JediDefender.com Forums
Community => Watto's Junk Yard => Topic started by: Scott on May 10, 2005, 12:17 AM
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I can remember to this day me and my friends Mike and Wayne sitting in my backyard talking about Return of the Jedi. I had seen the trailer a couple of times at the theater and I was more than pumped to see it on the big screen. My parents on the other hand weren't so excited. The idea of taking 8 year old me, my 5 year old sister and 4 year old brother to a movie was no walk in a park. Finally after weeks of badgering them we went to a mantinee.
Needless to say the Johnson boys had already spoiled me rotten...Jabba, the Shuttles, the Speeder Bike Chase, The Emperor and the biggest baddest spoiler of them all...Luke and Leia were brother and sister whose dad was ANAKIN SKYWALKER. That day of sitting in the backyard was a tiny seed that has germinated for 22 years. Sitting there growing in the dark times of the late 80's. Witnessing most of my own vintage toys selling at garage sales or being given to my little brother to destroy. Sprouting some leaves when the Zahn trilogy books were released and I happened to buy them all one weekend at the mall and by the end of the weekend had read them all. The fandom hit new heights when I got my college roomies to watch the OT on VHS in order a few times each year.
Miracle Grow was added to the mix in 1995 when one of my first boyhood obsessions was returned to the market after being on hiatus for 20 years. Star Wars Guys were back and I went bonkers. The Shadow of the Empire and Special Editions kept the thing alive through the dark days of college. Loads of dispendable cash and more and more toys and the ability to surf the web for Star Wars Star Wars Star Wars cemented the love of the franchise forever.
About this time it was announced the Lucas was revisiting the Saga and was bringing it back to the big screen. The Special Editions were such a big hit and the technology was there that he was able to bring the Prequels to life. Endless speculation and countless new friends joined in the orgasmic nature all leading up to a hype filled Spring of 1999. Nothing will ever replecate that time. It was Star Wars every single place I went. The movie is and was what it was. I stood in line to buy tickets and to see it, I had a blast!
Meeting many of the people here over the next three years between Menace and Clones is the highlight of that time period in my personal SW Fandom. Nervous anticipation and joy was also rampant during that time. I can remember the explosion of the CSW/RS forums of the time, many, many new people to share in the joy of the hobby and universe. My first son was born a few weeks before Clones came out. I remember waking up dead tired the day of the Merchandise release and loading up my cart with toys. I played hooky to watch the movie. The clearest thing I remember going "oh yeah" about was the Sonic Charge from the Slave 1.
It was a blast...and then I joined the staff of JediChris. Chris asked me to help him out with the site. With a little reservation and trepedation I took on said task. Not full fledged at first but Chris kept adding the right people to the mix as old staff members left. Brad and Thomas and Chris and I have been here for pretty much all of the time between Clones and Episode III. When JediDefender opened, I had Chris get Matt on board and it was at that point it all took off. Thanks to a bunch of invitations and new staff positions the site has grown from a blip on the radar to what it is today.
I myself was able to break two major scoops on the movie this time. Thanks to Thomas Hodges, Chris and I were able to bring a slew of the first spoiler images of Episode III last spring. Almost getting the site shutdown by LucasFilm was a high honor. The next was unveiling the Episode III marketing and packaging (mousepads and bedsheets!) images last year right before Comic Con. We had those images for quite a long time but were asked to hold them by the person who gave them to us for a while. So we did...and we almost got scooped by Hasbro themselves two days later but it was cool to be there to break that news.
I was thinking the other day about my old friends Mike and Wayne and what they'll be doing next week. If they'll be going to a Midnight show where ever they are. Or if Eric or if Shane or if Don or if Chris and Nick or if Matt or if all of the crazy people I have met on-line who have been touched by a series of movies as much as we all have been, will be going out next week to see it all happen. I think about my friend Nathan who was killed three years ago and was part of my college watching screenings and how he won't be going. I think about my own brush with death a few weeks ago and how I might not be going. I think about my life and my wife and my two boys who each in their own ways have to deal with this obsession (thanks guys!)
How did Anakin Skywalker turn in to Darth Vader? Its something I've wondered ever since that day in my backyard. So, I just want to pass along lots of fun times and fond memories. Its something I've spent thousands of dollars on. Its something I've spent thousands of hours on. Its something that has been a part of my life for more than 25 years and one major chapter is coming to a close. So, enjoy it all my friends. Drink it all in. From all of the reviews this is our movie. Its a time to share in the love of the thing that has brought all of us together. Thanks for sharing your passion with me as it all adds to what we are here and it is why at the end of the day even though I have only met a handful of you, I consider you all to be my friends.
Enjoy every minute of these next few days, they are ours!
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Enjoy every minute of these next few days, they are ours!
And no one can take them away from us.
Scott,
That was from the heart...I feel all the better for being here with people like you, willing to reach out to the small fan. Thank you for the fond memories here, elswhere, and many more times to come.
To Star Wars... :)
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Cheers! :)
I got some of my friends to watch the movies with me in the last week and they have all said they want to come (and they are coming), to the midnight show. :) I was so happy when they said that. This next week is going to be so tough, I can't wait! ;D
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Man, what a great post.
Cheers! :)
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the end of the road is upon us, though it may live on in books, comics, or new tv shows, the final new theatrical release is only 9 days away and this time it's for real. but unlike 22 years ago, as scott so eloquently put it, we are not alone....
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May the force be with all of you. :)
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I have 2 fond memories of Star Wars films as a kid... Seeing The Empire Strikes Back at the Ford City Drive-In (someone with bookoo $$$'s front yard now), and seeing ROTJ at Cinema 3 that still is on the hill here...
The SE's recaptured that for me, but as an adult I appreciated the night out with my friends that accompanied the films... I'm so hyped for this film, I can't stand it.
