‘Tis the Season for Life Day and the LEGO Group to snap together for a festive holiday celebration of the entire Star Wars saga
On November 17, 1978 a holiday special was debuted on CBS that would go down in TV infamy – The Star Wars Holiday Special and now Disney+ has just announced the release date for a NEW LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special! The special will premiere November 17, 2020!
From the official press release;
This November, a new LEGO® Star Wars holiday adventure is set to make spirits bright when fans are dashed away to the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk to celebrate the galaxy’s most hopeful and joyous day, Life Day, in “The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special,” premiering exclusively on the service on Tuesday, November 17, 2020.
“The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special” reunites Rey, Finn, Poe, Chewie, Rose and the droids for a joyous feast on Life Day, a holiday first introduced in the 1978 “Star Wars Holiday Special.” The new LEGO special is the first to debut on Disney+ and will continue the rich legacy of collaboration between Lucasfilm and LEGO—playful adventures told in the endearingly irreverent way that only LEGO Star Wars cobranded content can.
Directly following the events of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” Rey leaves her friends to prepare for Life Day as she sets off on a new adventure with BB-8 to gain a deeper knowledge of the Force. At a mysterious Jedi Temple, she is hurled into a cross-timeline adventure through beloved moments in Star Wars cinematic history, coming into contact with Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Yoda, Obi-Wan and other iconic heroes and villains from all nine Skywalker saga films. But will she make it back in time for the Life Day feast and learn the true meaning of holiday spirit?
The adventure continues at home with the release of the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar. Available September 1, the Advent Calendar was designed in concert with the development and production of the show and features holiday themed characters from the special. DK will also release the LEGO Star Wars Holiday sticker book, which lets brick fans stick instead of click.
“The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special” is a production of Atomic Cartoons, the LEGO Group, and Lucasfilm. It is directed by Ken Cunningham and written by David Shayne, who is also co-executive producer. James Waugh, Josh Rimes, Jason Cosler, Jacqui Lopez, Jill Wilfert and Keith Malone are executive producers.
I remember watching this as a kid in awe and excitement! This was before the days of video, internet and Netflix, so there was no ability to see your favorite heroes on the big screen a million times like we can now on several mediums. You would get your fill any way you could through toys, books, and TV.
The special didn’t do well with audiences and was universally “panned”. With such remarks from critics as “the worst two hours of television ever.”, and “’70s train wreck, combining the worst of Star Wars with the utter worst of variety television.” with the only positive mention was reserved for the short animated cartoon featured in the special. The most notable response to the special came from George Lucas himself, “If I had the time and a sledgehammer, I would track down every copy of that show and smash it.” going on to say,“The Holiday Special does not represent my vision for Star Wars.”
Related Article: Remembering the Star Wars Holiday Special
I don’t expect the same response from audiences on this NEW version of the holiday special and I have been looking forward to this ever since Jon Favreau teased the possibility of a special created by himself.
Check out the original Star Wars Holiday Special broadcast:
