Is Star Wars Rebels Worth Watching?
Summary
In this article, we discuss the newly debuted Star Wars Rebels series and whether it is worth watching. While the series seems promising with its intriguing characters and a focus on the roots of what makes Star Wars great, we must be wary of previous animated entries in the Star Wars saga. We take a quick stroll through the history of animated Star Wars and determine that the best animated shows have lots of action, not too much story, not too much cuteness, and don’t take themselves too seriously. If Star Wars Rebels follows these rules, it should be a worthy addition to the franchise.
Table of Contents
- The Promise of Star Wars Rebels
- A History of Animated Star Wars
- Rules for a Successful Animated Star Wars
- Conclusion
The Promise of Star Wars Rebels
The newly debuted Star Wars Rebels series on Disney XD seems to have its art in the right place. The series is set before Episode IV A New Hope, and not in the middle of the prequel. The makers of Rebels are taking great pains to assure us that they want to go back to the roots of what makes Star Wars great. The main characters are intriguing, including a cowboy Jedi, an alien, and a droid based on Ralph McQuarrie’s original concept art for Chewbacca and R2-D2. While this sounds promising, previous animated entries in the Star Wars saga have left us wary.
A History of Animated Star Wars
Let’s take a quick stroll through the history of animated Star Wars. In 1978, an animated sequence was the only redeeming feature of the not-so-special Star Wars Holiday Special. This thrilling one-reeler introduced Boba Fett to the franchise. The verdict? On balance, this animation represents the light side of the Force.
Moving on to 1985, we witness the witlessness of two Saturday morning cartoon shows, Star Wars Droids and Star Wars Ewoks. They were made by the same animation studio that brought us the Care Bears and are as shallow as a rain puddle on Tatooine. The verdict? These cartoons are squarely on the dark side, and they’re as bad as Caravan of Courage.
In 2003, Genndy Tartakovsky’s Clone Wars cartoon debuted. Each episode was just a few minutes long, and the time constraints meant that they had to be boiled down to almost pure action. It’s set during the prequel, but soppy romance stuff is kept to an absolute minimum. There’s barely any dialogue at all. The verdict? Light side all the way.
In 2005, Lucasfilm Animation launched a series of LEGO Star Wars shorts for the Cartoon Network. They are full of ridiculous slapstick, completely non-canonical, and transparently intended to sell tie-in toys and video games. The verdict? I love them. Light side.
Then in 2008, the fully CG version of Clone Wars debuted. It had tons of cool battle scenes, but it also had uninvolving story arcs, long stretches of dull dialogue, and weird character designs that couldn’t convey emotion. The verdict? Dark side.
Rules for a Successful Animated Star Wars
From this overview, some rules emerged. The best animated Star Wars shows have lots of action, not too much story, not too much cuteness, and they don’t take themselves too seriously. If Star Wars Rebels follows these rules, it should be a worthy addition to the franchise.
Conclusion
In conclusion, while the newly debuted Star Wars Rebels series seems promising, we must be wary of previous animated entries in the Star Wars saga. By following the rules for a successful animated Star Wars, Rebels could be a worthy addition to the franchise. Only time will tell if it lives up to its promise.
