The official STAR WARS show of the Fire and Water Podcast Network! Ryan Daly welcomes Mike Gillis to talk about Lando Calrissian's role in The Empire Strikes Back. Also, some brief thoughts on upcoming Star Wars films and comics.
- Introduction begins at 0:00:40
- Star Wars Current Events (potential spoilers) begins at 0:08:55
- Lando Talk begins at 0:18:39
- Galactic Questionnaire with Mike Gillis begins at 1:04:45
Check out Mike Gillis on Radio vs. The Martians at: http://radiovsthemartians.com and Podcasta la Vista, Baby! at: http://podcastalavistababy.com
Let us know what you think! Leave a comment or send an email to: RDalyPodcast@gmail.com.
This podcast is a proud member of the FIRE AND WATER PODCAST NETWORK
- Visit our WEBSITE: http://fireandwaterpodcast.com/
- Follow us on TWITTER: https://twitter.com/FWPodcasts
- Like our FACEBOOK page: https://www.facebook.com/FWPodcastNetwork
- Use our HASHTAG online: #FWPodcasts
Subscribe via iTunes as part of the FIRE AND WATER PODCAST: http://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-fire-and-water-podcast/id463855630
Music: "Star Wars Main Theme" and “End Title” by The Evil Genius Orchestra (with Ryan and Shag).
Thanks for listening, and May the Force Be With You!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
I read two of the Lando novels when I was a teenager and they’re probably more responsible for my interest in the character than the films themselves. I can’t say I remember much from them, but my feeling was that they were kind of Indiana Jones in space, with super-science artifacts, etc.
Can’t wait to see him in the new films.
A whole episode on Lando, and not one Colt 45 joke to be heard. Amazing.
Seriously, some great discussion on the character, and specifically the differences between Lando and Han. I’m definitely going to watch Empire through the “Lando is the hero” lens the next time I watch it.
Chris
Great episode fellas! Mike has put more thought into the Lando character than I have in thirty + years, all to the good. Now I’m REALLY hoping he shows up in Ep VIII.
Even as a kid, I always considered Lando a true hero, on par with the other characters. Sure, he was shady at the beginning, but as you said, what was he supposed to do? When Darth Vader shows up, that’s pretty much it.
Lando was an interesting character, who I thought was let down, a bit, in Jedi. He gets to destroy the Death Star II and rescue Han; but, you wanted a bit more. I think if we had seen him infiltrating Jabba’s ranks, his part would have seen bigger; but, that’s an aside. I agree with Mike, that he is a bit more layered than Han, with the moral ambiguity, though, that was the hook to Han, in Star Wars. The difference is, that he grew beyond that, by Empire. He had firmly become a hero. Lando was treacherous at the start, then changed sides. So, you aren’t entirely sure you trust him yet.
I’m looking forward to seeing The Force Awakens, when it hits dvd. Despite what Mike said, some of us have no time off, over the holidays, and could not see the movie (plus, I hate modern theaters). So, I have to wait for the home version. However, everything I have heard sounds exactly like the kind of thing I wanted in Star Wars sequels, back when Empire was being written. My Star Wars jones was filled by Alan Dean Foster and Archie Goodwin (with Carmine Infantino). It was the idea of more swashbuckling adventure, some capers, and some daring-do. Marvel and Splinter of the Mind’s Eye filled that need, until Lucas added to the story. Thus, I am tend to enjoy the characters in an adventure more than the saga elements. That was what was missing in the prequels, for me (that and good writing). Criticisms of TFA being a retread of Star Wars, in light of the prequels is a bit laughable. When I watched Phantom menace I could tick off the Star Wars elements as they occurred and recognize that this is likely how it would have played out, in Lucas’ earlier (and more boring) script drafts. Lucas lost the sense of fun that Star Wars had. It sounds like TFA has that. The Marvel comics had that, Dark Horse achieved that in some of their stuff, the books often managed that (at various times). Lando is a great character for those types of adventure. I was very happy to see Timothy Zahn doing a new Star Wars boon and even more excited to see that it’s a caper. I still haven’t read it; but, I’m looking forward to it (it’s on the pile).
Mike’s statements about why we hate Lando and Baltar, for their treachery, are born out in a famous (rather unethical) psychological experiment, from the 50s. A group of people were put on one side of a screen, communicating with someone on the other side. they were supposed to teach them to recite a list of words and administer a mild shock every time they got one wrong. At first, it sounds like the shock is a mild jolt; but, the level of pain and distress inthe student’s voice gets worse as it progresses and they make more and more mistakes. In the film of the experiment, you can see the anguish on the faces of the teachers; yet, they still administer the shocks. In the end, they are told that the shocks were fake and the person on the other side was an accomplice, who was faking their pain. The people are relieved. However, you see no one refuse to take part in the experiment, despite being told from the start they will be administering shocks, for each mistake, even though they are just mild ones. No one registers any reluctance to give someone a shock, that it is morally wrong. the experiment showed how people responded to figures of authority. I always felt it would be interesting to see if the same results would have come about in the late 60s, at the height of the antiwar movement; but, my life experience tends to make me believe the results would have been the same. That generation went on to become the authorities and our world hasn’t improved much.
I’ll have to check out that Lando mini-series.
Nice episode, guys.
Wow! This was an exceptional episode! I’ve always loved Lando, but viewed him as just a slightly altered Han Solo. Where Han was the scruffy-looking smuggler, Lando was the suave gambler. Beyond that, I imagined them fairly similarly. However after listening to this thought out analysis of his character, I surprised how different they really are. Great job thinking through the character details!
After hearing this episode, it’s got me thinking that perhaps the rescue plan for Han Solo at Jabba’s palace was orchestrated by Lando, rather than Luke. Just a thought.
Oh, and it was nice for Mike to let Ryan speak one or two times during the episode. Very generous of Mike! 😉
What can I say? I’m a giver!
I listened to this.
Oh what did I think? There were some good points and perspectives on Lando’s delicate navigation of the Empire’s occupation. One of the problems was that I processed all my feelings about Lando between the ages of 12 & 16 between first viewing Empire and finally seeing Jedi. As an unsophisticated adolescent I judged him by the responses of the trusted characters, Han’s hostility and Chewie’s violence. In Jedi, he’s treated as one of the crew and that was good enough for me at the time. Mostly I just thought about Vader and Luke’s relationship and who the hell Boba Fett was between movies.