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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

PT What would the popularity of the saga be like today if the prequels were never made?

Discussion in 'Prequel Trilogy' started by Feelicks, Feb 16, 2013.

  1. Feelicks

    Feelicks Jedi Knight star 1

    Registered:
    Dec 7, 2012
    Ever since the release of the original Star Wars in 1977, it captured the minds and imaginations of millions of people worldwide, swiftly helping create a worldwide cultural phenomenon. The prequels, despite getting mixed critical reception, helped cause an even larger surge of popularity for the franchise during 1999-2005, and even still today. Let's say, after 1983, it was the end. The literal end of all Star Wars films. No sequels, no prequels. Would the popularity of the saga linger on to the 2000s, or just fizzle away if the prequels were never made?
     
  2. Blur

    Blur Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 11, 1999
    Good question, since for years many people thought there wouldn't be any more SW films after ROTJ.

    However, even if no Prequels had come out, I still think new generations of fans would have gotten into the OT in the '80's, '90', and 2000's through the VHS tapes, DVD's, etc.

    And, if the 1997 Special Editions had still come out (even without the prequels) there would still have been a brief resurgence of interest in the films at that point. As a big SW who really enjoyed seeing the OT in the theatres again (despite not liking all of the changes), it was interesting to see the news/media attention the remastered films got.

    Obviously, however, the prequels got everyone (even non-SW fans) interested/re-interested, or at least aware of the Saga when Episode 1 was released in 1999.
     
  3. Placeholder

    Placeholder Jedi Master star 4

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    Jan 30, 2013
    I think that the original trilogy's legacy was secure no matter what and it would still be wildly popular. I do think that the prequels did draw in more numbers of younger fans. Some were introduced to Star Wars with the prequels
     
  4. Jedi_Ford_Prefect

    Jedi_Ford_Prefect Jedi Master star 4

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    Jun 9, 2003
    Without the PT, the saga wouldn't be anywhere near as popular as it is today. It probably would've been seen in the same light as stuff like "Back to the Future" and other movie series from the 80's that live mostly by nostalgia. Hell, it might've even been given the remake/reboot treatment. It wouldn't have nearly the same kind of cultural untouchability status without providing its own backstory.
     
  5. Ambervikings91

    Ambervikings91 Jedi Knight star 3

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    Dec 1, 2012
    Would still be viewed as a classic however the prequels really brought a whole new generation of fans into star wars, which also helped more video games get made and thats a big deal for younger people as well. Would still be classic but probably not as popular as it is today. However with the news of ep 7 coming along that would probably make things blow up again. The prequels really kept star wars very much alive and at the front of eveyrbodys mind for over a decade now
     
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  6. KilroyMcFadden

    KilroyMcFadden Jedi Knight star 3

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    Oct 31, 2012
    The Holy Trilogy's place is secure in history no matter what, but I think that interest in the Saga was being slowly strangled by the lack of quality stories in the EU . I think without Vader's spin off movies we would be members of a much, much smaller community.
     
  7. Lord Chazza

    Lord Chazza Jedi Master star 4

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    Jan 4, 2013
    There's no doubt about it in my mind. The prequels kept Star Wars alive. These day they're selling little figurines of Darth Maul and stuff to children who obviously were not alive in 77-83. I wasn't even alive back then. Still you could say the same thing about any saga. No matter how good the original material is if it doesn't have new input it will whither away.
     
  8. Jedi_Ford_Prefect

    Jedi_Ford_Prefect Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 9, 2003
    Yeah, one thing that I think is pretty easy to say is that 14 years from TPM, the franchise is a lot healthier than it was 14 years from ANH.
     
  9. BoromirsFan

    BoromirsFan Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 16, 2010
    The trilogy would be fondly remembered but eventually forgotten unless people talk about great films of the past in discussions.

    People have forgotten about the godfather trilogy, and people were forgetting about the Lord of the Rings trilogy until the hobbit revived interest.

    The prequels created a resurgence of new star wars media that has never stopped going.
     
