The Death Star Human Resources Department: December 1, 2023
An old friend makes an appearance, there's a new head honcho at Lucasfilm, what to do with Baylan, and a lot more
Hello there
Good morning and welcome to both December and this week’s edition of the Death Star Human Resources Department newsletter. After last week’s detour into Porgin Pies and Skywalker Thanksgiving fan fiction, we’re back with a full length newsletter containing all the news, bad jokes, and typos you’ve come to expect here at Death Star HR. And we’ve got a lot today, both news and probably typos. Dave Filoni gets a promotion, something has to be done with Baylan Skoll, possible release dates for both Skeleton Crew and season 2 of Andor, along with all the usual nonsense. ]
As always, I appreciate everyone who reads this each week. If you like what I’m doing, please tell a friend or forward the email to them. Like I occasionally say, we don’t have an advertising budget here so word of mouth and me badgering people is how this spreads. Now, let’s get to it.
This Is Where The Fun Begins
Other than dressing up as Generic Jedi for Halloween, cosplay isn’t really my thing. Nothing against it, but it seems like it’s a lot of time and money and I’m not sure what the end game is. Also, if I walked in the door looking like Boba Fett, there is a good chance that Emperor Palatine’s #1 Fan would merciless call me a nerd. All that being said, this is pretty sweet.
It’s a shame that Cad Bane was pretty much wasted in Book of Boba Fett. But, it’s Star Wars. Nobody is ever really dead. So here’s hoping we’ll see him in live action again. And until then, there’s Commander Bly Cosplay.
Star Wars Just Might Stay on Target
Long time readers to Death Star HR know one of my biggest gripes about the Disney era of Star Wars is the lack of focus. A tad ironic coming from me since I can sit down to work on this and then immediately get districted by a shiny object and my writing tends to meander all around. Anyway, say what you will about the Prequels, there’s plenty of criticism both fair and unfair, but there is a coherent plot and vision through all three movies. Even if Palpaltine’s plan is a little convoluted and really George should have just gone all in with Darth Jar Jar1. Episodes I through III tell the story of the fall of the Republic and the transformation of Anakin Skywalker to Darth Vader.
Compare that to the Sequel Trilogy. The whole idea is…what exactly? Maybe a soft reboot? If you know, tell me. I’ll listen. It’s just clear when you look at the tone from The Force Awakens to The Last Jedi to The Rise of Skywalker there was no real plan. The TV shows that take place in the Mandoverse certainly are more consistent but you can see the eternal struggle going on. No, not the Jedi vs the Sith. The Normies vs Sickos. But we’re not hear to talk about that today either.
I posted a link last week but didn’t have time to go in depth. Ashoka’s dad and cowboy hat aficionado Dave Filoni has been promoted. His new title is “chief creative officer” at Lucasfilm. As Filoni tells Vanity Fair in an extensive article:
“In the past, in a lot of projects I would be brought into, I would see it after it had already developed a good ways.”
Filoni will now work more directly with Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy and alongside Carrie Beck, a veteran producer turned head of development, to originate and shepherd the next generation of Star Wars shows and movies….“In this new role, it’s opened up to basically everything that’s going on,” Filoni says. “When we’re planning the future of what we’re doing now, I’m involved at the inception phase.”
This is a good thing, let’s get that out of the way. I know there is a segment of the fanbase that doesn’t like Dave Filoni. They are usually part of the “TOO MANY GURLZ IN STAR WARS” crowd. They are certainly entitled to their opinion, but that’s a corner of the internet that I generally avoid.
I have long thought one of the reasons, maybe the main reason, Marvel had so much success with the movies (recent missteps discussed a few weeks ago not withstanding) is you had Kevin Feige as the main guy keeping all the stories straight and that everything had a through line. At least, that’s my understanding. I will confess that while I enjoy a Marvel movie or TV show2, I mostly limit my true nerdom to the galaxy far far away. And rewatching The X-Files every 5 - 6 years. So I will say, much like the pacing in Ahsoka3, I could be a little off here.
Anyway, all that to say this is something Star Wars has needed. One person behind the wheel. It’s especially noticeable in the Sequel Trilogy, movies that felt like they were designed by committee instead of one unifying vision. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t going to be like the pre-Disney times, where the word of George was the same thing as the word of god, and you disagreed you’d end up the Skywalker Ranch sarlacc pit. Filoni and Lucas didn’t have some Rule of Two thing going and the apprentice is now the master. Instead, we’re going to have someone guiding the new Star Wars movies and TV shows from start to finish and hopefully keeping everybody on the same page.
All that being said, Dave, please. Just let Andor season 2 happen without any interference. I think they’ve got it under control over there on Ferrix.
