Several years ago (8 actually) I wrote a post titled “Too Much Star Wars?“. In 2015 the sequel trilogy was just starting and we just heard about Rogue One. The only series that were available to watch were all animated (The Clone Wars and Rebels). I’ve discussed this topic before, and I predicted that Disney would inundate us with more Star Wars. Now there are several series planned and a rumored announcement of a new movie. So let’s ask the question again, is this too much Star Wars?
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Disney has given us a Star Wars Day gift, the second (and final) Obi-Wan Kenobi trailer!! The Internet and TikTok will be broken today, just so you know.
Without further ado, here is the newest trailer!
We have all been waiting so long for this moment and it’s finally here. This is the legit Obi-Wan Kenobi trailer for this series. I was watching the Disney Investor Day event live when this premiered! I literally jumped out of my chair!!
Enough talky, more watchy!
The series will be directed by Deborah Chow (who also directed a few episodes in The Mandalorian). The score for the series (if you hadn’t heard) is the legendary John Williams.
We all know that Hayden Christensen is back as Vader/Anakin but I also predict we will see Qui-Gon Jinn. Yoda did tell Obi-Wan (in Revenge of the Sith) that he will teach him how to commune with him through the Force. I have not found any official confirmation if this is going to happen and/or if Liam Neeson will reprise the role.
The Obi-Wan Kenobi limited series premieres May 25th on Disney+. You can bet I will be writing weekly posts about each episode as I’ve done for The Book of Boba Fett and The Mandalorian.
/MTFBWY
Obviously there wasn’t a new episode last week. The season is only seven episodes, but I hope there will be more. Be that as it may, how about some Book of Boba Fett final thoughts about season 1.
Just a quick caveat, I am going to assume if you’re reading this post then you have seen all seven episodes. This is the one, and only, spoiler warning. Stop now if you are behind or haven’t watched the series yet.
My Thoughts Overall
If you’ve read each of my episodic write ups then you should know by now that I did enjoy the series. The first episode is a little slow but things did ramp up quickly. It didn’t have quite the draw The Mandalorian had but there isn’t that “baby yoda” appeal. I feel like Disney expected that.
There are people that said to me the show is “confusing” or they “didn’t get it”. I can understand that. This series seems tailored more toward a narrower fan base. There are subtle references to all the movies, in all the trilogies. If you’re not quite as obsessed astute as me, then I’m sure you missed those minor details.
I do feel like The Mandalorian was featured too much during the second half of the season. It took away from the focus of the series and, essentially, turned the series into “The Mandalorian Season 2.5”. I’m also not a fan of the “hover moped gang”; it was a waste of Sophie Thatcher. In fact I could have done with less of the “mod squad” and more of Black Krrsantan.
The TLJ Connection
I was never under the illusion that the Disney+ Star Wars series were going to “rewrite the sequel trilogy”. I love the sequel trilogy and I never want any of it besmirched by such an audacious act. It’s mildly amusing that there is a naïve group of people that were convinced Filoni and Favreau were planning to retcon Rey and Kylo. The butthurt and bullying that ensued after starwars.com officially linked Chapter 6 to The Last Jedi is embarrassing.
I really hope we see more of Black Krrsantan, although it will probably be an earlier version of him in the Kenobi series. If you’ve read any of the comics then you’re aware they do have a past. I LOVE the revamped N-1 Naboo Starfighter; it possibly foreshadows that Din Djarin might be leaving his bounty hunting life.
Also, I wouldn’t be surprised if this isn’t the last we see of Cad Bane. Some astute fans are pointing out, Cad Bane may still be alive. There are indicators on a panel on his chest. After Boba Fett kills him, one of them starts blinking. This could be some kind of defibrillator or emergency triage device, perhaps even a beacon. Cad Bane wasn’t always a lone wolf.
If he is dead, it’s like Ben Solo’s death, a little bittersweet but their death ends a chapter to allow the beginning of new adventures. I’m glad he went down squaring off with Boba Fett. I can’t think of a better death for this character.
I think another season is entirely plausible. Boba only eliminated the Pyke Syndicate presence on Tatooine, not the entire Pyke Syndicate. They could even use the flashback angle to go as far back as Empire Strikes Back to tell more of Boba’s past.
In the meantime, while we hypothesize The Book of Boba Fett’s future, we wait for the Kenobi series; which premieres May 25th on Disney+.
