*** SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY ***

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The Collective
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Belton Ag said:

Is it just me or does anyone else think it's kind of funny to hear people complain that Solo isn't original enough, just after hearing a bunch of other people complain when they tried to go in a different direction with TLJ.


TLJ has problems, but it also wasn't safe. That's what a majority of super fans supposedly wanted out of it until seeing it. Still, I enjoy TLJ more than I did the first time I saw it.
Furlock Bones
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i saw it yesterday at the Bullock IMAX in Austin. 70mm Laser. since i built my own home theater, i pretty much do not go to the theaters anymore. but, i figured this movie would be the exception.

i'm glad i did. this movie was highly enjoyable. 10x more enjoyable than Rogue One.

i will say i was ever so slightly disappointed in Lando's character. based on the amount of publicity about it, i thought the screen time and scenes were a bit underwhelming.
Furlock Bones
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Prophet00 said:

Fgetting introduced to the new ones (I thought Harrelson did a great job). All in all, I thought it was solid.


that's because Woody is a damned good actor.
lunchbox
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I asked this a couple of pages back but it was right before a page flip...

Is Chewie's life debt to Han still canon? From the little bit of reading I did, the life debt was supposed to be due to Han saving Chewie from Imperial slavery.

That's kind of what happened in the movie...but since there was no mention of it, I didn't know if it still existed.
Brian Earl Spilner
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Zombie Jon Snow said:


You are not the minority... by far the majority here liked it. the minority is more outspoken though.
At the end of the day, this is what matters more than how this one performs at the box office.

This franchise is all about the long game. Star Wars is not going anywhere. (See: Star Wars Galaxy's Edge parks in Disneyland / World, all the new spinoffs, two new movie trilogies, new live-action series, etc.)

This movie will end up bringing back a lot of the good will that might have been lost with TLJ. I guarantee you Kennedy is not worried (at least not too much) about this opening weekend.

I think with all of the production issues (basically shooting the movie twice), and the considerable step down in marketing spending from previous movies, they probably wrote this one off a while ago as far as being a financial juggernaut like the other movies have been. Just make a fun movie that the casual moviegoer can enjoy, and leave a good taste in people's mouths before the "long break" until Ep IX. In that sense, I think they succeeded.

Let's see how Ep IX does.
AgLaw
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Belton Ag said:

Is it just me or does anyone else think it's kind of funny to hear people complain that Solo isn't original enough, just after hearing a bunch of other people complain when they tried to go in a different direction with TLJ.
For the record, I loved TLJ, so don't put me in that boat.
Belton Ag
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AgLaw said:

Belton Ag said:

Is it just me or does anyone else think it's kind of funny to hear people complain that Solo isn't original enough, just after hearing a bunch of other people complain when they tried to go in a different direction with TLJ.
For the record, I loved TLJ, so don't put me in that boat.
No, sorry, that wasn't being directed at you personally, just an observation on all of the various camps that have sprung up around this franchise. I could reasonably expect someone who enjoyed TLJ to find Solo kind of stale.
Ulrich
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I felt like TLJ was less of a new direction and more of a series of twists for the sake of twists. "Look at me, I'm subverting your expectations!"

I didn't want more exposition, but Solo was really well done. I wanted new material, but TLJ was poorly done. Hoping Abrams can combine the best of both worlds.
Belton Ag
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Ulrich said:

I felt like TLJ was less of a new direction and more of a series of twists for the sake of twists. "Look at me, I'm subverting your expectations!"

I didn't want more exposition, but Solo was really well done. I wanted new material, but TLJ was poorly done. Hoping Abrams can combine the best of both worlds.
For the record I'm in almost 100% agreement with your first sentence. I really disliked the way Luke Skywalker was handled in TLJ.
Atreides Ornithopter
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lunchbox said:

I asked this a couple of pages back but it was right before a page flip...

Is Chewie's life debt to Han still canon? From the little bit of reading I did, the life debt was supposed to be due to Han saving Chewie from Imperial slavery.

That's kind of what happened in the movie...but since there was no mention of it, I didn't know if it still existed.
you saw the life debt, I just think Han doesn't realize that is what it is, so the audience doesn't either. Solo 2
The Collective
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Interesting video from when they brought Maul back to CW.
Brian Earl Spilner
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This is helpful.

So we basically have 8 years to work with for an Obi-Wan / Maul story.

Fat Bib Fortuna
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Went to see Solo Sunday night. The most spoiler-free I've been for a SW film since Return of the Jedi.

Really enjoyed it. My bar-none favorite moment was the cut back to Lando in the cockpit during the raid on Kessel when he's video recording himself. Classic Lando.

