Lit Young Jedi Knights: The Proposed 1996 TV Series That Almost Was

Hey guys! I was digging around the interwebs and I came across some information in the dusty corners of the vintage internet I'd like to share with you guys. I put it together in a little graphic and maybe we can discuss it. I also did a little write-up to help put it in context a little.



In 1996, Lucasfilm was approached by Fox Kids about adapting Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta's Young Jedi Knights series of novels to television as a cartoon. Fox Kids was fresh off a string of successes, and it was during this period of time they were broadcasting legendary hits like Batman: The Animated Series and Spiderman: The Animated Series. The studio would have been more than happy to add Star Wars to its roster. Young Jedi Knights had recently scored hits on the New York Times Bestsellers List and it seemed like an adaptation on television would make sense. Fox Kids took the initiative and approached Lucasfilm with the proposal.

However, Lucasfilm was focused at the time on the release of the Special Editions of the original trilogy, as well as the production of the prequel trilogy. Any plans for a young adult television series in the cartoon format were shelved. Lucasfilm would later show renewed interest in the idea in 2003 with their production of Clone Wars, following the Republic's order of Jedi Knights, on Cartoon Network. Lucasfilm later did consider bringing KOTOR to the screen as well, but such plans never materialized.

Still, interest in 1996 was high for the Young Jedi Knights series, if it were to happen. The successful series followed a new generation of characters, like Jaina and Jacen Solo, before the events of the New Jedi Order, and would likely have been a big hit with audiences. Kevin J. Anderson commented in May of that year: "At this time there are no plans to make a Young Jedi Knights TV series. In the past week I've received a dozen or so e-mails from people asking me about it. Nobody's ruling out the possibility, but Lucasfilm is concentrating all efforts on the new movies." It is one of those tantalizing what-ifs of EU history, thinking about if this television series had actually been produced.

This information was stumbled upon by looking into some very ancient areas of Expanded Universe fandom -- on FidoNet, AOL, and RASSM boards. The sources for the above quoted bits come from here for KJA and here (republished here) for Moesta. The paintings in the image are of course created by Dave Dorman, assembled together and edited for this image by me.

So what do you guys think? Would you have liked to see it? Do you think the series would have been a success? Do you agree with Lucasfilm's decision to keep its focus on the prequels and not pursue Fox's proposal for the show? Was perhaps cost a factor for Lucasfilm at this time? Feel free to discuss!

 

Sobs uncontrollably
What could have been.

 

So many missed opportunities...

 

Reading the title, what came to mind was a live-action series, like Animorphs or the Generation X TV pilot, which I think would have fit really well with the 90's-kid's-media-kitsch-vibe YJK gives me.
If the series had happened, I wonder if it would have made YJK much more prominent in (and out of) SW fandom, or if it would have been mostly forgotten like Droids and Ewoks.

 

Well we did end up getting a cartoon after the movies came out...only it was TCW rather than a YJK series.

 

I think if a series was started it would have had little resemblance to the book series. Lucas would have wanted to tell his version of a YJK series.

 

I don't think it's correct to assume that Lucas would have been involved in the same capacity as he was on TCW. How involved was he with Droids and Ewoks, for example? Or the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles?

 

When it came to Young Indy...VERY INVOLVED

 

He was heavily involved with Young Indiana Jones. Not so much with Droids and Ewoks.

The conclusion we can draw from Young Indy and TCW is that Lucas's involvement in a hypothetical YJK series would have been directly proportional to his level of personal interest in the project. If Lucas was invested, it's likely the TV series would have had little connection to the Anderson / Moesta books. If not, it's more likely they would have been connected to or adaptations of the books. Whether Lucas would have that personal investment is, of course, unknown, and probably always will be.

 

WAIT WHAT??? How do I learn of this only now? WOW... I so would have wanted that as YJK is brilliant and perfect for such a tv show, the cast is well rounded and mixed. Makes one wonder, how much of it was written with TV in mind even and how much was written solely for the books!

I am stunned... shellshocked by this... just wow!

I wonder if Fox had some prelim quick sketches to show for a tv proposal of characters?

PS: thx for putting it all into a nice graphic, I may repost that on social media

PS2: ok, WHO from the late 90s would they even have cast if the show were not animated? Oh boy... my head is spinning from this what if possibilities. Also, if YJK were the first successful SW show, imagine how different spinoffs and follow ups might have been.

 

If Jacen and Jaina and Anakin had been made on-screen appearances, and perhaps Mara Jade, then we maybe wouldn't have gotten Ben Solo. No offense to Adam Driver, but Ben/Kylo was one of the weaker parts of the Sequels.

 

The mind boggles to even contemplate this. Even back in the 90s, a cartoon series - with the Star Wars name attached! - would have been vastly higher-profile than the novels ever were. I feel like the whole future history of the franchise, and certainly that of the EU, would have looked completely different had the 'Legends' Solo kids and their supporting cast gotten that level of exposure.

(However, I will acknowledge that there may be a degree of presentism involved in that assumption, since this was still a while before anything like today's levels of attempted cross-franchise cohesion. The EU of the time, as patchwork and scattered as it was, was head and shoulders above almost anything else - that kind of says it all.)

