Why The Politics Of The Star Wars Universe Matter

What is the role of The Galactic Empire in the Star Wars saga? In this video I explore the role of politics in the storytelling approach for all 3 Star Wars trilogies.
Links:
Tim Gray's animation of the original concept for The Force Awakens:
• Star Wars The Force Aw...

[@samuelbunnell9033]

Its telling that in a research video, when talking about the sequel trilogy, he just ends it by saying "I dont remember how it ended and don't care to find out" and everyone just accepts that....

[@theartofstorytelling1]

It really is true. I remember the last shot and the "Rey Skywalker" bit, but I had to look up whether Kylo died at the end. I had a feeling that viewers wouldn't be particularly interested in analyzing that ending, because there simply isn't much to say about it. And I agree, that is the worst indictment of all. Thanks for stopping by the channel.

[@citronm1405]

Who is "he"?

[@ScottsChristmasChannel]

He said "to be honest I don't remember how that movie ended so (I'll) just have to leave it there"....He is not the only one! I also was so disappointed in the last trilogy, that I don't even think of them as part of the Star Wars Galaxy. And I'm sure many others do also!

[@hgman3920]

One of my biggest complaints about the sequel trilogy is that I had absolutely no idea what the films about on a thematic level. The OT was a classic hero's journey and a battle of good and evil. The prequels (love them or hate them, and I am the former) were a tragedy which dealt with questions of hubris and corruption in a morally gray world. The sequels? No clue what the main organizing theme was supposed to be - it was all over the place and nothing all at once. If I had been given the task of writing the sequels, I think an interesting organizing theme would have been one of nostalgia and how it warps our perspective of the past. They had the perfect setup for this in the first film in Kylo Ren's veneration of the Empire in the form of Darth Vader's burned mask, yet nothing ever came of that. I'm sure there were also plenty of galactic citizens who prospered under the Empire and were not happy to have seen it go. Building a New Republic from scratch is hard work, because it's chaotic, disorderly, and upends a social order which has been in effect for decades (for a real world example, look at Russia after the fall of the USSR). Take time to show the rise of the First Order - emphasizing why people would want a New Empire. It could have also been used for a more subtle exploration of the downfall of the Jedi and Luke's attempt to rebuild the order without falling into the same trap, and could have been far better than making Luke a jaded old hermit. But, since JJ thought that people clearly didn't want any politics whatsoever, we got the Seinfeld of Star Wars instead - a trilogy about nothing.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I couldn't agree more. You can tell that the writers got a few things right. For example, having a main character who is ex-storm trooper. There was so much potential there, and it was unfortunately not explored. I agree they had a good idea with Kylo having Vader's helmet, and kind of worshipping him. There was continuity there that made sense. It makes me wonder why these good ideas were not properly expanded on. Did the writers do a bad job, or were they hamstrung by the studio? Of course this touches on so many bigger questions about who should own Star Wars, and the responsibility of being the steward of that franchise. That's kind of why I ended the video on the thought that maybe it needs a single author with a single vision - even if he or she is crazy. One thing you can say about the prequels, with the hindsight of all these years, is that they introduced a lot of fascinating ideas and artwork into the culture, and got a lot of people into the Star Wars story. Makes me wonder if the sequels will have a similar legacy, or whether they'll just be forgotten. I was dead serious when I said in the video that I can't remember how Rise Of Skywalker ended lol

[@catfood1788]

@@theartofstorytelling1 i wish they had done more with Finn being an ex storm trooper, like showing his hesitancy to kill storm troopers, i feel it could have made his character more interesting.

[@allengaible6436]

How is John Boyega (Finn), a main character? This was meant to be a trilogy yet they didn't write anything beyond the first movie. The same can be said of Rey and Kylo.

[@philippeamon7271]