I really appreciate that this film was made by a lot of people who clearly love Star Wars and respect the whole pantheon of the franchise, not just the movies. I"m sure easter eggs and such have already been discussed, but thought I"d toss out some of my favorite.

1. Han & Quira going to the Coronet spaceport - Coronet being Corellia's capitol and a city heavily featured in Star Wars Galaxies - the greatest timewaster of my entire life.
2. The Imperial academy being on Carida, much as it is in the "Legends" when Han is young.
3. The Bossk reference.
4. Tobias killed Aura Sing! Fantastic hardcore fan drop-in.
5. Everything about the Kessel Run including the Maw brought over from another title.
6. The Xi sisters reference
7. The Mandalorian combat armor in Dryden Vos' yacht
8. Clint Howard
9. Actual aliens from the OT/PT showing up, like the Rodian
10. Beckett using Lando's future skiff guard costume.
11. Quira using Teras Kasi on Kessell
12. the guy from Rogue One being part of the Marauders' crew
13. The red guy with the horns ... I know him from somewhere.

AgGrad99
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Quote:

Here's the problem: there was zero originality in this film. The story was a big bag of meh.
My impression was completely opposite.

Everything seemed new/different to me, especially considering these were characters we were already familiar with. There were no space battles, light sabers, Force using, Dark side, blowing up of battle stations, etc....

This was a completely different type of story than we're used to from Star Wars. Everything felt different to me. Even the 'hero' of the story is a thief and deserter. We're actually rooting for the thieves to pull off a job for the bad guys, who eventually hook up with the marauders, while everyone turns on everyone.

We've been used to characters hopping on spacecraft and flying through the galaxy at will. From the very beginning, they made you feel like that was very very tough for Han and his girl. He was continually trapped in a struggle to survive from beginning to end. It wasn't as 'easy' as we're used to.

Anyway, it's interesting how we can watch the same flick, and have completely opposite views of the same story.
Brian Earl Spilner
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Good catches, as always.

Definitely got a kick out of seeing Lando's costume from Jabba's Palace. And had totally forgotten about that Lando vlogging scene. That was hilarious.
SpreadsheetAg
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MuckRaker96 said:


2. The Imperial academy being on Carida, much as it is in the "Legends" when Han is young. Good drop
3. The Bossk reference. Loved this
4. Tobias killed Aura Sing! Fantastic hardcore fan drop-in. Caught this too, good reference
5. Everything about the Kessel Run including the Maw brought over from another title. (Jedi Academy Series right? Where they built the prototype Death Star and the Suncrusher?)
7. The Mandalorian combat armor in Dryden Vos' yacht (I'll have to look for this next time)
8. Clint Howard (always, haha)
9. Actual aliens from the OT/PT showing up, like the Rodian (Yep, liked seeing new and old mixed)
10. Beckett using Lando's future skiff guard costume. (Loved this little easter egg)
11. Quira using Teras Kasi on Kessell (Caught this as well, had to explain to the wife)
12. the guy from Rogue One being part of the Marauders' crew (didn't catch this, who was it?)
Zombie Jon Snow
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Some people decide they are going to dislike something and then declare it meh. there is no arguing with them they already decided.

I don't get the mentality. I go into every movie open minded and hoping to enjoy something or why would I go in the first place. If I am bound and determined that I won't like something I don't go watch it (I've never seen a Transformers movie for example and don't care to but I'm not going to see them just to crap on them).

Usually there are both good and bad in nearly every film - just a matter of which outweighs the other for my reaction.

Furlock Bones
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2018/05/29/as-solo-a-star-wars-story-flops-are-movies-about-white-men-box-office-poison/#36c0d1025d49

good freaking lord.
Zombie Jon Snow
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SpreadsheetAg said:

MuckRaker96 said:


2. The Imperial academy being on Carida, much as it is in the "Legends" when Han is young. Good drop
3. The Bossk reference. Loved this
4. Tobias killed Aura Sing! Fantastic hardcore fan drop-in. Caught this too, good reference
5. Everything about the Kessel Run including the Maw brought over from another title. (Jedi Academy Series right? Where they built the prototype Death Star and the Suncrusher?)
7. The Mandalorian combat armor in Dryden Vos' yacht (I'll have to look for this next time)
8. Clint Howard (always, haha)
9. Actual aliens from the OT/PT showing up, like the Rodian (Yep, liked seeing new and old mixed)
10. Beckett using Lando's future skiff guard costume. (Loved this little easter egg)
11. Quira using Teras Kasi on Kessell (Caught this as well, had to explain to the wife)
12. the guy from Rogue One being part of the Marauders' crew (didn't catch this, who was it?)

not only Clint Howard but Warwick Davis too!!!
Prophet00
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12. the guy from Rogue One being part of the Marauders' crew (didn't catch this, who was it?)
The Collective
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Blindwave guys mentioned that Maul has a specific fear of Vader that he mentions in Rebels. Is that just based off legend and lore or did they have a run in?
Fat Bib Fortuna
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I think I read Warwick's character is supposed to be teh same characer we see on Tatooine in the phantom menace.

