The Rise of Skywalker has finally hit theaters and is retreating into the rear-view mirror. The conclusion to the so-called Skywalker Saga is the end of an era for George Lucas’s franchise, and now, it’s on Lucasfilm to figure out what to do next. We asked a handful of space opera, sci-fi, and fantasy authors about what they’d like to see next for Star Wars.
Star Wars isn’t going anywhere. And it hasn’t. Along with The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker, Disney and Lucasfilm released two standalone films, Rogue One and Solo, as well as animated shows Rebels and Resistance, live-action series The Mandalorian, and a massive theme park, Galaxy’s Edge.
The finale of The Clone Wars is on its way later this month, the second season of The Mandalorian debuts in October (and it looks like additional seasons and spinoffs are likely), while new live-action shows about Obi-Wan Kenobi and Cassian Andor are in development. While Disney CEO Bob Iger noted that they’re putting films on hold for a while, there are some other projects in the works: Rian Johnson is working on a new film trilogy, Kevin Feige is developing a project, Disney wants Taika Waititi to develop his own project, and Lucasfilm is about to embark on a big publishing initiative called Project Luminous, which is set to be unveiled later this month.
That’s a lot of Star Wars, but we still don’t know what some of these projects will entail. So what do we want to see out of the Star Wars franchise?
One overwhelming sentiment was to go beyond the exploits of the Jedi Order. James Cambias, author of A Darkling Sea and The Initiate, wants to see some new perspectives:
“There’s plenty of room for stories about, well, scruffy-looking smugglers, or farm boys leaving home in search of adventure who aren’t part of some hidden space-wizard lineage; or gamblers bluffing their way into control of entire planets; or crooks; or spies; or honest merchants. Heck, show us some Imperials doing something other than fighting Rebels!”
Becky Chambers, author of A Long Way to A Small, Angry Planet, A Closed and Common Orbit, and Record of a Spaceborn Few concurs.
“In the wake of both Rogue One and The Mandalorian’s first season, I’m starting to think that Star Wars is better when the Jedi are on the sidelines of the story, or—gasp!—not there at all.”
“This is an enormous universe, and there’s so much more opportunity to explore the intricacies of empire and the realities of war when you treat the space magic as dessert instead of as main course. My inner kid who made lightsabers with markers and wrapping paper tubes is throwing a fit at this, but honestly, as an adult, I’m so much more captivated by the characters who have nothing more than a good blaster at their side. Give me more Finns and Cara Dunes. Show me the nitty-gritty personal consequences of all those exploding planets and space stations. That’s the kind of mess I’m interested in.”
Star Wars isn’t likely to completely jettison one its most recognizable feature, but Charlie Jane Anders author of The City in the Middle of the Night, explained that she wanted to go beyond Light and Dark sides of the Force.
“[It] occurred to me is that I’d like to see how people use the Force without that Jedi/Sith dichotomy. There have to be cultures and periods in history where people have harnessed the Force without imposing that Manichean dualism on it, and it’s possible the Force can do a lot of different things if you stop thinking of it as having a Light Side and a Dark Side.”
Mike Brooks, author of Dark Run, Dark Sky, and Dark Deeds had a similar thought.
“There’s surely some scope for a con-artist with mild mind-clouding powers, or someone who can use the Force to aid minor healing: just regular people using this ability to aid their daily life a bit.”
Max Gladstone, author of the Craft Sequence, explains that The Mandalorian was one of “the most exciting pieces of Star Wars I’ve seen in a long time,” particularly because it got away from the Jedi vs. Sith drama. He says that it’s the everyday troubles that face characters that he’s the most interested in, and that it’s long been a central part of the world.
“Luke bums around the local truck stop with his loser friends; Han has credit problems with the mob. Uncle Owen’s worried abut the harvest. The Jawas just need more cut-rate droid parts. As a kid, this daily texture really helped me imagine having my own adventures in the Star Wars universe—not having Luke’s adventures, but having different adventures out there among the stars.”
For her part, Warchild and Gaslight Dogs author Karin Lowachee wanted to see more from the franchise’s underworld and western sensibilities, particularly when it comes to The Mandalorian.
