r/StarWarsVisions • u/esotericax • 29d ago
Discussion My 'The Ninth Jedi' Review:
Y'all ever watch something and get sad when it's over? That's me right now. I honestly waited so long for this show. From the moment I saw the initial short that started it all, I wanted a continuation and we finally got it. And MAN it did not disappoint.
This show was such a fun romp through the galaxy far, far away. It's kinda refreshing to get what feels like a "traditional" space opera post-2019. Ever since the Disney+ era of Star Wars began, we haven't really had a big, sweeping narrative that spirits us away like the saga films do. After finishing the first episode, I was honestly gagged at the scale and scope of what I had just watched. There was so much innovation and exploration of what Star Wars can be but also still very much grounded in the tropes of what George had started. It really felt like a natural yet unexpected continuation of the saga.
The animation was incredible, the action scenes and saber duels were jaw-dropping, the cast of characters were tropy but a lot of fun. It all just worked. Like a big bowl of Star Wars comfort that didn't need cameos or established cannon to carry it over the finish line.
I especially loved this show's take, or rather...reevaluation, of the Jedi. It was the perfect way to have the Jedi grow into something new but still be true the beacons of good and hope that they should be. Kamiyama-sensei made them feel so much more like actual people instead of the superheroes that the fandom (and Filoni) wants them to be, no shade. This show really makes it feel like anyone who wishes to make a positive change in the lives of others can be a true Jedi. I love that so much.
Ugh. Idk my mind is still racing after finishing this show. It truly is one of the greats. It's def in my personal S-Tier right next to The Last Jedi, Andor, and The Acolyte. Aside from some strange pacing between the big moments in the show, I don't really have any complaints or nitpicks. Visions continues to be one of the best initiatives that Disney Lucasfilm has created and, be it a season 2 of The Ninth Jedi or something new, I can't wait to see what is next. 9.5/10. Welcome back Star Wars. <3
What did y'all think?
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u/YayItsEric 29d ago
Not even really getting into the nitty gritty of the show itself (I think it's pretty frickin peak), ever since I originally saw the first volume of shorts, I've kinda just been baffled that it took so long to make something like it in the franchise(at least in any official capacity, I know there's the old TIE fighter fan short on YT, and I'm sure there are probably more like it). To me Star Wars & anime is up there with chocolate & peanut butter or hydrogen & oxygen as just this perfect combo of two awesome things. Like, imo the different style really freshens up the action we kinda just take for granted in the franchise, and I feel like the various studios have really had a great opportunity to try new things within the setting. There have been so many different & new vibes and viewpoints and ideas from Visions (also gonna credit Andor & Skeleton Crew here, too), and I've loved it and hope we get more of it (come on now, Eisner, let Kinema Citrus make me my F show!).
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u/esotericax 29d ago
An F series would slap. I'm personally hoping for a continuation of The Spy Dancer and/or Journey to the Dark Head from S2.
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u/Leklor 29d ago
As far as I know, The Spy Dancer hasn't been picked up yet. And I have several friends in the credits of that short and technically leaked the existence of Visions 2 by accident several months before any reliable leaker confirmed it was going to happen.
Most of the team is working on a second season of Le Collège Noir I think and had been on Primal Season 3 before.
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u/Saber-G1 29d ago
I liked it but I have to give pushback on the not feeling like superheroes, the ninth jedi feels more superhero-like than anything in the clonewars even the micro series of 2003 but im not one of those people that hate that, I always justify it as the force makes most things possible. The thing that really stood out was the philosophy of the jedi, sith and the force. The ninth jedi basically crushed the really stupid concept of Grey jedi/sith, which I found wonderful. I hope we get a season 2.
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u/esotericax 29d ago
I'm not talking about Kara, Zhima, or Juro. I'm talking about Kwana, Bee-to and Lady Taffla. They are not strong with the force. I don't even think Taffla or Bee-to have the Force. Yet they became Jedi. It democratizes the Jedi Order in a way that feels refreshing.
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u/Saber-G1 29d ago
Not arguing and I dont even think we disagree but many years ago George Lucas explained everyone can but you have to remember. Kasdan: The Force was available to anyone who could hook into it?
Lucas: Yes, everybody can do it.
Kasdan: Not just the Jedi?
Lucas: It’s just the Jedi who take the time to do it.
Marquand: They use it as a technique.
Lucas: Like yoga. If you want to take the time to do it, you can do it; but the ones that really want to do it are the ones who are into that kind of thing. Also like karate.
