Star Wars: The TV series?

[MIB41]

I certainly hope Disney does not saturate the brand in the next few years. The movies have always been the flagship of the brand. But if they start pumping out TV shows, annual stand alone movies, and the next trilogy too, I dare say overkill will be in play here...even for the diehards. Here's the story on the possibility of a television show.

http://www.superherohype.com/news/articles/178637-abc-discussing-potential-projects-with-lucasfilm

[spacecaps]

I certainly hope Disney does not saturate the brand in the next few years.

Yeah I would hate to see a saturation of Star Wars marketing to the point where it would cast such a poor light and make a mockery of what is essentially three of the greatest movies ever made. Something like that would make people start to detest the franchise as a whole. Oh wait....

[MIB41]

^^^That's merchandise. Which we all know has been on overdrive forever. But that's also coming (chiefly) from six movies over 36 years. Park a new trilogy, spin off films, and a TV show in the middle of that and you get message overload. Add the fact Disney will want to brand-mix it with their own and I think people will get fed up fairly quick.

[jimsmegos]

I think people will get fed up fairly quick.

Agreed. I'm already there honestly. Not that I'm anti Disney or anti "new" stuff but I'm afraid you are very right Tom. The lack of TV and movies I think made the original trilogy so special. To start cranking out new officially sanctioned programs and films like an assembly line will just water down the endearing story of three rogues and one bad guy even further.

[ctc]

>To start cranking out new officially sanctioned programs and films like an assembly line will just water down the endearing story of three rogues and one bad guy even further.

I dunno. I think there's plenty of room for new stories. My big concern is that they'll feel the need to tie every single little thing inot the overall story, and existing characters. If they come up with new folks, doing new things in new parts of the galaxy it'll be neat. They can expand the setting, go somewhere different, fill in some blanks.... that sort of thing. If it's all about Boba Fett, or how Luke and Han's kids team up to fight the little cloned Emperor then I'll most likely pass. And I'm afraid that tying it all in is what they'll do. ("We paid for the name and dadgummit we're USING it!")

Don C.

[MIB41]

I dunno. I think there's plenty of room for new stories. My big concern is that they'll feel the need to tie every single little thing inot the overall story, and existing characters. If they come up with new folks, doing new things in new parts of the galaxy it'll be neat. They can expand the setting, go somewhere different, fill in some blanks.... that sort of thing. If it's all about Boba Fett, or how Luke and Han's kids team up to fight the little cloned Emperor then I'll most likely pass. And I'm afraid that tying it all in is what they'll do. ("We paid for the name and dadgummit we're USING it!")
Don C.

Everything you said is exactly the undercurrent to my concerns about where this "new" franchise can go. Disney gambled big in buying all of this off Lucas. And in light of Lucas' comments about the future of Hollywood and big budget films, I can see why he got out. You now have the author of this series removed from the creative process. A move some would argue is only an improvement. I would never question the artistic merits of that argument either. But psychologically, this new series will have to carry the weight of that sense of removal. What's worse, it has to either reinvent or introduce a new villain to go against what is arguably one of the most iconic creations in film history. Then you have the fans and their expectations that span nearly forty years of story telling. If I were a high profile director, I would run from this project if it were offered to me. You can't win. And keep in mind, the prequels had the benefit of pent up demand having spent 16 years in hiatus. It had the benefit of the legacy that went with the brand. And it had the benefit of people wanting to see the evolution of Darth Vader. So it fed on both legacy and tradition. This new trilogy will feed off the legacy that was the prequels. This new trilogy feeds off the drone of big budget films that are common place. And it will feed off the implosion of said big budget films that often crater like Star Destroyers colliding. It carries little distinction outside of the brand. Now it's a given the first film will likely go over huge, just for casting reasons alone. This could be the experience most of us were looking for (but never got) when we bought tickets to the Phantom Menace. But the idea of a movie every year, further complicated by a television show quickly dilutes the depth of the story and induces images of commercial overload in my mind. Do we really need another isle devoted only to Star Wars toys? I smell a quick burn out.

