Star Wars Needs More Happy Endings

Star Wars and sadness are two things that have become inextricably tied to one another. There's no Star Wars without some dose of tragedy. The original trilogy started the trend with the Skywalker saga when Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, and Anakin Skywalker passed on and became one with the Force. Anakin's sacrifice was necessary and beautiful with his redemption. But things never seemed to settle down, and the wars never quite ended.

Most Star Wars characters had tragic childhoods and lost their families at some point. When they found a new family to cling to, they were again struck by tragedy. Whether it's Din Djarin, Cassian Andor, Jyn Erso, Ezra Bridger, Ahsoka Tano, or Kanan Jarrus, our beloved characters have gone through major heartbreaks. Some characters like Kanan, Jyn, and Cassian sacrificed their lives so that others may live, but one wonders how the franchise would be different had these characters survived.

Tragedy is something most of the fanbase has come to expect. When things begin to go right for their favorite characters, fans dread what might ruin it. Maybe now is the right time to show lasting happiness in Star Wars, but it's up to the writers and creatives. Dave Filoni resisted George Lucas's call to have Ahsoka killed at the hands of Darth Vader; her survival left so much room for her growth and potential for storytelling. Now, she has a series of her own, too, and still thrives. The tragedy had to wait so she could fulfill her purpose. Maybe Star Wars writers and creatives should start finding ways to make an impact without resorting to death and sacrifice.

The question now is, what does happiness look like in Star Wars? It would be nice to have some characters who live out the remainder of their lives blissfully. Characters who grew up in stable homes without getting orphaned would be something new for the franchise. Family and home seem like the things most Star Wars characters never get to have, so happiness should include both. This idea has been teased in The Bad Batch and The Mandalorian, as Hunter and Din both wish to give their children a normal childhood. But that's only possible when there's peace in the galaxy. A few years without a war threatening the entire galaxy may be the way to go.

With everything happening in the real world right now, maybe Star Wars fans will find more comfort in stories with a happy ending than the sadness they've come to expect. Everything is up to the writers and where they plan on taking their respective stories, but the franchise can move in a new direction once writers are allowed the freedom to let characters live and serve a long-term purpose.