Cultural Vandalism | The Ruin of Star Wars and Doctor Who

As I pointed out in my Is It Ethical to Recontextualize Star Trek Canon?, this is a dangerous road we are going down here.

IT IS UNETHICAL, there are proper moments for retcons, but doing so in the service of a political agenda is evil and dangerous.

There's no reason whatsoever to remove William Hartnell as the First Doctor. NONE beyond doing so in a "What if..." none canon violating dream experiment ratings grab. 

I said it before, and I will say it here. This is Stalinist in its bold revisionism of the past and should be soundly rejected by all true Geeks across all fandoms wherever it comes about.

Be it in Doctor Who, Star Trek, or Star Wars, and ever other place in-between.

When I say this. I want you to keep something in mind. I write almost exclusively female protagonists. But they are protagonists in their own right do not exist to rip down the history of male figures. Oh they are also usually (very) flawed. However, we won't talk about the profusion of Mary Sues just now.

For me this is about the preservation of history, as it existed. Spock never had an adopted sister but he does have a half-brother, yes even Gene Roddenberry was wrong to try to paper over Sybok and George Lucas was wrong to stop Han from shooting first. 

Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003 TV series: Genndy Tartakovsky)

Why isn't this canon anymore?

Genndy Tartakovsky's Star Wars: Clone Wars series from 2003 is very good, and deserves more respect. It along with the rest of the original Expanded Universe is a victim of the Disney canon Purge.


I actually do have some notion as to why Disney purged this from the canon, none of it has to do with its quality, which is very good. Unlike the CGI Clone Wars series, Disney was not able to insert itself in real-time into retconning canon.

Don't get me wrong, I like The Clone Wars TV series, it after all gave us Ahsoka Tano, but its also turned out to be the first place Disney began rewriting canon, and if you knew about the EU you can easily notice those moments where this took place. Mostly regarding matters of the Sith.

The other reason I feel Disney axed this was. Season 2 directly had George Lucas's blessing and encouragement and it leads more or less smoothly into Revenge of the Sith. Its a literal adaption of Episode III's open crawl and I don't think Disney wanted anyone messing in their sandbox.

Only Disney can screw up, canon! Trust me, they're not done doing so if rumors surrounding The Rise of Skywalker tell us anything.

Easier to tinker with the CGI Clone Wars as it was ongoing when they bought Lucasfilms.

If you have not seen Genndy Tartakovsky's Clone Wars cartoon - Do yourself a favor and find it!

Our Broken Science Fiction Establishment

Formally titled: More on Sci-fi Fandom.

I began this point in my post: Boobs and Dragons: My Disenchantment With Modern Sci-Fi, and feel I need to expand it.


First. Yes every once in awhile I stumble upon a gem in modern Sci-Fi fandom, and genre which does not present itself as if it exists with the singular purpose of telling me how awful I am for being a White heterosexual Male. Or overtly seeks to stomp on things which I used to love. It happens, not too often, but sometimes.

Like I said, I rather enjoyed Jupiter Ascending and I am fairly sure, The Wachowskis meant for it to be some radical take, with a Leftward slant. But the actual movie, does not play out like that.

Frak! I even enjoy Rogue One, its superior in every way to The Last Jedi and more respectful of its source material.

But my big issue and disenchantment with the genre and professionally produced material is its primary goal now seems to have an SJW agenda, and entertain by accident, if at all. Being 'Woke' now seems to be the Science Fiction genre's first function.

Lets talk about the Aftermath books for a second. They are bad, because Chuck Wendig chose to write them in a bizarre style, and unlike any Star Wars fiction ever written before. Its odd use of tense, is off putting and distracting.  That there are LGBT people in them is besides the point - Wendig's artsy style actually hurts, and does no service to the "Progressive" point he thinks he's making.

Look Dude, (Chuck) I sat and enjoyed four seasons of Battlestar Galactica, which had openly homosexual characters in it, this didn't bug me in the slightest. Ronald D. Moore handled this topic in a far more professional and mature manner than you and Disney appear able to do. This is not why your Aftermath books suck. The writing style is painful to read. Oh, and thanks to the clusterfrak which was The Last Jedi, are basically meaningless filler.

