We have bought the Light Sabre Glow Lamp, exhausted the Clone Wars Wii game and invested £1,900 in a full-size remote- controlled R2-D2 video projector. But with Star Wars: A Musical Journey, is George Lucas finally flogging a dead Ewok?

From the moment that the 1977 original film rolled, it was clear that Lucas had galactic ambitions. A torrent of toys, comics, novels and computer games found eager purchasers, helping the film-maker to amass $4 billion. But Star Wars was an itch Lucas couldn’t stop scratching, and even the most fervent Jedi believers couldn’t hide their disappointment with The Phantom Menace (1999), the beginning of a fresh trilogy that promised to trace the origins of Darth Vader. The “prequels” improved, but LucasArts continued to churn out random spin-offs. The Clone Wars was a 3-D animated television series due to run to 100 episodes. A promised live action series will feature minor characters known only to regular perusers of Wookieepedia and the Force Unleashed computer game for XBox and PlayStation introduces Starkiller, Darth Vader’s secret apprentice.

The franchise has generated an estimated $20 billion, with Luke Skywalker’s lightsabre being sold for more than £130,000 at an auction just yesterday. The live show could yet be a worthy addition, but fans may not be counting down the days on their Clone Wars Chocolate Advent Calendar (£14.99).

Times Archive, 1977: One man's creative Sci-Fi fantasy

Star Wars unashamedly restores all those qualities which film-makes and audiences have almost forgotten

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