Magazine B Issue 42 (Star Wars) is available now at LOREM (not Ipsum). The first Star Wars film was released in 1977. Over the past four decades, this chronicle of galactic war and adventure has established itself as an American pop culture icon, generating tremendous revenue and attracting an enormous fandom across the globe. During that time, Star Wars has grown into a universe all its own, spawning TV series, video games, toys, and theme parks. The audio and visual technologies used in the films have also provided a foundation for Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker Sound, two film production companies that have had a far-reaching impact on the film industry.
I’ve been spending time recently talking with people at the School of Life in Seoul about the topic of creativity. One of the things we talked about was how people often manage to drum up the courage to do something creative, even if it’s just a small part of their life, but they end up giving up because they are afraid they might fail. This discussion on creativity somehow leads to talking about the fear of failure, and about what it means to fail. We need to talk about what it means to succeed to understand failure. If you define success as making money, then failure would mean losing money. If you define it as being together with a friend until the end, then your failure would mean losing that friend. There was once a time when there were no social or economic institutions that could measure success or failure. But even today, if you have your own criteria for success, perhaps they are what you consider as your core values.
In a world where each person advocates different values to determine success, it’s easy to fall into a dichotomy where people who identify with your values are “good” and all others are “evil.” Perhaps these thoughts are what lead to wars and other tragedies.
This month, we introduce Star Wars as a brand. The six Star Wars episodes released to date have formed not only the greatest fandom in the world, but they have also become an unprecedented cultural phenomenon, allowing the franchise to establish itself as a globally influential brand. Star Wars wasn’t created out of an initiative to launch a commercial brand. From the perspective of branding, however, there is a lot to appreciate about how George Lucas’ emphasis on fan relations cultivated the Star Wars brand, and how Disney continues that enthusiasm. While the confrontation between the Rebel Alliance and the Empire might seem cliché, Star Wars enjoys unending love from fans because it has universally appealing characters and stories. Even the villain Darth Vader inspires compassion.
Looking into Star Wars as a brand, I was able to think about why my “good” values could end up being regarded as “evil” by others. If we could just switch places for a second and try to look at “the evil” as “the good,” our confliction will lead to conversations that help us understand each other and come to a peaceful conclusion. It will allow us to break away from the stereotypes we hold and develop creative thoughts.
Discover Magazine B Issue 42 (Star Wars).
Magazine B is an ad-less monthly publication that introduces one well-balanced brand unearthed from around the globe in each issue. Between its covers, Magazine B not only shares untold stories behind the brand but also its sentiment and culture that any readers interested in brand marketing and management can leaf through with ease. Magazine B attempts to discover truly good brands from today’s market where countless brand-named products are overflowing. Magazine B pursues its quest for true value of a printed medium by becoming a magazine that would be worth possessing, not affected by advertisements since it receives no financial support from the brand, and maintains a unique and independent perspective which is increasingly disappearing due to overflowing information mingled among different media outlets.
Magazine B dedicates each issue to the story of one specific brand, which is one of the well-balanced brands that JOH. discovers from around the world based on four standards: beauty, practicality, price, and philosophy. And each issue is packed with B’s unique insights and in-depth analysis. Magazine B will continue to search brands that it pursues to introduce cover-to-cover, such as Swiss recycled bag manufacturer Freitag and Japanese camping gear maker Snow Peak.
Content
NEWS
Star Wars news collected from the worldwide press after Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm
CAST
Interviews with the Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens cast at Disney’s D23 Expo
INTRO
OPINION
Toshio Furusawa, CEO of a film production & distribution company
MERCHANDISING
Star Wars publications and products show the franchise’s commercial value
VERSUS
A comparison of media franchises that have developed a wide range of content from a single creative source
OPINION
Steve Sansweet, owner of the world’s largest Star Wars collection
FANDOM
Diverse Star Wars fan activities and their influence
MECCA
Hubs of Star Wars fandom
OPINION
Jiwoong Huh, film critic
STAR WARS GENERATION
The generation-wide experience and solidarity created by the Star Wars franchise has evolved into a shared sentiment and culture
B’S CUT
Open Your Eyes
Facing the Star Wars characters
BRAND STORY
A Star Wars story: A franchise rises to become an icon of American pop culture
CHRONICLE
The social background and major events in the film industry that coincided with the rise of Star Wars as a cultural phenomenon
MEDIA REPORTS
Global press reports on Star Wars
LUCASFILM
Lucasfilm’s achievements and their significance in the film industry
REPUTATION
Star Wars rankings, awards, and nominations
DISNEY
Disney’s story and interviews with Kathleen Kennedy and J.J. Abrams, two pillars of the Star Wars franchise since Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm
GEORGE LUCAS
George Lucas from the critic’s point of view
FIGURES
Numbers demonstrating the values of Star Wars-branded products, the scale of its fandom, and other miscellaneous data
FROM THE EDITOR IN CHIEF
The core values of the Star Wars brand defined by the Editor in Chief
Details: Magazine B – Issue 42 (Star Wars)
240 x 170 mm
