Star Wars Speculation: Bendemption

Crazy to think we are only one month away from the release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Seeing as that's the case, I thought it would be an appropriate time to dive back into my series of Star Wars Speculation blog posts. I'm going to start by discussing one of the more contentiously debated subjects, Ben Solo's redemption. 

**Spoiler Warning for all Star Wars films**

Star Wars Speculation: Bendemption

For starters, what is redemption? According to Google, it's defined as follows:

Redemption- the action of saving or being saved from sin, error, or evil.

Regardless of your opinion, we should all agree that Ben Solo has sinned in his path towards the dark side. That much is necessary for him even to be considered for redemption. You can't be redeemed if you've done nothing wrong. It's an implicit requirement that I've noticed some fans seem to overlook in their assertion that he's faultless. That's not to say there were always malicious motives behind his actions. Still, the actions themselves can be deemed objectively "evil."

Everyone in the fanbase has their own stance, and there are four potential outcomes for next month's resolution:

1. He lives, redeemed.

2. He lives, unredeemed.

3. He dies, redeemed.

4. He dies, unredeemed.

I believe the first outcome is most likely and would be the most satisfying result based on the saga's narrative thus far. Though before I elaborate on my opinion, I'm going to explore the fan opposition and support for his redemption.

Arguments Against

1. He killed Han Solo.

This is undoubtedly the reasoning against his redemption that I hear most. Ben killed his father. However, it's an act he immediately regrets that shakes him at his very core. Snoke later taunts him for this at the beginning of The Last Jedi. Yet Anakin killed younglings among countless others after his fall to the Dark Side... And I don't ever hear anyone take issue with Vader's redemption. Though, of course, this is because Han Solo is a character beloved by fans for over 40 years. To some, that act is unforgivable. I'm curious to see if they change their tune once they see the big picture.

2. It would rehash the Original Trilogy.

A chief complaint of The Force Awakens was that it borrowed too heavily from A New Hope. I wrote about this two years ago in a post entitled The Poetry of the Star Wars Saga. Some fear Kylo Ren's redemption would mirror Vader's too closely. I, at one point, thought this as well. However, I've since come around on this notion. I believe Ben's redemption could differ substantially from Anakin's. Ultimately, it is crucial to the resolution of the Skywalker Saga.

3. Kylo Ren's rejected the light side multiple times.

Again, I once agreed with this point. I believed Ben was presented with several opportunities for his salvation, which he promptly rejected. It seemed like Ben sealed his fate as one of darkness. Though I later realized that this could strengthen his choice. By the end of The Last Jedi, Ben's made himself Supreme Leader of the First Order. The audience is left with a final glimpse of the Supreme Leader alone as he kneels, clutching his father's gold dice as they fade away, and the Resistance escapes. There's the crushing realization that this may not actually be what he wanted.

Arguments For

1. He's Han and Leia's son.

As their son, Ben represents Han and Leia's legacy. It would be a shame for that to end in darkness and for Han's final act of sacrifice to not have eventually brought Ben back towards the light. A tragic end would invalidate Han's sacrifice. 

2. He's one of the last two remaining Skywalkers.

If Kylo Ren were to not find redemption by The Rise of Skywalker's closing credits, that would contradict the core message of the Skywalker Saga in my mind. No one's ever too far gone. It's never too late to do good. It would also send a bleak message that one can never atone for their sins, which seems very dark for a family-friendly franchise. 

3. He and Rey must break the cycle.

The finale of the Skywalker Saga must put an end to the cycle of widespread catastrophe started in the Prequels. The family drama needs to be resolved once and for all. Otherwise, what was the point of this sequel trilogy?

To me, Star Wars reflects the essential values of Christianity. No sin can go unforgiven. Therefore, I think Ben Solo absolutely can be redeemed. There's never a point of no return. No matter how far you've gone, you can always absolve yourself. There must be a genuine willingness to change, but forgiveness is forever within reach. Regardless of your own stance, I hope you appreciated reading my thoughts on the matter. Thankfully, we don't have to wait much longer to discover the answer. December 20th (19th for Thursday night showings) is right around the corner! 

-May the force be with you, always!

