INTRODUCTION
I grew up with Star Wars, and I
loved it. However, my childhood love of Star Wars was very, very specific. At
the time, I was not interested in Space, Planets, the rebellion, blasters, war
or the overall scope of George Lucas’s Sci-Fi Opera. My love of Star Wars as a child was derived
from my love and passion for the martial arts.
Therefore the only thing that I found interesting in the whole Star Wars
saga was the elements that connected it to the martial arts; meaning Jedi and
the Sith (Samurai) The Force (Ki, and Zen philosophy), and lightsabers
(Katanas).[1]
As I got older, I dug deep into the
history and the background of Star Wars to keep this connection alive. I found
out that the term Jedi was
derived from the Japanese term Jidaigeki meaning “period piece” which for the
Japanese usually meant a story involving Samurai. George Lucas was greatly influenced by the work of Akira Kurosawa (who was ironically, influenced by
American Westerns),
specifically The Hidden
Fortress
and Seven Samurai to the point that
Lucas originally offered
the role of Obi-Wan Kenobi to Tashiro Mifune a frequent collaborator with
Kurosawa and whom some may call his muse.[2]
Additionally, I started getting interested Zen Buddhism and philosophy by
initially hanging on the words of Jedi Master Yoda whom encouraged “No mindedness”, and Passive yet
passionate embrace of the life energy (Ki) in the universe. I loved (and still
love) these aspects of Star Wars. Yet, whenever I decide to sit down and watch
any Star Wars film I find myself skipping to, or, only paying attention to
those scenes. As I grew in my appreciation for film as a medium and a mechanism
for storytelling, this dissecting cycle of only watching (what I consider to
be) the best bits of the Star Wars films[3]
seemed masochistic. Why was I holding on to these bits and pieces of a grander
story, and why did I not feel overtaken by the phenomena that is Star
Wars? The answer has everything to do
with context.
ANALYSIS
“ The Personal is also Political.”- C.
Wright Mills
Sociologically speaking (from a
symbolic Interactionist point of view) everything is about context. The reality that we live in and the “truths
that we cling to” as Obi Wan would say, depend on our interpretation of a
specific social, cultural and historical context. In sort, the time period when I saw Star
Wars, what was happening historically both in my life and in society at that
time, impact the effect of the film and in what ways that it resonated with me.
Not being born when Episode IV was
released, and being too young to see the other two films in the original
trilogy during their initial theatrical run, my first exposure to Star Wars was
years later on home video. Therefore, by the time that I had seen the films,
the hype fanfare and cultural impact of Star Wars had waned, migrating into
geek pop culture of which, at the time I had yet to be inducted.
Additionally, it is important to note that I
initially saw the original Star Wars Trilogy in reverse order. I saw it in the
order of VI, V, IV. Also, I watched episodes VI and V many more times than
Episode IV, because we had a taped copy of Episodes V, and VI but not of IV. I first saw A New Hope in a hospital recovering from
surgery when I was 12, many years after repeatedly seeing the other two
films. Thus, I did not feel the fear for
Han Solo as he was frozen in Carbonite, the peril of Luke Skywalker as he faced
Vader on Bespin, or the surprise of the Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader
reveal. Because of this, much of what is
in A New Hope seemed cheaper to me than in the other two films; old and
out dated when compared even to its immediate predecessors. This became even more apparent when the
Prequel trilogy was released.
THE PREQUEL
TRILLOGY
News of the production of the prequel
trilogy first reached my ears when I was in high school. Hearing about the
production it seemed like a dream come true. I was promised more of the Star
Wars aspects that I loved: More Jedi, More Sith, more of “the Force”, and more
lightsabers! I became even more obsessed when one of my best friends[4]
told me that in this prequel trilogy (that focused on the fall of Anakin
Skywalker to the dark side and the rise of
Darth Vader) would show “the epic duel between Obi-Wan and Anakin” that
ended, in his mind with Obi-Wan dismembering Anakin and throwing him in a lava
pit.[5]
This was also the first time that I realized (through my friend telling me)
that Vader, being a quadruple amputee, was a Person with a disability. (PWD)[6]
Unfortunately, whenever Darth Vader is
discussed in regards to disability, it is usually only in the context of
representation (of people with disabilities in media) and it is usually negative ( his disability
is used to represent his villainy) rather than
positive
( that he is a PWD that is feared and respected by all in the galaxy and has
reached near the height of political and religious power ( being mythic and
second in abilities only to The Emperor)[7] Needless to say the promise of the prequels excited me; the reality was
far different.
