Discussion Will the spinoffs enrich the ST?

So Marvel has their "Phases," where each film within a given phase is working towards a larger crossover event. The nature of Lucasfilm's storytelling won't quite be the same as Marvel, as they're playing around with different time periods in the canon, but they still have the opportunity to make each of their films work toward a common goal. My question is will there be elements in the spinoffs that work to supplement the story being told in the Sequel Trilogy? The Force Awakens raised a lot of questions. The spinoff films could help answer some of those questions as the story of the ST is gradually peeled back.

For instance... let's say Felicity Jones' character in Rogue One turns out to be Rey's mother and Luke's wife. Rogue One could introduce this character, and maybe even tease that she'll be introduced to Luke after the events of this film, but their relationship is left up to our imagination. (There's also the speculation that Mads Mikkelsen could be playing a young Lor San Tekka, which would give us more backstory on that intriguing character and shed new light on his appearance in The Force Awakens.)

Jump forward to Episode VIII. We learn about what happened to Luke's wife years later from Luke himself, perhaps through dialogue or more "Force-backs" that could easily feature Felicity Jones. Perhaps she died or something else happened to her.

Then there's the Han Solo anthology movie. The Force Awakens shows us that Han has a history with Maz Kanata. I wouldn't be surprised if she shows up in this film, giving us new perspective on her appearances in the ST. There could be some gangster or pirate types in Episode VIII that also show up here. King Prana perhaps? I like the idea that King Prana could be the Jabba the Hutt of the ST: name-dropped in the first, dealing with his hired goons in the second, culminating in a confrontation with the Big Bad himself in the third. The Han Solo movie could be this guy's big introduction...

...which is paid off in Episode IX when our heroes finally defeat him. Episode IX would serve not only as the payoff for the previous two Episodes, but the culmination of all four films up to this point.

The spinoffs will hopefully bring their own unique refreshing flavors, and there is certainly a danger to overstuffing these films with Easter eggs (as Marvel occasionally does to its own detriment), but not using the alternating schedule to let the spinoffs enrich the overall story of the ST as it's being told would be a missed opportunity if you ask me. Thoughts?

 

I just hope there is not a conscious build to "team up" style films, like Avengers, in the GFFA. Actually, my nightmare is this style of "Marvelling," as it sometimes renders individuals films, on their own, nearly unwatchable. That said, I am certainly OK will crossover elements. But the emphasis should be on broadening the galaxy, rather than narrowing it to allow for uber-crossover events.

Star Wars needs to chart its own course, and avoid the Marvel path, which already feels quite stale.

 

I think Lucasfilm faces the issue of wanting these films to broaden the universe, without making them too broad as to feel "unimportant" to the general audience. If there's no connection to the core Saga, the part of Star Wars most recognized by the average person, the films could come across as not mattering in the grand scheme of things. I think that's why we've seen them stick a bit more closely than we expected them to: a film about stealing the Death Star plans that might feature Vader, Bail Organa, R2 and 3PO in some capacity; a Han Solo film; an all-but-confirmed Boba Fett film. Based on reception, I think we'll see them start dancing a bit further away from the familiar in terms of subject matter, but I also feel there will always be some sort of connection to the core Saga, with that connection being stronger in some films than in others. I don't think it will render the films unwatchable as self-contained movies, but I do think it will help them feel "important" in the grand scheme of things, and I feel they'll ultimately add to the experience of the Saga itself just as much as they'll stand on their own.

 

First and foremost, these should be fun, entertaining films.

But second, it would be nice if they could serve to enrich the Saga films, much as the new TV shows, books, and comic books do.

This could actually work better for SW films than other franchises because the dominant narrative style of the Saga is objective/dramatic style. In other words, except for certain parts of the PT, it's a show don't tell style, with minimal exposition.

Because of that minimal exposition, we always have interesting questions about the narrative. These can be answered now with the anthology films, not just the new EU.

 

I think yes, and the bolded part is what I think is the case. That makes perfect sense for why they chose to tell the Rogue One story in between e7 and e8. If they are smart (and they are) they'll continue to put something important in the anthology movies that fills in some of the blanks between the numbered movies. If the Han Solo movie in the one that will happen between e8 and e9, my bet is we learn something important that will affect the way we see Ben Solo in e9.

...and them very clearly stating that Maz is 1,000 years old was no accident. She could appear anywhere in any of the films.

 

I had thought that it was very deliberate adding that in there, I was also sorta worried at the start of each spin-off you'd have something like this -

[interior Maz's castle on Takodana]

Maz is behind the bar polishing glasses and berating the drunkards, she turns to face the camera and starts telling "A Star Wars Story (tm)"......fade to the film...

I think I would puke in the cinema.

 

Oh please. WHY do fans relentlessly continue to ask for even more rehashing of the OT?

Stay true, stay original.

 

I think the Anthology films will enhance the Saga as a whole, I just hope we get more "Rogue One" type films (showing major events) and less "Young Han Solo".

Of course I would love for a Yoda and Maz adventure movies.

 

It is my hope and belief that the Anthology films will add interesting new layers to an already great universe, but it all depends on the way Disney handles each movie.
Even though information about Rogue One is scarce at the moment, I'm getting more and more excited about it!

On the other hand, I'm not that impressed by the prospect of a Han Solo or Boba Fett movie. They are both good characters with a huge fan-base, but there's also a lot of things that could go wrong with such projects. It all boils down to what the movies will actually be about.

 

I'm more worried about the Han movie than Boba Fett only because there is SO much we see of Han. Now, that being said, I don't think the films are impossible to do well. Given the right creative team they could rock.