“I’d just as soon kiss a wookiee.”
Star Wars? but this week is Modern Gangsters? Jabba the Hutt was one of the galaxy's most powerful gangsters!
Star Wars is a juggernaut, it's an industry in itself. Its went from a sci-fi movie based on cheesy serials of the 30s and 40s made by a then indie filmmaker to a cash cow. Film series, expanded universes, comics, video games, theme parks and not forgetting the toys. When aliens eventually visit the Earth long after we have gone they will find a hell of a lot of the 700 million action figures that were produced.
Now I'm old, and obviously love the original trilogy which ended in 1983 and that's my era. I went to the cinema in 1999 to see the Phantom menace but it no longer really connected with me and the same with the recent films released by Disney (who bought Lucas Film for $4billion in 2012). I have seen them but they just seem so much less memorable and quotable to me, most people could probably reel off a dozen quotes from the OG trilogy but would be scratching their heads when it comes to later movies.
That's fine I suspect they weren't made for me in mind and I still have the OG and can (and will) watch them whenever I like.
I guess that's part of the point of Star Wars, it went away briefly during the late 80s and early 90s but it's here to stay now and appeals to a new audience every decade. I'm sure the original films are thought to be too slow by the fans of newer material and enjoy the plethora of tv shows and cartoons that are available. It seems a bit too much overexposure to me, and do I really need to see 10 hours of streaming TV to know the back story of Ponda Baba (the fella who lost his arm in the Star Wars Cantina in Tatooine) but that's just my opinion.
The great thing about SW is that its not just the main antagonists or protagonists who make for good characters, although it does have a Vader problem. Vader is the big bad (yes I know the emperor is but is the Dark lord that steals the show) and such a great character in all the subsequent movies no one has really replaced him or filled his giant shoes.
However, despite my grumpy ramblings, Star Wars is unique. The galaxy is full of amazing background characters, the aliens all look great and the designs of spaceships are legendary (I may or may not have a Lego Millennium Falcon upstairs….)
It's full of imagination and I've sketched a fair few bits n bobs from SW and even have a Boba Fett art print available in store here!
So for those who like to celebrate Starwars day enjoy and have fun, for everyone else live long and prosper...
This week's sketch (pencilled, inked and water colour), after all it is modern gangster week........