This year, VIP tickets at the biggest theater in Pittsburgh... Night out with collecting buddies... It's as good as it gets for me. Even my gf's kids are hooked right now, and I'm gonna take her two sons and their buddy Austin to see it soon after it is out... My first experience at making new SW fans I guess.
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Thanks for sharing your passion with me as it all adds to what we are here and it is why at the end of the day even though I have only met a handful of you, I consider you all to be my friends.
I couldn't have put it any better Scott. Thanks for the memories!!
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Yes, that was very well put Scott. It is bittersweet the end of this series. We finally get to see Anakin become Vader but it's the end of the theatrical run. This is probably last really big Star Wars moment for us and the general public. I have enjoyed seeing Star Wars all over grocery food products once again and on the news etc. Or overhearing Star Wars conversations from non fans/co-workers. It's that last "buzz" that I am loving right now.
It's sad because once the movie is out a few weeks it will all sort of die down. Not for the fans but overall. Most likely a lot of people will end up leaving message boards like this a little bit at a time. It's like everything reaches a fever pitch and then dies off.
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In 1977, when I was a very small child, my mother took me to see the original "Star Wars."
In 1980, when I was still very young, my mother took me to see "The Empire Strikes Back."
In 1983, when I was a little older but still young, my mother took me to see "Return of the Jedi."
In 1999, when both my mother and I were both older, I took her to see "The Phantom Menace."
In 2002, when my mother and I were both older and she was starting to feel the effects of her age, I took her to see "Attack of the Clones."
Next Thursday, despite physical, emotional, and spiritual problems that affect the both of us, I will be taking my mother to see "Revenge of the Sith."
That's what I'm looking forward to. :'(
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These are the Glory Days of the online "Collecting Republic" to say the least. I'll never forget yesterday, when there was this little kid, maybe 5, and I say maybe, because he was about knee high on a grasshopper, in the shopping cart asking for Vader and Yoda, and a Stormtrooper off the pegs. I talked to his mom for a few minutes, and he has been obsessed with StarWars for forever. I then rounded the corner to see a handfull of kids picking and playing with the Darth Vader helmets on the pallet in the middle of the store, speculating just who Darth Vader is, and talking about Obi-Wan and Anakin. This is really our time.
This has definatley been a great year (hell,since '98 I've been geeked.), with meeting you folks at Celebration 3, the trailers, the toys (especialy the toys), and the over all feel. Plus with my Birthday on the 13th, only 6 days from the movie, immagine what the presents will be like! :o
It is indeed our time, Scott.
Kevin
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Great post Scott. I was thinking about this last weekend as well. This, as far as what we know and Lucas has said, will be the last time we can ever look forward to and anticipate a "new" Star Wars movie coming to the big screen. Sure, there might be re-releases, special editions, 3-D versions, and television shows in the future...and that is great too....but nothing is the same as going into a theatre to see an all-new Star Wars movie. From what we've been hearing about this next installment, this really is our movie, and what many people have been waiting to/hoping to see. I remember how excited I was when I first heard that there were going to be the prequels, and that feeling of going back to the theatre to see the new ones. It almost doesn't seem real when that opening scroll starts, as you have been anticipating it for a year or more prior to that, and the time has finally come. I think that feeling will be even stronger this time around with the knowledge going in that this is THE last one. That's it. It has been one heck of a ride, and although it is definitely sad to see this part of the Star Wars universe come to an end (the movies), it is exciting at the same time. It has been a pleasure to share and discuss all things Star Wars (and everything else) here with all of you, and it will be interesting as we look to the future without a new movie to talk about and look forward to.
All in all, you are right Scott. We should enjoy this time, enjoy the anticipation, because it will likely be the last time we can. My first Star Wars "theatre" experience was seeing Return of the Jedi with my dad and some friends when I was almost 6 years old. I remember sitting in the front row (something I would complain about now as an adult, but as a kid it seemed like the place to sit). Jabba seemed so huge to me, and a little bit scary at the time. At that time, Ewoks were cool :P, Han and Chewie were the coolest, and Luke as a Jedi in black was the best we had seen him. I can remember each of the prequels as well, being so pumped going into and coming out of the theatre after each one. I don't think I've looked forward to any of the prequels as much as this one, and that is probably because from what we understand ROTS has the most OT type connections, and gets closer to the time frame that I grew up with in the original movies. I look forward to seeing it several times, starting with opening day (May 19) with the Mrs. We've gone to each of the movies together (Special Editions for the OT ones), and it will be a nice way to cap off the Saga. No matter what your opinions are on the previous two prequels, I hope this final movie is an amazing experience for everyone that sees it, and it is a great time to be a Star Wars fan right now. Just a little over a week to go!
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Scott, that was one of the most heartfelt posts I've seen since I've been online. Thanks for sharing the memories, man, and I'm sorry to hear about your friend. I have a friend who died before AOTC, and it was hard then as it's hard this time. If you need anyone to talk to, don't hesitate to PM me.
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Yep - awesome post. I think that what you said really captures how we all feel, and nobody could have said it better... except one thing to add - this might be the last time to truly feel like a kid in the movies for the rest of your life! Enjoy this all summer guys!
:P
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All I can say is that until I'm sitting in the theater on may 19th, my stomach is going to be fluttering. Not only am I excited to see the movie, but I'm excited to enjoy the experience one last time with my friends with whom I saw episodes one and two.
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What a great post Scott. It got me thinking again about the first time I saw Star Wars in the theater.
I was six. My dad took me, my brother, and my cousin David to the theater to see this movie coming out that was generating all this talk. When the opening crawl hit the screen, my father had to read it to me because I couldn't read the words quick enough. (Cut me some slack....I was in kindergarten!)