I am fully convinced that the sequel nonsense is 100% INTENTIONAL and PURPOSEFUL. I like your astute observations, but it feels like you just dropped the leash 25 feet from your house, like "doggo will... figure the rest out. Probably." So first we have TFA. Oh, it's exactly like ANH, yay, Disney makes only mindless copycat fanservice hooray, nothing weird about that. Then that other guy comes in to be the bad man with his TLJ... Wow, Disney HATES us? They never make any mindless fanservice? I'm so confused and befuddled... Let's see if TROS can expla... nevermind, I'm stupid, apparently. Goodbye Star Wars. If you were writing it, you would've focused on the heroic legends of propaganda and revisionist history, that guilty people venerate (cling to like the last straw in the Universe), to deceive themselves into thinking they are always the main character and could never do anything wrong. (George: ANH = U.S. in the Vietnam War). So you would tell a story about somebody, who is desperate to be important, and do all the hero stuff and Deadlier Star exploderation stuff, EXACTLY like heroes do because, I iz main character syndrome, and totally not the super villain, but the hero, I've decided. Someone who would need a metric ton of self-deceit and actual magic to make her retarded bullshit stick to the wall. A helpless little slave girl on a desert planet, who regularly beats up ten bozos for breakfast, perhaps? But in a helpless kind of way, for pity and sympathy points, lookit me, me, me and my fat asshole. A thematic motif could be... Identity or lack thereof? And there's this Vader-fanboy, who is a nepo-baby space wizard of the same school experience as Anakin Skywalker (people don't really think it's funny, how he always effortlessly gets the straight A's, while they struggle like madmen for a single C-, so yeah, he's got wedgies up the wazoo). But it turns out, he doesn't actually give a hoot in a handbasket for Vader, he just wants all the space wizard power for himself. Like Anakin. Yes, the Empire were better at moving money from the Core, Inner Rim, and Colonies out to the abandoned, lawless worlds of the Mid and Outer Rim. Less corruption, than ever before. And the rim worlds liked that! And the Rebel Alliance wasn't quite as good at running the galaxy, as they were at rebelling it. That was their hubris. But to be fair, a lot of economy and value turned to toiletpaper really fast, once the Empire was gone, and galactic recession ain't easy. We don't really need to see the rise of the First Order. The point is, they had used their vastly superior, and clever ingenuity, that they just so happen to have, very clever, to construct a machine, that could solve the whole energy crisis, by draining the energy of a dying star. Using Starkiller Base would obviously destroy the solar system of said star, but since the First Order is IMPOSSIBLY EVIL STUPID INCOMPETENT space nazis, that a hero can kill indiscriminately, as they just so happen to be, they have to invest another 77 fantazillion space bucks, in developing a giant-mega-ultra-super-laser, so that, in addition to it's capacity to destroy a solar system, ALSO has the capacity to... destroy a solar system. In a more visually pleasing way. So it can be more Deadlier Starry, just so happens, for the hero to explo... uhh, I mean, th-that design has NEVER failed us before, let's go with that! Except FN-2187. He's just a victim in all of this, not a bad, evil space nazi, like all the others... are... not. Wait... But he is different though, because of course, they'd bring the new guy on their fun and wholesome, top secret genocidal atrocity war crime mission, because new guys always like that, and never ask stupid questions like "Are we the baddies?". But then he doesn't actually like the pointless mass murder of all the evil, helpless, innocent civilians, that ungrateful little snub nose. Anyway Rey F.N. really likes him for some reason, and she puts him on the gun, so NOW, he can Woohoo! at killing all the evil forcibly conscripted brainwashed helpless evil space nazis like himself... uhh, are not. But we still don't know what FN is there for. Maybe he is the hero? Or the tank, who soaks up the damage? No, Rey is Tank. And Rey is DPS, and the healer isn't in this system, but that's also Rey, turns out, and... ah, who's the last team member, oh yeah, the buff-support, who continuously casts spells to improve the abilities of the rest of the team... who might that be? And why did they "reduce" his character, to someone who's only there to continuously cast, I mean, yell: Rey! Rey! Rey! REY! REEYYY!, he doesn't really do anything, no tanking, no dps, and obviously not healing, we went over that... Why is he there? Maybe there's a reason why Jake Skywalker is such a whiney little farmboy, completely different from the good guy Luke of the OT, who dreamt of being a TIE-pilot for the evil Empire, and to go to the T0sCHeE 5t4Tl0n, t0 PiCK uP 5aaHm P0w4h c0nV3rTeRs... Who throws his lightsaber away, like a coward, almost as if you could become a hero Jedi Knight by throwing your lightsaber a... way... oh, wait... But not like the Luke, who drank blue milk everyday, so that he wouldn't accidentally discover his magic powers and get dangerous fantasies of being the hero into his conceited little head. But Jake is just weird - this Dark Side demoness shows up on the Prime Jedi's island, directly connected to the Vergent Scatter, where Anakin hangs out, and white blade Cosmic Force Ahsoka also shows up from time to time. And then Jake just sorta waddles off to drink green milk in her face, like "How'd you like that little trick, eh?". Because green is blue, and that's how he cut himself off from the Living Force? But then she doesn't just go away! vanishing in a puff of smoke? That's weird, because blue milk always worked that way. So... she's actually there? Or maybe green milk just isn't blue milk, and he cut himself off from the Living Force by, uhh, hmm... Actually, Jake no like where this is going, it puts Jake in a very grumpy mood, let's talk about something else. No one's ever really gone, anyway.

[@westrim]

@@allengaible6436 That was their point, he should have been. He had all the makings of a fascinating character, until he went from " I hate the killing, I held my dying compatriot in my arms, I want out" to "WOO, killin' stormtroopers!" in barely a minute of screentime. Then he's a coward running from the fight, but drawn to do the right thing by his connection with people, which is also decent if muddled... then gets repeated in TLJ. And of course in the final movie, he's such a placeholder that they introduce a gender swapped character with the same backstory - but better!

[@williamcorbett5342]

I think Andor is another excellent Star Wars product that helps portray the politics of the galaxy in a very interesting way. The amazing writing and the way they show how the oppression of the empire effects the everyday citizens, rather than just the protagonists fighting against it. The way they show the decisions that the characters have to wrestle with, and the way information (propaganda) proliferates throughout the galaxy under the empire's control is honestly a whole new level of quality that I didn't think we'd ever see from a Disney star wars product!

