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RFR Q&A #119: The Fidelity of STAR WARS (Patreon)

Published:
2022-05-12 02:41:23
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2026-06
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Content

What "feels" like Star Wars? What makes Star Wars...STAR WARS? RFR V.I.P. Ben Stein makes his Q&A debut to discuss. We look back at the saga through the lens of the original  Star Wars Generation and share memories as old school fans, then we break down what Ben calls "The Fidelity of Star Wars".  Plus, Ben talks about the time he appeared on "Win Ben Stein's Money" and a healthy helping of Bor Gullett.

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Comments

Ben P. Stein
>>92392432

Thank you for your very kind words, which I just saw today! I feel great after reading them!

Mike James

Another awesome show I'm enjoying whilst eating breakfast right now in Birmingham, UK

Philip Eighteen

My little 2 year old boy is called finn! And he is definitely blonde! Great show!

Drake Widlake

Really enjoyed this conversation!

Jared Cantor

Can't wait to listen. Always love it when new VIPs contribute

John Riley

I enjoyed listening..Our Ben Stein is great!

Peter Beisser
>>83755062

He is! Wasn't sure where it was going at first. But as the episode rolled on, I began to realize just how much this dude knows. Really great job, Ben!

Ben P. Stein
>>83755062

Thanks so much, Peter. That means a lot! Your Qs&As have been fantastic. I've really enjoyed them.

Ben P. Stein

Thanks for all the kind words. I'm really glad you enjoyed the Q&A. If you will be at the RFR rooftop bash, please say hello!

Ben P. Stein
>>83718092

It was a thrill to read your comment when I woke up here in the States, to see that you already listened to it.

Uncle Ob1

Great episode! Loved watching that show with my Dad. I agree We have our own Ben

Blake Weaver

BEN you were awesome dude! I can’t wait to hear you again. I wish I could add to your conversation but you literally covered everything my simple mind could come up with. Plus we also had baseball talk which is a plus ( go Miami marlins ). Awesome AWESOME job brotha.

Ben P. Stein
>>83768824

Thank you so much, Blake! I always really enjoy your insights and comments. It was such a pleasure to do the show--and I always enjoy when my friends in one community such as Star Wars also like another of my favorite things, like baseball. I got into baseball and SW at around the same time as a kid.

Joe Dallas

Great job man! I’m glad we have our own Ben Stein!

Philip Ehlke

Definitely love my verisimilitude in Star Wars. But the Force leaves a lot of latitude for the unexplained (even in our galaxy but that’s another story). IMO Star Wars makes for better hard sci-fi than almost any other property because it’s so tactile and doesn’t get bogged down in technical minutiae. Basically it’s a universe where any technology could exist, but society has realized that pushing it too far comes at great cost. Therefore the tech that does exist is generally for utilitarian purposes only. Also character-wise it makes perfect sense that Luke’s spiritual journey would take him to some odd places following Ben’s betrayal. It is a bit disconcerting in the Sequel Trilogy that all our heroes are down in the dumps. If they did a better job executing their arcs, this could have made for a more satisfying resolution. Personally, the moment when Leia sacrifices herself to give Ben the vision of Han makes me break down in tears and provides at least some version of the resolution I needed. But some fans will maybe have to let it stew for a couple decades, as with the Prequel Trilogy, before it has a chance of connecting emotionally.

Sean W. from Warsaw
>>83815917

That's kinda what I'm leaning towards these days. Even for all the episodes I've done talking about the ST, it all still needs to simmer for a while.

Sean W. from Warsaw

Great first episode, Ben! Your insight is quite deep. Almost sounds like Lucas himself talking at times throughout the episode! I remember him talking in some behind the scenes interviews in the prequels about some of the elements of Star Wars that make it what it is. This conversation makes me want to revisit those interviews, especially nowadays with Kenobi on the horizon. Good timing for all this deep, storytelling stuff to come to the foreground. Also, I appreciated your insights into the ST. It seems relatively rare many folks will give it some attention. Always good food for thought. Totally agree with you guys that the creators adding more content to expand on the ST can only help it. Looking forward to seeing more of the big stuff, like Luke in the ST, expanded on more over the years.

Philip Ehlke
>>83819222

I love your analyses of the Sequels! Whether or not a person likes them, it does bother me when, within a fan context, someone adopts a highly dismissive posture toward the Sequels, the Prequels, or some other work that is beloved by many fans. Sometimes you have something like the Holiday Special, which has become so-bad-it’s-good, where even people who love it embrace the irony. There are ways to have constructive conversations about the franchise without having to love every bit of it while respecting fans who tune in who might have differing opinions. The only fan-centric roast channel I follow diligently is Red Letter Media because I find them hilarious, but even I skipped their Rise of Skywalker episode.

