Discussing Star Wars and politics may seem alien.

The failure of Star Wars episodes 7, 8, and 9, along with their diminishing box office and fan hatred, share a common underpinning with half of American voters supporting Trump.

How's that?

In a time far, far away, the business of show business was about being a factory of Hope.

Movies are our modern-day way of telling collective tales.

Good stories have a template.

Best sellers have a template.

And the biggest seller of all time is stories that deliver Hope.

No one is getting out of this life alive, and we all know it.

Stories of Hope ease the pain of life and the foreknowledge of one's own death.

They bring a smile.

A tear.

A thump in the chest that says you did well.

They put asses in seats that sell tickets over and over again.

Hope.

The original Star Wars trilogy started off with a subtitle, A New Hope.

Hope.

Before episodes 7, 8, and 9 lit up the silver screen, there was Hope for a new start.

After episodes 7, 8, and 9, Hope didn't show up.

Just like our politics for the past 40 years, promises were made but were never fulfilled.

American society has made a lot of promises to itself.

But like so much of our society today, it's based on hype and not substance.

Special effects, but no story.

Grandiose plot twists without ever having earned it.

Characters that serve no purpose.

People are not that dumb.

They expect and deserve the respect that the time they devote will see a return on their investment.

In episodes 7, 8, and 9, the producers made promises that they had no intention of fulfilling.

They had another agenda.

Their agenda was not about giving Hope but about personal enrichment and the enshrinement of power.

The suits had forgotten what put butter on their bread.

Making their fans happy.

Giving Hope.

Yet Hope arrives unexpectedly from places and sources not looked for.

Hope came in the face of a puppet.

The child.

The child restored lost faith.

It knew its limits.

It knew what the starving Star Wars fan needed.

Not promises.

We needed Hope.

We need to see the bad guy get punished.

We need to see the good guy win.

We need character development that will make our dreams and desires manifest.

Hollywood is a dream factory for the heart.

Washington is a dream factory for the People.

You can't separate the people from their hearts; they're one and the same.

Stories have a beginning, middle, and end.

We are all raised as children to know this.

This template has been around for at least 10,000 years.

We want to see the good triumph and the evil defeated.

It doesn't happen as often as it should in real life.

This is why we turn to our entertainment to express the ideals that we hold dear.

Hope.

Hope is best if you want a return on your investment in film.

Hope is the best bet for anyone who wants to lead a people.

Peace

Daniel J Frey aka Toby