Source is from season 1, episode 1.
This show might not be the first thing you think of when somebody asks about an anime, but it is made by the same anime studios as all the other series we watch and discuss here (season 1 also has an AniList page)
In case you weren’t aware, George Lucas drew huge inspiration from the works of Akira Kurosawa when he created Star Wars (article all about it). So, when they announced a show in which Japanese studios were allowed to create original stories inspired by Star Wars, it felt a bit like closing the loop. This also is why I chose a clip from this episode, because it is the most clearly Kurosawa influenced in both style and story.
Each episode of this series is made by a different studio (with Trigger and Science SARU doing two episodes each) and is a standalone story. This episode was made by Kamikaze Douga. If you are looking for recommendations for other episodes to watch, I would recommend in no particular order:
- The Village Bride - Episode 4 - Kinema Citrus
- The Twins - Episode 3 - Trigger
- The Ninth Jedi - Episode 5 - Production I. G.
- The Elder - Episode 7 - Trigger
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I love this series. I’ve not watched season 2, which is by western animation studios.
But I can scarcely believe Disney allowed this. They gave the Star Wars license to creative people and let them make whatever the fuck they wanted.
My favorite is The Ninth Jedi, which makes some changes to how lightsaber colors work compared to canon, and then uses it to tell a story and give several moments serious, delicious, impact.
Spoiler
That moment when Kara’s saber gained a color gave me goosebumps!
Every episode is worth seeing, but the ones you listed are the highlights IMO. I’d also mention episode 8, it’s a little weaker in comparison but stands out due to its animation and more detailed surroundings compared to other episodes.
I agree on episode 8. I didn’t include it in my short list because the story is a bit weak, but visually it is gorgeous.
I watched season 2 and it was definitely weaker overall. If I had to pick a couple episodes that were worth watching…
- Episode 1 - Sith - This is a surreal episode. The story isn’t the easiest to follow, but I loved the artwork in this episode. Just consider it a visual showcase more than anything.
- Episode 2 - Screecher’s Reach - Made by Cartoon Saloon (Secret of the Kells, WolfWalkers), this one is a really good story. I don’t want to spoil things by saying more.
- Episode 9 - Aau’s Song - A lot of the episodes from this season have some kind of focus on kyber crystals, but I like how it is portrayed in this episode the most. The lack of dialog is made up for by the expressiveness and style of the animation.
I wrote all that, but I wouldn’t really go out of my way for season 2. I suspect that Disney may have had more story input for season 2 because there wasn’t nearly as much liberty taken with respect to established Star Wars lore. Things like what happen in The Ninth Jedi, that stand in direct contrast to established lore, just aren’t happening in any of the episodes in season 2.
Hah. I bet Disney saw the “achsuallys” in the comments and decided “can’t have upset star wars fanatics”, then proceeded to strangle further creative experimentation outside canon.
I want one of the episodes from S1 to be expanded into a full season so badly. Can you imagine a Yamato 2202 style story arc set in one of these alternative star wars canons? Putting old IPs into new hands and going “do what feels right” has so much potential, and S1 straight up proves it.
It’s been a while since I last posted a clip, so I thought it was time. I know the art style might be off-putting to some due to its fully 3D nature, but I don’t really mind it after it has been stylized so much like this. The good news about a show like this is that each episode has a completely different art style. So, don’t let one episode turn you off of what is a really good show.
If you a stickler for Star Wars lore, you might not enjoy the show as much. These episodes used existing canon as more of a set of guidelines than rules that need to be followed.
If you a stickler for Star Wars lore, you might not enjoy the show as much. These episodes used existing canon as more of a set of guidelines than rules that need to be followed.
People need to go into this one with completely open minds. Visions if an exploration of the IP with all limits off. The studios did not have to limit themselves by canon, rating, tone, etc. Nothing. They were allowed to make the coolest thing they could imagine. Which means not every episode is a banger, or one which will land with every viewer, but every episode is interesting and different.
To me it’s a huge argument for how much more interesting Star Wars could be if the creative handcuffs Disney shackles all their IPs with, came off. Andor is a another example of a show I can barely believe is real. It’s so incredibly dark and compelling in a way that Disney tends to hold at arms length.
It does new things with the IP, with the same tone that made Rogue One so different and refreshing.
Agreed completely. Star Wars is supposed to be a whole galaxy right? Why are we not exploring different genres of story within it. Andor and Rogue One are like spy/heist genres applied to Star Wars and done excellently. I would also argue that season 1 of Mandalorian was a space western done right for the most part. I want to see different things in Star Wars. Like, where is the drama centered around an up and coming pod racer? Where is a Coruscant buddy cop series about a detective and their droid apprehending death stick dealers? The slice of life about a couple students dreaming of getting off planet some day (A Place Further Than The Surface)? You could even get really weird and do a detective noir series or something like that. It’s a big galaxy out there!
The Clone Wars TV series has a lot of that. Not every episode is good, but especially the later seasons hit a stride. That we got season 7 to finish up Ahsokas story, 6 years later… It is beautiful. The animation was such a huge upgrade, too.
At times it even explores the good that can be found in the ideals of the Sith, and the harm that the Jedi unwittingly do.
The force is about balance, anger and control, sadness and happiness, but both the sith and jedi make the mistake of embracing only one side of things. The Jedi are not balanced, they are so afraid of losing control, that they exclude complex emotion from their lives to the point they had no chance of ever understanding Anakin, who had already become a person in his own right before they took him in. Any other youngling would have been brainwashed to think the way the order does as a whole, from the day they could speak.
This is also why Ahsoka is my favorite Star Wars character. She actually comes to realize the above, and because she lacks Anakins ambition, she is actually able to choose to walk away. To go out and figure out what her personal relationship with the force looks like.
The first episode, and the titles of the new trilogy, so very clearly show that it was set to explore this same aspect of the Jedi order, that they never stood for balance. That Anakin indeed brought balance, by destroying not just the sith in the end, but before that, the jedi.
Then Rian Johnson walked in and went “what, no, Star Wars is a simple good vs evil story, with zero complexity whatsoever” and fucked it all up by cutting out plot threads started in Force Awakens that were obviously meant to be continued, explored, and concluded by the Last Jedi. Instead he doubled down on “Jedi=Good guys” so hard that there was no room for anything deeper.
Yeah, clone wars dabbles with other types of stories and I appreciate that. It is something that the other animated shows haven’t done as much of (I haven’t watched Bad Batch yet, so can’t speak to that one). I especially feel like Resistance had a lot of potential to be something like a Deep Space 9 set in the Star Wars universe, but all that potential was squandered.
Also, I can’t tell you how many times I have tried to make the point about Force Awakens/Last Jedi you did. I get the criticism that Force Awakens is very similar to episode 4. However, I think it was intended to show how, by perpetuating the Jedi/Sith dichotomy, these conflicts are inevitable. So, to truly end it, both had to disappear once and for all. I think Johnson’s dramatic shift in TLJ is likely what led to the late rewrite/change of director for episode IX. Alas, what could have been…
There has been rumors that season 3 of Visions is in development, so, until we hear more, I will assume it is a whole season devoted to the story/characters of The Ninth Jedi.
I will assume it is a whole season devoted to the story/characters of The Ninth Jedi.
STOP, I CAN ONLY GOT SO ERECT
Where can I watch this?
It might depend on your region, but since it was made by Disney, I imagine almost everywhere the answer will be Disney+.
