SO WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?
Upon the release of Season 1 of The Mandalorian, much of the Star Wars fandom let out a collective sigh of relief: Finally, something refreshing within Star Wars that didn’t kill off beloved characters in terrible ways. Something imaginative, that still felt familiar enough to be respectful. Something bold, yet also disconnected from some of the burdens of wider-franchise continuity; allowing a new audience of fans to enter the series. Even as Season 2 will likely introduce franchise heavy-hitters like Boba Fett, Ahsoka Tano and others, the series has an identity of its own that doesn’t rely solely on its name-power; instead having its own refreshing energy.
A shame then that its marketing team are some of the laziest people in Hollywood.
Is that harsh? Perhaps and while I have no inherent desire to attack people who; in all fairness, are likely under incredible duress during the Coronavirus pandemic, their work is simply not up to scratch. The issue is not that it’s bad. It avoids the major mistakes of marketing, such as revealing too much; like the trailer for Terminator Genisys. It does not feel shoddily made or awkward, like the infamous Spiderman: Far From Home Poster, where all three cast-members looked like glossy photoshop effects. The marketing is by no means bad. It’s not good either. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that there is; bar a small handful of minor details, nothing interesting about it at all.
It fails to be memorable in any strong capacity; even hilariously awful would be better at this point. Instead, the logo, poster and official cast images feel like they’ve been spat out of a random image-generator; fed data about the show. They are so generic, that supermarkets have tried to copyright them as microwave meals. So underwhelming in their style that even grandmothers giving haircuts to their families sigh in boredom. So mind-numbingly dull that I’m not entirely convinced the team didn’t sleepwalk their way through making them, while doing something that would take more effort… like counting to 5… or blinking.
Okay, that’s pushing it but I don’t think I’m being too unreasonable here. We know The Mandalorian Season 2 is going to be a HUGE DEAL for the franchise. Ahsoka’s live-action debut, Boba Fett’s redemption from his terrible ‘death’ in Return of the Jedi, the war on Mandalore: This is a BIG DEAL; yet we get posters like this?!
This offers absolutely NOTHING to be excited about. Mando, Baby Yoda, a speeder, a watery-planet… forgive me Disney but you aren’t exactly pushing the envelope here.
AND AS FOR THE TRAILER…
(SIGH) Look, i’m not asking you to reinvent the wheel but you made one of the most compelling trailers of all time with The Force Awakens and that gave almost nothing away. Your trailers for Star Wars Rebels and the Clone Wars were consistently strong, balancing dramatic-reveals with great atmosphere. The debut of Thrawn and reveal of Maul vs. Obi Wan?! Fantastic stuff. Even the first season’s trailer had more energy, intrigue and style then the second’s, which smacked of… well… ‘existitis’. A condition by where something seeks only to exist; for the sake of it, without any drive behind it.
It’s a serious medical condition.
Ultimately, the trailer offered the vaguest of scraps to seek our teeth into for speculation and had no ‘WOW!’ factor. Nothing stood out, nothing felt like a creative team going above and beyond to get people excited. I understand they don’t want to spoil the show. I do and i’m so glad about that. However; the way this marketing has gone, i’m truly wondering if they want to even say ANYTHING about the show.
I’m hugely excited for The Mandalorian Season 2. I trust that Dave Filoni, Jon Favreau and a host of talented people have a great season in store for us. But, none of my excitement has been down to the marketing. Lacking all the creative imagination of the series it is meant to sell, the marketing has been a consistent disappointment. I don’t believe the show will be. But on the off chance it is, then at very least; i’ll retract everything I said here.
In that case, the marketing has been representing the season perfectly.
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Marley Eleven Bury is a twenty-one year old Film & TV writer who loves takeaway and the superhero genre far too much. His claims to fame are having listened to the entire 26-hour+ Fire and Blood audiobook multiple times and being able to sing the Periodic Table song from memory.