There's also a Scarif reference.

Benthic Two Tubes is in it from Rogue One - one of Saw's guys.

Also loved "I hate you. I know." and Han shooting very very very first.
Brian Earl Spilner
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Interesting. My guess is it's just based on reputation? If you read the Lords of the Sith book, basically all the Twileks on Ryloth have heard the legends of Vader, and that's just 2-3 years after ROTS.
israeliag
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MuckRaker96 said:

1. Han & Quira going to the Coronet spaceport - Coronet being Corellia's capitol and a city heavily featured in Star Wars Galaxies - the greatest timewaster of my entire life.
2. The Imperial academy being on Carida, much as it is in the "Legends" when Han is young.
3. The Bossk reference.
4. Tobias killed Aura Sing! Fantastic hardcore fan drop-in.
5. Everything about the Kessel Run including the Maw brought over from another title.
6. The Xi sisters reference
7. The Mandalorian combat armor in Dryden Vos' yacht
8. Clint Howard
9. Actual aliens from the OT/PT showing up, like the Rodian
10. Beckett using Lando's future skiff guard costume.
11. Quira using Teras Kasi on Kessell
12. the guy from Rogue One being part of the Marauders' crew
13. The red guy with the horns ... I know him from somewhere.
Great list, but number one has to be:
Han shot first.

There were a lot of great little... easter eggs?... thrown in that didn't feel forced.

Another favorite:
"I've got a really good feeling about this."

And the "I hate you", "I know" exchange between Lando and Han.
The Collective
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Brian Earl Spilner said:

Interesting. My guess is it's just based on reputation? If you read the Lords of the Sith book, basically all the Twileks on Ryloth have heard the legends of Vader, and that's just 2-3 years after ROTS.


I'll have to rewatch for context, but I agree that it is probably reputation.
The Collective
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Han shooting first was one of the greatest gifts Disney SW has given us. Thanks, Ron Howard / Kasdans.
Fat Bib Fortuna
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There's a great comic book from Star Wars "Tales" where Vader fights a clone of Maul. Maul despises Vader for being so imperfect as a Sith.

If a sequel gets made, would love to see Han and Chewie in a all-out war between Jabba/The Hutts and Maul/Crimson Dawn. The tricky part there making sure Han/Maul never cross paths or else it would make ANH make no sense.

Think it would be really cool to see some of the ESB bounty hunters being allies of Han in such a movie under Jabba's leash, Dengar or IG88 or Bossk .

Pretty sure that's te first Mando armor seen in a movie outside of Boba/Jango.
Fat Bib Fortuna
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When I see it again I'll have to try and catch what Lando is saying in the Vlog, it sounded a bit like one of the early novels he's in.

I also really enjoyed the Imperial battle scene early on when Han is just a slug in the army - great look at "the real" Empire, not the stormtroopers and biker scouts and AT-ATs, just the "let's run this planet over with troops" That was a great Fog of War scene.

And how could I forget, the Imperial recruitment video!
Render
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Zombie Jon Snow said:

AgLaw said:

TCTTS said:

AgLaw said:

Just saw it. Let me start by saying this. I am a massive Star Wars fan. I was six when ANH came out. I had OG figures as a kid. I've seen every movie opening weekend, dating back to 1977. There is not a movie franchise I love more than this.

I loved the characters. I loved the performances (especially Ehenreich and Glover) . I loved the action. As a stabdallne movie, I had fun.

Here's the problem: there was zero originality in this film. The story was a big bag of meh. It had a Phantom Menace/Attack of the Clones feel in the sense that it was two-plus hours of setting up sequels instead of telling a fun story. I felt like they dusted off a B-movie script from the fifties and shoe-horned in a bunch of fanboy SW references (all of which I ate up).

I'll watch it again,, but I'll probabky wait until it's on demand.

I'll give you the originality angle. It didn't feel "fresh," but at the same time, I never expected it to be. It's a movie set in a familiar time in the franchise, starring an extremely familiar character. I don't know why anyone would be going in expecting something "original." The whole point was familiarity (which I admit may have backfired when it came to the box office).