“I’ve love to see Mandalorian novels with more explored in that post-ROTJ era. The happily ever after is rarely happily ever after. Besides the bounty hunter world, I feel there’s more that can be explored about what happened to all of the Empire employees (they can’t all be evil), and the Mandalorian is the right vehicle to poke at the gray areas.”
Lowachee also explained that she wanted to see more stylistic experimentation.
“I’m curious what a Noir Star Wars might look like, so for my own interest I’d love to see a writer/director experiment in that milieu—and not make it Blade Runner.”
John Scalzi seems to agree about expanding Star Wars’ genre boundaries.
“STAR WARS (intentional) COMEDY. I have spoken.”
Vivian Shaw, author of Strange Practice, Dreadful Company, and Grave Importance, explained that she wasn’t quite ready to leave the sequel trilogy behind.
“I’d absolutely love to see more novels, particularly exploring the villains of the sequel trilogy. Delilah S. Dawson’s Phasma is fantastic—I’d really enjoy it if we could get a similar deep dive into the background of General Hux, for example, and see more of Kylo Ren and his stupid lightsaber. There’s so much rich storytelling to be expanded on in the films.”
Katherine Arden, author of The Bear and the Nightingale, takes a slightly different view:
“I greeted the Disney era of Star Wars with excitement, but was quickly disenchanted by a series of slickly marketed, derivative, and inconsistent films. In my opinion, good storytelling took a backseat to making as much money as possible and the entire franchise has suffered for it. My only wish is to see a renewed focus on strong filmmaking with compelling stories.”
Andrew Liptak is a writer and historian from Vermont. He is the author of the forthcoming book Cosplay: A History (Saga Press, 2021), and his work has appeared in Clarkesworld, io9, Lightspeed, Polygon, Tor.com, The Verge, and other publications.
Star Wars biggest problem is Star Wars Fans. Not “people who like Star Wars”, just so we’re clear. The Fans, with a capital F. Even the ones who aren’t raging misogynists become quite publicly tetchy when the franchise doesn’t serve them up exactly what they, personally, were expecting.
Why would anyone invest big budget, CGI, marquee talent money in something with a built in resentful, spite filled audience with nothing but free time on their hands who will (not probably will, will) take to social media with the express intent of crapping on it? Followed by critics who are tired of people going to big budget films instead of tiny indie films so they bag on it undeservedly.
I expect Disney to continue what it’s been doing lately (and in between big budget fests…) tell stories in animation or on Disney + for far less money and mainly give movies a miss.
Personally I think I’ll just return to the Old EU. There’s still a ton of material I haven’t perused yet: A lot of the Dark Horse comics, the Dark Forces games, KOTR II, and the Tales anthologies. I’ll definitely keep up with the Mandalorian and the Kenobi series and I’m planning a Clone Wars rewatch, but I think I’ll return to my roots after my dissatisfaction with the sequel trilogy.
Elevator pitch:
Super Troopers meets Platoon in the Empire
Followed by critics who are tired of people going to big budget films instead of tiny indie films so they bag on it undeservedly.
@1: Critics were for the most part extremely praising of The Last Jedi, since it tried to push the envelope for Star Wars, the same way indie films tend to when they try to be original and deviate from blockbuster storytelling formula. It’s the fans who took a dump on it.
@@.-@ I was talking about Rise of Skywalker. It was entirely serviceable, it was just clear that Abrams was taking no chances so as to avoid Fans setting fire to theaters on the way out. And critics bagged on it. Was it a 97% like Knives Out (hey, I too like Rian Johnson and always have done, and yeah I like TLJ way more than ROS). Nope. Not even close. Was it a 52%? Also no. Based on the movie *I* saw ROS should have gotten like a 75%. Abrams played not to lose, and in that he succeeded.
The problem with playing not to lose is you forestall the ability to win.
But critics have been (wrongheadedly) trying to somehow to “stop” big budget sequalitis for some time now, and yet seeing Avengers last year, and seeing ROS, in NO WAY stopped me from seeing Knives Out, Ford v Ferrari, or Uncut Gems.
What keeps me from seeing all the little Indie Films critics think I should be watching is TIME. I don’t have that much free time, and I have a LOT of other things I want to do, so I’ll give Midsommar a pass thanks. (Good decision as it turns out.)
