Science-fiction multimedia pieces have several unique features to them. They often feature warring factions in space, alien species that look and act ferociously, and important relationships that often transcend the conflicts surrounding them.

Western genre television shows and movies have similar-yet-different aspects to them. They often feature warring factions on the frontier, villains that look and behave atrociously (sometimes using racist tropes of Native Americans), and romance among the fire and gunsmoke.

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Despite the vastly different backdrops, one can easily see the commonalities that science-fiction and western multimedia projects share. The wild west of the United States was once referred to as the frontier, while outer space is now called the final frontier (most famously in the opening sequence Star Trek: The Next Generation). When the western United States was being colonized, it was viewed as "exotic" and "untamed." Space is now similarly viewed as a wild landscape, full of wonder and danger at every turn. Both genres tend to focus on lawmen, the lawless, and those caught in the middle of their strife. Both speak to the desire for men to control land (or space), changes in technology, and the need for the powers that be to control a narrative.

There are more than a few wildly successful examples of multimedia franchises that mix the two genres to great critical acclaim and audience reception, notably the cult classic Firefly. Perhaps the two most successful science-fiction/western blends in recent years, however, are certain Star Wars properties and HBO'S Westworld.

The Wild West, and Space as the Final Frontier

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In the 19th century, much of the western half of the United States was considered "wild." Europeans and American settlers violently carved up the land and colonized, it at the expense and mass murder and displacement of Native Americans. Because it was still being colonized, western outposts had a sense of lawlessness and a lack of security to them. The land seemed to be almost limitless in its vastness, hence the term "the frontier."

Though one will not find saloons of ill repute or tumbleweeds in the vastness of space, it shares some similarities with the frontier. It is similarly vast and mysterious, since no one knows what lies beyond the reaches of time and space. Space is a dangerous, treacherous environment where darkness is more common than light and life ceases to grow roots in most places. Like western narratives, science-fiction epics also often deal with the colonization of space, whether it be our neighbor Mars or "a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away."

Warring Factions of the Two Frontiers

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As previously mentioned, a huge underlying theme in both westerns and science-fiction exploits is colonization. Sometimes the theme is subtle and sometimes it is overt, but nevertheless it is usually there. When a small town full of white Americans and Europeans is built on native land in the west, that is colonization. When an intergalactic empire forces planets and species to bend to its will and its laws, that is also colonization.

Furthermore, both westerns and science-fiction pieces often feature warring factions. In westerns, a common pairing is the Union Army and Native American tribes, or perhaps a sheriff and fledgling police department against an onslaught of lawless cowboys. In science-fiction epics, the warring factions are usually rival empires, hostile aliens, or a rag-tag group of rebels who seek to resist the encroachment of an empire. The commonalities are quite seamless if one chooses to look closely enough.

Lawmen and the Lawless

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In Westerns, a common protagonist is the gritty, seasoned sheriff of a new outpost or town in a place like Utah or Nevada. In science-fiction tales, the protagonist could be a swashbuckling lawman on a foreboding outpost deep in the outer reaches of space. Properties like Star Wars, Foundation, Firefly and Westworld seamlessly marry the commonalities between western lawmen and the lawless with their science-fiction counterparts; for example, Mal Reynolds is a smuggler and an outlaw evading the lawmen of the Alliance.

Star Wars as a Model

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Since Star Wars took the world (and galaxy) by storm in 1977, no television nor movie franchise has so seamlessly blended the western and science fiction genres. This is evident both in the franchise’s television shows and in its films, and the original trilogy in particular.

The original trilogy’s protagonist and savior, Luke Skywalker, is from the planet Tatooine. It is a wind-swept, arid planet where only the strong survive. It is also located at the outer reach of the Star Wars galaxy – daresay, on its frontier. These elements make Star Wars feel something like a western. Meanwhile, Luke’s mastery of The Force and his use of the Jedi lightsaber fulfill the science-fiction elements of the story.

On television, the two live-action Disney+ shows, The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett, have both been in the western-science-fiction genre. Both characters find themselves somewhere in that gray area between lawmen and lawless, and both find themselves at conflict with powerful colonial factions while interacting with advanced technology and alien species.

All in all, westerns and science-fiction pieces have a fair amount in common. This commonality allows for them to mesh together rather seamlessly to great fanfare.

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