The Baylan Skoll Situation
Elsewhere in the article (seriously read the article it’s a good one, it gets into what exactly they are going to do with Baylan Skoll AKA the best character in Ahsoka. The short answer is, thanks to the untimely passing of Ray Stevenson, Bayan’s future is unknown.
I should add, it’s not actually official yet that we’re getting a season 2 of Ahsoka, but come on. It’s clearly going to happen.
From the very first scene in Ahsoka, when Baylan and Shin land on the Republic prison ship to “rescue” Morgan Elsbeth, Stevenson stole the show. It’s because you didn’t know what he was. He’s not a Jedi, he makes that quite clear when he A) says “We are not Jedi” and B) he’s Force choking fools. He’s also not a Sith. He might take some of their ideas since he’s got the Master and Apprentice thing going with Shin. But his lightsaber isn’t red and I think he takes the view of the Jedi/Sith war that Kreia had in Knight of the Old Republic II. It’s two sides of the same coin, fighting each other and not caring about the rest of the galaxy.
Also, Ray Stevenson got the character. Possibly more than Filoni did.
I [Filoni] used to have mini debates with him and say, ‘Ray, you’re the villain here.’ And he’d be like, ‘I don’t think so.’ I was like, ‘I know you don’t think so, but you are. I love that you’re playing it like you’re not.’ Which is exactly the way Baylan thinks.”
Also, just a note to Star Wars. less can be more. Baylan is interesting because he’s mysterious and we only get hints and pieces of his story. Same as both Mando and Grogu. Yes, it’s fun to know every piece of information. It’s also fun to guess and fill in the blanks yourself. A completely consistent take. Good thing we Star Wars fans are known as a level-headed bunch.
Realistically, there are three options on what to do with Baylan in season 2, ranked in order of least likely to most likely:
Just kill him off. Treat him like Poochie the Dog and when we met up with Shin in season 2, she comments how Baylan was killed going back to his home planet.
Let the CGI monster lose. This one worries the most. Of course I would be disappointed if they just killed off Baylan and left his story unresolved. But I would understand. But Disney may get tempted to fire up the Supercomputers and do what they did in season 2 of Mando, Book of Boba Fett, and Rogue One and just slap Ray Stevenson’s face on a new body. That might work if you only needed him for a scene or two, but the technology isn’t there for 8 episodes.
Recast him. If Baylan is going to be a big part of season 2, which we’re all assuming he is, you have to get a new actor. I don’t like it. But until Moff Gideon perfects his cloning operation, we’re living in a world without Ray Stevenson.
I really think the third option is the only realistic one. Even though he didn’t get enough screen time in the season 1 finale, Baylan was clearly going to be a big part going forward. You don’t just introduce a new, sorta Jedi sorta Sith maybe a Gray Jedi and then just not use him. You also don’t show the Mortis Gods and have that be a throwaway. Something big is happening out on Peridea. Too big to ignore and too big to change the plot line for next season. The CGI hasn’t shown that it’s up for a whole season’s worth of work. I’m not sure who the actor should be, but Baylan needs to be played by another human.
It’s just sad that Stevenson passed away so young.
The character became one of the standouts of the series, a new fan favorite. “I think he would’ve been over the moon. The big regret here is that he didn’t get to experience that,” Filoni says. “I’m glad he was at Star Wars Celebration with us, that he got to see the trailer and get a taste of that from the fans. And they’ve been nothing but wonderful about Ray and the character.”
I think the only fitting tribute is have Baylan assume the role of one of the Mortis Gods. Make it happen, Dave.
The Two Types of People in the World
I talk about the Normies and the Sickos a lot. Probably too much. But I’m not the only one who thinks that way.
The series ended with his morally “gray” former Jedi standing on the ruins of a mountain-sized sculpture of the Mortis gods. This trio of supernatural beings first appeared in a particularly trippy episode of The Clone Wars,with one of them representing the light side of the Force, one of them standing for the darkness, and one the father-like figure between them who balances both.
“You have to be careful with that,” says Filoni, the ultimate Star Wars geek who nonetheless knows the peril of getting too arcane for casual fans to follow. “I know it’s a very specific group of people that would even know what those statues are, but I thought it was an exciting image, and it does give you the shape of what Baylan is after,” Filoni says.
There is zero doubt in my mind that within Disney and Lucasfilm they have their own terms for the people who jumped off their couch with excitement when the Mortis Gods showed up and people who had no clue what was happening. There is also zero doubt in my mind that future shows are going to be aimed at the Sickos. If we get Joruus C’Baoth next season, I won’t be surprised at all.
Celebrate the Holidays with Skeleton Crew
You’re just going to have to wait until next year to do it.
