The following contains spoilers for Willow Season 1, Episode 6, "Chapter VI: Prisoners of Skellin," now streaming on Disney+.
One of the most interesting tidbits that many forget regarding 1988's cult-favorite Willow is that George Lucas conceived the story while making his Star Wars movies. While filming Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, Lucas asked Warwick Davis, who was portraying Wicket the Ewok, about playing Willow Ufgood, further adding to the films' commonalities. While Star Wars was about a cosmic fellowship saving the galaxy, Willow focused on the medieval land of Tir Asleen.
Thankfully, the Disney+ series expands on the magical realm, adding nuance and depth the way the Star Wars shows and cartoons are now doing. Elora Danan has shades of Rey and Luke Skywalker as a Chosen One, while Boorman reeks of Han Solo. In Episode 6, Willow offers up another Star Wars tribute, nodding to a key rescue in Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope.
A New Hope Had an Undercover Job
In A New Hope, Obi-Wan Kenobi helped Luke and Han on the Death Star when they hatched a smash-and-grab plan to rescue Princess Leia. The guys disguised themselves as Stormtroopers, broke her out and made the epic bridge jump. It's where they fell for her, although Leia showed she was no damsel in distress when she grabbed a gun and fired at the Stormtroopers.
Amid all the action, the sequence had many comical moments, including the trio's garbage chute escape and Han's impersonation of a Stormtrooper. These moments showed how well Lucasfilm mixed levity with grave situations. Luke, Leia and Han would eventually slip on board the Millennium Falcon and escape, but sadly, they lost Obi-Wan to Vader. They were grateful for the small victory, though, as this trifecta would then help bring down Palpatine.
Willow Also Has a Spy Mission
Willow follows suit at the Skellin prison, where Princess Kit and Willow are taken prisoner. The trolls want to harness their essence for the Crone, so Boorman and the others take out some trolls, dressed up with masks and helmets, basically coming off as primitive Stormtroopers. Graydon also nods to Han, faking a conversation with the trolls to throw them off. They eventually reunite with Kit and Willow, before sliding down, not a trash chute, but into a secret vault where Boorman would get his armor and Kit would meet the spirit of Madmartigan.
The homage is further built with them jumping across a perilous rope bridge, nodding to the mechanical one from A New Hope. To top it off, they lose Allagash, who sacrifices himself against the trolls, so the heroes can escape. Seeing as he was Madmartigan's colleague and taught them about heroism in their brief relationship, he definitely filled the Obi-Wan role. The Star Wars parallels aren't a surprise, as Willow showrunner Jonathan Kasdan wrote Solo: A Star Wars Story with his father, Lawrence, whose writing credits include Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi and Episode VII - The Force Awakens. Clearly, the Kasdans remain fans of the first film, with the undercover mission resulting in them escaping the trolls and plotting a course to bring down the Crone's empire.
Willow debuts new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.