May The Force Be With You

Sadly we have reached the end of my Star Wars blog.  This is my final post and I will not continue to post anymore.  The adventure doesn’t end here however with Star Wars Episode VII scheduled for release in theaters on December 18, 2015.  After Disney bought Lucasfilm on December 30, 2012 for $4 billion, plans for a sequel trilogy (episodes VII-IX) were announced and episode VII was under way. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_joDNOpeWWo

 

I was so excited like many other Star Wars fans when we finally got casting news on April 29, 2014.  There are many new faces and old cast members returning. Han, Luke, Leia, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and R2-D2 are all returning to the Star Wars universe a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away....  Here is an official picture of the cast gathering for their first script table read at Pinewood Studios released on April 29, 2014.  The movie takes place 35 years after the events of Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. 

Disney will be distributing, J.J. Abrams of Star Trek is directing, and maestro John Williams is returning to compose the score.  I'm still kind of bummed that we won't be hearing the familiar 20th Century Fox introduction.  Pre-production filming has taken place in April in Iceland and the Abu Dhabi desert.  Principal photography will be taking place at Pinewood Studios in London, England and the Abu Dhabi desert starting this month.  Additional footage will be filmed in Morocco and maybe Tunisia. 

I have learned that I'm a pretty good blogger and that blogging takes commitment, dedication, and hard work.  It doesn't write itself over night.  I hope all of you guys have enjoyed reading this blog as much as I have enjoyed writing it and maybe I’ll even see some of you guys at the Star Wars Episode VII premiere. 

 

I’ve been literally counting the days until the premiere since the release date was announced on November 7, 2013.  I even have it on my calendar on my iPhone.  I’m not crazy at all.  I want to go to the midnight premiere so badly because people dress up as Star Wars characters for Midnight Madness.  If I could I would camp out.  It sounds like so much fun. 

 

I wish I could also go to the Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim from April 16-19, 2015, but unfortunately won’t be able to go because I live in S.F.  I'm still hoping that the rest of the Star Wars episodes will be re-released in 3D in theaters too. 

I want to dedicate this Star Wars blog to the biggest, most dedicated Star Wars fan I know, who I met on Twitter.  I can never thank you enough for introducing me to the amazing Clone Wars series.  I think we were both incredibly sad when we finished that final 13th episode from season 6 of the series on Netflix and still wish the series hadn’t been cancelled. 

There’s nothing more fun than having endless conversations about anything related to Star Wars with you and fangirling over Anidala.  Nobody ships the OTP like us.  Nobody.  And I think we can both agree that we want to marry Anakin even if he is a fictional character.  I know we will both be definitely watching Star Wars Episode VII.  I wish we could go together.  (P.S. continue writing Star Wars fan fiction when you have the inspiration)

I would like to end this with a quote from Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. 

"The Force will be with you, always."-Obi-Wan Kenobi (Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hFWz145aJc

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Let's time travel back one final time to a time not so long ago in a galaxy far, far away with Star Wars: The Clone Wars which was released in theaters on August 15, 2008.  This was the first Star Wars movie to not be released in May, not to be distributed by 20th Century Fox, and to be directed by Dave Filoni.  It serves as a lead-in to the Star Wars: The Clone Wars Cartoon Network TV series.  The events of the movie and TV series take place between Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones and Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. 

The voice talents of many actors are featured including Matt Lanter as Anakin, James Arnold Taylor as Obi-Wan, Cat Taber as Padmé, and Dee Bradley Baker as the Clone troopers.  There are also many special guest voices throughout including Liam Neeson as the force ghost of Qui-Gon.  We see most of the same characters as the Star Wars movies, but one of the most important new characters we meet is Anakin's padawan, Ahsoka Tano, voiced by Ashley Eckstein.  She is my favorite character outside of the main film series because of how fearless and strong-willed she is. 

