Since the beginning, opening crawls have been an essential part of Star Wars, having been seen most recently in the new TV show Star Wars: Skeleton Crew – though they were never used in The Mandalorian. Yellow text floating through space was the first image audiences ever saw of the Star Wars galaxy, and since then has become something riffed on in almost every Star Wars TV show and spin-off movie. These brief summaries set up each installment efficiently and stylishly.
This idea comes from old story serials George Lucas liked as a child, which would include this background information to feel like one chapter of a larger story. This became more important as more films were released, with these opening text crawls containing continuously essential information for the plot of the film. Now that Star Wars has continued this trend with its newer TV shows, it’s worth asking why The Mandalorian never participated in this classic franchise tradition.
Ahsoka Started Star Wars’ New TV Show Opening Crawl Trend
A Distinct Red Opening Crawl
Almost 4 years after The Mandalorian first aired, Ahsoka brought fans the first opening crawl outside the Star Wars movies, although it didn’t seek to completely mimic what came before. To distinguish the series from those films, it incorporates elements of Solo: A Star Wars Story‘s blue opening text into its aesthetics. Thus, it’s not angled like Skywalker saga opening crawls, and is in a different color: red.
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Ahsoka’s Opening Crawl Breakdown: Why It Has One, Why It’s Red & What It Sets Up
Star Wars’ Ahsoka show surprisingly has an opening crawl, teasing the return of Grand Admiral Thrawn and setting up big events for the saga’s future.
After Ahsoka, the next live-action series, The Acolyte, also had something like an opening crawl, with blue text explaining the era and setting up the series. This was necessary because The Acolyte takes place in a completely new era to onscreen Star Wars. This, however, was also true for The Mandalorian at the time of its release, so why did the series not necessitate its own opening crawl, or even opening text like Skeleton Crew or Solo?
The Mandalorian Didn’t Need An Opening Crawl… At The Time
A New Era In Two Ways
When it was released, The Mandalorian was the first ever live-action Star Wars series. It wasn’t in competition with any other series set in a separate era, and it takes place soon after the original trilogy, the most popular Star Wars stories ever. Thus, The Mandalorian didn’t even need an opening crawl.
On top of that, the series’ premise is so clearly communicated through both its opening sequence and the audience’s knowledge of Star Wars. It hinges on fans’ general knowledge of the saga. This has become more complicated with the many new TV shows taking place across over a hundred years of the Star Wars timeline. The question now remains, though, if the upcoming Star Wars movie The Mandalorian and Grogu will retain this, or include an opening crawl or text.