[spacecaps]

We'll I was kidding about the marketing aspect because Star Wars has become so commercialized now that I just block it out. I can't get excited about Star Wars Angry Birds no matter how good the game is. It just doen't need to be and every time something like that comes out (LET'S STAR WARS-IZE IT!) it tarnishes the original series. Add on to that that the last three movies were garbage and my hopes are shot. Don't forget thought that back in the 80's Star Wars did have two spin-off cartoon series, a holiday special, and two made for TV movies before going away entirely. I'd argue that those two Ewok movies are better than anything the prequels did and while the Star Wars Holiday Special was a train wreck, it did show us a glimpse of what made Star Wars so compelling in the first place.....It's a Space Movie, not a weird religious cult movie steeped in politics. Most of ANH, there's very little Jedi. In Empire, 1/3 is Jedi, Even Return of The Jedi had minimal Jedi lore in it. It's still the bad guys building a giant muder-star in an attempt to terrorize the galaxy and the good guys trying to stop them against all odds. The Ewok movies have ZERO Jedi, so did the Holiday Special, so did the Droids and Ewok cartoons. Focus on the space aspect of Star Wars again, and it become interesting. Focus on the Jedi and bore the crap out of your audience. Somewhere along the line though, someone decided that Star Wars needed to be all Jedi all the time and it's too much. It's like if the Beatles did an album and Ringo sang all of the songs. The Jedi's are the Ringo of the Star Wars universe.

The other problem with Star Wars is the Skywalkers. Their story is played out. It wrapped up when Luke burned his father on Endor. It's a galaxy full of people but we're still getting movies focused on this one very dysfunctional family. Luke doesn't need a nine hour epilogue. Dustin Hoffman didn't make us a sequel to Kramer vs. Kramer to show us how his character handled being a single dad nine years after the custody battle. We got the good part of his story and needed no more. Han gets the girl and lives Happily Ever After. The End. But a happy ending depends on where you stop the story and if we see anymore of these characters, were gonna get Jewel of The Nile in Space. This is the Ripley factor. (You've got a good story with a compelling protagonist set in a vast universe rich with endless possibilities and yet you continue to shoe horn the original hero into all of the new stories long after they've ran their course.) As good as Aliens is, it kept Ripley around to make the third movie and then the 4th. Remove Ripley from the Alien franchise after two and focus on the Space Marines or a colony in space and the franchise has a totally different vibe after part two. Remove Skywalker from Star Wars episodes 7, 8, & 9 and you've got a fresh start. Center the story on them and you're gonna wind up with Alien 3 and no one needs to see that again.

[ctc]

>The other problem with Star Wars is the Skywalkers. Their story is played out.

I would use the term "finished" myself. Not in the prejorative sense, but in that it had a beginning, a middle and an end. Dragging it out no would be difficult. All the baggage, none of the nostalgia.

>But psychologically, this new series will have to carry the weight of that sense of removal.

I don't think that's going to be as big a problem as you do. Star Wars has been essentially a corporate property since the beginning, so there's already an acceptance of rejuggling there. (Fans still sort of whistle off the Luke/Leia thing.) I think the biggest problems will be:

-The longterm fans, who aren't going to be happy with WHATEVER you do
-Timidity forcing the producers to hang on too tightly to the old story

....although there is precedent for new; given how well stuff like "Rogue Squadron" and other stories did in the 90's. At least if you're gonna rehash, rehash something I haven't seen a bajillion times. (Dear Disney: We don't NEED more Fett.)

Don C.

[MIB41]

Unfortunately it's a foregone conclusion that Hollywood will milk to death anything that is a proven money maker. As much as I agree with Spacecaps that Star Wars could find new life and fresher legs with a different attitude towards the universe as a whole and less about the Skywalker bloodline, you have to know the marketing folks will be pushing for more of what already sells. No studio would risk this kind of investment and then do a complete facelift on the product. They are buying into the existing brand of characters. So if product of Fett is selling right now, Disney will make more Fett stories and merchandise. If droid merchandise is selling big, then marketing research will push for more droid stories. It's all about making merchandise unfortunately. Why else do spin offs except to merchandise what Disney deems as the franchise's most iconic heroes? Han's "solo" adventures? Ew... I can smell it like burnt toast. It's coming.