The prequel trilogy spans my entire
college career, from graduating high school through grad school. In that time,
and given the socio-political context in which it became a piece of popular
culture, I was able to engage with the prequel trilogy in a far different way
than the original trilogy. Firstly, I saw this trilogy in the theater, in order
of its release, which allowed me to be properly heightened by the narrative and
not be spoiled. Secondly, I saw these films when I was just getting into
Sociology as a discipline and the social analysis of popular culture. Because
of this, I am an apologist of the
prequels in one very specific way: aside from all of the problems around it THE PREQUEL TRILOGY IS GREAT STORY
ABOUT THE RISE OF FASCISM FROM DEMOCRACY
THROUGH THE MECHANISM OF WAR.
Historical
Context.[8]
By
the time the empire is established in 2005 at the end of Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, politically we were already a few months
into George W. Bush’s second term. The War on Terror was in full swing as was
the War in Iraq. So, seeing a political figure concentrate power in his
executive office[9] by
throwing us into a false war, was pertinent
at the time. Though, Lucas said that the idea for the story, written
decades before George W. Bush took office, was more reminiscent of Julius Cesar
than the politics of the day. However, this fact has done little to stop the
apt comparison between Vader/ Palpatine and Bush/ Cheney. Ironically, this
comparison is often on a sliding scale, as these same comparisons are currently
being made with the Trump Administration[10]
Biographical
Context
I saw Episode
I: The Phantom Menace on midnight at my local Cineplex.[11]Due
to the heightened situation I was in, and the effect of emotional
contagion
of the rest of the fans in the screening we walked away having enjoyed the
film. Yet, as the power of the
experience waned, I began to see the enormous flaws with the film[12].
As the number of flaws I found grew, kept going back to the things that I loved
about Star Wars and focused on what the film did give me: More Jedi, and more
dynamic lightsaber duals. With this
understanding of exactly what I wanted from a Star Wars film, paltry as it was,
it effectively lowered my expectations for Episodes II and III. I looked passed
plot holes, wooden dialogue and acting, lack of chemistry between leads, and
even more sexism and racism. I blocked all of it out, and focused on the
multitude of lightsaber duels, especially the ones involving Yoda, Palpatine,
Mace Windu, Dooku, and the fabled Anakin vs. Obi-Wan. Soon, whenever I went back
to any of the Star Wars (including the original trilogy) I would find myself
skipping around and only watching scenes that were about the force, or those
that involved a lightsaber duel…and nothing else. That means that the six film- 13+ hour story,
for me, can be reduced to about 60 min.[13]
THE MACHETE CUT
Recently, in preparation for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story I
wanted to go back and watch the preceding films (Episodes I II and III), however I did not want it to turn into me
just skipping around to the bits and pieces that I liked. It was then that a
colleague of mine (and fellow geek) told me about the machete cut, otherwise
known as “The
Machete Order” which is a viewing order for the first 6 films in the Star
Wars saga that, according to him, and compelling. In short, he and others are correct.
The
Machete Order
of the first two completed trilogies connects the “best” parts of the Star Wars
story and jettisons the rest. The order (which is Episodes IV, V, II, III, and VI) retains the mystery and cliff
hanging reveal of Luke Skywalker’s parentage, while maintaining continuity with
the (now canonical) special editions of the original trilogy (i.e. Hayden Christiansen
showing up at the end of Return of the
Jedi) while fixing the errors in continuity by eliminating the need for
Episode I.
The creator of The Machete Order surmises
(correctly in my view) that Episode I:
The Phantom Menace is meaningless to the overall story. Nothing that
happens in Episode I is impactful in
the overall arc of either Anakin or Luke Skywalker, not to mention that the ten
year gap (in story) between Episode I
and Episode II requires a large
amount or reorientation anyway. Plus without Episode I, there are no
mention of Midi-chlorians, boring pod races, and an Unnecessary Sith, that has
no impact on the story (unlike Christopher Lee’s Count Dooku).
In the Machete order, we get the danger of
the empire and then after the end of Episode
V, when our heroes are at their lowest point, we flash back to see how the
Universe got to its current state. With all of the teases in Empire fresh in our heads from “I am
your Father,” and “For 500 years did I train Jedi. Once a council did I keep on who was to be
trained.” to “That boy was our last hope.” “No, there is another.” watching
Episodes II and III directly after that capitalizes on those teases in a more
satisfying way that watching it in either Episode
Order( I-VI ) or Release Order (IV, V, VI, I, II, III). However,
even with the Machete order, I found it difficult to get through several parts
of each film (aside from Empire, I
will concede that Episode V, is a
good film), I began to question whether or not The Star Wars Saga is really any good at all.