Star Wars Speculation: #CloneWarsSaved

It's been awhile since I last wrote a Star Wars Speculation post because I decided to take some time off after the release of Solo: A Star Wars Story. I had been contemplating putting together a post centered around The Clone Wars for the ten year anniversary (and likely still will), but I certainly didn't anticipate this announcement...

Series Background and some Personal Anecdotes

For those unaware, Star Wars: The Clone Wars was an animated television series set in the time period between Attack Of The Clones and Revenge Of The Sith which aired from 2008-2013. It all kicked off with a theatrically released film that compiled four episodes intended to be part of the first season. The film itself was met with a lackluster reception by critics and fans alike, but the series later won many over in the coming years. I can recall myself that it came at a time where there really wasn't much other Star Wars content being produced. There were toys, books, and video games I suppose, but no onscreen adventures in a galaxy far, far away. The time after the release of Revenge of the Sith was a bleak one for Star Wars fans to say the least... Till 2008 that is...

On August 15, 2008, I was seated with my family ready to see another Star Wars film. It may have been animated, but that didn't mean jack-squat to me. I could hardly believe it. There was ANOTHER Star Wars film in theaters. I distinctly remember being convinced that the franchise was done forever once the Prequel Trilogy wrapped. The idea of never seeing any new Star Wars content in a cinema was an unfortunate one that took hold in my mind far too quickly. If only eleven year old me had known what great wonders would come his way seven years later and beyond...

Anyways, as I'm sure you all can tell, Star Wars has always been something quite special to me. I loved it ever since being introduced as a child, and that passion burns in me to this very day. Not to get all sappy or melodramatic, but The Clone Wars came at the perfect time for me. It was a weird time in my life. I was entering middle school and my parents were getting divorced. I've certainly come to grips with that and moved on in the time since, but I didn't fully grasp the situation at eleven years old. However, when times were tough, I always looked forward to sitting down and watching The Clone Wars every Friday evening on Cartoon Network (it later changed time slots, but you get the jist).

I watched the show religiously, and loved just about every second of it. It deepened the mythology, further developed pre-existing characters, and introduced plenty of exciting new concepts, characters, and planets. It fleshed out the prequels in a way that no book or comic could ever hope to do, and made me appreciate those films more than I ever had before. With that being said, it was bitter-sweet to learn Disney purchased Lucasfilm. On one hand, they were going to make new live action films, including the Episode VII I had always dreamed of. However, the series was retracted from Cartoon Network and cancelled once Disney acquired Lucasfilm. All was not lost though...

Since work had already started on additional episodes for future seasons, an agreement was made so that thirteen episodes could be completed and released on Netflix as "The Lost Missions." About a year after the final episode of the fifth season, "The Lost Missions" debuted on Netflix and I quickly binged the thirteen episodes. Upon completion, I figured that was the last I would ever see of any new, completed Clone Wars content (rough animatics for Seasons 7 & 8 wound up online). Star Wars Rebels debuted later that year, and I discovered that certain characters would be returning as I latched onto that show. Even though Clone Wars hadn't properly concluded, there was going to be some semblance of finality through Rebels. I was happy Filoni got to carry on with his story, but I certainly still wanted to see a proper send-off in the form of a final season. Little did I know that I'd get my wish once more...

#CloneWarsSaved Breakdown

For those who don't know, San Diego Comic Con is currently going on this week and a panel was held yesterday in honor of the tenth anniversary of The Clone Wars. When it was announced, I figured it might primarily be a look back at the series, a look at some things that could have been, and a sneak peek at Filoni's next animated series Star Wars Resistance. Well, I was kind of right. Filoni was joined by some members of the cast and crew, and together they reminisced on various episodes of the series as well as discussing some of the behind-the-scenes development on the series. They also showcased some concept art and discussed ideas Filoni had for the seventh and eighth seasons, but that wasn't all... At the end of the panel, every Clone Wars fan's wildest dreams finally came true.

Filoni mentioned that hardly a week went by where he wasn't tagged on Twitter by a fan asking him save The Clone Wars. He then acknowledged that the fans deserved something for being so great, loving, and supportive for ten years. That something turned out to be a trailer announcing the return of The Clone Wars.

What followed was footage of Clone Trooper helmets with blaster-fire and explosions overhead featuring voiceover from various episodes. Text appeared saying "A war left unfinished..." referring to the series of course. Then "till now" to imply it would be continued in some capacity. Additional footage followed that showcased various vehicles, ships, Captain Rex, Anakin Skywalker, and other clones as they looked out of the hanger and into the horizon. Title card.

