Im probably the only one in the world that loved every single episode. obviously I loved some more than the others but all of them in general are really freakin awesome to me
The Village Bride was easily my favourite; the music, the world building, and the charactarization really came together. That said, I do see more potential in the Ninth Jedi going forwards. The Tatooine band one was also much more fun then I expected.
The village bride was absolutely incredible. I loved every single second of it. It and the ninth Jedi were my absolute favorites. Such creative story telling and such a fresh take on a galaxy we all love so much!
After watching them all, my biggest problem is that there wasn't one based around space battles. I think star wars space battles would be so cool in star wars form.
@@bobtank6318 Most of them can be very wacky and over the top, but I think that SSSS.Gridman, SSSS.Dynazenon, Promare, Kill la Kill, Little Witch Academia, and Space Patrol Luluco are internally consistent enough to be sensical. I'll give you Inferno Cop, but that show is literally a walking shitpost.
The Ninth Jedi is personally my favorite! It was so badass and amazing, I am loving visions so far! Can't wait for a series 2 of it (if one ever happens)
That's awesome you and Molly got a chance to review _Star Wars Visions_ and looking forward to your opinions on each of the shorts. Hopefully if this series is successful, not only would it be renewed for another season but also would allow Disney to do more Anime series on their Disney+ platform beyond _Star Wars Visions_ either based on their IP (Star Wars, Marvel, Kingdom Hearts, etc.) or some original anime similar to what Netflix is doing.
They managed to make some of these episodes have more weight and interesting concepts than we've seen in quite awhile. It's refreshing to see creators just have free reign and be creative.
Seriously. The duel was awesome, the twins despite lacking in story reminded me of the 2003 animated clone wars based purely off of its action and animation. And the ninth Jedi could have its own series and I’d be overjoyed. And even though I haven’t watched it yet, I’ve heard the elder is also really good so I’ll get around to that. Wish that maybe some of them could have been better but honestly none of them felt like a waste of time. It’s cool to see so much diversity in both animation and quality. Haha… oh … ugh.)
if your wondering why there was so many wondering jedi or jedi in hiding its becuse it relates back to Japanese history and myth wondering jedi are inspired by RONIN ,ronin are samurai that left thair shogun or clan and wonder around as mercenary's or or helpful vagabonds jedi in hiding relate to a lot of Japanese history and myth the formation of the ninjas the war of Tsushima when the samuri had to become covert and and practise the guerrilla warfare against the Mongol fleet ,and the last samurai of Shiroyama fighting a losing battle against the Japanese EMPIRER
I don't think he was really wondering about it so much as he was bringing up that it got a little tiring to see some of the same elements in different stories. It's a cool piece of info, definitely something that helps to enlighten one's view as to why certain decisions were made but at the same time, I don't think it will result in anyone going "Well, now I understand and really like the wandering Jedi stuff." so much as it will make them go "Well, now I understand and find that cool... but there were still too many wandering Jedi stories at least for me.".
@@the-aspiring-creator4249 I think it was a bit narrow-minded to say, since some of these short films to some extent remix elements already present in the universe, all while mostly being new stories with anime influences
I love how things like eastern mysticism really plays well with the Star Wars franchise, which does make sense since the eastern influences are clear with the Jedi order in and of itself. This to me was such an incredible blending of things that I was very impressed. The visuals were incredible. As were the soundtracks. I look forward to seeing what else can be done
The 9th Jedi and The Duel were my favorites. But hearing that The Duel is getting a book based off of it. I am really going to enjoy that book for sure. But I really enjoyed these. Not all of them connected with me and some of them like you said fell short alittle but overall it was a fun series and I really enjoyed it. I could see some of these turn into season. I would love to watch a full season of The Duel and the 9th Jedi. And since they are the two highest rated episodes I could see it becoming a thing for sure.
Absolutely love visions. I had some nitpicks here and there but after realizing that they were given freedom to interpret the star wars universe in any way they want i actually enjoyed each episode. Gotta say i really loved the village bride episode. One gripe is that the main character wasnt able to show off her lightsaber skills. Hope to see more of her in the future
Super excited to watch these! I really love y’all’s mindset of “okay, that was fun, maybe not entirely for me but somebody else might like it.” So refreshing to have a wholesome space in the Star Wars fandom.
@@TheWhills Hello Greedo is great. He's always got the most mature takes on dumb things in the fanbase and is critical in a genuine way about the future of star wars as a franchise. I look forward to seeing his thoughts on Visions as someone who doesn't know a lot about anime but wants to see something unique out of Star Wars.
I just finished watching all 9 episodes, and all i can say, is that is was AWESOME!!! having to establish, set, and tell a small story in just 15 minutes is VERY hard to do, but it was enough to keep me happy. The fight scenes were entertaining and flashy, the art styles and animation are all top notch, its truly a special way of telling a story in the star wars universe, because of all the potential, but at the same time, without being able to expand the stories, since each episode is only 15 minutes, you kinda just have to accept them for what they are. There area LOT of moments that are outrageously inaccurate, both in terms of star wars lore, and in actual real life physics, like being able to breathe in space, but then you realise it was ALL one for dramatic effect and entertainment value, you REALLY have to switch your brain off and watch the spectacle for the sake of it, because its a tonne of fun, its only made me want more, and to see certain characters and concepts be adopted and expanded on by the respective creators that created them.
What did you think of the Ronin using a sheath for his lightsaber. My friend hated it, I contested perhaps the sheath is made of beskar. He said Beskar would eventually overheat and melt. What do you think?
@@chrisstfort7 If I remember correctly, the sheath was also a lightsaber and it was what the Ronin used to kill his opponent by surprise. And seeing how he draws it, it reminds me quite a lot with how Ashoka turned on her lightsabers in Rebels: initially joint together and then they generate the blade as they are separated. Maybe it's for the purpose of giving the blade a defined, edged shape or as part of a mechanism to generate the blade with his particular model The sheath could also serve the purpose of concealment. Given that the episode was set in a heavily feudal Japan influenced universe, it could fool people into thinking it's a regular katana so it helps in disguising his true identity and surprising enemies when fighting
@@granmastersword This is the best response I have seen about the sheath. Your interpretation makes sense. Thank you for your response! What was your favorite episode? My top 4 are The Duel, The Village Bride, The Ninth Jedi, and The Elder.
A little bit of a nitpick, but anime is not a genre it is a medium. Saying anime is a genre is like saying Star Wars movies are in the live action genre. It looks like these shorts are in several genres, but all the stories are told through the anime medium.
I think the existence of Visions is more important to the future of the Star Wars franchise than people might realize. Even though this is purposefully not considered canon, the fact that Disney/Lucasfilm have decided to greenlight such an experimental concept is a noticeable step away from the direction that it seemed Lucasfilm was wanting to head during the production of the sequel trilogy. The critical failure of those films to appeal to pop culture and the following success of things like The Mandalorian have likely taught Lucasfilm some valuable lessons, but if something like Visions turns out to be a success, it can shift the direction that future canon Star Wars media, including all of the shows we have coming soon, can go. Personally, that's the direction I hope they go (or continue to trend). Where the story's are actually about something again and are not afraid to take incredible risks.
Only half way in but as a Star Wars and Anime fan, I have had fun getting to see this blend of ideas. I have a huge love for Trigger and their Star Wars meets Promare approach in The Twins hit a perfect note for me
I was absolutely blown away. What a masterpiece! Sure, some stories are better than others, but all were fun to watch and visually stuning. And The Duel, The Elder and The Ninth Jedi are among the best stories in Star Wars. Ever.
The village bride was absolutely incredible. I loved every single second of it. It and the ninth Jedi were my absolute favorites. Such creative story telling and such a fresh take on a galaxy we all love so much!
I really enjoyed all the episodes, and it was such a treat to see a bunch of distinct anime styles represented! Personally, my favourite one was Akakiri, the animation in that one was the most visually intriguing for me, and I felt it was similar to Rogue One and Revenge of the Sith in the tone and story. I'd be excited to see more of these in the future for sure!
Alex, if you grew-up loving Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica (both versions) as I have, you’ll love Starblazers aka Space Battleship Yamato (including Starblazers 2199) & Robotech. Both anime are all about the military sci-fi fighter pilot culture and are excellent. In fact, Starblazers 2199 (think BSG 2004) is phenomenal!
Just a note to anyone reading this: Robotech is a combination of three separate anime series due to some weird licensing issues. The first third is a dub of Macross and is probably the most well known.
@@cordyceps182 Yup, The Super Dimension Fortress Macross (1982), Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross (1984), and Genesis Climber Mospeada (1983), not to mention the movies like The Super Dimension Fortress Macross (1982) and Macross: Do You Remember Love (1984).
Quick Star Wars: Visions Reviews! Firstly, I hate that I had to select Japanese Audio and turn on Subtitles instead of there being two versions called Original and Dubbed, but it probably makes it easier for everything with just the one thing and you alter the settings. But giving two trailers suggested that the Japanese version would be the original (where subtitles would kick in automatically regardless of location and preferences except for probably Japan) and they just put a bit more effort in the Dub for English with the voice casts (but depending on your settings, it would kick in whatever audio you have already preselected). You have the option to watch all of Coco in Spanish if you like as a separate thing, so I still question what’s going on. Anyway… *The Duel:* It designed to be like the Japanese films I’ve always heard about that inspired elements of Star Wars, but sadly never seen. Really good. Subbed: For authenticity and to match the artistic vision this is a must. Dubbed: I mean you can, but it feels weird. *Tatooine Rhapsody:* Loved it. This was the one I was most excited for only because the name and the Rock Opera subgenre it was said to have reminded me that Japan loves Queen. While the music wasn’t anything like Queen, it has a fun rock vibe throughout and I loved every second of it. Subbed: moves a bit quick at times, but the song is better here in Japanese. Dubbed: Everything is fine except for Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s singing. They should have either gotten someone else to do the singing, or just gotten someone who could sing better to voice the character considering it’s a short. *The Twins:* This did not hit for me, which is too bad because it looked like it would be the most bombastic and fun, and while it was pretty bombastic, it felt like there was more to the story but not enough time to do it. Also screw basic physics because these people are breathing and shouting at each other in space. Subbed: It moves at too fast a pace, there’s just so much talking and I can’t keep up half the time and also look at the visuals. Dubbed: While I’m able to understand things better, it doesn’t really improve the story. And man, this dialog sucks. Alison Brie is great though. *The Village Bride:* Truly beautiful and it also feels like it could happen in the canon, whichever one you want. Nothing more to say, it’s rad. Subbed: Yep. Dubbed: Yep. *The Ninth Jedi:* Pretty rad. In a way, I think it’s a little too focused on lightsabers, but that’s also kind of what the story is about. They’re symbols as well as weapons, and I feel like a lot of inspiration for this story comes from when Obi-Wan says that the lightsaber is the weapon of a Jedi Knight, elegant, and from a more civilized age. I also really like the setup for the story and the music used throughout. Subbed: Maybe a little too much talking but I got most of it. Dubbed: Easier to watch, but didn’t change much. *T0-B1:* This one is definitely for kids. The visual style and tone and message were definitely chosen with them in mind. Subbed: If you want. Dubbed: Since it’s more aimed towards kids, this would be the way to go, and I even found it far more enjoyable. *The Elder:* This one is very good. In fact, it feels like it was deliberately designed to take place in the canon, whichever one you want. It takes place between the time of the Old Republic and the Prequels, and they make sure to allow things to line up with what we know. The characters are also really great. Subbed: There’s too much talking for me to keep up and follow the visuals but it’s still good. Dubbed: I found it easier to watch and the voice cast they’ve selected keeps the tone of the original. James Hong for the old man was perfect. *Lop & Ochō:* Oh man, this one is also great, I loved it. It also feels like it could very much happen in canon, too. The characters and story are fantastic in my opinion. Subbed: A bit front heavy with the reading, a little hard to keep up, but it gets easier as the short goes on. Dubbed: Also good, although I’m not sold quite on the adult voice for Ochō. *Akakiri:* This one is really kind of weird visually. Storywise it has some interesting bits, but overall I’d say it’s only okay. Subbed: It’s okay. Dubbed: Much better. The voices match the diversity of the characters and I think that’s what was really throwing me. Everything sounded a bit too samey before, it was hard to really differentiate the characters.
I want them to bring Lop into cannon. She was a great character and the origin story is beautiful. A small isolationist backwater planet with Japanese style feudal society is not out of the question at all for the SW Galaxy.
As someone who enjoys pilot stories I can't recommend the anime Macross Plus enough. It has a pre-Breaking Bad Bryan Cranston voicing the main character.
That's what I love about anthologies; you never know what you're going to get. Some hit, some miss. My favorite was Ninth Jedi as well, while my least favorite was Tatooine Rhapsody.
i only now got around to watching this but tattooine rhapsody was my favorite easily. it takes the idea i love about star wars that it can be used as a setting and runs with it. i don't think we've have a story about a band before out of star wars so it helps show the creativity one can go with it. it also can pretty easily mesh with canon like i can honestly see this short getting canonized through small references like posters and background music so easily. such a fun, cute, and creative story.
I like to think that the episodes did take place in canon but are second-hand accounts of what really happened like the duel takes place in an alternate universe, the rockstar was a padawan that escaped fighting theclone wars, the twins were an experiment issued by Palpatine and found a star destroyer superweapon intending to use it against the new republic after the battle of Endor, the padawan from village bride escaped nearly being killed by Vader or some inquisitor, the ninth jedi taking place long after the skywalker saga, T0 B1's inventor a former jedi who learns to imbue the force in machines, the elder taking place during the high republic, the rabbit girl I could see joining the rebel alliance at some point, and akakiri(which I got some samurai jack vibes)is up for interpretation my guess is old republic.
This show has one of my new favorite lines of all time...."are you imagining of being a Jedi again" I just relate to that so much because I regularly imagine myself as a Jedi so hearing that line was just awesome!
I watched four on day one, two on day two and I'll watch two on day three. So I still have two more. I agree that they all do blend together if you watch them all in a row, mostly just variations on lightsaber fights. That said, totally agree, "The Ninth Jedi" was absolutely amazing. I friggin' loved it. Second favorite so far was "The Twins", followed by "The Duel." I love that this series exists, I love that it's so weird and imaginative and I would love SW to do more like this in the future. Not necessarily anime or even in animation. But just get strange and funky and crazy and let's not worry so much about canon and legacy and all the baggage of the franchise. Let's stop trying to make connections and have everything loop back to what we already know. So many upcoming SW properties are just more spinoffs of existing characters and then we had Solo and much of the ST just strip-mining or copying the lore and franchise's history (to say nothing of how the Mandalorian became basically the Cameo Show, aka a Clone Wars spinoff.) We need more originality from SW, not just rehashing the same old stuff. Visions is a god damned breath of fresh air.
Great review. From a Star Wars Fan that grew up with both anime and Star Wars It made me really happy that you liked Gurren Lagann, it is one of my personal favorites. Just you using the Kamina picture made my heart warm!
For me I didn't actively dislike any of them and only really Tatooine Rhapsody and T0-B1left me cold. My favorite of the bunch was The Village Bride - stunning visuals and that score by Kevin Penkin with Emi Evans (Nier & Drakengard vocalist)
The Twins was probably my favourite (although admittedly I'm a fan of Imaishi, the director). Then Tatooine Rhapsody, The Ninth Jedi, The Duel, The Elder, then the rest were a bit "whatever".
As a huge fan of both Star Wars and Anime I personally loved Visions. I enjoyed every episode and even the ones I didn’t enjoy as much were still incredibly well put together, and I couldn’t really fault them as I just personally didn’t find them as interesting as the other story’s. The fact that I didn’t dislike a single one of the story’s honestly really surprised me as it being in an anthology series I was expecting there to be at least one or two that I just wouldn’t like, but I was pleasantly surprised. This stands in staunch contrast to a friend of mines impressions which were very mixed. The animation was breathtaking the whole way through and I really loved how each short had its own distinct style and feel (like every story's take on the lightsaber). Minor side note, I’m surprised how many people I’ve seen mention that the shorts feel very similar, which is weird since I had the exact opposite impression. Overall I loved Visions for being a unique, creative and innovative take on Star Wars storytelling. I personally would love to see more hopefully in the form of a second season. My Top 3 Favourite Stories Were: 1: Lop and Ocho 2: The Dual 3: The Ninth Jedi in that order
I think this is very good bc there is no restraint. Some dont work but some do. I wish the ninth jedi was an actual show and see the continuation of it but yea I give it an 8/10. I hope they make a season 2.
Can't wait to hear the weeaboos complain about how bad the English voice acting is for seemingly no reason. Great review I'm super excited for this show.
Oh that will be fun though to be honest? I think watching it in Japanese the first time is probably gonna be optimal because the point of this is Star Wars presented in a whole new way by anime creators and I'd imagine the dub, while super well done kind of takes away from that at least a smidge.
I quite enjoyed it. All are quite good except for 3. My faves are 1, 2, 5 and 7. I felt 9 was a weird one to end on, and not one of the stronger ones, but still fun.
I don't have a favourite - I can never pick just one favourite of something I like, so instead I'd just like to comment about each story. The Duel was visually stunning, with incredible animation, and I loved the use of colour. Also, is it just me or was the Dark Lady kind of a mixture of Assaj Ventress and Lumiya? She sounded like Ventress, but her mask and the wild hair definitely looked like Lumiya. Tatooine Rhapsody made me think of the Arabian Nights. I love the idea of Jabba being charmed by rock music, and having a Htt character who's just a rebellion teenage rocker rather than a devious criminal mastermind. The Twins was just over-the-top, anime fun. It really felt that the minimal story was just there to get the characters to where they wanted them to be, and I'm okay with that. The Village Bride reminded me of Kerra Holt from the Knight Errant comic series. Nothing too complex, just a Jedi being what we all know the Jedi were supposed to be. The Ninth Jedi was certainly the most elaborate story-wise. I enjoyed the way they played with expectations and appearances to keep surprising us. The Elder did a great job establishing solid, believeable characters in a very short time. It was probably the most 'classically' Star Wars story in the bunch, and reminded me quite a bit of Phantom Menace. I didn't expect to like Lop and Ocho. I was dreading the appearance of the bunny girl, which felt like all the most stereotypically Anime idea possible. i was pleasantly surprised to find I really liked the story. Themes of family conflict and of found family are of course meat and drink for Star Wars, and they mixed them in extremely well. It felt the most "canon" of the stories, and I'd be interested to see more like it. I wasn't too taken with Akakiri at first. The animation style didn't really work that well for me, and the ending seemed rather forced. Thinking on it, though, it's a much more Anakin-type story than I initially thought. I'm still not that keen on it, but I can see much more clealry what they were going for. The only story that didn't really work for me was T0-B1. It just felt too removed from Star Wars for my tastes.