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  10. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Jul 2, 2004
    Let's not forget that it wasn't always "the Holy Trilogy".

    It used to be "Star Wars, Empire, and the lame one with the Muppets and Ewoks".

    It's only been retroactively dubbed "the Holy Trilogy" in the post-PT era, in which literally anything one can think of is considered to be better than the PT.
     
  11. KilroyMcFadden

    KilroyMcFadden Jedi Knight star 3

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    Oct 31, 2012
    When I was in the Navy in the early 90's, we referred to it as the "Holy Trilogy" at least 7 years before TPM was announced. later, after the PT came out the PT began to be referred to as the "Lesser Trilogy".
     
  12. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Jul 2, 2004
    One of these things is not like the others. One of these things does not belong.
     
  13. Darth Chiznuk

    Darth Chiznuk Superninja of Future Films star 8 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 31, 2012
    The PT not only reinvigorated interest in the saga amongst fans but also created a whole new generation of fans. It continued with TCW which just as the OT and PT before it has introduced a whole new fanbase to the SW universe. Now with the announcement of the ST it looks like SW will remain in the public conscious for many years to come. Awesome.
     
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  14. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

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    Jul 2, 2004
    Consciousness. Conscious is an adjective.
     
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  15. KilroyMcFadden

    KilroyMcFadden Jedi Knight star 3

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    Oct 31, 2012
    So now you are making fun of people for their usage?
     
  16. Arawn_Fenn

    Arawn_Fenn Chosen One star 7

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    Jul 2, 2004
    I'm not seeing it.
     
  17. ezekiel22x

    ezekiel22x Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Aug 9, 2002
    If not for the PT I would view Star Wars in the same manner that I do Back to the Future and Karate Kid, and I would view Lucas as the creator of a "holy trilogy" consisting of THX 1138, American Graffiti, and Star Wars.
     
  18. Freelancer257

    Freelancer257 Jedi Grand Master star 2

    Registered:
    Sep 20, 2004
    Assuming that there had been no movies since 1983, there would have been:
    - no Star Wars television series apart from the 80s Droids and Ewok cartoons
    - no special editions
    - possibly no exploration of the prequel era in the EU.

    The popularity of the OT would have continued, but it's debatable whether Disney would have agreed to buy the franchise if there had been no new films or TV for almost 30 years.
     
  19. Placeholder

    Placeholder Jedi Master star 4

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    Jan 30, 2013
    We live in a time of remakes and rehashes, studios want brand recognition. There would have been a market for new Star Wars regardless. That is without question. It may have come from a different studio and worked out differently, but you can bet your bottom dollar there would have been someone sniffing around the rights.
     
  20. Darth Chiznuk

    Darth Chiznuk Superninja of Future Films star 8 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 31, 2012
    Oops. I didn't notice it and now I can't edit it. Oh well.
     
  21. Darthbane2007

    Darthbane2007 Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Oct 31, 2007

    Now, does this include the Expanded Universe with books and comics, and Video Games?
     
  22. Cryogenic

    Cryogenic Force Ghost star 5

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    Jul 20, 2005
    I can only speak for myself, but I'd have likely left Star Wars behind, never to bother attempting to unlock its intricate brilliance, or feeling it had much scope or sophistication to begin with. The PT blew the door to the castle off its hinges -- nay, gave us the castle and the whole damn city, as contrast/corrective to the OT's parochial shrub-bush epic.
     
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  23. DRush76

    DRush76 Jedi Master star 4

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    Jan 25, 2008
    I don't know the answer to that question.
     
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  24. Joe

    Joe Jedi Grand Master star 6

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    Dec 25, 2012
    Without the PT, I would have never heard of Star Wars. It would have remained 3 films from the 80's, and no one born past '95 would even care about them.
     
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  25. Alexrd

    Alexrd Chosen One star 6

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    Jul 7, 2009
    This. And I wouldn't be as much of a fan of Star Wars, that's for certain.
     
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