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I absolutely agree! I thought about including Andor in this video, because its approach to depicting The Empire is very interesting. You see more its more mundane aspects - the bureaucracy, the internal politics, turf wars among rival officers. I loved the scene where one of the Imperial officers is revealed to be a mole, and you see him go down into the underbelly of Coruscant for that secret meeting. The fact that he has a family that he cares about is what makes it so interesting. This was the point I was aiming for with this video. This is exactly what I think the fictional world of Star Wars needs in order to continue. Otherwise, we just won't get interesting characters. I have big hopes for Season 2, and I definitely want to make a video about Andor on this channel soon.

[@krispalermo8133]

( imperial propaganda ) Disney canon vs Legends, check out the novel, " I, .. Jedi " The protagonist of the story written about Empire public history, the Core had near horror movies of loyal imperial officers chasing down murderous Jedi. After about ten years into the empire they faded out of view and anyone who still own copies will laugh your belly till you are on the floor crying. They were just that bad. Bad as in a way you think the empire was wasting their time with such slap stick low humor Jedi. Full discredited that the Jedi were just a joke that was never really there to begin with. Children silly ghost stories. Hutt space on the other hand, that is funny. They have a lot of stories of being hunted down by Jedi. And then there was Vader, and he was no child silly ghost story. I have meet people in their twenties that didn't know the saying, " Luke, I'm your mother ! " Comes from Star Wars. Then came the joke after Phantom Meance, " Uh Padme can we talk about your muscle steroid abuse and over addiction to power lifting ?"

[@westrim]

I do feel The Phantom Menace lays out the Galactic Republic pretty strongly. It's a peaceful and civilized society, where slavery is a foreign concept, relegated to areas outside its control... but it's rotten and ineffectual at protecting its own citizens from corrupt corporations, manipulated from within by the Sith who seek war and fear, and succeed in the second film. Anakins conflict is that he doesn't care about the Republic, he cares about the people close to him. The Jedi order is the Republic in a microcosm - well meaning but ineffective, bureaucratic, led into war without introspection. So Anakin chooses personal fear over any value system.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

That's a good analysis, and makes sense to me. Palpatine's line about the corruption of the bureaucrats supports this view of the Republic.

[@TheBoondocksaint117]

I love the politics of the prequels and how they show how a republic becomes an empire. It's not from without, but within. And by the time the heroes realize the true nature of the threat, it's too late. I really appreciate the more nuanced politics in that way.

[@californiacombativesclub202]

Look at January 6

[@EvsEntps]

Let's just pretend the Disney Star Wars doesn't exist.

[@therealspeedwagon1451]

Let’s just pretend the sequels never happened. The Yuuzhan Vong came and just killed everyone. The end.

[@the_aberration7398]

I think this is the best Star Wars video essay I have ever seen. It does a really excellent job of highlighting some of the core strengths and weaknesses of Star Wars as a series, as well as the respective trilogies, in a very concise and eloquent manner.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Wow! Thanks for your kind words. That's great to hear because there is A LOT of Star Wars commentary out there, and I wasn't sure if I would be in over my head haha.

[@catfood1788]

i think the prequels could do with a little less boring politics scenes but overall i think it does a fine job at showing the growth of palpatine's power

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I agree. My favourite thing about the prequels is his character arch, and especially the way his look changes. I love that the corruption starts to show on his face in subtle ways.

[@welkingunther4298]

The fun politics ended up being in TCW series imo. I know there was a lot of filler in there, but honestly could probably trim them out and still feel very rich.

[@lakelandbuzz2252]

I don't think the amount of politics in rhe prequels is a problem. The problem is that the politics is presented in a very boring way that limits engagement. Watching something like In The Loop, Lincoln, Death of Stalin, A Very English Scandel, Tom Bates vs the Post Office, Bridge of Spies, there is no excuse for your political scenes being boring. Scenes in the above examples are infused with character, energy, tone and even humour (a given since politics is somewhat inherently ridiculous). Its in the presentation where the problem lies. Good political scenes are also very reliant on dialogue, and as Ford said "George! You can write this s**t, but you sure can't say it!" Anyway, I've subscribed. We shall watch your career with great interest.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

That's a good point - politics isn't inherently boring, and a good filmmaker should be able to translate it into cinema in a compelling way. I'm honoured by your Palpatine quote. Hopefully my career goes better than Anakin's lol.

[@Limubi1]

I like this analysis a lot, and a deft use of the chess board as a visual metaphor.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Thanks so much! I try to work in props and stuff wherever I can add some visual interest. It's actually my favourite part of the process.

