For All You Mandos

So everyone’s calendars are marked for May the 4th Be With You, and some of the edgier ones also observe Revenge of the Sixth? Right? But there are those who fall between or beyond the Jedi-Sith dichotomy, and among them are the Mandalorians. So in the middle of those two occasions, there’s Fifth Is the Way.

Bonus Question!

What do you celebrate?

Since the Jedi-Sith thing is essentially the classic Enlightenment-Romanticism divide in space, I fall firmly on the side of the latter. In space.

Aphra Name Change - Star Wars Retcon?

Everyone now knows and loves Doctor Aphra, one of the greatest new Star Wars characters of the modern era. Darth Vader’s erstwhile archaeologist assistant. Evil Indiana Jones lady. Overall amoral science type. She began as a supporting character in Vader’s comic several years ago. and now she might be getting her own television series.

Anyway, recently I was looking on Comixology or something for the new issue of her comic, and my search for “Aphra” was turning up nothing. That’s when I realized I’d somehow gotten her name wrong for this entire time. It was actually “Althra” or something. I had no idea how that mistake had happened.

Until I woke up.

Yes, it’s actually Aphra. Chelli Lona Aphra.

Sweet dreams.

Bonus Question!

Best evil Indiana Jones?

I mean …. This guy.

May the 4th and More(th)

Everyone knows “May the 4th be with you”. It’s like Easter. It’s the same for everyone. But then you have Revenge. Of the 5th or 6th? That’s more denominational. Like the sabbath. For some it’s Sunday, but others prefer Saturday. Honestly, since the Sith have the Rule of Two, it makes a kind of sense to celebrate both.

But you know what May really needs next on the Star Wars pun front?

“Return of the Jed-Ides”. The 15th! The Ides of May! The Ides are famous for being fatal to one emperor in Caesar, and “Return” is the movie where another emperor meets his own end. And I only realized that after I’d already come up with the pun.

And this year’s is on a Friday, which I just like because Fridays are awesome.

Happy “Return of the Jed-Ides”, Force friends!

Sith Stuff

I remember when The Old Republic came out over the holiday season of 2011. It focused on an era of Star Wars I loved, but I wasn’t feeling an especial call to actually play it. Its gameplay basically just seemed like a rougher version of World of Warcraft, which I was already playing. But in the week after Christmas, I was convinced to give it a try, and in that first period after its release, the wave of excitement around it just added to the wondrous experiences offered by the diverse facets of its story. That excitement fell off after a while, and I did too. I’ve occasionally poked my head in, but I didn’t really think I would again.

But it’s been on my mind recently. The time of year and the recency of “Rise of Skywalker” probably played some role. Again, I wasn’t planning to actually play it, but I decided to download it just in case. And then I hit the play button on that same day. Again, it was the week after Christmas, and I was drawn in far enough to give it a chance. I’m really not going to treat it like Warcraft or anything, but the story’s intrigued me enough to basically let it play out like a single player narrative game with the bonus of having other people around in the world. It’ll be a spurt, and then I’ll drop it again, but right now, it’s a prime source for a legendary era of Star Wars wherein all that wild Jedi and Sith nonsense I love so deeply flourished across a galaxy that often looked even more fantastical than what the epoch of the films would show.

Bonus Question!

What’s your Sith name?

Darth Yowl.

Rise of Spoilwalker

So. Oscar Isaac now looks like the theoretical person of whom Bruce Campbell is a caricature. 

Anyway, I saw "Rise of Skywalker". First of all, I loved all the Sith nonsense. Of all the concepts in the entirety of science fiction, the one I cherish even above Jedi stuff is Sith stuff, and this movie had more than any film in the saga. Why do I love it? Because it's like the inimitable Jedi stuff with a lean towards Romanticism instead of the often austere ideals of Enlightenment philosophy. Obviously, Sith tend to be  pretty bad dudes, but at its core, the Sith code celebrates passion and self-expression in a way reminiscent of the best art.

Related to that is the emphasis on Palpatine in a way that honestly felt like the wild explorations of the old Expanded Universe. And it's always fun to see Palpatine have a good time. 

Before going to see the Star Wars movie became a holiday tradition for my family, Middle-earth filled that role. Appropriately, "Rise" reminded me of "Return of the King", primarily in the way it crammed a whole bunch of things into an epic final chapter, including rolling hills.

I'm always here for more Star Wars, but in terms of ending a saga, this felt

worthy.

Also, "Cats". It's been around for decades. How are people so shocked at this movie?

Bonus Question!

Top Skywalker?

Anakin.

Clone Zone

My mother had never seen the last two Star Wars prequels, and before "Rise of Skywalker", she finally decided to open the box set I'd given her several Christmases ago. In watching "Attack of the Clones" with her, which is still my favourite Star Wars film of all, I did admit that some of the special effects are somewhat shaky in comparison to what's around now. That shouldn't surprise anyone, and it certainly doesn't bother me, but it might actually add an extra layer of characteristic charm to the movies. George Lucas orignally made the franchise in imitation of those quanit old adventure films that had captured his imagination in his youth, and the visual quality of those did not age impeccably. Though the degree in Star Wars is lesser, seems fitting for his movies to be similarly identifiable with a particular era in cinema through their aged appearance.

Bonus Question!

Best clone?

Ben Reilly jumps to mind.