When promoting his Strange Magic film, George Lucas told WIRED:
“Just like Star Wars was designed for 12-year-old boys,” says Lucas, “Strange Magic was designed for 12-year-old girls.”
And back in 1988 in Starlog issue 127, George Lucas said:
James Russel from The Guardian wrote in 2012:
“Disney’s acquisition of Marvel Productions seems to have been driven by a desire to expand its reach to older boys.”
So you have to wonder what goes through the minds of publishers when they put out material like this:
From Amazon:
Relationships can be complex–your dad could have turned to the dark side, your partner could be a princess, or your best friend might speak in more than 7 million forms of communication and never stop talking! This book shares some wise advice for romances, friendships, and family relationships from fan-favorite Star Wars characters such as Han and Leia, Rey and Kylo Ren, and Finn and Poe.
The perfect Valentine’s Day or anniversary gift for your scruffy-looking nerf herder, best friend or long-lost sibling, Star Wars: I Love You. I Know is a lighthearted guide to relationships, featuring quotes, classic moments, and characters from the Star Wars galaxy.
Here’s some of the pages:
Who is this supposed to appeal to? We get an idea by looking at the author Amy Richau:
Now, just because Star Wars was designed for boys, and has been predominately about men due to the franchise being about war, does not mean that girls and women can’t be fans too. But the girls and women who were fans of Star Wars the way it was, certainly wouldn’t be interested in this tripe.
The only people that would be interested, are the feminist wine moms who get a thrill over the thought of squatting on perceived patriarchal territory. But how many of those are out there? Enough to support a publishing endeavor?
I can’t imagine 12 year old boys clamoring to buy this. I can imagine however, overbearing activist wine moms pretending that their 12 year old boys did.
Regardless, Star Wars fans have always loved women.
Thanks to Dennis Pellegrom for the tip.
Originally published here.
