How We See Star Wars (Part 1) - Movies with Mikey

[@andhegames8669]

“When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.” - C.S Lewis

[@ThatImmo]

Was about to quote that, too. Words to live by.

[@ShootingStarNeo]

Damnit I put up my comment RIGHT before I saw this.

[@OfficialEricElemen]

"...and all the king's horses, and all the king's men, couldn't put humpty together again." - Mother Goose

[@rizon72]

"If everyone is thinking alike, then someone isn't thinking." - Usually credited to George S Patton.

[@anonymousgaslighter345]

The chronicles of Narnia guys?

[@jasonshaneyfelt1039]

Crazy how paralleled people's initial reactions to the Empire Strikes Back are to people's reactions to The Last Jedi

[@fatalfeline]

This reminded me of a story from my mom's cousin's husband. He went through some really bad medical woes in the '70s and he was at a really low point in his life and miserable, until he was taken out to see Star Wars (later A New Hope). He said he'd never seen anything like it before and it was so fun that it truly brought him joy. It was a bright spot in that dark time of his life and helped save him.

[@ChrisOstermann]

You've managed to become the only commentator that can get me to sit through 20+ minutes of pontification and narration, for every single one of your videos. I keep forcing your videos onto my friends and family members, and they hate me for it, but holy hell have you done something so magical. Thank you for doing what you do. You've, in my extremely critical mind, hit Roger Ebert levels of greatness, albeit in a different media and for a wildly different crowd.

[@Wackaz]

Lol, this is overly gratuitous. It's wonderful to see you being so passionate over an amateur film essayist - and trust me, I'm not trying to be cruel or burst a bubble here - but this guy really doesn't know what he's talking about; this video series is brilliantly entertaining but when it comes to his takes on film on a serious level, there's nothing to take from it intellectually (just look at his take on the Prequels). I think he's extremely pretentious in the way he talks. Truth is he's not as smart as he thinks he is.

[@ChrisOstermann]

@@Wackaz That's really up to the viewer right? If we want to get into Mikey's background, ask yourself what you've accomplished against his short time of brilliance. "Overly gratuitous" is a really simplistic oxymoron in the case of Mikey. The dude pumps out amazingly edited, deeply thought out edits for... for fans. Just because he loves the content and loves sharing it with us. I'd be overly gratuitous saying you have a point and that point is all that really matters here. Film is open to interpretation. My comment was open to interpretation, but the love of Mikey is not. The dude has been around, and my comment regarding his content stands, hard and fast, regardless of your take on any of his opinions. Good day sir.

[@TygerTigerable]

But the best negative review of Star Wars was from Freddie Mercury in his lyric "and I don't like Star Wars". (1978, in Queen's "Bicycle Race")

[@ruthielalastor2209]

Every time i sing that lyric, i feel compelled to say "just kidding" right after.

[@mattosmith400]

It’s funny because in reality Freddy Mercury really likes Star Wars

[@serbancapraru8559]

mattosmith400 So why that line? lol

[@acme64]

would we be talking about Freddy otherwise?

[@jacoblyman9441]

A quote from the man... who would later ride on Darth Vader's shoulder's into a concert venue. Not kidding.

[@collinsmith7078]

Couple notes: 1. Putting the "popular thing" over JT from the social network was genius. 2. The damn daniel joke got me. 3. The seqway into Phanton Menance was genius holy crap 4. Microscopic space wizards. This is an great episode Mikey, can't wait for part 2.

[@Wackaz]

It was fun watching him cope over film critics knowing more about cinema and having better taste than him during the Phantom Menace segment. And it was also fun watching him exhibit to the audience that he doesn't know anything about Midichlorians; neither does anyone who hates on the Prequels (Star Wars fans don't tend to be the most intelligent bunch when it comes to cinema and filmmaking).

[@RudieObias]

Star Wars fans have *HATED* Star Wars movies since 1980.

[@FanFilms101]

And I'm just one of those fans who still had fun with Return of The Jedi.

[@brucelee42069]

Nobody hates Star Wars as much as Star Wars fans

[@jimslav6973]

Lucas is a director buoyed by collaborators he fired after Empire. So yeah, I'm not a fan of ROTJ, or any prequel. Go ahead and shoot me, but I like Ep. VII and VIII. It feels like talented artists are finally back in the franchise. Maybe that's why they're hated.

[@56jklove]

@@jimslav6973 return of the jedi is awesome

[@RecklessFables]

There really is a difference with the new ones though. I have friends who "hate" the prequels but have them on Blu-ray and watch them every year. That isn't happening the same way as before.

[@teaboi8875]

When he's talking about Episode 5, I can't shake the feeling that I've seen a lot of what you described recently.

[@blokey8]

The difference is that in the case you're thinking of, the third film didn't settle the matter and reconcile people to the second. It's just cemented the narrative that VIII broke the franchise and was so terrible that nothing could be done to build on it.

