Star Wars

I'd been kicking around the idea for this post for a while, but the recent release of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens back in December gave me the necessary kick in the arse to sit down and write it now. You see, I've been a huge Star Wars fan for my entire life, or at least as much of my life as I can remember, which goes back to about the age of three. While I'm not one of those fans who dresses in costume, learns to speak the alien languages from the films, or tries to use the Force to move objects around, I have seen the movies an obscene number of times and known way more about the minutiae of the Star Wars universe than I probably need to. It's not the only science fiction franchise I'm a big fan of...I also love Star Trek, for instance, but for different reasons. While Star Trek appeals more to me because of the deeper themes, more complex storylines, and it being a more realistic vision as to what the future may hold, Star Wars is just rollicking good fun. Creator George Lucas has stated numerous times that he was inspired by the Flash Gordon serials he loved to watch a a kid, and the label of swashbuckling space opera that has been levied on Star Wars seems more than appropriate to me.

In discussing my love of Star Wars, let me point out that I was born at the beginning of 1980, so even though I was too young to see the original trilogy in the movie theaters, my parents did and I grew up never knowing a world in which they didn't exist. I was three years old in 1983 when Episode VI: Return of the Jedi was released and I had (and still have) a lot of memorabilia from that era. I used to have several of the action figures and playsets, including the Ewok village, but all I can find now in my garage and my parents' basement are a few scattered figures (the Rancor keeper, General Madine, an AT-ST walker) and two books: one a full color picture book of the movie and the other a pop-up book with highlights from the movie's story. My love for all things Star Wars really blossomed in the late 1980s when I saved up enough of my money from Christmas and birthday gifts in order to buy the original trilogy on VHS...in fact, it was a boxed set of all three movies, plus a fourth tape about the behind-the-scenes making of the films called From Star Wars to Jedi. I've still got the tapes somewhere, but from that moment I probably watched the films every few months and learned all I could about the characters, alien races, planets, and backstory of the Star Wars universe. This was aided greatly by some books my mum bought me in the early 1990s: three of them were on the making of the films and included a wealth of information, concept art, and special effects secrets, while the fourth was a Star Wars encyclopedia. I was able to come full circle when the original trilogy was re-released in movie theatres in 1997 to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the the first of the series to be released, Episode IV: A New Hope. While it was a thrill to see all three on the big screen and with surround sound, it was quite jarring to see how George Lucas had modified the films I had memorized by heart over my entire life up that point. While some of the additions weren't too bad (for example, adding more X-Wings in the background during the assault on the Death Star), others were unnecessary (changing the band and music in Jabba's palace), clunky (re-inserting the deleted scene in A New Hope where Han Solo now talks to a CGI Jabba the Hutt, a scene that is actually beneficial in explaining why Jabba is after Han, but which suffers from primitive CGI), to the downright stupid (having Greedo shoot first). I vowed there and then that I would never watch the modified versions of the films again, although this became increasingly difficult to do as Lucas made sure only the special editions were available to buy on DVD and digital download going forward.

You can imagine my excitement and surprise when I started college and heard that Lucas was going to make Episodes I-III! New Star Wars movies...what more could I ask for? Ever since I was a kid and had read that George had originally planned nine movies in the series, I'd always hoped that someday he'd make them. The excitement in the build-up to the release of Episode I: The Phantom Menace in 1999 was unbelievable, and not just personally but for all Star Wars fans. However, my initial reaction after I saw the film three times in the theatres was that it was just okay. I enjoyed it because if was Star Wars, because it set up the beginning of the story that would lead up to A New Hope, and because there were some fantastic characters and actors in it (Liam Neeson as Qui-Gon Jinn, Ewan McGregor's superb portrayal of young Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ian MacDiarmid as the younger Darth Sidious/Senator Palpatine, Darth Maul, Christopher Lee as Count Dooku in Episodes II and III). However, there was also some terrible acting, most notably Natalie Portman (Padme Amidala), Jake Lloyd (young Anakin Skywalker in Episode I) and Hayden Christensen (teenage/adult Anakin in Episodes II and III). Portman and Christensen are usually decent actors who nonetheless delivered wooden, stilted performances in these films. Granted, the dialogue George Lucas wrote (one of his self-admitted weaknesses) didn't help, but still, good actors should be able to overcome. Even Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu, while passable, was hampered by the dialogue that left his character a bit less than what he should have been.  Episode II: Attack of the Clones was a bit better than Episode I although some of the romantic dialogue between Portman and Christensen was unbelievably bad. Again, though, I enjoyed it because it was Star Wars, but for me the only one of the three prequels that approached the brilliance of the original trilogy was Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. It had action and adventure, emotional pull (Obi-Wan expressing his anger, disgust, and heartbreak at Anakin's ultimate fate at the conclusion of their epic battle is a favorite scene), some very efective editing (the cuts back and forth between Luke and Leia's birth and Anakin's transformation into Vader), and the climactic moment we'd all waited for when Anakin took his first breath as Darth Vader. In fact, I rank Episode III in my top three films in the series. If I rank the films in order of favorite to least favorite, it looks like this:

1. Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
2. Episode IV: A New Hope
3. Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
4. Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
5. Episode VII: The Force Awakens
6. Episode II: Attack of the Clones
7. Episode I: The Phantom Menace

That being said, I continue to enjoy all of the films and have come to appreciate them more with the passage of time, especially the prequels. (I even don't hate Jar-Jar Binks as much as I used to, even though I could still do with MUCH less of him in Episode I). I also need to mention that Ewan McGregor's portrayal of the younger Obi-Wan Kenobi was tremendous throughout all three prequels and he is firmly cemented as one of the great characters and performances across the entire series. Even the way he appropriated Alex Guinness' mannerisms and accent from Episodes IV-VI in order to make him wholly believable as the younger version was masterful (not to mention he's long been a favorite actor of mine). The original trilogy will always hold the most special place in my heart as those were the original three movies that hooked me and everyone else, and as you can see above they make up three of my top four films in the series. Even though I ranked the new film fifth, I thoroughly enjoyed it and think it is a worthy and perfect continuation of the series, capturing the spirit of fun, adventure, and humor that was at its most effective in the original trilogy and which was slightly lacking in the prequels. (I'm deliberately shying away from saying anything more about the new film in case any of you reading this still haven't see it yet!). Seeing so many of the old characters in the film and falling in love with the new ones was really cool and struck the right balance between nostalgia and something new that was needed to appease the older fans while bringing in the new ones.

What's been the best thing for me lately about Star Wars, besides it giving me an excuse to relive my childhood (some would say I still haven't outgrown it) and revel in my geekiness for all things Star Wars-related, has been getting my kids into it. In particular, my second oldest daughter and my son sat and watched all six films in order with me in the weeks leading up to the premiere of the new one. My son has been into Star Wars the past couple of years in terms of toys and costumes (he's been an X-Wing pilot the last two Halloweens), but it's turned into a full-blown obsession akin to how I was at his age. He dressed in his X-Wing pilot costume and my daughter dressed as Princess Leia (complete with the hairstyle, courtesy of my talented wife!) when we went to see The Force Awakens. Although I don't think their goosebumps matched the nostalgic rush of mine when the opening fanfare and story crawl first hit the screen, they were definitely on the edge of their seats with excitement as much as I was.

Getting back to my son, he has loads of Star Wars action figures, Legos, cars, etc, and now that he has learned to read he is devouring every book about the films and the Star Wars universe that he can get his hands on. He is even blowing me away with his knowledge of the different creatures, planets, vehicles, characters, etc. He knows which movie certain events happened in and at the age of six and a half, as well as how and why they connect with the other films. Another thing that has struck me is that since he has grown up in a world where the six films have existed, some of his favorite characters and moments actually come from the prequels. Yes, he loves Luke, Leia, Han, Chewbacca, Yoda, and Darth Vader, but he also routinely lists Mace Windu, Anakin, General Greivous, Qui-Gon, Darth Maul, and Count Dooku as some of his favorites. His willing acceptance and enjoyment of the prequels for what they are allowed me to watch them with a less cynical eye and realize that while they are for the most part definitely weaker than the original trilogy, they also suffered from the unrealistic weight of expectations leading up to their release (especially Episode I, which had sixteen years of anticipation and a huge amount of hype leading up to its release that it could never meet or exceed) and they have been overly vilified by fans and critics alike.  Sure, they're weren't as good as the originals, but they certainly weren't as bad as the conventional wisdom makes them out to be, either. That's my opinion, at least.

