RJ Writing Ink

DuckTales Season 3, Episode 6 Review

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, then you’ll know how influential Japanese anime and manga has become in the last thirty years. However, all that success goes back to one man, the God of Manga himself, Osamu Tezuka. He created Japan’s resident cyborg Pinocchio, Astro Boy, and according to Wikipedia, got a lot of inspiration from Walt Disney. Therefore, it seems fitting that the newest of DuckTales, a Disney cartoon, pays tribute to one of Japan’s greatest icons.

BOYD, A Definitely Real Boy

So, remember BOYD, that cute little robot that Mark Beaks brought to that kid’s party? In this episode, Huey becomes his best friend right as he starts malfunctioning. As a result, they learn Gyro helped create BOYD, originally called 2-BO, with his mentor in Japan. Thus, the group and Gizmoduck head to Tokyolk (nice pun) to figure out what’s wrong with him.

From the start, the episode is rife with references to Osamu Tezuka’s work and Japanese pop culture. Firstly, BOYD’s original name of 2-BO is a play on Tobio, the late son of the scientist who created Astro Boy. Secondly, there’s Detective Tezuka, who has a grudge against Gyro for reasons I will explain shortly. Not only does she share her name with Osamu Tezuka, her outfit mirrors the one worn by Inspector Zenigata from Lupin the III, another old-time manga. Finally, BOYD discovers his legs become rocket thrusters, helping him to save Huey when he falls from Tokyo Tower. He even does Astro Boy’s iconic pose!

DuckTales now has a Dr. Gero

A big, though indirect reference I took away from this episode, though, comes in the episode’s villain, Dr. Akita. Turns out, he designed BOYD to be a weapon only for him to run amok and forcing him to go into hiding. He reminds me a lot of another mad scientist from a popular anime, Dr. Gero. The guy built androids/cyborgs for the purpose of world universal domination, and that’s the same vibe I got off of Dr. Akita. Fortunately, thanks to Gizmoduck and Gyro, he gets hauled off to prison at the end of the episode. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if he returns down the line as an agent of F.O.W.L.

What Measure is a Non-Human?

When it comes to self-aware robots and androids, a popular theme is the question of what it means to be human for them? Are they capable of being real people? In the case of BOYD, thanks to Huey, the answer is yes.

Huey’s had a hard time relating to other people all his life, so when he bonds with BOYD, he’s thrilled to have someone to relate to. As a result, he spends the entire episode defending his status as a real boy. And once Gyro learns that Dr. Akita’s responsible for BOYD’s rampage, so does Gyro.

So, the episode ends up being a sweet blend of Astro Boy and Pinnochio. Which I think that Tezuka would find amusing in the end. Great episode all around, and I hope we see more of Astro BOYD.

I Give “Astro B.O.Y.D.” A 5/5

Stray Observations

• We knew Beaks didn’t build BOYD, but it’s funny seeing how he found him in a dump
• Apparently, Glomgold is big in Japan. Kind of like how Oswald the Lucky Rabbit was. Look him up.

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A Look at One of the Oldest Super weapons

If you’re reading this post, then you came here from my post on the Jedi Civil War. This is just a companion piece about the weapon that I mentioned in that post, the Star Forge. I wanted to talk more about it, because I think its one of the more interesting super weapons in Star Wars. But to do that, I need to tell you about it’s creators, the Rakatan Infinite Empire. Buckle up, this going to get weird.

The Star Wars Version of Atlantis

Tens of thousands of years before the events of the films, and long before the birth of the Jedi or Republic, there was a species called the Rakata. Originating on a world called Lehon, or Rakata Prime, they were a bipedal species that looked like a cross between amphibians and the Coneheads from Saturday Night Live. With eye stalks. They were a race of warriors strong in the Force. Unfortunately, they were also an extremely violent people that sought to conquer everything they saw. And much to the Galaxy’s misery, around 36,000 BBY, they created a Force-powered hyperdrive that let them travel the Galaxy to places strong in the Force.

So the Rakatans did what a society of warmongers would do with that kind of power: conquer and enslave everyone they could find. Their Infinite Empire dotted the entire Galaxy and enslaved trillions of sentients and brought misery to many.

The Rakatans had access to technology so advanced, it might as well have been magic. They were the Atlantis of Star Wars, capable of remaking entire worlds. Case in point, before they came to Tatooine, it was a planet filled with water! They wrecked it when they left!

The Star Forge Destroys the Empire

The pinnacle of the Infinite Empire, though, was the Star Forge. Built in 30,000 BBY, it was a massive space station orbiting the star of Rakata Prime. It drew energy from the sun and, using the Force, it could build anything. Weapons, armor, ships, the works. However, it drew on the power of the Dark Side, with disastrous consequences. As a result, it took the Rakatan’s already bad traits and made them worse.

Thanks to the corruption from the Star Forge, the Infinite Empire fell to infighting and civil war. Then a devastating plague hit, doing two things. Firstly, it almost wiped out the Rakata. Secondly, it caused them to lose their connection to the Force. Without it, their slaves revolted and drove them back to their home system. The survivors destroyed their civilization in nuclear war that left the survivors a primitive people. Their former slaves erased all records of the Infinite Empire, leaving them lost to history. That is, until Revan and Malak found the Star Maps. Five Rakatan maps that, when gathered together, revealed the location of the Star Forge.

The Star Forge, Under Sith Management

Revan and Malak used the Star Forge to build their infinite army that proceeded to steamroll the Republic and Jedi. However, Revan was smart enough to see how dangerous it was to rely on the Rakatan factory and tried to limit the use of it. Malak threw caution to the wind, though, when he took charge. If you read my post or played Knights of the Old Republic, you know the rest.