Anakin and Obi Wan enter a conference room as Anakin asks "Alright Rex. What's so important that you brought all the way back here?" We then see Bo-Katan and Ahsoka via hologram with Rex standing at attention near the holo-table. Ahsoka acknowledges Anakin by saying "Hello master. It's been awhile." Then "#CloneWarsSaved" appears...

What does this mean? 

So Clone Wars is being saved, but what does that mean exactly? Well, Disney is looking to debut their own direct-to-customer streaming service next year to compete with Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon among many others. The Clone Wars will return for an additional twelve episode season that will be available to watch through said streaming service. Whether it will be exclusive to the service in the long run or not remains to be seen, but I imagine the eventual release of a Blu-Ray box set including every season is a likely possibility. Also, it hasn't been explicitly said whether these will be the final episodes of the series or not. What this means is that an eighth season is not outside the realm of possibility. However, I think these twelve episodes will likely wrap things up for good and that they will be available as soon as the service launches. There's no official word on if that will be the case, but it's what I'm currently predicting.

Disney is clearly going all in on this streaming service between the revival of Clone Wars and Favreau's live action Star Wars series, so I imagine more information will surface eventually. We just need to be patient... I predict we'll get plenty of news at next year's Star Wars Celebration, but things will likely stay quiet till then.

Some Speculation 

As for the series itself, I imagine there will be an arc detailing the Siege of Mandalore which will probably play a significant part in the series finale. Seeing Bo-Katan with Ahsoka certainly implies that will be the case. When you couple that with Ahsoka's account of Order 66 from the Ahsoka novel and the early animatics for future seasons, it seems as though many of these episodes will be finalized versions of the planned episodes. I also think we will get more information as to the fate of Maul between Clone Wars and Solo based on this emphasis on Mandalore.

I also presume that these episodes will be MUCH closer to the beginning of Revenge of the Sith based on Anakin's longer hair. I actually wouldn't be surprised to see some direct tie-ins to Revenge of the Sith such as the reveal that Palpatine has been kidnapped, causing Obi Wan and Anakin to go back to Coruscant, and/or Order 66 from the perspective of the clones and other Jedi we didn't see in Revenge of the Sith. 

Conclusion

To wrap things up, I'm obviously ecstatic about the return of The Clone Wars. If you haven't seen the series and this post perked your interest, all six seasons and the theatrical film are currently available to watch on Netflix. You can certainly watch them in release order, but if you'd like to watch them chronologically, here's a hyperlink that will take you to the official Star Wars website with a chronological episode order. I never would have imagined this announcement would have happened, but it did on account of a passionate fanbase, and it's amazing how it's already helped tremendously in unifying the fanbase again. Hopefully, fans will stick together through 2019 because next year is going to be a big year for Star Wars! I absolutely can't wait for all the content coming our way!!

-As always, thanks for reading and May the Force be with you!!

Star Wars Speculation: Clarifying the Kenobi Clickbait

Unlike my other Star Wars Speculation posts, I did not put much planning into this one. This is not something I anticipated writing because I didn't expect a tweet of mine to circulate online as much as it has. For those confused what I'm referring to, last weekend I went to Comicpalooza, met Ray Park, and tweeted the following:

And the last person I met for the weekend was Ray Park. Very nice guy! Had a chat with him about the character of Darth Maul and various Lucasfilm endeavors. I’m just gonna say he strongly implied that a Kenobi movie will happen so all the reports are PROBABLY legit. pic.twitter.com/XV7lgNXdWJ

— David Weiser (@weiser_david) May 26, 2018

A mutual Twitter follower soon reached out to me via direct message asking about my conversation with Ray Park and then for permission to source my tweet over on Super Bro Movies. I agreed, of course, and honestly figured nothing much would come of it. That quickly proved not to be the case though as the article blew up on Reddit and soon spawned several other articles and videos. Just google "David Weiser Kenobi" or "Ray Park Kenobi" and you'll quickly see what I mean. Anyways, I think the Super Bros Movies' article represented my comments wonderfully so that site doesn't fall under the "clickbait" umbrella I'm referring to. In light of all this, I thought it would be well worth it for me to add my own two cents of the context of this original conversation since I was actually there. 

