Credit: Edited by Inside the MagicThe Marvel Multiverse and the galaxy far, far away are two of the most prominent fictional bodies in our popular culture, but as Marvel struggles with storytelling and directional confusion, Star Wars continues to expand and flourish.
With rewrites, cancellations, and delay after delay after delay, the Marvel Cinematic Universe isn’t the powerhouse it used to be before Avengers: Endgame (2019). However, its sci-fi sibling over at Lucasfilm doesn’t seem to have the same issues, despite following the pattern of introducing new characters, elements, and creators.
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Like Marvel, Star Wars has evolved beyond the battle of heroes and villains that made it famous. There’s nothing wrong with seeing the Jedi Knights fight the Sith Lords or the Rebel Alliance defeat the tyranny of the Galactic Empire, and there’s nothing wrong with watching Spider-Man or the Avengers tackle masked villains or intergalactic entities, but only Star Wars has managed to keep things fresh with each new addition.
Star Wars: “From a Certain Point of View”
Whether it’s as recent as The Marvels (2023) or even as something as fun as Taika Waitit’s portion of the Thor franchise, a lot has been said about superhero fatigue and how the Marvel Multiverse is quickly losing its touch. James Gunn, spearhead and director of the acclaimed Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, admitted where the problem truly lies.
“It has to do with the kind of stories that get to be told, and if you lose your eye on the ball, which is character. We love Superman. We love Batman. We love Iron Man. Because they’re these incredible characters that we have in our hearts.”
The Star Wars franchise is arguably just as big and extended as Marvel’s, but little has been said about “Star Wars Fatigue.” What does one universe have that the other lacks?
While Doctor Strange has proven that the MCU exists in a Multiverse, size does not always matter regarding good storytelling. Marvel will always need its heroes and villains to get things off the ground, but Star Wars has mastered an element that the MCU is still figuring out post-Thanos: a matter of perspective.
In the words of Obi-Wan Kenobi, “What I told you was true, from a certain point of view.” Although the series had similar origins to Marvel’s legion of superheroes, the universe has since expanded into a story of epic proportions, alternative perspectives keep things from getting repetitive (And yes, “Somehow, Palpatine returned.”).
Lucasfilm writes in its story group statement,
“The Lucasfilm Story Group ensures that every aspect of Star Wars fits together as part of a larger universe. The team works across all platforms including feature films television, publishing, games, and more to keep everything working together within a single narrative timeline.”
It’s not about the light side and dark side anymore. It’s about rebels, tyrants, Jedi, Sith, smugglers, and bounty hunters and where they all fit in this one epic narrative.
Marvel has plenty of wonderful characters, but with the introduction of the Multiverse and alternate timelines, the studio has been wounded by its own success. If Star Wars is a straight timeline, Marvel is a web of stories that needs to reel it in to get back on target.
Inside the Magic reached out to Lucasfilm for further comment, but no response was received at the time of publishing.
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