I awoke this morning from my tryptophan induced post Thanksgiving Day coma with only one thought racing through my crazy little brain: Episode four is out!!!
I, like the rest of humanity (or so it would seem), have fallen totally under the spell of this new vision for the Star Wars universe, just not for the same reasons as a few people out there would have you think are important. I too love the story, the silent Man Without a Name lead character, the all too adorable young...Yodaling (is that even a word?). What I love most about this series is that it remembered something very important to the original trilogy. It was all brazenly stolen from other film makers and turned into our new mythology.
Episode four is just as well told as the other three episodes we've had so far. The story moves at a great clip, with a heart worn on its sleeve. The imagery is clear, it's the Lone Wolf and Cub story, the bad man that finds salvation and doom in the saving of a child. Just like the source it's so obviously lifted from, it creates magic. While the first three episodes were clearly spaghetti westerns in all the right ways, here we take a turn and move smack dab into the middle of a mid-century Samurai epic. And it's virtually flawless.
Last episode we got a taste of the first woman to direct a Star Wars live action piece, this week, we got our second one, and she might have some of the best film making genes out there, Bryce Dallas Howard. Last seen directing the documentary Dads, here she handles the horror of battle with efficiency worthy of her dad. She is deftly switching between intense action and strong bonding moments with ease. If she decides to give up acting, she, like her father before her, has a pretty outstanding future in the directing game.
Along with Bryce Dallas Howard entering the fray, we have Gina Carano making her Star Wars debut, and it's perfect. She is such a force on screen, it's wonderful. Bringing humor, strength and vulnerability to the screen with ease. Keep your eyes on Julia Jones in this one as well, she brings a great presence to the screen as well.
Every episode so far has left me excited for the next, and even though I think I know where the series is going, I can't wait to watch it get there. Honestly, next to Watchmen this is the best thing out there for your streaming buck.
-Trevor West
