That said the shorts themselves had some problems overall. The vast majority were not satisfying short stories, they were more like pilot episodes for extended series. And this may make some fans enjoy them more because they can imagine how entertaining that particular story would be as an extended series, but as self-contained, satisfying stories in their own right some of these shorts fail miserably.
But I don't get why so many are judging these shorts together. Each one is completely different and deserves its own mini-review. And I'm going to do just that.
1: The Duel 8/10
oozes style. Black + white cell shaded CG that looks so good you can barely tell it's 3d. Story is classic kurosawa but set in the star wars world. A good short story with a coherent and satisfying ending.
2: Tatooine Rapsody 5/10
probably the weakest short in the entire anthology, it just blows my mind that someone made a star wars idol rock anime. The sheer audacity alone deserves respect.
3: The Twins 7/10
Trigger do be trigger. This show isn't very star wars, but it's very ball to the walls trigger madness. If you wanted to see Star Wars Promare, then this is exactly what you would imagine it to be. It's more of a pilot episode than a short though.
4: The Village Bride 9/10
This short is respectful of the star wars lore and even builds on it in new and interesting ways while being an actual short story with a proper resolution.
5: The Ninth Jedi 9/10
Another very Star Wars short (although it has a lot more anime tropes than 4), this short also does some interesting things with the star wars lore that some more hardcore fans might not appreciate. Overall the story is pretty contained and satisfying, however it does seem to set up an extended series with its open-ended conclusion, which in some ways feels a bit arrogant considering this is a short.
6: T0-B1 6/10
Astro Boy in the star wars universe. A very childish and goofy short that felt somewhat lightweight and unimpressive. However it does feel pretty conclusive and contained, and so functions as a proper short story.
7: The Elder 10/10
My personal favourite episode. It felt like a short story ripped straight out of the star wars prequels (in a good way). It's concise, satisfying, and conclusive. This is what I was expecting from a Star Wars short anime.
8: Lop and Ocho 7/10
A story about family told within the star wars universe. And yes. There's a bunny girl. Overall it's not a bad story, but it didn't really feel very tight or conclusive. A lot of forced drama occurs and character motivations are all over the place. I feel like this could have easily been one of the better episodes if it had focused more on the two surrogate sisters, Lop and Ocho, and their moral dilemma rather than focusing solely on Lop's struggle.
9: Akakiri 9/10
This short is very kurosawa esq, but also explores the dark side in an interesting and relatable way. This short is concise, satisfying, and conclusive in the best way possible. This is probably the most conclusive short story of them all, actually telling a complete and whole narrative in its 14 minute episode duration.
Overall, I'm glad this anthology series exists, even if it doesn't end up leading anywhere.