When the battle aboard the Tantive IV started, I thought the stormtroopers were the good guys, because they were wearing white (all the heroes wore white in old westerns)....until I saw Darth Vader step into frame. If ever there was an embodiment of evil....it was Darth Vader! From that moment on, I was hooked on this story. I saw Star Wars dozens of times in theaters, drive-ins....there was no Blockbuster back then and very few people had VCRs in there homes. It was a regular trip for my family. There were many days where my brother and I got into "Lightsaber" duels with our whiffle-ball bats....my knuckles seemed to be permanently bruised!
In the summer of 1978, my family went on a summer vacation of driving across the country. My sister (about 18 months old at the time) was being a brat to me, which seemed to be her usual hobby at the time, and just when Ithought I couldn't take it anymore, my mom suggested I look in a bag that she had just produced from the front seat. Inside was something I had been bugging her almost non-stop to buy for me for months....my very own STAR WARS FIGURES! The long days in the car that trip were not only spent ste-seeing, but also having small adventures with Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca, R2-D2, C-3PO and the Tusken Raider.
1980 came along, and a new Star Wars movie was coming to theaters. I remember being there opening day, waiting in the long lines with my family to get tickets and then to get into the theater. My mom left the line to go get us a pizza that we ate in line. The movie was just incredible! My heroes were having a real tough time, Luke discovered a new teacher, and I was shocked when the Evil Darth Vader told Luke he was his father! I don't think anyone could believe that one!
That summer, my parents planned a summer trip for the family to go to Hawaii. It was my first time in an airplane, and I sat at the window seat with my new favorite figure. A Bounty Hunter, Boba Fett that I had to send a couple of proof of purchases away for. The rocket didn't fire like originally advertised on the back of the action figure cards I had, but I didn't mind. I was content to have him in a superman style flying position, against the widow of the 747 we were on looking like he was shooting across the landscape far below.
1983 came. I was 12 years old and graduating from Elementary school. Girls were rapidly becoming less icky and one evening I'm watching television when I see none other than a clip of a new movie and Han Solo getting back-handed by someone who looked amazingly like some sort of stormtrooper! I immediately ran upstairs to the kitchen where my mom was making dinner and excitedly yelled, "THERE'S A NEW STAR WARS MOVIE COMING!!!"
This new movie didn't disappoint. My favorite story finally came to an end. I realized there was one really icky moment in the previous movie, and I learned the most evil person I had ever seen maybe wasn't that bad afterall.
14 years later, I'm an airmen in the US Air Force living on the coast of North Carolina. I'm home on leave in new York and my brother wants to go see the new Star Trek movie. I begrudginly go with him, we don't get to spend a lot of time together like we used to and the preview for the Star Wars Special Editions hits the screen. All of a suddne, I'm that 6 year old boy again....my brother had to tell me to calm down in the movie theater! I see each on opening day and think it's great to see them on the big screen again....wait a second...did Greedo just shoot at Han before he fired?? I also get something cool when Return of the Jedi comes out.....a new Star Wars figure! (Two actually, since my sister was visiting me in NC and I dragged her to go see it and she gave me hers.)
By May of 1999, I have just moved to Fairbanks, Alaska just after being Godfather for my niece at her baptism. I find a movie theater before I find a place to live! When I ask if I can take a day of leave for the opening of Star Wars, I'm given my callsign, "Obi-Wan". I think I saw The Phantom Menace 12 times in the theater, when the film had finally broken in the old projector to the point where the film was just unwatchable. Luckily, in the next three years, they build a new state-of-the-art theater with better projectors and stadium seating. Also during this time, my niece has a little brother who I start buying all these cool playskool star wars toys for (the 12" figures I kept buying for my niece never really interested my niece).
2002 and I'm getting ready to leave Alaska to go to Officer Training School. I still manage to take a day of leave so I can see Attack of the Clones at the midnight showing. I still manage to see this one in the theater about 10 times, even though I spent most of the summer in training and had to drive from Alaska to New York to Alabama.
And now here we are. My sister-in-law in a moment of weakness has purchased a plastic lightsaber for my nephew....I don't think he's managed to get the dog with it yet. Both my niece and nephew love the Ewoks, droids, and clone wars dvd's I bought for them. My living room wall is adorned with all six movie posters. My bookshelves have a plethora of different EU books from the Thrawn Trilogy plus two, to the NJO alongside all my Tom Clancy books, Lord of the Rings, the Hobbit, Harry Potter, and more. My dvd collection has all five Star Wars movies to date, including a couple of bootlegs so I can someday show my kids what Star Wars was like when I was a child (see, I wasn't kidding when I said Han shot first!) There are starfighters on my armoir, NASCAR vehicles with Star Wars themes and mini obi-wan sabers on my desk along with a Darth Tater, and just about ever Lucasarts Star Wars game you can imagine on the hardrive of my computer (Except Galaxies....I just don't have that kind of time).
In seven days, a part of me will be that six-year old boy sitting in the theater with my popcorn and a coke sitting in awe as this great story is finally told.
The more things change the more they stay the same.
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Scott-
That is a great post and very heart felt man.
Post like that take me back to this moment. It still brings back a lot of great memories. I know a few of you may have seen this post as I always claim I have pictures of my vintage collection. The nostalgia that is occuring for me these days takes me back right here. I was the perfect age when star wars first came out. I was 10 years old. My love of toys and all things sci-Fi were never higher than captured in this moment. I remember switching roles with Brandon at times he would be Luke and I would be Han or Vice versa. I remember we woul d have these great all out battles in his garage with our air filled ballon lightsabers(remember those). Then only moment later we would be on the garage floor making battle plans to attack the death star(which was a old tire at the time).
I too wonder where my friend Brandon is today. Is he as excited and anticpating the movie as I am. Is he feleing the same way about it now as I do.
Thank you Scott for taking me back to a place that is, forever, the happiest place on earth..... A galxay far far away
(http://home.comcast.net/~gary_mellar/1980me.jpg)
Oh if oyu don't make fun of the picture I will be disappointed.
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Yep, that's a priceless pic. I bet you got all the women back then.