[@cedricwublin9306]

In the intro you talk about how Star Wars looms so large in every conversation about film. One of the ways of contextualising this is by looking at how the filmgoing audience of the general public died away in the 60s and 70s (people going once a month or once a year, as opposed to going several times a week) because of television. The people who were left, and still going all the time were the film nerds and geeks, the diehard fans. Who would turn out to the big event films, inventing the blockbuster. And that was when the geek protagonist came to power - through directors like George Lucas and Steven Spielberg. So nerds and geeks took their identity and knowledge of film from these mega blockbusters, and then went and made their own films, and it reshaped culture. To such an extent that you can feel Star Wars loom over everything ever. There's a great study of the history of the geek/nerd in culture called "Postmodern geekdom as simulated ethnicity". Well worth reading, though you might find yourself questioning some of things you love. (Which I think Mikey's audience is cool with, but still, fair warning.) "In various ways, Lucas' and Spielberg's valorization of nerdy man-boy characters through the 1980s lay the groundwork for the rise of the specifically Generation X geek, who grew up watching-and often obsessing over-the films of Lucas, Spielberg, and also 80s teen-film director John Hughes. [...] Boomer geeks like Hughes and Spielberg made the young nerds of Generation X the heroes of their 1980s films, and the Generation X nerds, then in their childhood or adolescence, watched and identified with these depictions." ('Postmodern geekdom as simulated ethnicity' by Kom Kunyosying and Carter Soles - www.ejumpcut.org/archive/jc54.2012/SolesKunyoGeedom/ )

[@IanFay]

As a man who still has his Return of the Jedi trashcan (obtained from the official fan club, of course), these are great to watch. Thanks for great work as usual, Mikey.

[@Blizzic]

These are some of the most perfect music choices I've ever heard

[@FireSpark]

No, no, no. NO conclude later. Conclude NOW! WANT MORE! But seriously, nice concept.

[@designate_om]

i just wanna say, of all the video essayists on here, from nerdwriter to every frame a painting, you are the undisputed master, and your work brings much (film)joy to my life, so thank you

[@designate_om]

apologies for the run-on sentence, i've had a lil too much coffee today

[@That2J]

These comments are sweet and probably deserved a heart from Mikey. So you can have one from me! ❤️

[@StraveTube]

This is the best first half of an analysis of Star Wars that exists.

[@kyrant4410]

I think the main thing I took away from this was, critics and fans alike, as a whole wrote far more eloquently in the 70's and 80's than they do today.

[@TheGeorgeD13]

And they understood their own opinions far better than they do today.

[@mandarinduck]

The examples of fan opinions were the ones that got published in print magazines, and they're not going to run some of the shit we see on twitter. And newspaper movie critics even today are impenetrably verbose.

[@robertgaudet7407]

Read a Rex Reed opinion from the 70s or 80s and then tell me that with a straight face. (edit) Yes, ANY Rex Reed review. Any one.

[@Gemnist98]

It’s more that now EVERYONE can give an opinion, so you’re see a lot less Roger Ebert and more Terry Crews in Idiocracy.

[@evertonporter7887]

Newspaper editors back then would never have used ANY of the comments on social media, regarding it as "junk journalism".

[@benwaardenburg]

Excellent analysis and I love how you point out how Midichlorians impacted the prequel trilogy. It's crazy, even the prequel memers don't acknowledge it. There is a love for the prequels but I think your point on the magical force wizards is spot on.

[@houston-coley]

So, so, so insightful. Thanks for this video, Mikey. It's the one we all needed right now. **waits for someone to get offended**

[@ulizez89]

You want offended people!!!! well.... I like the prequels more than the new sequels =P now all we have to do is wait =) PS: I really like your channel. PS2: ok, rogue one was pretty decent I may say.

[@YouFightLikeACow]

I like how you comment on all the same videos I watch. Also, I am subbed to you, so keep up the good work!

[@bobsempletank5362]

"it has no original vision of the future" says an article reviewing a movie that takes place "a long long time ago"

[@thewhatness]

Bless you, Mikey, for providing easily the most even-handed, analytical take that I've been dying to hear about this series. I've been pulling my hair out over the current narrative being spun about The Last Jedi, because it's _sooooooo_ much better than the skewed public reception makes it out to be. And so many of those criticisms boil down to a) the story didn't give me what *I* specifically wanted, or b) the movie ruined classic characters by making them act unlike themselves (**scoff**). It's just like the narrative established for The Force Awakens, where literally tens of thousands of people cling to the common criticism that "it's basically just A New Hope," as if they're clever for noticing the similarities, like Abrams was trying to trick them. There's a _reason_ for the similarities. It's meant to be comfort food in the wake of the prequels irrevocably not leaving much substance to chew on. But no, it's just like A New Hope, therefore it's _entirely incapable_ of further discussion, merit, or nuance, right? Seriously, Mikey, you rock for this.

[@pardingo]

There are so many more criticisms against the last jedi than your A and B points. Like so so many more. You just choose to cling to those because they are the easiest to refute. And I don't think people were thinking they were clever for noticing the similarities of TFA and ANH because it's obvious that's what they were doing. It was obvious they wanted to make the safe bet to show the world that they (Disney) could make a star wars movie that recaptured the essence of what made Star Wars Star Wars. I don't understand how your comment got so many thumbs up...

