Page - 114 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 06/02

DOI: 10.25364/05.6:2020.2.11 114 | Jade Weimer www.jrfm.eu 2020, 6/2, 114–118 Jade Weimer Book Review Ken Derry / John C. Lyden (eds.), The Myth Awakens Canon, Conservatism, and Fan Reception of STAR WARS Eugene: Cascade Books, 2018, xxi + 173 pages, ISBN: 978-1-5326-1973-1 When asked to review this book, I was a little hesitant to do so, because my familiarity with the Star Wars franchise is limited at best. Yet I would now argue that extensive knowledge of the Star Wars mythology is not a prereq- uisite for engaging with this text in a meaningful way, as issues raised by the contributors provide key insights into the discipline of religious studies as well as the intersection of religion and media which are useful in a broader context, including questions of canonization, collective memory, legitimacy, race, and gender. And perhaps one of the most exciting questions addressed in the book (for me!) is the role of music in myth-making. Ken Derry’s preface offers an introduction to the volume and he empha- sizes the need for fun in scholarship. He contends that we as scholars ought to take ourselves less seriously in certain ways. The “enduring appeal” (11) of Star Wars is linked to the fun one derives from creating meaning through engagement with the films, music, and characters. Derry’s concurrent use of theory and humour in the opening section is both fun to read and theoreti- cally rigorous. The first chapter, by John C. Lyden, argues that both the Original Trilogy and the newer films demonstrate moral and political ambiguity as the lines be- tween villain and hero are blurred. Lyden challenges previous arguments that Star Wars has a singular political message. The main point of the chapter is that the political meaning of the franchise will be variously interpreted by the