For those sad to see the Star Wars saga end with the release of the final movie, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, which makes it way on to DVD worldwide November 1st, you may still have some hope when it comes to all ways of the force.
For months, there has been talk buzzing on possibly bringing this story to television in the form of two television programs - one animated and one live-action series. Lucas had announced these programs back at Celebration III, but not much else had been heard about them sense.
Monday, George Lucas spoke at the annual Siggraph computer graphics conference and trade show in Los Angeles and talked about both television programs. Plans are in the works for both television shows, and George Lucas is personally involved with the projects.
The animated series would be set during the Clone Wars, and it would make Lucas’ jump into anime. Work on this animated series will be done in Lucas’ Singapore facility. The live-action series is rumored to tell the story of what takes place between Episodes III and IV, but Lucas isn't quite clear on exactly which characters will be involved. Lucas is working to make a project that would normally work on a budget of twenty to thirty million dollars work on a budget of only a million.
Star Wars fans going through withdrawals only have a year to wait for these both to arrive with the Fall 2005 season just weeks away. Look for these shows to hit television screens in 2006.
Personally, I’m excited to see these shows hit the airwaves. I first heard of them in an article printed in Entertainment Weekly just prior to the release of Episode III. It should be interesting to see how the story translates to the small screen, especially with the live-action series. The movies are so big in scope, that some of that feeling might be lost in a purely small screen project. We will have to wait and see what happens when the shows are released.
Article comments
1 - Tan The Man
I heard that the animated show (completely CGI) was just going to be a remake of the original Clone Wars animated series - that they were just redoing everything in CG.
2 - Mark Sahm
Actually, Lucas confirmed the two TV series way back in April at Celebration III.
Check it out here.
3 - Gina
Thanks for letting me know! I had thought they were only rumored up to this point.
4 - Mark Sahm
Gina: No problem. If you're really interested in seeing how the TV shows develop, you should get a Hyperspace membership, which gives you unrestricted access to Starwars.com. Usually all of the juicy news is there. My fiance had a membership until 'Sith' premiered, and it was quite expansive.
5 - Victor Lana
In my opinion the live-action series sounds most promising. What happens during Episode III and IV is something I want to see. There is much to explored here.
My question has always been, why did Vader accept the Emperor's story that Padme died so quickly? Over the years, couldn't he have felt Luke and Leia's presence in the Force? How did Obi Wan live on Tatooine all those years and never raise a blip either?
These are just some things to think about. I hope it does materialize because it's just what we need now that the movie series is complete.
6 - Bryan
Vader accepted what Palpatine told him about Padme dying because he trusted him, it's that simple. They were lifelong friends, and he believed it. Also, through the Force he probably could feel she was really dead, so the only thing he had to believe was that he killed her. The last time he saw Padme, she was slumped on the ground after he force-choked her, so it wasn't really a stretch to believe it. As for not feeling Luke and Leia in the Force, I don't think it's too hard to believe that a Force-sensitive person isn't able to sense a single being countless light-years away on a single planet, with all the Force-sensitives that are probably existing in the galaxy it would give one a headache to sense them all. :) He does sense that the Force is strong in Luke before he knows who he is, but that's the extent of a Force-users ability to sense who a person is.
7 - Mark Sahm
Many bloggers are sensitive, but it takes something special to be force-sensitive.
Good explanation, Bryan.