But critics have been (wrongheadedly) trying to somehow to “stop” big budget sequalitis for some time now
@5: Critics have opinions. They’re not necessarily enamored with the way Hollywood tries to capitalize on sequels and expensive films with proven narratives. But to assume they’re on a crusade against these films is borderline paranoia. They’re only expressing their viewpoints. It’s up to readers to take their advice or not.
And Midsommar was a terrific film. A good example of trying for something different every once in a while. Even Scorsese recommended it.
I would love to see an adaptation of the famous Knights of the Old Republic video games from early in this century. I still have a crush on Bastilla Shan!
@7 Well Revan was alluded to by the Rise of Skywalker visual dictionary as a ancient Sith Lord.
Just to chime in – Midsommar was utterly fantastic, one of the most surprising and delightful “horror” movies I’ve seen in a while. Reading about it afterwards and seeing all the things I’d missed that nevertheless reinforced my overall interpretation of it was a treat. It was the next movie I watched after TROS, and it was a more enjoyable and thoughtful and rewarding experience on every possible level.
As for Star Wars – after the omnidirectional trainwreck that was TROS, I’m happy to see anything that doesn’t touch the Skywalker/Palpatine storyline with a ten-parsec-pole. Grey Jedi, smugglers, Old Republic stuff, Yuuzhan Vong, you name it. But TROS, more than any other Star Wars, made really clear just how brazenly corporate and metrics-reactive the creative process behind that franchise is, so realistically speaking I think it just taught me an important lesson not to expect much from big corporate properties, and I’m going to move on to greener pastures.
These are all solid takes. Totally agree with exploring different genre styles and experimenting more with tone.
I also agree that there is some huge potential with exploring stories that are outside the traditional umbrella of Jedi vs. Sith/Skywalker lineage stuff. It’s a huge galaxy. Let’s actually explore some of it: there has to be some really interesting, far-flung nooks and crannies to visit instead of coming back to Tatooine for the 400th time.
I’d personally love to see an Old Republic/origins of the Jedi film or trilogy, but only if it’s significantly removed from the preexisting canon – set it way way back in the timeline, when the galaxy is a dangerous frontier and hyperdrive is a new exciting development. Give me steampunk lightsabers and stuff.
I also wish they would have more courage to get weird with the Force – the Dark/Light Side dichotomy is really starting to be limiting. Let’s see some morally gray stuff. Also let’s get really out there with what people can do with Force powers – I’d love to see some reality-warping or time-travel-type shenanigans, instead of yet another person who can, idk, levitate stuff?
Here’s my list:
1: The Revan Saga, probably as a TV series. It has room for some of the best characters, the best aesthetics, and the best exploration of Jedi/Sith interactions of any SW setting.
2: Imperial Remnant trying to hold things together. Featuring a workmanlike admiral who believes the supposed ideals of the Empire, running a small fleet (many of his ships having been stripped for the Battle of Endor and ultimately lost at Jakku), doing what he can to suppress piracy and maintain peace and order in his tiny corner of the galaxy. There’s a ton of room for political and moral complexity here, especially in his interactions with other Imperials and the nascent First Order. Plus I’d love to see TIE Defenders and TIE Punishers on the big screen.
3: A heist film. Between all the tech, access to the force, and the infinite possibilities of the GFFA, Star Wars has the potential to host one of the greatest heist films of all time. There’d even be room for cameos if appropriate (I’d like to see Zuckuss and 4-LOM as part of the team).
4: Count of Monte Cristo, in space, with Hutts. The selling points for this should be obvious.
I’d settle for good storytelling centered on just about any characters (except Palpy) and stories that include minorit characters as more than just token representation.
Until then, I’m sticking with fan fiction and rereading/rewatching old favorites.
Here’s the thing about the Star Wars galaxy.
It’s a galaxy! It’s huge. You can do practically anything in it. This is what I wanted while Rogue One was in production, before they decided that “A Star Wars Story” meant “lets follow the main characters around” (looking at you, Solo…)
Want to do a heist movie? Do it in a Star Wars setting. Doesn’t have to be about anyone you’ve seen before. A new gang. Oceans Eleven In SPAAAAAACE!
A horror film? Do it in a Star Wars setting. Don’t need Jedi or lightsabres for that. Just some people on some planet somewhere.
