While waiting, Huyang asks if Ahsoka would like to hear one of the old stories he used to tell younglings for fun, and after she says yes, he proceeds to deliver the line, “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” Out loud. See what I mean? Star Wars was never meant to be self-referential, isn’t meta, and ultimately destroys its own importance by trying.
Not to mention the fact that Ahsoka and the gang are headed to an entirely different galaxy than the one fans have been enjoying for more than forty-five years. By moving the ongoing Star Wars story out of a specific place and time, Disney takes away the coveted nature of the franchise as a whole and turns it into sci-fi content for the masses.
Heading to a new galaxy means that Star Wars shouldn’t even be said to exist in a galaxy far, far away — as much as it should just be a long time ago, somewhere in space, and that’s a scarier realization than telling Lord Vader that his sad devotion to “that” ancient religion has not helped him conjure up some stolen data tapes.
The Force. The Jedi. The Sith. Good and evil. Luke, Darth, Han, and Leia. Heck, even Ahsoka, Captain Rex, and Mando — taking Star Wars to a new galaxy means that nothing has any real importance anymore.
“…Star Wars to a new galaxy means that nothing has any real importance anymore.”
Ahsoka isn’t the problem. It’s a symptom. Star Wars is in the middle of a true identity crisis. An example of the Marvel-ization of modern cinema as Lucasfilm’s attempts to multiverse their way toward fortune and glory, like Kevin Feige’s band of superpowered stars.
It’s a process that’s been going on for quite some time now and shows no signs of stopping. So buckle up. Things might get a lot worse before they get better, and they will get better.
At least, we have to hope they do. That’s being a Star Wars fan. Hope is part of the job description. If we want the things we love to get better, we have to be willing to hold them accountable, and Star Wars is no exception.
The hard truth is criticism comes fast and loose in Hollywood and is not always constructive. People are passionate about the things they love, and passion can be mistaken for anger if you let yourself get carried away. My own included.
It’s time to be constructive with emotionality, share thoughts without being coarse, and turn passion into purpose. Fandom has to be able to agree to disagree and move on. So I don’t totally like Ahsoka, so what? You can like it all you want.
I love Star Wars, I admire Dave Filoni, I’m a big Jon Favreau guy, and I’ll even admit that Kathleen Kennedy is one hell of a movie producer — I just don’t like this show as it stands or what it’s doing to Star Wars right now. Okay, now you can murder me with that olive branch I gave you.