/MTFBWY
Mulan 
Directed By: Niki Caro
Starring: Liu Yifei, Donnie Yen, Jet Li
My Rating: [rating=4]
I know this movie came out over a year ago and it was not popular among Disney fans. They are complaining that it’s a terrible animated-to-live-action adaptation. I should know better than to listen to “fans”. These days the only thing “fans” do is complain (I’m looking at you alleged “Star Wars fans”). It wasn’t until my wife watched this movie on Disney+ that I finally saw it.
Unpopular opinion, I disagree with all the Disney princess fans. This is the Mulan movie we should have gotten back in 1998. Don’t get me wrong, I love Ming-Na Wen’s Mulan (who makes a cameo at the end), but it’s just another Disney princess love story.
It’s About Culture (and Kicking Ass)
A key indicator as to whether I really like a film is if I’m looking up the trivia on IMDB to learn more. I did this for this movie. It wasn’t a surprise to read that it was a conscious choice to stay “true to Chinese culture and traditions”. This is why Mushu is missing, which fans also hated. He is essentially replaced with the phoenix, a significant symbol in Chinese culture. Also, the phoenix happens to be one of my favorite mythical creatures. Martial arts is also a staple of Chinese culture and this is a Disney princess martial arts film.
Ask anyone that knows me well and they will tell you that I’m a sucker for a martial arts film. It’s exciting to see Jet Li back in a “martial arts” film although I think he’s retired from martial arts. This is probably why we don’t see him perform much in the film. However Donnie Yen and Liu Yifei make up for that. In fact Liu Yifei is a trained sword fighter. It turns out she is in a movie called The Forbidden Kingdom where she “held her own” against Jet Li and Jackie Chan.
Listen. If you want to see a live-action version of the 1998 film, then keep waiting. This movie is not it. However if you want to see Mulan kick ass as a sword fighter and martial artist, then you need to check out this movie.
As crazy as it sounds, we went to Disney World last month. I know, COVID!! When we bought the tickets and made all the reservations things were improving. We thought the only thing we would have to worry about were hurricanes. It’s amazing how much can change in three months but cancelling would mean we were out quite a chunk of change. So we bought masks and stocked up on hand sanitizer and we made plans on how we can be safe. I’m sure some folks are curious about our trip to Disney and Galaxy’s Edge so that’s what I’m here to talk about.
But, but COVID!!
Yes, the cases of covid and delta variant are rising and Florida, apparently, is one of the bad states. All but one of us were vaccinated; Bee isn’t eligible yet so we made sure she wore a mask most frequently. We have masks that breath well in the heat and I’ll be honest, it really wasn’t that bad. It only really sucked for pictures but if my 7 year old can do it without complaining, then so can I. Strange that a child complains less than most adults about masks.
Disney does enforce that masks are worn while indoors, in line and on all attractions. We wore our masks the majority of the time in the parks, even outdoors in the open air. In fact the only time we ever took them off is if we weren’t around a lot of people, or eating. Magic Kingdom seems to have the largest crowd. It’s the most difficult park to find sufficient open space to take the mask off, even for just a minute.
We are now beyond two weeks since we visited the last park and nobody is sick. I guess our precautions paid off.
Which Parks Did We Visit?
We planned for 5 days at the parks. However, our budget and scheduling only allowed for us to visit 4 parks. Epcot was our first park and our primary objective there was the World Showcase. We thought it would be fun to try different foods from each of the countries represented. About a third of the way through it occurred to me, I should be drying beer at each world, provided beer was available. A choice I should have made much sooner (and one I think I will do again).
We spent two days at the Magic Kingdom. It’s the bigger park and the one our daughter would enjoy the most. We splurged and did the “Be Our Guest” lunch in Belle’s castle. The food is pretty damn good and the atmosphere is great (despite the covid restrictions).
This was also my first time visiting Animal Kingdom. I’ll admit, I’m not terribly impressed. The Pandora section of the park is about the only thing worth visiting. We went on both rides which were OK. I’m not sure why the line for “Flight of the Avatar” is so long. I feel like this ride would be better as an actual rollercoaster. As it is, it’s essentially Soarin 2.0.
We didn’t go to Universal Studios this time, but we did go to Hollywood Studios; home of Galaxy’s Edge! More on that in Part 2.