About those Hugo Awards - Or more to the point, Tor Books which as far as I tell is a prime epicenter of the SJW infection which pervades the Science Fiction genre. During the first Sad Puppies uprising I got my first glimpse into the sordid underbelly and levers of power which control Science Fiction fandom. What I discovered when reading many of these executives and their stable of approved authors and talent on social media and in the context of The Hugo Awards was, they hated me. Many, including public figures which I once viewed as iconic, HATED ME, simply for the sin of not thinking in their approved manner.

Why would I want anything to do with people, who clearly despise me?

Its not like things have improved since that first clash at The Hugo Awards, the entrenched power structure, rewrote the rules as a means to marginalize an insurgency within its ranks. I stopped paying attention to that battle after the second Sad Puppies and reached the conclusion, its just better The Hugo Awards die since its clear they now exist only to push the Social Justice Warrior agenda. Typically a Hugo call out on a book WARNS me away from it.

The infection is only getting worse. Disney Star Wars, was a bellwether, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe is soon to follow. Considering Marvel Comics is already so 'Woke' I'm shocked its taken this long.

We're not going to even bother talking about the state of modern Star Trek... I'm afraid its demise was sown, at least since the inception of The Next Generation, where Gene Roddenberry decided to go Radical Utopian.

Boobs and Dragons: My Disenchantment With Modern Sci-Fi

My friend wonders, and constantly asks, why I show no enthusiasm of TV series like Game of Thrones. On paper, I should be. My own fiction, is literally filled with boobs, babes, and guns.

Yet I'm not, and it hes less to do with the series, which yes looks awesome, and I will say I did watch at least two full seasons. But over time, my energy to go out and find it, ebbed greatly. All because, George R. R. Martin clearly demonstrated during the Sad Puppies Hugo Awards blowup, that he really wanted nothing to do with anyone who does not share his political views.


George R. R. Martin, writer of blood, gore, boobs, dragons, and rape proved himself to be a complete Social Justice warrior.

No thanks! I'm not going to reward that.

Of course, over the course of Game of Thrones, series run, the SJW infection has invaded almost all Science Fiction, and entertainment, in general.Now nearly every professional product, be it original material - Or adaptions, and updates of classic franchises have become SJW platforms.

I'd rather watch reruns, and reread books I already own. Modern creators, those in control of the Entertainment Industry, and Sci-Fi in particular have made it clear they aren't making their product for me.

Will this change in the future? Who knows.

A Revitalized Republic and Jedi Order

The Star Wars Prequels were about the Republic and Jedi Order's downfall, The Original Trilogy, the middle part of the story was about reclaiming what had been lost...

The Sequel Trilogy should have been about a revitalized Republic, and Jedi Order facing a new threat, or even the vestiges of Palpatine's Empire, but in that case the Empire should have been the insurgents, not "Resistance" as there would be no such thing since the Republic would be functional and not destroyed in one fell swoop... Instead we got Sequels Showing us, our original heroes, actions were all in vain. They were depicted as failures, and cowards.

Here's how I would have broadly done the Sequels.



Opening Scroll:

The Force Awakens...
LUKE SKYWALKER, JEDI Master is missing! His sister, Chancellor of the New Republic Leia Organa Solo, has taken up the mantle of their mother Padmé Amidala, and united a once war torn galaxy in peace.
Yet darkness rises. Snoke, a darkside force-wielder has unified fragments of Palpatine's old empire and they've begun to wage war upon the New Republic with his warlord, the mysterious Kylo Ren leading Snoke's armies in an extremely effective assault...
Desperate, hoping her brother will have means to combat these two new Dark Lords, Chancellor Solo, sends her niece - Kira Skywalker, a fully trained Jedi, with Han, and Chewbacca in the Millennium  Falcon to locate Luke Skywalker, lost while seeking out a long forgotten Jedi Temple...


OK this is only a quick rough draft of the scroll, intended to give the general notion of what these three movies should have been about.

Here's what we would learn along the course of the trilogy.

Snoke is a Whills, entombed as punishment for practicing dark force use, and he has been influencing events for some time now. Including manipulating both Darth Plagueis, and Palpatine. We also learn before his entombment, Snoke was known as - Skywalker - And the Skywalker family took their name from the myths surrounding this dark Whills. It will come as little shock that Snoke, created Anakin Skywalker from afar...

We learn that Kylo Ren is really Ben Solo who was thought dead while on a Jedi Quest - But what really happened was he came across Snoke's tomb and awakened the dark entity, which seduced him to the darkside.

By the end of the first film, Luke, Han, and Leia are altogether and ready to face Snoke. Kira Skywalker has made a new friend in a Stormtrooper she helped defect from Snoke's insurgent Empire.