Western? Wait, forget that, just watch The Mandalorian.
How about a story about “good” Imperials, fighting against a pirate gang, or something obviously evil so we can root for them,learn why they joined up (alluded to above, see also the Timothy Zahn Alligence/Choices of One novels for stormtrooper versions of that)
Once you’ve got your decent Imps, have a stormtrooper buddy comedy.
A crime drama about Black Sun, or The Exchange.
Obviously I’d love a KotOR story in a Bandersnatch Choose-Your-Own-Adventure sort of thing.
Basically, anything you can tag “… in space!” on the end of the pitch for could be done in Star Wars. Just don’t make it all self referential stuff and sly winks to the audience. Do it well.
@11,13 You don’t consider Rogue One or Solo Heist films?
Let’s get a variation of The Wire, with a New-New Republic police task force operating within one solar system – explore the cartels, the police, the poverty, the politics, the wealthy, the media, the interpersonal drama – all with an expendable cast to keep it unpredictable. Staff the unit with some ex-imperials – their resumes fit the bill – but don’t make them all idealogues. Cast a long-time local imperial governor as a democratically re-elected public official whom the people of one planet in the system still believe in.
I just want post Episode IX to have no centralized government. I think after the last 70-80 years many systems would be against big government and most of the heave proponents would have died in the Hosnian system. There would be alliances between systems but I just can’t see much of a push for galactic unity.
@14: A film can feature one or more heists without being a Heist Film. Both films included heists, but they were secondary to other story elements. A proper Heist Film is about the heist itself.
I want to see a CALRISSIAN SEVEN heist picture so very, very desperately – it would be a very neat way to do a sequel to SOLO (which I thoroughly enjoyed), while taking it in a very different direction; after all, who doesn’t want to see Billy D. ‘Lando Calrissian’ Williams look back fondly on the days when Donald ‘Lando Calrissian’ Glover scammed every jackass who had it coming and made that look Good.
Bonus points if Lando quietly recruits Chewbacca as ‘Thinking Man’s Muscle’ and Han spends the rest of the film as Comic Relief trying to find out where the HECK Chewie has got to (Of course Lando didn’t bother to let Han in on the scheme – man’s a menace to organised anything!). (-;
What to do with Star Wars? That’s an easy answer.
• Insert head into bucket.
• Engage jetpack.
• Show cute goblin.
• Repeat.
p.s. This would not be the scheme that won Lando Cloud City, but it might very well be how he acquired the stake needed to sit at that fateful gaming table …
I’m all for a young Lando heist movie.
Also, a Star Wars horror film.
A little less like it’s past?
That’s a mighty big brush you’re using, there. I’d consider myself one of the original Fans, to a perhaps faulty degree–I’m a member of the Rebel Legion, the costuming fan group, for example–and personally I’d love to see a lot of different things from the franchise going forward. I think there’s room for Jedi/Sith stories AND new Force traditions (I would love to see the Jensaraai show up in the movies or TV), Big Epic stories AND small character stories, and all manner of other things, from drama to comedy.
Damn, Katherine Arden laying down the hard truths. Helps that she actually knows how to write a cohesive trilogy.
Stop making prequels and shows that feature characters we already know (except for a Donald Glover Lando caper movie or show, of course). Set the stories outside the main sequence of tales, with new planets and new characters. Maybe go into the distant past, like the old Tales of the Jedi (but again, don’t get too tied into what is already written). We can see explorers and archaeologists, military personnel (especially space fighter pilots like X-Wing squadron), traders, smugglers, local cops trying to uphold the law; all sorts of the things that make the world go round (that never-produced crime drama set on Coruscant sounded fun, and they already have scripts written). Lower the stakes; the fate of entire planets and star systems is oh so tired at this point. There can be some Jedi and force stuff in it, but like Charlie Jane Anders says, the good versus evil duality has also been overdone. I like the idea of the Force not being the exclusive tool of either Jedi or Sith, as introduced in The Last Jedi, and briefly mentioned in The Rise of Skywalker.
Shocking, shocking I say! You even show the screenshot of that scene at the top of the article and nobody picks up on it?
I’m of course speaking of the final scene in The Last Jedi, at Canto Bight, where the stableboy levitates the broom, hinting he has a connection to the Force.
I want to see that kid as he grows up. What does he become?
