59 min
197. The Path of the Jedi: A Discussion about the Jedi Order The Secret Origins of Mint Condition
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- Hobbies
Show notes provided by Jack Adrien
Nearly forty-seven years ago and premiering in only forty-three theaters across the United States, George Lucas introduced the world to his epic space opera, Star Wars. And while the movie opened on Wednesday, May 25, 1977, Memorial Day weekend, the movie’s catchphrase has thenceforth marked May 4 as National Star Wars Day.
Inspired by the Buck Rogers science fiction comic strip and 12-part film serial from his youth, Lucas created his own enduring science fiction touchstones such as droids, the X-wing Starfighter, TIE Fighter, Millennium Falcon, and the Death Star. And while one should expect such futuristic technological wonders in a film of the genre, Lucas also found inspiration in Akira Kurosawa's samurai films, which led to the iconic lightsaber battles. In his review of the film, famed film critic Roger Ebert wrote "[t[he hardware is from Flash Gordon out of 2001, the chivalry is from Robin Hood, the heroes are from Westerns, and the villains are a cross between Nazis and sorcerers."
Beyond its groundbreaking special effects, Star Wars birthed the world’s first tentpole intellectual property empire. Part of what made the first film, Star Wars, later renamed Star Wars: A New Hope, unique was the concept of “the Force” within Lucas’s worldbuilding. The movie deconstructs the classic notions of good v. evil and instead establishes opposing ideological perspectives tapping into or manipulating a metaphysical and ubiquitous power as either the light side (i.e., Jedi) or the dark side (i.e., Sith, said onscreen in the first movie of the second trilogy, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, released almost 22 years to the day of Star Wars: A New Hope’s release date).
But the first trilogy left us fans with so many unanswered questions. Most notably, the three movies featured only five space wizards (i.e., three Jedi and two Sith) across the three-film, six and a quarter hour total runtime. In Star Wars: A New Hope, Princess Leia and Obi-Wan Kenobi referenced the Clone Wars, giving us a peek into Lucas's fully realized, lived-in universe. We fans wanted more. And between movies and trilogies, Star Wars Legends (formerly known as the Expanded Universe) filled that void with licensed and official background stories through books, comic books, video games, spin-off films, television series, toys, and other media.
Join the Mint Condition crew as we share what the first Star Wars film meant to us when it was released, what the franchise has meant for the near past half century, and where we hope it will take us in the years ahead. And as always, we say to you and yours, “May the Force be with you.”
Show notes provided by Jack Adrien
Nearly forty-seven years ago and premiering in only forty-three theaters across the United States, George Lucas introduced the world to his epic space opera, Star Wars. And while the movie opened on Wednesday, May 25, 1977, Memorial Day weekend, the movie’s catchphrase has thenceforth marked May 4 as National Star Wars Day.
Inspired by the Buck Rogers science fiction comic strip and 12-part film serial from his youth, Lucas created his own enduring science fiction touchstones such as droids, the X-wing Starfighter, TIE Fighter, Millennium Falcon, and the Death Star. And while one should expect such futuristic technological wonders in a film of the genre, Lucas also found inspiration in Akira Kurosawa's samurai films, which led to the iconic lightsaber battles. In his review of the film, famed film critic Roger Ebert wrote "[t[he hardware is from Flash Gordon out of 2001, the chivalry is from Robin Hood, the heroes are from Westerns, and the villains are a cross between Nazis and sorcerers."
Beyond its groundbreaking special effects, Star Wars birthed the world’s first tentpole intellectual property empire. Part of what made the first film, Star Wars, later renamed Star Wars: A New Hope, unique was the concept of “the Force” within Lucas’s worldbuilding. The movie deconstructs the classic notions of good v. evil and instead establishes opposing ideological perspectives tapping into or manipulating a metaphysical and ubiquitous power as either the light side (i.e., Jedi) or the dark side (i.e., Sith, said onscreen in the first movie of the second trilogy, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, released almost 22 years to the day of Star Wars: A New Hope’s release date).
But the first trilogy left us fans with so many unanswered questions. Most notably, the three movies featured only five space wizards (i.e., three Jedi and two Sith) across the three-film, six and a quarter hour total runtime. In Star Wars: A New Hope, Princess Leia and Obi-Wan Kenobi referenced the Clone Wars, giving us a peek into Lucas's fully realized, lived-in universe. We fans wanted more. And between movies and trilogies, Star Wars Legends (formerly known as the Expanded Universe) filled that void with licensed and official background stories through books, comic books, video games, spin-off films, television series, toys, and other media.
Join the Mint Condition crew as we share what the first Star Wars film meant to us when it was released, what the franchise has meant for the near past half century, and where we hope it will take us in the years ahead. And as always, we say to you and yours, “May the Force be with you.”
59 min