The weekly 3D CGI animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars Cartoon Network TV series aired from October 3, 2008–March 2, 2013.  The running time was approximately 22 minutes per episode and there were six seasons, with season 6 streaming exclusively on Netflix starting on March 7, 2014.  The first four seasons had 22 episodes each, the fifth season had 20 episodes, and the sixth season had 13 episodes. 

Season 1 involves the Republic and the Separatists attempting to convince various planets and races to side with them.  In Season 2, the Sith hire bounty hunters to steal objects and to assassinate targets for them while the Jedi lead the Republic forces in an assault on the primary battle droid manufacturing facility.  Seasons 3 and 4 involve diplomacy and show how different races and planets are affected by the galaxy-wide war.  There are some episodes from the clone troopers' perspectives and we get some foreshadowing of Anakin turning to the dark side.  In season 4 we also see the return of the supposedly dead Darth Maul from Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace which was really cool.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06S3f_dGPdY

 

Season 5 focuses greatly on Ahsoka's character development and the series finale still gets me every time.  My heart still hurts watching Ahsoka walk away from the Jedi Order because of her loss of trust in the Jedi Council after she is wrongly accused of a murder.  I think that showing Anakin having a Padawan really emphasizes his character growth and his struggle to let go.  I found the arc about the younglings building their light sabers particularly interesting because I didn't know the process was so complex. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anck-AqrZ24

 

Season 6 really segues into Revenge of the Sith with more details about the creation of the clones and Order 66.  Two story arcs that really stand out to me are the Anidala and Yoda arcs.  The Anidala arc focuses more on Anakin and Padmé's relationship and the thought that it could be destructive is brought up.  The Yoda arc dives deeper into the nature of the force and Yoda travels to Dagobah, the home world of the Sith.  There is more foreshadowing of events that will happen in Revenge of the Sith. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dT6gZdTUKQo

 

 

Star Wars: The Clone Wars has been critically acclaimed and has won several awards.  I am still sad that it has been cancelled even though I hadn't watched it when it first started.  I only started watching it after my friend who is a Star Wars fan asked me if I had watched it and she recommended some episodes to me.  My interest in the series really took off from there and the series got better with each episode. 

Have you ever watched Star Wars: The Clone Wars or if you haven't already would you ever watch it?  Leave your comment below. 



Return of the Jedi: Once More With Feeling

We have now made the jump to hyperspace and traveled by light speed a year into the future after the events of Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, which was released in theaters on May 25, 2014.  We left off with Han Solo being frozen in carbonite and Luke Skywalker discovering that Darth Vader is his father.  Luke along with Leia, Lando, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and R2-D2 come up with a plan to save Han.  Meanwhile, unknown to the Rebel Alliance, the Galactic Empire has been secretly constructing a second Death Star.

 

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tZiro_nWo4

 

Leia manages to sneak into Jabba’s palace on Tatooine disguised as a bounty hunter and releases Han from the carbonite, but is captured and enslaved by Jabba.  A little later Luke comes to the rescue and allows himself to be captured. After Luke narrowly survives a battle with the Rancor, Jabba orders Luke and Han to be eaten to death by the Sarlacc.  While on Jabba's sail barge Luke manages to break free and a battle breaks out resulting in Jabba being strangled to death by Leia and Luke destroying Jabba's sail barge. 

Han and Leia meet up with the other Rebels, while Luke returns to Dagobah with R2-D2 to complete his training.  Yoda is dying, but tells Luke that he doesn't need any more training.  Right before Yoda dies he confirms that Darth Vader is Luke's father, tells Luke that he will be the last of the Jedi after he dies and not to underestimate the power of the Emperor, and mentions "another Skywalker".  After Yoda's metaphysical death, Obi-Wan's force ghost visits Luke and reveals that Leia is his twin sister and that he must confront Darth Vader to defeat the Empire, but Luke refuses to kill his own father. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3GaRN3SA4E

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFz8W7fYMy4

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDYX_PgorRY

The Emperor tries to tempt Luke to give in to his anger and join the dark side and Luke engages Darth Vader in a lightsaber duel.  Darth Vader discovers that Leia is Luke's sister and threatens to turn her to the dark side if Luke won't.  In Luke's rage, he cuts off Darth Vader's right hand and the Emperor tells Luke to kill him and take his father's place.  Luke however refuses and says that he's a Jedi like his father before him. 

