5 Worst Fan-Service Moments In Disney’s Star Wars

The Disney era of Star Wars media has had its highs and lows, just like all eras of Star Wars productions. Star Wars in the 80s, for instance, produced both The Empire Strikes Back and those two Ewok TV movies. Meanwhile, Disney’s Star Wars has produced the two best Star Wars productions in history (Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Andor) while also reveling in the kind of fan service that capsized the Prequel Trilogy. Outings like The Rise of Skywalker and The Book of Boba Fett were decimated by relying too heavily on yesteryear Star Wars projects rather than creating new material to engage viewers.

Five moments from post-2012 Star Wars media, in particular, stand out as the nadir of Disney’s Star Wars ownership in terms of clumsy fan service. Modern Star Wars has given the world Porgs, “I have friends everywhere,” and iconic new orchestral tracks like “Rey’s Theme.” However, it’s also, unfortunately, delivered five moments of especially cringeworthy fan-service.

1) Familiar Cantina Faces on Jedha in Rogue One

Rogue One has an unfortunate problem with relying too heavily on nods to older Star Wars media, including those creepy CG replicas of Original Trilogy actors and Michael Giacchino’s score leaning too much on pre-established musical leitmotifs. The worst example of Rogue One’s fan-service, though, comes from Jyn Erso and Cassian Andor encountering A New Hope characters Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba while navigating Jedha. In just a few days’ time, these two would encounter Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Mos Eisley Cantina and walk away missing an arm. For some reason, though, Rogue One had to stop its plot to feature the pair’s earlier exploits for just a second. It simply doesn’t work, including how neither of these have a big enough fanbase to justify such a cameo.

2) Somehow, Darth Maul Has Returned in Solo

Solo: A Star Wars Story’s leading lady, Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke), spends the movie’s entire runtime hesitating to tell a young Han Solo about her true allegiances. In the film’s finale, it’s revealed she’s actually working for Darth Maul, who briefly appears via a hologram. This bizarre cameo plays off of the character’s ascent to gangster overlord in The Clone Wars. However, for most general moviegoers, Darth Maul was last seen getting sliced in half on The Phantom Menace. His inexplicable resurrection is more confusing than anything else, while suddenly shoehorning in a Force-user into a story about bounty hunters is gravely disappointing.

3) Chewie Finally Gets His Medal

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker had no time to give Rose Tico anything substantial to do or thoughtfully explore the interior lives of Finn and Poe Dameron. What it did have time for, though, was Maz Kanata giving Chewbacca a medal in the film’s final moments. This finally paid off a long-standing fan complaint that this furry critter never got a medal at the award ceremony at the end of A New Hope. It’s a beat only making sense for viewers at home rather than something that works on its own inside the feature. How fitting that a film immersed in shoddy storytelling would end on such ham-fisted fan-service.

4) Anything Involving CG Luke Skywalker in The Book of Boba Fett

In the past, different ages of a fictional character’s life would be played by different actors. In projects ranging from The Godfather: Part II to even the Prequel Trilogy, audiences could fascinatingly witness performers combine familiar traits with fresh approaches to a pre-existing character. Now, in the modern world, a character is trapped forever at the mercy of whoever played them first thanks to terrible-looking digital de-aging nonsense. This phenomenon reared its head for The Book of Boba Fett, which continued extensively using the digitally de-aged Luke Skywalker from The Mandalorian’s season two finale.

God forbid anyone else get a crack at playing this role. This attempt to make Star Wars fans clap their hands in glee over seeing Return of the Jedi-era Luke Skywalker again just looked so eerie. Any low-key conversations between this digital Luke and Ahsoka Tano or Grogu were distracting because of the character’s unconvincing skin and dismal lip movements. A character who once represented richly human aspirations of defying your upbringing was now a hollow digital manifestation of a franchise refusing to let the past die.

5) And Then There’s Palpatine in The Rise of Skywalker

Every aspect of Star Wars media has its fans. Whether it’s the goofiest parts of the Expanded Universe, divisive movies like Attack of the Clones, or even obscure corners of the franchise like the Droids cartoon, there’s always a devotee to every parsec of Star Wars projects. Yet it’s doubtful Palpatine’s return in The Rise of Skywalker has any significant fanbase or any real defenders. It’s a universally despised element for countless good reasons. An attempt to “rhyme” The Rise of Skywalker with Return of the Jedi, bringing back this familiar foe just left the new elements of the Sequel Trilogy adrift.

Props to Ian McDiarmid for chewing up all the scenery in his screentime, but Palpatine’s return was still such a lazy route to take this trio of films. Even the reveal of him being Rey’s ancestor just rang as a hollow attempt to make the “I am your father” lightning strike twice. Palpatine’s dreadful comeback encapsulates the problems of leaning so hard on the past. Looking backwards so much leaves you vulnerable to tripping in the here and now.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is now streaming on Disney+.