George Lucas Teamed Up With A Legendary X-Men Writer For The Forgotten Willow Sequel

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When the Original Trilogy of George Lucas' "Star Wars" saga concluded in 1983, moviegoers were eager to see where his seemingly boundless imagination would whisk us off to next — but, if most of us were being honest with ourselves, we just wanted to know when he'd get cracking on that promised Prequel Trilogy.

Over the next few years, he produced "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom," the cult-hit Jim Henson fantasy "Labyrinth," and the inexplicable "Howard the Duck." Most intriguingly, Lucas backed Paul Schrader's powerful (and controversial) biopic "Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters." He was keeping busy, but mostly using his Hollywood clout to help his friends and colleagues realize their peculiar visions.

So there was cause for excitement in 1987, when, if you were reading Starlog or various fanzines, word began to circulate that Lucas had dreamt up a new, original fantasy saga called "Willow." While some were disappointed that he was once again handing off the directorial reins to another filmmaker, Ron Howard had strung together four very good movies in "Night Shift," "Splash," "Cocoon," and "Gung Ho." When the vague teaser trailer hit in early 1988, anticipation skyrocketed amongst genre fans. We had no idea what the heck "Willow" was, but it seemed like something special.

Five months later, we got a sluggish mash-up of "The Lord of the Rings" and "Star Wars." "Willow" fell flat with critics and finished its box office run with a domestic take of $56 million. It was a shocking setback for Lucas, and certainly the end of the "Willow" franchise. But Lucas wasn't done with the adventures of Willow Ufgood. So he enlisted "X-Men" maestro Chris Claremont to collaborate with him on the "Chronicles of the Shadow War" trilogy of novels. The reception was, well, very "Willow"-esque.

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Claremont's reputation as a comic book writer was beyond reproach when Lucas approached him to flesh out his "Willow" sequel ideas in novel form. Between 1975 and 1991, Claremont wrote such classic "Uncanny X-Men" tales as "The Dark Phoenix Saga," "Days of Future Past," and the "Mutant Massacre." I was in my young comic book reading prime when Claremont was cooking, and would've read a 500-page study of water stewardship if it had his name on it. "Willow" books, however, were where I drew the line.

It didn't help that the first book in the trilogy, "Shadow Moon," was tepidly received. Working from a one-day story conference with Lucas, Claremont spun out a saga that finds Willow Ufgood facing an apocalypse that wipes out Tir Aleen and kills his Daikini friends Madmartigan and Sorsha. Willow takes on the name Thorn (which was given to him in a dream by Madmartigan and Sorsha) and heads off on an arduous twelve-year journey toward Tir Asleen. Upon arriving, he meets a trooper named Geryn, who takes him to Angwyn, where a now thirteen-year-old Elora Danon will ascend to the throne.

Alas, Elora has grown up to be a total brat, but Thorn's biggest problem is the appearance of a false, evil Willow. This leads to a coronation ceremony that leaves Angwyn encased in ice, which forces Elora, Thorn (whom Elora still does not trust), and a whole host of new characters off on yet another adventure, one that stretches out over another two books (and, intriguingly, turns Elora into the protagonist). Should you bother?

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If you're a "Willow" fan, I'm sorry, but aside from its revolutionary visual f/x (morphing!) and sweeping James Horner score, it's warmed-over fantasy hokum. But if you really, truly are a "Willow" fan, maybe the trilogy is worth a read? "Shadow Moon" holds a 3.7 rating at Goodreads, and the subsequent books, "Shadow Dawn" and "Shadow Star," land in the same range. This suggests to me that it's for fans only, which, hey, love what you love!

As for non-fans, it should be noted that former "Mystery Science Theater 3000" host Michael J. Nelson and Conor Lastowka took to their "327 Pages We'll Never Get Back" podcast and called "Shadow Moon" the worst book they'd read for their show. Meanwhile, when Disney+ launched its "Willow" series in 2022, there was no significant fan outcry for the creators to incorporate Lucas and Claremont's "Chronicles of the Shadow War" trilogy.

As for the "Willow" franchise in general, Disney+ yanked the series from the service the same year its first season concluded. Barring a miracle, it's fair to conclude that the adventures of Willow Ufgood have ended.