May the 4th...

While it may not be exactly warm on this May day, it is (as I write this) sunny.  The type of day you want to skip going to work and/or school.  I know I thought about it this morning.  But it wasn't because it was a sunny day (which is what you would think would motivate me), it was because of the date.  Yes it is May the 4th and I would like nothing more than to be a couch potato and watch Star Wars.

TBS is showing 6 of the movies (leaving out 2015's The Force Awakens and 2016's "stand alone" Rogue One, which I shamefully have yet to see).  Though we have most of the movies (maybe all...I'd check in with the keeper of all things media:  the hubby), I'd be perfectly happy to watch on commercial tv.  (Silly I know, but that's me.)  It seems like the perfect way to spend a day...no stress and lots of excitement.

I'm not a complete Star Wars geek (after all, I haven't seen Rogue One, but I HAVE seen "The Star Wars Holiday Special"), but I have plenty of friends who are.  So maybe if I'd thought about it beforehand, I could have hosted a day long marathon watching party.  (Hmmm...Maybe I should keep that in mind for 2019!)

When Star Wars first came out (the original; before it was "A New Hope"), I wasn't interested.  I don't recall when I first say it, but I know it was AFTER the summer (the movie was released in May of 1977).  Once I finally DID see it (in a movie theater with my brother and my mother) I was hooked.  And the reason was simple, which not a science fiction fan (still am not that big on the genre), it was a good story.  (The same can be said for a handful of westerns and war movies and books.  I'm not a fan of the genre, but when an author has a story to tell and does it well, how can I NOT be hooked?) 

Ok, it was a really good story AND there was Mark Hamill.  Nothing against Harrison Ford, but it was Luke Skywalker who this pre-teen identified with and Mark Hamill who I wanted to hang with.  I don't remember how many times I saw Star Wars in the theater.  After all it played for months and months and it was cheap enough to go see over and over again without completely bankrupting my allowance. I was such a fan that I watched Corvette Summer every time it was on HBO. (I even know the working title was Stingray; though why this of all things remains locked in my leaky brain after all these years is probably a sad commentary on my brain and it's priorities.) The movie was one of several "HBO Specials" (meaning that it was played over and over and over again, probably as a result of a limited amount of movies that the channel had.  This was back in the dark ages when there was only one HBO and it wasn't even on 24 hours!) To put it plainly, Mark Hamill was (and is) cute. (And from his on line posting, he seems like a heck of a nice guy too!)

But to get back on the Star Wars track; the movie and the original trilogy were a big part of my life as I grew up.   Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi were good stories and worth watching multiple times.  (Again, the Mark Hamill factor helped too. Why do you think The Force Awakens was such a success?  We were all anxiously awaiting the arrival of Mark Hamill! )

Maybe it's the lack of Mark Hamill that makes the 2nd set of trilogies (The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith) weaker.  (I'll admit it; I couldn't remember the names of all of the movies.  I will NEVER forget the names of the original trilogy.)  Or maybe it's just that the stories are not as strong and engaging.  While I did see The Phantom Menace in a movie theater (with my husband), I didn't see Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith until they were available for home viewing.  (Something I NEVER would have done "back in the day.")  To be honest, the fact that I don't remember much about either movie could have less to do with the story line and more to do with where I was in my life.  Now an adult with responsibilities, I didn't have the time to see a movie over and over again.  When Revenge of the Sith was out, I was dealing with an infant, so it's amazing that I can remember ANYTHING about it.  

Having said that, I feel that perhaps I've given the movies the short stick.  And May 4th would be the perfect place to do them justice...

But as the stormtrooper in the above photo points out, some of us have to work today.  Playing hooky and watching Star Wars will have to wait for another day.  (And maybe include The Force Awakens and Rogue One...who knows by the time I get around to it, The Last Jedi may be out!)  Until then, May the 4th be with you...ALWAYS!