[@thewhatness]

Because in this age, that means people agree. And I'm glad. Look, I'm willing to engage with you on a critical level, but let's keep our heads here, yeah? My point is that I don't understand the sheer dismissiveness of the sequel trilogy by the pubic at large. I'm not at all claiming they're perfect films or free from criticism, but the sheer volume of spiteful vitriol thrown their way is just _downright_ unfair. I've never seen such undeserving hatred.

[@pardingo]

I agree to an extent. TFA I quite enjoyed. As I said, it definitely recaptured the magic of what a Star Wars movie is supposed to be. But TLJ missed a lot. I commend it for trying something different but there were so many glaring problems, from a script perspective, that it was hard to look past. As with any big budget movie these days it looks beautiful, and I would never dispute that. But I think RLM said it best in their review that it was sporadically interesting. A good example of script problems is Rose saving Finn at the end from sacrificing himself for the greater good. It undoes his entire arch in that movie as he was trying to run away, and finally at the end, he decides, No, I'm not going to run. Another good example that not necessarily undoes everything, but it brings the very weaponry of the Star Wars universe into question. Holdo light speeds into the Dreadnaught. Very awesome scene. But why? If this kind of "weapon" is possible what is the need of a death star in the first place? You can weaponize anything by attaching a warp drive to it and sending it into a planet to destroy it. There are some great bits to the movie, but I think they are completely overshadowed by the bad mediocre bits. I also saw a great video (kzbin.info/www/bejne/p5jcho2jq5V3fLc) about all the other more political points a lot of other people bring up and I must say I agree with pretty much everything that video says in regard to Disneys new direction with star wars. It is definitely worth a watch.

[@thewhatness]

Gotta say, I've partaken in many discussions on TLJ, and all I ever seem to hear are complaints, so there's very few things I've yet to see leveraged against it. But firstly, thank you for engaging with me with civility. I'm sorry if I came off as hopelessly passionate about making a particular point. Rereading that, I can see how it comes off as an aggressive opening gambit. I'm just...really fatigued to hear so many other subjective opinions oftentimes flippantly shut me down for liking something that I think holds far more value than, say, Rogue One. But all of that is merely peripheral. *THE LAST JEDI SPOILERS BELOW:* I agree that Rose's decision undercuts Finn's decision to sacrifice himself on Crait, but: a) I don't think a salt speeder impacting a First Order battering ram laser would have done any significant damage, or caused some sort of chain reaction that would've stopped it from prying open the door to the rebel base, thus that would've resulted in Finn dying in vain, b) I think it's impractical to think that Finn _wouldn't_ survive this film, as he still has a role to play in the rebellion, and c) both choices - Finn deciding to die for a cause he believes in, and Rose choosing to save him are both in line with their characters. However, it's a messy entanglement, because one feels like it's cheapening the decision of the other, so I get the complaint, but moreover, both choices make sense to me from a strictly character lens. Furthermore , the assertion that "The Holdo Maneuver" retroactively makes every previous space battle pointless, as the good guys could simply lightspeed kamikaze their way to victory, I feel does a sloppy job at reading in-between the lines. First and foremost, it's not a sustainable war tactic. On D'qar, at the beginning of TLJ, there are a couple hundred rebels in total in the Resistance (contrast that to the mere dozens by the end of the film), and there simply aren't enough human resources to lose lives each time by repeating that method. Secondly, the Resistance's inventory has been dreadfully depleted as of the events of The Hosnian Incident, whereafter the Republic was effectively destroyed in one fell swoop, meaning the Resistance lost a mighty majority of not only its funding, but practical resources in the ways of ships and weaponry. You can't kamikaze your way to victory without ships with which to do so, and especially after Poe's damaging bombing squad run on the Dreadnought, and the chase with the Supremacy, (and of course, Holdo finally ramming the Raddus _into_ the Supremacy) the ship supply is all but gone. The Resistance simply has no way to keep using that tactic effectively. They got it off once, to the First Order's surprise, and with repeat strikes, they would in no doubt develop tech to help minimize lightspeed impact/bounce them off, etc. All in all, it's just not a model made to be reused. I love RLM, and tend to share a fair amount of views on films with them, but I was a bit taken aback by their reaction to TLJ, as well. Especially from Jay, with whom I usually find to be well-grounded in terms of offering fair dissections of films. This time around, however, they seemed preoccupied with charging the film of simply being subversive for subversion's sake, which I do not agree with. The three major subversions - Snoke dying, Rey's parents being nobody junkers, and Luke sacrificing himself and becoming one with The Force, I feel all have important, profound implications. Snoke's death proves that the 2-dimensional, puppetmaster villain has no staying power in this modern trilogy, which I am very much on-board with, because it puts the focus on Kylo, who is infinitely more compelling. It's a weird double standard, and I never really understood the compulsion for Snoke to _be_ someone or something important, especially considering Palpatine, with respect to only the original trilogy, was _also_ a 2-dimensional obstacle token puppetmaster villain with no real motivation than to be evil for evil's sake. Rey's lineage not mattering is poignant, because it frees the franchise from having to abide a strictly dynastic bloodline structure with respect to heroes of The Force. That's the whole point of the broom kid epilogue on Canto Bight - The Force exists everywhere, and you don't have to be a part of a royal bloodline to be exceptional with its power. And Luke's sacrifice is everything I could have ever wanted in terms of seeing him bite the dust. In the end, he absolves himself in a nonviolent way, undoing his momentary lapse of judgment that sent Kylo on a dark path. He was at peace with The Force. We didn't riot because the movie _earned_ that ending for Luke. Reprising that Binary Sunset theme, and reaffirming his own legend, thus sparking hope across the galaxy of the power of the Jedi is the best possible way he could have gone out. And I'll definitely have to check out the video, thank you.