With all of this being said, my kids and I are now eagerly counting down to the release of Episodes VIII and IX. While I consider myself fortunate that I've been able to see all of the films on the big screen, I'm also glad that my kids will get a chance to experience the excitement and anticipation of each new film in a new trilogy. Additionally, their experience of seeing the six films in order from I-VI as opposed to how I and others of my generation experienced them (IV-VI, and then I-III) is different enough that I'm glad it gives them their own unique way to experience the wonder and fun of the Star Wars saga. In the end, sharing in all of this fun and sense of wonder in the realms of imagination with my kids is the best part about the entire experience for me.

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Star Trek: Living Long and Still Prospering

Spock, Kirk, McCoy...man, do I love this show!

The recent passing of Leonard Nimoy was not entirely unexpected given that he was in his 80s and had been suffering from health issues the past year, but it was nonetheless sad.  The outpouring of tributes from his friends, family, colleagues, and fans was nice to see and showed just how much of an impact his work as an actor, director, voice artist/narrator, and photographer had made over his long career.  Of course, to almost everyone he is and forever will be linked with the character he played that defined his life as an actor: Spock.  Certainly this is how I knew Nimoy best as an actor and director, and his passing made me step back for a moment and really reflect on why I'm such a huge Star Trek fan.  I'm a science fiction fan and enjoy many series and franchises, from Star Wars (the movies) to Dune (the books) and more, but my absolute favorite has and always will be Star Trek.  And while I'm a fan of all of the TV series and movies they've made, the first one I ever became hooked on was the original series and it is still my favorite to this day.

Star Trek was created by Gene Roddenberry, who envisioned a serious show taking place in the future where different species of aliens and humans would live in relative harmony and band together to protect and explore every corner of the universe. To this end, the original crew of the USS Enterprise was made up of human men and women of different races (white, black, Japanese, Russian, etc) and a Vulcan named Spock, portrayed by Leonard Nimoy. Rounding out the main characters were Captain Kirk (played by William Shatner), Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForrest Kelly), Engineer Montgomery Scott (James Doohan), Mr. Sulu (George Takei), Communications Officer Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), and Ensign Chekov (Walter Koenig).   The series focused on the deep personal bonds and friendship between Kirk, McCoy, and Spock; of particular interest was the struggle of the half-human, half-Vulcan Spock trying to balance the logic of his Vulcan side with the emotion of his human side. This internal struggle and Spock's (through the excellent acting of Nimoy) journey through life trying to reconcile the two made him the most popular character of the entire franchise, as well as one of the most iconic and popular characters in television history.

The original run for the first Star Trek series was from 1966 to 1969. In that time, it ran for three seasons (79 episodes) and did poorly in the ratings, yet it had a rabid and dedicated fanbase made up almost exclusively (at the time) of teenage boys.  My dad and two uncles, who are big Trek fans, grew up during this time period and watched it during its original run; they were hooked on it then and are still fans to this day.  The series was initially cancelled after the second season but was renewed for a third season after a huge letter writing campaign from fans swayed NBC to bring it back.  However, it wasn't until the series was cancelled for good in 1969 and it went into syndication that the fanbase exploded and the Trekkie phenomenon was born.

The demand for more Trek was so great by the end of the 1970s that creator Gene Roddenberry had planned a new TV series called Star Trek: Phase II, which would continue the adventures of the original crew. However, the series was scrapped and eventually turned into the first Star Trek film, which was released in 1979 and kicked off the second wave of Trek mania that has endured to this day.  There were a total of six movies made featuring the crew from the original TV series, as well as four more TV series starting in the late 1980s (The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise) and multiple movies featuring the Next Generation crew. All of the series and movies were tied together, taking place in the same universe across hundreds of years and featuring a lot of continuity between characters, planets, storylines, and so on.  More recently, JJ Abrams has relaunched the franchise with two excellent new movies in the 2010s that take place with a new cast, detailing the adventures of the original USS Enterprise crew but in an alternate universe. As a nice touch, a part was written for Nimoy to reprise Spock, stranded in the alternate universe that the new films inhabit.

