Dear Star Wars, [fandom letters ep. 1]
December 15, 2019(This is the start of a new series on my blog, where I talk about fandoms that mean a lot to me. I don't know if you'll enjoy it or not, but I find it therapeutic. XD)
Dear Star Wars,
Hi.
It's kind of bittersweet for me to write this, because The Rise of Skywalker is coming out soon, and that's the last of your movies. (Well, probably. XD)
You know, for most of the fandoms I'm in, there's a before-during-after moment. One second I don't know the giant plot twist, the next my emotions are in shambles, and the next it's like I've always known.
But not with you.
It's like my entire life is the after moment. Darth Vader being Luke's father has always been a fact of life for me. I have no memory of a gigantic shock moment when watching it. I can't remember a time when I hadn't watched A New Hope.
You were my first fandom. My first story obsession. And quite possibly, the thing that got me into telling stories in the first place.
Okay, so that last one might be a little extreme, but do you remember how much Star Wars fanfiction I came up with? It was kind of insane.
When I look back at younger-me, watching the original trilogy over and over (and skipping the first thirty or so minutes of A New Hope, because Padawan Me couldn't bear to see the burning house), there's one particular character that sticks out: Luke Skywalker.
Here was a character that, even though so much older than me (at the time), I could relate to! A character that was definitely flawed, that struggled to do the right thing and to be strong and to hope, but who pushed through and won against the evil in the world. (And, as I would learn later, he was an INFP, which further cements my Myers-Briggs testing, but that's a story for another day.)
Most of my favorite characters in my Star Wars fanfiction were based off of Luke or were Luke himself.
And then, when I was in about first or second grade, I took one of these Luke adaptations and created the first character that I truly loved. Years and years later, I still want to write that character's story.
When I heard that there would be new Star Wars movies coming out - in my lifetime - to say I was excited was an understatement. I had thought that the series was finished. I never thought that I'd be able to see an all-new Star Wars movie, with new plot twists and adventures, in a movie theater. That had been my parents' experience, but not mine.
I ended up going to see The Force Awakens three times. Everything about it was incredible and amazing and beautiful. I still cry every time - especially at that ending.
And then The Last Jedi came out and I saw . . . once. XD It was okay, I guess. *shrugs* To be honest, I wasn't really a fan, and I didn't really like how some characters were portrayed. But you know what, no series is perfect.
And here we are. The Rise of Skywalker is mere days from being released, and I know that no matter how good or bad this movie is, I'll still cry at the end, because it's the end of the movie trilogies that started it all for me.
So, Star Wars . . .
Thank you. :)
May the Force be with you,
Nicole <3
Have you watched Star Wars? Who's ready for The Rise of Skywalker? Any other Luke Skywalker fans out there? Let's talk!
28 comments
STAR WARS!!!!!!! Eeeep!!!!!! I am so, so, so, so obsessed with it! My favorite fandom. <3 I only started watching them in 2015 and have watched them way to many times to count. Especially A New Hope and The Last Jedi. <3 I have had the same experience with you about Luke! I have always really, really, really related to him, and especially in The Empire Strikes Back, and The Return of the Jedi, Luke and I are the same. It was only about a year ago that I learned he was an INFP and I was like, "Wow, that makes so much sense." I'm so pumped for Rise of Skywalker!!!!!!! There will be a lot of tears.
ReplyDelete(Awesome post, btw, I'm looking forward to others that you'll do!)
AAAAAHHHHH!!!! <3 <3 <3 Oh my goodness, though, A New Hope is the besstttt. :D
DeleteWait . . . if me and Luke and the same . . . and you and Luke are the same . . . does that basically mean we're the same person??? XD
Ack, I can't wait for The Rise of Skywalker! When you watch it, do a movie review of it, because I want to know what you think. :D
(Thank you, Clare!! I'm looking forward to making more!)
I've finally seen all the star wars movies. They are all great. I agree on the The Last Jedi being a little off.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to the new one Rise of Skywalker too!
Loved this post Nicole!
astordetective.blogspot.com
*nods* Yeah, I don't know exactly why . . . it just wasn't my favorite. XD
DeleteYes, I'm hoping that it's an awesome end to the series!
Thank you, Rakayle! <3
*does not remember much about the movies I have watched* THIS SERIES IS SO COOL. (you totally need to write one to KotLC.) I literally most remember that scene where Anakin is being told that "fear leads to anger and anger leads to hate" or something like that??? I really need to watch these movies...
ReplyDelete... because there is a 55% chance that watching the new one will be part of our world history through film semester project. *gasp* WHAT?
