The blandness
Why has Star Wars turned so mediocre? They don't understand today's story telling.
Great shows like "Better Call Saul" or "Fargo" put a lot of effort into making every scene interesting. They dedicate time into character building and scenes and small details.
So the chase scene with Leia in ep.1 might have been a one take that highlights how a 5 year old could outrun a bunch of old warriors (maybe she is small and nimble and knows the area).
Star Wars however banks on nostalgia. They think, because it's young Leia, people will love it, no matter what they do. Unfortunaltely that doesn't work. And young Leia does not have the charm of Grogu (Baby Yoda). She comes across as increasingly annoying, turning petulant in the most inappropriate situation.
The same goes for the villain: If you think of African American female villain from the gutter (They are thinking from the ghetto, but can't say so). You might think of Snoop from the Wire. A brilliant character, menacing but not too obvious. Star Wars just puts someone in a black outfit and makes them look angry and we are supposed to feel scared. We don't know why or what problem she has with Kenobi. Show us a backstory in which Obi-Wan accidently destroyed her father's business and so she had to become a criminal to feed the family (or something along those lines). In the Star Wars universe everything operates on the basis of clichees, and so dressing her in black automatically makes her a villain.
To me the best scene from the Mandalorian was the conversation in the mass between Bill Burr's character and that commander from the Empire. It gave backstory, you understand motives and there was a lot of suspense. A simple scene but much better than all the shooting and explosions we saw before and after.
My hope for the rest of the Kenobi show is pretty limited. Instead of giving us a reason why Obi-Wan has lost his space magic (although he is on a mission to protect their last hope), they just make him look sad. But even that fails. If you want to portray him at his lowest, then humiliate him instead of making him do an underpaid 9 to 5 job with a mean boss (most of the audience does that every day).
I have a feeling that Disney is working on too many shows at the same time without putting enough effort into any of them. That's why the outcome feels rushed like 80s TV. (Un)Fortunately the audience is spoilt by some great shows and they expect the quality they see in The Boys or Breaking Bad. I have a feeling this is not the show they are looking for...
Great shows like "Better Call Saul" or "Fargo" put a lot of effort into making every scene interesting. They dedicate time into character building and scenes and small details.
So the chase scene with Leia in ep.1 might have been a one take that highlights how a 5 year old could outrun a bunch of old warriors (maybe she is small and nimble and knows the area).
Star Wars however banks on nostalgia. They think, because it's young Leia, people will love it, no matter what they do. Unfortunaltely that doesn't work. And young Leia does not have the charm of Grogu (Baby Yoda). She comes across as increasingly annoying, turning petulant in the most inappropriate situation.
The same goes for the villain: If you think of African American female villain from the gutter (They are thinking from the ghetto, but can't say so). You might think of Snoop from the Wire. A brilliant character, menacing but not too obvious. Star Wars just puts someone in a black outfit and makes them look angry and we are supposed to feel scared. We don't know why or what problem she has with Kenobi. Show us a backstory in which Obi-Wan accidently destroyed her father's business and so she had to become a criminal to feed the family (or something along those lines). In the Star Wars universe everything operates on the basis of clichees, and so dressing her in black automatically makes her a villain.
To me the best scene from the Mandalorian was the conversation in the mass between Bill Burr's character and that commander from the Empire. It gave backstory, you understand motives and there was a lot of suspense. A simple scene but much better than all the shooting and explosions we saw before and after.
My hope for the rest of the Kenobi show is pretty limited. Instead of giving us a reason why Obi-Wan has lost his space magic (although he is on a mission to protect their last hope), they just make him look sad. But even that fails. If you want to portray him at his lowest, then humiliate him instead of making him do an underpaid 9 to 5 job with a mean boss (most of the audience does that every day).
I have a feeling that Disney is working on too many shows at the same time without putting enough effort into any of them. That's why the outcome feels rushed like 80s TV. (Un)Fortunately the audience is spoilt by some great shows and they expect the quality they see in The Boys or Breaking Bad. I have a feeling this is not the show they are looking for...
- thomasgreuel
- May 28, 2022