Star Wars: Stories of the Jedi Arrived to Disney+ with a complicated mission. commanded by the same Dave Filoni of animals like The Clone Wars and rebelsthe anthology would have to live up to the producer’s lauded previous work in the space saga, and take the bitter taste of fatigue from Star Wars in most of the fs.
They also play against the house middling productions such as Obi-Wan Kenobi and the weakling Star Wars Visions, previous attempt at anthology. But the good news is that, even with setbacks, Jedi stories entertain, proving the screenwriter’s competence and passion for the galaxy far, far away, since he takes risks that the saga doesn’t even grope in the live-action versions.
The series is divided into six episode of 10 to 20 minutes, with plots spread across different moments of the prelude trilogy. To top the adventures, we have the darling of the fans Ahsoka Tano it’s the Count Dooku, so still Jedi master. The choice of familiar characters and the series’ promotional material could indicate a shower of epic battles, with heroic feats of Jedi across the galaxy. But make no mistake, because the conflicts here are internal, and will make the viewer even wonder if the peacekeepers were really as good as you think.
By far the biggest highlight of the series, Dooku delivers an as-yet-unexplored side of his space saga story. The villain brings up the disillusionment with the Jedi code that resulted in his eventual departure to the Dark Side. Complex, the character gains an interesting depth to what, in the movies, seemed just an excuse to have the iconic Christopher Lee.
Former master’s bow walks through training with a young Padawan Qui-Gon Jinn (with Liam Neeson back and all), a mission with Mace Windu and, finally, the Jedi’s fall for the evil Palpatine. In the script, Filoni masterfully walks the fine line between never justifying the atrocities committed in the future by the villain, but explaining the reasons and cracks that led him to dark paths. And most frightening, making them totally plausible.
It’s noticable that the same care isn’t seen in the Ahsoka portion of the season. Also spread out at different times in the chronology, the first two stories of the apprentice work by showing the alien’s personal maturation in the midst of star wars, even though she fell into the fan service trap.
The third chapter of Jedi (and final episode of the season) even stands out with an adventure after the events of Revenge of the Sith (2005) and the last season of The Clone Wars, but it ends with a taste of cheap treats for fans and a preview of the character’s live-action series. It is precisely in the dependence on other animations and films that the greatest sin of Jedi stories.
Nor does the series visually try to detach itself from Clone Wars, employing the same style of animation and most of the original voice cast. They say that in a winning team, you don’t move, but if the traits competently display the internal issues of Dooku, Ahsoka and company, you don’t lose the impression that we are watching a luxury derivative of what has come before. What extends to the very place of Jedi stories while part of the universe Star Wars.
Unlike other franchises that also bet on animated anthologies (animatrix, for example), the new series loses much of the impact described above if the viewer does not have prior knowledge of the directions that Dooku, Ahsoka and company will follow from now on. hard that Jedi stories attract new fans to the franchise. Which does not mean that there is no potential to be refined in the project.
If you have one more season, Jedi stories presents an interesting way to take advantage of the smaller scope precisely as a laboratory for new ideas, which curiously recalls even the situation of the saga itself as a whole in 2022, in trial and error.
Seen from this perspective, the collection establishes itself, at the very least, as an incubator of interesting plots that would not have a live-action, or would even yield anything more than 10-minute stories. Although it does not change the course of the franchise, Jedi stories offers at least a much-needed breather while the Star Wars seek to understand.
