[7.0/10] This is especially hard for me to judge. I’m a long way from being five years olds, or whatever the target audience for this show is. I can tell you that unlike many of the other younger-focused Star Wars projects, from The Clone Wars to The Freemaker Adventures down to even Caravan of Courage, this doesn’t have much for adults. Everything is very simple, very basic, and very standard. In these first two stories at least, there’s nothing in the way of humor or character or a deeper point that will pierce the grown-ups watching alongside the kids in their care.
But that's not necessarily a bad thing. I’ll confess that this feels like Star Wars’ answer to Paw Patrol, which isn’t the most encouraging comparison. Still, simplicity isn’t bad, and a show that isn’t breaking new ground, while nonetheless meeting younger children where they live, can be a positive.
My one legitimate beef is the art style. The kids all look like bitmojis come to life. The backgrounds and settings all feel dumbed down and sterile. And the animation, while fluid enough, comes off cheesily over exaggerated. This isn’t a fun show to look at. Now again, maybe you can justify all that by saying that you need big expressive faces and simple colors and light detail to catch the eye of elementary school-age watchers. But there’s plenty of visually gorgeous works for kids, and Young Jedi Adventures isn’t one of them.
The stories and characters are fine though. The show sets up a solid four man band with brash leader Kai, the sharper and more discerning Lys, comic relief Nubs, and mini Han Solo-esque Nash. They’re droid pals are cute enough. The antagonist, Tabor, is a solid Star Wars-y realization of a school bully with his two goons. And the presence of Master Zia and cameos from Yoda help provide a guiding voice from the adults.
The first story about making it to the new home base is perfectly fine. It introduces the characters well and has a basic but good message about relying on your friends and not trying to do it all yourself. The second story about retrieving Yoda’s seeds for a special celebration is a bit better, with some expected hijinks along the way, and another trite but true message about valuing people over things. What boosts the latter segment a little is Yoda’s benediction, as he sweetly gives Kai his own old training saber to get the overconfident but kind-hearted jedi-in-training off an running.
Otherwise, there’s a few interesting touches for viewers steeped in the rest of Star Wars lore. It’s neat to see a show set in the High Republic era, since that's still an open sandbox compared to the more canon-filled Prequel/Original Trilogy/Sequel eras. Including a member of Greez’s species from Fallen Order as a side character is cool. And for those who’ve deigned to watch another kid-friendly Star Wars project, Jedi Temple Challenge, it’s fun watching the in-universe padawans do the same sort of lightsaber/balancing challenge that the gameshow’s human contestants were called upon to do.
Overall, Young Jedi Adventures is squarely aimed at a younger crowd, with a simplistic approach to just about everything in the early going and not much for older caretakers watching along to grab ahold of. But it’s a perfectly solid and kid-friendly Star Wars option for the children it's aimed at.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2023-06-30T01:24:08Z
[7.0/10] This is especially hard for me to judge. I’m a long way from being five years olds, or whatever the target audience for this show is. I can tell you that unlike many of the other younger-focused Star Wars projects, from The Clone Wars to The Freemaker Adventures down to even Caravan of Courage, this doesn’t have much for adults. Everything is very simple, very basic, and very standard. In these first two stories at least, there’s nothing in the way of humor or character or a deeper point that will pierce the grown-ups watching alongside the kids in their care.
But that's not necessarily a bad thing. I’ll confess that this feels like Star Wars’ answer to Paw Patrol, which isn’t the most encouraging comparison. Still, simplicity isn’t bad, and a show that isn’t breaking new ground, while nonetheless meeting younger children where they live, can be a positive.
My one legitimate beef is the art style. The kids all look like bitmojis come to life. The backgrounds and settings all feel dumbed down and sterile. And the animation, while fluid enough, comes off cheesily over exaggerated. This isn’t a fun show to look at. Now again, maybe you can justify all that by saying that you need big expressive faces and simple colors and light detail to catch the eye of elementary school-age watchers. But there’s plenty of visually gorgeous works for kids, and Young Jedi Adventures isn’t one of them.
The stories and characters are fine though. The show sets up a solid four man band with brash leader Kai, the sharper and more discerning Lys, comic relief Nubs, and mini Han Solo-esque Nash. They’re droid pals are cute enough. The antagonist, Tabor, is a solid Star Wars-y realization of a school bully with his two goons. And the presence of Master Zia and cameos from Yoda help provide a guiding voice from the adults.
The first story about making it to the new home base is perfectly fine. It introduces the characters well and has a basic but good message about relying on your friends and not trying to do it all yourself. The second story about retrieving Yoda’s seeds for a special celebration is a bit better, with some expected hijinks along the way, and another trite but true message about valuing people over things. What boosts the latter segment a little is Yoda’s benediction, as he sweetly gives Kai his own old training saber to get the overconfident but kind-hearted jedi-in-training off an running.
Otherwise, there’s a few interesting touches for viewers steeped in the rest of Star Wars lore. It’s neat to see a show set in the High Republic era, since that's still an open sandbox compared to the more canon-filled Prequel/Original Trilogy/Sequel eras. Including a member of Greez’s species from Fallen Order as a side character is cool. And for those who’ve deigned to watch another kid-friendly Star Wars project, Jedi Temple Challenge, it’s fun watching the in-universe padawans do the same sort of lightsaber/balancing challenge that the gameshow’s human contestants were called upon to do.
Overall, Young Jedi Adventures is squarely aimed at a younger crowd, with a simplistic approach to just about everything in the early going and not much for older caretakers watching along to grab ahold of. But it’s a perfectly solid and kid-friendly Star Wars option for the children it's aimed at.