Hey, remember the Furby organ? We sure do. In fact, we can’t forget it, no matter how hard we try or how long we pray. Ever wonder what happened to the man behind that monstrosity of fluff and steel? Maybe, by some divine aid, authorities managed to lock him away in a padded room, or even extradite him to the Hague, thus finally preventing him from conducting further mechanical crimes against God. Surely no one would seek to enable that modern-day mad scientist.
Well, it appears humanity can’t keep from torturing itself, as Lego recently partnered with English YouTuber Sam Battle (a.k.a. Look Mum No Computer), to help construct an impressive miniature droid orchestra across more than 3,000 working hours to play the Star Wars theme on a number of different instruments, including cellos, violins, keyboards, and xylophones. Among the droids are 46 R2-D2s, 25 GONKs, and 24 Mouse droids. Check out the short video below, along with a lengthier behind-the-scenes look at how Battle managed to pull off the whole thing, despite obviously editing out his pact with the Devil.
Sure, a bunch of tiny, plastic R2s tapping out John Williams’ iconic lead melody on xylophones is cute in its own way, but the facade atop Battle’s cruel play crumbles as soon as those mouse droids commence to scraping their bows against violin strings, giving a clear, hideous voice to the bot orchestra’s agony. Once again, we get the sense that Battle’s projects aren’t so much musical challenges as they are attempts to blur the lines between autonomy, sentience, and the mechanical puppetry we mistake for self-awareness.
Look, we’re just happy to see some practical effects in the Star Wars universe again. And, if anything else, it’s safe to say Battle’s latest project with Lego will piss off fewer Star Wars fans than Rise of Skywalker inevitably will.