In this version of events, there is a fully functional, yet reformed Jedi Order, and of course the Republic is almost fine.

By the second film, Kylo Ren would be turned back to the light thanks to his cousin Kira, and uncle Luke.

And in the third film, it would be Luke, Kira, and Ben all facing off against Snoke.

We would learn Luke discovered the full history of the Whills, including the one known as The Skywalker - Snoke.

Keep in mind this is all broad strokes, but the idea here is not to reset what the Old Trilogy did, and show that our old heroes made lasting achievements.
    

Kissing Cousins [Rey and Kylo Ren: The Rise of Skywalker]

Did no one at Disney think to tell JJ Abrams, that Sheev Palpatine is Anakin Skywalker's father?

I'm totally OK with Disney making Sheev Palpatine Anakin's father - This is one of those little tidbits which actually enhanced the overall Star Wars story for me, and is far more satisfying than having an off screen, never revealed Darth Plagueis mess about with the Force to get here.

Its also the simpler explanation.

But it makes this...

All sorts of icky...
....
...

That... Looks kinda fever pitched and romantic to me. WAY more tongue than anything Anakin ever gave to Padme in the Prequels.

When you are looking at that image.

Sheev Palpatine is grandfather to both Rey, and Ben Solo.

They could have had Rey be a Palpatine without almost no problem - But they would have meant she can't be the hero of the Skywalker Saga, and oh, Reylo could not also still be a thing.

Yet clearly Disney wanted despite their OWN CANON wanted to appeal to the rabid Reylos out there.

Just wait until this fully sinks in once the movie is widely released. Trust me. It will.

And if I am to understand things. Both Luke and Leia KNEW who Rey was all along - One guesses so did Han, and by implication Ben knew as well.

"What girl?!!!!!!!!"

That line now takes on bigger implications.

EMO Kylo lusting after his cousin. On purpose.

The innocent kiss by Leia to Luke in a A New Hope is NOT the same as this.

Star Wars: The Original Trilogy [Harmy Despecialized Edition]

I used to have no problem with the Star Wars: Special Editions. After all, Star Wars was Lucas's baby, he could do with it what he pleased.

And than, Disney happened...

Given the current wreckage that is Star Wars, outside of The Mandalorian, I've lately been reconsidering "The Special Editions" and have come to regard them as no less cultural vandalism than the recontextualization that Disney itself has been attempting, and will probably complete by the end of The Rise of Skywalker.



Enter: Star Wars: The Original Trilogy [Harmy Despecialized Edition], a fan restoration of  the movies to a state close to their original theatrical presentation.

You know why I support this?

Because George Lucas, refused to provide an original unaltered print of Star Wars (A New Hope) to the Library of Congress as part of their film preservation project when asked. Sure he'd let them have a Special Edition - But not the movie as it first appeared.

Killing the past is bad when Disney does it. Its also bad when Lucas tries to paper-over it.

I'd now go as far as to say, these restored versions of the Original Trilogy are probably the best manner to experience these films.

They are easy enough to come by and can even by found at the Internet Archive. If you are a Star Wars fan do yourself a favor and find them. Keep', viral!

https://originaltrilogy.com/topic/Harmys-STAR-WARS-Despecialized-Edition-HD-V27-MKV-IS-OUT-NOW/id/12713

The Mandalorian and General Thoughts About Star Wars

I like the The Mandalorian, its not a perfect show, but so far its the best Star Wars we've gotten from Disney. I fear though, that might not last.

I also like Rogue One. It took great pains to not stomp on A New Hope, or the Original Trilogy, even going as far as to kill off its new characters to preserve canon. I can only assume at the time, Disney's Star Wars Social Justice Writers Room had not yet become brave enough to jump off that cliff when this movie was made.

The Mandalorian, would do itself a BIG favor if it avoids referencing anything from the Sequel Trilogy, AT ALL.

The problem is. This is still Disney Star Wars, and there remains a certain sort of politically charged mindset in Hollywood in general and at Lucasfilms in particular. Its only a matter of time before this all comes crashing down around us.

That is sad a prospect given the looming implosion that is going to be the The Rise of Skywalker. JJ Abrams might not have liked what Rian Johnson did in The Last Jedi, how it stomped all over The Force Awakens. Stomping on the Original Trilogy and making Luke Skywalker and Anakin;s sacrifices meaningless, does not help even it hinders. Even if you think you are doing a course correction.

