Why I Hate Jar Jar Binks

An Annoying Star Wars Character

At the end of the 20th century, fanboys and girls were hopeful to see a fresh start to the Star Wars saga. It was Episode I, and we heard that it would be Darth Vader’s story. How good was it to go back to the galaxy far, far away and to see the sci-fi saga we loved? I was excited back then, and a new batch of Star Wars merchandise filled my birthday wish list. I had goosebumps when the theme music played again in the theater.

Okay, to be fair, it was a good movie. It offered a detailed look at the early life of the future mass murderer. How interesting was it to see the feared Darth Vader start out as an innocent dreamer? But I felt that the movie wasted a lot of potential. Compared to the fun bunch of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, and their faithful Wookie and droids, the overly serious Jedi appeared like cardboard. And yes, Jake Lloyd was just a kid, but we can’t blame the fans for saying he didn’t portray Anakin Skywalker well. And then there was this reptilian-amphibian thing that ruined the show as a whole.

If they were attempting to make it more child-friendly, they could have done so without the annoying Jar Jar Binks. At first, I had no idea why I didn’t like the creature so much. The Star Wars saga has a lot of good humor, but I just wanted to grab a lightsaber and slice Jar Jar each time he appeared on the screen.

Who Is Jar Jar Binks?

I will be quick on this one, as trying to recall the creature gives me a seizure. According to my sources, George Lucas based him off of Goofy and he is a Gungan, a race of tribal amphibians. He appeared in the scene where the Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn rescued him from a Federation transport. He then befriended the young Anakin and leads his fellow Gungans in defeating the Trade Federation.

Hmm, Darth Vader had a goofball friend. Very interesting! Could this explain why he joined the dark side?

He Is a Reptilian/Amphibian Thingy

This is the first reason I found him repulsive. They could have portrayed him as being cute and fluffy, or something warm-blooded. Cartoons and anime are good references for kid-friendly characters. Did they even learn anything from Disney or Pokemon movies? What were they thinking when they based him on an amphibian and reptile hybrid?

Every time I look at Jar Jar, a love child between a Jurassic Park raptor and a toad comes to my mind. I hate anything reptilian and I don’t like frogs! To make things worse, they colored him orange, giving him a more prehistoric look. I’m telling you, something that resembles an amphibious dinosaur doesn't really count as cute.

Ugly Character Design

They could have at least redeemed the character by giving him a cuter face.

We have a lot of creature muppets from Sesame Street and kids loved them despite being labeled as monsters. The wookie Chewbaca is another example. With a large hairy frame, he presents a menacing sight to behold. But kudos to the designers by giving him a gentle face. In the case of Jar Jar, a leathery, elongated face with yellow bulging eyes is not something you can label as cute. A large mouth, flared nostrils, and long froggy tongue don’t count as endearing either, it's more grotesque! I once heard a kid saying he looks more monstrous than friendly.

The Prehistoric Features Don't Suit the Goofiness

To be frank, watching a leathery, orange amphibian with bulging eyes do comedy is awkward to watch. It really doesn’t fit! Could you imagine taking a velociraptor from Jurassic Park and making it play Mr. Bean? Those alien features that belong in a sci-fi horror movie are not meant for a cartoonish role! What's worse, they even made Jar Jar do serious stuff, like leading the Gungan army.

Allegations of Racism

Episode I was a hotbed for racist allegations. The corrupt Neimodians have East Asian accents. The trader Watto was interpreted as a Jewish stereotype. The Gungan people seem to represent a primitive African tribe and their leader was a buffoonish chief. Jar Jar sounds like a Jamaican Creole whenever he speaks. Making a dim-witted alien with African and Jamaican characteristics follow around white heroes was not a wise idea.

Annoying Voice

My ears bleed when I hear Jar Jar’s drawl. The sound of his voice made me think of an angle grinder or an old trumpet. The addition of some mumbling and made-up words made his speech hard to understand. In fact, I never got what he meant most of the time. I have to refer to his body language to get what he said. This is particularly bad since this made me watch more of his corny humor.

The Corny and Cartoonish Acts

And speaking of humour, this is where Jar Jar failed the most. Part of the success of the Star Wars series came from its many lighthearted scenes. I always thought that our beloved droids, R2-D2 and C3P0, were the antithesis of the more violent and destructive movie robots. They were less like warriors and more like a humorous foil to the heroes who did the fighting. Even formidable characters like Chewbaca are not shy of showing their funny side, with great success to the audience.

The thing here is that their humor is simple and unpredictable, something Jar Jar lacks. His so-called humor is displayed through old-fashioned slapstick that went obsolete years ago. Nothing new comes out from him, just overused and predictable gags. The attempts at making the gags cartoonish only made things worse. Buster Keaton would be ashamed to see this embarrassment.

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Final Thoughts

The orange creature represents every flaw of The Phantom Menace. No one is sure why he ended up there, maybe it was an attempt to connect with younger audiences. I felt that in later entries, the Gungans should be wiped out and Jar Jar must not appear for everyone’s sake. Even better, no one must come up with another Jar Jar Binks in any future installments if they want to make the franchise stay afloat. It’s a good thing that we never saw much of him after Star Wars: Episode 1. I’m still itching to see his bones in the desert in later movies.

This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.

© 2017 Mamerto Adan

Comments

Mamerto Adan (author) from Cabuyao on October 08, 2018:

I think you ignored the behavioral description in the article fanboy, or you are not reading properly.

jarjarfanboy on October 07, 2018:

hating on jar jar LOL look at me guys I'm cool, like me like me I'm like everyone else XD 100% LIT. On a serious note, all your arguments are on the physicality of the character.

Mamerto Adan (author) from Cabuyao on December 09, 2017:

Thanks for the feedback! A disney character actually comes in mind when I saw Jar Jar lol!

Awesome Possum777 on December 08, 2017:

I honestly didn't care for Jar Jar myself, but I don't see why people hate him, and especially for obsolete and rather jumped at accusations, like rascism. Come on, people. Grow up. But I do agree that he was a tad bit over goofy.

Capn_EO_Crowley on November 02, 2017:

Okiday!!!

Mamerto Adan (author) from Cabuyao on November 01, 2017:

Agree on that ReviewMeMedia. The racism remarks might be a subjective.

Mamerto Adan (author) from Cabuyao on November 01, 2017:

Agree in that Mary. As much as I love the starwars series, the aliens are hit and miss. Some alien designs outside the series like Geiger's Xenomorph is way more artistic.

ReViewMeMedia on November 01, 2017:

Jar Jar Binks never bothered me, but I DO get why people hate him. However, everyone saying the character is a racist character is rather absurd as he's played by a black actor Ahmed Best, if Jar Jar were racist, he would have told George it was.

Mary Wickison from USA on November 01, 2017:

I didn't 'get Jar Jar Binks' either.

Plus there was that other Jabba the Hutt I couldn't stand that blobby mess. If that is what is out there on other planets, it makes Earth look pretty good.

Mamerto Adan (author) from Cabuyao on November 01, 2017:

Thanks Poppy! Actually I pretended he doesn't exist each time I watch Episode I :)

Poppy from Enoshima, Japan on November 01, 2017:

I think most people would agree with you that Jar Jar Binks is annoying. He's a bit of a bizarre and unneeded character.