On November 11th, Studio Ghibli teased on twitter a partnership with Lucasfilm. Could it be that Studio Ghibli is thinking about collaborating on a Star Wars project!? The prospects sent fandoms of both into a frenzy. Nerdist.com wrote, “Studio Ghibli and Star Wars? It’s a match made in heaven.” They did indeed announce the day after that they’ve partnered up on a short animated film about Grogu, “Baby Yoda’ for those who shockingly may not know.
Aaaand then Disney+ released the short, right after that. That’s right, you can watch it right now if you’d like. And you’ve got time, it’s only 3 minutes long. What follows is some adorably cute simplistic animation. The hand drawn animation looks as if it’s drawn on Japanese Washi paper. It features Grogu, hovering in a meditative state. Who’s interrupted by some dust bunnies. It’s not the first time we’ve seen these dust bunnies, they were both seen before in My Neighbor Totoro and Spirited Away. The dust bunnies cause him to sneeze and he awakens from his meditation.
Grogu runs away from the dust bunnies, but they chase after him. I relate after having spent the weekend building a movie room in another part of my home. I, myself had dust bunnies chasing me all day Sunday. They were hiding behind a set of shelves that hadn’t been moved in years. Sneezing and wheezing…but I digress. My dust bunnies aren’t half as cute as these are. After as short pursuit, Grogu turns to face the dust bunnies as they offer a truce. The dust bunnies “offer him a pink lotus flower, also known as a Padma flower which symbolizes purity, rebirth, and strength. Grogu accepts the gift with a bow, and the short concludes with the dust bunnies surrounding Grogu. Finally, an Ensō appears, symbolizing eternity, infinity, wholeness, and unity,” quoted from fanthatracks.com.
Even though the animation was short-very short-it was a charming three minutes of my life. You should check it out. I can’t help but think this is just a teaser for things yet to come. A sort of litmus test to see how people will react. Katsuya Kondo directs the short, which features music by Ludwig Göransson. Though Kondo is a long-time Ghibli animator, it’s his first time directing. Surely it won’t be his last.
Power Rangers in Space Reunion Event is This Weekend!
It’s less than a week away! This weekend, November 19th and 20th, the cast from Power Rangers in Space, the 6th season of Power Rangers will be in person at Fanboys Marketplace’s Fort Worth/Ridgmar location. We are very excited! For all the details be sure to check out the blog here, where we tell you everything you need to know! Also: don’t forget to sign up for the VIP pass to meet the Power Rangers before doors open on Saturday and Sunday! You can also pre-purchase autographs, selfies, etc. from the individual Rangers on our website as well. We can’t wait to see you there. Let’s rocket!
