December 16th 2016 is going to be an exciting day for me. For only the second time in my life, will I get the chance to see a Star Warsfilm in the theaters the day it premieres. That being said, make no mistake, I am a HUGE Star Wars guy. In fact, I am sure if you ask some of my friends and family, they would tell you I probably care way to much the films. Ever since I was a kid, I played and collected anything Star Wars, not to mention watching all the movies and 2003 Star Wars: Clone Wars series, and played games like Battlefront, Star Wars: Republic Commando, the various Lego Star Wars games, and the Forced Unleashed games. In hindsight, I can not pinpoint what in my life got me so into this fantastical Universe, but I do not care. All that matters, to me anyway, is that I am here, conscious and aware, being apart of the experience that is Star Wars. As the date draws near, I find myself thinking a lot about Star Wars a lot, and how they changed sense the originals. What did the prequels, sequels, and to be spin-offs like Rogue One, have to offer to the the cannon?
Growing up, I heard a lot of anger geared towards these films. While, today, people seem open to them, and what they offer to the saga in terms of back-story, some 'purist' still give some harsh remarks to the films. Maybe I am biased, seeing as these films were released close to my birth, and were maybe the first ones I saw, but even I say they could have been better, and feel very different to the originals. That being said, Star Wars Episode II: The Clone Wars remained one of my favorites for years, not only because of the improvement of CGI and animation, but because of the action in battles and the introduction of the clone troopers, a well paced plot that offers not only action, but a sense of mystery too, and the development of a wise and mature Obi-Wan and and reckless and aggressive Anakin, though it could have been better. Saying that around some people still could result in a war or the words and references to Rotten Tomatoes, but that does not change the fact that the prequels exist. Of course, in terms of quality and nostalgia, the Prequels might not create a one-to-one match for most viewers like the Originals, but they have only expanded the universe, making room for more stories and characters, and isn't that something to write home about? I guess this issue is most important now than it was, say, five years ago, because of the new Sequel Trilogy.
People still seem really unsure about The Force Awakens, despite mostly positive reviews. Leading up to, and after, the movies release, the hype and praise was very noticeable, but it also met a fair amount of criticism, and was called a rip-off, and an attempt to cash in on the franchises fan base. I distinctly remember a buzz around the Lightsaber used by Kylo Ren shortly after the trailer was first released. I, beyond excited following the trailers reveal, just thought these complaints were ridiculous and pointless. The way I saw it, and still do think, is that the sequel trilogy is a continuation of the story as it was left off in Return of the Jedi. With little expanded universe material on what happens after the events of the original trilogy, there was a sense of, "What happens next?" J.J. Abrams' new trilogy is simply trying to do what what prequels did, add new stories and characters to the cannon of Star Wars, which is a fantastic from the view of a fan. It means this thing, these movie, while they are merely just fantasy, is growing into something even more epic and grand is scale. This allows for more memories, love, and respect for the films to grow, and, while the sequels are still in development, they have so far shown they can generate a level of quality and love that the originals did. Which leads us to these other films. Rogue One, the Han-Solo stand-alone film to come, and what ever other A Star Wars Story films will follow. What do these films have to do with anything?
With these projected one-off spin-offs to take place in between the main trilogies releases, people really been divided when it comes to anticipation. The term, "sell-out' has been tossed around, and people have been accused of, "buying anything with Star Wars on it," across social media, but the anticipation for these films are proving to have just as much hype as The Force Awakened received. But, unlike The Force Awakens and the new sequel trilogy, these films will not see a direct sequel, leaving some people scratching their heads. I mean, logically, why would we want to explore what happened between Episode III and Episode IV? I mean, in a matter of second in the films, we know how this story ends, right? Well, that is what I thought. So why go and see it? Honestly, I had no idea. I guess I just wanted to see, and be apart of the viewing experience, that and I was sort of surprised that a two hour plus film could be produced around this one single piece of dialogue. That is, until I saw one 'theory' video.
Okay, so normally, when someone says, "I got this idea from online," you rightfully should question the validity of that argument. That being said, Mat Pat, of the youtube channels Game Theory and Film Theory, recently released a video giving a prediction not only to the plot of Rogue One, but to the future Episode 8 (if you enjoy the thrill of total surprise, you might not want to check it out, as his case is pretty strong.). Along with recent news that the Knights of Ren (pictured above) will play a major role in Episode 8, making Mat Pat's video seems all the more legitimate. Along with this, his theory also shatters some previously theorized plot points of Rouge One, and are shaking up what people thought what the movie was going to be. Now, what does this mean? Simple, Rogue One, and any future spin-off Star Wars films will not only fill the time between major/trilogy releases, but they will tie into those 'main' films, advancing their stories but elaborating on origins of (possibly major) future characters and newly established characters, such as Kylo Ren or Snoke (but lets be honest here, we all know that is Jar-Jar Binks) Regardless. I am hyped for Rogue One, and all the movies that will follows, spin-off or a part of the main saga, because, at the of the day, it is all about one thing....
Loving Star Wars.
