The news of Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm, creator of the “Star Wars” series and other films, in 2012 made headlines worldwide. With the acquisition, it was announced that the “Star Wars” series, which had stopped at six films, would be restarted, bringing the total to nine films, as initially planned by creator George Lucas. Star Wars Episodes 7 – 9 have been released as part of the series.

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In between, it was announced the following year that a series of one-off movies would be produced that would exist in the same world as the “Star Wars” series but would never enter or leave the main series. The first of these films, “Rogue One: Star Wars Story,” was released. I want to unravel how it differs from the main “Star Wars” series called “Saga Episodes” and what makes this film, also called a masterpiece among spin-offs.

A whole new “Star Wars” story

This new film, “Rogue One Star Wars Story,” is a departure from the previous films in the “Star Wars” series. The most striking difference from the last episodic sagas is the absence of the Jedi. The Star Wars series is most often associated with Jedi knights with lightsabers. In this film, however, the flesh-and-blood characters, such as the Rebels and the Imperial Guard, play an active role, not the Force puppeteers.

The protagonist of this film will be Jin, the daughter of the developer of the Death Star, the ultimate weapon owned by the Imperial Army, which has been introduced in Episode IV. She is arrested for multiple crimes but is asked by the Rebellion to participate in a plan to retrieve the Death Star blueprints. She is joined by rebel spies, religious leaders, and former pilots. And Cassian Andor, who appeared in this film, has been active in the drama “Cassian Andor” since 2022.

Star Wars: Andor

In a dangerous era, Cassian Andor embarks on a path destined to turn him into a rebel hero. Season 2 premieres April 22, 2025, only on Disney+.

Also, in the Episodic Saga, the main villains are the Sith Force users who have fallen to the dark side. Still, people who do not use the Force, such as Secretary Krennic and Governor Tarkin, are active in the saga. This telling of the stories of people without special abilities is a crucial difference between the episodic saga and this film.

Several minor differences from the episodic saga exist, such as the absence of the customary opening roll and the fact that John Williams is not in charge of the film’s music.

Characters revived by digital technology

What surprised everyone who saw the movie “Rogue One: Star Wars Story” was the improvement in computer graphics technology. The “Star Wars” series is a science fiction epic, so it uses a lot of computer graphics. You would be surprised at the technological innovations in space, fighter planes, and battle scenes. However, what surprised people more than that was the reproduction of people. To my surprise, in this film, characters played by actors who have passed away are brought back to life, and veteran actresses are recreated in their younger days.

One of them is Governor Tarkin, played by Peter Cushing. Cushing, a renowned actor, passed away in 1994. This film was released in 2016, so we are recreating a character who has been gone for over 20 years. The film is said to have been recreated using a combination of footage shot in the past and motion capture of another actor. Still, the images have little discrepancy, which is nothing short of astonishing.

In addition, this film recreates Princess Leia’s early days as the heroine of the “Star Wars” series. Unfortunately, Carrie Fisher passed away shortly after the release of this film, but the scenes she played in “Star Wars,” combined with the motion capture of other actresses, were reproduced in a short but surprisingly faithful manner. In both good and bad ways, I was surprised at the advancement of technology that can bring even the dead back to life.

As mentioned in the PV, this will not be a spoiler. Still, when Darth Vader appears, there is a sense of despair and an overwhelming difference in power. The rebel soldiers manage to connect the data from there. The staff’s love for this work is shown when we realize the hope that is mentioned several times in the film, it leads to the new hope. It was a very satisfying work for the fans.

Star Wars is a war movie on a planet.

The Clone Wars animated series is one of the most popular Star Wars war epics. Still, this live-action epic is just as satisfying. Throughout the film, there are no Jedi or Sith, so there are no supernatural battles using the Force. Instead, it is a war movie with the military theme of the Star Wars series.

As mentioned above, the characters in “Rogue One Star Wars Story” are all flesh-and-blood people who are not Force users. How much power did the characters wield, and how hard did they devote themselves to the good overcoming the great evil? What happened in the run-up to Episode IV, the beginning of “Star Wars”? The stories of those who had never been told were the most warlike in the series’ history.

The movie Rogue One Star Wars Story is a unique film that is part of the Star Wars series but distinct from the main story, the Episode Saga. It is a story about war, spun by flesh-and-blood characters who do not control the Force and those brought back to life through amazing CG technology. We hope many people will see this film to find out what battles preceded the stories we know.