Exclusive Interview: Michael Price “Simpsons writer/Yoda Chronicles Producer”

 

I don’t even like Star Wars. And no I’m not preferential to Star Trek, neither. Nope, I grew up on a steady diet of Aliens and Predators. That said, whenever an animated Star Wars-inspired special comes on I’m happy as a clam. From Robot Chicken to Family Guy, hell even the never actually happened Star Wars: Detours. I can’t help but love the idea of spoofing a universe that has grossed billions at the box office and billions more in merchandise sales.

That’s why I can NOT wait until the third chapter of LEGO Star Wars: Yoda Chronicles entitled ‘Attack of the Jedi’  happening November 27th @ 8pm EST only on Cartoon Network. It’s a series that even I am able to follow along and get excited about because although the specials always stay faithful to the popular movie franchise,  producer Michael Price is able to involve everyone because he puts in enough jokes and humor that anyone can enjoy.

“I always enjoyed the animated spoofs too” says Price,  “I think the Robot Chicken specials were so funny but I also think they helped to continue the popularity of the Star Wars franchise and that’s why it’s still huge today.” However, Mike knows full and well that the LEGO Star Wars specials are geared towards a different audience than say a Robot Chicken or a Family Guy, but that audience is probably a bit wider than the two more adult-oriented franchises “These shows are aimed at kids who enjoy playing with LEGO, but at the same time I’m a dad with a 17 year old and so the LEGO experience is aimed at kids whom would enjoy the animation, but still leave it funny enough for dads like me who remember seeing Star Wars, and then there’s a third level which is for the full time Star Wars fan.”

So you may ask, which category does Michael Price fall into? Mike got his start in the entertainment business  working in theater, but he always loved watching animated comedy shows like The Flintstones not thinking that his love for telling stories and making cartoons could become a full-time job. His love for comedy would soon fester, so Mike dropped the theater act and moved to Los Angeles where he would spend a lot of time toiling around for a bunch of low-budget shows. Mike’s luck would soon turn when he landed a job with Klasky Csupo, a studio world famous for producing such classic animated shows like Rugrats and The Simpsons. Mike would eventually latch onto The Simpsons as a writer and would go on to be a part of  such award-winning episodes as ‘My Mother, The Carjacker’,  ‘Mommie Beerest’, and most recently the 500th episode entitled ‘At Long Last Leave’. 

Even with the arduous journey Mike took to get where he is today, he still remembers fondly seeing Star Wars in theaters, “I’m old enough to say I saw the first movie in theaters when I was in high school. I remember there was such a huge line and that I had even missed the first five minutes and that I had come in during the scene where a bunch of the Imperial forces are waiting for Vader to come in to the blockade runner. A couple weeks later I saw it again in NYC at an AMC Theater and was able to watch the whole thing beginning to end.”  Mike would also admit that when he saw Empire Strikes Back in theaters that during the now eponymous scene where Vader reveals that he is Luke’s father, Mike and his friend couldn’t help but yell ‘NOOOOOOOO’ at the movie theater maybe thinking that Darth and Luke would look at everyone in the cinema and throw a shrug, “Hey! We didn’t write it!!”

Despite being a long-time fan of Star Wars, Mike would admit that at times he takes some liberties with the Star Wars universe in terms of canon and continuity, ” It’s a huge blessing to be animated! In terms of canon, Yoda is firmly planted in the prequel trilogy, but we have people who show up in the Yoda Chronicles from the original Star Wars universe! Since we aren’t Star Wars canon we are free to do whatever, but the characters are still true to who they are, and we are  just playing them up comically. For example, we really played up Anakin Skywalker becoming evil, but we  really wanted to exaggerate that so that it’s funny. ‘

To a guy like me that knows nothing about Star Wars, that’s a welcome mission statement. So is the force with me? Or you? Yep, and it’s also for the kid in all of us, “The guiding force always with the LEGO Star Wars is that it is the TV-animated version of getting your LEGO sets out and pretending that you are Yoda and Luke.’

The third chapter of LEGO Star Wars: The Yoda Chronicles entitled “Attack of the Jedi” airs on November 27th @ 8pm EST, only on Cartoon Network, check your local listings and get a sneak peek here.