"I could see where things were headed. The toy business began to drive the [Lucasfilm] empire. It’s a shame. They make three times as much on toys as they do on films. It’s natural to make decisions that protect the toy business, but that’s not the best thing for making quality films. The first film and ‘Empire’ were about story and character, but I could see that George’s priorities were changing."
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Via Khoi Vinh, who thinks “this explains everything, including the sense of tedium that hung over large swaths of ‘Return of the Jedi’ and the miserable pall that hovered over all three of the franchise’s miserable, pathetic prequels.”
“Star Wars” went way downhill after “The Empire Strikes Back.” Before I saw “Jedi,” I remember reading a review - by David Ansen in Newsweek, I think - that called it the most disappointing “Star Wars” movie and said that with the teddy-bear Ewoks, Lucasfilm had become “Fun Inc.”
I didn’t want to believe it, but he was right.
