Star Wars Standalone Films

So along with the announcement of a new trilogy, when Disney bought Lucasfilms they said that they would also be making Star Wars standalone films. Films not apart of the new trilogy. Now they said something about having a Star Wars film each year... yeah we'll see about that, they said that about the Pirates movies and look how that turned out.

So this made me start thinking about what kind of standalone films I would like to see. As far as I know, there hasn't been any confirmations as to what they are absolutely going to do for standalone films. There have been rumors and speculation but as far as I know, nothing has been confirmed. The main rumors focus on origin stories. Such as the origin stories of characters like Boba Fett, Han Solo, and Yoda.

Now personally, I don't really need origin stories, especially for these three characters.

The main problem I have with these three characters is the fact that I'm not sure giving an origin story will enhance these characters. Sure they will complete their stories but will it enhance them?

Lets begin with Yoda

Yoda is a cool character because of how much is not known about him. He's a species that isn't as well known. He's this wise Jedi with such immense power and yet we don't really know that much about him.

Sure getting his origins will complete his story but will it really enhance it? Will it enhance the story that they're building with the new trilogy? Unless Yoda's ghost is an intricate part of the new trilogy we don't need to elaborate more on him. We don't need to enhance his story anymore.

Furthermore, a part of Yoda's charm is how much we don't know about him. Instead of being a really deep character, Yoda is instead a simple character of wisdom. He's the epitome of the light side and by being a character filled by mystery, he almost becomes a more complex character. So as far as standalone films go, I think a Yoda film is the one I want to see the least. I think it is definitely not needed and would be a sad attempt to rationalize a symbol of complete good in the Star Wars Universe.

But what about Han Solo? What about Boba Fett? There's an interesting story there? Right? What was Han doing before A New Hope? What was Boba Fett doing before The Star Wars Christmas Special? (Yeah that was the first appearance of Boba Fett)

But again, I will ask the question. How will it enhance their story?

Take Han Solo for example. Ask yourself the question, Why do I need to watch a Han Solo origin film? To see him meet Chewbacca? To see him do the Kessel Run in under 5 Parsecs? Okay, but how do those contribute to Han as a character?

We already know Han and Chewie are great friends. If you want to just show the way they met, fit it in a flashback or explain that in one of the new movies. And the Kessel Run was just a great way to show Han is a cocky smuggler. Bragging about it does a lot more to show Han Solo's character rather than showing it.

Also, staying on Han Solo, who is going to play him? Harrison Ford was in his 30s when he played the role. That makes Han Solo in his late twenties, early thirties, give or take. I don't think anybody wants a teenage Han Solo. And you could bring in another actor to play Han Solo but in the end, its Han Solo. Nobody can play the part better than him. So unless the origin story is absolutely vital to the story of Han Solo, I don't see them casting someone to play a "young" Han Solo.

And that would be the absolute exception would be if the origin story was absolutely necessary for the story telling of the new trilogy.

An example I could see is perhaps a character appears in the new trilogy from Han's past. Someone absolutely vital to the new trilogy story. Its been rumored that Han Solo is going to have a bigger role, perhaps someone from his past creates conflict in the new trilogy. In that case, an origin story would be called for because it would serve a larger purpose and it would mean something. It would enhance not only Han's personal character but the trilogy story, instead of just completing the gaps in Han's story.

And that goes the same for Boba Fett.

I really hope Boba Fett shows up in the new movies as a more important character. However, Fett has been built up as just the epitome of awesomeness. Similarly to Yoda, I love how Boba Fett is shrouded in mystery. His armor, his silent demeanor just exuded badassery.

I would love to see Boba Fett come back with a vengeance. But I think that can be done without an origin story.

However, I do know there is a story there worth telling, especially if they bring him back in the new films.

Boba Fett, I think, is in a position to have a meaningful backstory and one that contributes to the Star Wars galaxy as a whole, but again, it has to be more than just completing the story of Boba Fett. It has to enhance his story and make his presence in this world worth while.

If its just a movie in order to complete the gaps in his personal story, what's the point?

Here's the best example I can think of. Having a simple story just completing the backstory of characters like Han Solo and Boba Fett is like giving an origin story of Luke Skywalker before A New Hope. I mean there's a story there, Luke going to Toshi Station to pick up some power converters? I mean c'mon, that sounds like an awesome movie right?

