Seven years ago, fans were teased with clips of a new cartoon comedy, Star Wars: Detours, but the parody series was sadly never released. Detours, set between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope, was the last creation of under the watch of George Lucas before he sold his Lucasfilm empire to Disney. Disney's acquiring of the studio is likely why this new Star Wars series was knocked off course, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t still hope for its future on Disney+.
Some of the reasons why this particular space odyssey may not have seen the light of day is that it’s quite peculiar and deviates from the feel of other Star Wars content. Though the idea of a Star Wars comedy oozes with potential, George Lucas has never been known for a sophisticated brand of comedy (even if you ignore the Star Wars Holiday Special).
Lucas dabbled with comedy in his original Star Wars trilogy, adding goofy scenes and campy shtick comedy to appeal to young kids. While his intentions may have been good, the execution was out of place with the rest of the dramatic Star Wars tone. It never seemed to fit comfortably, no matter how many re-edits or refinements there were. By creating Star Wars: Detours, Lucasfilm was given space to create a comedic Star Wars series without clashing with the original dramatic tone of the movies. Detours also had an amazing mix of outside talent who helped create the series and looked like a sure-fire hit made by a team of all-stars.
The creative team behind the hit comedy series, Robot Chicken, worked alongside Lucas to make Star Wars: Detours. It came after Robot Chicken’s hugely-successful iconic Star Wars specials that even George Lucas himself enjoyed, so there was little doubt that Seth Green and company would be able to deliver the same high calibre entertainment as before. Only this time, they had character help from Lucas alumni Anthony Daniels, Ahmed Best and Billy Dee Williams reprising their roles alongside big names like Weird Al Yankovic, Joel McHale and even Seth McFarlane. That creative roster alone should be enough to push Disney+ to release it, but the fact the show is still locked away might indicate something went wrong.
Lucasfilm created the series because it had no plans to make live action movies. However, Disney bought Lucasfilm just months after series teasers were released. Disney quickly announced it would resume making live action Star Wars movies with Episode VII, and releasing this oddball comedy series suddenly wouldn't be a good fit. It had been almost a decade since the Revenge of the Sith, and Disney likely didn’t want to introduce a new generation of prospective fans to Star Wars with an animated comedy
From butt-slapping to lines about “raining chicks” while on vacation, the jokes seemed more adult-skewed in kids' packaging. Detours looks spectacular, but the humor isn’t sophisticated or particularly witty, which feels a bit off-brand. Star Wars: Detours might be funny without the Star Wars brand, but much of the humor teased is meant to play as ironic, since they’re doing “normal” things in the Star Wars universe, which is supposed to be the punchline of the humor.
With 39 episodes ready for broadcast and another 62 finished episode scripts, it seems like a no-brainer for Disney to add it to its streaming service. Disney+ at risk for the sophomore slump without more original programming, and Star Wars: Detours could be the bounce it needs to help move beyond The Mandalorian. At the very least, Disney+ should release the series to give fans a chance to judge just for themselves.