In our last edition of Whiteboard Wednesday we explored the hypothetical ‘What If’ scenario of if a firing squad of stormtroopers tried to kill Sean Bean.
We came to the conclusion that the stormtroopers would still miss but Sean Bean with ever blaster bolt fired but he would still die horribly anyway.
In this week’s Whiteboard Wednesday, we are stepping away from Star Wars and into a movie that was green lit solely because of the financial success of Star Wars: Flash Gordon!
Yes, we all know that Flash Gordon was actually around decades before Star Wars and the original Flash Gordon serials from 1936 were a huge influence for the George Lucas creation, but for this article, lets stick to the 1980 Flash Gordon feature film (with the incredible Queen soundtrack).
In the story, a New York Jet’s quarterback named Flash (which is actually plausible in today’s NFL) is whisked away to another galaxy ruled by an incredibly powerful evil emperor named Ming who is merciless. Flash, together with a few friends, some hawkmen and a future James Bond, must must battle Ming for the fate of the galaxy.
Side note: If you had to choose an NFL quarterback to save the Earth, I don’t think I’d be looking at the New York Jet’s roster. Just sayin’.
Looking at Ming and his evil abilities got us wondering though: Was Ming The Merciless Really A Sith Lord?
Lets look deeper into this mystery by considering the parallels between the evil Emperor Ming and the evil Sith lord Emperor Palpatine!
Both ruler’s had control over mystic super natural powers, that included telepathy among other abilities, but the similarities don’t end there…
Both Emperors had a fondness for red outfits:
Both were threatened by blond dudes with swords and questionable acting abilities:
Both had loyal disciples clad head-to-toe in black that enjoyed torturing the female leads and visiting scenic cloud cities:
So is Ming The Merciless Really A Lord of the Sith?
The Answer: No…but sort of.
Ming’s magical abilities were sourced through a mystic ring that he later turned on himself in homage to Obi Wan Kenobi’s quasi passing. However Palpatine’s abilities were NOT sourced through a ring but rather the Force, which surrounds and combines all living things. This leads us to only one logical conclusion:
Ming The Merciless Is Actually A Dark Lord Of The Schwartz!
Although it was later revealed in Spaceballs that “the ring was bupkis”, Ming may never have gotten that memo. Or did he. Remember the end of Flash Gordon…
Side note: We mentioned the NFL’s roster of unique names earlier. The NFL actually has a player named “Mercilus” on the Houston Texans, but to my knowledge he has never tried to destroy the Earth.
Geeky Daddy 