Galaxy of Adventures proves Star Wars is for everyone – including kids

Is Star Wars Kids a not-so-subtle reminder that not everything Star Wars related is for you? Galaxy of Adventures shows it’s also for kids too!

Last week, Lucasfilm launched a new YouTube channel – and with it, a series of animations you may have either been tempted to check out or completely ignore. Galaxy of Adventures is the first content Star Wars is releasing on Star Wars Kids, a kid-friendly channel that will release age-appropriate content set in a galaxy far, far away.

This series – the first episodes of which were released Friday – is short, sweet, and to the point. And that’s exactly how it was intended to be perceived.

These shorts take pivotal moments from the Star Wars saga and retell them in a slightly different way, drawing on original material to propel them forward.

The first video, for example, chronicles the moment Luke Skywalker first ignites his father’s lightsaber. It uses audio (voice and effects) from the original movie (A New Hope), but is executed quickly and beautifully through animation.

Check out the 1-minute, 9-second short below to get a better idea of how these shorts work.

It’s a series very clearly aimed at young children, which actually isn’t surprising, if you look at the direction they’ve been heading the past few years.

This is not the franchise’s first dive into content for younger audiences. Books for young readers – including alternate versions of film novelizations such as The Empire Strikes Back written for younger audiences – have been on the market for years.

Just this year, Lucasfilm released a show on Disney Channel, Star Wars Resistance, catering specifically to younger viewers.

The company’s new YouTube channel offers a kid-friendly place where children can enjoy Star Wars in bite-size, entertaining segments. Is there a better way to grow up with Star Wars than starting with content made just for your tiny attention span and attraction to bright colors?

This movie is not accidental, nor is it some kind of sign that Star Wars is aiming “too young.” Shows on the horizon like The Mandalorian seem like they’re aiming straight for nostalgia-hungry adult fans who want more live-action, hard-hitting galactic adventures.

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At the very least, launching Star Wars Kids and Galaxy of Heroes is Lucasfilm’s way of reminding us that Star Wars is not reserved solely for fans of the OT, “prequel kids” (those of us who were still growing up when the prequel films came out), or people who only watch the movies – even the sequel trilogy – and nothing else.

No, friends. Star Wars is, as it was always meant to be, for everyone.

Anyone who wants to be a Star Wars fan can be a Star Wars fan. They are allowed to consume any content they want to, whether it’s watching the TV shows, collecting and building LEGO sets, going to conventions, or all of the above (and more).

You don’t have to like everything Star Wars related to be a Star Wars fan. Now more than ever, there are Star Wars things being made that are not being made for you.

Resistance might not be for you. Galaxy of Adventures is a very niche product made for a very specific group of (young!) people. It is probably not for you either.

While you don’t need to worry that Star Wars will stop telling stories you specifically can enjoy, you also don’t need to worry that things like the Star Wars Kids YouTube channel exist. IT’S NOT FOR YOU. Not everything is for you!

Let kids enjoy the videos published there and focus on the things about Star Wars that made you a fan in the first place, or continue to keep you coming back all these years later.

To me, a true Star Wars fan is someone who can enjoy and appreciate Star Wars even if there are things about it they don’t like about it. Love what you love and leave the things you don’t care for (e.g., The Last Jedi) alone. It’s OK not to like it all. That’s not the point.

The point is that Star Wars is too big to be able to make things that please everyone. So they’re targeting different audiences and telling stories in the same beloved universe. Smart move for them. It’s not all about you.

If you have a youngling at home, Star Wars: Galaxy of Adventures may be just the thing you’re looking for. Give it a chance. You don’t have to love it, but they might.