Star Wars in the 2010s: 2010-2012
Another year, another season of The Clone Wars to end. While season four started strongly, it ended on particularly well with the reintroduction of Darth Maul. The former Sith apprentice had been in hiding since his defeat at the hands of Obi-Wan Kenobi at the end of The Phantom Menace. Kept alive purely through concentrated rage, and a lust for revenge, Maul would transform from a manic robotic-spider type hybrid, into a viciously cold and calm assassin. His reintroduction would add another layer of nuance to the fledgling series.
James Luceno’s beloved novel Darth Plagueis released in January. Although it was originally slated for a 2008 release, the story told of Plagueis’ rise and fall as a Sith Lord. The story deepened the existing tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise, and is still well regarded to this day.
February saw the re-release of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace in 3D. The improvement of 3D technology had led to the Lucas signing off on the film series being re-released in 3D, to be released every year from 2012 onward. Unfortunately the general reaction to the release was muted at best, taking a total of $23 million worldwide in its run. The figure was enough to push The Phantom Menace past $1 billion at the box office total, at the very least.
Kinect Star Wars released in April. The less said about that, the better.
More from Disney
- Seasons of the Force and new Star Tours coming to Disneyland
- Galaxy’s Edge delights fans revealing three new roaming droids
- New Young Jedi Adventure trailer gives first look at Bell Zettifar
- Interview: John Jackson Miller discusses transition from EU to Disney
- Ahsoka Tano is coming to Disneyland’s Star Tours
At E3 in June 2012, Star Wars: 1313 was formally unveiled. Touted as a “mature” Star Wars title for next gen systems, 1313 would tell the story of a Bounty Hunter, revealed to be Boba Fett descending into the depths of Coruscant. The title wasn’t afforded a release date, but there was plenty of anticipation surrounding the game. The initial trailer suggested something akin to the Uncharted series, albeit in a Star Wars skin, and reports surfaced that it might tie into Star Wars: Underworld.
Star Wars Celebration VI took place in August. Taking place in Orlando, Florida, the convention dealt little by the way of big reveals, the largest of which being the now MIA animated series “Star Wars: Detours”. That didn’t stop 35000 fans having the best time, though.
In, arguably, the most seismic move regarding the franchise since the announcement of the prequel trilogy, October 2012 played host to The Walt Disney Company formally announcing its intention to purchase of Lucasfilm. As part of the announcement, Lucasfilm confirmed that a new trilogy of films, would be released, with Episode VII releasing in 2015. It was later revealed that George Lucas had actually began working on his own Episode VII in 2011, with a view to increase Lucasfilm’s value prior to any purchase. The purchase was finalised in December of 2012.
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What do you remember from the early years of the 2010s? Feel free to reminisce below!