**Spoiler Warning for Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, and Solo: A Star Wars Story**

My interaction with Ray Park

The interaction essentially went as follows:

I waited in line to meet Park and selected an 8" x 10" photo for him to autograph. While waiting in line, I noticed he seemed very personable and talkative. Since I had recently seen Solo: A Star Wars Story and been taken off-guard by Maul's unexpected appearance, I figured it was worth a shot to bring that up in conversation.

As I approached him, I shook his hand and introduced myself. At that point, I told him that I saw Solo last Thursday and was really surprised to see Maul show up. You could tell immediately that he was VERY excited to talk about it because his eyes lit up instantly. He asked what I thought of the film and how surprised I was by the cameo. I told him I loved Solo and was taken completely off-guard when Maul appeared because I was expecting Jabba the Hutt or Boba Fett to show up as the big "surprise cameos" since they're more commonly associated with the character of Han Solo.

He let me know that he's had to keep the cameo a secret for an entire year or so and has been eagerly awaiting the fan response. We then began to have a conversation about the character where we agreed to both be excited about the Maul's return in Clone Wars and Rebels because it really fleshed out Maul as a character and gave him a great arc.

I then rattled off some future possibilities for live-action Maul appearances which included a sequel to Solo, a Maul standalone, and the long-rumored Kenobi standalone. When I mentioned Kenobi, Park leaned over a little and told me that he really (emphasis on REALLY) thinks Kenobi is going to happen. He finished signing my photo, we thanked each other, and I walked away from that table a very satisfied fan because it was a very pleasant interaction.

Takeaways

What I took away from that conversation was the following:
1. Ray Park seems like a very nice man
2. Ray Park a fan of the franchise himself
3. Ray Park is really excited about the opportunity to play the character once more
4. Ray Park is passionate about the character
5. Ray Park believes the long rumored Kenobi spin-off film will be made.

I tweeted about it for many reasons, but largely because I'm one of the fans who is actively interested in the status of a Kenobi spin-off and I felt fellow fans might want to hear about it. I never imagined it would fuel the fire and become the source of as much clickbait as it has, but the internet is insatiable about this kind of thing so I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. When I mentioned Kenobi to Park, I just threw it out as a possibility for him to reprise the role with no expectations to hear anything about the project from him in return. However, that wasn't the case. I don't think his comments are official confirmation by any means, but it does have me thinking there's a high likelihood that a Kenobi film will be made in the near future. I suspect we will have an official announcement with a December 2020 release date from Lucasfilm either sometime later this year so they can begin shooting in 2019 or it will be announced with more of Lucasfilm's future slate of films at next year's Star Wars Celebration.

Maul in Kenobi? 

Some are now speculating that Park must be involved in the film in some capacity to feel so confident about it, but I think it's just as likely that Park has heard the rumors and simply believes Lucasfilm is interested in the idea. Given his relationship with Lucasfilm, it's also not hard to imagine that he might simply be aware that it's in development.

While I wouldn't completely rule out the possibility of a Maul appearance in Kenobi, I think it would be a logistical nightmare to avoid retconning the confrontation between Kenobi and Maul in Star Wars Rebels. It's always possible that they could recreate the duel between them in live action, but that would also involve the baggage of bringing a live action Ezra and Chopper onscreen which might be really confusing for casual fans who haven't seen Rebels. The reason this would be confusing is that these characters effectively showed up out of nowhere from Obi Wan's perspective, and I imagine that's how the audience would see it as well. If they decided to do this, it would be very tricky to pull off and I don't think Lucasfilm is interested in retconning their newly established canon so it seems unlikely.

I know it seems weird considering I named-dropped Kenobi in my conversation with Park, but I'd actually prefer Maul not to show up. My qualifications for Maul appearing in Kenobi hinge on following the pre-established canon history of their characters. In my mind, the only acceptable way the two can interact with another in Kenobi would be a recreation of that duel from Rebels because that is the first interaction between them since the Clone Wars that results in Maul's death. Maul doesn't even know that Kenobi is alive and on Tatooine till shortly beforehand in another Rebels episode.