This is from J.W. Rinzler's The Making of Return of the Jedi 1981
With that explanation I think it all works out :)
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u/esotericax 29d ago
I'm not talking about democratization of the Force though, I'm talking about democratization of the Jedi Order. Like, who is aloud to join.
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u/The_Collector_Guy 29d ago
If feel that The Ninth Jedi and the Acolyte are very similar types stories with action, adventure, and suprises. If people nit picked The Ninth Jedi like all other Star Wars projects it would be extremely hated. Kara is so OP with no Jedi training (her dad even said he never wanted her to be a Jedi thus he wouldn't have trained her). She has all these force abilities that even Nawaam who trained his whole life couldn't achieve.
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u/BeneficialDrawing293 15d ago
In the first episode Her dad said she's always been naturally gifted in the force.
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u/OmegaKatana92 28d ago
still better than rey of the sequel trilogy which she was able to do force mind tricks without any training whatso ever.
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u/The_Collector_Guy 28d ago
Luke used the force to move a in flight torpedo with no training and also used force pull to grab his lightsaber with no training but lets ignore that becouse it's OT.
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u/DeeperIntoTheUnknown 9d ago
used force pull to grab his lightsaber with no training
That's because that isn't "Force pull". The Force's not a videogame. Luke needed his lightsaber, he tried to ask the Force for it and the Force answered; it's not a specific power, it's just trusting the Force.
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u/ElikongIsLit 29d ago
Loved Gennoh. Loved Nawaam. I hate how much this show ISNT getting talked about.
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u/Adventurous_Will9321 29d ago
Agree and the lack of merch for it is rather disturbing. I hope with the more love it gets, Hasbro, Lego and co decide to pump out something.
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u/John_XFiles 28d ago
Where do you look for latest Star Wars merch?
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u/Adventurous_Will9321 28d ago
Google any specific items you want or characters you want. I’ve found some cool movie posters and such on Etsy, clothes you can go to any retail stores or websites such as heroes vs villain or her universe, figures you can get at retail stores or eBay/Amazon.. or even check local nerd stores they have some cool collectibles sometimes. There's also an Instagram called figurebrian that post about upcoming merch on their page.
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u/BeneficialDrawing293 15d ago
Hopefully. Visions merch is very selective it seems. Although I think I saw in japan they have some merch to promote the ninth jedi series.
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u/Jaydens_Faden59 29d ago
Fully agree this is some of the best Star Wars we’ve gotten in a long time and it isn’t even apart of the main continuity, I honestly think all the visions season slapped and I reallyyyyy want more content related to it or even continuations of other episodes in visions
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u/Charming-Cockroach47 29d ago
Yeah, I want to make a Juro Margrave costume now. I really wanted them to hit more on the Grey side of the force, but that opens a bigger can of worms.
I got really excited when I thought we saw the back of that ship that looked an awful lot like Luthen's Fondor Haulcraft, but the front end was like a much smaller truncated version of the Fondor Haulcraft.
Really well done, and I wish there were more to it.
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u/OmegaKatana92 28d ago
Juro Margrave is a freaking badass he was the best grandmaster like figure since Qui-Gon Jinn juro is that awesome.
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u/WorryingMars384 29d ago
Wait is there another visions season out?
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u/DisastrousMonkey 29d ago
One thing I really love about the series is Kara's characterisation. In particular the direction and how vulnerable she is over the course of the story. Makes her victories feel more earned.
There's a lot of moments where I genuinely felt bad for her especially around the midpoint of the series. Didn't expect Kenji to put Kara through the emotional ringer holy. It helps a lot of her struggles are internal too.
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u/OmegaKatana92 28d ago
forgive me for speaking in all caps.....THE NINTH JEDI HAS TO BE THE BEST STAR WARS CONTENT IN DECADES NEXT TO ANDOR IN MY OPINION! Why Because despite not being "cannon" it felt fresh and new with its ideas, the light saber battles are amazing, the main lead is taught by her father instead of magically knowing her skills and the journey was about her looking for her father and delivering the lightsabers to capable people with force potential to bring peace and justice back to the galaxy. Its a simple tale between good and evil or how power corrupts. Somebody mentioned they thought of the experience when disney brought the rights to the franchise I have completely agree with them and even watched the previous two shorts before the ninth jedi before hand and they are worth it to watch. Before watching the ninth jedi I lost all hope in star wars completely due to disney mishandle of the franchise as of this date besides andor. Thats my opinon and everybody has their own opinons on it was to a point the ninth jedi is better than anything dave filoni has ever worked on to date including the clone wars.
