CLONE WARS -- a negative overreaction?

[comicbookwriter]

I don't have a bias against Lucas at all. I want him to succeed and I want him to produce movies that we can be proud of. Yet, time and gain, he resorts to pratfalls and fart jokes. I'm not biased against him, because bias would indicate that I have no reason to detest what he has been up to. Quite the contrary. I have given him every opportunity to redeem himself and still I encounter nothing more that stilted dialogue, bad acting and bodily function humor. That's not bias. That's a lack of respect. And he has earned it.

I, for one, refuse to go see any Star Wars movie that fails to sell me on itself in the trailers. No longer does Star Wars get a free pass from me. And, from the looks of how The Clone Wars has flopped this weekend, several of the fans are with me.

The War for Star Wars has begun.

Wow, this is one of the most ridiculous posts I have ever seen on BBS, and that is saying a lot for this site.

Clone Wars made roughly $15.5 million, and for a show that is basically already bought and paid for, that doesn't qualify it for a flop. Especially not against the one-two punch of Dark Knight and Tropic Thunder.

You claim that its "people like us" who are willing to accept anything George Lucas does without nary a critical eye. The reality is that you are painting a lot of people that you don't know with an awfully large brush.

People all have different tastes and sometimes, people go too far in expecting things to be like they "remember it as a kid." The over the top condemnations of CLONE WARS is a good example of that.

I don't recall anyone who HAS SEEN CLONE WARS saying that it was a perfect movie or anything close, most people WHO HAVE SEEN CLONE WARS tend to say that it is a pleasant distraction, but it is aimed at a much younger audience.

I don't watch or like Teletubbies -- and any adult who criticizes Teletubbies for having stilted dialogue or weird situations that don't appeal to adults might be considered a fool.

CLONE WARS is not a BAD film its just not aimed towards 30 and 40 year old Star Wars fans. The idea that a "kid's film" is supposed to somehow be an egalitarian story to be enjoyed by grown men and women is incorrect because we live in an overly marketed world of demographic research and analysis -- people are targeted for certain types of entertainment.

Its the reason why 5 year olds don't enjoy LAWRENCE OF ARABIA on the same level as a 45 year old college professor. Its made for those with a certain level of comprehension and intelligence. The same happens in reverse.

Lucas is not making the same mistake the Star Trek franchise has made: not actively trying to engage younger viewers or making projects that enhance accessibility into the franchise for those who were too young (or not born) to appreciate it the first time around.

CLONE WARS is a tightly calculated commercial for Star Wars toys, comics and books. Much in the same way that the new FORCE UNLEASHED game will be.

CBW

 

[BlackestPanther]

CLONE WARS is a tightly calculated commercial for Star Wars toys, comics and books.

And, that is why you fail. You recognize this very fact yet still make excuses for the movie. With that, you have lost all credibility and thus can offer nothing to the argument.

Good day.

 

[Misfit Toy]

The War for Star Wars has begun.

That's an incredible overstatement. You do know it's only a movie, right?

 

[BlackestPanther]

The War for Star Wars has begun.

That's an incredible overstatement. You do know it's only a movie, right?

Do you?

 

[Misfit Toy]

The War for Star Wars has begun.

That's an incredible overstatement. You do know it's only a movie, right?

Do you?

Sure. I'm not the one insulting complete strangers and calling for "War" over a fun little movie.

 

[Neroon]

Time to take a breath and relax a bit on this thread, folks. Remove the interpersonal swipes, if you please. Otherwise you're simply giving fodder to the naysayers who love to ridicule sci-fi fans in general and SW fans in particular.

 

[DarKush]

c) We know how this all ends anyway.

And that's probably the main and deciding flaw.

We know no matter how dire the situation is that Anakin, Obi Wan and any character appearing in SW3 will make it which will suck out any suspense right down the drain.

I know that we already know that any main hero will probably make it (with few exceptions) but secondary heroes were always fair game.

I don't understand why Lucas is not trying to broaded the universe or at least explore other characters in that time frame and only have the main heroes pop in from time to time.

I agree. I think CW would've been much better if Obi Wan and Anakin had only been in cameos and they introduced a whole new cast of Jedi and Clone Soldiers for the main cast. That would've sidestepped any continuity issues while giving us new Star Wars characters-that could then lead to new toys, books, comics, etc.

I don't think the absence of Anakin and Obi Wan would kill the franchise. In fact, I think the CW has been oversaturated with them two. I mean, they couldn't be everywhere, and I'm sure they weren't the only ones getting the interesting assignments.

And if it had been new Jedi characters at least it would bring the suspense back because we knew they might or might not survive any encounter against Dooku, Ventress, or the droids.

I also think that SW is strong enough as a brand to not have to rely solely on Anakin and Obi Wan in this period. Yes, include them, along with Mace, Yoda, Palpatine, etc., but relegate them to the background. Broaden the field of players.

I think I would've liked the movie much better if a little more unpredictability had been tossed in there.

 

[ALF]

I don't understand why everyone thinks it so awful... considering :

It's for kids.

And quite frankly, after The Phantom Menace, if you didn't like what you saw, that should have been the hint to stop watching.

