Star Wars: Visions
was released on Disney+ yesterday to plenty of hype. Reviews are in and most
are glowing so I spent the evening watching all nine of the short animated
episodes. The concept is an interesting one; give various Japanese anime companies
a shot at telling a short story set in the Star
Wars universe. It comes off as Disney’s branded response to Netflix’s Love, Death & Robots – a show I’ve
written about twice on this blog.
Visually, as the name suggests, Star Wars: Visions is impressive. Several of the episodes are
beautifully rendered and while I’m not a fan of some of the more cartoonish
styles, I’m sure they please those who enjoy the anime genre. What I noticed
most about the show however wasn’t the stunning landscapes or cool lightsaber
effects, but the lack of variety in the storytelling.
Personally, as much as I love the Star Wars universe (and
anyone who reads this blog knows I LOVE the Star Wars universe) I think the
whole Jedi/Sith angle is a bit played. There are so many incredible planets,
races, and guilds in this universe, why does every story require a young person
take up a lightsaber and dedicate themselves to defeating the Sith? Three of
the most refreshing recent entries Disney has delivered were entertaining
because they purposely distanced themselves from this storyline. Solo focused on the origin story of
our favorite space smuggler. Rogue One
told the tale of a group of rebels stealing the Death Star plans and delivering
them to Princess Leia. Perhaps best of all, The
Mandalorian follows the exploits of a bounty hunter capturing wanted
creatures across the galaxies while protecting a young adoptee.
Eight of the nine episodes that make up Star Wars: Visions involve lightsaber fights. Three of them follow
the inexplicable idea first seen in Rey of The
Force Awakens that a person can pick up or inherit a lightsaber and immediately
be capable of defeating powerful enemies without a hint of training. What I’d
love to see if they follow this up with a Season 2 is a broader spectrum of
stories. Off the top of my head I came up the following in about 10 minutes:
- A protocol droid acting as
translator for a negotiation between a Hutt and a bounty hunter watches it
go terribly wrong.
- A pair of bickering
Gamorrean guards escalates a grievance in Jabba’s palace until one traps
the other in the rancor pit and gleefully watches him meet his doom.
- A mistreated Imperial worker
on the Death Star sabotages the laser pistols he is forced to maintain then
plays dumb as Stormtroopers continually find they can’t shoot straight.
- A hermit tinkerer who
lives alone in the rusted husk of an AT-AT on Hoth builds a droid out of
spare parts to keep him company.
- A Kaminoan is tricked into
sharing her cloning secrets with an Imperial Officer who then steals them
for the Emperor to use on himself.
That’s half a season of content right there and not a
lightsaber to be seen. I’d pay to watch those stories. Wouldn’t you?
So should you watch Star
Wars: Visions? If you’re a fanboy like me, yes. Completists must complete. If
you’re a more casual viewer I’d recommend catching a few and skipping several.
My brief episode guide is below.
The Duel
This is the opening episode of the series and the best of
the bunch. If Akira Kurosawa did a Star Wars film, it would look something like
this. A lightsaber-wielding Ronin and his trusty droid save a village from a group
of Stormtroopers and their Sith leader.
The Elder
Episode 7 starts off with some cringey Jedi/Padawan dialogue
ala Kenobi and Anakin in Attack of the
Clones but then settles into an entertaining tale as the two explore a
village then do battle with an ancient dual-lightsaber-wielding villain.
Akakiri
The final episode of the series shows us a Jedi who suffers
visions of a tragic loss only to be faced with accepting that fate or joining
the dark side.
The Ninth Jedi
This is where the episodes begin to get a little too
cartoonish for my taste. The story of a young girl delivering lightsabers to
what she believes are the last remaining Jedi is interesting enough, but every
twist is seen from a mile away and the dialogue is tough to bear.
The Village Bride
Similar to “The Duel” in that a Ronin-like Jedi comes to a
remote village to save it from bandits, this fourth episode just does it in a
less satisfying style.
Lop and Ocho
The eighth episode of the series could have been one of the better ones if not for the odd choice of making the heroine look like Lola Bunny of Space Jam. Call me old-school but the idea of a bunny picking up her adoptive father’s lightsaber then kicking her warrior-sister’s ass with it came off as dumb.
The Twins
The third episode features two Vader-rip-off twins spitting
overwrought dialog at each other as they duke it out with more lightsabers over
control of a kyber crystal that can power a Death Star-like laser.
T0-B1
The sixth story tells of yet another young dreamer, this one
a droid no less, who picks up his mentor’s lightsaber and immediately defeats a
battle-hardened Sith in order to carry on his mentor’s legacy.
Tatooine Rhapsody
And finally the second and silliest of all the episodes,
sadly this is the one tale that follows my advice and veers away from
lightsabers, but comes off as if Nick Jr. took a shot at Star Wars. A rock band’s bass player is nabbed by Boba Fett and
only a great performance for Jabba will set him free.
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