[@krnonthak0b984]

thewhatness i can agree that the vitriol may be uncalled for (but then again i didnt hate the prequels either...ill probably get flamed for that one). but my main issue with TLJ is that I’m tired of the social justice/politically correct narrative that has been rammed down our throat by various media outlets. its okay for a story to have a positive and good message, but TLJ felt like the story was constructed around these political correct narratives. i was hyped to see the movie and even more excited when i saw the rave review headlines(didnt actually read the content till after i saw it). but i felt like i was watching a sermon on politcal correctness rather than an entertaining story with a good message. i walked out of every star wars movie entertained, even though some (ahem RotS) mildly. TLJ was the only one i walked out purely dissappointed...

[@ArthurCrane92]

The more things change, the more they stayed the same.

[@PaintCanJustice]

Great visuals. Great delivery. Insightful analysis. Every. Damned. Time. I appreciate your content!

[@AaronJShay]

Fascinating stuff. I love the depths you plunge into, here. Also, so relevant how people were upset about the rejection of their fan theories via episodes 5 and 6. Veeeeery relevant.

[@davidalbee5039]

Thanks man, this was really fantastic. I’d know the brief overview of this episode, but I always enjoy your special way of narration. Thanks for the great content! Can’t wait for the next episode!

[@GeoffreyToday]

We see Leia use the force in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. TLJ is not the first time we see her use the force, it is merely the most dramatic example.

[@PK-MegaLolCaT]

the problem is not that she use the force , it was the execution of the scene what breaks mine and some other people's suspension of disbelief

[@iTzKneecap]

Philip kelton That's isn't what he was talking about at all.

[@Nitrobucket]

Peoples issue in TLJ was how uncomfortably bad they made it look

[@robinthrush9672]

I think you mean "most comedic example".

[@ariannewingard1660]

Hey, I had no problem with it 'cause its a EU force power brought back and has been seen before in the form of the clone wars series and its not a impossible thing when you consider the time Leia spent in space was what 15 secs ? Which is the time that person can survive without a space suit .

[@HereComesPopoBawa]

As a kid in the 1970s, I was spoiled with a decade or so of really good sci-fi movies. Stuff like 2001, Soylent Green, Planet of the Apes, A Clockwork Orange, Fantastic Planet, etc. When Star Wars came out, my parents begged me to go. But when I asked them to describe it to me, it sounded really regressive compared to what I was accustomed to. "It has... space fights so big you wouldn't believe! And robots, and lasers!" And more important than all that window-dressing, the plot and themes sounded like a serious retread. As a kid, I had already seen the old serials Lucas was inspired by, such as Flash Gordon, and (woot) Undersea Kingdom. Why I ultimately went, and was happy that I went, was because it functioned as a form of social currency. It was a story that it helped to know if I was going to make sense of peer's jokes, or reenactments on the playground. But the fact that it was a shared experience was something that even then I had mixed feelings about. Why not that degree of hype for something that I thought was actually good? The resulting popular interest in sci-fantasy did result in some peers being more open to checking out sci-fi. But of course it got harder to sift through releases from 77-88 when the market was attacked by clones such as Star Crash and its ilk. Mostly, I was bummed out that as I was entering adolescence, the "sci-fi" that was "bigger than ever" had mostly sacrificed being a genre about deep ideas and themes, and instead become a mere scaffold to hang effects from.

[@AuspexAO]

How old were you in the 70s? What kid enjoys movies like Soylent Green? You thought about "social currency" on the playground?

[@HereComesPopoBawa]

I was young! Born in 1972. But I liked sci-fi, and remember growing up on Space: 1999 and Doctor Who as well as lots of movies prior to Star Wars. Clarke's novelization of 2001 was the first non-kid's-book novel I ever read around that time. I watched a lot of pulpy stuff also - I remember that Terror of Mechagodzilla terrified me, when the scientist's daughter was having her brain removed to install in MechaG. But I preferred the conceptual.

[@stefankienzle1587]

Your parents let you watch A Clockwork Orange? I'm 26 and my Mom's still uncomfortable with the fact that I've seen that movie.

[@HereComesPopoBawa]

Now that you've got me thinking about it, Clockwork Orange was one I must have seen a few years later when I was able to rent it on tape. My pre-1980 viewing was all at cinemas or on television. When I was around 10-12 I actually started a VHS rental account with a cash deposit, and the employee let me sign the contract. So I had an account with the final say of what I could rent, which was pretty amazing, and legally sketchy. I knew about the movie from a very young age though, from an old Mad magazine parody called "A Crockwork Lemon."

[@bltanti]

Con sarn it sir, you do too good a job! Ya got me with the sentimental gutshot and left me lying here waiting for another. Don't let me bleed out, sir.

