Over 30 years since the release of the original Lucasfilm classic, Willow arrives in 2022 as a new episodic series on Disney+. The onetime farmer Willow Ufgood has become a noted sorcerer and encounters a group of young heroes on a dangerous quest. Full of wonders and adventure, the series joins original cast and crew with new contributors to expand the beloved fantasy world.
Willow stars Warwick Davis in the title role, as well as Ellie Bamber, Ruby Cruz, Erin Kellyman, Tony Revolori, Amar Chadha-Patel, Dempsey Bryk, and Joanne Whalley. Kathleen Kennedy, Michelle Rejwan, Jonathan Kasdan, Tommy Harper, Wendy Mericle, Roopesh Parekh, Ron Howard, and Samie Kim Falvey serve as executive producers. Writers are John Bickerstaff, Hannah Friedman, and Jonathan Kasdan. The producers are Stephen Woolfenden, Julia Cooperman, Hameed Shaukat, and Max Taylor.
Starring: Warwick Davis, Erin Kellyman, Ellie Bamber, Tony Revolori, Ruby Cruz, Amer Chadha-Patel, Dempsey Bryk, Joanne Whalley
Composers: James Newton Howard, Xander Rodzinski
Executive producers: Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, Jonathan Kasdan, Kathleen Kennedy, Wendy Mericle, Roopesh Parekh, Michelle Rejwan
Producer: Julia Cooperman
Director: Phillipa Lowthorpe
The fifth episode of Willow, called ‘Wildwood,’ dropped this past Wednesday, and by now, Willow has had plenty of time to establish what sort of fantasy series it wants to be. It’s pretty evident that Willow is not hardcore fantasy at all. Willow is very much light fantasy, and that’s fine. Willow doesn’t try to be something it’s not, which is one good thing about the series. It definitely does not have an identity crisis. Willow is able to laugh at itself and not take itself seriously, which is good because no one else is either.
One problem Willow is having, however, is its pacing. ‘Wildwood’ was all over the place from the beginning. The episode starts with our heroes being chased by the gross and ugly gales. Eventually, they make their way into the Wildwoods, and the Gales cannot continue their chase for whatever reason. Why not? Perhaps it’s because they believe they won’t want to come out? Seems rather convenient. The group meets the bone reavers, the same group that General Kael belonged to. The group is led by Scorpia, one of Kael’s many offspring.
The scene goes from tension to lighthearted conversations about love, women, and past relationships to vague threats. It’s all over the place. Willow reunites with an old friend, Rool, a brownie from the original movie. The other brownie from the film, Franjean, has since passed. We also learn that Jader is Scorpia’s sister, so she is battling that familial connection to Kael. Very Star Wars-y. Again, Jade seems the most intriguing character in the series.
Using covers of music during the end credits is absolutely one of the highlights of every episode, but using it within the episode doesn’t quite work. We hear it at the beginning when the gales chase Willow, Kit, Jade, Boorman, Elora, and Graydon and again later when our party befriends the bone reavers in the Wildwoods in what came across as a high school dance. Trying to be hip and current is all good and well, but it needs to be handled correctly and it’s not here, so leave the pop music until the episode is over.
So many things didn’t make sense in ‘Wildwood.’ Besides the gales not giving chase, Boorman’s shower scene was just weird. Funny, but not in a good way. More misplaced than anything. Boorman’s comedy is forced, whereas Madmartigan’s was timed rightly. Are we supposed to believe Boorman was a successful thief? Kit expressing her love for Jade was one of the episode’s highlights. Too bad it was cut short when the gales decided to enter the Wildwoods and capture Kit. Enough with the subtle hints of same-sex love, Disney. Just do it!
The editing in Willow is not good. When Boorman is telling a story while sitting against a tree and the shot pulls back to show the threat, and Boorman is reacting to what’s about to happen before it happens, that’s just amateurish. Things like that have been happening throughout the series, and it’s becoming more noticeable.
Ellie Bamber as Elora Danan is fine. Elora is becoming more assertive, she is standing up for herself and becoming more confident in her abilities, but she is too aloof at times. You’re supposed to be the savior, so bloody, act like it! And Warwick Davis. God bless him, his wit as host during Star Wars Celebration is great. The dry British humor is spot on, but when he attempts the same in Willow, it falls flat. I don’t remember Willow Ufgood dropping jokes in the movie.
Willow is fine so far. There are three episodes left, but don’t expect the issues to cure themselves. Don’t expect too much from Willow, and you’ll enjoy it well enough. The cast is excellent; as I’ve said in earlier reviews, other shows would kill for the chemistry this cast has. The issue is with the editing and writing; the story and the dialogue are letting the cast down, and it’s regrettable because they deserve so much better.
- Hardcover Book
- Davis, Warwick (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 416 Pages - 11/01/2011 (Publication Date) - Trade Paper Press (Publisher)
