My Complicated Relationship with Star Wars

This week is the launch week for Star Wars: The Last Jedi. I shall be honest, I am filled with trepidation.

I discovered Star Wars in the second grade and it instantly grabbed my attention. When my family picked up their first computer in the 4th grade, my first games were the Star Wars collection. Dark Forces, X-wing, TIE Fighter, Rebel Assault, Rebellion... these games ate up a large chunk of my free time. Some explored parts of the SW Universe that we have already seen, but many of them took the story into new and exciting directions. Then I discovered the X-wing series by Michael A. Stackpole and Aaron Allston. I do not think I would be the reader I am today without those books.

None of this includes the hours I spent with kids on the playground playing "Star Wars", or when I deconstructed my LEGO sets to build my own X-wings and Y-wings. Countless summer evenings were spent playing the Star Wars CCG in front of a TV playing the Star Wars movies. So let me reiterate this, I was hooked on Star Wars.

So why the trepidation? Shouldn't I be jumping up and down in joy for another Star Wars film?

Here is the problem, Star Wars: The Force Awakened was not any good. It had all the bits that should make it good. An awesome scene of X-wings flying over a lake moving into battle. Rey picking up the lightsaber for the first time to battle the forces of Evil, TIE Fighter chases, an awesome new little droid, a new evil Empire to fight.... as I said, it had a bunch of good bits.

However, that was all of it. It was a bunch of random bits glued together by characters falling into the next scene. It lacked the soul of a story that would tie all of these parts together and make them into something greater. I have also see this before. I was at the opening night of every Star Wars Prequel movie and the voice in the back of my head just kept saying, "Maybe this one will be better". But I've seen movies where people won't tell the director "no" because his works have made so much money, and I feel like we are in that loop all over again.

So… I will enjoy Star Wars, but it will be in my own way. I will tell new stories in the universe as I run Star Wars RPG campaigns with friends; I will jump into space battles with games of X-wing and Armada. I will take up the mantle of the Empire when I run an Imperial Assault campaign at work. These I am still excited about, because in the end they are still fun. Maybe I will get excited about JJ Abram's Star Wars once he figures out what makes those movies fun too.