My story today on local Star Wars characters brings to mind these other current projects on the fringes of George Lucas’ empire:

Robot Chicken: Star Wars: This hilarious TV special, which came out last week on DVD (Warner, $15), is short but worthwhile for fans. Seth Green is behind these stop-motion vignettes that poke fun at the Star Wars films and their fans, ranging from just a few seconds to a few minutes. In one zinger, Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia are in bed with the sheets pulled up over their apparently naked bodies. “This is so wrong,” she says, as she shakes her head. He just smiles. A recurring segment shows the janitor who has to clean up after the bodies of villains who always seem to fall to their doom from great heights. Another shows George Lucas, with voice actually provided by the filmmaker, being chased by crazed fans at a convention. The extras are even fun, including Green acting out the shorts as part of a pitch. Be sure to check it out.

Soul Calibur IV: Out today is the latest installment in this video-game series, for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 (Namco, $60). I’ve never cared for fighting games, but this one is getting raves in early reviews. The Star Wars connection? You can play as Darth Vader in the PS3 version and as Yoda on the 360. Better the latter is, yes.

Doctor Beef: If you thought Robot Chicken was fun, you’ll like Doctor Beef’s photo stories using action figures of stormtroopers and other characters. The latest, Stormtrooper Bath Night (below), features a guest appearance by Iron Man as the wash-behind-your-helmet enforcer, along with the usual funny story. Great stuff. (Thanks for the tip, Leslie!)

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 29th, 2008 at 10:21 am and is filed under DVDs, Internet, Video games. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.