[@MentalMachine]

Goerge Lucas was onto something

[@-VaIhalla-]

3 Videos, 3 Bangers. The topics you cover like the deconstruction of art and why it works and the role music plays in story telling is my favourite stuff to be honest. Love star wars and LoTR, my two other favourite scifi/fantasy series I would love to see a video on if you also like them is The Witcher (maybe harder to do as its more of a personal character story) and Dune (The books are absolutely jam packed full of greatly interesting things to analyse, luckily the movie is a great adaptation as well)

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I'm stoked somebody watched all three so far! At this point I'm just kinda trying stuff out, and seeing what sticks. These 3 videos are all kinda unrelated, but they're all things that interest me a lot. Just gonna let my interests guide me, rather than worrying about a "niche". My view is that people have many interests, just like you say. So I don't want to define my channel too narrowly. This comment is just what I needed to hear! Thanks for the suggestions - stoked for Dune part 2.

[@nathanong]

I think it would've been interesting to explore *why* the first order rose so effectively in the sequel trilogy, and force protagonists to examine how setting up and maintaining a functional democracy is harder than just blowing up a death star and getting a medal. In a way it reminds me of those Taliban fighters turned bureaucrats that were at a loss as to how to run the government once in power.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

That's an excellent example. History is full of examples of collapsing empires. Just think of the Roman Empire and the fracturing of Europe through the Middle Ages. So much to draw from.

[@mikehuang4834]

Early Game of thrones and House of the Dragon had plenty of politics and very little spectacle fights. The court intrigue and alliances are what made the shows amazing. You can write it in a way that is interesting and raise stakes.

[@Nawels94]

I belive that a lot of my interest in politics and intrigy about how the state works came from watching the prequel trilogy as a child. I saw the prequel first and thy won a place in my heart, more than the original trilogy.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I think people underestimate the cultural impact of those films. Phantom Menace, for all its flaws, was a major cultural experience for me when it came out.

[@crabgamingreal]

seriously underrated channel

[@theartofstorytelling1]

That's nice of you, thanks. Just started, and I'm gonna give it my best!

[@TheRealPSKilla502]

If you haven’t seen it yet, I would highly recommend the video essay “How Liberty Dies: The Politics of the Star Wars Prequels” by Arken the Amerikan

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Thanks, I'll give it a watch!

[@happyron]

The irony is that the sequel trilogy had a likable new cast and characters that weren't well written and in a story that wasn't thought out. I think one of the reasons the first two seasons of The Mandalorian were so well received is they had a very "human" father-son relationship at their core that drove the story forward. I used scenes from the show to make a music video and you didn't need words to feel the basic story, even if you never saw the show. kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnOroqlpftCsi8U

[@fixipszikon6670]

Well, it is not a sequel. One of the problem was that the new cast was not likable. And the only reason that Mando was well received is baby Yoda and a guy in a cool mandalorian armor. The rest was mediocre at best, and some things just flat out stupid.

[@tss3393]

4:03 Bruh, that edit 😂 genius!

[@theartofstorytelling1]

That pic of Palpatine always makes me laugh for some reason lol

[@ChrisBrennanCB]

Great video! I really enjoyed its insight and thoughtfulness. I was 10, 13, and 16 for the original trilogy movies. They were foundational for me as movies and as storytelling. I was disappointed in the prequels because Lucas didn't seem to understand what it was that made the original trilogy so special. And, even as a JJ Abrams and Rian Johnson fan in other areas, I'd forget the sequels if I only I could--with the sequels neither Abrams nor Johnson seemed to respect the fact that they were in fact creating "sequels" (new stories that reasonably follow after earlier stories and character arcs). In Star Wars, the politics matter where they create the need to make moral choices. And in the Star Wars universe the compelling moral choices are both those of "normal people" like Han who represent "normal people" getting caught up in larger events and those of "powerful people" with the power generally symbolized by their Force sensitivity. Using historical parallels provides an excellent "shorthand" for things setting up the political background in cinema where your time with the audience is limited to only two, maybe three, hours per story. In the original trilogy, the historical parallels are pretty clear and straightforward; they quickly create a simple political structure that serves as an excellent framework for telling a character-driven story. But in the prequels, Lucas himself was not fully clear on whether he was telling the story of the tragic fall Anakin Skywalker with the parallel political fall of the Republic creating framework and resonance for the character's story--or whether he was telling the story of the fall of the Republic with Anakin just being one of many people affected by it. To quote Red Letter Media: movies should need at least one "proto-agonist" (sic). In any event, personally, I think it's almost impossible to make a prequel trilogy that tells a satisfying story with Anakin at its center. Because the original trilogy already exists, prequels can't tell his whole story. They can only tell the part of his story that is his tragic fall. But that partial story rings false as a true tragedy because the audience knows that ultimately his full story is ultimately one of redemption. (I think in general that prequels are really, really difficult for story tellers because you are just adding to the beginning of story that already has an ending.) As for the sequels, they could have played off the post-Cold War situation, with the (restored) Republic being a hyperpower like the US faced with the reality that Luke had taught us on a personal level: sometimes you have power but you still need to learn when how to make the moral choices about when use that power (maybe the initial invasion of Afghanistan to get Bin Laden after 9/11) and when not to use that power (maybe the invasion of Iraq). The chaos of the war would provide fertile ground for interesting and exciting settings for that to play out. The sequels could go back further for earlier historic parallels that could help frame and drive moral choices. What if in one region people have started to free their droids. You might see a pre-Civil War type situation but where the Republic has to face the moral reality that in this area "they are the baddies". Make a droid like L3-37 more than comic relief. In the sequels, Abrams got to a horrible start from the perspective of telling a compelling story by creating a mere copy-and-paste soft-reboot. Johnson followed up by trying to "subvert expectations" at the wrong time--the penultimate movie of a decades long trilogy of trilogies. I can only cringe at the final one.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I agree with all of this, especially what you wrote about how historical references work as a shorthand for clarifying the morality of the universe. Dressing the Empire up as "space nazis" does so much to help the viewer understand the moral necessity of resisting the Empire. And yeah, George was behind the 8-ball writing the prequel for the simple reason that Anakin's story is "known" in some sense already. Episodes 7-9 at least had fresh ground to play on, and it's such a shame that they didn't embrace the challenge and responsibility of builing something new. Because as you point out, there WAS a lot of potential there, and plenty in our own history to draw from.

