Back in 1981, National Public Radio (NPR) Playhouse featured radio dramas that relied on good acting, sound effects and musical scores to tell their stories. Some of these were science fiction, but the most notable was Star Wars in 1981 and Empire Strikes Back in 1983. The films were adapted to extended episodes (13 and 10 respectively). Return of the Jedi was to be made as well, but NPR’s rocky relationship with their government benefactor at the time shelved the series. It would be 13 years before NPR would return to finish the original trilogy with a 6 part series that reunited cast and crew.
You know, the story of a young person finding out they are a future hero is as old as Hollywood itself and in all fairness, it didn’t start with George Lucas or end with JK Rowling. But since both film series are such icons in film culture, we thought it would be interesting to do some comparisons between them.
Let’s start with Luke and Harry Potter. Luke is an older farm boy on a remote planet. He’s annoyed by the provincial nature of his aunt and uncle. He wants to get the equivalent of a driver’s license so he can get the heck out as his friends have. Harry has a more pressing reason, but being so young, is stuck in his situation. He’s mentally abused by his bumbling family and forced to live in a closet and treated like dirt. Each is put into their situation because of their parent’s death.
Then something happens. Their destinies are revealed to them by a strange person who comes to them and explains what their lives should be. And both of them find out that has to do with a bit of magic (at least until we discover that it was just a parasite in their blood that gives Skywalker the power of the force). This is the reason that Luke can hit womp rats with his T-16 at several paces and has super quick reflexes. Harry finally knows why he can talk to snakes and make things happen that he didn’t intend.
Both go off to learn the ways of the force. Now for Harry, the decision to leave his abusive home really is a no brainer and besides, he has no choice really. Luke, on the other hand, would never have gone had it not been for his family getting turned into crispy critters while he was away. He was willing to stay behind, no matter how much he hated it to help out with the farm. Course Luke had a much better relationship than Harry had.
Their training became the responsibility of a master of their craft. Luke’s benefactor was Master Obi-Wan who had been friends with Padme and Anakin, before he turned to the dark side. Dumbledore was friends with Harry’s parents too. Both felt a certain obligation towards the boy to take care of him and to nurture his talent as they knew the parents would have wanted
And they both meet friends along the way. These friends follow them on their journey. Leia is headstrong, brave and competent, and so is Hermione. They both help save the hero in their own way, and while Harry wasn’t her brother, Hermione did take on the role of a sisterly figure as time went on. We have to say here that Ron and Han have nothing in common except their names rhyme.
Then there is Voldemort and Vader. Both were dark lords with power and loyal followers going after the boy who could foil their plans for universal domination (or at least magical world domination). They had deformities, as most villains do, to make them even eviler. At least JK Rowling didn’t make Harry Voldemort’s son. That would have been way too obvious.
And like all good victories, our heroes toiled through the battle against their foe and were awarded for the effort at the film’s end. Whether it was the House Cup or the medal of honor, the boy and their friends all got rewarded for a job well done.
There are, of course, many more differences than there are similarities and both stories take us on very different escapes in very unique settings, but it’s interesting to see how the two intertwine on the surface. Hope you enjoyed it