:P
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You should see my collection now and my hair. ;)
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Walrusman is getting dangerously close to the Falcon in that pic...
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Thanks everyone for the memories as well, it is both a melancholy and also joyous time. In 7 days from right now I'll be sitting at the Oakdale UltraScreen in all my geeky glory with my good friend from high school, its great that we can all share this wondeful time together. One Week Away!!!
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I know. I've rounded up my 4 best highschool friends for this event! 7 days! I cant wait! Tommorow is my Birthday...and then...
A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away....
Kevin ;D
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I got a little good news... Heard I may get to see it a day or two early at a private screening. That'd be kinda neat I think... I'm still doing the VIP thing at our Loew's Theater for the midnight show though... That's going to simply be insane!
I've seen all the prequal films by myself at midnight, actually, and now I'm gonna have a whole area of my buddies with me. Should be a fun time.
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When I was about 6 or 7 maybe, I had never seen SW (this would have been around 1990), but I had seen Star Trek stuff and I hated it all. I wasn't very open minded to SW due to the lameness of ST. My dad was stationed in Michigan at the time and we were in a teeny-tiny town called Oscoda. We rented our NES games and movies from a Supermarket called Glen's.
Now when my grandmother was very ill and my mom went to tend to her in Mississippi, my Dad and sister and I had a lot of time to bond together. We'd play lots of games and watch a lot of movies and such. Well we went to rent a new game and I remember wanting to rent the original Zelda (as usual) but my dad insisted on renting The Empire Strikes Back. I wasn't interested in a baseball game (I was a kid! I thought he said "umpire strikes back" ;) ) But he rented it anyways.
When we started playing the game I was shocked to learn it wasn't baseball at all, but a guy on a snow planet riding a kangaroo (TaunTaun) with a laser gun and laser sword. I though it was pretty darn cool, but the real impression came when we started battling the AT-ATs in the snowspeeder. By this time I was completely immersed into a story that had captured my dad's generation. My dad told me that there were 3 movies like this and said he would track them down so I could watch them.
Later that night, my dad was upstairs watching TV flipping channels, and he suddenly called me up hurriedly to see what was on TV. To our astonishment I was staring at Luke Skywalker doing a handstand with a little bigeared green guy standing on his foot. Empire was on HBO!!!! :o Looking at Yoda I had a flashback of sorts, only to realize that my earliest memory EVER was watching Yoda disappear in ROTJ. I suddenly felt comfortable, like this was familiar to me. I remember being a baby, only a year old maybe and watching ROTJ on a TV in a hotel room. We were travelling somewhere and my Dad later told me that SW was the only non-cartoon I would watch. I also rememered watching those lame Ewoks movies as a kid too.
A few weeks later, I caught strep throat and my Dad had to keep me home from school (kindergarten I think). He called his friend Rich and said he had to run to Rich's house for a minute (we lived in military housing which was totally safe to leave a child in for a few minutes. Rich lived 1 block away). He returned a few minutes later with 3 VHS tapes in his hand. He had borrowed the SW trilogy for me to watch in full for the first time.
Obviously, we know where that led us, but that was probably not only the best SW memory I have ever had, but the best MEMORY I have of my entire life thus far. It's also my most fondest memory of my dad, even though we gew to hate each other through the years I always remembered that time in my life. Now that I'm a father, I appreciate my dad so much more and we are even closer than ever. He still claims to have created a monster though . I can't wait until MY son's old enough for me to show him SW. He'll be 2 in July, so hopefull it will be soon.
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Wow these are some great stories and they're bringing all sorts of memories to the forefront, things while always in there, don't come to mind as much as they used to even though my love for Star Wars hasn't changed....
I was born in 1978, just a bit too late to see A New Hope come out, but from as far back as I remember Star Wars was always a part of my life. As a kid, my dad had one of those old video disc players, the machines with the huge disks you had to flip over halfway thru the movie to see the rest of it. I watched that disc of ANH so much that it broke the player and my dad had to get a new one. I don't even remember a time where I didn't have Star Wars toys, they were always there. I still have what I believe to be my oldest figure, Snaggletooth, proudly on display, though sporting the wrong weapon.
I was only 2 when Empire came out, but I remember seeing it at the old Plaza theater with my dad, and the next door neighbor kids and their dad. We played Star Wars everyday, at their house, at mine, outside in the front lawn, in the backyard, wherever we could take our toys we played. Many adventures would take place, including the trials and tribulations of Hammerhead and whether or not he could climb down the stairs to the basement (he didn't do so well :P). As brothers my friends always had two of everything, two AT-AT's, two Falcons, etc, so I was always a bit jealous of them for having a lot more stuff than I, but it also always meant there was something for me to play with that I might not have. And man did I play hard with my stuff, one time Vader and Obi-wan were having such a spirited fight, that Vader knocked old Ben's head right off...
Then 83 rolled around and ROTJ hit theaters and I saw it over and over again at the Lincoln Village theater. My fondest memory at the time was going into Toys R Us one night and seeing a huge display of new ROTJ figures. I have that image burned into my eyes to this day, rows of new characters just waiting to be torn from their cards. But alas Star Wars soon began to wind down in the public eye. Transformers, GI Joe, MASK, He-Man, and others were beginning to become more popular at the toy store and in my home. Most of my friends moved away and the new friends I had made were not into playing with Star Wars. So the SW toys got pushed aside, but they still were dear to my heart.
The 90's then saw a SW re-birth with the Zahn trilogy and the craze was back. 1996 came around and the Special Editions were announced and I was beyond psyched. Finally for the first time in over a decade I could see SW on the big screen as it was meant to be seen. I went to the opening night of each SE, and though I didn't like most of the changes brought forth by them, I was still thrilled to see them back in theaters. So were a couple of my friendsm, including my best friend, who shared in my joy of knowing SW was back. It was with those two friends that I saw TPM in 99 with at midnight on opening day. We were excited beyond belief for a new Star Wars movie. When we pulled up to the theater and saw the huge line and party going on, we jumped right in and had a blast. Sure when it was over we were kind of left scratching our heads at what we had just seen. But it didn't stop me from seeing TPM over a dozen times that summer (thanks to free tix at a local theater thru my work).