9th Jedi is by far the best and I'd love it as a series. If it gets the budget of Legend of Galactic Heroes which has space battles we'll be in good hands if turns into a series.
@@charliefoxtrot3980 Sounds cool to me! I have been looking forward to a story like that ever since the rumor came around that Rian Johnson's trilogy was going to take place far in the future after TROS. So I'm very much excited to see what the galaxy looks like during this time!
As someone both into Star Wars and anime, I'm really excited to sit down and watch this. Also, check out Outlaw Star if you want something that feels like a SW story translated into anime. I watched it for the first time a few months ago and got that feeling pretty strongly Edit: I’m also curious, did you watch it with English audio or in Japanese with subtitles?
I’m on the same wavelength as you. Favorite was Ninth Jedi. Runners up: Duel, Rhapsody, Elder. Least favorites: Twins, T0B1, Ocho/Lop, Akakiri. Overall, enjoyed more than I expected. Will watch my five favorites again…the others, probably not.
I didn't really like any of them until I got to the 9th Jedi. As someone who worships Ghost In The Shell I'm unsurprised. I liked the animation in the 1st one. I really enjoyed the little robot one. Seeing the different animation styles were nice.
My personal ranking of Visions: 1. The Ninth Jedi (that epic sith reveal!) 2. The Duel 3. The Elder 4. Tatooine Rhapsody (huge surprise, I love pop punk) 5. The Twins 6. Lop & Ocho (insanely beautiful animation) 7. The Village Bride 8. T0-B1 9. Akakiri (the only one that didn't seem to make sense)
Isn't anime both? It's the Japanese animated media. And for Western audiences it is a genre since we have our own animation that is very different from anime.
Personally I've never been a fan of most anime, I just don't enjoy it despite trying to get into it multiple times. That being said, I'm going to watch every episode and I hope visions is extremely successful. The reason is I love that Disney is taking a gamble in a sense with this and doing something totally new. Beyond that the creative teams have almost complete freedom and that's where you'll always get the best stories. I hope Visions is successful and it shows Disney that giving more freedom and trying something new and crazy can produce wonderful results
As a lifelong fan of both Star Wars and anime I absolutely loved visions. I personally didn't find a weak episode in the bunch, but I do have my favorites. Personally I really loved Tatooine Rhapsody, The 9th jedi, The Elder, & Lop and Ochô the best.
Liked all of em. Each one understood star wars in a certain way and each struck a different anime cord. Ninth Jedi seems to be a popular fav though I liked all of them more than that one, but maybe that's cause the others went more wild. Feel like we got a ninth Jedi, last group of Jedi, like story a few times already.
I LOVED it. My favorite story had to be Tatooine Rhapsody just because it was so unlike anything we had seen from Star Wars before. I also really liked the music in that. The story was really heartfelt. Every frame of this show was beautiful. Every character in Visions is incredibly interesting. My biggest critique is that I wish the lightsaber fights were longer especially since it’s animation. But I had a great time.
Ep 4 'The Village Bride' is the best one for me (followed by The Duel, Ninth Jedi, and Lop & Ocho). Even though it's the one with the least amount of lightsaber screentime alongside ep 2, something about the overall story setting, design, soundtrack......OH MY F***ING GOD the SOUNDTRACK! Everything just slowly builds up to a crescendo in an EPIC CLIMAX......then it all ends in a quick flash......and silence...... NGL that climax scene gave me goosebumps, and awakened something in me that I haven't felt in a very long time. It just HITS different compared to the other episodes, and I kept re-watching it several times trying to trigger that same feeling again, but the feeling from subsequent viewings could never really come close to the first time experiencing it...... Just goes to show that you don't need lengthy, flashy lightsaber duels to make a scene feel epic and powerful. It's a Masterpiece 10/10 in my opinion, just sad that I can't replicate the same feeling again... **sobs**