This angers the Emperor and he electrocutes Luke with Force Lightning, but Darth Vader refuses to let his son dies and throws the Emperor down the tube.  Thus he redeems himself and fulfills the prophecy as the chosen one who will bring balance to the Force.  In the process though Darth Vader is injured by the lightning and is dying.  Before he dies, he asks Luke to remove his mask so that he can look at him with his own eyes and he tells Luke that he has saved him and to tell Leia that Luke was right about him, that there was still good in him.  He dies in Luke's arms. 

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RFYoZ7H67A

On Endor, the Rebels and the Ewoks manage to defeat the Imperial forces and destroy the Death Star's shield generator allowing Lando in the Millennium Falcon to destroy the Death Star and Leia tells Han that Luke is her brother.  Later that evening, Luke cremates his father on a funeral pyre and the whole galaxy celebrates the end of the Empire.  We end with Luke seeing the force ghosts of Obi-Wan, Yoda, and Anakin, played by Sebastian Shaw in the original version and edited in as Hayden Christensen in the special edition, watching over them. 

 



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vF8HgstqG5U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRvAAYjmqkE

 

In the article, "Return of the Jedi: Once More With Feeling", from the academic journal, Film Criticism, the author, Anna Lancashire, writes about how Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi is effective in concluding the Star Wars saga following the previous two movies, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope and Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.  The author also talks about how the themes are maintained throughout and gives details on the plots and the emphasis on emotional control and understanding of love. 

According to the article, "Jedi--Star Wars VI--is an extraordinary film, the repetitive structure of which becomes in part its theme, giving us an unchanging Star Wars world in which men grow and acquire new, complex perspectives on human existence as they move from innocence through experience to maturity.  Jedi builds in detail, narratively, structurally, and thematically, on both the comedy and optimistic emotionalism of A New Hope and the terrifying self-knowledge of Empire, synthesizing them to give us, through its very human characters, the Star Wars world 'once more with feeling'--a new tragicomic feeling of mature, sober, and knowing faith in the ultimate power (force) of love, despite the evil within us all" (63). 

I think that Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi is excellent at achieving its goal of wrapping up the whole Star Wars saga, not just for the original trilogy (episodes 4-6), but also if you include the prequel trilogy (episodes 1-3).  I also agree that the themes are kept consistent throughout and that character growth is evident.  As someone who has watched the whole Star Wars saga in order I think that you really get the complete story of the tragedy of Anakin as a tragic hero who was destined for downfall and finally redeems himself at the end. 

Do you think Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi is effective in concluding the Star Wars saga?  Leave your comment below. 



Jediism-A Religion?

We have now made the jump to hyperspace and traveled by light speed 3 years into the future after the events of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope and arrived at Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, which was released in theaters on May 21, 1980.  We left off with Obi-Wan Kenobi dying metaphysically at the hands of Darth Vader and the Rebel Alliance, which includes our trio of heroes Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and Han Solo, destroying the Death Star. 



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IK0MLkYOz3g

Despite this crucial victory, the Rebel Alliance has been forced to flee their former base by the Galactic Empire.  The Rebel Alliance now has a new hidden base on the icy planet Hoth and Luke gets ambushed by a Yeti or Abominable Snowman-like creature called a wampa.  He manages to escape, but gets caught in a snow storm and he sees the Force ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi telling him to go to the planet Dagobah and train under Jedi Master Yoda. 