That said, I absolutely do not get your "two plus hours of setting up sequels" comment at all. I literally did not in anyway get that impression save for the last five minutes. To me this was a fun story. One that felt self contained, gave Han a compelling arc, and tied everything up brilliantly. I don't know how it could have been any more of Han Solo spin-off that fully maximized its potential.


You can have originality with familiar characters. See the Christopher Nolan era Batman films or the Daniel Craig Bond films. Just because the characters are known commodities doesn't mean you can't crate something new.

The problem here isn't the characters. The problem is the story. There was nothing new here. The hero with the heart of gold story - this is essentially the same story arc the character takes in ANH.

Here's what we learned: Han is a good guy. Chewy has incredible strength. Both are great pilots. Lando can't be trusted. Welcome to the end of Empire.

Like I said. I'll watch it again. I just wasn't as entertained as I was with Rogue One. This one just seemed too predictable.



If that's all you learned you missed a hell of a lot. did you sleep through it?

I learned:

Han had a rough background
Han was in the military (Empire) and was a deserter
Han had a love interest that drove a lot of his early life
Chewie was tortured and treated like an animal
Chewie stuck with Han because he treated him fairly
Han spoke wookie long before he met Chewie
How Han won the MF - that he initially did not win it actually cuz Lando is a cheater.
How Han accomplished the legendary Kessel run
Han always shot first
etc etc....

I think we learned a lot.


It's a backstory. It's not going to be completely original. but it had a lot for me filling in some blanks and some questions.

And as for characters it had a lot of new ones to fulfill that need - Q'ira, Beckett, L3, Val, Dryden, Enfys. Ok so most of them are dead now. so what... everyone in RO died and I loved it.

It was fun, it added to the overall story, and it was a good action movie. I expected nothing more than that but got a lot more.




All that is the problem. That's not what makes movies interesting. Take all the SW stuff out of this movie - would it still be a good movie? Would it stand on its own merits? I say no.

Do we really need to see every minutia of this character fleshed out? And why are we even doing that? Because we like the character. And why do we like the character? Because they went on fun space adventures with likeable characters. And was this movie a fun space adventure with likeable characters? No. But it could have been, if this movie had focused on being a movie.

Half of this movie was spent on ultimately pointless backstory, and the other half was spent on a boring plot and dull characters. (Granted, the Kessel Run should have great, but Disney somehow made it a boring CGI schizophrenic mess. Lando is an interesting character, but was given little screen time, and Woody's character (who I can't even remember the name of) could have been interesting, but we weren't given any time to spend with him.)

Ultimately this movie was like trying to tell the backstory of Eastwood's Man with No Name. Why even bother? "Oh we need to see how he got to the West and why he smokes cigars!" You'll never make a good movie with that mentality. SW movies are turning into Wookieepedia articles - and that's not a good thing.

Just so y'all know I'm not a complete cynic, take Furiosa from Mad Max: Fury Road. She was a brand new character in an established universe, and it was a fantastic movie. That's how Disney should do it: new characters unencumbered by backstory, with the focus being on telling a story. Because that's why people see movies - to be immersed in the movie's universe via a good plot, characters, and appeal to emotion.
fig96
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MuckRaker96 said:

When I see it again I'll have to try and catch what Lando is saying in the Vlog, it sounded a bit like one of the early novels he's in.

I also really enjoyed the Imperial battle scene early on when Han is just a slug in the army - great look at "the real" Empire, not the stormtroopers and biker scouts and AT-ATs, just the "let's run this planet over with troops" That was a great Fog of War scene.

And how could I forget, the Imperial recruitment video!
"It's their planet. We're the hostiles."

Also, L3 leading the revolution was pretty hilarious in moments
Brian Earl Spilner
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Oops, fixed.

Zombie Jon Snow
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Render said:

Zombie Jon Snow said:

AgLaw said:

TCTTS said:

AgLaw said:

Just saw it. Let me start by saying this. I am a massive Star Wars fan. I was six when ANH came out. I had OG figures as a kid. I've seen every movie opening weekend, dating back to 1977. There is not a movie franchise I love more than this.

I loved the characters. I loved the performances (especially Ehenreich and Glover) . I loved the action. As a stabdallne movie, I had fun.

Here's the problem: there was zero originality in this film. The story was a big bag of meh. It had a Phantom Menace/Attack of the Clones feel in the sense that it was two-plus hours of setting up sequels instead of telling a fun story. I felt like they dusted off a B-movie script from the fifties and shoe-horned in a bunch of fanboy SW references (all of which I ate up).

I'll watch it again,, but I'll probabky wait until it's on demand.