[@ddjerfi]

You are really good at what you do. Please continue :) Cheers from Croatia!

[@theartofstorytelling1]

That's great to hear, thank you. I will continue!

[@Bookspine5]

I love the rubber duck on the chess board.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Thanks, I bought it just for that shot lol.

[@Khorney]

This is good content bro. Keep up the good work please :)

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Thanks for the encouragement friend!

[@jefferysterner]

This was a fabulous well-articulated substantive summary, thank you. I would love to see more! I couldn't help but imagine a perplexed JJ watching this with a furrowed brow, cocking his head like a confused dog 😂

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I just pictured JJ's face on a pugs body, so thanks for this comment!

[@kaidorade1317]

Looks at the title: because I love democracy, I love the Republic

[@d42b]

4:04 great cut

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Lol I had to

[@matthewdunham1689]

Anakin was a prisoner of his youth. He never escaped being a slave.

[@lucidity1]

just a question, could you make a similar video on the political state of the galaxy in the Thrawn trilogy? it's set much closer in time just 5 years after Endor and deals with various imperial remnant states. I always felt this was much more interesting than what Disney gave us in its sequel trilogy. it in fact has inspired much of the world-building for the Mandalorian and Ashoka TV shows...

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll look into it and add it to my list of video topics. Thanks so much for watching!

[@ianfullinwider24]

Loving your channel! I will be watching your career with great interest.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Very kind of you to say. Gonna work hard on making cool content, and I appreciate the sub.

[@DarwinsStepChildren]

Anakin's moral? Anakin's purpose? It isn't possible to discuss Anakin's purpose in Star Wars without discussing Luke Skywalker as well. As Qui Gon insinuates in the Phantom Menace, Anakin is the one to bring balance to the force. This is Anakin's purpose in the Star Wars stories/movies. Whether one had to kill Palpatine to bring balance, or turn to the dark side and then become light again, or some combination of the two is uncertain. What is certain is that after Anakin turns back to the light side and kills Palpatine, balance has been brought to the force. Bringing balance to the force is not what most individuals believe. Most individuals, including Luke Skywalker, which is suggested in The Last Jedi, believe that bringing balance to the force means only the light side exists and there can no longer be anyone who belongs to the dark side. This is why Luke Skywalker cuts himself off from the force and essentially gives up when Ben Solo turns to the dark side. He essentially said to himself: "What is the point? I learned the force, turned my father, and because of me the Emperor is dead. If balance hasn't been brought to the force, why bother?" As Yoda stated in Revenge of the Sith: "A prophecy that misread could have been." In order to understand what was brought to balance - midichlorines have to be mentioned. George Lucas wanted midichlorines mentioned even in episode IV, but the producers thought it would be too complicated and told him to write it out of the first three episodes. I know in The Phantom Menace Obi-wan states that Anakin's midichlorines are above 10,000 or some crazy number. For the ease of explanation, I am going to say that individuals are born with a midichlorine count between 0 and 1000. Those with low midichlorine counts cannot manipulate or use the force. Those with a midichlorine count 500+ are able to use the force. Before balance has been brought to the force, individuals were born with a midichlorine count between 0 and 1000. Those that had a parent or grandparent with a high midichlorine count would also be born with a high midichlorine count. Meaning only certain, lucky if you will, individuals were born able to use the force. What bringing balance to the force did, is that it meant that anyone born AFTER balance had been brought to the force would be born with a midichlorine count of say 800. Every single individual would have the same midichlorine count, and every single individual, born after balance had been brought to the force, could manipulate and use the force. We have to ignore episode IX, suggesting that Rey is the great granddaughter of Palpatine, episode IX ruins everything in every possible way. Taking just episodes I-VIII, this tells the story of Anakin's purpose. When you realize that everyone born after Palpatine's death has the ability to use the force, this explains why Rey and Finn both have a basic ability to use a lightsaber in The Phantom Menace. In The Last Jedi, at first, Luke doesn't want to train Rey, only after he realizes that Rey's parents and family had no connection to the force and could not use the force themselves did he decide to train Rey. This is because only after realizing that Rey's family had nothing to do with the force did Luke realize the TRUE meaning of bringing balance to the force, which is that everyone born after balance has been brought can now use the force. I like to think of it as learning to read in the west. At first, only wealthy and high members of the church could read. This, in a certain way, allowed these individuals to have a certain power over those that could not read. Today, in first world countries, everyone learns to read, and reading can no longer be a power that someone can hold over another. Within the Star Wars universe, when EVERYONE is trained to use the force, the ability to use the force can no longer be a power that someone can hold over another, and this is what bringing balance to the force does and is Anakin's moral purpose within the Star Wars universe.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Wow your knowledge of the Star Wars universe is deep! I definitely agree with you that Anakin's "moral" should probably best be understood in the context of the 6 films altogether.