THE MARGIN OF
DIMINISHED UTILITY
The margin of diminished
utility is an economic term to explain that with the continued consumption
of a particular product, the greater the since of dissatisfaction one has with
that product as a result. An easy
analogy is that of drug addicts, the more drugs they consume the less likely
they will achieve the same high. Though
many might have a better association with the common phrase “Too much of a good
thing.”. With each new Star Wars film we get, it seems to reorient
out perception of the previous films. Sometimes, to fill in gaps, and other
times to address criticism decades after the film’s release.[14]
In the wake of this perception shift is often novelty, mystery, and in some
cases actor performances, are sacrificed all in the name of continuity. To that end, the newer iterations of Star
Wars (especially since being purchased by Disney) spoon feed the audience
colorful forms of childhood Nostalgia that, when it wears off or is wiped away,
reveals an unoriginal story that is not only boring but not well crafted. There are several examples of this.
Exhibit
A: The Prequels
Outside of my unique perspective on
the prequels, the majority of the Star Wars fans (not necessarily those in the mainstream)
hate the prequels to the point that
many of them do not consider them cannon.
In their mind, what George Lucas did was tantamount to murdering their childhood. Yet, as indicated above, the reason many
people hate the prequels is because of the way it changes our understanding of
the original trilogy, mainly it weakens the badass all powerful villain of
Vader, to nothing more than a whiney, petulant child that has such an ego that
he never learned to accept loss to became a control freak. Through the
Prequels, all of Vader’s menace evaporates, and he becomes pitiful.
We must remember the importance of biographical
context. The point at which you are exposed to Star Wars, in your life makes
all the difference. Many people who love
the original trilogy as something sacrosanct often saw it when they were a kid,
and the film informed on their sense of self.
You are obviously not going to get that same experience when you watch a
film that is
for children in your 20’s or 30’s; that is, unless they give you the exact
same film (more on that later). In fact many people that saw the prequel trilogy
when they were children or (gasp) saw the prequels first have a much more
favorable opinion of them.
Exhibit
B: The Original Trilogy
If you take away nostalgia, and the
biographical context of most audience members, what they may find is that
most of the original trilogy is not very good.
Many characters aren’t fleshed out, or they are tropes[15];
it is full of poorly written dialogue delivered by many individuals that can
barely act.[16]
Yet, many of us want to retain these childhood memories of Star Wars, preferring
instead to rely on our memory (which is suspect) rather than the sobering
reality that Star
Wars is a better pop cultural phenomena than they are films.
The pop cultural impact of Star Wars
cannot be denied. It is beyond itself. However, the idea of Star Wars, its merchandizing
and its spectacle get muddled with the quality of the actual film. Whether this
is caused by mob mentality or group think, or something
in the water, Star Wars soon to be
retitled Episode IV due to its
success, became something bigger than the low budget independent film it was intended
to be.
The major part of the Star Wars phenomena, is not, as I have stated, because of the groundbreaking,
or interesting story that the film tells. George Lucas by his own account is
not a good storyteller[17]
Instead, the genius of Lucas is his business acumen and his
willingness to experiment. This desire for experimentation however can be a
double-edged sword. On one hand, it lead to the innovation of Star Wars’s visual
effects at the time of its release (allowing the trilogy to continue). On
the other hand, this drive of innovation caused him to also come under fire (from
fans) once he released the special editions in the mid 1990’s with new VFX
shots and added content[18].
Exhibit
C: Episode VII: The Force Awakens
One of the best
examples of the problem with the continuing
Star Wars Saga in relation to the margin of diminished utility is Episode VII: The Force Awakens. Before I
become too overly critical, I have to say I commend Disney in their ads
campaigns as they sharply leaned into the desired Nostalgia in a fully committed
way. Even though, as stated, I have a
complicated relationship with Star Wars, I
was all in for this film[19]
I was swept away by the marketing, tearing up as I saw Han Solo on the Millennium
Falcon saying “Chewie, we’re home.” in the final seconds of the first
trailer. I was so enthralled by the
second trailer that I was a part of the group that crashed
the internet trying to buy tickets. Disney had me, and I knew it. I was
still enthralled during the opening fanfare, and the opening crawl. I embraced
and was ecstatic about the increased amounts of diverse representation of
people of color and women that were finally added to the story. However, as the
story progressed, I slowly realize that I had been duped.