[@jaijais]

Not that I expected anything else but the best analysis from you but this is so great, Mikey! Thank you for your work!!

[@rjmayo]

This was an awesome and a really interesting look at putting these films in perspective and it's really obvious how much time and effort was put into it, I can't wait for the next part. Also, as someone who's lived in ottawa for the greater part of my life, that clip about Trudeau was enjoyable on several levels

[@justinisntfunny]

That clip of Justin Trudeau blew my mind! Excellent find!

[@Kruglord]

Man, that warms my heart!

[@RecklessFables]

Wearing the same suit too!

[@TheLostProphecies]

with his Right Honourable dad no less.

[@rickycarrillo7821]

This was amazing. No ones making video essays like you guys

[@andyspendlove1019]

I really really really like how you play music from the year each movie came out when you're introducing each of them. It's a super cool touch. Great content as always Mikey!

[@markingatlightspeed]

The entire In The Hall of the Mountain King sequence is absolute gold and I was giggling my ass off. Adoring this analysis and the gentle editorializing that goes with it. The fact that you emphasized the importance of fan theory and shipping to fan reception is wonderful, as it's an oft-overlooked element of the way fans react to new material for the media they follow.

[@lardesouza]

I only saw SW maybe four times in the theatre, although my wife and her best friend saw it dozens of times. I had a penpal at the time who saw it nearly a hundred times and would have me mail him any newspaper or magazine article I saw to add to his clippings collection. When it was rereleased as 'SW: A New Hope" before Empire came out that was controversy. You nailed all the speculation after Empire's reveal of Vader and who the other mystery jedi could be :) A damn amazing look back at it all sir :)

[@insertnamehere1867]

Hey man, idk if you'll ever see this but I found this video and I've been watching your channel all day because of it. I just love how much you love movies, it's really something special. Thanks for an awesome day spent crying over movies

[@28starwarsfan]

The Secret History of Star Wars is a great, exhaustive read on this subject. Lucas was actually batting around the idea of 12 films at one point.

[@christycm5946]

I love your work Mikey. Thank you for this gem of a series.

[@Vorfalath]

Thank you, so so so much for making these videos and treating each film with fairness and still coming from an overall place of positivity and love of film. You do amazing work, I love your videos, and thank you so much again for continuing to do this.

[@matthewgrover8911]

This was excellent! Thank you for such a great video!

[@Antoine-1793]

... your choice of songs for your title cards are soooo spot on

[@derekrose3328]

Mikey my life is ruined right now, and somehow you're the only person (counting all things, forces, and people in my life) who's been able to make me explode into a smile, and laughter. Mark this day as the day you learned you have a super power (I'd say keep it up, and blast all videos with dissections on why they're great, but your subscriber count, and current blessings prove that prowess already). Thank you, and I mean that sincerely, man. - Derek

[@bpelectric]

Absolutely love your use of music from the release timing, btw

[@jaxlew8791]

History repeats itself. Give it a few years and everyone will love TLJ.

[@monashiding]

I really love this channel for your compassion and thoughtfulness and just plain fun. For what it is worth ;)

[@scarental5220]

The music choices you made in this are fantastic. Made this video very cinematic. GG

[@AlexBalhatchet]

Great as always Mikey, love the new format. Great music choices for the movie title cards, wondering what you're gonna choose for part 2's movies :-)

[@monkeyangelo717]

Best video you've done in quite some times. Cannot wait for the other parts.

[@DaedalusCrafting]

You always have the best music in your videos!

[@rejoyy]

Thank you, man. Your videos made me less cynical about the direction in which the Star Wars franchise was moving in. Now am able to watch the whole thing with out being some sort of grumpy grinch. I now enjoy the highs and shrug at the lows without taking it (and myself) too seriously.

[@-MrFozzy-]

I’ve said before… The prequels we’re made at the perfectly wrong time in history. Either 10-15 years too early or 10-15 years too late.

[@danielbuchanan1564]

I just love your style. Just don't stop. DON'T STOP! (mUFFLED cATAWAMPUS.)

[@heyitsJaclyn]

I always wondered how people reacted to the whole Vader father thing, but was too lazy to look it up. Thanks Mikey for doing all the hard work 💜

[@pardingo]

The Germans did not like it at all because they saw it coming back in A New Hope. Vader in German means Father.

[@gr13v0u5]

"Vater" is German, whereas "Vader" is Dutch.

[@Benjamin0119]

pardingo But Lucas didn't decide to make Vader his father until the later version of Empire. Originally Anakin's ghost was going to knight Luke as a Jedi. And in an early version of the first film's story Darth Vader was the name of some random Imperial officer. Darth Vader alluding to "Dark Father" was just more retroactive bullshit by Lucas.

[@MaxMarriner]

I've been enjoying Star Wars for the first time since December 2019 and I knew coming back to this incredible video was going to be worth it.

[@evanmcb]

Great episode. I remember people being upset about midichlorians when TPM came out, but midichlorians don't cause force sensitivity. They are essentially just bacteria that are attracted to force sensitive individuals, and thus a type of symptom or way to more reliably measure force sensitivity.

