The Star Wars: Visions anthology series has been a welcome respite for long-time fans who were disappointed with the recent sequel trilogy. However, it appears that Disney and LucasFilm enjoy the animated anthology series as much as fans do, as one of the show's best short films, "The Ninth Jedi," is being converted into a new series. This year's Star Wars Celebration in Tokyo, Japan, was full of surprises, including Ryan Gosling's appearance on stage to promote his forthcoming Star Wars film with Shawn Levy. However, no one is anticipating a brand-new, previously unknown show to be revealed.
That is exactly what occurred on the third and final day of Star Wars Celebration. James Waugh, LucasFilm's senior VP of franchise content and strategy, revealed the Ninth Jedi series to a roaring cheer from the audience. Kenji Kamiyama, who was introduced on stage at the announcement, wrote and directed "The Ninth Jedi" short film. According to the official event description on the Star Wars website, Kamiyama "thanked the audience for being so supportive and enthusiastic about Kara and Juro's adventures in The Ninth Jedi." He then stated that fans will be able to follow Kara's adventure in an all-new spin-off titled Star Wars: Visions Presents - The Ninth Jedi.
The short film "The Ninth Jedi" appeared as part of Star Wars: Visions' inaugural season in 2021. The episode followed Lah Kara, the daughter of a sabersmith (a person who makes lightsabers), as she helped to restore the Jedi Order by providing lightsabers to mystery Force users. Kara will first appear in the third season of Visions, which begins on October 29. Kara's quest will continue with "The Ninth Jedi: Child of Hope," before The Ninth Jedi series is launched. Although a release date has not yet been announced.
'Star Wars' and Anime Are a Perfect Pairing
Star Wars: Visions demonstrated how well anime can depict the galaxy far, far away. So, why has it taken so long for the franchise to get a real anime? Star Wars has a long history of animation, with episodes such as The Clone Wars and Rebels among its most popular. However, a full-fledged anime is long overdue.
The relationship between Star Wars and anime goes beyond 'it would be wonderful to see lightsabers wielded by authentic samurai.' As any Star Wars fan will tell you, George Lucas was highly influenced by classic samurai films such as Akira Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress.
Japanese samurai cinema would inspire some of the greatest anime of all time, and the medium has since become Japan's most popular storytelling style around the world.
Just as The Clone Wars demonstrated, animation is an excellent medium for telling Star Wars storylines since writers and directors are not constrained by live-action or questionable CGI. The coolest lightsaber bouts in the Star Wars universe (save for Anakin vs. Obi-Wan in Revenge of the Sith) have all taken place in animated films. Here's hoping The Ninth Jedi inspires even more Star Wars anime.