[@Antilles1974]

We will watch your career with great interest...

[@theartofstorytelling1]

KZbin's algorithm has the high ground - for now

[@IndepIndepWALT]

8:24 basically the thrawn trilogy

[@siwa9878]

That is such a great essay. Thank you so much. Directly related to this topic, I would suggest you to watch "Andor" and you could analyze it from the exact same angle. The depiction of the empire in Andor is the best in all of Star Wars I think. We see it as an institution, in which people live their daily lives and fight for their values, that are the empire's values. The empire in 'Andor' is not just this "great evil political construct". It would fit on this channel perfectly.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Thanks for your suggestion! I have watched Andor, and have considered making a video about it, mainly for the reasons you point out. Maybe when Season 2 comes around. I agree that the most interesting thing about Star Wars was its depiction of the Empire as not something "purely evil" governed by an all powerful evil black wizard, but as something more like the real "totalitarianism" of our world - with people who defect, betray, jockey for power, etc. That was byfar the most captivating thing about that series - the Imperial characters. It could be a good video because it shows how Star Wars can bridge the gap from myth to a different kind of storytelling.

[@siwa9878]

@@theartofstorytelling1 Thank you so much for your kind reply!

[@Jeyeyeyey]

just one problem - there are only 6 movies :^)

[@drfahrenheit4211]

I think the way that Anakin and the Republic's story is linked is how they fall from good to evil, because of fear. There was other stuff happening that led them down a dark path but finally taking those first real steps down the stair case to hell because they were afraid. The republic which had been failing for decades gives supreme power to one man because they fear the Separatists and Anakin when he fears the death of his wife turns to the same man to ask for his help and in the process writes him a blank check for however younglings that will cost. When both Anakin and the Republic get intoxicated by the power they now have, with the republic also the unity and control of the galaxy they never had before, any hope of going back down the good path dies as they become truly evil. In the end both the Republic and Anakin are destroyed and rebuilt into horrifying creations that look nothing like who they originally were, slaves to the emperor and exist in suffering.

[@NightDocs]

There’s only 6 mainline Star Wars movies though Shhhh

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Lol funny you say that. I'm thinking my next Star Wars vid will be about "who owns the canon".

[@VogtTD]

The key to making the sequels work would have been to depict the First Order instead as a terrorist insurgency, taking on the role and tactics that were used by the Rebel Alliance. Make the Imperial remnants a bunch of loosely affiliated cels. Start things off with the New Republic being attacked 9-11 style by Kamikaze pilots. The New Republic conducts a war on terror which ends up actually strengthening the remnant. Then enter Admiral Thrawn, who unites the remnants to form an ISIS like organization called The First Order.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Yes I agree, it needs that element of plausibility and realism. The First Order just didn't have a clear purpose or goal other than "evil".

[@krispalermo8133]

Few points, .. a.) Sometimes when I am engaging in current politics, and someone wants to throw Star Wars into it. Smug remark from more than a few people I meet over the years. " So if you were born in the Empire you would support it. Like if you were born and raised in N@zi Germany you be a N@zi ?" I reply to them, " I am from a traditional German military family of petty nobles. That generation was brought up in a Lutheran Prussian military school where those men were raised to get payback on the British Empire for getting in the way of German Imperialism. They were raised for war, that other guy and his party was a means to an end. b.) Nice little study of German history and protestant wars. Along with petty blood feuds between petty nobles over cattle rustling. History on Cattle and sheep/goat herd rustling is the root of a lot of ancient board disputes. Seen a YT vid on an US student went to Greece highlands to study world cultures. With the elders talking in Greek a ram is call aries or little Aries. The behavior of the god was that of ram sheep and young men. Due to me reading the language translator the US student ask are you talking about religion, sheep, or young men ? A couple of elders laughed and said at nearly the same time, " .. Is there a difference .. ?!" Further reading on Sheep/Goat cults from the bronze age which is rooted in the stone age ritual of keeping the deer/animal skull as a alter idol or a stuff wall trophy. Ever had a sibling or friend/relative bear hug you hurting your ribs and head butting your eye ? Childhood was fun, too much sugar and watching wrestling. 2.) Politics of Star Wars, .. a.) Han shot First. And no one at the bar really seem to care. Let that sink in. If Star Wars started off like a Western, then what do you/we think the government is like compared to how our own history at that given time. Expansion and manifest destiny. b.) Problem with the so many so called Star Wars fans. They don't view the expanded comics, novels, cartoons, let alone the computer games of KotOR. There is an old adages from Ben Frankly about Age and world views on religion and politics. In short maturity comes from age, life experience is not much of a kind teacher. Other point the 1990's novels are what most of us forty year olds grew up on. And those novels played with a lot of historical wars and leaders. Science fantasy setting to muse over human behavior under stress. Honestly pre 2000's comics had a reading level of an 8year old with enough action for a 15year to be entertained. Heard of the term ham and cheese corny ? Over the years I met combat veterans and they would Burst Out Laughing saying how fun it would to yell such nonsense in a gun fight just to mess your enemies heads and communication feeds trying to figure out or not if you are talking in Code. c.) Good god, Star Wars was children entertaining and a toy line with Princess Leia action figures. Follow with She-Ra the He-Man spin off and Xenna the Warrior Princess. Well art reflects life and life reflects art.

