members practice “Jediism”, follow established doctrine and haven’t paid taxes, being IRS exempt, since 2015 - a similar program was shot down in the UK in 2016).
Anyways, about ten months ago, I went into one of my more time-consuming projects with a fair amount of both interest and healthy skepticism.
For the first time, I was going to try and watch almost everything (currently) considered canon in the Star Wars franchise, movies and TV series both in chronological order (in addition to playing the two so-far Star Wars: Jedi video games, Fallen Order and Survivor).
And earlier this week? I finally finished. Yes, I know. Maniac behaviour.
My initial thoughts? Well, even on a base level, it is simply fascinating to consider Star Wars in a vacuum.
47 years, as of this writing. That is how long it has been since the original film debuted in 1977.
And in that time?
The franchise has both expanded exponentially yet, paradoxically, stayed remarkably insular.
A truly iconic cultural force, that continually oscillates between enjoyment or being a shameless, soulless cash grab, per the general online discourse (which is never a good barometer to begin with, in fairness). Beloved by millions, expect for those that seemingly despise it - an unfortunately vocal subset who, for decades now, have been viciously harassing the franchise’s actors, with racist and sexist abuse.
Really, is there any reasonable way to corral a half-century’s worth of material into something approaching accessibility? Cohesion?
No, I don’t think so.
Nor do I think I can say anything new, necessarily (the last decade or so, has throughly exhausted the Star Wars discourse basin) but hey, we’re here.
And it is true, to be fair, that I haven’t seen everything (The Bad Batch, for one) but I feel as though I’ve checked enough scum and villainy off my Catania bingo card to chalk this endeavour up as a win.
Although, in discussing some of these projects, it didn’t make much sense to grade them individually, as I usually do.
Instead, I tried to take it all on a curve (each trilogy, for example, I decided to tackle collectively as together, they tell an overarching story).
As always, thank you for reading Off-Balance. In terms of sheer content, this is the most expansive project I’ve attempted here thus far and I am so grateful to have your continued support.
Even as a fan, you quickly start to realize there is an absolute ton of Star Wars content, both on and off-screen. Trying to sift through it all? It is quite the undertaking but I am super amped to see how it all shakes out.
Be sure to keep an eye out for Part I, where we’ll start with some incredibly singular, divisive blockbusters: the prequel trilogy.