Mainly because we're on the Roman empire period of time, and there are rumors that the political system in the Star Wars world was based on the Roman Empire and all that jazz. *is excited* *but if we watch it after all, won't know anything about what's happening*
*will enlighten you if you need it* THANK YOU MERIE (oh, yes, you bet I will . . . although it might be a while until it happens XD) Oh, you mean "Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and hate . . . leads to suffering"? XD (don't ask why I have that memorized) You really do need to watch them . . .
Delete. . . wait WHAT. BEST FILM SEMESTER PROJECT EVER. *screams*
Hmmmm, interesting! I haven't heard those rumors before, but in some ways, I could see that. *strokes chin* *when you start watching them let me know so I can scream with you*
I LOVE STAR WARS!
ReplyDeleteNo more Star Wars movies? Pshhhh, like I believe that.
INFPS UNITE! I seriously love being an INFP, and it's brought me so much comfort knowing I'm not alone in the world.
Have you seen the Mandalorian?
YES, THEY'RE SO AMAZING!
Delete*snorts* Yeah, I agree with you there. They'll totally reboot the franchise at some point.
ANOTHER INFP??? YES!! *high-fives* I agree 1000% - meeting other INFPs is so comforting!
I have not (I don't have DisneyPlus) but I've heard good things about it and I've seen the memes. XD Is it worth the hype?
I personally have only seen two episodes, but in those two episodes, I really feel like the Mandalorian is the same quality as an actual theatrical production. (you know how TV show aren't usually as good as the movies...)
DeleteI would definitely get Disney+, especially when they begin making Marvel TV Shows.
Oh, wow, that’s really impressive. I would’ve thought that the show would be subpar, but now I’m really interested!
Delete*nods* we shall see . . . I’m really looking forward to those Marvel TV shows. XD
OHHHMAGOODNESS i love this series
ReplyDeleteand we need one on kotlc please and thank you
beautiful beautiful *sniffs* i can't wait for the last movie IN JUST 4 DAYS ahhh
AAAAHHHHH THANK YOU ISABEL
Deleteyes, I promise, you will get one . . . eventually. bwahahaha (I kinda want to do it on book 9's release date)
*hugs* I CANNOT WAIT EITHER IT IS GONNA BE GOOD
THIS IS GOING TO BE AN EPIC SERIES! :D
ReplyDeleteTHANK YOU SO MUCH, JENNA! :)
DeleteAw, I love this so much!! I can't wait for the rest of the posts in the series!
ReplyDeleteI know exactly what you mean about always being in the after! I can't remember when I didn't know Vader was Luke's father, either, or anything else. And I've never really thought about it before, but I suppose Star Wars was my first fandom, too. (It's probably tied with Power Rangers. xD)
Luke stood out to me, too, but only because he was my first crush. xD I was literally so in love with him. (Still am, to be honest.) But recently I've come to appreciate him as a character, too. One of those good people who fights for light and I just can't help but adore.
And what you said about new Star Wars movies coming out!! Dude, it's like you're writing my thoughts! I have a very, very vague memory of Attack of the Clones coming out, and I remember clearly when Revenge of the Sith came out. But I was so young, and my older siblings were the ones that waited and anticipated for two years between movies. So I was super excited when they announced The Force Awakens because I was going to get to experience that too!!!
Aaand, yeah... The Last Jedi was a huge disappointment. I've still only seen it once, so I can't fairly say too much about it. But you said you didn't like how some characters were portrayed--- how about THAT LUKE GUY WE WERE TALKING ABOUT. He's my favorite Star Wars character and I hated him in The Last Jedi. I hated how they took this character who we'd seen hope (and BE hope) and fight and believe in the good in people, and made him someone who just didn't want to bother anymore. For heaven's sakes, dude, Ben Kenobi took you under his wing after everything he went through with your dad, but after your moron nephew loses it you just give up?? I get that people lose hope sometimes and that needs to be represented, but in this case it just rubbed me the wrong way.
Whew. Wow. Look at me going on a rant that you definitely did not ask for. xD Long story short, I love this post and I love how we had the same experience with Star Wars. <3
theonesthatreallymatter.blogspot.com
Aw, thank YOU so much! I love seeing your enthusiasm!
DeleteOkay, the fact that we basically have the same Star Wars origin story is SO COOL. *high-fives* (Ooo, you have the same experience with Power Rangers? That is awesome.)
. . . You know, that may or may not have been another reason I liked him so much as a kid. (Of course, I'm not confirming anything . . . ;) ) But YES, I love those types of characters!