The time came for AOTC to hit theaters and this time my friends couldn't make it to the midnight show, so I went with the local collectors club. And though that wasn't as fun as the last time, the excitement I had for the movie did match the previous excitement. But still, I was left wondering what could have been with the movie if it had been executed a bit better. But that didn't stop me from seeing it again and again.
We're now 5 days away from the midnight premiere and I'm going to see ROTS with the same two friends I saw TPM with 6 years ago. My anticipation for the movie is extremely high. Everything I've seen and heard points to a great movie, something that does justice to the Original Trilogy. Even if my expectations aren't met, I'll be seeing the movie over and over again in theaters, filled with joy and delight, like the 4 year old boy who broke his dad's video disc player over 20 years ago. I can't wait for it to be Thursday 12:00am and the lights dim down and the Lucasfilm logo appears indicating the beginning of the last theatrical adventure. At the same time, I'm a bit saddened as this will be the last time I'll get to have this feeling of excitement. I'll be re-living my childhood all over again, but at the same time it feels I'll be losing a bit of it too when it's all over. :'(
Well that sure was a lot, I hadn't intended on typing so much, and I actually skipped a lot. But I feel good (though a lump in the throat after writing that last line) after doing so. 5 days, just 5 more days....
PS: Infamy, what's up with the pink pants in your pic? Were you friends with Matt as a kid? ;D
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The movie is officially this week now (except for those living on the west coast :-*)
I'm pee your pants excited and thanks to sfg and Jason for your nice stories as well. It also hammers home the point that for most of us, this has been a lifelong obsession, and this week is like unlocking the doors to the vault and we can go inside :)
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I cannot wait. 2 more days till the culmination of my entire life of fanboysim. Star Wars Revenge of the Sith. The reason WHY Anakin turns to the Dark Side. I mean, we know he does, and who his master is, but we learn WHY. Isn't that great? The saga will be (supposedly) complete and then I'll be kind of sad. I remember the first time I saw Star Wars. It was in north carolina when I was 7. The cantina scene of A New Hope scared the hell out of me with the weird aliens. The rest swpet me in, and my fear turned to fascination. My intrest weened for a while.
When I heard in 1997 that there was a prequal coming out, my reaction was "Yeah right, like that will ever happen."! I bit my tounge after that, because in 1999, The Phantom Menace came out, and I saw it for the first time at the Hi-Way Drive In. I was hooked and hooked hard, again. In my backyard I was Darth Maul, and I didn't die. In fact, Palpatine fixed me up, and I went out to get my revenge! Christmas hit, and I got a Darth Maul T-Shirt, and a ****load of figures. Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Anakin, Padme, Maul, and Sidious to name my favorites.
The Clone Wars were next, logically, so I figured...Maul could have been cloned! The title came out, and in 2002 Attack of the Clones was to hit. I did a dance because I remembered reading somewhere in EU that the clones were a bunch of Boba Fetts. When it hit theatres it took me a week and a half to see it, because my grandmother wasn't well, and couldnt take me. Eventually my cousin called me up and I saw it in Johnstown, and bought my first Clone figure. The SAGA Red one, with the gun, to be exact.
Since then, a monster has been awoken in me, called Figure Collecting. I have spent at least 5 grand on various toys, merchandise, movie showings, and magazines. Currently my collection of SW Figures alone was 300 somthing, with some figures MIA in boxes or in parts for customs. Thats not including whats in the mail, and what is to come. I army build, you see.
The highest point so far of my fandom was going to Celebration 3 and meeting my friends from JediDefender, metting a mess of new friends, seeing actual props from the movies, getting autographs, giving some jerk some SPAM, and seeing the Maker himself, George Lucas! Second row, can you believe it? Despie a totaled car, money problems, and a ****** busride home, it was the best time I've had. And now it all revolves around this thursday morning, at 12:01, all our questions will be answered.
The cirle will be complete, as I will be whitnessing the end of a saga, but also veiwing it a few times at the very same drive in I first saw Phantom in. The memories will flood me, I'm sure. There are tons of things to look forward to, though. We have the movies coming out in 3D in 2007, another Celebration (C 3D, you wait and see!) a Television show, The Clone Wars Volume 2, and Revenge of the Sith on DVD, plus who knows what. These days as a fan are truely ours. Lets enjoy them, as hard as we can!
Kevin
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Great post Scott, well said. Some great memories posted here. 8)
Being at the age of 43, it has been along road waiting to see the final installment. When Star Wars was released in May 1977, it changed and made cinema history. I was 15; my best friend and I saw this movie trailer on TV, space ships, laser swords, creatures, villains, heroes… Wow, we gotta check this out.
We didn’t expect much from it, boy were we wrong! ;D
There was a big line up for this movie and we were lucky to get in. After a few movie trailers, the flick starts. Soon after the title crawl, there was this small ship being blasted at from another ship. As soon as this ship hit the screen, ours eyes got wider. It just kept going and going, man that thing is huge!
We were drawn in, talked about it for days on end.
Then in 1980, The Empire Strikes Back came out. My friend and I had to see this and we dragged my friend’s brother and his Mom to the theater. Snowspeeder’s and AT-AT’s, cool. Again we were drawn in.
Return of the Jedi came out in 1983. A few of us took the day off school and lined up. The trilogy was complete… or was it?
In 1995, my friend and I stopped into TRU. I was collecting other toy lines at the time and my cart was half full. We hit the action figure isle and there we saw Star Wars figures. I turned to my friend and said “hey, these are almost like the toys back in the 70’s”. I had to have them, day after day collecting back my childhood memories and remembering the movie that started it all.
