How Porgs are Bringing the Cuteness Back Into Star Wars
There can be little doubt that the galaxy far, far away has delivered some of cinema’s most astounding moments, riveting plot twists and memorable characters.
We’ve had the terror of Darth Vader, the innocence of Luke Skywalker, the sliminess of Jabba the Hutt and the wisdom of Yoda.
Star Wars changed the landscape of modern cinema in so many ways, but not all of it was about being cool.
Sometimes it was about being cute.
Think back to the original trilogy.
In the original 1977 movie we were first introduced to cuteness in the form of Artoo Detoo.
The cutest character in the original (with the Mousedroid a close second), he almost stole the show and ignited a following that endures to today, with the R2 Builders doing such an amazing job of recreating the little droid that their work is seen in the modern Disney era of Star Wars films.
The Empire Strikes Back was a darker film that introduced Master Yoda to the series.
While he wasn’t conventionally cute, he gained a rabid following of his own.
However, the third film was the one that really smashed the cute button.
Arriving in the film as our heroes land on the forest moon of Endor, tasked with destroying the shield generator and allowing the Rebel fleet to attack the second Death Star, we first met the frankly adorable ewoks.
As played by the legendary
Warwick Davis, the first ewok we met was Wicket, a character who would not only swiftly get his own action figure but also star in an animated series and two television movies.
Hated by some, George Lucas referred to the Ewoks as the little rabbit by the side of the road who helps the hero when they are in trouble.
The ewoks were certainly that: helping the Rebellion defeat the Empire on the ground while the fleet took on the Empire in space.
Marvel’s comic series also had their fair share of cuteness in the form of the hoojibs.
Basically telepathic rabbits, the hoojibs assisted the rebellion as they fought the Empire and became firm favourites with the readers.
1999 saw the return of the saga to the big screen as The Phantom Menace arrived.
Mixed reviews for this and the other two prequels weren’t helped by the presence of a certain loud, uncoordinated gungan by the name of Jar Jar Binks.
He was far from cute, that honour being left once again to Artoo, who displayed his bag of tricks while Anakin fell prey to the dark side and Obi-Wan tried to save his apprentice from the darkness.
The Force Awakens smashed box office records in 2015 and brought with it a new level of droid cuteness – BB-8.
This diminutive astromech droid well and truly stole the show as he fought alongside Rey, Finn and his master Poe Dameron in their battles against the First Order.
Which brings us right up to date.
Early images and footage from The Last Jedi have revealed what are quite possibly the cutest characters ever to grace the screen in a Star Wars film – the Porgs.
Looking very much like puffins, these wide-eyed, open-mouthed, bird-like creatures live on the world of Ahch-To.
If you thought the ewoks were marketable (and they were, the fuzzy denizens of Endor were a marketing phenomenon back in the mid 80’s) then you’ve seen nothing yet.
With Star Wars fandom online already delirious over the Porgs (seriously, check it out, fans and the staff at the official Star Wars site are losing their minds) there’s every chance these creatures will be the toy of the year, just as BB-8 was a couple of years ago.
So while we wait for the training of Rey, the return of Kylo Ren, the scheming of Snoke and the attack of the First Order we can also prepare for an onslaught of avian awesomeness in the form of the Porgs.
