I started The Podcast Worm with the intention of keeping it up regularly. The first one went live around 9 months ago now, so clearly, that didn’t happen. However, much like Halloween Unmasked, Inside Star Wars was a podcast that really caught my attention.
Mark Ramsey is the host, who has teamed up with Wondery for multiple series that dive into certain movies like Jaws and Psycho. I haven’t listened to those just yet (but I have plans to). With Inside Star Wars, I was able to learn things about the cast that I didn’t know before.
Maybe it’s because I’m not the biggest Star Wars fan ever, so I didn’t know all of the details about how Harrison Ford ended up getting the role of Han Solo or how Kenny Baker had a son with another woman. It was facts like those that brought the podcast to life for me.
The series finale dropped on July 3. With a total of 7 episodes (not including the trailer and the clip of American Innovations), it’s a breeze to get through. The episodes are the perfect length to keep you enthralled as you listen from start to finish. You can get it done in less time than it’ll take to watch Stranger Things 3 (I already did that, too).
Narrative podcasts are a lot more challenging to get just right. If you’re doing an interview-based show or one where you only chat with friends, you have more room for banter and tangents if you wish. With a narrative one, though, things are much more focused due to the nature of the format. If you’re researching information for a podcast as specific as Inside Star Wars, you aren’t going to want to add in too much irrelevant information.
The decision to talk about Kenny Baker’s son, Shane, came in the finale where they were discussing the various goodbyes that happened along the way. That particular story played into Baker’s death and how Shane never met him. Is that crucial to Star Wars? No, not at all, but Shane was a fan and never knew his father played R2-D2 until much later in his life.
I won’t give too much else away for the series so that you still have the incentive to listen to it if you haven’t yet. If you’re a fan of Star Wars, listening to Inside Star Wars is a must. Whether you’re a huge fan or someone interested in how films are made, there are tidbits in it for everyone.
Mark Ramsey does an excellent job crafting the story, and thanks to this podcast, I’ll be checking out his previous series as well.