LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy Series Review
In 1999, LEGO sales were starting to founder after decades of success. Kids just weren’t as interested in them anymore. That’s when they hit upon the idea to make sets based on licensed properties, and with Star Wars returning to theaters, it felt like a no-brainer. They got permission from LucasFilm, and ever since, LEGO Star Wars has been one of the companies most popular lines. Twenty-five years and hundreds of sets later, LEGO and Star Wars have teamed up to celebrate their partnership with a new miniseries, LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy. And as a lifelong fan of both brands, I can honestly say that it awesome! It’s not just a non-canon story told in the form of LEGO. It’s a love letter to both brands and to the communities of fans that have helped make them who they are today, memes and quotes and all.
We’re Not on Jaku Anymore, Sig
Sometime after the events of The Rise of Skywalker, Sig Greebling is a nerf herder/hardcore Jedi fanboy living on a peaceful farming world. He’s happy spending his days with his brother, Dev, his droid, Servo, and his friend/crush, Yesi Scala. But then, they stumble on a Jedi Temple and grab a glowing brick. When Dev comes to, everything is chaos.
Not only does the Empire still exist, but the history and people he knew have been changed. Heroes have become villains, and villains heroes! Darth Jar Jar is no longer just a meme! And Tatooine has water on it?!? What is going on?!? With the help of a mysterious Jedi named Bob, can Sig ever set things right?
…did I mention Tatooine has water now? Because that honestly blew my mind.
Rebuild the Galaxy Knows When to Laugh about Star Wars
When it comes to Star Wars, LEGO has never taken the franchise too seriously. Play any of the games or watch any of the other shows and specials, and you’ll know it’s not afraid of making lighthearted jokes about how silly some aspects of the films are. Rebuild the Galaxy takes that and cranks it up to eleven. If you were to take a shot every time it makes a joke at Star Wars’ expense or references a meme like Darth Jar Jar or “It’s a Trap’, you’ll be needing a new liver by the time the last episode ends.
The jokes aren’t limited to Star Wars, either. Several of the characters are direct references to thing that the LEGO community has come up with. For example, I found out that Sig’s name is a reference to “Signature Figures,” AKA the practice of fans making custom mini figures based on themselves. Furthermore, Jedi Bob, voiced by SNL veteran Bobby Moynihan (I know him as Louie in the DuckTales reboot) is himself an ascended meme. Originally a nameless Jedi from a 2002 Republic Gunship set, he became an urban legend among LEGO fans for reasons we cannot explain. Even his last name, Afol, is a fan-term for “Adult Fan of LEGO.”
As the series makes clear, though, all of this is being done in good fun and is not meant to offend any fans. Seeing alternate versions of the characters we’ve come to know living different lives is meant to be funny. That’s made further evident by the fact that actors from the films such as Anthony Daniels, Ahmed Best, and Mark Hamill return to voice their respective characters. And I’m really hoping they had fun with them.
Really Takes a Page from The LEGO Movie
Beyond the humor and premise, though, the other thing worthwhile about Rebuild the Galaxy is the way it’s animated. Before now, the LEGO Star Wars properties were animated far more fluidly, with characters displaying a range of movement that’s not possible in real life. In contrast, Rebuild the Galaxy takes a page from The LEGO Movie, animating the cast in a stiffer, faux stop-motion style found in brick films. The more elaborate scenes with vehicles are still clearly CGI, but the rest looks like brick film.
I was a massive fan of The LEGO Movie, so seeing the miniseries animated in this style is a big win in my book. And with LEGO having already made sets based on the special (and hopefully, they have more in the works), you know fans are going to be recreating scenes from the miniseries and whatever sequels come out.
I Want to See More from This New Galaxy…and More Models
Yes you read that right. Going into the series, I expected Rebuild the Galaxy to be a one-time thing, but the ending leaves the door open for even more adventures. Which is something I wholeheartedly support. I didn’t think that I would love this bizarro version of the Star Wars Galaxy as much as I did, but I can already see the potential for more stories. Whether we get them will depend on how well the show does in the ratings and how well the sets sell, though. But I’m really hoping that they choose to continue the story for as long as they can come up with good ideas for it. With how divided the fandom has been recently, I think we could all use the kind of laughs that this show gives us.
So, to sum it up, LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy is awesome, and if you’re a fan of LEGO or Star Wars, I really recommend watching it. And maybe buying some of the sets if you’ve got extra credits in your wallet.
