Willow: Special Edition [DVD]

Product Information

Elves, dwarves, an abandoned baby, and an evil witch? Why it must be "Willow", born from the mind of George Lucas and now polished-up for a new special edition DVD release. So, perhaps we will see the Willow gang return for another adventure later down the line... after all, it took 35 years for this sequel series to arrive as is!

I think the best we can do is speculate based on the evidence at hand. A few things are happening at once here.What a delightful, fantastical, journey through the earlier days of the munchkins. Not since the Wizard of Oz have I seen than many people of shortened stature grace a movie set and what a shame that is. So much talent, courage, and determination in people who must navigate life in a world designed for giants. Sadly, Disney confirmed there wouldn't be a second season of Willow in March 2023, meaning the series was the latest to join the ranks of cancelled TV shows. Some have argued that Kasdan is saving face here, casting the current circumstances around the show in as positive a light as possible. It’s a cancellation in all but name. I think that may be true, but I also think it’s an important distinction. Disney could easily just cancel the show. This happens all the time. Keeping the door open to a potential second and third season has to be purposeful and until we hear otherwise, I think fans of the show should hold out a small sliver of hope. The one thing that kind of suggests that while the show may not be officially cancelled, it’s not officially not cancelled either is this passage:

That last bit is for me, I suppose, and I do appreciate the spirit of the statement. We critics are here to help, not to destroy. I want the next season of Willow to be much, much better than the first season and some very simple changes—like taking out the godawful modern pop music—can go a long ways toward achieving that goal. Reducing the amount of modern aphorisms present in the dialogue and putting a little more effort into costumes would also help. I’m fine with all the representation and diversity—critiques that the show is “too woke” are silly—but I’d appreciate a bit more depth for a lot of these characters, and more realistic struggles. Willow got off to a terrible start right out the gates. The show’s tone felt directed at a teenage demographic that doesn’t exist—but fits squarely outside the demographic most interested in this kind of fantasy: Kids and their parents. There’s a way to craft a story that appeals to younger kids and their parents and the blueprint is the Willow film. If you want to ignore both those crucial demographics and target teens with a CW-style romance, you have Willow the TV show. The problem? I’m not sure even most teenagers like shows that so badly misunderstand how teenagers think these days. It’s just too cheesy.

Side guide

Additional Extra Features Also included on the DVD are TV spot and trailer galleries, and a photo gallery with plenty of behind-the-scenes shots. Kasdan describes the second season he has in mind as ‘brain-meltingly fun, richer, darker and better” adding: In his post, he explained that they decided to release the main cast to pursue other opportunities, and said Willow wouldn't resume filming in the next 12 months. However, he went on to explain that, "with the enthusiastic and unwavering support of Lucasfilm and Disney, we've developed and written what we hope is a brain-meltingly fun, richer, darker and better VOLUME II, which builds on the characters and story of our first eight chapters (The Wyrm survives!)." Jonathan Kasdan, the creator and showrunner of the Willow series on Disney Plus says that Deadline’s report was mistaken and that while the show is not in production currently, and won’t be for some time, it has not been cancelled. Disney and Lucasfilm have released the actors from their obligation to the show for the time being, which allows them to seek out other roles during the interim, but Kasdan claims they have every intention of producing the next season. However, despite these claims, Madmartigan does not physically appear in the show, as Kilmer was not able to join the cast on set. At a press conference close to the show's launch (via SYFY), Kasdan explained exactly how Madmartigan would factor into the Willow series.