Lindelof Star Wars film
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JPH
Sr Member
Fans were happy when Lucas sold it because we assumed that meant movies would be coming out dedicated to the source material.
No more waiting years for the next film.
Little did we know, Rian Johnson was gonna turn Lucas's bulletproof franchise into woke nonsense and KK went full blown agenda .
It's like our fave sushi place became a self-serve, all-you-can-eat cannibal buffet.
This is the ultimate case of “be careful what you wish for”.
When the prequels came out, I had my own criticisms and whatnot, but I found far more to like than to dislike. I tried to appreciate them for what they actually were, rather than judging them by what they “should” have been. Because I’ve seen a lot of people going on and on over the years about what they “should” have been. Fans had 16 years to build anticipation and expectations. NOTHING could have met those expectations.
The prequels are underappreciated. They’re full of really interesting ideas, themes, and worldbuilding. It’s very, very clear that a great deal of thought, love, and craftsmanship went into their designs and conceptualization. While I don’t fully subscribe to the Ring Theory, there are numerous books and video essays out there which examine the subtle brilliance of the films’ construction (such as The STAR WARS Heresies and the video video essays of Rick Worley, among others).
There was a barrage of vitriol aimed at Lucas. One fanboy after another spouting their dumb, fannish, and terrible ideas for what the films “should” have been. Patton Oswald wanting to go back in time and beat Lucas to death with a shovel. RedLetterMedia’s extremely negative video reviews (which the aforementioned Mr. Worley did an excellent job of debunking), which turned out-of-context moments from the prequels’ excellent making-of documentaries into soundbites “proving” how incompetent Lucas was (“Jar Jar is a key to all this”, “It’s kinda like poetry, they rhyme”).
And, of course, RLM infamously hoped that JJ Abrams would make STAR WARS movies, while Lucas showed people to their seats as an usher.
How well did that work out?
Be careful what you wish for.
As far as I’m concerned, actual “toxic fandom” and the media went out of their way to tear George Lucas down at every turn, be it out of jealousy, stupidity, or unrealistic expectations. Personally, I’m very grateful for all of the innovations he brought to cinema, and the joy his films have brought to so many people, including me. What minor quibbles I have with his work pale in comparison to all of that.
So, of course, once a mainstream corporation got ahold of his baby, they destroyed it. Lucas always bucked the Hollywood system, and they hated him for it. This was all inevitable. A perfect storm of corporate greed and idiot fanboys getting exactly what they wanted: STAR WARS without George Lucas.
Except that, despite attempts to attribute its success to anyone and everyone BUT Lucas (which YouTuber Nerdnonymous has excellently debunked), there is no STAR WARS without Lucas. He was an artist, and it was his art, born out of his obsessions, eccentricities, and morality.
And it died as soon as he signed it over. The bodily has just been twitching ever since.
Lord Boron
Sr Member
Sorry, but the prequels still suck. Just because the sequels suck more, doesn’t make prequels suddenly good.
Right now SW is like watching an aging pro athlete who doesn't know it's time to quit. They could easily turn that around, but it would require hiring writers and executives who wanted to go back to making good stories and not just their own un-Star Wars-y stories in a Star Wars costume.
This is a common argument. And not one supported by the facts. The prequels were exceptional financial successes. The merchandise sold. A whole generation (without the baggage of expectation) that grew up with them love them. They clearly resonate with people.
I could easily pick apart the things in them that don’t work, but I could also praise all of the things that do. I can’t bring myself to call them “bad”, because I see too much good in them. Flawed? Yes. Clunky and cringey in places? Yes. But they still entertain me and make me think, and so I keep coming back to them. I call that successful. They’ll never be the original trilogy, but what could be?
On the flipside, the Disney Trilogy lost half its audience, the merchandise rots on shelves, and no one will care in the years to come, after it stops being trendy and/or politically useful to defend them.
I’ll take Lucas’ flawed, experimental films any day over Disney’s soulless pap.
Jaitea
Master Member
I never thought I'd appreciate the Prequels like I do now, but I totally agree with you Gregatron
J
I've realized something about my love for SW: it's really the OT era, including the post-prequel years leading up, that I find interesting. I don't really need material about things that happened before or after, whether it was three years or three thousand. I'm barely even aware of the High Republic era, for example. Doesn't interest me.
At least Disney left some meat on the bone with Star Wars in the form of Andor season 2. The OT remains fertile ground for material if you just clear all the debris and garbage.
But with the MCU they burned it all to the ground and salted the earth.
But with the MCU they burned it all to the ground and salted the earth.
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Sometimes you need a negative to appreciate a positive. The Disney Era is a yardstick to measure the Lucas Era with, and it proves just how good we actually had it with with Lucas, in terms of the effort he put into his art, and how he handled relations with the audience—his paying customers.
He was always respectful to his audience, no matter what horrible things were said about him. As apposed to the bile and labeling that Disney-Lucasfilm allows its employees to indulge in. Never in a million years would Lucas dismiss criticisms of his films by calling people istaphobes. Which is now a technique that both Disney and Lucasfilm regularly use as a shield against criticism. It speaks to a fundamental lack of confidence in their own products.
And this is a core problem regarding where the franchise has gone: The story of STAR WARS is that story and those characters during that era. And it’s already been told. Everything else is just wheel-spinning and corporate brand-management: Redundant, repetitive, and derivative.
The Disney Trilogy was an opportunity to do something truly new and different, and they instead chose to do a bad remake of the OT, which also completely dismantled and destroyed the characters, themes, and plot points of the six Lucas Era films. Biggest disaster in cinema history, and pure cultural vandalism.
JPH
Sr Member
The prequels were not as good as the OT, but we already knew the story.
The OT would have several stories coming together in the end, they didnt have that same build up and triumphant ending in the prequels.
The first 3 times you did something you discovered you really liked
vs
The 4th thru 6th times you did something you really liked.
You can't really have major plot twist to the story you already know.
Yoda can be a whirlwind with his lightssber, Jar Jar is the usefull idiot who puts Palpatine in place, is O B 1 a Clone? He fought in the "Clone Wars," but no "I'm your father!" moments.
And I will take, "you're breaking my heart," and "I don't like sand," over "every word of what you just said was wrong," goofiness.
joberg
Legendary Member
...and the PHD courses on the subject of killing an entire franchise
Lucas was always determined to make each film different, which I greatly admire. There are stylistic connections and echoes across all six films, but they all provide new planets/vehicles/aliens and plots. I even appreciate the much-criticized second Death Star, because we always see cartoon villains coming up with superweapons, only to abandon them and try something else in the next story after the hero defeats them. Why wouldn’t the Empire learn from their defeat and then try again?
The OT is a triumphant story about a civil war and a group of heroes coming together and becoming a surrogate family. The prequels are a political drama and cautionary tale about corruption and greed.
The Disney Trilogy is about both milking and tearing down STAR WARS. It does not have an overall narrative thrust. It does not insist upon itself.
OoooOOOOoooopppps.
www.small-screen.co.uk
Rian Johnson Star Wars Trilogy Scrapped By Disney (EXCLUSIVE)
Lucasfilm and Disney have reportedly opted to move away from Rian Johnson's Star Wars trilogy as they have decided to scrap the project.
www.small-screen.co.uk
that
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