Leading up to the new Star Wars movies, I started collecting the vintage line and eBay at the time was a great source. I couldn’t believe how much was still carded or still in there boxes. It was toy and collecting heaven. ;)
The Phantom Menace hit the theaters in 1999. Yep, we go and see it, not the best but it was interesting except for that Jar Jar! ::)
2002 brought us Attack of the Clones, a cluster of special effects and seeing the story grow more about the boy who will become Vader.
Now here we are, May 2005. 28 years later the final chapter, Revenge of the Sith. On Friday at noon, the lights in the theater will dim and then the movie will start. When the music starts and the Star Wars name appears on the screen, I will remember the roar and clapping of the crowds of years past. :)
The Force will be with you, always. (http://www.wheelon.com/sounds/sw/withyou.wav)
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I just know right now that I'll be more than a little teary eyed at some point on Thursday, I can feel it already. In fact, last night, I was thinking about my sons and how I can;t wait to eventually show this to them. This was after Max and I watched the end of TPM on Fox yesterday afternoon (the Celebration scene only) It's a little bit disheartening that this one will be PG-13, it still is one of the greatest pop-culture phenomenons of our time. 3 days!!!! Amazing :)
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We caught TPM on Fox this weekend as well, and kind of enjoyed watching it again, surprisingly. Although not the best movie, and for me personally, my least favorite of the Saga...it isn't terrible either. To me, the prequels are just a different "kind" of Star Wars. They aren't (at least the first two) necessarily like the OT, but still Star Warsy in other ways. Anyways, it was kind of nice watching it again (it had been awhile), and knowing a little bit about what we'll see Thursday in ROTS, some things in TPM seem to have more meaning as well. I do sort of have a further appreciation for Darth Maul as well, to me he sure was a neat character/design, even if he was a fairly small part overall. Pretty "cool" bad guy, for lack of a better term :P. I liked the Qui-Gon character as well, too bad we lost him so early on in this new series of movies. Liam Neeson seemed to do a nice job. Anyways, back to the current movie, ROTS. I can't wait for Thursday, it seems hard to believe it is actually this week. Seems like we've been looking forward to this forever, and now the whole Saga will be complete.
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A lot of good memories, very similar to my own in this thread. Rather than add mine and echo the childhoods I see many people shared with me, I'd like to add one thing to this thread that I think it needs:
Everyone is talking about Weds night/Thursday like it's "The End". Like it will be the culmination, and then everything will be "complete". IMHO folks, it's not the end. It's just the beginning of the next chapter.
I saw ROTS last week, and yet, I'm more excited about seeing it again on Wednesday night with all my friends than I was when I was walking into that screening. I imagine that that excitement will reset itself for the first time I see it in digital (which won't be until Friday). Then the DVD release, etc, etc.
Yeah..last week was the last time I'll ever see a Star Wars movie for the first time in the theater, and yeah...the movie truly is something special, but it hardly feels like that was the end.
If anything, it got me even MORE pumped up about Star Wars. I don't think seeing ROTS was the culmination of anything. I think of it as more fuel for the fire that is my fandom.
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ya know I was trying to think of a rebuttal to Josh about some of us thinking it's the end and all. but I can't. logically, it isn't the end, not with 2 new tv shows on the horizon, countless books, comics, games, toys, dvds, etc being made available.
yet it does feel like the end.
i think perhaps, the end doesn't symbolize star wars as a whole, but the thrill and experience of seeing a new Star Wars film for the first time. I can't remember the first time I saw any of the OT, they were always there. I remember seeing TPM and AOTC for the first time and being excited yet also disappointed. but this seems almost like a totally different kind of excitement that I can't express in words. i just can't shake the feeling that the journey will be complete come 2+ hours after the lights dim.
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Thanks to Thomas Hodges, Chris and I were able to bring a slew of the first spoiler images of Episode III last spring.
As I recall, those were posted without Hodges permission and he was quite pissed about that. ::)
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Thanks to Thomas Hodges, Chris and I were able to bring a slew of the first spoiler images of Episode III last spring.
As I recall, those were posted without Hodges permission and he was quite pissed about that. ::)
Correct, he probably shouldn't have been posting them in a non-secure Chatroom on a Pinkyswear "Hey! Look how awesome I am" arrangement
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Can you believe that ROTS will be here in 36 hours? (for some people anyway, I won't be seeing it until Saturday, but that's neither here nor there.)
When you've been looking forward to something for so long, it almost seems surreal when it's finally here... Mind-numbing, it is.
I must say, Josh, that it is really encouraging that seeing ROTS for you didn't feel like "the end", but rather just another chapter in our Star Wars lives. I'm sure I will walk out of the movie with mixed feelings: joy that I've finally seen the big finale, and sorrow that it's done. No more Star Wars.
Of course, we know there are SW shows to come, but I don't think that TV can EVER compare to the excitement of a movie.
As cheesy and clicheed as it sounds, Star Wars has been such an important part of my life. Why? I don't even know if I can answer why. I've been playing with the toys since I was about 4 years old, sometime just after ESB.
When you've been involved in anything for 25 years, it's bound to tug at the heartstrings when it feels like the end is coming... :'(
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Kind of along the same topic, but do any of you have any idea how many times you will be seeing this movie in the theatre? With movie prices always rising, repeat viewings probably become a little less likely....and it also depends on what you think of the movie after seeing it the first time. For TPM, I think I saw it 3 times, for AOTC...4 times. Assuming that ROTS is as cool as it seems, I would hope to go at least that many times this time around, but I guess it all depends. The wife and I are going Thursday afternoon, and I have Friday off as well, and thought about going back again but we'll see. Otherwise, I'd like to catch it a couple more times before some of the other summer "blockbusters" (like Batman Begins) start hitting the theatres. Lots of movies I wouldn't mind seeing this summer :). ROTS is almost here! :)
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I expect I'll see it about the same number of times as I saw TPM and AOTC - twice.
