Did 'Serial' Just Make A 'Star Wars' Reference?

If you're tuning in for all of the excitement that is Season 2 of the hit podcast Serial, then you know that the story revolves around Bowe Bergdahl — a U.S. military sergeant who served in Afghanistan and was later captured by the Taliban. However, in the latest episode of the nail-biting saga, it seems as if the trials and tribulations of a world at war might not be enough on their own. As Episode 2 happened to (briefly) get some help from something a long time ago... something from a galaxy far, far away. Yep, you heard that reference correctly. Serial really did make a reference to Star Wars.

More specifically, this week, host Sarah Koenig simply could not hold back her mention of an AT-AT Walker — yes, the giant, four-legged machine used by the Imperial Forces in both Star Wars: Episode V, The Empire Strikes Back and Star Wars: Episode VI, Return of the Jedi. In fact, Koenig not only brought it up during her conversation with Jason Dempsey — a Major in the tenth mountain division and operations officer from when Bowe disappeared — but she even went on to describe one of the famous Star Wars scenes that features the AT-AT in the podcast.

"Luke comes with his little thing and he just like ties up the legs and it falls over," she said. And while I was taken aback that this podcast, of all things, was getting into the Star Wars spirit, Dempsey was on board and thought the analogy was great.

So, why the sudden pop culture reference in a show very much focused on the issues? Well, I'm thinking that even a podcast as serious as Serial can't seem to ignore that insane Star Wars-fever that is taking over the time frame leading up to the Dec. 18 release of The Force Awakens. With a premiere bigger than the Oscars, fans all over the world are itching to get their spots in a theater as soon as possible. And, personally, I think that a little inclusion of the popular film franchise could really never hurt — anywhere. If it works, it works.

Images: Lucasfilm; Giphy