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITV0oLu5mqA

After Luke is rescued, the Imperial fleet discovers the Rebel base and launches an attack with AT-AT Walkers under the command of Darth Vader.  The Rebels fight back, but the base is ultimately captured.  Han and Leia escape on the Millennium Falcon with C-3PO and Chewbacca, but their hyperspace drive malfunctions forcing them to hide in an asteroid field until they can fix it.  During their time in hiding, Han and Leia grow closer and share their first kiss. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLWwmEUk0yg

Meanwhile, Luke escapes with R2-D2 in his X-wing fighter and crash lands on Dagobah.  There he meets Yoda, who initially refuses to  train Luke to become a Jedi because he is too old, impatient, has anger in him, and craves adventure and excitement making him reckless.  Luke and Obi-Wan manage to convince Yoda though and Luke and Yoda train learning the ways of the Force.  Before Luke can complete his training he is plagued by visions of Han and Leia in danger.  Yoda and Obi-Wan urge Luke to stay and finish his training, but Luke promises to return. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p44pcTXpPOs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWizFjDq2Vg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMUKGTkiWik

Han and Leia go to Cloud City and meet up with Han's old friend, Lando Calrissian played by Billy Dee Williams who runs the city.  Shortly after though, Lando betrays them and turns them over to Darth Vader who arrived there before they did to avoid having his city taken over.  Darth Vader uses Han and Leia as bait so that he can carbon freeze Luke.  Han is used as the test subject for this and Leia confesses her love for Han before he is carbon freezed and sent to Jabba the Hutt on Tatooine.  Lando and Leia manage to escape in the Millennium Falcon.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-AmHZ17gWM

When Luke arrives at Cloud City he faces off in a lightsaber duel with Darth Vader and Darth Vader cuts off Luke's right hand, disarming him.  Darth Vader asks Luke to rule the galaxy with him and reveals much to Luke's horror that he didn't kill Luke's father, but is in fact Luke's father.  Luke refuses the claim and throws himself down the air shaft.  Lando and Leia rescue Luke and after Luke and Leia are safe at a Rebel port, with Luke receiving a prosthetic hand, Lando and Chewbacca fly off in the Millennium Falcon to rescue Han. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbjru5CQIW4

In the article, "Fiction-based religion: Conceptualizing a new category against history-based religion and fandom" from the academic journal, Culture and Religion: An Interdisciplinary Journal, the author, Markus Altena Davidsen, writes about how fictional-based religions like the Star Wars-based Jediism and the Tolkien-inspired Eleven community via The Lord of the Rings are practiced by people in real life and not just characters in fictional worlds. 

According to the article, "Fiction-based religion differs from conventional ('history-based') religion because it bases itself on fictional narratives..., while conventional religion is based on narratives that claim to tell of the actions of supernatural agents in the actual world" (390).  I find this article interesting because I had never thought about Jediism as a religious movement and that people could be practicing it as such outside of the characters in the movies.  I didn't know that the mysterious Force itself contributes to Jediism identifying itself as a fiction-based religion. 

What do you think about Jediism being practiced as a religion in the real world?  Leave your comment below. 

Star Wars: A Myth for Our Time

Let's time travel back again to a time not so long ago in a galaxy far, far away with Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, which was originally released as just Star Wars before it was retitled in theaters on May 25, 1977.  This is the first Star Wars movie in the original trilogy that was made and released before the prequel trilogy.  The events of the original trilogy however occurred after the events of the prequel trilogy. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-vsILeJ8_8

The plot mainly focuses on a galaxy that is at civil war with the Rebel Alliance fighting against the Galactic Empire.  Spies for the Rebel Alliance have stolen plans of the Galactic Empire's Death Star, a heavily armed space station with the power to wipe out a whole planet.  The rebel leader, Princess Leia played by Carrie Fisher, has these plans, but her ship is captured by the Imperial forces under the command of Darth Vader.  Before her capture, she hides the plans in the memory of R2-D2 along with a holographic recording. 

R2-D2 and his counterpart C-3PO escape to Tatooine and end up being sold to moisture farmers Owen and Beru Lars and their nephew, Luke Skywalker played by Mark Hamill.  Later when Luke is cleaning R2-D2, he accidentally triggers Leia's message where she asks for help from someone named Obi-Wan Kenobi.  Luke knows of an old hermit named Ben Kenobi and R2-D2 goes out looking for him. 

