Sunday, December 18, 2016

The Star Wars Holiday Special

Have you heard of The Star Wars Holiday Special? Star Wars is such a huge phenomenon and Christmas is such a huge holiday, you'd think it'd be common knowledge. But it's a testament to how unbelievably awful the special is that it's almost completely unknown.

And it is unbelievably awful. I've watched it two or three times in my life and I can't remember hardly anything about it. It's as if my brain recognizes it as psychological poison and actively purges it from my memory for my own good.

The Red Letter Media show "Best of the Worst" devotes two entire episodes to The Star Wars Holiday Special and they are two of my favorite things on the internet.

A few cursory notes to be aware of. The Star Wars Holiday Special first (and last) aired in 1978 - the year after the first movie was released to theaters. It actually aired before Thanksgiving of 1978. It would seem that the "Holiday" it refers to would be Thanksgiving but over the years that distinction has been lost and it's assumed to mean Christmas.

The special mostly focuses on Chewbacca's family who speak in barks and growls for long stretches with NO subtitles. In addition to incomprehensible noise and brief cameos by the real Star Wars cast members, it also stars people all the kids in the 70's wanted to see - Bea Arthur, Harvey Korman and Art Carney.

Without further ado, a "round table discussion of the Star Wars Holiday Special". Sure it's 43 minutes long (80 minutes if you watch part 1 - which is also hilarious), but you know sometime this week you'll need something to watch. Happy Life Day...



"Not-Diana-Ross singing some kind of erotic soul song to an elderly Wookie who's [...] in a science-fiction machine - that's not what comes to mind when I think of Christmas."

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