[@MaulSlasher]

evanmcb Midichlorians have such little impact on the story. I don't understand how people give it so much thought...

[@BrotherAlpha]

Thank you. I'm glad I'm not the only one who understood that.

[@JoseRS1186]

That was a retcon in reaction to the backlash. Also, it's still really dumb. Why put science all up in magic and faith/enlightenment based concepts like the Force? Even if midichlorians were always a thing, why would QuiGon need a little gadget for something he could just sense with the force? Did Vader have a midichlorians scanner on his tie fighter when he was trying to gun down Luke? No, he sensed he was a force-user like how ObiWan sensed an entire planet exploding from light years away. Lucas was just a boring, bad director on his own and needed a scene to hype up Anakin for all the ridiculous stuff he'd put an eight year old child through. Couldn't have had actual conversation and character development, Liam Neeson just has to scrunch his brow and give the audience a metric of how awesome this protagonist is with numbers. The most boring thing you could possibly do.

[@MrPainwind]

You do know that the midichlorian were just there to justify that Anakin was the "chosen one". It had no other influence on the story apart from that.

[@thehorseformerlywithoutana2522]

Ah. That's why they were never used before or since.

[@StormAlterWorlds]

I've been binging on your past videos over the last two days, and holy crap, the use of the music from The Civil War was cracking me up.

[@origamikatakana]

I love the music choice in this. It's all very apt for the discussion that it is in the background of, but it's not overstated.

[@orcrist86]

omg mikey. i need the second half like i need air

[@alecarena4319]

This is the first video from your channel I’ve seen and after watching subscribed and watched a couple of your videos. Really enjoy your content. I’m excited for part 2 of this video!!

[@QuestionableLifeChoices]

My absolute favorite thing regarding this subject is a letter someone wrote to a fan magazine after empire and was about how they guess Leia will never never notice such a good guy like Luke when, and this is a direct quote, "hot-lips Han is around"

[@Nihilus_Outis]

I discover this channel today and I've been watching some of the videos and all of them are excellent. Your perspective is very interesting and the humor is always welcomed. I regards of Star Wars this franchise has been very important in my life. I consider myself to be a huge fan but not at the level of collecting memorabilia and do cosplay. My more distant memory as a child was at 4 years old watching Return of the Jedi in the cinema. Since then Star Wars is a central element in my identity. It's very interesting to see the difference of how these movies were received between the audience and the critics. That is just an example of the illusion that is objectivity. There's no such thing as objectivity. Nothing is permanent in the universe. Opinions and feelings about anything are malleable and always changing. I found curious the level of attachment that these movies, or anything regarding entertainment, generate in people. As I said, Star Wars is important to me but not at the level of saying my childhood was ruined because my fan theory turn out to be wrong or because my expectations were not satisfied. If Star Wars teach something is how important is to "let go those things we fear to lose" as Yoda said in Episode 3. Desire, possessions, obsession, attachment... Star Wars teaches us to eliminate or at least control these behaviors and actions. But most of the fans to precisely the opposite. Their desire to have their expectations satisfied is too strong. They really believe they own the thing and that Star Wars is their possession. They are too obsessed with all things Star Wars. Their attachment to it is too deep. I'm in a stage of my life in which I care less about the spectacle and more about the ideas, the emotions and philosophy. Star Wars is a source of inspiration for me especially when I'm depressed, nihilistic or even fatalistic. I feel fortunate and grateful that I live in a moment were this 'mythos' created by George Lucas exist.

[@buried_u]

Damn, this is your best video in a while. This whole topic is fascinating and I love that you took the time to research it and present it so evenly. Eagerly awaiting the next video.

[@chair_in_pool]

Wonderful editing, sound, transitions, and insight!

[@spencer2116]

Great video, and I'm sure I'll enjoy this channel no matter what format the film videos take.

[@olsinbad6815]

brilliant! defs will watch again coz I'm still drunk but I'm pretty sure that was awesome

[@JJBell7777]

"Science number of Microscopic Space Wizards", thank you,

[@MasterJediDuck]

Loved the video! Lots of good stuff, and a great angle into the discussion. One thing I want to gently push back on is the reception of Return of the Jedi (a movie I personally love): there were bubbling ups on early message boards about fan disappointment with the movie, including it's neat, tidy ending. I'm pulling this from The Secret History of Star Wars article "Flashback to 1983". I recommend anyone reading this to google that article (should be easy to find) and another article "Original Trilogy Reception 1977-1983" if they're interesting in more info about early critical reaction to the series. Anyway, thanks Mikey!

[@56jklove]

naw dude you cant deny people dug jedi. and honestly i love it, i understand its pushback but still.

[@davznothere]

One day, when time allows for objectivity, I'd like to see a third part to this.

[@ape_on_rhino8467]

Boi, yo editing, talking mainy everything here, is out of this world. kepp it up ma man :* peace

[@ChloeAriT]

I just realized you may very well be my second favorite creator on this site.

[@cedricwublin9306]

Second to?

[@ChloeAriT]

I don't think anyone's topping LEMMiNO anytime soon.

[@cedricwublin9306]

Cool. Found them and will check out their videos. *thumbs up emoji*

[@Mr78monkey]

Always well researched and thoughtful of the material. Love your vids bro!

