Star Wars’ New Jedi Show Makes The Sequel Trilogy Look Small
Star Wars’ newest Jedi show makes the sequel trilogy’s depiction of the galaxy far, far, away look very, very small. Despite the Star Wars sequel trilogy’s impressive number of featured planets — 18 in total — and a largely new cast of characters, the story felt restricted, weighed down by the franchise’s legacy and Lucasfilm and Disney’s desire to replicate the original trilogy’s beloved storytelling.
Jakku was interchangeable with Tatooine. The reformed Empire built a third Death Star and renamed it Starkiller Base. Rey was a new version of Luke, even more so when she took up the Skywalker name. Kylo Ren was essentially Darth Vader 2.0. Even Emperor Palpatine “somehow returned,” though his resurrection wasn’t nearly as fun or as well-executed as Darth Maul’s in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The pieces didn’t fit together. The Star Wars sequel trilogy may have been financially successful, earning well over $4 billion at the global box office. Sadly, though, it didn’t utilize the galaxy’s creative freedom.
As a select few subsequent Disney Star Wars projects have proven, including Tony Gilroy’s Rebellion-era political thriller Andor, the first seasons of The Mandalorian, and Disney’s animated, non-canonical anthology series Star Wars: Visions, Star Wars can be anything it wants to be. Within its galactic setting, it can experiment with genre, tone, structure, characters, and even lore. Star Wars’ first full-length anime series and official Star Wars: Visions spinoff, Star Wars: Visions Presents — The Ninth Jedi, exemplifies how to make traditional Star Wars storytelling feel exciting and new.
The Ninth Jedi Mixes Familiar Star Wars Tropes With Intriguing New Ideas
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Credit: Disney+ via MovieStillsDB</figure>
Though it features familiar narrative elements and dozens of Star Wars Easter eggs, The Ninth Jedi is one of Star Wars’ best new stories, a Jedi-centric adventure that pays tribute to the Star Wars trilogy that started it all without losing sight of its own characters and mission. Set in the distant future, the Jedi and the Sith are all but extinct. A handful of Masterless Jedi, led by Jedi prodigy Lah Kara, try to resurrect the Order to combat the tyranny of a masked general named Nawaam.
Despite the Jedi, the Sith, a terrifying masked Force-wielder, a “kyber cannon” similar to the Death Star, and a galaxy on the brink of war, The Ninth Jedi plays with these ideas and other aspects of Star Wars lore and reinvents them to suit and improve its own narrative.
In this universe, lightsabers change color instantaneously depending on the wielder’s state of mind. It introduces a new definition of Gray Jedi, reimagining them as Force-users who achieve a unique, emotionally empty state of mind. The Jedi Lah Kara chooses to join her Jedi Order aren’t always able to connect with the Force; instead, they’re chosen because of their bravery, determination, and desire to do the right thing. Nawaam isn’t after galactic domination for himself — in his own twisted way, he truly believes he’s doing the right thing and bringing peace to the galaxy.
Star Wars: Visions season 1, episode 5, “The Ninth Jedi”
Star Wars: Visions season 3, episode 3, “The Ninth Jedi: Child of Hope”
Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi
Of course, The Ninth Jedi has the freedom to make these changes and tweak the lore because Disney’s established canon isn’t restricting it. In that way, Visions and the official Visions: Presents banner are more like the old Star Wars Expanded Universe, broadening the franchise’s narrative scope while still telling stories that are recognizably Star Wars. It’s also set far in the future, so it doesn’t have to contend with Star Wars’ increasingly complex timeline.
The sequel trilogy had to overcome those obstacles, but that doesn’t excuse its overreliance on old characters and repetitive story beats. The Ninth Jedi only proves the sequels didn’t do enough to differentiate themselves from what came before. The sequel trilogy should have been something wholly different, not a lesson in how history is always doomed to repeat itself. People may have complained about the Star Wars prequel trilogy when it first arrived, but at least it featured an entirely different kind of Star Wars story.
The Star Wars Franchise Needs More Experimental Stories Like The Ninth Jedi
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Credit: Disney+</figure>
Star Wars’ future is currently uncertain. What should have been a triumphant leap to the big screen for Star Wars’ flagship Disney+ sub-franchise crumbled under pressure; The Mandalorian and Grogu is the lowest-grossing Star Wars movie of all time. Multiple previously announced projects are currently in limbo, including Daisy Ridley’s return as Rey Skywalker in the tentatively titled Star Wars: New Jedi Order and James Mangold’s historical epic, Dawn of the Jedi. Only one Star Wars live-action show is currently in the works. Ahsoka returns for season 2 in 2027, nearly four years after season 1.
Disney’s Star Wars has had some incredible triumphs over the years, but it’s clearly time for something new. The New Republic era is unsustainable; it’s unclear how Grand Admiral Thrawn’s upcoming war will fit into established canon in Ahsoka season 2. The Mandalorian and Grogu wasn’t enough to pull audiences back into cinemas. Even Andor was tied to one of the most well-chronicled periods in Star Wars history. If Star Wars wants to thrive rather than merely survive, it needs to give its loyal fans something intriguing and unexpected to look forward to and newer audiences an accessible entry point into the franchise.
Star Wars: Starfighter arrives in cinemas next year, the first Star Wars story set after Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. According to director Shawn Levy and star Ryan Gosling, it’s a standalone adventure. That will at least give newer fans a great starting point and introduce die-hard Star Wars fans to an entirely new, unblemished era. Whether the five-year gap between The Rise of Skywalker and Starfighter is enough to prevent Star Wars from falling into the trap of reliability and nostalgia is another question. Something, somewhere, needs to change.
All episodes of Star Wars: Visions Presents — The Ninth Jedi are streaming now on Disney+.
Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi
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