The LEGO company’s animated spoofs of famous franchises can never be accused of taking themselves too seriously, and the new LEGO Star Wars Halloween special on Disney+ is no exception.
In Terrifying Tales, Resistance pilot Poe Dameron has to make an unexpected stop on the lava planet of Mustafar, which is home to Darth Vader’s castle, which is exactly as dramatic and extra as you would expect it to be.
Poe discovers that the former Sith lord’s hangout is being transformed into a luxury resort by Graballa the Hutt. However, the space is still haunted by Vader’s loyal servant Vaneé, who is suspiciously thrilled to have visitors at the castle. He hopes to trick them into helping him unlock the powers of some ancient Sith artifacts.
To lure his guests into a false sense of complacency, Vaneé tells the crew a series of terrifying tales (hence the title of this special). Hijinks, silliness, and some (endearingly mild) scares follow.
I absolutely adored last year’s LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special, which is far, far better than the infamous live action Star Wars Holiday Special that aired on TV in 1978 and is actually genuinely frightening. While Terrifying Tales isn’t *quite* as good as the LEGO Star Wars holiday spoof, it’s still great fun.
One of the things I enjoy most about the LEGO specials is that they’re fun for a variety of ages. Kids will enjoy seeing the LEGO characters in action in Terrifying Tales, and adults will appreciate the pop culture references to famous horror films.
My favorite terrifying tale was “The Lost Boy,” which is about young Ben Solo meeting the Knights of Ren. The sequel trilogy is my favorite part of Star Wars and Kylo Ren/Ben Solo is one of my favorite Star Wars characters, so naturally I’m always excited about more content from this era. The tale is actually inspired by Charles Soule and Will Sliney’s excellent The Rise of Kylo Ren comics series, though of course the LEGO version is much less serious in tone.
I also found it hilarious that this tale was styled after the beloved 1980s cult classic, The Lost Boys. I actually watched that movie for the first time not long ago for the ESO podcast, and while it wasn’t my favorite film, I’m very glad I watched it, because having that background made me enjoy “The Lost Boy” even more.
The next tale features a duel between Darth Maul and General Grievous, which is something I never knew I needed to see until now. Lucasfilm, if you ever find a way to make a live action duel between these two happen, I’m there for it.
Finally, “The Wookiee’s Paw” is like a Star Wars episode of Marvel’s What If…?, showing what might have happened if Luke became an Imperial pilot and was trained by Darth Vader.
I liked that this special included elements from all three Star Wars trilogies. I know that not everyone loves the prequels or the sequels, but there are a number of other fans for whom these trilogies were their gateway into Star Wars. There’s plenty of fun ideas to play around with from all of Star Wars’ eras, and LEGO does such a great job pulling in a variety of references.
There’s not really a lot else to say in this review, and I don’t want to spoil all of the gags. This Disney+ special is a fun way to kick off the Halloween season, and I’m hopeful that LEGO and Star Wars will continue to collaborate on silly holiday tie-ins (Valentine’s Day special, anyone?).
