Tag: clone wars

When George Lucas decided to retire and sell Lucasfilm, everyone expected a few changes. New President, Kathleen Kennedy, faced many challenges and had to make some hard decisions. Under the oppressively huge shadow of the multimedia juggernaut known as Disney, it appeared that some of those decisions might have instead fallen into the demand rather than decision category.

Being that Disney already had well-established multimedia divisions in place, the decision to dismantle certain entities such as LucasArts seemed to be aimed at avoiding competition with oneself.  Disney’s interactive arm already develops games and software, among other things. Why have another internal company creating games? I know they’ve hired EA, but I’m sure they’ll develop some stuff internally. Something similar could be said for Lucasfilm’s animation division. The successful Clone Wars animated series was abruptly canceled which upset many fans and left some story arcs incomplete. Almost a whole season sits in limbo, waiting to find its way to fans. Will Disney buy and air the final episodes? Probably not. Will they go straight to DVD? Possibly. We’ll see. I never really watched the show but what I did see was pretty good.

The show aired on Cartoon Network, a direct competitor to Disney’s television stations, including Disney XD which is the home to many of Disney’s shows including Spider-Man and Avengers cartoons as well as other animated and live action programs.

So why cancel the show in the first place? No one really knows for sure but it probably revolved around money somehow. Perhaps Disney didn’t want to buy the show out or just didn’t want anything to do with something touched by the Time Warner-owned Cartoon Network.

In any case, we’re getting something else now: Star Wars Rebels.

Many a fan, including myself have wondered when Lucasfilm would venture into this nearly untouched period of time before Episode IV concerning the “Jedi Purge,” in fanboy speak. I didn’t think we’d get it in animated form but just because one medium is involved, doesn’t mean others won’t follow. Once new characters and scenarios are established, endless books, comics, and perhaps even films will be sure to follow.

Here’s an excerpt from the Starwars.com press release:

Production has begun on Star Wars Rebels, an exciting, all-new animated television series based on one of the greatest entertainment franchises of all time. Scheduled to premiere in fall 2014 as a one-hour special telecast on Disney Channel, it will be followed by a series on Disney XD channels around the world.

The action-filled series is set between the events of Episode III and IV — an era spanning almost two decades never-before explored on-screen. Star Wars Rebels takes place in a time where the Empire is securing its grip on the galaxy and hunting down the last of the Jedi Knights as a fledgling rebellion against the Empire is taking shape. Details about the show are a closely guarded secret at this point.

Source: Starwars.com