Against all odds.
Recently, I discovered that some supporters of Donald Trump are launching a boycott of this month’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. I thought it might be interesting to comment on this latest fiasco because there’s a fundamental misunderstanding about the Star Wars franchise. In addition, it also points out that cultural libertarians have to split their attention between the Regressive Left and this newly formed entity that I like to call the Regressive Right.
The two are similar in many ways, so I hope I can add to the discussion with this article.
Star Wars Is Partially Political, But Not In The Way That You Think.
I hope that Felicity Jones Does A Good Job.
One of the great things about Star Wars is that it mixes samurai ethics, the Second World War, and many other cool themes into a cohesive whole. I’m not exactly sure why people are so up in arms about that when a cursory glance at the franchise would easily point that out. However, it is not usually done in some specific way that reminds us of any one group or period of time. For the sake of argument, let’s divide this up into the villains and heroes.
The Galactic Empire has many different historical parallels. It reflected the fall of the Roman Empire in the prequels and added in a few references to Nazi Germany to provide a feel of modern, yet timeless evil. I’m not quite sure where Gary Whitta and Chris Weitz got the idea that it’s white supremacist because there are Imperial officers of different ethnicities and even alien origin in the lore, but the general point of authoritarianism vs. democracy is still sound.
One could even make the case that the First Order shows that anyone can be seduced by fascist ideas. It isn’t much of a stretch to assume that Captain Phasma and the numerous black or female characters in the background are true believers in the genocidal nature of that organization. The main point that anyone can derive from these stories is that good and evil are not defined by place or race. They are defined by the ideologies we hold and our willingness to see them through.
Why Star Wars Can Truly Unify Everyone.
If nothing else, we can all agree that Alan Tudyk plays a fantastic smartass.
From what I’ve seen so far, Rogue One represents everything that this franchise can be because it emphasizes the power of ideals. The fight for freedom against all odds is a tale that may be as old as our species. And in this universe, it brings together men, women, droids, and aliens from all sorts of worlds and backgrounds to choke and scream and bleed and die for the hope of a better future. Just look at how Jyn reacts to the thought of surrender:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7CIXSKVKTo
The takeaway here isn’t that a woman is in charge and that we’re going to smash the patriarchy or some other garbage message like that. It’s that anyone who loves the ideals of liberty should want to die on their feet fighting for it than live on their knees before a tyrant, whether they are liberal, conservative, or something else entirely. In a sense, the ideals of the Rebel Alliance are tied into the very fabric of Western culture because they represent a system that raises the individual over the state.
On the other hand, the Empire is very much a representation of the state being placed over the individual. For some proof, you can just look at the thumbnail of the video above to see the contrast. Unless you are an aristocratic commander in this order, you are nothing more than a nameless and faceless servant or slave. That doesn’t remind me of a traditional liberal or conservative. It reminds me of those that see themselves as the arbiters of morality, those who don’t like fun, or those that blow things wildly out of proportion in the name of a concept like, say, political correctness.
I always thought that these ideals would unify liberals and conservatives.
What We Should Be Focusing On.
Who wouldn’t want to see these hulking monstrosities on screen again?
Instead of worrying about nonsensical statements from writers or turning everything political, I thought I’d try to point out what we should be looking forward to when Rogue One comes out on December 16th. So, here’s a list of questions to debate about on Twitter both now and at the movie’s release!
- Are the characters fun to watch?
- Are their abilities explained in the plot?
- Is the story compelling enough to make us want to watch Rogue One and A New Hope back-to-back?
- Will Darth Vader force choke a bitch?
- How many times will K-2SO remind us of HK-47?
- Will the strike force die in battle or will some of them survive?
May the Force be with us all.
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