Making Emperor Palpatine's granddaughter the Apex hero of the Skywalker Saga undercuts any of those supposed corrections to Rian Johnson's mess of a film.

Sure JJ Abrams, Rian Johnson stomped on your plot points and you just undid everything Lucas built in one fell swoop by crowning Rey Best Jedi EVER!

"I am all the Jedi!"

Its hard to even describe what a narrative mess this is, given it rips apart a great deal of "settled", supposedly according to Disney, untouchable Star Wars lore.

To reiterate, The Mandalorian needs to stay FAR away from this mess at all costs, or Star Wars is truly DONE as long as Disney owns it.

The Leaks Are Real [Rise of Skywalker]

Doomcock was correct, his sources are real and The Rise of Skywalker is a dumpster fire that destroys the Original Trilogy.

Rey Palpatine, steals the Skywalker name and becomes the Chosen One.

Someone by the name of ProfessorHov, posted the Opening Crawl, which is a clear clue to exactly what sort of disaster this film is and how it stomps on the Skywalker Legacy and over all of Star Wars.

Opening Crawl

EPISODE IX THE RISE OF SKYWALKER

The dead speak! The galaxy has heard a mysterious broadcast, a threat of REVENGE in the sinister voice of the late EMPEROR PALPATINE.

GENERAL LEIA ORGANA dispatches secret agents to gather intelligence, while REY, the last hope

of the Jedi, trains for battle against the diabolical FIRST ORDER.

Meanwhile, Supreme Leader KYLO REN rages in search of the phantom Emperor, determined to destroy any threat to his power....

*The original Reddit leaks look to have been more or less on target, and of course Doomcock reported how those leaks and the film kept being reshot, and edited differently following really awful test-screenings.

The Mandalorian - Pilot

I don't want to overstate this, as I think its too soon to fully judge a series based on a single episode in which not very much happened, but Disney's The Mandalorian is actually not bad. For what we've seen so far it was actually pretty good.

Before I go on. There will be SPOILERS!




The Mandalorian, himself is actually an enjoyable character, keeping in mind he's a mysterious figure we don't know all that much about at this point. This is helpful. Having a likable central character goes a long way in letting viewers get into a series.


Like I said. Not that much happened.


We learn it takes place post-Empire. There are seemingly Imperial remnants, out there as Werner Herzog's "The Client" appears to be a former Imperial of some ranking. He was after all, wearing the emblem of the Empire and being guarded by Stormtroopers.

So there's a lot of laser fire and a few gruesome moments. All of which lead to our Mandalorian buddy becoming employed by "The Client" to seek out a package. The Client pays the bounty hunter with a pressed piece of steel emblazoned with the Imperial Emblem, which seems to be of high cultural value to the Mandalor.

Our protagonist takes the job, and leaves. Returns to his tribe, where his leader, a female Mandalor forges for him from the steel an shoulder pauldron, and then the Mandalorian is off to seek out his prey.


Sidebar: Star Wars typically makes it very clear what planet we are on at any given time. This show however, does not do so, and its a hindrance to the story. Please, if you are not going to incorporate it into dialogue, at least use a chyron to inform us what the planet is named. At one point it looked like one of the planets might have been intended to be Batuu (Galaxies Edge) but its hard to be sure.


Back to the mission. Along the way, our Mandalorian meets some people, fires some more lasers and almost becomes friends with a Droid. Almost... He hates Droids.


After killing a bunch of people he discovers what, who he has been looking for. The Asset...

Adorable! A baby member of Master Yoda's species. I hope this plays into a larger aspect of Star Wars lore and we learn about Yoda's species. I get the impression they are rare, otherwise there would not be a fuss to acquire a specimen. 

What did I think of all this?

I enjoyed it. But I remain skeptical. There's still time for this to go off the rails. Thus far The Mandalorian, is enjoyable and feels more like Star Wars than most of what we have gotten out of Disney. In some ways this actually reminds me of Rogue One - A Disney Star Wars movie, that I do in fact like.

I'd say be cautiously optimistic.

One episode in, its too early to come to a real solid conclusion. I will say this is probably the Star Wars Disney should have been giving us from the beginning.

Jon Favreau, should probably be put in charge of any new Star Wars Trilogy whenever that might come about. I don't want to jump too far ahead, but it does look like he has a handle on the universe.

The Mandalorian, could end up being the Saga's only remaining hope.