If Maul showed up, his appearance would need to be in a recreation of the aforementioned Rebels duel or he would need communicate via hologram with someone related to his criminal enterprise like his cameo in Solo: A Star Wars Story. If that were the case, it would be imperative that he could not learn of Kenobi's survival and location as a result of his appearance. So long as Lucasfilm doesn't break canon to include Maul, I'm fine with an appearance. I just doubt he will show up because of the canon complications that will arise. Maybe, it's for the best if he's not in it.

Recasting Obi Wan?

In addition to the Maul story, I've noticed that a lot of people seem concerned about the possibility of another actor in the Obi Wan role aside from Ewan McGregor. I quickly want to provide evidence of Lucasfilm's willingness to go to great lengths to preserve the continuity of actors portraying characters because these reports bug me.

Most recently, we have Solo: A Star Wars Story doing double duty with the Maul cameo, as the character was physically portrayed by Ray Park who was the physical stand-in for The Phantom Menace while Sam Witwer returned from Clone Wars and Rebels to voice Maul once again. Next up, Rogue One has a slew of examples. It's often brushed over that Jimmy Smits reprised his role of Bail Organa and they brought back Genevieve O'Reilly who only previously had played Mon Mothama in a DELETED SCENE from Revenge Of The Sith for goodness sake. Then there's the fact that they went to the trouble of digitally recreated Tarkin and Leia rather than recasting those roles. I think the backlash they received from digitally recreating a deceased actor will keep them from "resurrecting" Alec Guiness via CGI in the future, especially since Ewan McGregor could easily return. Based on all that and Lucasfilm's reluctance to recast in the sequel trilogy, I find it very hard to believe that Ewan McGregor would not return.

Conclusion

With all that out of the way, I'd like to quickly share what I'd like to see in a Kenobi standalone. While I think that particular Rebels episode, From A Certain Point of View, and the Marvel Star Wars comics all make a strong case for an Obi Wan film, I'd be most interested in seeing a completely new story. When I imagine a Kenobi film, I envision a film that's Seven Samurai-esque and involves Kenobi stepping up to protect Luke and the Lars family homestead from Tusken Raiders or bounty hunters against the wishes of Owen Lars. I'd like to also see a broken down, older, and wearier Obi Wan as a result of the events of Revenge of the Sith ala Logan. Oh, and Ewan returning is a must.

-I suppose that's all I have to say on the matter so, as always, may the Force be with you!

Star Wars Speculation: 'Solo: A Star Wars Story' Trailer Talk

Last night a new trailer for Solo: A Star Wars Story was released and I immediately debated whether I should bother posting anything about it or not. On one hand, I enjoyed the trailer and I've already made it a habit to discuss new Star Wars content via this Star Wars Speculation series. However, the new footage didn't really "reveal" much in terms of plot worth analyzing so I figured calling this a "Trailer Analysis" would be a little misleading. Ultimately, I've decided to rundown my favorite things from the trailer and add some occasional context to certain scenery.

**Keep in mind that this is all my interpretation of the scenery. I could be way off mark in regards to speculation, but provided I'm correct, potential spoilers lie ahead.**

'Solo: A Star Wars Story' Trailer Talk

My favorite things (No particular order):

1. Star Destroyer under construction- I love this shot for many reasons. One, we've never seen a Star Destroyer under construction before and it looks awesome. Two, I think the positioning of the camera communicates a lot about Solo's setting. Like Rogue One, you get the sense that the Empire is a powerful force that looms over everything. With the camera looking upward from a dingy, urban setting, you also get the sense this story will be told inside the criminal underbelly of the galaxy. Something that's rarely been examined in a Star Wars movie before. On top of all that, I'm guessing this takes place on Corellia because that is Han's homeworld which is known for building Imperial starships.

2. Enfys Nest and the Cloud-Riders- In my post about the first Solo teaser, I touched on these characters still unaware of who/what they were. At the time, I wasn't even able to provide any names or information for them whatsoever. Well, since then, details have surfaced that they're a pirate gang called the Cloud-Riders who are lead by Enfys Nest. While there's still no official word on this, Enfys Nest is said to be female and she and her gang will play an important role in the story as antagonists of sorts. Although, they supposedly aren't the main villains.

I included them to update my readers with more information and because I think Enfys Nest looks awesome.

