Star Wars Visions returns for a third volume, bringing new stories and long-awaited follow-ups to some of our favorites; proving it remains some of the best Star Wars we’ve got.
My love of Star Wars: Visions has been fairly well documented at this point. The combination of letting a variety of storytellers cut loose in the galaxy far, far away without worrying about canon and the unique animation styles has provided a plethora of phenomenal stories. I can honestly say I’ve rewatched a few of these shorts over the past two volumes more than some of the live-action shows/movies at this point.
As such, I was thrilled to get my eyeballs on Volume 3, though wary as the hype/expectations are now incredibly high. This is especially true of the three shorts that actually serve as sequels/follow-ups to shorts from the first volume. Thankfully, I didn’t have anything to worry about and this new batch of shorts is, once again, filled with banger after banger.
Much like with my previous reviews, I’m not going to break down each individual short here, but instead talking about them more generally. I do have some favorites I’ll mention specifically and I can already feel some deeper dive articles percolating in my brain on a couple of the shorts…Anyway.
Unlike the second volume, which opened things up to animation studios all over the world, Volume 3 goes back to basics and puts the focus back on anime. This is definitely not a complaint as the studios chosen bring a bevy of impressive stories. Although part of me wishes there was a little more variety in the animation this time around, no two shorts are the same. They each explore different themes, time periods, and all manner of unique characters as they weave thrilling new adventures.
New Heroes and Villains
First, let’s talk about the all new shorts that we have. There’s “The Song of Four Wings,” “The Bounty Hunters,” “Yuko’s Treasure,” “The Smuggler,” “The Bird of Paradise,” and “BLACK.” Each of these brings something new and fresh to the table, even as they play around with familiar concepts (like Jedi/Sith, bounty hunters, scoundrels, etc), technology, and locations.
Easily the most impressive thing about Star Wars: Visions in general, is the ability for these filmmakers to do something so incredibly different/unique, while still capturing everything necessary to still feel like Star Wars. In “Song of the Four Wings” we’ve got a girl who’s droid transforms into a set of X-wing like armor. It’s something that fits within any number of anime shows out there, yet the way it’s handled is still very much in line with the galaxy far, far away.
It’s hard to fully explain. Each short fully immerses you in the unique aspects of the world/character they’ve crafted. Even as the individual shorts push against the norms we’ve come to associate with the franchise, they never feel out of place while you’re watching. That we’re three seasons into this, totaling 27 individual shorts, it’s impressive how these studios are still able to craft new stories that are fresh/unique while retaining the core of what makes this franchise tick.
For me, out of these new shorts, “The Smuggler” was easily my favorite (with “The Bounty Hunters” close behind it). That’s not to say the others aren’t amazing—even as I’m typing this, I find myself debating on swapping “Bounty Hunters” out with “Song of Four Wings”—but this is the one that really stood out to me most.
TRIGGER’s animation in “Smuggler” is absolutely stunning. I mean, all of them look good in their own ways, but something about this short feels polished even beyond what you’d expect. It’s just gorgeous and sleek, feeling more like a movie quality than a short, or series. Beyond that, however, the story and characters are highly engaging and features one of my favorite “holy shit” action moments. If we get follow-ups on any of these new shorts, I’m keeping my fingers crossed to get more of this one.
Old Favorites Stay Strong
Now, let’s talk about the returning characters! For the first time, we’re getting sequels (for lack of a better term), to some of the fan favorite stories from the first release. Of the three follow-up stories, it should come as no surprise that “The Lost Ones” ended up being my favorite. “Payback” has some stellar action and oodles of flair and “Child of Hope” continues Kara’s story well (and setting the stage for its own series) with great animation and a touching story. Even so, “Lost Ones” manages to stand above them.
Being that “Village Bride” remains one of my favorite shorts, I was super excited to see what F had in store for her next. Thankfully the new short didn’t need my existing hype to rule. It’s very much a different story from the previous adventure, totally as well. Yet it’s no less engaging and opens up more of F’s history in some intriguing ways that continues to leave me yearning for more.
More than that, however, Kinema Citrus’s visual storytelling prowess is incredible. The sheer amount of worldbuilding packed into just the first couple minutes (without feeling crammed in there) is insane. Not only are we introduced to a new world, a new type of catastrophe, and new characters/community, we also learn something new about F in the process. This continues throughout the story, expanding on F as a character and making the unique Star Wars galaxy she occupies more interesting.
Expanding the Galaxy
All of this said, some of the shorts (especially in regards to the follow-ups) feel less like complete stories and more like pilot episodes. I mean, we know The Ninth Jedi is getting it’s own series next year, so that makes sense. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and they’re still a hoot. However, it does give them a distinct unfinished feeling, whereas their original shorts worked as complete, satisfying stories. Yes, there was always the implication these characters had other adventures and histories, but story we found them in was done. Here it feels like we’re waiting for more; which I suppose is the risk in any sequel.
“The Lost Ones” manages to avoid some of this, but there’s still a sense of a bigger story coming into focus. Even a couple of the all new original shorts have this issue to varying degrees. Again, it’s hard to think of this as a complaint, as what we’re given are still fantastic adventures. It just makes me worry about potential disappointment down the road if we don’t keep getting follow-ups on these. If that makes sense.
On the flip side of this “issue,” all of these shorts work incredibly well on their own even if you haven’t seen ANY of the previous ones. The way the three sequel shorts dive right into the new stories allows newcomers to enjoy the ride without needing to know anything previously.
This time around, I watched these episodes with my youngest child. She’s, obviously, been around Star Wars her whole life, but it’s not exactly her thing either. Visions, however, has apparently sucked her in. She came to sit with me when I kicked off my screeners and even asked to watch more the following days. So she started with Volume 3, having not seen the previous ones, and still had a blast with “The Duel: Payback” (her favorite actually), “Child of Hope,” and “The Lost Ones.”
In that regard, it was great to see how these stories were able to pick up with familiar characters without leaving new audiences behind. She greatly enjoyed the others as well (“Yuko’s Treasure,” which features the bear-droid is definitely going to be a hit with younglings). It’s a blast to see how Visions, even sitting outside the established canon, is able to entice and engage new audiences.
All in all, Star Wars: Visions Volume 3 is another impressive outing. While it feels a little more familiar and lacks the variety/experimentation that made the first two feel so unique, it doesn’t change the fact these are still phenomenal stories on their own. I’ve already watched them all two-three times and know some of these are going to be regularly revisited. Once again, Visions continues to be some of the best Star Wars storytelling we’ve gotten.
All nine shorts of Star Wars: Visions Volume 3 are available now on Disney+!