Rob Strecker

"adventure, heh, and excitement, heh. A Jedi craves not these things." LOL Great show.

Ben P. Stein
>>83815917

Thank you. Philip. Verisimilitude is a very apt term for what I was trying to convey about the fidelity of Star Wars. I think that the fact that the Force leaves a lot to the imagination heightens the verisimilitude of Star Wars because it makes it easier for different viewers to create their own perceptions of the Force. Like many, I have mixed feelings about the ST, but I was reflecting this morning that it actually leaves Rey and Finn and Poe in a decent place for future stories. And that's something to be optimistic about. Btw, Philip, I treasure your Qs&As about Star Trek. They are awesome and full of great insights.

Ben P. Stein
>>83819222

Sean, thank you so much. I'm so glad you liked it. As you may recall me saying, I held off on putting myself in a position to do the Qs and As for so long because the ones from you and everyone else have been so good that I didn't know what I could add. And I now am at a complete loss for what I could discuss next time that would be interesting or original! After reading the comments from you and Philip, I find myself getting more excited about the ST era and looking forward to more stories in that timeframe and beyond.

Ben P. Stein
>>83861486

Thank you so much, Rob! I'm glad you liked the show! I did feel the presence of Yoda while discussing these SW topics with Jimmy!

Ben P. Stein
>>83774968

Joe, thank you so much. I appreciate your kind words. I really enjoy your Qs and As as well! I look forward to meeting you at the RFR Rooftop Bash!

Sean W. from Warsaw
>>83819222

No prob, man! Always appreciate great discussion like you brought to the table about the topic of the ST, especially. It's something that's challenged me an awful lot to think outside the box over the years since it's debuted. As for ideas for forthcoming episodes for you, I can definitely understand having a loss of ideas! Sometimes I'll feel that way and it'll take forever for me to latch onto something and run with it. That being said, I hope you can get something going for the next episode! You bring a lot to the table. You seem like a bit of a philosophical kinda guy. What about tackling the controversial midi-chlorians? I personally think it sounds like something that goes quite well with your science background. And I've always wanted to hear someone really take that topic to that level. I don't know much about that level of science at all, but I'm always up for learning. Delving into some of the "scientific" sides of what I mentioned about the dyad in relation to midi-chlorians could be fascinating, too. I even reached out to folks on that one in my last episode for that reason! Anyways, something to think about, maybe?

Ben P. Stein
>>83819222

Oh, what a great idea, Sean, about midi-chlorians. Yes, I do have a science (physics) background and currently write and edit articles about the biological sciences as well, so I definitely have some thoughts about them. There are also the ysalamiri that Grand Admiral Thrawn had perched around him because they could repel the force in the original Thrawn trilogy. And the force-eating monsters in the High Republic, etc. We could also speculate what GL had in mind when he talked about having microbes play a role in his vision for the ST. That's a rich topic. Thank you so much!

Ben P. Stein
>>83726918

That's great! I was always happy when I was growing up that I had the SW name of Ben.

Philip Ehlke
>>83815917

Thanks Ben! Wow, that’s beyond kind. 🙏🏻 I’ll re-up my commitment to the king’s coffers one of these days. Starting to get the Q&A itch… would love to see John, Daisy, and Oscar (and Joonas, too) back together since I find them all immediately compelling as actors. Just watched Moon Knight with Oscar Isaac and he’s brilliant in it (you can actually hear my thoughts on a podcast I do called The ThawedCast). I love a strong emphasis on the Force but also prefer not to work too hard to reconcile some of the astrophysics (the ships have instruments that can pick up sound in space, neighboring planetoids containing sentient life—perhaps engineered to do so—are common enough thing to justify Starkiller Base having a beam that can split into multiple tributaries, etc.). I like to borrow the term “ludonarrative dissonance” from video games if something veers to far into silliness. Mando being thrown around like a rag doll in the Boba Fett finale might fall into this… 😱 My brother and I debate it on our Boba episode

Brian Robinson

Great episode for sure. I share many aspects of how you were introduced to Star Wars in 77/78 and how you progressed from there. I even lost touch after Jedi like Jimmy, but it was my teenage adolescence and priorities kicking in. I do remember my friends losing their excitement around the time of Jedi and I went the theater the first time to see it by myself. I ran into a friend and his little brother there, so we still share that experience. I'm sure my Mom just dropped me off and I was 11 at the time.

