Is The ‘Star Wars Holiday Special’ Really That Bad?
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The Star Wars Holiday Special is something that Star Wars fans can all agree on: it’s bad, or so we think. The Holiday Special was the first Star Wars spinoff film and took place between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. It starred the original cast and introduced the character of Boba Fett, who we then saw in The Empire Strikes Back.
Han Solo and Chewbacca visit the Wookie homeworld of Kashyyyk to celebrate Life Day, but things never work out as planned. Instead, they are pursued by agents of the Galactic Empire, who are looking for members of the Rebel Alliance. The special also introduces us to Chewbacca’s family.
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The special got such negative reviews from critics and fans that it was never officially released on video. It has also become somewhat of a cultural legend due to its underground quality, and the only way to watch it is through recordings of bootleg copies. However, the animated segment that introduced Boba Fett in the special was released on Disney+ in 2021 and received positive reviews.
While the special was hated when it first came out, it has become a cult classic among Star Wars fans. The cast and crew have even made jokes about the special. Carrie Fisher even asked George Lucas for a copy, so she could put it on at parties when she wanted people to leave. George Lucas, who was uninvolved in the production, said he would be “happy if every copy could be tracked down and burned.”
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The production quality of the special is vastly different from that of A New Hope, albeit scary at times. The script was developed by Leonard Ripps and Pat Proft with the help of George Lucas in just one day. However, the script got reworked several times, and by the end, it was different from the one Lucas originally created. The acting could be better too, and the segments are sometimes just downright weird.
The animated segments, like the one introducing Boba Fett and another one titled The Faithful Wookiee, have since been released on Disney+, and both have received positive reviews. These two segments prove that the entirety of the Holiday Special isn’t all bad and that maybe we should give it another chance.
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