I
Hate Episode VII: The Force Awakens. I hate it for the following reasons. Firstly, before
its release, Disney eliminated the expanded universe in order to have complete
control of the story moving forward. While I understand this from a business
perspective, it eliminates years of work of many creative people and frankly,
sounds like something the Empire would do.
Secondly, this film is a
remake masking as a sequel.[20]
It is a reshuffling of the plot and characters of a New Hope. BB-8 is R2, Rey
is Luke, Kylo is Vader, Poe is Han, and
Han is Obi-Wan. There is a “Super” Death Star, and the Mcguffin is Luke
Skywalker. Thus, outside of the nostalgia of seeing these characters again, the
film is boring, predictable and overall lazy filmmaking. Thirdly, they killed
Han.[21]
Even though this film
made over 2 billion dollars, there is a danger in relying on nostalgia as it
can lead people to be complacent and malleable to antiquated ideas, which can
have disastrous
consequences. Yet, it seems with similar films being released around or
just after The Force Awakens, and the fact that these
films make billions of dollars it is clear this requel
trend is here to stay, and that The Star
Wars Saga will not be
ending anytime soon.
CONCLUSION
Simply, the more Star Wars we get, the
less satisfied we become. As the Star Wars story continues into infinity
it is the new thing, the fresh thing that will be embraced, as long as it makes
us long for the past. Each new expanding or continuing story will reshape how
we see all of the previous films. In
this cathartic process of writing about Star
Wars I have come to the uncomfortable realization that I do not like the story
of Star
Wars that much. There are many other
similar stories told by true auteurs, providing a more satisfying, sometimes self-contained,
story that The Star Wars Saga has not
achieved. I will however always embrace the pop cultural flavor of Star Wars through the movies and other
merchandising material. The importance of the Jedi, Darth Vader and the concept
of “the force” still informs me as a person. Therefore, I will always have
investment in anything that begins “A long time ago, in a galaxy far far way…
[1] This was my first experience of the
merging of two interests: my love of Sci-Fi and of the martial arts. After
watching each film I would annoyingly beg my father to duel me with a pair of
plastic swords
[3] At
least the original trilogy
[4] To
this day, whom read a lot of the expanded Universe that has since become
non-canonical
[5]
Upon hearing this I had instantly created a “head cannon” where the
dismemberment of Anakin happened periodically throughout the duel. I envisioned
Anakin fighting with only one arm for a time only to ceremoniously end up on
some scaffolding above the open mouth of an active volcano as Obi-Wan finally
takes out Anakin’s legs that sends him tumbling over the side and into lava.
[6]
Thus began my love affair with Darth Vader, that has grown far beyond the
films. Yes, Darth Vader has become an
iconic piece of pop culture outside of the Star Wars Saga, but as a person with
a disability myself, I see Darth Vader as a champion of the disability
community.
[7]
The Next Character profile I will do will be on Darth Vader.
[9]
Which Palpatine was able to do by Manipulating Jar Jar Binks into granting him “emergency
powers” In Episode II: Attack of the
Clones
[11]
As the story goes, it was the Friday of the premiere in May 1999. I was working
on a rough draft of a paper that wasn’t due for another 4 weeks. My mother, thinking that I was working too
hard, called two of my friends to come and “get” me. They came to the front door; my mother opened
it “He’s in his room.” I heard from behind my closed door. Suddenly, my bedroom
door flung open. “You’re coming with us to Episode 1.!” My friend shouted “
No!” I cried and a wrestling match ensued.
It concluded with my friend putting me in a back bear hug while the
other grabbed my feet and together they carried me down the stairs and out the
door (which was being held by my mother) they thanked my mother as we passed
and they placed me in the back seat of the car, and took me to the movie.
[12] Midi-clorians,
pod racing, Jake Loyd, weird puppet Yoda, stinted dialogue, poor story
construction that was a rehash of the original trilogy, not to mention the copious amounts
of Racism
and Sexism
throughout all seven films.
[15]
Luke Skywalker, Obi Wan Kenobi
[16]
This is excluding Alec Guinness and Peter Cushing
[17]
Heck, in a video embedded above, Lucas basically reveals that he stole a lot from
Kurosawa (even attempting to steal his main actor)
[18] The
Most outrageous change he made, that actually effected the arc of a main
character was having Greedo Shoot at Han first rather than Han shooting first
[19]
Going so far as to buy advanced tickets and waiting in line for hours to get a
proper seat for me and my friends
[20]
This has become so blatant in Hollywood that it has spawned a new term “Requel”
[21] I
understand the irony of this statement as I have railed against Nostalgia
