We’re almost a year away from the Ep. IX, what is continuously being hailed as the final chapter of the Skywalker Saga, and to get the excitement rolling, Lucasfilm has revealed a new series of animated shorts, Galaxy of Adventures, which will, “…introduce the classic themes, pivotal moments, and iconic characters from the Star Wars saga to the next generation,” aka how to get the newest of Padawans into Star Wars. More details on when this neat new take on the saga below!
The series begins November 30 with 6 shorts, debuting on a brand-new Star Wars Kids website, as well as its corresponding new Star Wars Kids YouTube channel. The first six will feature dialogue, music, and sound effects from the films over the new animated takes on pivotal Star Wars moments. More shorts drop in December, following a weekly release schedule in 2019, featuring fan-favorite characters. Complementing Galaxy of Adventures episodes are Fun Facts, mixed-media shorts which reveal background details on stuff like lightsabers and more, while guides will be presented to get the conversation rolling between Master (see: parents) and Padawan (see: their kids) about what they’ve watched. Then beyond the shorts, Hasbro will be releasing new toys, starting December 1 so it’s just in time for the holidays (got to make up for a lack of a December film release somehow!), though the toys will be exclusive to Walmart until January 2019.
These honestly sound like such a great idea, helping fans share their love of Star Wars with their children/giving kids an easier avenue to entry with or without an older fan to guide them in. While not the intended message, doubling down on kid-orientated content helps reinforce how the Saga is for everyone It’s also really fun to see classic scenes reinterpreted and the stylistic approach of Galaxy of Adventures already has caught my eye, though I’ll be honest and say I’m pretty much open to any animation look. I’m most curious to see what the shorts featuring fan-favorite characters will end up being, like will it feature said characters in new scenarios, like Forces of Destiny had, and/or bringing scenes from the comics/novels to life in a kid appropriate way. Speaking of that, the trailer showed a version of Rogue One’s Vader hallway scene, which is rather surprising considering the target audience for GoA, so I’ll be curious how they adapt that for a younger audience, while it was also rather weird the trailer heavily featured original trilogy-era content, but randomly only had Yoda vs Dooku content from the prequel-era, and seemed to use Harrison Ford dialogue for a young Han scene instead of Alden Ehrenreich.
Having this marketed as the beginning of a year-long celebration of Star Wars storytelling leading up to Ep. IX, as well as constantly reiterating Ep. IX is the end of the Skywalker Saga/end of 40 years of storytelling, reveals some important things for the year ahead: It looks like they really want people to know Ep. IX is the end of the Skywalker Saga, thus making the rest of the upcoming projects stories from a GFFA, and it also means we’ll be getting a year’s worth of build up to Ep. IX, much like the previous films had, something robbed from Solo: A Star Wars Story earlier this year, but it doesn’t mention what the build-up entails, like another “Journey To…” campaign or not. Also, I’m curious if this means the Forces of Destiny shorts are done with, as this seems to be a far greater focus than that show ever was, and it’s targeted at the same audience.
In the end, I’ll definitely watch these, but I can’t guarantee I’ll do any reviews, as they aren’t really being made for me, but I would love to have a parent, maybe even parent and child, on the site to cover the series if anyone is interested/willing! Check out the Open Writing Call for more details on how to reach out if you’re interested.
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website @MynockManor.