Star Wars Is Not What Everyone Says It Is

One of the primary reasons that people believe Star Wars is a sci-fi franchise is because of the futuristic technology. The best example of this is the lightsaber, an iconic bit of cutting-edge (rather literally) technology that you’d never find in a venerable fantasy franchise such as Lord of the Rings. However, a laser sword is just a futuristic-looking version of a familiar fantasy weapon, and George Lucas would be the first to admit that he just wanted the throwback weapons to fit in with the otherwise high technology (fun fact: early drafts of the script even called them “lazer swords”).

When you first realize that the Star Wars creator just added a kind of sci-fi veneer to fantasy archetypes, you can’t stop seeing it. For example, much of A New Hope is basically a modern version of the King Arthur legend. Like Arthur, Luke Skywalker is an orphan who sets out to restore peace to the land, and he does so with a mythical sword (that’s right: Luke’s lightsaber serves the same narrative function as Excalibur).

Extend that Star Wars comparison to Arthurian legend, and you’ll see that venerable sci-fi hero Obi-Wan Kenobi is actually Merlin. Like Merlin, Obi-Wan is thought of as a crazy hermit who later bestows a special sword on a person of destiny. Oh, and Merlin was originally responsible for bringing the young Arthur to be raised by others before eventually getting killed by his former student…does any of this sound a bit familiar?

Even without the super-specific comparisons to other works, it’s easy to tell that George Lucas mostly put a sci-fi skin over a simple fantasy tale. For example, a major part of Luke’s adventure in A New Hope is boarding the Death Star, rescuing Leia, and avoiding the wrath of Darth Vader. In other words, he has to storm the castle, save a princess, and avoid getting killed by a mysterious black knight, all of which are tropes you’re far likelier to find in a high fantasy story or D&D campaign than in science fiction.

The final way you can tell that Star Wars is secretly fantasy rather than sci-fi is through its theme. On the most basic level, science fiction tales focus on technology and how it changes science fiction for the better (like in Star Trek: The Original Series) or for the worse (like in The Matrix). 

Fantasy isn’t focused on technology or change but is more centered on restoring the status quo. Luke Skywalker, like Frodo Baggins before him, is setting out to restore the world as it once was (in this case, the Old Republic), and his story never makes technology the primary focus (the tech aspects are usually very phoned in, which is why we’ve had the threat of the Death Star or something just like it in four films and counting).

I’m not trying to yank the T-16 skyhopper model away from any Star Wars fan who still wants to call this franchise sci-fi. But when you’re inevitably binge-watching the Original Trilogy for May 4, I’d like you to seriously consider the similarities between these “science fiction” films and fantasy franchises such as Lord of the Rings. You might be surprised to discover how much your favorite sci-fi films have secretly been fantasy epics this whole time.