[@chriscoleman8303]

Great video, promising new channel. I would have constructed the third trilogy as a loose retelling of the days after the Fall of the Roman Empire. People live amongst the ruins of a forgotten age of hero’s. Where once there had been a technological civilization, now is an age of religion and superstition (centered around myths of the old Jedi and the Force), led by petty tyrants. Until one day, a renaissance dawns, and the old ways are rediscovered ….

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I agree the Roman Empire is the best historical event from which to draw for ideas here!

[@animationfanatic2133]

George Lucas: trade and taxation are important Whinny fans who didn't pay attention in the very first film: *screaming 😱

[@ReySkywalker2]

It’s clear time and effort went into the first 2/3rds of this video but I’m rather disappointed by the obvious lack of effort put into the final segment. It’s unclear what they’re fighting against in 9? I don’t think so.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

To be honest I debated whether I was too dismissive of Episode IX, cause I know a lot of people liked that story. I'd love to hear what your interpretation was.

[@BCWasbrough]

"Rather disappointed by the obvious lack of effort put into the final segment." describes how most of us felt about Rise of Skywalker. They had less than two years to wrap up a 40 year trilogy. It was rushed and sloppy and it shows.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

@@BCWasbrough Real talk

[@zacmccollum7144]

I dont remember how that movie ended either...and i can't be bothered to find out lmao.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I couldn't remember if Kylo dies lol

[@BCWasbrough]

Somehow... Palpatine died again.

[@TheChris403]

Episode 9 should have made Jar Jar Binks the new emperor. Jar Jar and Bran the Builder could have been co-rulers.

[@mandalorianhunter1]

Thank you for making this video, i thought about making a video on something like this and why it wasn't accepted like Star Trek's politics are. Also the Sequel trilogy is awful

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Thanks for your comment! Definitely make your video! It's fun, and there's always something interesting to add to the Star Wars conversation. PS - my next video is about Star Trek TNG

[@mandalorianhunter1]

@@theartofstorytelling1 oh I can't wait

[@4ank117]

I agree with most of the things you said except one thing. Any new star wars getting political will be a disaster. There two reasons for that. First, look at who owns Star Wars. Secondly, the average Americans ability to discuss politics is about as eloquent as my autistic nephew discussing which ninja turtle is the best with none of the charm he has.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Haha, that may be true. Maybe it's an indictment of our times that politics in filmmaking has become somewhat toxic. It's a shame, because this type of social criticism is important to a health democracy. Could this all be part of Palpatine's devious plan?

[@4ank117]

@@theartofstorytelling1 Haha, sometimes it feels that way.

[@BCWasbrough]

Except somehow Andor got made under Disney's watch. Not only is it well liked, but the most overtly political of all the Star Wars films and TV shows. I do agree that it's the exception, and not a good example of Disney's view of the IP.

[@4ank117]

@@BCWasbroughThat's fair. I never watched it but might check it out at some point. I think the only Disney star wars media I actually enjoyed was the first couple of episodes of the book of Bobba and Rogue one and I guess you could say they were vaguely political.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

@@BCWasbrough I liked Andor, especially the last 4 episodes. I wondered the same thing: how did this show get made? I guess it shows that Disney has the CAPABILITY of putting the franchise in good hands. Or maybe they just took more time with it, unlike how they rushed the sequel films. Either way, I love how Andor handled the politics, and I might make a separate video about it - maybe once we've seen season 2.

[@miniaturejayhawk8702]

Mid ranking officer? Moff jerjeron was just below tarkins rank. The problem is that by the third movie george lucas stopped caring about giving the imperials proper rank signs. These only returned with rogue one.

[@TheKeyser94]

You are in the wrong crow if you say that the Prequels are "deeply flawed", it seems that you can take the Original Star Wars fan out of the OT, but you cant take the OT from the Original Star Wars fans, they always would have this narrow tunnel vision when it comes to their precious Original movies, when it in reality it have the same stiff dialogue, and hell, the plot is way more overly simplistic, the only thing of value on the Originals is the backstory, because you are basically cheering to the Vietcong when you cheer to the Rebel Alliance, meanwhile the Empire is basically the U. S.