I think they may also be trying to retrieve whatever the focal point of Han's heist is as there are numerous speeders in this sequence and I spotted Nest onboard the Conveyex (the train) in the last trailer. 

3. Sabacc- I've already touched on this in a previous post as well, but I believe this will be the game of Sabacc where Han wins the Falcon from Lando. Aside from that, we get another look at the cool crustacean Therm Scissorpunch (who may just have the greatest Star Wars name of all time) and the other aliens who will be present in the scene. I'm spotlighting this because I'm excited to see this sequence play out, I'm excited to hopefully learn the mechanics of Sabacc, and I really like the creature design as they reminds me of all the aliens found in the Mos Eisley cantina. 

4. Chewie's family?- Many have pointed out this shot as possibly introducing Chewbacca's wife Malla and son Lumpy from the Star Wars Holiday Special into canon. However, it's worth mentioning that these characters have already been made canon by the recent Aftermath trilogy of Star Wars novels and this doesn't mean that the Holiday Special itself is canon. Just the existence of the characters. Anyways, this looks like it may be what Chewbacca presumes to be a final farewell as he escapes captivity thanks to Han. I presume he's promising to return one day to free the other Wookies, which we already know happens in the events of Aftermath: Life Debt after Return Of The Jedi.

5. Chewie and Han- Just seeing Han and Chewie together puts a smile on my face, and I'm getting the sense Ron Howard's captured the delightful dynamic between the two based on the banter showcased in the trailer. 

5. "You might want to buckle up, baby."- I love this line because it's classic Lando. I'd say Donald Glover seems to have captured the charming spirit of the ol' smoothie and will be a standout for sure!

6. Chewie slamming someone into the ground- Chewbacca doesn't have on his bandolier here so I presume this will be some sort of slave revolt on the spice mines of Kessel. We'll probably see how Han helps free Chewie before learning the exact circumstances behind Chewbacca's pledged Life Debt to Han. Putting all that aside, seeing Chewbacca running rampant will probably be pretty cool if this shot from the trailer is any indication.

7. Origin of Han's DL-44 blaster- Looks like the film will show us that Han's classic blaster was given to him by Beckett. I'm curious to see if there's any particular reason Han holds the blaster in high esteem. Otherwise, I hope the film doesn't go overboard in explaining the origin of all of Han's things to the point it overtakes the story. 

8. Dryden Vos- Dryden Vos is described in the trailer as big shot gangster who's putting together a crew, so it's only natural that we can assume this crew pertains to the Conveyex heist. What he's after remains to be seen, but it's worth noting that his face is visibly scarred so it may be something that could help heal his face.

This weapon he's wielding is also quite cool and I think it may be a vibroblade of some sort. 

9. Range Troopers- It's always cool to see new Stormtrooper variants introduced in every Star Wars film. I like the look of these range troopers a lot and think it's awesome that they seem to have magnetic boots as they all remained balanced on the moving Conveyex train at various angles.

10. Beckett's advice- I really like what Beckett tells Han when he says "Let me give you some advice: expect that everyone will betray you, and you will never be disappointed." I think it sets up the idea that Han will in-fact be betrayed by someone or multiple people over the course of the film and that will drastically alter his ability to trust others.

General Thoughts: Like Han said in the trailer, I've got a good feeling about this. I'm obviously excited for Solo while others still seem skeptical. I realize the production problems are troubling, but I think Ron Howard seems to have come in and course-corrected things. I'm liking the Western-gunslinger vibe because it suits Han's introduction to a life of smuggling perfectly. I've gotten good impressions from the cast so far and I think the film will be visually impressive regardless of anything else. All I'm hoping for is a fun space adventure and I remain optimistic that Solo will deliver.

-As always, May the Force be with you!

Star Wars Speculation: Creatively Celebrating 40 Years of Star Wars

Greetings everyone! It's been a little while since I last shared a Star Wars Speculation post, but I recently finished reading the Star Wars novel From A Certain Point of View and felt a strong desire to discuss it in a blog post, so I'm back to talk Star Wars with you once more. In order to diversify my Star Wars Speculation series of posts, I'd like to occasionally highlight various facets of the Star Wars canon that most of my followers may not be familiar with already. This means you'll probably see me backtrack to share my thoughts on many books I've already completed to analyze what makes them all so unique. As always, the topic of conversation will change from post-to-post, but if there's anything you'd like to read about, just give me a heads-up and I'll write about your request. 