Luke goes out to find R2-D2 and ends up meeting Ben Kenobi played by the legendary Alec Guinness who later reveals himself to be Obi-Wan Kenobi.  Obi-Wan tells Luke about his history as a Jedi Knight who once fought in the Clone Wars with Luke's father, Anakin Skywalker, before the Jedi were purged by the Empire.  Obi-Wan says that Anakin was killed and betrayed by Darth Vader, who was Obi-Wan's student before he turned to the "dark side of the Force".  He also explains the mysterious ways of The Force and gives Luke Anakin's lightsaber.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZ_mjtTCdcg‎

Obi-Wan and Luke listen to Leia's whole message pleading with Obi-Wan to bring the Death Star plans to her home planet of Alderaan.  Obi-Wan asks Luke to go with him to Alderaan and learn the ways of the force and Luke initially declines.  However, after Imperial stormtroopers burn down his home, killing his aunt and uncle, he decides to go with Obi-Wan because there is nothing left for him. 

We meet the smuggler Han Solo played by Harrison Ford and his co-pilot, the Wookie Chewbacca when Obi-Wan and Luke hire them to transport them by their ship, the Millennium Falcon.  However, they discover that Alderaan has been destroyed by the Death Star and they rescue Leia.  Obi-Wan engages in a light saber duel with Darth Vader voiced by James Earl Jones and dies in a metaphysical way rather than a physical way.  The rebels manage to destroy the Death Star and Leia awards Luke and Han medals. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kpHK4YIwY4
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOFgFAcGHQc

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yixG8pfncOs

In the article, "Star Wars: A Myth for Our Time" from the academic journal, Literature Film Quarterly, the author, Andrew Gordon, writes about why the Star Wars saga is indeed a myth for our time.  He goes into great detail explaining how the plot, characters, concepts, and themes in the Star Wars saga were influenced by other books, shows, and movies in pop culture and why it resonates with audiences.  The author goes into describing how the Star Wars saga is representative of a space opera and epic myth and how Luke's character develops. 
 

I agree with the author that the director and writer, George Lucas, was inspired by the Flash Gordon movie serials when making Star Wars because I have heard George Lucas himself say it in numerous interviews.  George Lucas decided to start the saga with episode 1V because he doesn't like exposition and likes to start in the middle of all the action.  This is similar to two of his other movies, American Graffiti and Indiana Jones.  He still had to write the back story though and this later turned into the basis for the prequel trilogy. 
 

However, I didn't know that he was also inspired by Edgar Rice Burrough's John Carter of Mars series of books.  Now that I think about it the setting of Tatooine looks very similar to the desert planets in the John Carter and Dune movies.  I also found it very interesting that Star Wars shares many of the same elements with The Wizard of Oz with Star Wars characters representing The Wizard of Oz characters.  The two lead characters are also alike because they are both held back by their aunt and uncle at a farm and defeat wickedness.

When the original Star Wars movie came out, the response was overwhelming.  Nobody had ever seen anything like it before.  It revolutionized pop culture.  Star Wars went on to become one of the most financially successful movies of all time, which remains to this day, and was critically acclaimed by both film critics and audiences.  It won 6 Academy Awards and is honored has been honored by both the U.S. National Film Registry of the Library of Congress and American Film Institute. 

One of the most memorable premieres actually happened in San Francisco at the Coronet movie theater on Geary Boulevard at Palm Ave. in the Richmond District, a few blocks away from where my dad used to live.  I believe my dad went to one of the first screenings at this historic movie theater, possibly even the premiere.  Here are some pictures from that unforgettable premiere.  This beloved movie theater has actually come to be known by Bay Area fans as the Star Wars theater as huge groups of Star Wars fans have always traditionally camped outside for the premieres of new Star Wars movies.  Unfortunately the Coronet movie theater was demolished in early 2005 before the release of Star Wars: Episode III-Revenge of the Sith. 

Do you think Star Wars is a myth for our time?  Leave your comment below.