[huedell]

I find it odd that even you most cynical posters don't want to see what a live action big budget Boba Fett movie would actually be like.

Also.... isn't there a part of you that says it isn't "all" about the evils of merch-based decisions... and a bit about giving the people what they actually want to see?

[spacecaps]

I find it odd that even you most cynical posters don't want to see what a live action big budget Boba Fett movie would actually be like.

A Fett movie is the ultimate cash grab movie Disney can make at this point. We already got a Boba Fett movie in Attack of The Clones. Boba Fett is all flash and no substance. He looks cool but he totally sucks at his job . Also he's dead. Everything that made Fett interesting was already eradicated once they told his (terrible) story in AOTC. Remenber in Silence of The Lambs how cool Hannibal Lecter was. He was a very compelling character because he was evil, dark and mysterious, and we knew very little about his back story. Then the sequels came and we learned way too much about him and the character became less appealing and the movies were silly. A Boba Fett movie wouldn't be this dark and twisted Star Wars opus,that's not how Star Wars does things. A Boba Fett movie would be about this misunderstood protagonist who's doing what he does because he's the hero all along and we just didn't know it. It'll be the Star Wars version of Wicked. (The witch turns out to be not wicked at all incase you guys didn't know.) Also like Oz when Fett was first introduced as a character he was like the Wizard, dangerous and seeped in mystery, once the curtain was pulled back on him, there was nothing to see. Instead of a powerless old man, Fett is an angry child with daddy issues. Pass.

These guys said it best so take a look at this:

http://www.cracked.com/video_18433_everyones-favorite-star-wars-character-sucks-at-his-job.html

and/or read this:

http://www.cracked.com/article_18851_7-movie-badasses-who-completely-fail-to-deliver_p2.html

[GordoCrisp]

My greatest wish would be another Holiday special. (ouch)

Though Bea Arthur is no longer with us, Donny & Marie may be agreeable and available!

[ctc]

>and a bit about giving the people what they actually want to see?

I say it's ALL about giving people what they want, which is why you see the same stuff over and over. The audience isn't blameless in any milk run; the company keeps doing the same old same old 'cos it sells. To the audience. The root problem IS the audience, not them nasty bad companies who're milking my favourite show dry, and abusing my beloved characters, and raping my childhood to feed Ba'al.... Everyone SAYS they want something new, but the foot shuffling, backtracking and sales show otherwise.

>even you most cynical posters don't want to see what a live action big budget Boba Fett movie would actually be like

I already have a good idea what it'd be like, which is why I'm lukewarm on the idea. I'd rather see someone who hasn't got their chance get some play. I'd love to see the ice cream guy or Jaxxon.... especially if the show was done really well and made the fans fall in love with the characters, despite themselves. I'd love to see something along the lines of that animated TIE Fighter film, the one with Desslock leading. I'd love a proper "Gary the Stormtrooper" series. Do something with the Nagai, or the Zeltrans. Do a soap opera that just happens to be in space.

>it's a foregone conclusion that Hollywood will milk to death anything that is a proven money maker

Usually, but we're starting to see some cracks in the formula. Granted, it's mostly films so expensive they can't POSSIBLY pull a profit.... but that's still a crack. There's always SOME hope. I like the show "TRON: Renegade" even though the last movie was kinda meh. But that's 'cos they weren't afraid to part with stuff that mucks up the story. (Like users.) I really liked "The Clone Wars" show, especially the later episodes where they started concentrating more on the newer characters and less on sticking Anakin and Obi into every scene.

Is it a LOT of hope? No.... but it's enough that I'll give the first episodes a shot before I get worried.

....hell; I'd watch a show about a cadre of Ewoks out in the wider galaxy, just 'cos I haven't seen that one done to death yet.