Creatively Celebrating 40 Years of Star Wars

What is From A Certain Point of View?

From A Certain Point of View is a collection of 40 short stories written by 40 different authors who retell moments in A New Hope from the perspective of 40 different background characters. It was released last year to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Star Wars and readers will be treated to every viewpoint they could imagine including Stormtroopers, Jawas, droids, Tusken Raiders, and even an assortment of aliens in the Mob Eisley Cantina. So long as you're not hoping to see things directly from the perspective of Luke, Leia, Han, Chewbacca, C-3PO, or R2-D2, you'll probably be immensely satisfied. Just remember you won't get their outlook because a film exploring that already exists.

The book was first teased on social media under the hashtag, #OperationBlueMilk. This is, of course, because of the blue milk prominently shown in a scene from A New Hope where Luke is drinking a glass of blue milk at the Lars homestead. Anyways, how fitting that such a staple of the first Star Wars for some fans would become this book's codename considering the book is essentially a celebration of not only of Star Wars' 40th anniversary, but also a tribute to 40 years of the Star Wars fandom. What better way to celebrate that then exploring various scenes from A New Hope through forty different perspectives? That's not even to mention that the book's title, From A Certain Point of View, which alludes to both the book's unique approach and a specific line of dialogue from Obi-Wan.

If you're a Star Wars fan, then reading this book is a no-brainer. I'd daresay it was one of my favorite Star Wars books to read because of its unique approach. I found it to be immensely enjoyable reading about specific sequences of events from a background character's frame of reference. Each author did a wonderful job of getting inside their character's head space in a limited number of pages through their unique writing style. Some stories are longer than others, but I was able to understand enough of that specific character's history, personality, motivations, connection to other characters, and outlook on life to get a grasp on who they each are as individuals in the larger galaxy.

Of course, certain characters have the luxury of further development outside their specific story like Boba Fett, Greedo, Grand Moff Tarkin, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, Lando, Yoda, and so many other characters Star Wars fans are otherwise familiar with. What makes the whole notion of retelling a familiar scene through those character's lenses interesting is learning what those characters were thinking during those moments and finding out where some of those characters were at that point in time. That's a gimmick that could have worn thin, but it didn't because each story felt fresh and unique because it came from a fresh and unique perspective in varying writing styles. If you don't like a particular story, chances are you'll like the next chapter since they're all so drastically different. There were some stories that I read with a giddy smile from ear-to-ear while I felt others were a little overlong and too silly.

Some stand-out stories for me were "The Red One," "Stories in the Sand," "Master and Apprentice," "Time of Death," "There Is Another," "Bump," "Added Muscle," and "Verge of Greatness" which were about R5-D4, Jot (a Jawa), Qui-Gonn, Obi-Wan, Yoda, TD-110 (the storm trooper who bumps his head), Boba Fett, and Grand Moff Tarkin respectively. My absolute favorite two were "Master and Apprentice" and "Time Of Death" because they explore the process of becoming a Force Ghost and what that would be like as an experience. I've long championed the idea of an Obi-Wan Kenobi spin-off film because the canon material's done a lot so far to flesh out his time on Tatooine, and I felt there were a few stories that heavily hinted at possible plot points and storylines which could be utilized in a Kenobi spinoff.

Needless to say, I loved this book and would be glad to see Lucasfilm and Del Rey repeat this process for the other films for their respective anniversaries because it's such a fun way to pay tribute to them. Also, if you're a fan of audiobooks, the audiobook features a fairly recognizable cast of narrators that you'll likely enjoy listening to. These narrators include Jonathan Davis, Ashley Eckstein, Janina Gavankar, Jon Hamm, Neil Patrick Harris, January LaVoy, Saskia Maarleveld, Carol Monda, Daniel José Older, and Marc Thompson. If everything I've said is not enough to entice you to pick the book up and read it, the authors wrote their stories for free and the proceeds from the book are being donated to The First Book organization, a non-profit that seeks to provide quality education for kids in need. Not only will you be treated to a fun read through, you're contributing to a great cause as well! Whether I've convinced you to read From A Certain Point of View or not, I hope you've found this post to be interesting and informative. 

-As always, May the Force be with you!