Yes, the indigent kid growing up to become more has been done twice already in the Star Wars saga. The first time was done badly, in the prequel trilogy when we met Anakin Skywalker as a child. The second time had nothing to do with the Force, as it was our meeting Han Solo as a teenager in Solo.
What about this time we have the kid coming of age without Jedi conveniently around to guide and mentor him (although that worked really well the first time around)? A boy growing up in indentured servitude in a hardscrabble environment who just happens to have “powers”? Who knows there’s something more than this life of drudgery, because he’s reminded of it every time he looks up and sees the lights of the casino on the heights above?
@26 Yes, that would be something I would enjoy. Imagine the impact of the Force at a track and casino!
Some of the old Extended Universe material was amazing. To a degree, you can get that all with sorts of franchise spec material – much will be bad, and some will be good, because the people who own the material don’t care about precisely what’s done as long as they make money. So authors are surprisingly free to take on the style they wish, and sometimes it works out really well.
The problem comes when a franchise needs to make money through broad appeal, so the people actually creating the new material are sanitized and focus grouped and ultimately made to turn out mediocre stuff. New and exciting things tend not to arise when people are looking for a sure bet. The original Star Wars was a passion project from a novice filmmaker, and it’s the later two films’ great achievement that they manage to reach for greatness despite SW becoming a huge cultural obsession.
With modern Star Wars, the material that’s recognized as having the best storytelling and innovative content has been the cartoons – the medium that the corporate content owners cared least about, so the passion of the creators let them make something good. The more mainstream the content, the less impressive it’s been.
So: I’d like to see lots of low-stakes content made by people who love Star Wars that is ignored by the people who only want to make money. Like the old EU material. Which is the only real SW stuff I’m interested in, at this point. My imagination can produce better special effects than any movie studio, and the storytelling can come from masters of the craft.
Getting away from the Jedi sounds good, so we can have a more exciting return to them later. Or this idea of a fledgling Jedi who has no guidance, maybe gets taken advantage of by people with ulterior motives (sorta like how Cruise tries to use Hoffman in Rain Man).
Anything, really, so long as it restores the feeling that it’s a huge universe out there with a whole lot of things going on. It’s what I found the sequel trilogy lacked more than anything, the sense of a whole lot of other things happening in the background.
Well someone has to say it. There are already 2 eras in star wars were the “sith” have been trying to kidnap “gifted”. Those gifted find themselves adopted by a rag tag freighter crew just trying to make it.
So basically Firefly. We all know we want it. So lets just admit it and move on.
Is it too late to ask for a “do over” of the last trilogy, maybe one with a coherent story? Asking for a friend :P
Oh here is one, how about the early days of the Old Republic, during their age of exploration, it would be set on a exploration starship, with a brash young captain, his logical first officer and his crew as they go on their 5 year mission… ;)
It needs new Legends books and even movies.
@23 Thank you. Wow, what a brush it was….and the Fans buy tickets, multiple times. Fans carry the banner. Fans give the drive to make the next…
Anyway, off the soapbox. Would love to see a far off planet, lone jedi (must have lightsavers!) who is, to his dismay, roped into being the “law”
As for the final 3 movies….Lucas should have gone down the Thrawn (Zahn trilogy) back when the actors were still young enough to play it. We just want a good story, good effects, lightsabres and blasters, cool ships, some capital ship battles and the like. Don’t need a social message or lipservice, just some good scifi.
This remark by Charlie Jane Anders was quite perceptive:
“There have to be cultures and periods in history where people have harnessed the Force without imposing that Manichean dualism on it, and it’s possible the Force can do a lot of different things if you stop thinking of it as having a Light Side and a Dark Side.”
I’d like to make a modest suggestion, which I have gleaned from the old, old, excellent short story ‘Limiting Factor’ by Theodore R. Cogswell.
Throughout all the films, we have some gifted individuals who have certain psychic powers (aka The Force) – and not highly potent ones either. They certainly don’t use those powers routinely, almost as if they had a limited supply and couldn’t waste them.
Now, these psychic powers must be manifestations of interactions of the human mind with the physical world, and as such, must be subject to certain regularities and rules, just as electromagnetism and gravitation are. Therefore there is a potential for mechanization.