Skeleton Crew was supposed to be out already. But with the writers and the actors strikes, schedules got screwed up. I think there was a little bit of hope we might still get it in 2023 but as the year is almost over and we haven’t even seen an official trailer, it’s obviously not happening. A couple weeks ago I posted some news that based on filings with the US Copyright Office it looked we’d see Skeleton Crew at the start of 2024. Oh, what hopeful times two weeks ago was.
Unfortunately, now it seems like Skeleton Crew may be a holiday 2024 show. Per Bespin Bulletin:
MakingStarWars when on to reiterate many of the points I was first to report in September of this year. MSW added that next year will see The Acolyte, the live-action series created by Leslye Headland (Russian Doll), release before Skeleton Crew and that Andor season two likely won’t fit into 2024 and could slip into 2025. In my exclusive September article I shared that sources informed me that Skeleton Crew could release in November 2024, that The Acolyte was due to release in the second quarter of 2024 but slipped slightly (I suspect August 2024) and that Andor season two could end up releasing in early 2025.
Andor possibly not dropping until 2025 is really burying the lead there. If I had to guess, and based on nothing but trusting the Force, the first show we’ll see in 2024 is the final season of The Bad Batch. The animation studios were not affected by the strikes and Michelle Ang had posted on her Instagram a while back that suggested she was done with her lines. Although at this point and the lack of real confirmation, it’s anybody’s guess. Master Yoda noted “hard to see, the future is.”
Great Moments in Star Wars Merchandising Meets Things My Wife Has Said About Star Wars
It’s the crossover you didn’t know you needed! A while back I signed up for Amazon’s Star Wars T-Shirt of the Month Club. It’s exactly what it sounds like. Every month I get a new Star Wars t-shirt from Amazon. Honestly, most of them haven’t been my style and I send them back with Amazon’s overly generous return policy4. But every once in a while, I get one that I can’t say no to.
Scene: Death Star HR HQ. Emperor Palatine’s #1 Fan is home from her job as Captain in the Imperial Navy. She’s getting unpacked when I walk into the room.
Me: Oh, honey, I got a great shirt today. You’re going to hate it.
Her: Uh oh. I don’t want to ask, but what did you get?
Me: [Proudly holding up this bad boy] Check it out. I’m ready for any office holiday parties!
Her: …
I can understand her speechless reaction. Just look at this beauty.
If I ever get invited to be on a panel at Star Wars Celebration, maybe on the topic of how to fix The Rise of Skywalker5, I’m wearing this. But for now, I’ll just have to save it for weddings, funerals, and Taco Tuesday.
From the Depths of Wookieepedia
Following up my killer new t-shirt, we’ve got Snoke’s Slippers. Up in my section about Baylan I said that Star Wars works when we get a little mystery, and I stand by that. In the case of Snoke, we probably could have used a little more information. Sure, eventually we find out he was some messed up quasi-clone of Palpatine. Anyway, let’s move on. I’m trying to get this wrapped up on a Thursday night and if I start going on about issues with the Sequel Trilogy, I’ll never get to sleep.
Anyway, Snoke may have been weird and not very well explained, but you can’t deny the dude had style.
Snoke’s Slippers have a surprisingly lengthy and extremely detailed entry about both the slippers and things that happened while Snoke was wearing said slippers. Somebody was having a little too much fun with this.
Afterward, Snoke's Slippers witnessed Ren bringing a captive Rey to their owner's throne room and satisfaction, and the Supreme Leader placed Rey's lightsaber by his side on the throne.
Using the Force to blindside his master and move Rey's lightsaber, Ren ignited the blade, bisecting the shocked slipper wearer.
And it goes on like that for far more paragraphs than you’d expect. I can respect beating a joke into the ground, so bravo to whoever did this one.
News From the HoloNet
Star Wars Reveals R2-D2 Has A Girlfriend in New Canon (Yes, Really)
I’ve said this before, but the comics are wild.
Star Wars Actor Debunks a Pervasive Mandalorian Fan Theory
TL, DR: The Armorer is not hanging out with Darth Maul.
Fans Have Been Shipping Din Djarin For 4 Years – So Why Isn't It Happening?
Look, Mando is a single dad and doesn’t have time to date. Leave him alone.
That’s it for this week. If you like what I’m doing, please subscribe. I’ll catch you next week, and may the Force be with you.
One of these days I’m going to talk about Darth Jar Jar. That’s a promise. Or maybe a threat.
All hail Alligator Loki, my new god.
I have a new laptop and I have to tell it to learn “Ahsoka” so autocorrect will stop trying to make it “Ashoka”
Thank you late-stage capitalism. Returning stuff we don’t need is the only part of the economy that reliably works.
The only way to fix TROS is fire.