Watch: Star Wars Short Film Shows What Happened Minutes Before ‘Force Awakens’Posted on Monday, May 9th, 2016 by Peter ScirettaAs you probably know by now, Disney has teamed with LEGO to release a series of Star Wars animated short films set before the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. We’ve posted a bunch of them on the site in the past, and they are definitely worth your time. The latest one, the fifth in the series, is titled “Attack of the Conscience” and tells Finn’s (at the time, still FN-2187) story leading up to the seconds before we see he in JJ Abrams‘ Episode VII. Watch that short and the other four previously released LEGO Star Wars animated short films, after the jump. Here is our previously released story collecting all the shorts, followed with the new short film on the bottom:Back in February, Disney announced a new series of Star Wars animated short films titled LEGO Star Wars: The Resistance Rises a prequel to Episode VII featuring characters from Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
The first short in the series, titled Poe to the Rescue premiered on DisneyXD, and was later put online for everyone to enjoy. Disney has now released three more LEGO Star Wars: The Resistance Rises shorts, titled The Trouble with Rathtars, Hunting for Han and Rey Strikes Back. All three shorts are a fun watch and well worth your time. I wish Disney would make an actual animated series out of these and not just shorts. Watch the two new LEGO Star Wars: The Resistance Rises short films now after the jump.Here is the previously released Poe to the Rescue short which follows Resistance pilot Poe Dameron alongside two droids, C-3PO and BB-8, as they come to the aid of Admiral Ackbar who is being held captive by Captain Phasma aboard a Star Destroyer.Now let’s get to the new episodes, which were recently released via Toys R Us (via: Starwarsnewsnet). First up is episode 2, The Trouble with Rathtars:HAN SOLO and CHEWBACCA have their hands full with a pack of misbehaving Rathtars as they attempt to transport their carnivorous cargo to a rendezvous with Bala Tik the pirate.
Things go from bad to worse when First Order TIE Fighters pull the freighter over, forcing Han to think quick and somehow save his skin from the First Order and the rampaging creatures.And here is episode 3, Hunting for Han:At the castle of pirate MAZ KANATA (the gathering spot for A-list Scum and Villainy across the galaxy) Maz prepares to trade with scurvy pirate BALA TIK. Bala Tik’s demands that Maz reveal the location of Han Solo, whom Bala Tik accuses of cheating him out of his Rathtars. As it happens, every unsavory character there has a beef with Han, and soon the Han-haters erupt in a brawl that stops when a mysterious OLD COOT sends the angry Scum on a wild goose chase after Han.Here is Episode #4, Rey Strikes Back:On remote Jakku, REY strives to make ends meet by scavenging ruined Star Destroyers, but the heartless trader UNKAR PLUTT isn’t making it easy for her. Angry at what he perceives as Rey’s ingratitude, Plutt sends henchmen to steal her cherished Tank Speeder. The two not-so-bright baddies meet their match in the determined Rey, who stops at nothing to get her beloved “Bumper” back.
UPDATE: Here is Episode #5 in the series, Attack of the Conscience:I believe these shorts are roughly considered canon, which may mean that they confirm Lando is still alive in the Star Wars universe. It also confirms he’s friendly with Maz, who we know returns for Star Wars Episode VIII. This doesn’t necessarily mean that Lando will make an appearance in the live-action films, of course, but the possibility has been rumored for some time. Either way, it’s fun to see old Lando back in animated form.Airdates for the additional episodes have not yet been announced, but they will probably air on the DisneyXD network throughout the year. Cool Posts From Around the Web: ZergNetThe LEGO corporation has produced a number of Star Wars Movie Shorts. Most of them feature one of the LEGO Star Wars sets. They are published on the LEGO Star Wars portal. The first set was a series of comics taking place during the Clone Wars. Season three of the comics had two versions of five episodes, a Light Side and a Dark Side.
Season four of the movie shorts had two versions of five episodes, a Good one and a Bad one. It features a storyline about a bounty hunter raid to acquire a Jedi holocron. These are all in two-parts. The first videos take place during the Clone Wars The later videos tie into The New Yoda Chronicles episode Escape from the Jedi Temple and are produced by WilFilm Production and written by Michael Price.Star Wars: The Force Awakens / The first in a series of LEGO Star Wars shorts based around The Force Awakens will premiere Monday. Disney announced that "Poe to the Rescue" will premiere on February 15 at 8 PM ET. The episode will feature Poe Dameron coming to save Admiral Ackbar from the clutches of Captain Phasma. It also promises appearances from Kylo Ren, C-3PO, and BB-8. It's the first in "The Resistance Rises" series of LEGO Star Wars shorts, which will explore events that led to The Force Awakens. The network promises stories featuring Kylo Ren, Han Solo, Finn, Rey, BB-8, and Maz Kanata.
This follows recent news that other LEGO Star Wars anthology stories are incoming. The LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens game will add some additional story with the blessing and assistance of Lucasfilm. In addition, the upcoming Disney XD series LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures will follow a new set of characters and take place between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Steve Watts is a freelance writer who wants to see this very much please. You can read more of his keen insights by following him on Twitter and IGN.UPDATE: New Lego Star Wars Shorts and The Freemaker Adventures are Canon GUADALUPE COUNTY, TEXAS — Yesterday, new Lego Star Wars animated shorts hit the web that take place prior to the events of The Force Awakens. Many have been wondering whether said shorts are canon to the Star Wars universe or should only be looked at as a fun cartoon for kids like other Lego media. After a curious tweet from Star Wars canon head, Hablo Pidalgo, we reached out to him via Skype to get the true story behind the canonization of these animations.
Yes those #LegoStarWars shorts are #canon. — Hablo Pidalgo (@HabloPidalgo) April 28, 2016 “Sí, these events take place but without the zaniness or cartoon humor. Chewbacca and Han did have problems with the Rathtars getting out of their holding area. There was a bar fight at Maz’s castlebar on Takodana that ended with Lando telling the pirates and smugglers that Han was on Jakku. That’s how Bala-Tik of the Guavian Death Gang and Tasu Leech of Kanjiklub ended up on on Han’s freighter, Eravana. The final short shows that the Ghost from Rebels is still around and explains why Unkar Plutt has such animosity towards Rey. I mean if you explotó my place of business, I’d be muy enojado too! But yes, all of the new shorts are el canonisimo.” There you have it, albeit in broken Spanglish. What do you think of Lucasfilm using Lego shorts as a form of canon storytelling? We here at FakingStarWars.net think it’s a great way to continue the saga in a fun and lighthearted way.