As a character in ‘Limiting Factor’ says, “If I’d known how much work was going to be involved in this superman stuff, I’d have arranged to be born to different parents. You may think there is something romantic about dragging this tin ark through hyperspace by sheer mental pressure, but to me it feels like the old horse-and-buggy days with me as the horse. Mental muscle, physical muscle – what’s the difference? It’s still plain hard work. Give me an old-fashioned machine where I can sit back and push buttons.”
Later, these psychic geniuses on the spaceship meet a quiet little man in a business suit and a derby hat (from a highly advanced civilization), floating in space with no apparent life support. He whisks himself into the ship, and introduces himself: “My name is Thwiskumb – Ferzial Thwiskumb. I’m with Gliterslie, Quimbat and Swench, Exporters. I was on my way to Fomalhaut on a customer service call when I noted an odd disturbance in the sub-ether, so I stopped for a moment to see what was going on. You’re from Sol, aren’t you?”
Mr. Thwiskumb then explains: “The mutations that follow the release of atomic power almost always end up in the evolution of a group with some sort of control over the terska force.” (this would be the Star Wars Force)
“You’re obviously a Superior.” (meaning a Force-capable person)
“That’s a very kind thing to say,” answered the little man, “but I’m just as ordinary as anyone can be. [i.e., no Force abilities] We’re all Ordinaries where I come from. Our Superiors left a long time ago. He chuckled. “It’s a funny thing – at the time we didn’t know they were gone, so we didn’t miss them. We just went about business as usual. Later, we found them, but it was already too late. You see, the big difference was that we had an unlimited area of development and they didn’t. There’s no limit to the machine, but there is to the human organism. No matter how much training you have, there is a limit to how loud you can shout. After that, you have to get yourself an amplifier.
“A slight neural rearrangement makes it possible for you to tap and control certain sources of physical energy that aren’t directly available to the ordinary man of your planet, but you are still dealing with natural forces… and natural organic limits. There is a point beyond which you can’t go without the aid of the machine, an organic limiting factor.
“There is an old story in our folklore,” he continued, “about a boy who bought himself an animal somewhat like your terrestrial calf. He thought that if he lifted it above his head ten times a day while it was little, he would build up his strength gradually until he would still be able to lift it over his head when it was a full-grown animal. He soon discovered the existence of a natural limiting factor.
“Do you see what I mean? When gifted people reach their natural limits, there is no place for them to go but backward. We had the machine, though, and the machine can always be made smaller and better, so we had no stopping point.”
He reached inside his vest and pulled out a small shining object about the size of a cigarette case. “This is hooked by a tight beam to the great generators on Altair. Of course I wouldn’t, but I could move planets with it if I wanted to. It’s simply a matter of applying a long enough lever, and the lever, if you’ll remember, is a simple machine.”
Karl looked dazed. In fact, everyone did. He turned to the group. “All right, let’s get back to the engine room. We’ve got a long flight ahead of us.” (they propel their spacecraft with the Force) (he means, back to Sol)
“How long?” asked the little man.
“Four months if we push it.”
“Shocking waste of time.”
“I suppose you can do better?” Karl inquired belligerently.
“Oh, dear me, yes,” said Mr. Thwiskumb. “It would take me about a minute and a half. You Superiors dawdle so – I’m glad I’m normal.”
I think this idea could be very well adapted as a continuation of Star Wars. A group of the Rebels make the long journey to the galaxy next door (Andromeda), and find a civilization that has fully understood the Force and have built a whole society based around machines that manipulate it – far better, of course, than any Jedi or Sith can. Because the machine can always be built smaller, cheaper, and more effective, the potential for improvement is unlimited. Then the Rebels could negotiate with that civilization for help against the bad guys in the home galaxy – Palpatine or whoever. This would be a genuine departure from the same old, same old, and moreover would make a lot of logical sense.
Except the Force is actually sensitive to things like ethics. The ‘physical’ forces are relatively straightforward by comparison.
And who says ethics can’t have effects on the physical universe?
They seem to affect human brain matter. And sometimes dog brain matter.
