The latest LEGO Star Wars animated special was released yesterday, and it was as wonderful as the previous installations: it was funny, heartwarming, beautifully animated, and included some great stories spread across various Star Wars eras. LEGO Star Wars Summer Vacation was a huge hit.
I’m going to get into spoilers in just a moment, but keeping things more general, this special is filled with the humor we’ve come to expect from Lego, poking fun at various moments of the saga. There are some more obvious moments designed at being funny that seem to go a little over-the-top at times, but the funniest parts are often the little lines or easter eggs thrown in at points that happen so soon they might be easy to miss. But the beauty of these specials – which has been true of The Holiday Special, Terrifying Tales, and Summer Vacation – is that it combines these humorous takes and adventures with a truly heartwarming story teaching an important lesson to one of the heroes of the sequel trilogy.
The story of this special centers on Finn taking his friends on a much-needed vacation aboard the Halcyon in the time following The Rise of Skywalker. Finn, Poe, Rey, Chewbacca, Rose, BB-8, C-3PO, and R2-D2 are all there, while Lando has a presence through being a holographic host. Finn wants this to be one last hurrah for the gang, as he knows they will be going their separate ways soon. But Finn’s hopes of being together don’t pan out like he expected, which sends him on a journey as he is visited by three Force ghosts, telling him stories of their vacations in the past.
First up is Obi-Wan Kenobi, visiting Finn in the Halcyon bar, telling Finn about a time where he took a vacation while on Tatooine and got caught up in a mission with a Rebel agent stealing coaxium from Jabba the Hutt and being chased by Boba Fett. His lesson to Finn is to have fun in the moment.
Then it’s Anakin Skywalker, appearing to Finn on the beaches of Scarif and telling of a time where Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader took a vacation to that same beach. Palpatine was unappreciative of Vader’s plans, much to the frustration of the apprentice, but eventually the two of them wound up winning in a beach games competition. Anakin’s lesson to Finn is to do what he loves.
Finally, back aboard the Halcyon, Finn speaks with Leia Organa, who tells of an Organa-Solo family vacation before dropping Ben off to train with Luke. Han tried to plan a fun vacation but wound up re-visiting his old memories rather than making new ones for Ben. It leads them to Endor, where Ben hangs around with a group that leads to them stealing the Millennium Falcon. In space amidst the Death Star debris, Ben learns to fly the Falcon – and before going to train with Luke shares a touching moment with his father. Leia’s lesson to Finn is all about saying goodbye.
The story with Ben Solo and his family was by far the highlight of the episode, one that was thrilling and left me wanting much more of it. But the whole special was great, and seemed like a perfect mixture of nostalgia, excitement, emotion, laughs, and lessons. It’s a really fun thing to watch, and I hope there continue to be more Lego specials like it. The feel of this one almost felt like the completion of a trilogy (one focused on Rey, one on Poe, and one on Finn), and makes me wonder if it’s intended to wrap it up. But I hope there’s plenty more to come.
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