So far the new Willow series on Disney+ has become the lowest rated Disney+ Original Series for the platform, only bringing in a little less than 500,000 viewers its first five days. 



Ever since its release the audience score on Rotten Tomatoes has gone down from a 28% score to a 25% score. Currently the series is the lowest rated show behind other flops like She-Hulk and Ms. Marvel.



Interestingly enough some have compared this “long awaited continuation” to the story of Willow to another Lucasfilm franchise that also had a disappointing follow-up decades later. That being the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy.



But not only are there similarities surrounding the reception, but there are also some story bits and character traits that feel similar to the recent film trilogy.

The story is set decades later where the characters from the original have grown older and have had children of their own.



The character of Madmartigan seems to be treated like a dead beat dad similar to Han Solo from The Force Awakens. Yes, we are aware that Val Kilmer opted out due to health issues, but here he is referred to as “an impossibly conceited thief, liar and rogue. Madmartigan was the man I would marry. What can I say… I was young“. So had he appeared he may have still been treated in a similar manner.



Our main character is not a returning one, but instead a young female warrior princess named Kit. She bares some similarities to Rey from the Sequel Trilogy.



Our main villain from the 1988 film Queen Bavmorda has somehow returned without any explanation. Similar to how the Emperor Darth Sidious mysteriously returned in The Rise of Skywalker. 



Out main heroine is in a group on a quest accompanied by a clumsy male character named Prince Graydon who doesn’t seem to be able to hold his own in a fight. Somewhat similar to Finn from the Sequel Trilogy.



Our young heroes seek out an old mentor, that being the wild old Willow who has seemingly grown bitter and arrogant in his time away. Somewhat similar to Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi. In fact Warwick Davis modeled is performance after Old Luke. 



We also have another young female protagonist named Dove aka Princess Elora who is destined to train under Willow and save the world from Queen Badmorda. Again, similar to Rey.

There is still a little over half a season to go currently, so down the line we may see even more similarities.

Now the series is still young and does have a chance to change for the better, but at this point the series will most likely only have a single season due to low viewership numbers.

Willow was simply dwarfed by other 2022 High Fantasy shows like House of the Dragon on HBO and even The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power from Amazon.

What do you think? Did Willow take too much inspiration from Lucasfilm’s other “blast from the past” series?