The long-awaited continuation of The Ninth Jedi is finally here! This 8-episode series follows Kara on her journey to become a Jedi and save her father from the evil General Nawaan.
The article contains light spoilers.
Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi is the first full-length series developed after a story that first appeared in Star Wars: Visions, a collaboration between Lucasfilm and multiple animation studios that aims to create completely new stories that are not part ot the current canon timeline.
If you are new to Star Wars: Visions, I suggest that you read our prep guide. It will provide context to what this initiative is and what to expect.
Let’s discuss every aspect of the series and the things that I enjoyed the most (and the least).
Plot
The story itself is nothing unique; it follows the journey of a hero who gathers allies from different corners of the galaxy. Despite their different opinions or backgrounds, they share one very important thing: being threatened by an overwhelming power that no one can stop alone.
This type of story is usually quite predictable, especially if you have watched plenty of anime. I have to admit that The Ninth Jedi took some interesting turns that I wasn’t expecting. The best one being how a lightsaber changes its color depending on the heart of the user; this is a simple but fantastic idea that fits perfectly into this story.
Though I’m not sure that said twists are enough to compensate for the lack of originality revolving around one of the most important themes of the series.
A planet-destroyer weapon fueled by kyber crystals… Really? Out of all the themes they could choose, they picked the most overused and boring one. Star Wars Visions is the place where they can get away with almost anything, and yet, they decide to copy what’s been made and remade.
Taking inspiration from media that already exists isn’t the problem. I’d be fine with them reusing a concept from The Old Republic, the Clone Wars, the Sequel Trilogy, or even creating something completely new that would make other man-made threats look like toys. But no, instead, we got a Death Star III or Starkiller Base II.
While there are many things that I loved, this definitely isn’t one. By far, the most disappointing thing in the series.
Characters
Despite having a decent number of characters and not enough time to create arcs for them, most are well defined and have a defined role in either the story or Kara’s development as a Jedi.
Homen, Ethan, and Four-Nines serve as the reliable friends who are not that powerful compared to the main character, but they still prove useful on many occasions.
Margrave Juro is basically Ben Kenobi. A powerful mentor and good friend who leads the younger generations until he can pass the baton. He’s who started everything and the man who inspires Kara to defeat the great evil that threatens everyone.
Gennoh Ikagi is the typical bad guy who lacks the power or intelligence to be the main villain but is always trying to fight the strongest enemy, despite being outmatched in previous duels.
The Jedi Hunter Bee-Toh reminds me of Din Djarin. He’s only doing a job regardless of who hired him, while not being unnecessarily cruel like his pal. I really like the way he ended up fitting in the story, definitely one of my favorite characters, even if he appeared briefly compared to others.
I absolutely loved how Kwana’s and Tafflah’s factions are clearly inspired by Dwarves and Elves respectively. Dun Bai’s people might not have that fantasy-type appearance, but they have a clear aesthetic that is highlighted in both their military uniforms and their ships.
Last but definitely not least are the most important characters of the story.
Lah Kara
Lah Kara is a young Padawan who is both impulsive and emotional. I often find a character with these traits to be annoying, but this isn’t the case for Kara because that’s exactly how a teenager acts.
Due to time constraints, we see her evolve quite rapidly, but unlike other Star Wars characters (Luke and Rey), we can see her growth happen in an organic way. Kara’s growth comes at the expense of immense pain and learning the hard way, but life’s most important lessons are often learned this way.
Kara’s journey is the basic main character’s anime arc, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Even if I imagined what would happen, seeing her story unfold was as satisfactory as it could be.
Lah Zhima
Zhima confused me a lot. He was Nawaam’s prisoner, but he still helped him tune the kyber crystals. Neither Kara nor anyone else was being held hostage to coerce Zhima into doing that, and yet he helped without hesitation.
Then, when Ethan came to help him, Zhima escaped with Ethan and fought against Nawaan’s army. His motivations to go against his master in the past are also kept very vague.
Zhima is one of the central characters of the story, and yet his motivations are not fully clear. I imagine that the reason can be related to that last scene that is also a bit confusing, but I guess we’ll have to wait to see if it was done on purpose.
Nawaam
By far, my least favorite character of the series. His motivations are as vague and boring as his personality. The coolest thing about him is his armor design, which reminds me of Tulak Hord’s armor set from Star Wars: The Old Republic, but aside from that, there’s nothing appealing in him.
The so-called “state of nothingness” he so desperately attempts to achieve isn’t even a political or ideological model, but a state of mind that is achieved through discipline. Not that there’s something wrong with that, but as motivation to rule the galaxy, I find it stupid.
What makes it worse is that it’s clearly a copy of Dragon Ball’s Ultra Instinct, an almost-divine technique that allows the fighter to enter a state where no emotion or thought interferes with the fighter’s movements. Making whoever achieves the Ultra Instinct both unpredictable, obscenely powerful, and even irradiate a silver glow.
Combine this with his planet-destroyer weapon, and you have the perfect formula for the most uninteresting antagonist.
Animation
While I’m not that passionate about anime, I still have spent hundreds of hours watching different anime in my lifetime. With my all-time favorites being Hunter x Hunter, Digimon, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, and Naruto.
The Ninth Jedi has somewhat of an “old” style for the majority of the time. The colors aren’t too bright, and everything isn’t perfectly stylized like modern titles (think of Attack on Titan or Demon Slayer).
However, there are key moments where the animation looks as modern as it gets and full of life. This helps create a fantastic contrast between the most significant sequences of the story and the less important bits of it.
This was also present in the first two shorts, but having a whole series emphasizes this style that I think is fantastic. It’s like having the best of both worlds: the vibes and aesthetic of a 90s anime with modern action sequences that remind us how far animation has gotten in a few decades.
Music
The music is one of the hidden gems of The Ninth Jedi. It’s always present, but it never becomes the main character. Something that isn’t always done in Star Wars. Don’t get me wrong, there are times when it’s the right thing to do, but for a series of this type, it’s not, and they understood that perfectly.
Over the eight episodes, the music is there to emphasize everything: Tragedy, happiness, dreadfulness, or tension. My favorite thing about the music is how they achieved this while also including subtle references to some of the classic pieces we all know and love.
With so much going on the screen, those references are easy to miss, so I highly suggest that you pay attention when you watch it next time or simply look for the official soundtrack and give it a listen.
Final Thoughts
Star Wars: Visions Presents – The Ninth Jedi is a fun series that left me with a bittersweet sensation. Some things were very disappointing, though most of it is focused on the main antagonist of the story and Lah Zhima.
I might have voiced my concerns in a way that made it sound like I disliked this series, but that’s far from the truth. It has some major flaws, but its positives outweigh the negatives.
The music and animation were great; I enjoyed most of the characters, they were able to introduce multiple factions that are easy to distinguish from each other, and Kara’s journey was predictable but still fun to watch.
If I had to pick one thing out of all the series, it’s definitely the idea that being a Jedi isn’t just about being powerful in the Force, but wanting to use the power you have to protect others.