I'm going on Wednesday night with a couple of buddies from snowtroopers.ca for the midnight +1 showing. I'll go the following week probably with my wife so she can see it. I may go again one more time, but there are a number of other movies I'd like to see in theaters - Batman, FF and anything else that looks cooler on a really big screen.
Two or three is sufficient for me usually. It will be more so this year because we expect to have a new house in the fall/early winter. I've been selling off old toys (as in true vintage stuff from my childhood) and pocketing more than half to get a large screen TV. 60" LCD's are pretty close to my price range now, so by fall or post-Christmas I should be pretty well set to go ahead and get one. I already have a spectacular Boston Acoustics Series 8000 set of speakers. My receiver could use upgrading but otherwise it's going to be pretty nice. I may still opt for a projector setup instead of a solid unit, but time will tell. [/aside]
I have a confession to make: I never saw ESB in theaters until 1997 :o Unlike the senior member here, I was way more into sports, beer and girls in 1980. I actually opted out of going with some friends because I had a date instead 8) I loved the first movie and went 7-8 times back in 1977 when I was 13. But by age 16 it was a non-issue for me. I did see ROTJ in 1983 in theaters (had seen ESB on video by then) and ironically it was at the same theater that I'm going to see ROTS at on Wednesday. Incidentally, I was also on a date for ROTJ, her name was Donna and she had red hair :P I liked her a lot. :)
Seemingly unlike a lot of you I never really owned a lot of the toys. I don't have any really good memories of owning or even looking at Star Wars toys prior to 1995 and even then it started as a joke. Guess I've made up for lost time.
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I'm hoping to go at least 3 times, once on Thursday afternoon, once with my wife and once with the MN crew to the Digital Screen here in town
TPM I saw at least 10 times in the theater, 8 of those were because my wife was in grad school twice a week and we had no kids and we lived 3 blocks from the $2 theater ;)
Clones I saw I believe 3 times, once by myself, once with my wife and brother and sister-in-law and once with my buddy who I'm going with on Thursday
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I must say, Josh, that it is really encouraging that seeing ROTS for you didn't feel like "the end", but rather just another chapter in our Star Wars lives. I'm sure I will walk out of the movie with mixed feelings: joy that I've finally seen the big finale, and sorrow that it's done. No more Star Wars.
In the interest of full disclosure, two things detracted from the "full experience".
1. The audience I saw it with could have been dead for all I knew. They hardly uttered a sound, or laughed and definitely didn't cheer. I was convinced at one point that they hated Star Wars, and were all dragged there because they lost a bet. So in a way, seeing it with a "real" crowd is what I'm looking forward to the most about tomorrow night.
2. I was ripped from the movie (and the ending is what REALLY hits it home for you) because I was also working at the event and had to get back to that. I didn't stay for the credits to really let the movie sink in. So that may have further skewed my take on things.
Kind of along the same topic, but do any of you have any idea how many times you will be seeing this movie in the theatre?
Tomorrow at midnight will be twice. Thursday afternoon I'm seeing it with co-workers, and Friday I'm seeing it for the first time with digital projection. So....4 times as of Friday. I imagine there will be more. I saw AOTC 7 or 8 times in the theater and I didn't even like it that much. This one I really loved. ;D
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TPM I saw at least 10 times in the theater, 8 of those were because my wife was in grad school twice a week and we had no kids and we lived 3 blocks from the $2 theater ;)
Not even for a dollar would I sit thought that POS movie!! Only if they forward it to all the Darl Mauls scenes!!!
But this one, I am so geeking to see!!! I think Lucas has finally done right!!!!
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Well everybody..I won't be logging on tomorrow, because I'll be watching TPM, AOTC, ROTS, ANH, ESB, and ROTJ, so I'll say thanks for all the laughs and fun, now.
Good night guys...enjoy the movie. :)
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(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v624/darb/lastticket.jpg)
"This will be a day long remembered." :)
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Hell yeah. :)
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I think I ended up seeing TPM almost 10 times in the theatre. That was back when I had a new job and was single. Yes, I actually liked the movie (shocking I know!).
By the time AOTC came out I had a steady girlfriend and figured I better start saving up for an engagement ring. I only saw it 4 times in the theatre. Those times were all spread out over several months.
This time I am moving to another state, got a newborn, a wife, and mortgage. However, I will probably end up seeing it about 5 times in a theatre I foresee. I better make an effort to get out there and see it a few times since it's the last SW movie. Plus, I will just want to anyway :)
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Counting down... 0 days 14 hours 2 minutes and 8 seconds as of this post
This is just like Christmas Eve, counting down and looking forward to a booty of Star Wars toys. Now I'm waiting just like a little kid for this movie to get here!
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Tonight is the night... I allowed myself to sleep late, had a light lunch, and now I'm just patiently waiting for the midnight show to come. I've somehow managed to avoid spoilers, which has been a problem for me with the prequels until now - so I'm happy to say I have no clue what's going to happen (besides the obvious)...
I keep telling all of my friends, "This is the twilight of my hobby, do you realize that?" It isn't the end, but I definately feel like this is the twilight for us. After this, all we have is reruns, short cartoons, and a slew of books and comics. It's all downhill from here.
So how many times will I see Episode 3? Probably three times. And I'm curious to know - how many of you guys and gals are actually going to have popcorn on opening night?
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The big day is finally upon us and I can't wait for the film tonight. The next few days are all about the fans and there love of this movie franchise. It is somewhat sad too think there won't be anymore movies but the future looks bright. With TV, cartoons, novels, comics, it's gonna be a great time to be a star wars fan and I can't wait.
The post itself was great very well written and I enjoyed it alot.
