So I've really, really wanted to like the "Willow" series on Disney+. I enjoyed the movie
Willow for what it was: an adventure movie that hasn't aged well visually but is very much a classic Lucasfilm offering. The movie was a trope-laden romp of two-dimensional characters fighting a classic good vs evil battle with hokey magic and contrived feel-goods thrown in.
In short, it's perfect to transition to Disney.
So I really have to wonder how Disney is fucking this up so badly.
The series, set 17 years later (yes, the alumni cast look like twice the amount of time has passed... poor souls), moves to the next generation. Sorsha, now queen of Tir Asleen, apparently married Madmartigan and had a couple of kids: a son named Arik (after Madmartigan's jackass friend) and a daughter named Kit. Madmartigan is nowhere to be seen (due to Val Kilmer's struggles with cancer) and that's used as a trope for mopey teen angst. There's also Jade, a young apprentice knight who is also the love interest for Princess Kit, Prince Grayson (who is supposed to marry Kit but seems more interested in...), and Dove/Brunhilde/Elora Danan.
Yes, Elora Danan the baby from the film. Elora's grown into a kitchen cook whose identity was hidden for reasons and... you know, I'm not getting into these details.
There's also some dude named Boorman who is the snarky badass. Oh, and Willow is in it as an afterthought.
There's a lot of commentary I've seen online about people having issue with the cast being too "woke" (whatever that means). I honestly think the cast is the strongest part of this show. I like the actors and think the do right by what they've got.
The problem with "Willow" the series lies with the direction and the writing.
The direction is, frankly, shit. I'm not sure if it's a matter of cost-cutting for effects or what, but there's weird cut-aways from moments that ought to have some kind of climactic scene, such as the abduction of Prince Arik by the sinister villains. There's a lot of choppiness that's a bit jarring to watch, such as Elora Danan in a bleak, dark forest that's suddenly a sunlight clearing for no apparent reason.
Oh and there's the writing. I mean, I get the show doesn't want to have Willow himself be
too badass, but the writing seems to go out-of-its-way to minimize the titular character as much as possible, both in ability and screen time.
The story is, at best, uneven. The pacing is painful. I feel like I'm watching something that's using the initial budget for "Xena: Warrior Princess" (like early in the show budget) for something that can clearly afford better.
Stubbornness will probably have me watch the rest of the series, but I have a deep dread that it's not going to improve, and that makes me sad.
Willow was a shallow film that was ripe for reimagining and improvement. Disney
could have explored the backstory of the movie in great and interesting ways. Instead, they're serving up bland, dialed-in plot and chopping direction with attempts at snarky dialog that come across as banal whining. The cast have shown they have the chops to do better. I hope the show hits a point where they let the cast demonstrate it.