As to whether it would have been any good - honestly, it's hard to say. The 90s were something of a renaissance in the world of animated series, and while the YJK books were often kind of goofy, KJA is much like Lucas in that he's a strong ideas man whose weak executions can be elevated by a skilled collaborator. That said, it's again worth remembering that in addition to all of the classics like Gargoyles and the DCAU, there were still plenty of lousy cartoons in that time period that are simply forgotten today, so there's no guarantees.

But man, what a thing to think about.

 

I would have preferred Tales of Jedi cartoons or Thrawn Trilogy im surprised that Thrawn Trilogy didn't become a movie or a tv show in the 90s

 

It is interesting that years later Lucas would try to do a Younglings Spin-Off.

 

This would have been the best time to get an adaptaion that is true to the books. Since Lucas was focused on the Special Editions and planing the PT his involvement would likely not be more than it was for Shadows of the Empire, which is to say not much.

Now this is the 90s so it would likely have been a 65 ep cartoon at most. That is more than the books could cover I think. They would have to make stuff after the books. That could be interesting.

The show would look like Spider-man TAS, with long arcs, assuming they adapt the books.

This could easily define Star Wars for a generation (like Batman TAS). We would see Luke as a Jedi master (Hamil I think would voice Luke but he is also in BTAS at this time so that could be interesting), a lot of teen Jedi, which could influence Lucas in the PT, though maybe not.

It could also lead to KJA being more popular and more of his work getting this kind of adaptaion, The Jedi Academy Trilogy or Tales of the Jedi seem like good candidates as they tie into YJK. Maybe Dark Empire too.

This would of course annoy older fans, as this is making Star Wars 'kiddy' which might take a bit of the heat out of the PT or make it worse, since it had already been happening for 3 years.

Now to go crazy and say NJO is an animated series happening while the PT would be very interesting.

 

@AusStig

I mean i'd argue the "Make it Kiddy" started with Return of the Jedi and the Ewoks ...Not that i'm against that since I love ROTJ and the Weoks

But it would have been interesting to see a "Kid Friendly" but with mature themes show like YJA get adapted in a Batman TAS like manner. Or even Superman TAS like manner as well.

 

Oh I agree. I was almost going to mention RotJ.

I think it would be like them honestly. But people would see cartoon and go "for kids, more Ewoks", etc.

Some fans still don't like RotJ because it is more aimed at kids, same with TPM.

Having a cartoon, staring "kids" would exacerbate that.

 

I wonder if they would have gotten Paul Dini on it, he actually did the Ewoks cartoon and would continue to do other Lucasfilm stuff in the future.

 

An animated Young Jedi series from Lucasfilm in the 1990s, would probably have been something along the lines of Muppet Babies. We'd have been praying for an Anakin guest appearance, and a "do what must be done" scene.

 

I think he was working on Batman at the time.

This would be on Fox Kids, the Power Rangers network.

I think it would be more like that or Spider-man.

But it could also have been very bad.

 

I'd take bad YJK over no YJK any day! The concept alone can't be ruined even if they choose crappy art style and goofy stories instead of the books greatness and Dave Dormans glorious art!

I mean, look at how lots of crappy looking shows from kid networks get a second life online via fanart that puts them into different artstyles that are way better. Maybe even a reboot or life action version better than the original. The impact alone, even if crappy or wonky at times would have been interesting for the EU and SW.

Just imagining a world where the YJK get way more love, cosplay, art, expanded material than the one they already got as JUST a young adult book series is mezmerizing. It'd have been the sequels some purists had been waiting for and might have pulled the rug from under the PT by outdoing it.

Imagine a show that is successful getting YJK rides at Disney parks? YJK figures, statues, toys... Tenel Ka plushie? Jacen Solo's joke-collection? MT-D translator tool toy from Vtech? Jaina's multitool as a GFFA version swiss knife? Galaxy's Edge reimagined for YJK as Yavin Praxeum?

Maybe they would have done Crystal Star as a tv opening animated movie to introduce the characters? Life Action Waru would have been glorious!

And imagine the early internet going wild as the Holoemperor is revealed and all gasp if "Is he really back?" for weeks before revealed as a fake?

The show could even had flashbacks to TOTJ, DE, Thrawn trilogy, Jedi Academy Trilogy and other EU bits! Heck, animated flashback during one of Tionnes song-lectures of the past?

I am now tempted to set up a website for this hypothetical show complete with fake episode guide, art and all... or a fake trailer! Heck I need some fanartists and animators to do this as a fan-series like others do on youtube for the Thrawn trilogy and Dark Empire already! PLEAAAASE!!! Who's in?

Season 1 - 3 follow the book arcs, with probably two more original seasons after it or between the book arcs before resting the show and giving it a spinof: New Jedi Order!

 

That would change the entire trajectory, and we’d probably have a vastly different NJO and post-NJO and Sequel Trilogy.

 

I was going to say, we’d have probably never gotten the NJO at least as it was constituted at all.

 

I've heard that Lucas mandated around the time of the prequels that there be no Wookiee Jedi, I wonder if the higher level of scrutiny for a TV series might have prevented Lowbacca from being used.

 

It could have been very bad but then 20 years later kids who are grown up said it was the best thing ever and when they make a reboot that actually is objectively better they said they butchered it