Star Wars: Visions, the first project in this franchise to be done in the anime style, lives up to its title. It’s an anthology that is visionary and expands this beloved universe beyond what’s been seen before. The series does so by honoring Japanese culture, which inspired much of the imagery and lore in Star Wars in the first place.
Visions brings the franchise home to the very history it was born from and rebirths it in Japan’s image not only in the medium these short films are depicted in but in the themes chosen, the character designs, and its world-building.
This nine-episode series is diverse in its storytelling with narratives about destiny, friendship, family, betrayal, and legacy. There is something for everyone to enjoy in this anthology and the stories that viewers gravitate toward will be personal and subject to each person’s taste.
However, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to rank the short films that make up Visions. Some episodes are better than others, whether that’s due to art style, animation, narrative structure, plotting, innovation, or all of the above.
The following ranking takes into consideration these factors and is a list ordering the episodes from worst to best. I should note that this ranking doesn’t factor in how closely Visions adheres to the franchise’s canon as the series is a non-canon addition to this vast world created by George Lucas and grown over decades by various storytellers.
Traditionalists may struggle with this anthology — they may even struggle with this list — but Visions is informed and derived from Star Wars lore, it’s not beholden to it and as such I will be treating this Star Wars project as an entity unto its own.
Now, without further ado, let’s dive into this ranking! Be aware, there are spoilers from this point forward.