I'll give you the originality angle. It didn't feel "fresh," but at the same time, I never expected it to be. It's a movie set in a familiar time in the franchise, starring an extremely familiar character. I don't know why anyone would be going in expecting something "original." The whole point was familiarity (which I admit may have backfired when it came to the box office).

That said, I absolutely do not get your "two plus hours of setting up sequels" comment at all. I literally did not in anyway get that impression save for the last five minutes. To me this was a fun story. One that felt self contained, gave Han a compelling arc, and tied everything up brilliantly. I don't know how it could have been any more of Han Solo spin-off that fully maximized its potential.


You can have originality with familiar characters. See the Christopher Nolan era Batman films or the Daniel Craig Bond films. Just because the characters are known commodities doesn't mean you can't crate something new.

The problem here isn't the characters. The problem is the story. There was nothing new here. The hero with the heart of gold story - this is essentially the same story arc the character takes in ANH.

Here's what we learned: Han is a good guy. Chewy has incredible strength. Both are great pilots. Lando can't be trusted. Welcome to the end of Empire.

Like I said. I'll watch it again. I just wasn't as entertained as I was with Rogue One. This one just seemed too predictable.



If that's all you learned you missed a hell of a lot. did you sleep through it?

I learned:

Han had a rough background
Han was in the military (Empire) and was a deserter
Han had a love interest that drove a lot of his early life
Chewie was tortured and treated like an animal
Chewie stuck with Han because he treated him fairly
Han spoke wookie long before he met Chewie
How Han won the MF - that he initially did not win it actually cuz Lando is a cheater.
How Han accomplished the legendary Kessel run
Han always shot first
etc etc....

I think we learned a lot.


It's a backstory. It's not going to be completely original. but it had a lot for me filling in some blanks and some questions.

And as for characters it had a lot of new ones to fulfill that need - Q'ira, Beckett, L3, Val, Dryden, Enfys. Ok so most of them are dead now. so what... everyone in RO died and I loved it.

It was fun, it added to the overall story, and it was a good action movie. I expected nothing more than that but got a lot more.




All that is the problem. That's not what makes movies interesting. Take all the SW stuff out of this movie - would it still be a good movie? Would it stand on its own merits? I say no.

Do we really need to see every minutia of this character fleshed out? And why are we even doing that? Because we like the character. And why do we like the character? Because they went on fun space adventures with likeable characters. And was this movie a fun space adventure with likeable characters? No. But it could have been, if this movie had focused on being a movie.

Half of this movie was spent on ultimately pointless backstory, and the other half was spent on a boring plot and dull characters. (Granted, the Kessel Run should have great, but Disney somehow made it a boring CGI schizophrenic mess. Lando is an interesting character, but was given little screen time, and Woody's character (who I can't even remember the name of) could have been interesting, but we weren't given any time to spend with him.)

Ultimately this movie was like trying to tell the backstory of Eastwood's Man with No Name. Why even bother? "Oh we need to see how he got to the West and why he smokes cigars!" You'll never make a good movie with that mentality. SW movies are turning into Wookieepedia articles - and that's not a good thing.

Just so y'all know I'm not a complete cynic, take Furiosa from Mad Max: Fury Road. She was a brand new character in an established universe, and it was a fantastic movie. That's how Disney should do it: new characters unencumbered by backstory, with the focus being on telling a story. Because that's why people see movies - to be immersed in the movie's universe via a good plot, characters, and appeal to emotion.
Disagree on EVERY singe point.

I did enjoy seeing the minutia as you call it - had you left out all those things people would complain.

I think it was a fun space adventure. I had fun. Everyone I know who saw it loved it and had fun. Even non SW fans.

Backstory is NOT pointless. thats what this movie was in fact and did it well.

Lando and BECKETT were interesting.

you obviously thought the movie was unnecessary and did not care what it did you were going to hate it.


Mad Max is more of a reboot too - it's not the Mad Max origin story.

I'm not even sure why some of you went to see this movie. Except to complain. you could see it clearly on the naysayers before the movie even opened on this thread.



Flashdiaz
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AG
nice timeline.

Let's say they expand on Maul in the movies (Solo 2, Obi Wan), how will they bring closure to the character for the audience that doesn't watch cartoons?
Brian Earl Spilner
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AG
I have the same question. You have to assume that 90% of viewers will not have seen Rebels (including myself), so I wonder how they'll do that.
lunchbox
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Flashdiaz said:

nice timeline.

Let's say they expand on Maul in the movies (Solo 2, Obi Wan), how will they bring closure to the character for the audience that doesn't watch cartoons?
You could have his syndicate taken down, but he escapes and goes into hiding...possibly due to the distraction of a dying/injured Qi'ra
 
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