[@fixipszikon6670]

People keep calling the Disney trilogy Sequel. That is wrong. "Sequel : It continues the story, or expands upon some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same fictional universe as an earlier work, usually chronologically following the events of that work." The Disney trilogy can not be placed in the same universe as the 6 Lucas films, because of serious in-universe contradictions. So according to this definition, it is not a sequel. And since it is clearly a copy, the proper label is Remake, that has been placed in an alternate universe.

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Interesting argument! I'm really interested in the idea of Star Wars canon, and who "owns" it. If a majority of fans reject Disney's treatment of the story, could they break off and form their own canonical universe? And is the legitimacy of canon necessarily determined by who owns the publishing rights? Could be a whole separate video about that question alone.

[@fixipszikon6670]

@@theartofstorytelling1 Yes, the Star Wars Canon misery deserves an analysis video. Legally Star Wars is owned by Disney, therefore they can do and say whatever they want to be Canon. Which would have been great, but the problem is, that they screwed it up from the beginning. They had a chance to create a coherent and consistent universe, but instead they deleted nearly everything for the sole reason to have a clean slate to work with, and make more money. Disney Canon is just a tool by Disney to control what people should think and accept. It only suits Disney co. and not the fans. If Disney would have wanted to serve the fans, they would have only eliminated those EU material that is bad, and are inconsistent with the 6 movies. Clearly Disney never had the goal to serve the fans, and create something great. And that is unacceptable for a big part of the fanbase. To be honest, Canon was screwed up long before Disney, that's why there was different level of canon, with Lucas canon on the top that only contains the 6 movies. Even The clone wars was not included. “There are two worlds here. There’s my world, which is the movies, and there’s this other world that has been created, which I say is the parallel universe. The licensing world of the books, games and comic books.” - George Lucas "I don't read that stuff. I haven't read any of the novels. I don't know anything about that world. That's a different world than my world. But I do try to keep it consistent. ..." - George Lucas Well, the novelizations of the movies should be canon, but they also contain things that are absolute nonsense. For example, the novelization of the Return of the Jedi claims that Owen Lars is Obi-wan's brother. But it is a small piece of information that people can disregard, because it is not in any movie. Problem with Disney, that the made content for cinema and tv, that contains a lot of crap. And they want to get away with it by declaring it Canon, that many just accept, because that is what sheeple do. Disney fanboys use the word Canon like some magic word, that suddenly makes all the nonsense things acceptable, and they can not see logic and reason anymore, because Mickey Mouse told them what to accept. But a big part of the Star Wars fanbase is not sheeple. So they created Personal Head Canon. Everyone can have whatever they want or feel appropriate in theirs. Sheeple can have everything, and OT purists can have only IV-VI. My Head Canon is everything, that does not contradict the universe that Lucas created in any way. Therefore the Disney Wars trilogy is not in my Head Canon. Rogue One has a really small inconsistency contradiction, that can be ignored, and the tv show Andor is so far so good. From Disney these are that I did included in mine. Which proves that Im not a Disney hater. And there is more, but this is already too long for a youtube comment.

[@thesmilyguyguy9799]

:ID

[@CharlietheWarlock]

All hail the empire and the sith

[@Sgt-Wolf]

No.

[@CharlietheWarlock]

@@Sgt-Wolf yes

[@theartofstorytelling1]

Interesting take!

[@Sgt-Wolf]

@@CharlietheWarlock I refuse

[@BCWasbrough]

Someone once described Star Wars as "A modern morality tale for toddlers." It always baffled me when people failed that test as hard as they could.

[@kristinaF54]

The OG trilogy, Rogue One and Andor are the best to watch for discerning adult viewers. So many people were stoked about Acolyte film being a "Sith movie" going into their religion, history and customs, and then the trailers dropped and it looks like it's about a "wayward Jedi" instead of about the Sith. Disney has got to be the worst studio. They seem to only cater to mentally-challenged children. I wonder what complete and utter madness possessed George Lucas to sell his franchise to them?

[@jstock2317]

you didn't say anything about the politics in the prequels... that's where it all was. the Senate, the emergency powers...

[@theartofstorytelling1]

I had a section in the script about how Queen Amidala representing Naboo in the senate was undemocratic because she's an unelected queen, but during my research it turned out that Palpatine says she's "recently elected", so I scrapped that section. Maybe I should have replaced it with something else to cover more of the senate stuff.

[@jstock2317]

yeah true it's a democratic queen for some reason 🤷🏻 There is a queen and also a Senator who is the representative in the senate.

[@SBrundle]

The only politics that matter are the inspired-by-history politics Lucas put into the STAR WARS six films as warning. The divisive, partisan, identity-driven politics of Disney’s garbage movies do not matter, and won’t be remembered or cared about.

[@BoundyMan]

The problem with the sequels is they are unrelatable because they are trying to shove the Woke agenda down our throat. The Original Trilogy and the Prequals on the other hand were helping us explore both the good and bad things in this world.