FANgirl Blog's Tricia Barr and Siya Patel discuss the Marvelous origin story of Kamala Khan.

In our newest episode, Hyperspace Theories continues our analysis of Obi-Wan Kenobi with a discussion of Parts III, IV, and V of the Disney+ limited series. Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester examine how, after Parts I and II launched Obi-Wan on his mythic adventure, the next three episodes propel him through an extended progression of trials and tribulations that return the broken man into the Jedi General he used to be and push him toward the serene Jedi Master he ultimately becomes. Elements of both Joseph Campbell’s monomyth and Christopher Vogler’s cinematic hero’s journey illustrate the mythic structure of Obi-Wan’s personal challenges.

Importantly, Obi-Wan Kenobi advances its protagonist’s character arc through the influence of three significant female characters: Leia, Tala, and Reva. Each plays a different role in shaping Obi-Wan’s rediscovery of himself and reconnection with the Force through the events on Daiyu, Mapuzo, Nur, and Jabiim. In a twist on Campbell, it is Roken and Vader, not a woman, who present the biggest temptations that might divert Obi-Wan from his path. By the conclusion of Part V, Obi-Wan has moved through his trials and overcome their obstacles. In our next episode, we’ll discuss how Obi-Wan Kenobi resolves its character arc for the Jedi Master in Part VI, as well as how that arc plays forward into the ultimate culmination of his Hero’s Journey in A New Hope and the Original Trilogy.

Contact Information:

• Hyperspace Theories: Twitter @HyperspacePod
• Tricia Barr: Twitter @FANgirlcantina; email Tricia@fangirlblog.com
• B.J. Priester: Twitter @RedPenofLex; email Lex@fangirlblog.com

After the world premiere of Obi-Wan Kenobi at Star Wars Celebration, Tricia Barr and BJ Priester sit down to explore the storytelling structure as it expands the Campbellian monomyth.

Hyperspace Theories podcast returns to the realm of Star Wars storytelling with this month’s episode, in which Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester discuss The Book of Boba Fett. In addition to its seven chapter, we also consider insights from the Disney Gallery episode exploring the development and production of the Disney+ series.

We begin with the titular character. The first four episodes of The Book of Boba Fett portray two sets of events in his life: his experiences from his escape from the Sarlaac Pit until his appearance in “The Tragedy” chapter of The Mandalorian season two to reclaim his father’s armor, and his return to Tatooine to establish himself as “daimyo” upon the throne previously occupied by Jabba the Hutt and Bib Fortuna. Each of these storylines contains some interesting ideas for Fett’s character development, but both fail to meet the potential of those ideas. In addition, the series at times relies heavily on homages to famous cinema (like Lawrence of Arabia or The Godfather) and references to previous Star Wars material (including comics, books, and videogames) without challenging or subverting some of the damaging tropes frequently found in those sources, particularly in the thin characterization of the female characters and the fate of the indigenous Tusken tribe that welcomed Fett into its community. Although the finale episode delivers exciting Star Wars action sequences, it ends on a meta-referential note: Fett himself wonders aloud whether he should have been pursuing the objective of becoming daimyo in the first place.

Even more jarring, the fifth and sixth chapters of The Book of Boba Fett barely even include him at all. Instead, the focus on events that we would have expected to appear in season three of The Mandalorian, including Din Djarin’s return to the Armorer’s covert, his acquisition of a new starship to replace the RazorCrest, and his paternal caring for Grogu. Another appearance by Ahsoka Tano delivers unexpected emotion for Din in doing what’s right for Grogu, as well as for the audience with dialogue overtly linking her current role in the galaxy to her past with the Skywalker family. A surprisingly lengthy appearance by Luke reveals more about Grogu, while also testing both Luke and Grogu in their commitment to the Jedi path. Directed by Bryce Dallas Howard and Dave Filoni, respectively, these two episodes offer far stronger Star Wars storytelling than the rest of The Book of Boba Fett.