[@LJLvids]

both been looking forward to and dreading this episode.

[@FByrde]

As always, Mikey...you have fermented and clarified my absolute annoyance at the latest batch of pissed-off fans, and articulated everything I want and *need* to say to them in a way that I simply couldn't - without first swearing at them in 10 terran languages, 3 Galactic languages, and Klingon (for good measure). Thank you. You are my guiding light of Reason in this madness.

[@michaelevans3477]

Love this so much! Best commentary I have seen. Impressive!

[@azzygoh5662]

Watching this was a bit surreal, as I had no clue anyone ever had a problem with Midichlorians. I always appreciated this as an attempt at further wold building and trying to make "the Force" more tangible than simply space magic. Fine job as always, Mikey!

[@DannoHung]

Ehh.. it just seemed kinda bleh that they had a handy little device to measure how strong with the force someone is (like Dragonball's Power Levels) and that it was so... clinical. The Force is distinct from magic even in that it's something that is weakly implied that everyone can tap into, which was something that seemed really cool. Midichlorians sorta put a kibosh on that. And that's why we don't talk about Midichlorians anymore.

[@tko4051]

A New Hope was all about "even a speck in the universe farmer boy can become a Jedi", with the prequels it's "only a select small group of people can become a Jedi". Totally took the fun and everyperson aspect out of the franchise.

[@thewhatness]

People's primary problem with Midichlorians is that it entirely demystifies The Force.

[@MakiPcr]

Ignore these fools, understanding something doesn't make it any less interesting; I know how clouds form, but there's still beautiful. I think people who hate midichlorians have the same logic of people who think science and religion are enemies

[@azzygoh5662]

tko4051 A "speck of dust farmboy" that ended up being the son of Darth Vader though, yeah? I fail to see your point as making the force hereditary is less mystifying than sentient particles called midichlorians

[@aMilling]

Man, the songs choices for this video is off the charts!

[@altaccout]

Wasn't miticlorians a symptom of the force and not the cause of it?

[@theoriginalsache]

That's sort of the "after the fact" explanation. When it became obvious that the midichlorians thing was A BAD IDEA, they started gradually walking it back

[@icefarrow7959]

They never walked it back. People just fail to listen to what characters say. What Qui-Gon says in TPM is still true in TCW and many other material.

[@servebotfrank4082]

@@icefarrow7959 No they did walk it back. However they were clever in how they worded in a way that wouldn't contradict Qui-Gon. Good writers do that all the time, they fix fuck ups with better writing later on.

[@xarlev]

A multi-part MwM?! This is amazing

[@CrushBuds]

I think I've relived this video 16 times.

[@houseoftoussaint9609]

I asked my mum how she felt during some scenes in Star Wars. I remember her saying two bits: When Han was frozen, she was afraid till C3PO calmly said "Ohh he's frozen-" and when Lando was escaping the Death Star with the flames behind him. She thought he would die and remember the audience cheering with her when they made it. I wish I could have seen it.

[@FD2003Abc]

"Jedi" is what made "Empire" great. You HAD to have the bookend to appreciate just how good the "middle" episode was. Listening to Kirsch on the Director's commentary extends just how great Empire was. What a rough road to walk!!

[@finnhorsell5934]

Great video, one of your best, thanks Mikey!

[@NickTheDM]

This was phenomenal, waiting for part 2 is gonna be painful. Hope to see it soon ^_*

[@floratelek925]

Anyone knows what music is used during the first minute of the video?

[@WitandFolly]

Can't wait for part 2!!

[@AndrewRogers]

Who would have thought that historical context would be a cure for instant internet reaction? 😀

[@mick16wtf]

Also the best thing about the prequels it's star wars the clone wars animated series without a doubt

[@TheAldo531]

I always clash on the opinion that midichlorians made Jedi's elitist and such. Maybe it's because I got into SW when Episode 1 came out but to me it always made sense. I perceived them as a thing that everyone had, but some people had more of them naturally than others while other people had to develop them like a muscle. I also felt it made sense for the Jedi to have a better knowledge of what made the force work at the height of their power. I think it made the effects of the empire in the original trilogy feel heavier, not only did the empire destroy the jedi to the point of legend in 20-some years, but they erased all knowledge they possessed. Like damn, that's some strong power.

[@thatotherguy8138]

As a 7yr old watching RTJ in theatres, I LOVED Ewoks. I loved, loved, LOVED Ewoks. I loved the two Ewoks TV Movies (had them on VHS) and watched the first one about 60 times. Can't tell you a thing about it now, but as an 8-9yr old, I pretty much learned how to use a VCR without a remote because of the first Ewok movie. (The second one broke pretty quick, sadly) As an adult rewatching RTJ, I didn't like Ewoks. I was nostalgic and didn't hate them as much as other Adults, but... the kid in me was really, really strong.

[@Contevent]

I LOVE this! Perspective is so important...

