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What IS it about Star Wars?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by YoYoWannaBe on -
The first two movies were quite original for their time in terms of technology and appearance. But what really pulled it above the level of common Space opera was the rapport the characters had, the visual scope of what they were trying to accomplish.
It also provided boys a model of a dysfunctional father-son relationship that could help them understand their own.
I can also remember spending between 1981 and 1984 in disbelief that Darth Vader really was Luke's father. And yet, we knew it to be true.
There was also The Force, which provided many with a secular religion, with the narrative becoming it's Torah.
Another area of appeal goes beyond the quality of the movies. There were so many great lines that entered the popular culture.
"There is no try; do or do not, there is no try"
"Luke, I am your father"
"When 900 years old you become, look this good you will not"
That, and the light saber was one of the coolest special effects, EVER.
Some of the special characters like C3PO, R2D2, and especially Yoda were quite original for their time. And of course, it was pulled together by a musical score that raised it one level higher.
After the Empire Strikes Back, IMO, the next three movies (Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, I - The Boredom Menace, and II - The Clown Wars) were really very ordinary, but by then we were hooked.
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Permalink Reply by YoYoWannaBe on
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One of the best explanations of what makes Star Wars cool were some of the videos that Neal made with Elijah that he posted many years ago, in the days of the old Offsprung.
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Permalink Reply by Annaevilred on -
Its the light sabers, and the Wookies, and the space ships, dont forget Harrison Ford. Or Jabba the Hut.
It just the whole thing man!!!
And now I have to have a Star Wars marathon, again. Bring on the popcorn.
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Permalink Reply by ruth on -
Yeah, I'm with Annaevilred -- I can't be super articulate, it's just the whole thing, man!! I was 11 when the movie came out and was ENTHRALLED. Saw it multiple times that summer, and was just as captivated by the next two movies. (we shall not speak of Episodes I, II and III)
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Permalink Reply by wookie on -
It's a much better done space fantasy than Star Trek... all of the cool aliens, much better fighting, an awesome love story (without being mushy), magic, epic good vs. evil.
And no pretentious bullshit of 'oh, we're so advanced we have no need of money and shall not interfere with other civilizations' getting in the way.
It's much more human than Trek, you can really "get into" the characters. You can feel why Han would stay for Leia or why Luke would freak out when Vader claims to be his father and be pissed off at Obi-wan. It's a relatively well told, classic story.
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Permalink Reply by ks on -
I also agree with Annaevilred and Ruth. Star Wars is just awesome (but not anything that came after Return of the Jedi, and that one is the least good of the original 3) and I developed my first crush on Han Solo. Because, Han Solo is just super cool and also awesome.
However, I do have to disagree with wookie a bit about Star Trek--I love that almost as much as Star Wars. For completely different reasons that I'm equally unable to articulate other than it's also just fucking awesome. I don't think they need to be put in competition with each other, because they tell completely different stories.
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Permalink Reply by jenra on -
Jawas were my boogie man, for some reason... I saw these movies in the theater when I was really little. So little that during The Empire Strikes Back I was just waiting through the whole thing for Luke Skywalker to hurt his back and I was a little disappointed that it never happened.
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Permalink Reply by Daddy Geek Boy on
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First, time and place. It was groundbreaking for it's time. It was also one of the first mass marketed blockbusters. It wasn't just the movies, but all of the toys that gave us the ability to play the movie over and over again.
But the original trilogy had more than just amazing special effects--they were truly about a hero's journey. An ordinary boy who learns that he's extraordinary. Any one of us could have been Luke Skywalker, plucked out of our everyday lives and plunged into a world of adventure, aliens, robots and cool ships.
Sadly, this is what the prequels miss. But by now it's so pervasive that it's hard to ignore. I do think that kids today get into it because of their parents. The Lego games certainly help. And the continued abundance of toys.
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Permalink Reply by jenra on
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Today The Miniature and I spent several hours at at this: http://www.pacsci.org/starwars/exhibitoverview.html and we didn't even get through the whole thing. It. Was. Awesome! We build a model maglev train out of an electromagnet, regular magnets and legos. Lots of cool exhibits and hands on stuff teaching about robotics (one cool thing where we tried to make a robot walk by controlling every tiny movement of it's legs - much harder than it sounds).
We're going back soon.
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