Related:

Hyperspace Theories: The Story of The Mandalorians

Contact Information:

• Hyperspace Theories: Twitter @HyperspacePod
• Tricia Barr: Twitter @FANgirlcantina; email Tricia@fangirlblog.com
• B.J. Priester: Twitter @RedPenofLex; email Lex@fangirlblog.com

This month’s episode of Hyperspace Theories rings in the new year with the storytelling of the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester discuss the six episodes of the Christmas-themed Disney+ series Hawkeye. Though the show may have one character name in its title, like the other MCU series to date it also is very much an ensemble story.

Clint Barton has been the MCU’s Hawkeye through four Avengers films and several others. In Endgame, we learn that Clint responded to the Snap taking away his family by becoming the ruthless and vengeful assassin Ronin, murdering crime lords and other “deserving” foes until Natasha Romanoff managed to restore his hope, changing his heart just as he had once given her the chance to change hers. In Hawkeye, everything spirals outward from these events: Clint’s grief for Natasha, his commitment to honoring the sacrifice she made to give him a life with his family, and his responsibility for his actions as Ronin.

But while Clint creates the circumstances in which Hawkeye‘s story can unfold, the series at its heart is the story of three women: Kate Bishop, Yelena Belova, and Maya Lopez. Each must face difficult truths and choose their own path forward after their interactions with Clint’s past and present. Obsessed with vengeance for Ronin’s murder of her father, Maya discovers that Clint is not the monster she thought, and the real monsters are the ones closest to her. Driven by certainty that Clint does not deserve to live either if Natasha is gone, Yelena is challenged to face her grief, accept Natasha’s sacrifice, and confront whether assassin-for-hire is really the path she wants to walk.

Kate Bishop, meanwhile, evolves from a talented young woman ringing a tower bell with an arrow on a dare to a superhero committed to doing the right thing, even if it means risking her own life in single combat against a ferocious foe to save the life of her mother – who she then promptly has arrested for her crimes on Christmas. Much of Hawkeye plays out through the trope of the reluctant mentor and the overeager pupil, but the contrasts (and comparisons) between Clint and Kate only serve to show the audience why Kate is ready to take on the mantle of Hawkeye. But not simply to replicate how Clint fulfilled that role; rather, Kate will become her own version of Hawkeye, perhaps even as more of a team leader. In Hawkeye, Kate proves her skill and her heart to Clint and to the audience – and to herself.

Contact Information:

• Hyperspace Theories: Twitter @HyperspacePod
• Tricia Barr: Twitter @FANgirlcantina; email Tricia@fangirlblog.com
• B.J. Priester: Twitter @RedPenofLex; email Lex@fangirlblog.com

Hyperspace Theories concludes our three-part analysis of Season Two of The Mandalorian with a discussion of the character arc for the titular hero, Din Djarin, over the span of the sixteen chapters in the series to date. Although much of Season Two involves Din’s interactions with a progression of allies and adversaries, old and new, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester examine how each of those episodes reveals more about Din and shapes his ultimate choices in the series.

Most prominently, Season Two constantly tests Din’s understanding of what it means to be a Mandalorian. In Season One, Din centered his identity on the Armorer’s covert and the Bounty Hunter Guild. In Season Two, Din learns that the Mandalorian identity isn’t as straightforward as he thought, particularly in his encounters with Bo-Katan Kryze and Boba Fett. His sense of honor is tested by Cobb Vanth, the Passenger, and Ahsoka Tano as well as Kryze and Fett. To fulfill his quest to deliver Grogu to the Jedi, Din works with trusted allies like Greef Carga and Cara Dune, and chooses to rely upon those he initially treats warily, including Vanth, Tano, and Mayfeld. By season’s end, Din inadvertently has won the revered Darksaber from Moff Gideon in single combat, confronting him not only with the decision about what kind of Mandalorian he wants to be as an individual, but also with his role in the fate and future of the Mandalorians writ large.

