Quick recap: 

Fun (?) fact: Han Salo doesn’t know and doesn’t care who shot first.

My thoughts: So, I’m just going to get this off my chest: I loved Episode I. A little explanation first- I saw Episode IV for the first time in 8th grade, right before Episode I came out. Before then, I had always dismissed Star Wars as a silly sci-fi movie and would’ve never sought it out on my own had it not been for a few friends of mine. Once I saw the trilogy, I was hooked completely. So when Episode I came out a few months later, I got caught up in the hype. It never occurred to me (until much later) to think of Episode I as sort of awful because I was there as part of a community, not as a critic. I admit to buying Lay’s potato chips and Pepsi products simply because there was a Star Wars tie in (side note: I won a Queen Amidala phone from a potato chip bag and it was kind of a crummy phone considering she didn’t have too many catch phrases besides, ‘ I am Queen Amidala’). All that to say that I’ve always been afraid of revealing I like Star Wars because I don’t know the names of the ships or even many of the characters, yet I still love the series. Star Wars is the very epitome of American pop culture and I think there is something worth celebrating in that.

I’m not sure how many times I have seen Episode IV, although I doubt it is as much as Empire Strikes Back. Still, it has its merits, none of which I will be discussing here. Why? Simply because Star Wars has been analyzed in every corner of the internet at this point, even THAT corner. You know the one I’m talking about (I’m talking about the original Space Jam site which is STILL up, if you can believe it). My own analysis would add nothing to the conversation, plus I just don’t feel like researching to make sure I get every fact straight. Instead, I bring you a few stray observations:

• Luke Skywalker is whiny. Annoyingly whiny. I had a slight crush on Mark Hamill as Luke but now I don’t see how that was possible because his character grated on my very last nerve this past viewing.
• The special effects are still amazing and it blows my mind to think how much was done without a computer. I’ll add sadly that the only version available to watch from Netflix was the one with all the added CGI George Lucas thought would enhance the film. Spoiler alert, Lucas: No one sat in the movie theater in 1977 and thought, ‘yeah, Storm troopers are cool and all, but I just wish they were riding dinosaurs. That’s what this film is really lacking’.
• I watched this movie with my 4 year old and this was his first time watching anything Star Wars related. I had high expectations he would enjoy it, but instead he was bored to tears because of the lack of Yoda.
• And on that note, Episode IV was kind of boring overall. There was a lot of set up, which is important in the beginning of any series but not enough action for my taste.
• The acting was hit and miss. Hit: Harrison Ford because he can do no wrong. Miss: Chewbacca.
• My husband is in fact one of those Star Wars fans and spent the entire movie complaining once more about Episodes I-III. Anything can set those guys off.
• The Force seems kind of hokey, now that I think about it. It really is a religion and that observation made the movie less fun, overall.

Final review: 4/5. I’m anxiously awaiting Empire Strikes Back because it really is the best.

Up next: Meshes of the Afternoon