While I am a fan of all of the Star Trek series and films, my favorite has and always will be the original series and the first six films featuring the same characters.  Part of this is due to the fact that it was the series I grew up watching as a kid and thus is the one I know best. But the main reason that it's my favorite is because in my opinion it has the best characters, the best writing/acting, and the best stories of all of the series.  Yes, the special effects were primitive, even for their time (the show is legendary for the shoestring budget they were given to work with by NBC and how fast they had to film each episode), but beyond possessing a late 1960s charm, the effects are really not that bad. Furthermore, the success of the show and the fact that the storylines (well, most of them) were and remain so captivating and interesting shows that it was a series driven not by impressive visual effects, but by characters and stories that drew in and captivated scores of fans.  Star Trek was blessed with some great writers during its initial run, writers who were able to weave gripping and interesting stories that took turns featuring each of the main characters, investing time and energy in presenting fleshed out lives and backstories for all of them.  Whether a particular episode was humorous, depressing, philosophical, political, exciting, or a combination thereof, there was usually something interesting going on.  Some of the best known episodes, which are also among my favorites, are "Amok Time," "The City on the Edge of Forever," "Balance of Terror," "The Doomsday Machine," "Space Seed," "Mirror, Mirror," "The Trouble With Tribbles," and "The Tholian Web," to name some but not all. 

 The Doomsday Machine, one of my favorite Trek episodes

Take, for example, "The City on the Edge of Forever," which was written by the great science fiction writer Harlan Ellison and is routinely sited as the greatest Trek episode of all time. It deals with issues including time travel, love, and making difficult choices that may be right but aren't easy (I don't want to give anything away if you haven't seen it). The emotional ending was and still is something not seen on most network television shows, especially in the 1960s.  That is perhaps the way in which Star Trek was most ahead of its time and the aspect of the show for which Roddenberry and his writers deserve the most credit: their bold and visionary presentation of societal and technological matters through the medium of a dramatic television series.  Their vision of a somewhat Utopian future where citizens from different nationalities and alien races would come together in peace to work toward a better future was, for a time, realized in our lifetimes (although this has sadly been undone over the past decade-plus). The presentation of women and minorities in positions of authority and importance in Starfleet, which is basically the outer space version of the Navy, was groundbreaking and something we take for granted now in both real life and in entertainment.  Furthermore, where Star Trek was really eerie in terms of its prescience was in its depiction and prediction of future technology.  From the belt-clip communicators (cell phones), phasers (tasers...as long as they're set on "stun"), and tricorders (iPads) to all of the various non-invasive medical advances they portrayed on the show (many of which are very real in 2015), Star Trek showed what was possible with imagination and vision, while the real world turned those fictions and fantasies into very real and beneficial reality. Of course, we haven't solved the problem of space travel and human space exploration beyond going to the moon (yet), but I certainly hope that when we do, the future will look more like what is depicted in the Star Trek universe than the alternative.

A great scene from the best Trek film of them all

As to why I have loved this show and all of its spin-offs so much, it really comes down to the fact that it has fired my imagination with so many interesting ideas and philosophies that have always kept me thinking long after I've finished watching.  The interesting characters, ships, alien races, gadgets, battles, and storylines are all great, of course, but what has kept me and countless others captivated for so many years are the ideas the show presents; much of this is because of how much closer our world has come to resemble the world of Trek, at least in terms of technology, communications, and the subsequent shrinking of the world these have engendered. Perhaps the bigger picture is that it forces us to think and to ask questions of ourselves: how would we react if our future were like that of Star Trek? When presented with similar situations and choices to make, would we choose the pragmatic path? The peaceful route? Would we resort to force only as a last resort? Would we set out to conquer and colonize the universe as we have done for millennia here on Earth, or would our missions be more similar to the ancient explorers who simply wanted to chart the world and make contact with new societies and civilizations for peaceful purposes?  Obviously none of us have concrete answers to any of these questions since we are not at the point of needing to answer any of them in 2015.  It does, however, make you step back, pause, and think a bit and for me at least that is the coolest thing Star Trek has to offer.  In a way, I've always thought it was the most realistic and grown-up science fiction on film.  While I've always been a huge fan of its closest rival Star Wars, the way I've always looked it is that Star Wars is children's entertainment that can be enjoyed by adults, but Star Trek is grown-up sci-fi that kids can also enjoy.  My understanding of Star Wars and the concepts behind it haven't changed too much from when I was 10 to now, but the absolute inverse is true when it comes to Star Trek; I understand it a whole lot more now at 35 than I did at 10.  Maybe it sounds silly to be discussing a television and movie franchise in this way, but then again Star Trek has always been more than that and it will continue to be long into the future. 

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