Of course, we can’t discuss Din’s story without considering his bond with Grogu, a/k/a Baby Yoda or The Child. What began as a seemingly simple quest to return the young one to his kind evolves over the season into a strong parental bond. It is no coincidence that the man who repeatedly and consistently insisted he would never remove his helmet does so twice in the last two episodes of the season – both times because of Grogu.

With Season Three of The Mandalorian in production, we briefly speculate on how Din’s character arc, and the unresolved plot threads from the first two seasons, may play out in the upcoming chapters of the series.

Related Links:

• Hyperspace Theories: Ahsoka Tano is The Jedi
• Hyperspace Theories: The Story of the Mandalorians

Contact Information:

• Hyperspace Theories: Twitter @HyperspacePod
• Tricia Barr: Twitter @FANgirlcantina; email Tricia@fangirlblog.com
• B.J. Priester: Twitter @RedPenofLex; email Lex@fangirlblog.com

Hyperspace Theories returns with another discussion of Season Two of The Mandalorian. In this episode, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester analyze how The Mandalorian series advances the story of the Mandalorians: a people, a culture, and a feared faction in galactic war and peace. We also speculate about how the information revealed in Season Two may provide clues to what else we’ll learn about Mandalorians in The Book of Boba Fett at the end of the year and Season Three of The Mandalorian later in 2022.

Before looking to future stories, though, we start with how the Mandalorians were introduced in the franchise’s past. Revealed in fiction and nonfiction paratexts, the lore surrounding Boba Fett’s armor and its mysterious connection to the equally mysterious Mandalorian super-commandos predates even the conclusion of the Original Trilogy in Return of the Jedi. In the era of Star Wars Expanded Universe (now Legends) tales, the Mandalorians appeared in a wide variety of popular story formats, including novels, comics, and videogames, as well as fan cosplay groups. A major shift occurred in the second season of The Clone Wars animated series, when George Lucas began to unfold his own version of Mandalorian culture, politics, and role in the galaxy. Dave Filoni subsequently evolved those ideas further in the Star Wars Rebels animated series and the Siege of Mandalore arc of The Clone Wars‘ seventh season, as well as the ongoing The Mandalorian series.

What these stories portray, over roughly thirty years of in-universe events, is the Mandalorians collectively undergoing a story of their own. Like the Jedi, the Mandalorians face tragedy by the end of the Clone Wars, and then a slow attempt to rebuild. As with the Jedi, we watch the story unfold through the eyes of key characters like Duchess Satine, Bo-Katan Kryze, Pre Vizsla, and later Sabine Wren, Din Djarin, and Moff Gideon. In the Disney+ series, perhaps the Mandalorians may have a more optimistic fate ahead.

Contact Information:

• Hyperspace Theories: Twitter @HyperspacePod
• Tricia Barr: Twitter @FANgirlcantina; email Tricia@fangirlblog.com
• B.J. Priester: Twitter @RedPenofLex; email Lex@fangirlblog.com

For this variant episode of Hyperspace Theories, Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester turn once again to the Marvel Cinematic Universe to discuss the storytelling, characterization, and creative twists on the monomyth in Loki, the six-episode Disney+ series which recently concluded. In addition to discussing the character arcs of the core cast – Loki, Sylvie, Mobius, and Renslayer – we delve into the weighty themes and significant philosophical ideas underlying the series. We offer high praise for the successful collaboration of director Kate Herron and head writer Michael Waldron, who is poised to write the screenplay for the previously announced Star Wars movie being produced by MCU guru Kevin Feige. Loki certainly benefits from a second watch, which makes even more apparent the clever writing and honed storytelling in the series.

Hosts Tricia Barr and B.J. Priester breakdown The Mandalorian Season 2 in three episodes. The first episode explores the importance of the Jedi to the story of Din Djarin over the course of Season 2.

Tricia Barr and BJ Priester from FANgirl Blog share their initial reactions to the WandaVision series finale.