Retro Sci Fi TV: A look at shows from the past that may not have stood the test of time and/or that are relegated to their era, but many of us still have fond memories of them.
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What Is It? This comedy/variety holiday special takes place on the Wookie planet of Kashyyyk and focuses on Chewbacca’s family consisting of his wife Malla, his son Lumpy, and his father Itchy. Han and Chewie are trying to make it to Kashyyyk for “Life Day” (apparently the Wookie equivalent of Christmas), but run into trouble while trying to avoid Imperial patrols. Meanwhile, Chewie’s family keep themselves busy while waiting for the arrival of the travelers.
Aired: CBS, November 17, 1978
Starring: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, James Earl Jones
Is It Must Watch Sci Fi? No. In fact, some would say it is must avoid sci fi TV. But as a curio it does deliver some cheesy fun, and the animated short featuring Boba Fett is worth a look.
The Skinny: When Star Wars hit the theaters in 1977, it changed the game for sci fi and created an immediate demand for more from the franchise. A sequel was in the works, but would not arrive until 1980 so CBS executives tried to capitalize on Star Wars-mania by approaching George Lucas with the idea for a holiday special. Lucas had previously considered sequels to the original movie and one of those would focus on the Wookies. So he agreed to the special, but insisted on the Wookie-centric premise. CBS agreed and decided to give it a variety show spin since that genre was at the peak of its popularity on television at that time.
This resulted in extended scenes showing Chewie’s family yowling and growling with no subtitles, interspersed with appearances from the main cast of the movie along with musical numbers from the likes of Jefferson Starship and Diahann Carroll as well as comedy routines from Harvey Korman, Beatrice Arthur, and more (the variety segments were usually presented as entertainment pieces the Wookie’s were watching). It even had Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia singing a song to close out the special. This probably all sounded like a good idea in the network boardroom to a bunch of execs trying to cash in on one of the biggest trends at that time. But the final product, it’s fair to say . . . failed to measure up. Star Wars did not mix well with the variety format (something any reasonable person would tell you), and the holiday special was quickly branded a disaster.
The special does not even count in the so-bad-it-is-good category and was never rerun and also never received a home video release. In fact, George Lucas commented that if he could locate all the masters and recorded tapes of the show, he would personally smash them. But it did include the well-done animated short that introduced Boba Fett (which sadly did not lead to an animated Star Wars series), and that is definitely worth seeking out (the Jefferson Starship song wasn’t bad either). And the holiday special could provide entertaining viewing with a group of friends if enough alcoholic beverages are involved (a snarky Rifftrax voice-over could add to the fun as well).
Should It Be Rebooted? Absolutely! The Disney+ streaming service should start doing a yearly Star Wars holiday special similar to what Doctor Who does! Think of all the secondary and tertiary characters that they could work into a cheesy mess of fun each year. The Guardians of the Galaxy holiday special worked out pretty good (more on that one at this link), so maybe Disney+ could venture back to the Star Wars galaxy for more holiday fun.
Interesting Fact: Despite the fact that the Holiday Special is almost universally derided, it is still considered canon for the franchise. Taking place between the events of Star Wars and Empire Strikes Back, it introduced Chewie’s family and Boba Fett, and Life Day has been referenced in other works in the franchise including The Mandalorian. There were even prototype toys made of Chewie’s family by Kenner, but those were never released.
Where Can You Watch It? As mentioned above, the special has never received a home video release. There are bootleg copies out there and a fairly decent recording is available on YouTube at this link.
Read More About the Show: Wikipedia | IMDb.com
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