‘Star Wars: Visions’ Season 2 Touches on Uncomfortable Truths
Star Wars: Visions is back with a second season, and some of what it has to say could be uncomfortable.
Star Wars: Visions season one was my favorite Star Wars release of 2021. It ranks up there with Andor, Rogue One, and the end of the Clone Wars as one of the best things to come out of the Disney Era. As such I was super excited for a second season, but wondered if it would hold up. While I personally felt that season one had more episodes that left me wanting whole shows based on them, Season Two was a super strong entry and just great.
Part of this was the various styles of animation on display. However one of the reasons the season was a real triumph is that it looked at some of the uncomfortable truths of Stars Wars.
Star Wars is Anti-Colonialism and Anti-Imperialism
Courtesy of Lucas Film
It’s not really a secret, but this is something that can get lost in all the flashy lights. Star Wars, as a story and as a franchise is anti-colonialism and anti-imperialism. After all the big enemy is the Empire. A New Hope was an allegory for Vietnam, and the west was not the Rebels. This factor can often get lost in the story.
Especially when a lot of the stories focus on non-POC characters fighting other non-POC, to save often more helpless oppressed peoples. Visions season two however really focuses on this central truth of Star Wars, which some people find uncomfortable. A number of the episodes are directly about indigenous or oppressed peoples standing up for themselves.
In the Stars, The Spy Dancer, The Bandits of Golak, and The Pit all very directly deal with this. Several of the other episodes also touch on the subject in different ways.
A large number of the studios behind season two are based in countries that have suffered from colonialism and are staffed by people who have suffered from this kind of oppression in the past, and sometimes present. It’s not surprising that it was a focus. That Star Wars helped to give a voice to these people and studies is pretty amazing, and makes the stories even more resonant. It’s great to remember that Star Wars isn’t all flashy battles and shitty fans. It’s also a message of hope to people around the world.
The Uncomfortable Truth About the Jedi
Season one of Visions focused pretty heavily on the Jedi. Almost every episode started with either a Jedi or someone who was on the path to becoming one. Season two took a very different approach. Only three of the nine episodes featured Jedi, and they were mostly side characters in these stories. While they remained heroic, Visions season two also dealt head-on with an uncomfortable truth about them.
The Jedi take children away from their families. Two of the three episodes with Jedi feature the Jedi taking a younger child away from a loving a caring family. While we know this is how the Jedi work it’s rarely shown. The only time the movies show it is with Anakin Skywalker, and that was kind of dumb. In Visions, we are never shown the results of these separations, and while they may be for the good, they are also tragic and uncomfortable.
It Made the Universe Seem Both Bigger and Smaller
Visions was visually stunning. It was amazing to see Star Wars through the lens of different cultures and peoples. This verity made the Star Wars galaxy seem a lot bigger. But it also had an uncomfortable side effect. Visions is non-cannon Star Wars. And its diversity made cannon Stat Wars feel a bit smaller and less diverse. Why don’t we get this much cool variation in live-action Star Wars?
The uncomfortable truth that Visions Season two highlights is that Star Wars, especially live-action Star Wars, still favors Western looks and visuals. In a massive diverse galaxy, we keep on seeing things and places that look very same-y and that’s a bit sad. Luckily for now we have Visions season two to help.
Let us know what you thought of Visions season two, down in the comments!
