this post was submitted on 08 Feb 2026
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Oh, I'm fully on board for there being a more or less self-consistent in-universe explanation for these things. "It's scifi/fantasy bro, just relax" is no fun at all. I would assume that BB-8 has some kind of tractor beam / particle shield technology that temporarily compresses sand and other unstable materials into a solid surface so that he can roll along at high speed no matter the consistency.
You're talking to a proud owner of the Star Trek Technical Manual, among several other books of nothing but elaborate in-universe technical explanations of fictional technology. I love those things. Saying that a technology you see in SF-F wouldn't work is boring. What's fun is finding a fictional explanation for how it would work!
... then why did you initially pretty much say that, "juat stop thinking about is so hard?"
My criticism is more aimed at whoever would point at BB8 rolling on sand and say "That wouldn't work!" Maybe it wouldn't work with our current technology, but clearly they figured out a workaround. Figuring out the in-universe explanation is way more fun.