Ben P. Stein
>>83815917

Awesome that you are on another podcast! I just subscribed to The ThawedCast and look forward to sampling a few episodes. I haven't seen Moon Knight but have heard good things about it. I looked up "ludonarrative dissonance" and am really happy that computer and video games are now being taken seriously enough to have theories developed about them. I'm a fan of old-school interactive fiction and so one of my favorite blogs is The Digital Antiquarian (filfre.net).

Philip Ehlke
>>83815917

Nice! I do want to record an episode on TRON soon since it’s been 40 years and is one of my all time favorites. You’d be welcome to guest if you’re at all willing! 👾

Eric from Phoenix

Great job Ben! Star Warsiness = Fidelity, I love it! The White Snake connection and JMac's friend getting fired was crazy. The couple new ships shown in the Force Awakens were very underwhelming (Leia's and Han / Chewie's). To me, part of the fidelity of Star Wars is that ships and weapons have to have some basis in reality to work well in a Star Wars movie / show. This is one of the ways where the ST missed the mark. Finn's rifle from The Force Awakens...terrible, right out of Star Trek. Now his pistol was awesome!! I have a note that says Borgulet Crocs, I'm in?? What the heck is this? That's the problem with listening over several days as I forget some of the stuff. Can't wait until your next Q and A Ben!

Todd “Suds” Sedlacek

Ben, fantastic job! I really enjoyed your take on things and the way you framed everything. Looking forward to more from you!!

SaltyTrees

More than happy to brag about my new Star Wars friend Ben Stein. Great chat per usual, I believe because audiences have been exposed to such great high level shows / movies. When they get something new from their favorite franchise Star Wars, we as fans expect OR rather would enjoy having Star Wars hit that "Best of all time" level. The fact Dave Filoni is being held in such high regard has me very hopeful for the future of Star Wars projects, but there will be a few perceived "average" projects.

Rebel Force Radio

Sometimes right after a Q&A, I'll talk to Wendy and tell her how impressed I was with the level of conversation. This is one of those shows. Thanks Ben! - JMac

Ben P. Stein
>>84169062

Thank you so much for your kind words. You make a great point. We have seen stellar Star Wars and our expectations for subsequent content is high! I think we can expect lots of excellent Star Wars content in the months and years ahead. Jimmy makes the great point that Lucasfilm has figured things out and now has a number of great creatives working on Star Wars. In addition to showrunners Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni there are excellent directors such as Rick Fukuyama.

Ben P. Stein
>>84098518

Thank you so much, Todd! I’m really glad you enjoyed the episode and I greatly appreciate your kind words! I’m currently contemplating what I’d talk about on the next one!

Ben P. Stein
>>84081544

Eric, I’m so glad you liked the show and thank you so much for sharing your thoughts! Yes, I think many of the aliens and ships and weapons didn’t make much of an impression. Makes one appreciate all the great content the prequels had in those areas in addition to the OT. See you tonight!!!

Ben P. Stein
>>83977513

Brian, thanks for your kind words and sharing your memories of seeing the OT. I love your story about running into your friend and little brother in the theater. That must have been an awesome surprise, especially since you went by yourself. And so great you still share that experience. I can relate — I still remember the times I unexpectedly ran into friends at a movie showing. It was like, “Wow, you like this stuff too? Cool!”

Jeff Holland

Great first Q&A episode Ben! Welcome to the VIP lounge. Ha! I know EXACTLY what you mean when you talked about being a teenager and not having other Star Wars fans to talk to. I was in the same situation (I think all/most of us on here were). Which is why I'm so thrilled to have found RFR ten years ago. These are my people!

Jeff Holland

After all this talk about Bor Gullet, I demand a Bor Gullet puppet! Make it so. LOL!

Ben P. Stein
>>84974889

Thank you Jeff! I've thoroughly enjoyed your Q&As. I'm doing my next Q&A next week!

GB7

I’m soooo late commenting on this episode of Q&A … forgive me! This convo blew my mind. THANK YOU Ben & Jimmy. 👏🏼 Ben, you spoke so well about The Wars … great hearing your own history as a fan & you made some amazing points. I have come away from this episode feeling stronger in my fandom! That’s always good. Take care fellas. Can’t wait to hear more from Ben. MTFBWY