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

Am I just missing them, or is there none of Williams' themes in CW?

Discussion in 'Star Wars TV- Completed Shows' started by DMan304, Jan 31, 2009.

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  1. Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon

    Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 17, 2000
    How so? TCW is a cartoon.

    Care to elaborate?

    And you call ME condescending...have I butted heads with a previous account of yours or something?

    But no, it's not an issue of old=good/new=bad. I just think that if you're going to do a leitmotif-heavy score (which all the SW film scores are), then you ought to include the "Main Title" aka the central melody of the series more than once or twice a film. It's not a matter of nostalgia; the main theme is just a fantastic melody for swashbuckling adventure.

    Does the series absolutely NEED the themes from the movies? No. Of course, you could just as easily argue that the show doesn't NEED to retain any of the characterizations or production designs of the movies - heck, the show doesn't even necessarily NEED to mesh with the movies continuity-wise. But holding onto these things is a big part of what makes it feel like 'Star Wars'.

    I guess there are two different approaches to Star Wars. Some people are simply in love with the Star Wars universe itself, and it doesn't matter what sort of stylistic approaches are taken. It could be a Saw-style torture-horror story, a metropolitan romantic comedy ala Sex in the City, or anything, but as long as it's set in the GFFA and fits into Lucasfilm's canon it's all good because it's Star Wars.

    Other people are fans of the 'spirit' of Star Wars. They like Star Wars because of what Star Wars is and has to offer that other movies/franchises can't. They'd rather see a sequel that rewrites continuity but retains the adventurous heart of the series than something that meshes with canon but is tonally a completely different beast.

    Basically, if you ask the first group, "What is Star Wars?" the answer would be something like "The story of the rise and fall of the Galactic Empire and the ultimate victory of Jedi over Sith." If you ask the second group, "What is Star Wars?" the answer would be "Swashbuckling fantasy adventure in outer space." Both answers are technically correct, but they represent two fundamentally different notions of what defines the 'essence' of Star Wars.

    EDIT: I'm also very amused by this notion that somehow my having really enjoyed the original films makes my opinions about the franchise less valid...
     
  2. Gry Sarth

    Gry Sarth Ex 2x Banhammer Wielding Besalisk Mod star 5

    Registered:
    Jun 24, 1999
    Hey guys,
    [image=http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/6883/peaceim8.jpg]
     
  3. DMan304

    DMan304 Jedi Knight star 2

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 2004
    ^^^ Nice. :)

    I didn't mean for this to turn into such a big argument, all I said was that I wouldn't mind hearing some of the original themes and motifs from the movies.

    I'm not saying it's bad without it, just that it would be better with it. Music and themes are such a big part of Star Wars that it feels out of place to not hear any of the old recurring themes.

    The original Genndy Clone Wars cartoons are a perfect example. They were able to use some of the old themes like Across the Stars, the Force Theme, and even the Imperial March briefly in the last chapter. It wouldn't be any worse without them, but hearing those themes behind those moments in the cartoon really made them feel that much better.
     
  4. WedgeWalker

    WedgeWalker Jedi Youngling star 2

    Registered:
    Aug 15, 2008
    On the other hand, how often did the OT actually use the main theme in an action cue?

    I'm not really in on this conversation. And I'm a big proponent of folks being respectful of each other, and am thus not condoning any one being rude.

    But I think part of why the point was made is this...

    People who enjoy the PT do not tend to think the moment in Ep 1 you reference is the most exciting moment in the three films. There are many other moments, moments of much more substance, that they would consider more exciting.

    The fact that you thought that scene was the most exciting scene (and that a significant reason might be that the main theme is used in an OT style) might, in the minds of some, suggest that you have a warped approach to the PT...a negative bias to be precise.

    Why else would you think that's the most exciting scene? (The argument might go.)

    Thus you'd be predisposed to dislike anything that is prequel based, or not OT based.

    Hence, you'd be predisposed to dislike the music of CW for its lack of 1) OT style, and 2) OT themes....simply because it isn't OT-esque.

    I'm not saying that assumption would be correct. But it seems plausible, anyway.
     
  5. Kwenn

    Kwenn Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Mar 30, 2001
    Several times: Chasm Crossfire in ANH, elements of the Battle of Yavin, Sail Barge Assault in RotJ, plus the escape from Tatooine in ANH. I'm probably missing others. Of course, I think the reason is because it's usually synonymous with Luke's Theme, which doesn't have much of a place in the PT--though I would have liked Anakin to have been given it on occasion, or at least a variation.
     
  6. Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon

    Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 17, 2000
    It also comes up when Luke flies the shuttle out of the DSII and a bunch of times during the Battle of Hoth. One of my favorites doesn't even involve Luke at all: when Han says "Come on, let's go," to Leia after hearing that Imperial troops have entered the base.

    I know JW has called it Luke's theme, but I like to think of it as more generally the 'heroism/adventure' theme. Also, if it were just Luke's theme it would have made much more sense to play a different melody over the opening titles of the PT (and the title screen of TCW to boot).
     
  7. Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon

    Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 17, 2000
    Also, see this trailer.

    Maybe it's just me, but the trailer becomes astronomically more exciting when they abandon the cheesy Michael-Bay-trailer-style power chords and start playing REAL Star Wars music. Heck, I'd probably be fine with the rock sound if they at least bothered to TRY doing something interesting melodically.
     
  8. Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon

    Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 17, 2000
    Continued from another thread:

    I do. Ideally the motifs from the films would be seamlessly integrated with original themes specific to TCW.
     
  9. Garth Maul

    Garth Maul Manager Emeritus star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    May 18, 2002
    Agreed, Halcyon. Finding the balance is the difficult thing, I certainly don't have any problem with TCW trying to pave new ground in terms of score.

    JW's music has a certain....gravitas to it that certain scenes in SW need, I think.
     
  10. ArrogantJedi

    ArrogantJedi Jedi Youngling star 2

    Registered:
    Oct 11, 2008
    Can't say i've heard much, but i believe some of the music in the series has been very good. The music while Fisto is fighting Grievous in "Lair of Grievous" was very effective given all the fog and mist around the place. I also LOVED that tune at the end of "Duel of the Droids" where R3 latches onto R2D2 and then he cuts the line and R3 goes flying and gets hit by debris. That tune was awesome and fit that scene, and I can see it fitting any scene where the good guy is struggling, then manages to break free from the situation and prevail, as R2 did.
     
  11. Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon

    Jedi_Keiran_Halcyon Jedi Knight star 6

    Registered:
    Dec 17, 2000
    I'm in the middle of re-watching the eps, and I had to laugh when I realized that the melody when the Y-Wings launch in Shadow of Malevolence is pretty much James Horner's Main Title from Star Trek II and III note for note. "Wrong franchise, Kiner!":p
     
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