I was wayyy too young to remember when the prequel trilogy came out, so I don't count those. It's still so cool to have Star Wars movies coming out in our lifetimes! *screams*
OKAY, YOU SAID IT ALL. THIS IS THE MAJOR REASON WHY I DID NOT LIKE THE LAST JEDI. How did Luke get so out of character??? He was just this annoying old guy who didn't want to do anything and who died in the wimpiest way possible. -_- Of all the characters they could have picked to lose hope, they picked the worst possible one.
(I needed that rant in my life, honestly - don't apologize!) Thank you, Emily!! And yes, that is officially the coolest thing ever! (can we start a #Luke4Life club???)
Star Wars! Yes! The first time I watched Return of the Jedi, I was four and it was late at night and I fell asleep after they escaped from Jabba's lair, and I thought that was the end of the movie until I was six or seven. I really like the franchise, though. It's awesome.
ReplyDeleteOoh, you're an INFP! Like Cress, Luke and Sophie Foster (Sophie may be an INFJ, though).
I'm an ENTP, according to the test but my Introvert/Extrovert and Thinking/Feeling were super close.
I'm like 90% intuitive.
Great post, Nicole. May the force be with you!
Oh my goodness, that story is GREAT. I can definitely see how that would happen. XD and yesss, the franchise is great!
DeleteHaha, yep! XD (I’ve seen both for Sophie - I think she’s more INFP, but I’m still not very clear on the differences between INFP and INFJ. XD)
Ah, nice! I don’t have any ENTP friends offline, sadly (they’re all ENFP XD), but you guys are awesome!
Thanks - and may the Force be with you as well! :)
Yeah. I think I was probably a little young to see such a long movie. XD.
ReplyDeleteYes. I thought that, too. I mean there are some differences but I'm not sure what. Pretty similar though. INFP and INFJ.
Thanks! (I know a lot of ENFPs. Actually, my sister is one).
Thank you again, Nicole!
Haha, yeah, long movies can get boring really fast at that age. XD
Delete*nods* I’ve done some research, but I still couldn’t say exactly what the differences are. At that point I give up on MBTI. XD
:D (Oh, nice!!!)
My sibs and I have been doing a Star Wars marathon in prep for TRoS, and it's quite interesting. I haven't seen a lot of the movies in years (we don't watch movies a lot, and the past year or so, we've been catching up on all the MCU stuff).
ReplyDeleteWhen I was younger, I thought Luke was "such a dork" and Anakin was "cool". During this rewatching I found...Anakin is a bratty teenager and maybe even a tad bit creepy towards Padme. And Luke...Luke's such a great kid, y'know?? I'm starting to really like him a lot this round of watching, lol
CAN'T WAIT FOR THE RISE OF SKYWALKERRRRRR!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Let me know when you're going to see it so we can fangirl!!! It's supposed to come out Thursday night at my local theatre, but I think my parents want to come so we'll have to WAIT until someone can watch the kids and I CANT WAIT.
Ooo, yes, Star Wars marathons are so fun! (*nods* there is quite a bit of MCU stuff to catch up on XD)
Delete*steps back* Whaaaaat??? Wow, that's really interesting. XD But YES, Luke is such a great guy! And Anakin . . . well, not so much. ;D
SAAAAAAAAME!!!!!!!!
WOO-HOO!!!! *nods* You will be among the first to know! I have no idea when I'll be able to watch it, honestly . . . with it releasing around Christmas, there's so much going on. Hopefully before the New Year, though. I wish you luck on getting to watch it ASAP! :D
I wanted to wait til seeing The Rise of Skywalker before commenting on this amazing post, and I was glad I did because I hadn’t realized how much importance Star Wars had in my life until the opening theme rolled out with the blue letters I had learned to adore. The movies had all been AMAZING, and the finale did not disappoint me; I was so close to tears during many parts of the movie XD
ReplyDeleteYour Star Wars story is beautiful, and I totally agree with you about Luke! 😁
(Still haven’t seen RoS yet, and I’m . . . a little scared. But your "review" brings me hope. :D) No kidding - that blue text and what it means is just amazing. <3
DeleteThank you, Ash, and YESSS, Luke fans unite!!! XD
Luke Skywalker is 100% my favorite. (Wellllll not that Han and Leia aren't up there too. I'm so impressed by how well those three work together. Main characters are hard to make super compelling, but Star Wars nailed it.)
ReplyDeleteAnd I love what you say about it all being the "after" moment, because that's how I feel about Star Wars too, but I never would've thought to put it that way.
Same! It’s nice to meet another Skywalker fan! :D (*nods* very true, that trio is amazing!)
DeleteThank you, Megan! :)
Love this!
ReplyDeleteAw, thanks, Skye!
DeleteWelcome to the comment section! I love hearing what you guys think and seeing you guys talk. Just remember to keep it clean, and as always, check back for my replies! <3
-Nicole