I’m just saying…

I want to talk about Star Wars.

I didn’t get into it until the Special Editions came out, and even then I blame Paul. Paul got me into Star Wars in the worst way. Imagination games first. Then the toys. Then the card game. Then I bought the “Adventure Game,” or baby RPG as a proper callname. Then I read some of the books. Then… Christ.

Ok. This is a bit embarrassing, but I want to tell you about the pinnacle of my Star Wars fandom/geekdom…

When I was in the 8th grade, I participated in a Pokemon Role-play battle community. It was a ton of fun, and there were guilds and all that good shit. I even met an online girlfriend from British Columbia (OakSS, if you’re reading this… Hey there, Girlie…). Then I got the bright idea to do the same thing, but in Star Wars.

Paul and I had signed up for the Computer Applications elective class. In this class, we were introduced into web pages and stuff. I obtained one of those free website things, that came with the free shitty web design software. I assembled some pages, tacked on a message board, and we started “The Intergalactic Jedi Council.” Paul and I, along with Dave-O and Eric M. were the leaders. We set up four guilds. I took Tatooine, Paul Yavin 4, Eric Coruscant, and Dave-O Dantooine (I think… I forget). I brought some folk over from the Pokemon site; including OakSS (I made her my lieutenant).

And for a while it was good. Not too much battling went on, but lots of chatter on the message board. Then, things got weird. We had meetings every now and then where we’d discuss site business (Again, we were in the 8th grade). One time, when I didn’t get my way, I cried. And got it. Very shameful, but again: 8th grade.

Then things got very weird. There began to be inter-group politics. Someone decided to quit their position in leadership, and we had a vote to see who’d take over. The vote went awry, as “someone” began pouring in votes as different people (even once using the surname “Guybrush Threepwood”). Although the votes were all for one person: Daemon Evermore. He was forging votes for imaginary people to become the new leader of whatever guild.

Oh, it gets worse. My hubris from being owner of the site made me decide to hold Daemon in court. Imaginary court. He didn’t take it seriously, and neither did I. Since I was self-appointed Judge, Jury… and Executioner. I booted him from the Council. And then he started his own club. The Intergalactic Sith Council. The rest is a blur. I left at some point, and didn’t really look back.

Oh, and all the while, I was writing fan fiction about us and using the fact that Daemon Evermore was a dick as reason to make him the villain. In this fanfic, I trained, found love, and died a noble sacrifice. I had a golden lightsaber which I named “Goldenrod.” It was special saber that rather than a cylinder of light, it was a flat blade. Completely two-dimensional.

Star Wars has always been a huge part of my life. During the card game days, I always played dark side. I had an ISB deck and a Jabba’s Palace Musician deck. I did the local tournament thing. I met my first real girlfriend over the Star Wars card game. We’re still very good friends.

I have a universal remote in the shape of Luke’s lightsaber from Return of the Jedi. I played KOTOR and relished in it.

Why is Star Wars on my brain? George Lucas is the AFI’s 33rd Lifetime Achievement Award winner. I work at the AFI Silver in Silver Spring, so we’re doing a Lucas film tribute. Saturday and Sunday, we were showing the Special editions back to back to back, both days. There were Stromtroopers, Sandtroopers, Scout Troopers, A TIE Fighter Pilot, and an AT-AT Pilot. They were awesome. I worked Saturday, and went to watch on Sunday. Went with my fellow nerds and brought my lightsaber remote with me. Shouted lines along with the cast. Cheered and hollered at the opening credits, closing credits, Lucasfilm logo, and every time the Death Star exploded. I had an awesome time.

Saturday however, at the end of my shift, and wanting to sit down, I decided to park my ass in the theater and watched Jedi from The Sail Barge battle to the end. And at the end, I cried. Just a little.

Why? Because I was being reunited with an old friend. A distant family member. Star Wars has meant a great deal to me during my adolescent years. And when I saw the heroes celebrating on Endor, it all came rushing back. The cards, the Role-playing, the fan fiction, the toys, the geekdom… everything.

And I was overjoyed. To the point where I shed just a few tears.

That’s how much Star Wars means to me. Congratulations, Mr. Lucas. You deserve that there award. Even if the prequels aren’t as cool, I forgive you. The first three were enough to enchant and endear me to Star Wars forever.

Thank you, George. For making Star Wars.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 4th, 2005 at 3:30 pm and is filed under Movies, My Life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.