Patiently waiting for the hoopla, I was anticipating when the moment would allow myself to see the latest Star Wars.  Honestly, the first Star Wars movie for me, (it came out in 1977!)  occurred in the theatre and the legions of items, memorabilia, collectibles, occurred around me from a child.  That added to the excitement of what this latest movie offered.  I guess you could say this latest release represented the catch-up phase of I recalled when Star Wars first appeared.  Patiently waiting until I came to the states was difficult, yet, not so much when you considered holidays were upon us and the rush to get a ticket – it had to wait for me.

Seeing The Force Awakens this past week – I settled into a movie theatre for the 3D version in Chinatown, downtown D.C., and of course the music and message in the beginning was pretty – Star War-ish.  Yet, I have to admit, I walked away with complete energy.  Here’s why.

I found some scenes to be almost as I initially remembered sequences, the result, I LOVED IT.  I recalled instantly the excitement when the X-Wing fighters descended and took care of the Death Star in the early episodes.  I have to stay, images and scenes here closely resembled that, and yet, I was 100% completly glad as they made me feel the same way as I did when I first witnessed it.

There is the confrontation between the dark side and the force, between father and son, and while many probably knew this was inevitible, I enjoyed the repeat pattern, it had a totally different feel due to the backgrounds of the families.  Again, some might hate the fact that this was repeated, for me, it was classic Star Wars.

Of course seeing characters come back for me made Star Wars.  Age didn’t shock me in most cases, but honestly, it was difficult for me to realize that Leia was actually Leia, she has aged so much over the years while I thought Luke, Han, Cheewie, C3Po, R2D2 helped maintain the normality of Star Wars being the same.  I almost thought several times Leia was played by someone else, that was the main real shocker for me.

I left excited to see and feel the way I felt when I first saw Star Wars as a child, and I was also glad to know things I expected to occur, did not, or did in some cases, but none of it spoiling the experience of what Star Wars has meant to me from the very beginning.  I did not anticipate much surprise with Star Wars as most seemed to be predictable from those talking around me, but I cannot tell you how relieved I was that that was not the case this time  🙂

It’s funny, entering the Museum of American History and seeing such parts of my past, from computers to toys, to gadgets to home accessories that I grew up with, Star Wars has always been a part of that even though being a part of the fantastical element of growing up.  It is similar to settling into your favorite chair, favorite reading spot, favorite position to nap, it is just plain comfortable and part of what I remember growing up.  I think that is one of the most important take-aways that George Lucas has provided, and one that aligns with growing up with The Muppet Show, The Gong Show, Viewfinders and the whole lot of just, what it meant to appreciate the simple things, and not so simple things, thanks to individuals like George Lucas. 

I had a fear I would go into Star Wars and see a film that had already outgrown myself, from remembering the first Star Wars as a child.  Not feeling this way at all allowed me to fully enoy the film and realize George Lucas made Star Wars timeless up to this point, which in itself is priceless.Yet I know Disney now is responsible for the fate of Star Wars – however, George Lucas started it all.