Star Wars Obsession

I was telling Sarah yesterday about this strange obsession for Star Wars that has recently come over me, and she reminded me, "Yeah, but you do that sometimes, right? Remember Elf?"

Oh, yeah. I sometimes wonder about me :) While I still have an undyingly favorable view of Elf, it is Star Wars that currently reigns in my movie-obsessing heart. I cannot get enough of it. I've seen Revenge of the Sith twice now, and then this week every night when I got home from work I jumped onto the couch and popped in the original three: IV-VI. Right now I'm on a short wait with Netflix to get I & II, to watch them again.

I have always had a pretty big crush on Han Solo, and now I think I have one on Anakin Skywaker AND Han Solo. Between the two of them, I'm forever doomed to Star Wars watching and rewatching and so on...

Plus, it's the strangest thing: I've probably watched episodes IV-VI somewhere around 10-20 times each in my lifetime, and yet it wasn't until I watched number III that I was able to create a complete a picture of the story. (I know, I know: that's the whole point of III right? To tell the connecting story?) But I'm telling you, it's like a whole new experience: Growing up, my impression of Star Wars was a series of very familiar, yet entirely disconnected scenes: battle scenes, love scenes, joke scenes...desert planets, forest planets, ships...Han Solo, Leia, Han Solo, Luke, Han Solo....never even paid attention to that nasty Vader really.

But suddenly, with the turn-key addition of Anakin Skywalker-turned-Darth Vader--well it's a whole new movie for me. I actually can start to appreciate Luke a little more (who I have always despised as a necessary annoyance to the movies' plot) as Anakin's unknowing son. I realize the importance of episode IV (which I have never been much of a fan of), I started to realize that for a Han Solo junkie, episode V is where it's at (I've always, always put episode V as last on my list--but maybe that was because of the sad end with which Han meets), and I can see now that episode VI, while very pretty and green a lot of the time, maybe isn't the most drama filled of the three. Mark and I noticed (yes, I dragged him into the fruits of my obsession) that in episode VI, Han Solo is reduced from hot-shot hero to comic relief in the role that 3CPO (uh-oh, I don't know if that's how you write his "name") had previously occupied.

Yesterday I was watching MTV (yet another, longer-lasting obsession of mine) and they were broadcasting a show, "When Star Wars Ruled the World." It's one of those shows where a handful of MTV media-commenting comedians and one or two actors sit around interview-style and comment on the strange and humurous moments of times past. They showed pictures of people having whole weddings in Star Wars themes, with guests dressing up as various and sundry minor characters and extras. One of the comedians interjected into the conversation of interviews: "Star Wars still DOES rule the world."

I don't want to have a Star Wars-themed wedding. I don't want to dress up in Star Wars glad rags at all. But somehow, nonetheless, clad in sweat pants and an old shirt, I find myself continually pulled to that hollow spot on the couch where Star Wars does rule MY world.