My letter to try and #SaveTheCloneWars

Dear Mr. Bob Iger, Mrs. Kathleen Kennedy, and Mr. George Lucas,

Putting this right out on front street, I am writing to the three of you today in order to try and save the Star Wars: The Clone Wars cartoon. Such an important and high quality show should not be left unfinished, and I would like to make my case to you today because I believe that you have the power to change this show's fate.

Growing up in the 90’s, I watched the original Star Wars trilogy on VHS, television, and later in the theater for the Special Editions. I was twelve years old when Episode One was released in 1999, and got to watch Revenge of the Sith the year I graduated high school. Star Wars has been a major force throughout my entire life, one that I thought may be over (at least in film capacity) with the release of Episode Three. In 2008, Lucasfilm Animation changed that.

With the release of Star Wars: The Clone War film and televison show, the talented people at Lucasfilm continued to do what they do best, introducing the wonder and magic of Star Wars to a new generation. However, they also did something even more important. The Clone Wars kept Star Wars alive and in the public eye. Sure, it may have had a slow start, but this show grew to be one of the strongest programs in the history of television. With amazing, stylized animation, fully realized characters that strengthened and, in some cases, improve their film counterparts, and brilliant stories from the extremely talented writers, The Clone Wars has become one of the most important parts of the legacy that is Star Wars.

I was disheartened to hear that the show was coming such an abrupt end, but I understand that all good things must. The reason I am taking the time to write you, is because I strongly believe that Mr. Dave Filoni and his team deserve to close out this brilliant series as they imagined it.

I was excited when Disney acquired Lucasfilm and Star Wars. The Walt Disney Company has a proven record of giving their acquired companies the creative freedom to make the best entertainment possible. One only needs to look at Pixar and Marvel to see this is true. And Lucasfilm has always given brilliant creators like Dave Filoni the opportunity to tell the stories that have captured our imagination. I hope this can continue with the bonus content that is being brought out for The Clone Wars.

I understand the logistics of it. Clone Wars was on a different network, and it was preparing to wind down, so spending the time and money relaunching the series on a Disney network for just a couple more seasons does not make a lot of sense, and neither does keeping it with Cartoon Network. Coupled with the growing excitement of Star Wars 7 on the horizon, focusing on promoting the new films makes sense. However, keeping the Clone Wars alive through 2013-2014 can only be a benefit to both Star Wars 7 and the Star Wars/Disney brand. It gives fans what they desire and allows Star Wars to be talked about and discussed year round.

So, in closing, I would ask two things. First, to consider multiple avenues of distribution. Blu-ray/DVD releases, online episodes, or maybe episode arcs released as films. Star Wars fans are willing to support our favorite show monetarily, we only ask for the opportunity to do so. The second is to give the brilliant cast and crew of The Clone Wars the freedom to finish telling their story. Supporting them in their efforts and allowing these stories to go forward will help keep Star Wars the cultural phenomenon that it has been for over three decades and continue to grow the excitement for Episode Seven.

I am writing this letter to you, because the fate of this quality show rests in your hands. I know that the fans and the creators want this. Support us, supports them, and in turn, we will continue to support Disney, Lucasfilm, and Star Wars for decades to come.

May the Force Be With You All,

Dan Spina
Kansas

J.J. Abrams, Star Wars, and the Death of Journalism

   

    Since its release in April 1976, All the President's Men has become THE must see film for aspiring journalism students. Giving a look inside the breaking of one of the biggest stories in US history, that lead to the only President to ever resign, the film showed the process of interviewing sources, corroboration, and a willingness to print stories that would receive hatred and backlash. But these men did what was necessary to find the truth. One of the biggest parts that stuck with me was when Ben Bradlee refused to run the information that came from Deep Throat without a second source. This impacted me in the sense that, up until that point, I hadn't considered the idea of a news source might not tell the truth. (I was young, give me a break) But having two unrelated source giving the same information would be a much better barometer for what is true, so this policy made sense.

    In the last decade, we have heard from the big, mainstream media how internet journalism isn't REAL journalism. They always held themselves to a higher standard and I assumed that the reason for this thought was that anyone could post anything on the internet, but that media like newspapers, magazines, and television news had oversight to make sure that everything printed is the truth. Of course, the reality is more grey then that. Now, television resembles the net, where every Tom, Dick, and dumbass can spout any garbage they wish and call it truth and print media has had more then it's fair share of issues, but they still held to this lofty position that traditional journalism is better the the internet. All of that changed on January 24th 2013.