Don C.

[Werewolf]

I don't worry too much about the prequels ruining classic trilogy characters back stories, like with Fett or Vader. If I took the prequels as strict continuity I wouldn't be able to enjoy the excellent Clone Wars series. Because there is no way the whiny, self absorbed, sociopath with delusions of grandeur prequel Anakin is the likable heroic Anakin in CW.

Besides, so much continuity was already retconned in the classic trilogy. The only story that is in true 100 percent continuity with Star Wars is the novel Splinter of the Minds Eye which was planned, at the time, to be the low budget sequel to Star Wars. Luke and Leia weren't originally intended to be brother and sister and Luke's sister was an entirely new character training to be a Jedi at the other side of the galaxy. The Han, Luke, Leia love triangle and Luke's real sister all got retconned away in Jedi.

If written well a Fett movie could be fun. But I think he'd work better as the villain in a Han Solo movie.

[huedell]

The only story that is in true 100 percent continuity with Star Wars is the novel Splinter of the Minds Eye which was planned, at the time, to be the low budget sequel to Star Wars. Luke and Leia weren't originally intended to be brother and sister and Luke's sister was an entirely new character training to be a Jedi at the other side of the galaxy. The Han, Luke, Leia love triangle and Luke's real sister all got retconned away in Jedi.

Lucas says he figured Leia may have been Luke's sister before the original Star Wars was released, and I believe him. Splinter Of The Mind's Eye never SAYS that Luke and Leia weren't brother and sister... all it does is make a romantic triangle (without Han present) ---or at least some kind of romance--- develop between Luke and Leia... which is totally reasonable if the two don't know they are brother and sister. Heck, the same movie where Yoda says "There is another." referring to Leia Skywalker, has Luke and Leia kiss in it. In other words, it's been established that brothers and sisters can "make mistakes" in one of the three original films.

If written well a Fett movie could be fun. But I think he'd work better as the villain in a Han Solo movie.

If I was Harrison Ford's business advisor, I'd take him aside and say:

"Listen Har... you know you're getting older... getting near the end of the line,. so to speak. Why don't we go into the movie producing business? We'll strike a deal with Disney to create a "Han Solo as protagonist" movie... he'll be a free-wheelin' Corellian up against Boba Fett with assistance from Vader and Jabba. It'll take place a few years prior to Episode 4, and, instead of casting a new Han, we'll invest in the most intricate 'face de-aging' CGI made to date. The plot will circle around a shipment of illegal slave trade components that Jabba wants smuggled cross-galaxy and at which Vader is twice-fuming at Jabba's audacity... for one, because the stuff isn't Imperial-sanctioned and two, because the stuff is from Tatooine, and the same slave traders that once housed Vader and abused him. Han's Wookie partner Chewbacca owes Han a life-debt for saving him from Imperial slavers, and Chewie reluctantly supports Han in what could be one of Han's most morally-taxing business decisions. But this shipment won't ne easy. The only chance Han has of making it across the galaxy that fast w/out being nabbed by Vader is to find a faster ship than the one he has at present. Desperate, Han asks his old friend (Lando) to borrow a ship that can do the job. Lando refuses, but is such a degenerate gambler that he gives in to Han's idea to play cards for the amazing ship. So, the crazy "road-trip" adventure takes pause for a nail-biting poker-type game, where Han emerges as the winner with his new ship the "Millennium Falcon". After a knock-down drag-out battle with Boba Fett (sent out by Jabba to retrieve the slave-gear because Han is taking too long to deliver it), Han finally makes the moral decision to get rid of the slave stuff, thus setting off the events (In the "Han" context) for Episode 4 w/Jabba putting the price on Han's head, etc. We call the movie 'The Kessel Run' and shoot it in 6 weeks. Have Disney guarantee you 10 percent of the box-office, and the merch gross... the movie will be the greatest mainstream film commentary on slave trading since Django Unchained, and your great-grandkids will be set for life."

Harrison would be crazy to refuse