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Star War: History Abridged Pt 6.

You wouldn’t believe how long I’ve waited to write about this, people. Of all the stories from the Star Wars Expanded Universe, few rival the Jedi Civil War. This conflict would see the Republic and Jedi face their fallen comrades in a war that came close to ending them. How the war started isn’t as interesting as how it ends, though. So, if you haven’t played Knights of the Old Republic, then major spoilers ahead.

All Hail Darth Revan

The year, 3,959 BBY, one year since the end of the Mandalorian Wars. After the Mandalorians defeat at Malachor V, Revan and Malak, the Jedi who led the Republic to victory, had vanished. They took their fleet beyond known space in search of the remnants of the Mandalorian armies. Most people presumed them to be dead. They weren’t; they returned from deep space, alive, but not the heroes everyone knew.

What happened to them is a story for another day. What you need to know is that beyond the reaches of the Republic, Revan and Malak gave in to the Dark Side. Taking the titles of Darth Revan and Darth Malak, the former heroes turned their forces on their former comrades. In a short time, Revan had carved out a new Sith Empire poised to lay waste to the Republic.

What made the Jedi Civil War so terrible was the effect it had on the Republic and Jedi’s strength. Many of the Republic’s finest soldiers defected to Revan’s side. Anyone that was a threat to his campaign would be taken out. In addition, any Jedi unlucky enough to be captured would get coerced or tortured into joining the Sith. Revan’s ranks swelled as the Republic’s dwindled.

Then there’s the fact that Revan was a military genius. He knew how to hit the enemy where it hurt the most, and they could do little to stop him. On top of all this, the Dark Lord seemed to have an endless supply of ships, weapons, and droids. He was pretty much unstoppable.

Revan’s “Death”

By the year 3,957 BBY, the Republic was on its last legs. It seemed like nothing could stop Revan. He had to be taken out if the Republic wanted to win. So, they set a trap.

Among the Jedi, there was a young Padawan named Bastila Shan. Despite her inexperience, Bastila had mastered the ability known as Battle Meditation. In essence, a lets someone use the Force to strengthen the morale and coordination of a group to their absolute peak. In other words, a Force cheat code. Using her as bait, they lured Revan and Malak into a skirmish with a Republic fleet. Bastila then led a boarding party onto Revan’s flagship to capture the Dark Lord. It didn’t go as planned. Malak figured out was happening, and, seeing a chance to seize power for himself, fired on Revan’s ship. To the galaxy at large, it looked like Darth Revan had died, making Malak the new Dark Lord.

Except his betrayal failed. Revan survived, along with Bastila, but the former was on the brink of death, with most of his memories gone. Whether out of compassion or a need to finish her mission, Bastila chose to use the Force to save him. She brought him to the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine, where the Council healed him. They decided to wipe his remaining memories and make him believe he was a soldier of the Republic, one that they could retrain as a Jedi. In time, they hoped that as his memories returned, he could lead them to the source of the Sith’s infinite army.

Knights of the Old Republic

The Council’s plan worked. The amnesiac Revan became a soldier of the Republic, whereupon he met Bastila once more. With the help of Carth Onasi, a veteran of the Mandalorian Wars, and many other companions, the group narrowly escaped the Sith’s destruction of the world of Taris. After relearning the ways of the Force, the Council sent them on a quest to find the source of the Sith’s army.

After traveling to several worlds and gaining more companions, things took a turn for the worse. Malak captured the group and revealed the truth to his former master and friend, while Bastila sacrificed herself to give everyone time to escape. Despite the world-shattering revelation, Revan chose to remain loyal to the Republic and continued his quest.

In 3,956 BBY, Revan’s group found what they were looking for: the Star Forge. A massive factory built by a long dead empire, the station drew resources from the very star that it orbited, letting create an infinite amount of weapons and ships for the Sith.

After a harrowing journey, Revan called the Republic to the Star Forge’s location, beginning the final battle of the war. Revan himself boarded the Star Forge and confronted Bastila, who had been broken to the Dark Side by Malak. Despite drawing on the Dark Side energy of the Star Forge itself, Bastila proved no match for the redeemed Revan. Using the feelings of love they had developed for each other, Revan brought Bastila back from the darkness.

Revan then confronted his former friend and apprentice in the heart of the station. Another epic battle ensued, and even with the power of the Star Forge at his disposal, Malak couldn’t withstand Revan’s might and was bested. Malak passed away as Revan looked on, and the Star Forge itself was destroyed. The Knights of the Old Republic had won, and the Jedi Civil War was over.

What Happened Next?

The Jedi Civil War was over, ended by the very man who had started it. Revan had redeemed himself in the eyes of the Galaxy and was once again a hero to the Republic. However, the damage to the Republic and Jedi was almost fatal.

The next five years were a period of chaos and strife as the Jedi and Republic were at death’s door. Meanwhile, remnants of the Sith continued to ravage the Galaxy. As for Revan, he disappeared back into the Unknown Regions. Those who knew him best thought he went in search of answers. Answers as to why he fell to the Dark Side and the truth about the Mandalorian Wars.

Make Revan Canon Again

In the next, we will cover the final portion of the Old Sith Wars, and I will touch upon what truly happened to Revan. If you want to learn more about him and his amazing story, though, play Knights of the Old Republic, available on Steam. I cannot reccommend it enough; he’s one of the best characters in Star Wars.

May the Force be with you.

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