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Just less than 47 hours to go for me. Tick...tick...tick. Looking forward to it. 8)
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Well it happened, once the lights came back after my initial viewing at midnight, the feeling that the end was here washed over me. A sadness has put me into a funk and it's because the excitement has come to pass and now it's back to my regular old boring life and job. I had post-vacation depression when I got home from C3, now that feeling is back. It totally sucks, the movies are done and there isn't much to look forward to in the immediate future....
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Oh buck up fella! You still have me. :P
hehe, I know what you mean, somewhat, Jason... I've had a weird feeling since I left the movie that I don't have something to anticipate that revolves around Star Wars... Even figures.
I really hope what they do for TV is good because if it sucks I'm gonna be really let down.
At least I'll go see the film some more, but it's really rather depressing itself... Not to mention the feeling of "finality" to it all... I drove home from the theater myself last night, and I really was kinda "bleh". I wanted to talk to someone about it/have a long SW conversation over some scrambled eggs or something at Denny's but everyone went home right after the show because most had commitments the next day (or wives/gf's that made them go home! >:( ).
Kind of a bummer when I reflect on it.
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Oh buck up fella! You still have me. :P
At least I'll go see the film some more, but it's really rather depressing itself... Not to mention the feeling of "finality" to it all... I drove home from the theater myself last night, and I really was kinda "bleh". I wanted to talk to someone about it/have a long SW conversation over some scrambled eggs or something at Denny's but everyone went home right after the show because most had commitments the next day (or wives/gf's that made them go home! >:( ).
Kind of a bummer when I reflect on it.
Disturbing...........
Hahahah :P
Ya know I had a similar problem after the movie when me and a friend went to Dennys for some late night breakfast. We were so exhausted from the day and then the finality of ROTS we didn't even talk about the movie at Dennys. Instead when we did talk it was to complain about the teenagers sitting near us.
But after the 2nd show, we went to dinner and couldn't stop talking about the movie. It felt good to be able to do that, and it kinda helped a little with my feeling of depression. But then I went to work and you know how that can suck the life out of a person...
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No doubt man...
My gf I've held off babbling to her about it because she's not seen it yet (like she cares even!?). I'm trying to get her to watch AOTC this weekend/week so when we go next weekend she'll at least have a semi-idea what's up.
Besides that, I really haven't talked much about ROTS other than online. My buddy's out in your town for training right now or he and I would chat I'm sure, though he hasn't seen it either now since he was out there this week! Ugh!
And the local collectors are all busy! hah! :)
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JJ if you want some one to chat SW with, drop me a chat, homie. ;)
Kevin
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I don't know about you guys, but I'm still enjoying this after the fact feeling. I've seen it, abosrbed it (and can some more at home :o), and will go again tomorrow morning. I'm enjoying the fact that its still opening weekend and tons of people are lining up to see it for the first time. I like all the local hype and news reports too.
I haven't felt that decompression yet that some of you have - where you've got adjust to how you feel after a big build up. I don't want to get the feeling that its all over. I'm enjoying it now and I hope there's not a big let down. Part this feeling has to do with the fact that I didn't have to go to work on thursday or today, friday. :)
I'm looking forward to talking to friends about it after they see it too.
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Yeah. I'm feeling kind of bummed too, I had a great time on Wednesday night and Thursday with a good friend who came up to NY from NC, but he's gone home now.
The fact that Star Wars is "over," combined with the lonliness that I am feelling becuase my son (that I have been taking care of since January) has started daycare, has really put me in funk. On one hand it's good because I can work full time again and my wife and I can spend more time together, but I miss the little guy during the day, and now I'm going to miss the Skywalker family.
While I'm curious about the TV shows, I admit that I'm skeptical of them. I'm afraid they'll be SW without the spectacle, and that doesn't interest me.
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Wow...I can't believe its been 10 years since I posted this originally and how much my life and all of our lives had changed. Part of me sitting in my chair in 2005 was melancholy in the fact that this was it, this was the end of SW movies and we were about to transition into a Wizard of Oz type fandom of clutching to our Peter Pan youth of yore for many years to come.
In the last 10 years, as stated, much has changed in my own personal life, I've changed jobs, moved, my boys have grown from babies into fine young little men. Oh, and they are making Star Wars movies again. It is really hard to describe how freaking awesome that is and how for 2 hours on Thursday with a fresh set of eyes I can relive my youth and watch with awe the opening crawl of a new chapter in the saga and really all of our lives again.
Enjoy it all...suck it all in, this is all distraction from the mundane scary world we all live in, full of illness and hate. May the force be with you all, always!
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Enjoy it all...suck it all in, this is all distraction from the mundane scary world we all live in, full of illness and hate. May the force be with you all, always!
Well said. My life has changed a ton in the last 10 years, really looking forward to taking my three boys to see the movie this weekend! :)
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These are also the last few days we have before they pump a gazillion Star Wars movies out and we all start to hate it. :(
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My gf's boys have basically become my own, and the youngest is now picking colleges to go an play ball at. :) The older boy is going to be a senior at college next year. Pretty nutty.
Gf still could give a **** about Star Wars tho!
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The best part of this is experiencing this with my 5 year old. In a couple of years, I'll get to do it all over again when my two-year old is old enough! :D
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Wow...currently 98% positive on Rotten Tomatoes, universal critical acclaim? Lets see if it passes the Fanboy test
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Wow...currently 98% positive on Rotten Tomatoes, universal critical acclaim? Lets see if it passes the Fanboy test
The dork at Rebelscum seemed to like it. :D
Its is entirely possible the movie is that good. I'm so happy these will be part of my kids' childhood experience and not those wretched prequels. At 8 and 10, they are at the perfect age, IMO.
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Loving all of this guys.
Looking forward to taking my 6 year old some time next week to catch the new movie. What happened to the days of needing the midnight show and multiple weekend views?
Still love Star Wars, but loving my family and my world a lot more these days.