Movie Review: ‘Lego Star Wars Holiday Special’ is silly, whimsical festive fun
The infamous “Star Wars Holiday Special” introduced fans to the concept of “Life Day,” a holiday of Wookiee tradition on the planet of Kashyyyk in 1978. In “The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special,” Life Day’s message is driven home – with a few bricks’ worth of silly jokes and meme references.
Set after the events of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” Rey, Finn, Poe, Chewbacca, Rose and the droids are preparing for a joyous Life Day feast. After struggling with training Finn in the ways of the Jedi, Rey sets off on an adventure with BB-8 to gain a deeper knowledge of the Force.
At a mysterious Jedi Temple, she is hurled through space and time to iconic moments in Star Wars history, crossing the paths of Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Obi-Wan, Yoda and more. Will she make it back in time for the Life Day feast and learn the true meaning of the holiday, or will she destroy the fabric of galactic reality as we know it?
“The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special” is the first to debut on Disney+, and is a collaboration between Lucasfilm and Lego. Having only seen the original holiday special once, though the experience was burned deeply into my brain, I can safely say that this Lego-fied exploration of Life Day is far less strange than its predecessor, but still retains all of the cheese and then builds a Lego Death Star on top of it.
Throughout Rey’s adventure through the Star Wars timeline, kids will love all the goofy, silly gags and adults will appreciate and maybe even chuckle at some of the more meme-worthy moments from the franchise (I’m looking at you, “Macklunkey!”). If the final entry in the Skywalker Saga left you a bit raw toward the sequel trilogy, this bite-sized galactic adventure will be a great reminder that Star Wars is supposed to be fun.
While I would’ve liked more of an acknowledgement of the events of Episode IX, especially Rey’s relation to Palpatine and the dyad between her and Ben, I can’t say I expected those story beats to be included. Since Lego Star Wars is the epitome of “fun” Star Wars, it only makes sense to leave out the divisive parts.
“The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special” premieres on Tuesday, Nov. 17 exclusively on Disney+. You can check out the trailer below:
