Star Wars Memory (Hyperspace?) Lane

My earliest memory was seeing the special editions in the theater in the mid 90s. The theater had Ewoks, Chewbacca, the droids and others painted on the windows. I remember thinking it was super cool and I've been hooked since.

 

This should be fun!

I remember seeing Star Wars in theaters as a kid (the rereleases in the late 90s). Pretty sure I saw ANH, missed ESB, and saw ROTJ a little later- which could account for why I think ESB is a tad overrated, but that's besides the point.

Anyway, I remember after we saw ROTJ, my dad had the foresight to pack my bike in the car, so he took me to a local school parkinglot and let me ride around pretending I was on a speeder bike. I thought that was really cool.

 

Awwww yeah! Nostalgia!

I saw ANH within the first two weeks of opening with my Mom who happens to be an old school sci fi nut. It was one of the first movies I remember seeing as a child and has influenced my entire life since that day. Because of that one single movie my life was forever changed is ways I cant even begin to imagine. Every day I live and breath something Star Wars related. Luke, Leia, Han and Chewie will be one of the last things that cross my mind as I take my final breath.

Also, the first toy memory was the Jawa Droid set up for Christmas that year (May have been the year after). Oh, and that rare Jawa my Dad got me to go with it

 

here's one:

i remember insanely anticipating the Holiday Special and watching it in staggered, rapt silence.
the parts that stuck with me were the Boba Fett cartoon, the stuffed Bantha, and the end when you actually got to see the "real" heroes.
the rest of it i must've deleted entirely from my mind (for it to only lurk in my subconscious for decades after).

p.s. the Bantha scene stuck out to me because 1.) i wanted a Bantha! and 2.) boy that preyed on your horrors as a child: people coming into your home and threatening your family and maybe confiscating your toys! eeek!

 

Oh that was a horribly great holiday show! For some added holiday cheer, try the Star Wars Christmas CD. I've had a copy for years. It has the droids on the front cover lol.

 

hahahaha ~ i remember that! : D

 

Oh wow, so many Star Wars memories, I practically grew up with Star Wars. Star Wars has alway been apart of my life. Its why I'm an artist. It why I love Sci-Fi. Its the first film I asked my mom to take me too. She took my sister, me, and my best friend from the neighborhood to local drive in theatre and we had lots of fun.

My mom actually enjoyed it too, so much so, I thought she had coined the term Star Warsy because whenever I asked her take me to a film she asked, is that a Star Warsy film? Anyway my mum hated Star Trek the motion picture, so when I asked her to take me to see Empire she said ask your Father which was the worst movie experience of my life. My father is like the real Darth Vader. Its like going to the circus with Vader

Maybe thats why ANH is my fav not Empire. By the time Jedi came out I had discovered girls so I was saving up for the latest cool sneakers and gear to impress the ladies. I remember watching Entertainment tonight and the critics were saying Jedi wasn't as good as the first two. So that sealed it, I wasn't going to spend money to go see it.

I eventually saw Jedi on VHS years later and I regret not going to the theater to see it. When TPM was released all my friends turned their backs on Star Wars cuz their expectations were way up high. I ended up seeing AOTC at the theater by myself but I went to AMC in NYC I was surrounded by true Star Wars fans dressed up as Jedis, Stormtroopers, lightsaber of every color were lit every where it was magical. I had so much fun! maybe thats why I also like AOTC.

When ROTS was released my friends came around and enjoyed the last prequel film. They were not fully Star Wars fans again, but they said it was good.

 

Love reading these!

I guess a few other memories:

The Phantom Menace- I remember my dad bought me a toy before the movie came out. It was a squadron of droid starfighters all connected on a handle- one could also change into its walking form, as well. We then went to a place called Fitz's to get a burger and some root beer floats, and I plated with the toy at the restaurant.

Also, I remember marketing for this film was everywhere!


The Attack of the Clones- I went to see this after my last day of school before changing schools. Kind of a sad day, but seeing a new Star Wars film was something to look forward to.

I also really had to pee the entire time. Finally, after Anakin and Obi Wan's fight, I left since I didn't think I'd miss much. When I got back and asked what happened, I didn't believe that Yoda came and did all sorts of flips. It wasn't until the DVD release that I actually found out my friends were telling the truth!


Battlefront- I remember the first time I put this game in, I didn't know what to expect, but I knew I wanted to play Hoth. The experience first playing this was surreal- it felt so incredibly immersive, like I was actually in the trenches on Hoth! As the years went on I eventually got really good at the game and the immersive factor wore off fast (being able to pilot a snowspeeder, hop in the back to fire a harpoon, and jump back in front in time to steer will do that), but I still love it.


Revenge of the Sith- I remember getting toy lightsabers after watching this film- not the light up ones, but ones that could fold down the entire way- my friends and I actually preferred these. We then went to a playground and had a big game of The Floor is Lava on it, but Mustafar style with a lightsaber battle royale! I'm an adult now, but I'd still totally play that again if anyone's up for it.



The Clone Wars- In high school, I watched this with my kid brother and sister (both over 10 years younger than me) every Friday night if I wasn't doing anything, or Saturday morning if I was. I wasn't super into it, but it was nice having family moments like that still.


The Force Unleashed- I got this game during a really tough time in my life. I'm not gonna say I had some cathartic experience playing it, or that the game helped me get through the tough time, because frankly those statements would both be bombastic lies. The game wasn't all that good, in my opinion, but it was at least something, and those are really the feelings I associate with it.


The Force Awakens- Going off that last post, this is sort of the opposite- I was in a super good place during the Force Awakens.
The woman who is now my wife had never seen a Star Wars film before it, so we binged the entire series before seeing it. She loved the OT, not so much the prequels (I'm proud). TFA is her favorite, though, because it was the first she saw in theaters.


Star Wars Tabletop Games- Got really into Star Wars tabletop games last year, particularly Imperial Assault and Rebellion. Dude, they're so good! I remember my first game of Rebellion with my wife lasted over four hours (not bad for a wargame, but still longer than we expected).

I also remember hours painting my Imperial Assault minis. I had a bit of a weird "ritual" for it- I'd pour myself a glass of bourbon, turn on an ABBA playlist, let the dog into the room with me, and spend hours painting. It was a fantastic time.


Rogue One- The film itself was fine, but I remember the party we threw before hand. Lots of wine (yeah, we were a little sloshed when we saw the film) but the best part was watching Turkish Star Wars (The Man Who Saved the World) before hand. This year, I think we're going to watch the Chinese dub/reverse dub of The Revenge of the Sith (translated to "The Backstroke of the West"). It's gonna be great.

 

this little trip down memory lane made me decide to buy myself a bantha for my birthday: a life's dream finally come true ~ hahaha

 

Those 501st pics are great!

All this talk of Banthas reminds me of Halloween last year. We dressed up our dog Mikey as a Bantha!


My wife was Rey, I was Kylo, and our cat Bowie was a reluctant Yoda (only because we couldn't find a Salacious Crumb costume in time)


Here's one of me in my full armor dueling a Jon Snow

 

I first saw SW in 1997 when theaters starting showing it again. My entire family were fans and saw all 3 movies when they came out the first time, so they were excited to pass on the experience to me. The moment I saw Vader walk through that door I knew I would be hooked! I became an instant SW fan and had all 3 movies on VHS.

When I started attending conventions in my early 20's, I met some of the PT, OT and recently the ST cast and will always treasure those memories!

 

That's awesome! I

Here's another one-

I used to work as a lifeguard. At the pool (which could house thousands, it was a big complex) we were also in charge of music. One time, one of my friends made a playlist of regular Top 40s nonsense, but added one surprise. He told me just to wait for it.

A few hours into the shift, the Star Wars theme starts playing. It was hilarious, and really cool too because you could see people's faces light up. Not a song you'd expect at a pool, but still something that can make a fan happy anywhere.

Another time, I was guarding the Lazy River when I heard come kids of about 10 years old talking about capturing command posts. I asked if they were talking about Battlefront, and they said it was their favorite game. Keep in mind, this was like 2012, so it was before the new Battlefront came out (before new Star Wars, even) but long after the originals, which is what they were discussing. So cool to see kids that young into such an old game (old even back then), especially when it was one of my favorites.