Disney has had a rough time with theStar Warslicense over the past few years, and it seems no effort of theirs is free from controversy. Though the films have each carried a nightmare of fan outcry and social media discourse, the small-screen outings have had their own unique issues.
Obi-Wan Kenobihas wrapped its first (and likely only) season to intensely mixed reactions worldwide. Some fans thought it was theperfect return to formfor the franchise, others saw it as a cheap sloppy mess. The previous Disney+Star Warsshow was less controversial, but only in that opinions were generally more consistently negative. Can any show break this pattern?
RELATED:Obi-Wan Kenobi Has One Big Advantage Over The Book Of Boba Fett
Andorseems like a weird move for the Star Wars brand. The second-billed main character of a one-off entry in thecursedStar Wars Storiesbrand being upgraded to full series lead is reminiscent of Sony’sSpider-Manefforts: grasping at any mildly recognizable character or performer to draw audiences in, without reaching for any of the names fans know and love. There are so manyStar Warscharacters fans might be excited to see again or learn more about, yet the studio went with Cassian Andor.
There’s no doubt that Diego Luna’s performance is certainly a highlight ofRogue One. He has a very sad backstory, good for tugging on audience heartstrings. He’s a fine enough character in thelimited role he playsinRogue One, but leading a series seems a bit outside his capabilities — at least at first glance.
Disney’s first live-action Star Wars show on their streamingplatform wasThe Mandalorian, which was anything but mid-tier. It’s still probably the best TV show in the franchise, and it’s unquestionably the one with the most devoted fanbase. That show succeeded for several reasons, but one of its greatest strengths was the incredible freshness it brought to the franchise. By building the narrative around a wholly new cast of characters and only occasionally bringing in the franchise’s central Light Side versus Dark Side storyline, it felt like a brand-new idea set in the familiar universe. The latter half of the second season started to reinsert those old elements, but the show stayed strong overall. The immediate follow-up, however, took absolutely none of the lessons from the first series.
The Book of Boba Fettwas assembled from the tattered remnants of the long-dead plans to make a movie out of the iconic bounty hunter. Much of that idea was already used up forThe Mandalorian, but whatever was left behind apparently inspired confidence in the studio. The series fell flat right away and only got worse over its lackluster series. Critics and audiences identified it immediately asmore ad than narrative. Half of the season was spent on characters who had nothing to do with the show’s story. The central plot is largely wasted on watching Boba Fett do things no one had interest in. The entire show was ill-advised and poorly executed, leaving fans of Fett less than impressed.The Book of Boba Fettleft many fans sour on the Disney+Star Warsseries model, and the next effort saw mixed results.
Obi-WanKenobiis easily the show most connected to the movies that came before it. LikeThe Mandalorian,it takes place between trilogies, but it focuses entirely on key characters from the films. There were many strange elements of the show, but public conversation was mostly dominated by the more hateful members of the fanbase. As a holistic product,Obi-Wanhasmany good parts and many bad parts. There’s a good argument to be made for making a movie out of the story rather than a show, but the series is far from the worstStar Warsproject. The two most recent Disney+ Star Wars shows are messy and difficult to fully enjoy, but maybeAndoris the perfect project to move onto.
One of the biggest problems in theStar Warsfranchise is its mandate to constantly drag marketable characters into focus. Disney is terrified that audiences simply won’t show up if a lightsaber fight or a Skywalker family member doesn’t appear. Mando managed to go without for a while, but once it did indulge, almost all the remaining episodes were given over to cameos.Boba FettandObi-Wanare heavily steeped in franchise mythology, no matter how hard they try to tell their own stories. The latest series paradoxically fares better by leaning fully into the existing franchise. Rather than a fully new character or a huge name,Andorfocuses on asmaller character that audiences might be excited to learn more about. By centering its narrative on the life of a familiar face, Disney gets their recognizable character addiction out of the way. But at the same time, by picking a character with so much room to grow, they leave themselves plenty of new elements to explore.
Disney is notoriously risk-averse, even if the franchise could rake in billions on the name alone.Andormay or may notbe a bold new direction, but it could also be the best fans could hope for from this franchise.