The fact that the new Clone Wars series is far below everyone's expectations is considerably less annoying than the fact that their expectations were so high to begin with.

I haven't seen it yet... and my expectations are low. So I'll take it for what it's worth... a money grab aimed at kids is perfectly fine with me, and if I want high drama and witty dialog I'll be looking elsewhere. And so should all of the mouthy critics spewing the same tired sentiment since 1997.

It is you and people like you that are the problem. You and your ilk are always willing to make excuses for George Lucas and you refuse to hold him to any kind of standard. You tend to think that whatever he craps out on celluloid is gold and that he can do no wrong. It is because of people like you that we got three shitty TNG movies. It's because of people like you that we got that crappy Voyager series and that terrible Enterprise series.

Just because a movie is aimed at children does not mean that it cannot be made in such a way that it is enjoyable to adults as well. The Clone Wars missed the mark on this one. Yet, here you are, muttering to yourself "We're all very pleased".

So if it weren't for me, and people "like me", this new Clone Wars movie would be awesome. What was I thinking?

I stand by my statement, and echo the sentiments of comicbookwriter.
Expectations are waaaaaay too high.

Guess who is going to feel "like a kid again" when they see the new Clone Wars movie?
Kids. When they are a few decades older. Because they themselves were kids at the first viewing.

By the way, preaching to the choir about the last two TNG movies and the finale of Enterprise. Interestingly enough, I've never been personally blamed for it.

Maybe it is my fault...

 

[Misfit Toy]

Time to take a breath and relax a bit on this thread, folks. Remove the interpersonal swipes, if you please. Otherwise you're simply giving fodder to the naysayers who love to ridicule sci-fi fans in general and SW fans in particular.

Gotcha. I'm going to spend the rest of the thread breathing deeply and staring at your avatar.

 

[ProwlAlpha]

This is a statement to the Hard-Core Star Wars fans who think the franchise is geared only for them. It is not.

To make it simple, the Star Wars you want will be made into film, because

1. a film needs to be geared towards a wide-array of people to make it successful enough for the filmmakers and the studios because it is a BUSINESS, not from a select group of jihadists such as yourself.

2. a film make the most money not from repeated showings from hard on fans, but from kids and their parents who spend a massive amount of money at ONE showing. I took my 10 year old and her friend to see Clone Wars, and that cost me fifty bucks. YOU do not spend fifty bucks on one showing as a hard core fan. Yes, you may go to it a few more times, but each time getting progressively cheaper by not buying as much popcorn, drinks, and other things at the theatres.

3. The children who loved Clone Wars will be talking about Clone Wars to their friends, who will tell their parents, who will take their kids, and spend at least another, let's say fifty bucks because kids love their munchies, and their friends need to go along of course, and naturally you need your own little set of munchies, forbid if you sneak a little bit from the kids.

4. NOT everyone is close-minded as you. Yes, the Clone Wars were not the grand epic, but I went to the movie with a degree of I want to enjoy myself, not walking into the theatre with a notepad to make a list of Wookiepedia entries, (Wookiepedia is awesome). My hope was that my daughter and her friend WOULD enjoy the movie, because they are the future of the franchise, not an overweight guy sitting in front of a computer screen, writing four pages about why George Lucas sucks, but love the OT because of its "nostalgia, and original story".

I agree with CBW, today's generation of teens and kids have been reared on explosions, fast-paced story, and flashy characters, and so the OT is not up to their standards. Yes, you may have a few kids here and there who enjoy the OT, but thats like me and you enjoying 2001, Silent Running, and other SCI-FI films that were made before our time.

In conclusion, Clone Wars was not awesome, but it was not terrible. All the annoying parts that are described as terrible, were not that bad. yes the snips and the skyguy were cringe worthy, but so is Leia kissing Luke and Han Solo's talk radio voice. I do admit, Ziro the Hutt's voice was dumb. I enjoyed the film, my kids' enjoyed the film, and just because you think that it should be a name dropping, EU dropping, never ending light sabre duel with Leia in her bikini, does not mean it's not good.

 

[suarezguy]

CLONE WARS is not a BAD film its just not aimed towards 30 and 40 year old Star Wars fans. The idea that a "kid's film" is supposed to somehow be an egalitarian story to be enjoyed by grown men and women is incorrect

But a lot of other kids' films have better comic relief, character development and drama.

 

[stonester1]

So if it weren't for me, and people "like me", this new Clone Wars movie would be awesome. What was I thinking?

I stand by my statement, and echo the sentiments of comicbookwriter.
Expectations are waaaaaay too high.

Guess who is going to feel "like a kid again" when they see the new Clone Wars movie?
Kids. When they are a few decades older. Because they themselves were kids at the first viewing.

Or perhaps they will react to it like I react when I sit down and try to watch Superfriends, which I loved as a kid, to wit, "Wow, what was I thinking? This SUCKS."

 

[CaptJimboJones]

It's because of people like you that we got that crappy Voyager series and that terrible Enterprise series.

Hey, I liked Enterprise! (Well, the last two seasons anyway ... ) No need to drag an unrelated show into the "CW rocks/CW sucks" fanwank sh*tfest.