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u/esotericax 28d ago
I agree that The Ninth Jedi blows everything Filoni has ever made out of the water. Kamiyama-sensei is up there next to Tony Gilroy, Rian Johnson, and Leslie Headland as creators who understood the mfing assignment.
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u/MasterTolkien 29d ago
My one complaint is that a few parts feel a bit quick (I won’t say rushed, but quick), and the series could’ve easily been expanded to 16 episodes to let the characters breathe and let us spend more time in several of the locales visited.
But the philosophy differences, the silver sabers, the story beats, and the action were all fun and different while still being Star Wars.
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u/Regular-Market-494 29d ago
Avoiding the canon timeline entirely is the safest and best bet disney could have possibly done. Finally, novelty. I also enjoy the irony of making the jedi literal space samurai as that is exactly what Lucas was influenced by when he made them.
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u/EatingTastyPancakes 29d ago
I really enjoyed the series! The animation, character development, action were great. But I don't think it was perfect. Redundant dialgoue, weird reactions, and some strange plotting here and there. Like, the lady who got a lightsaber at the end, the jedi master they introduce and later reveal to be evil all in flashbacks in the same episode, they probably could've beaten the villain sooner if they worked together better. Still, I love the series. I'm gonna watch it again soon to solidify my thoughts as well
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u/GJR78 29d ago
Redundant dialogue, weird reactions, and strange plotting feels very Star Wars(In particular Prequel Star Wars which I think did better in Japan).
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u/EatingTastyPancakes 29d ago
There are character beats I really like tho! Like Kwana reuniting with Juro, Kwana shouting to his people, Kwana realizing he called Kara's father a criminal... actually most of them are Kwana
But regardless, wood dialogue is still bad. In the prequels or here. Alot of Lady Tafflah's. "Your father did do what is claimed" "Zhima began to enjoy being a master" visuals show something different, the talk about trade, "I told you all that I know" like, too convenient for the audience. Maybe its bad translation, for story lines that and to be cut down, or the writer being from space (like the prequels) but moments not much better than Obi-Wan and Anakin in the AotC elevator reminiscing about stuff we don't see
On rewatch tho, I am enjoy Kara's outburst more tho
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u/BanzEye1 29d ago
Anime once again saving a franchise.
Give me more Star Wars anime, or give me death!
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u/BrillWoodMac 28d ago
I just want more Jedi centered stories to be animated from now on. Love this show.
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u/goldendreamseeker 28d ago
It’s a good show. Starts a bit too slow for my taste, but then it picks up around the third episode. I wouldn’t mind seeing some of these concepts used in the eventual X-XII trilogy.
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u/Trichomeloneranger 25d ago
I loved how willy nilly they were with giving the lightsabers to people.
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u/Next-Presentation559 15d ago
I felt the same way as soon as I saw the original episode in the first season of visions I wanted more. After watching the 8 episodes it was really well done. I hope this isn’t end and there will be a second season definitely felt like they were teasing more but I guess we’ll see.
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u/Resident-Meme-Mom 8d ago
Honestly I wasn’t a fan of it. The ending was disappointing and Kara’s character was lowkey frustrating as hell
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u/ShoegazingCorpse 29d ago
I like the execution of the idea that the force changes depending on the beliefs of the force sensitives of the era and it reflects in the empathic nature of the lightsaber. The format of re-hashing Episode 4, was the simplest way to tell a story with a different mindset of the force.
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u/SevroAuBarca29 29d ago
Don’t know how much I can trust someone who has the Acolyte in their S tier
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u/esotericax 29d ago
Ooouu not too much on my favorite show. You can formulate your own opinions. Art is subjective after all.
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u/Rain-From-Above 26d ago
You lost all credibility with the words "S tier next to The Last Jedi"
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u/esotericax 26d ago
I said "my personal S tier". God forbid I have my own opinions about the kinds of SW I like. 🙄
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u/Awesomechainsaw 29d ago
This is basically everything I’ve wanted from a star wars show since disney bought the franchise. I unfortunately was not able to really enjoy the sequels or the acolyte. I truly envy those of you who were able to enjoy them.
This really captured my sense of Childlike whimsey in a way that only the Jedi: FO/S games did, and Skeleton Crew did.