Honestly, at this stage of the game, the only thing that could possibly get me enthused about more Star Wars would be a KOTOR trilogy directed by JMS or Joss Whedon. Disney has made such a dog’s breakfast of the franchise, from the Aftermath novels to Alphabet Squadron to the sequel trilogy itself, that I have zero confidence in their abilities moving forward, not when they invest more time and effort into blaming Russian trolls than they do actually plotting out their stories.
I’m pretty over it, to be honest. Not sure there is anything that would get me back into it. I wasn’t a fanboy, but I did like the original trilogy as a kid. I just haven’t liked anything since other than Rogue One- probably because it cuts right into the original trilogy. Saw everything except for the last one eventually on netflix and such, but never really tried. Star Wars fatigue is real.
Would much rather have more of just about any other sci fi franchise out there than this- Riddick, Firefly, Trek.
Now if they do decide to do something outside of their rebels vs various exactly the same space army stories, and I hear that others believe it to be decidedly different, I’d probably catch it eventually if were right in front of me. I just don’t think they’ll do that.
I grew up playing the Jedi Knight computer games and would LOVE to see a TV series of it. Let me see some Kyle Katarn!
I am also one of The Fans (I even love the prequels, okay :) ) and yeah, there’s a broad brush there :)
I do have problems with the sequels (although I still have found many things to enjoy and geek out over in them too. But when it comes down to it, it’s not the story I personally wanted, and some of the characters didn’t get the ending I wanted for them, oh well), and in some ways I think it’s unfair to criticize fans for that – the fans are the sometimes the ones that are the most invested in the story, the characters, the themes, etc and so actually care that they are done right by. That said I know there’s a tendency for fans to also get too wedded to their own personal headcanon. It IS a bit of a conundrum – the fans are the ones that, in a way, make the franchise popular and viable, and love it for what it is. But the nature of art is to try and take something into a new place; so how does one maintain the ‘spirit’ of what the thing is (and people probably have different ideas of what that is) while still doing something interesting with it? FWIW, I enjoyed The Last Jedi in isolation as I think it attempted to do and say some really interesting things I would have liked explored further, although it was within the context of a story I wasn’t a huge fan of. I did really enjoy Rise of Skywalker though. TFA is my least favorite Star Wars movie of all of them (although I’ll still give it a watch from time to time), even including Attack of the Clones.
As for the future, basically what others are saying. I have to admit, I love the Jedi and the Force, so I’d never want to see Star Wars totally move away from that (although I’m definitely down for all the stuff people have suggested and I loved that, for the most part, Solo and the Mandalorian (The Child aside) didn’t really involve themselves in that…although the risk becomes once a movie is just ‘X…in SPAAAACE’, what about it makes it Star Wars?) but I am 100% in agreement that in addition to exploring more about what the Jedi could be and how they could evolve (something I honestly wanted the sequels to cover, but imo they dropped the ball on), exploring other ways to use the Force, other cultures that use it, characters like Chirrut who aren’t quite Jedi but still have some extra sensitivity, etc. I’ve never been all that into ‘grey Jedi’, and the Force does seem to have an objectively recognizable ‘dark side’ that makes its users crazy aggressive/addicted to power, but even with that there are still a ton of things and points of view to explore that are beyond the typical no-attachment Jedi vs Sith dichotomy.
I used to be a microbiologist, so I think even derided concepts like the midichlorians have interesting potential, as does the idea of Force healing, and how the Force/healing interacts with biology, neurology (the kind of healing we see Rey perform) as well as healing from a more mystical perspective (like what we see Kylo do for Rey).
It’s a huge galaxy. I’m definitely in favor of leaving the Skywalkers in peace for awhile. Or exploring a different era.
Also, whatever the future of Star Wars looks like, it must have amazing music (at least in any big/small screen version of it :) ). I still tear up a little when I listen to ‘A New Home’ and realize it’s the last piece of Williams penned Star Wars music we’ll likely ever hear, but I’ve been pretty happy with the music other composers have been adding to the musical canon. Lately I’ve been listening to the released Mandalorian soundtrack and I’m really digging it – perfect mix of operatic grandeur and that western-y feel, but with touches of something a bit electronic and alien sounding.
From barely capable of getting out of W W 1 military strategies – bang bang shoot shoot, the enemy misses with super abundant technology again I would like Star Wars to fall into its own strange attractor go decoherent incoherent then non coherent. Fall into a quantum topological null[set]space and —-