The Mandalorian came out blasters blazing, splattering expectations like Jawas in its second episode. “Utinni! Kaboom. With some serious spaghetti western and Mad Max vibes, what can Disney+ take from the hit show to their next Star Wars original centered around Obi-Wan Kenobi?
Here’s what we know about Disney+’s Obi-Wan Kenobi series:
- Lucasfilm announced the show at Disney’s D23 conference, August 23. Filming begins in 2020.
- Ewan McGregor reprises his Star Wars prequel role as Obi-Wan.
- Deborah Chow is directing the show. Credits include The Mandalorian, Mr. Robot, American Gods, and The Man in the High Castle.
- The series is written by Hossein Amini. Credits include Drive, The Alienist, and 47 Ronin.
- Kathleen Kennedy, Tracey Seaward (The Queen) and John Swartz (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) are the show’s executive producers.
- The show is set six years after Revenge of the Sith, and before A New Hope.
Treating it with love and respect
So far in The Mandalorian five things stand out.
- The lore surrounding Mandalorians and Star Wars is respected.
- The show has no forced or out-of-place comedy.
- The characters are interesting, and their backstories implied rather than delivered via wordy monologues.
- Episodes have pace and purpose — no meandering.
- Every element looks and sounds perfect.
Star Wars fans are always hungry for more. It doesn’t matter if Disney+ create shows about big names like Obi-Wan Kenobi or some unknown in a galaxy far, far away. It doesn’t even matter if the length of each episode is 30 minutes, fans are going to watch and react emotionally.
The question is, will fans have Star Wars fatigue after The Mandalorian? That’s what was alleged for the diminishing interest in The Last Jedi, and Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Star Wars fatigue
The truth is, The Last Jedi split fans, and one half took it out on Solo. There was no fatigue. Just a good old-fashioned protest with consumers making a statement with their wallets. It’s no different from how consumers have made a statement by signing up for Disney+ by the millions.
One thing is certain, though: keeping Star Wars fans full-up on shows is going to keep the Disney+ service on everyone’s lips. There is an economy online built on the back of talking Star Wars. Get it right, and the word-of-mouth is great marketing. Get it wrong, and it’ll rattle the Internet.
After the reaction of The Mandalorian, creating a show without Jon Favreau and George Lucas is a risk. My bold prediction is that fans will be suffering from “fatigue” again once this Kenobi show releases.