My point is, just because there are gaps in the story doesn't mean they necessarily need to be filled. If doing an origin story doesn't contribute to Boba Fett as a character or a larger story, I would say there are other things those standalone films can be going towards.

For an example of how this could be done very poorly is the prequel trilogy.

In a New Hope, Ben Kenobi explains the story of Anakin Skywalker who was seduced by the dark side of the force. He fought in the Clone Wars, was a great pilot, and hunted down the Jedi of the Old Republic when he became Darth Vader.

That sounds like a great premise for a prequel film or in this day and age, a standalone film apart from the trilogy.

The problem came in the execution. Many of the problems with the prequel trilogy was it was telling a lot instead of showing. It told us Anakin and Obi-Wan were good friends but it never really showed us. It telegraphed that Anakin was turning evil but the result was...

Well... this...

Now this is not to say the prequels shouldn't have happened. Not at all. Like I've said before, I still love the prequel films just as much as the original trilogy. Do I know they're bad, of course I do. But if I knew how they were going to turn out, I think I'm not alone in saying I would have rather stuck with Ben Kenobi's speech on Tatooine. 

But the purpose of the prequel, however horribly executed, was to flush out the reasons why Anakin fell to dark side. In a larger scale, the contrasts to Luke's journey and his adventures as a Jedi were formed by the adventures and journey of Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi. 

How is showing Han Solo make the Kessel Run in 5 Parsecs or meeting Chewbacca tell us anything about the character that we don't already know?

If I could dictate which standalone films I would want to see, I would choose something like an Adam Driver standalone film. 

Let me explain. We still don't know who Adam Driver is going to play in the movies. There have been rumors that he is going to be the villain of the film "Similar to a Darth Vader character". Well in the case that that is true, and Driver is bad from the very beginning, give us some indication of his backstory, enough to let people get through movies on their own but also enough to get the curiosity of the audience going so they would like to see how he fell. This would add to the development of the character so when we see him again in a trilogy movie, we like him more. It also adds to the development of the story within the trilogy. 

If you're going to do a Boba Fett movie, have it be how he got out of the Sarlac pit, what he's been doing for 30 years up until the 7th movie. 

Don't just fill the gaps, enhance the story. 

A great example of how not to do an origin story is X-Men: Origins Wolverine. 

There are A LOT of things wrong with this movie. But one of the main things, I think, is its impact. 

Why did I need to see this movie? Yeah sure I got to know how Logan got the name Wolverine, sure I got to know how he got his claws, sure I got to know how he lost his memory, but in the grand scheme of things, what difference does it make?

The movie wasn't good because there was no suspense. Wolverine had to survive, he had to come out with the claws and he had to come out of it with memory loss. One of the reasons X-Men Wolverine didn't work was because it didn't develop Logan as a character. It was just a lot of action with underdeveloped characters we don't need to care about. 

That's why X-Men 1 was good because it showed how Wolverine joined the X-Men. Wolverine filled gaps while X-Men filled gaps but enhanced the characters. 

Coming back to Star Wars, the important thing with any standalone movie they do is how it will connect and enhance the overall universe.

The only exception to this might be something like Knights of the Old Republic. Elements of the Star Wars galaxy that can stand on its own two feet. 

Part of the reason the story KOTOR was so good was because it was an original story in the Star Wars universe. It created its own gaps to fill and enhance as it went along. 

I'd still like to see some connection to the new trilogy but this would be a case where that wouldn't be totally necessary because its strong enough material to stand on its own. Its got to create something worth watching and produce something I can care about. 

Its not enough to just scotch tape a story together and put it in a familiar universe. There needs to be thought put into it and it needs to be done well. Hopefully Disney has learned from Pirates of the Carribean and when they say they'll be producing a Star Wars movie each year, they'll be creating quality material instead of something to sell merchandise or create new action figures. 

So there's my rant on the Star Wars standalone films. I want comprehensive stories that connect to the greater universe and mean something as opposed to just filling gaps for fan service. 

But what do you think? What Standalone films do you want to see in the future in the Star Wars Universe? Comment below and let me know!

I'll leave you with this. as skeptical as I am about a Boba Fett movie, the guy is freaking awesome. There was definitely a story behind him going into the Sarlac Pit so easily. Enjoy!