Editorial: George Lucas. Just Shut Up.

These Stormtroopers can no longer defend you, Mr. Lucas. 

I'm just so angry. 

Artist. Creator. Inventor. Dreamer. Brat. 

Once again, Mr. Lucas airs his grievances and the public revolts. Much like his jabs at the fans that made his fortune, his latest rant takes him down another notch and paints him as a self indulgent former genius that will never learn to shut his mouth. 

The man that created an entire legacy around a boy named Skywalker has officially left the farm and become a sniveling brat unworthy of his own creation. Setting all prequel bashing aside, the one time mastermind that gave us a series of magical tales set in space has fully gutted any semblance of respect he once deserved by calling the purchasers of his property 'white slavers'. This ego-maniacal destroyer of self appointed dreams has not only turned his back on his own fandom and long running series but has now ruined any and all chances of returning to a place of respect with fans and/or the people that were keeping him around for consultation on the new movies. 

It was his choice to sell Lucasfilm and all its properties. No one held a gun to his back. No one twisted his arm. He made a conscious decision to sell and needs to deal with the consequences of his actions. Much like his constant toying with the original Star Wars trilogy with needless do overs, special editions, and horrendous looking effects tweaks, his own ego cannot and will not allow him to rest on the choices he's made professionally. Considering the abysmal failure of Red Tails and his last animated flop Strange Magic, the man simply cannot get out of his own way. To insult and berate a company that paid you billions of dollars for an intellectual property is unprofessional and absolutely symbolic of the problematic over inflated ego that drove the Skywalker mythos into the ground somewhere around the release of the dreaded Phantom Menace. 

If Lucas thinks for one second that he's doing anything to help himself by boisterously attacking Disney and their 'retro' feeling release of The Force Awakens, he's kidding himself. Despite the 5-6 percent of people that claim to "not like" or "hate" the movie, this is a bigger hit than any of the prequels were and (no matter what you say) sits much more in line with his very own original creation. Sadly, he can't handle that JJ Abrams out-Lucased Lucas.  TFA (even with its numerous problems) has the look, the feel, the chemistry, and the quality looking effects that pulls it back in to the foray of what most fans expected from the prequels. There's no political mumbo jumbo about trade disputes and god awful talk of midichlorians. There are likable characters and a story focused on the hero's journey. At the core, it's Star Wars again, with a man at the helm that (at least) tried to give fans what they wanted. 

That paycheck really hurts, doesn't it?

Yes, Mr. Lucas. Disney gave fans what they wanted. They gave us Star Wars back. They took it out of your greedy little mitts and delivered a soft reboot of A New Hope that brings back our original cast and the aspects that made the series so delightful in the first place. Is it greater than your initial trilogy? No, probably not. But it's within inches of the former glory of a series that undoubtedly slid down the exhaust port into self gratification and sheer boredom. Leave it be. 

Do I respect what he created in the '70s and '80s? Yes. Absolutely. But somewhere along the way, he lost his god damned mind. Now, it's time for him to shut the hell up. 

-CG

(edit: since publishing this article, George Lucas has issued an apology -via Disney- for his statement calling them 'white slavers')

"I have been working with Disney for 40 years and chose them as the custodians of Star Wars because of my great respect for the company and Bob Iger’s leadership.  Disney is doing an incredible job of taking care of and expanding the franchise.  I rarely go out with statements to clarify my feelings but I feel it is important to make it clear that I am thrilled that Disney has the franchise and is moving it in such exciting directions in film, television and the parks.  Most of all I’m blown away with the record breaking blockbuster success of the new movie and am very proud of JJ and Kathy." - George Lucas