[@davidkavanagh333]

cheeky leaving a deliberate low emotional point after talking about how Empire did the same thing

[@MahlenMorris]

I was thirteen when Star Wars (just that) came out. I'd known it was coming because I'd seen the "The story of a boy, a girl, and the universe" trailers. My family was on vacation in England when it came out, so I started reading news stories of this mania going on in the US, but it wasn't out yet in Europe. I came home, and the lines to see it were insane (and really annoying). I finally saw it, and was amazed by the effects and film work. But even at that age, and being a die hard S.F. reader and multi-year Star Trek TOS fan, i couldn't really get into the madness surrounding it. By the way, I recall local TV stories of kids claiming to have seen it over _a hundred_ times. I remember when the full soundtrack (not just the music, the whole soundtrack, dialog, sound effects and all) came out on vinyl (the only medium it could have come out on at that point). It took over the culture in a way never seen before or really since. I know to a true fan, the dismissive reviews strike a fan as laughable, but you've likely never known a film industry that was telling stories about adulthood. Let's look at some other films of 1977: Annie Hall. Eraserhead. Looking for Mr. Goodbar. Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Saturday Night Fever. Equus. Even the comedies of that year, like High Anxiety and Kentucky Fried Movie, these are about adult life, the questions adult responsibilities carry. In contrast, Star Wars really does like a really well-made adventure story. But adventure stories, by and large, were only for kids. So sure, blockbuster adventure stories came to almost completely dominate the filmed landscape. The fans won. But the film industry used to be so much more diverse, and maybe also told stories that actually helped prepare people to understand the compromises and fears and decisions of adulthood, and those helped prepare you for life as an adult. The movies today sure are pretty and loud, but to someone who loves movies, not just a certain set of stories, there really has been a loss. The loss was likely to happen anyway (the movie rental industry really changed the economics of film-making), but Star Wars was the blaster shot that put down serious film.

[@anonymousgaslighter345]

So you've seen it all go down, from the very beginning to right now. Wow.

[@Andrew93752]

Thanks for making another great thing I never knew I wanted!

[@jonswenson]

I saw it at Century 23/24 in San Jose on opening day, I think i was 5. It was one of the few 70mm screens, and one of the even fewer dome theaters. Right before it started the lights dimmed and they dropped a tie fighter from the ceiling and I was sold on the franchise. Most of the adults liked the movie once, but kids forced them to see it over and over. So what my neighborhood did was each parents took all the kids on the block once.

[@elorfinthendt]

I always took the perspective that Midichlorians were a way for the Jedi to pseudo-filter potential recruits. Like it was some sort of Force-adjacent explanation for "power levels" ala DBZ. Obviously when it's not mentioned in other time periods it could be because they didn't trust it, hadn't discovered it, or discarded its use as a scale of power or (in later installments) it was some of the info the Emperor destroyed so as to definitely prevent the Jedi from coming back "easily". I don't know... it didn't bother me as much as anyone else.

[@gary24fan]

It really is amazing how there are parallels between reaction to "The Empire Strikes Back" in 1980 and "The Last Jedi" today. Granted TESB reaction seemed to be more from the critics and TLJ more from the fans, but interesting. Great video.

[@star88wars]

Hey guys. I’m part of the prequel and clone wars generation. I was 4 when the phantom menace was released and love the sith out of that movie. (I was a kid, put that in mind). I never thought there was anything wrong with that movie until years later. Attack of the clones came out and I loathed that movie, I was more a Spiderman kid in that year. And then the revenge of the sith came out i loved that movie thinking that it was good movie because it was more serious. And then the 2d cartoon was also there and I like it. But when the 3D animation came out 3 years later, I thought Star Wars was death for sure. Oh boy was I wrong? Of course my opinion of that series changed overtime. What Am I going with this? People always say how the original trilogy marked their lives and that for them this is what Star Wars means. But that wasn’t the case for me. Star Wars for me is different. Sure my generation has the shitty movies, but Flash Gordon wasn’t a masterpiece in its time a looked what that inspired. So yeah, people of the original trilogy, you may say this isn’t your Star Wars, because you are right. This is not your Star Wars anymore and it won’t be again. It’s for the 11 year old of this generation. This story is for them. Yeah, there are a lot of stuff that this sequel trilogy is not working but pretend that it did with the other movies. Star Wars have always been like this as proved by this video. Star Wars is an imperfect story that some time is thought out and sometimes it isn’t. You say that Kennedy and co. doesnt what they doing. You need to re watched the other movies because the same shit happens with Lucas. Sure the prospect of dying of overdose of Star Wars is depressing view. But we don’t know what may inspire this in the future. Some day this is going to stop, nothing is eternal. Although I have been proved wrong before (the freaking Simpson are still in the air) I think that this flawed but yet amazing story is something still worth telling. Except rebels. Oh boy what a disappointment.

[@star88wars]

What the hell have I done? How many words are in this shit?

[@redassassian]

Except the sequel triliogy did not come up with their own ideas and gave everything from Luke to Rey without actually having to go through an arch to get it, where both Luke and Anakin did.

[@mick16wtf]

You are the fucking best and also yes I do look at the precious boy because he's awesome

[@edupunknoob]

Your videos are so special to me. Thank you ❤

[@francisemv1788]

woah that ending left me like, oh man,don't end!

[@dakenscholz3585]

The Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross/Phantom Menace bit was... Spectacular.

[@chinaski6593]

As always, great job Mikey!