It was on this day ten years ago that Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens was released in theaters.
I caught the first show of it on opening night, at a theater in Raleigh, North Carolina. Chad, my best friend since childhood, and his wife and I saw it together. And it truly was a very special night. It was the first time in all our history together that Chad and I had seen a new Star Wars movie with each other in the theater. It was like God was winking at our shared childhood. Made all the more poignant because a few months later Chad and his wife became parents to a beautiful little girl.
Yes, I'm aware of the reputation that the Star Wars sequel trilogy has come to have. I would be a fool to not acknowledge that particular gundark in the room. I have shared those sentiments also. But alas, those have softened somewhat during the past decade since the first Star Wars movie produced by Disney was released. I'm increasingly of the mind that the sequel trilogy - The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker - does indeed work as a cycle unto itself and as components of the larger Skywalker family saga. They may not be the most brilliant films of the series: those will forever be the original trilogy, especially The Empire Strikes Back. But neither are they the irredeemable mess that many claim them to be. I've had the opportunity to work with children in the past few months. Something I've asked them a number of times is what do they think of Star Wars. The almost unanimous answer is that they love it, so the saga is still producing fans. Then I ask them what do they think of the newer movies. And almost every young person I ask that of tells me that they like the sequel trilogy especially. Rey has her fans, particularly among girls. And that's not a bad thing at all. It tells me that Star Wars is still at work doing what it was always meant to be: a multi-generational story to be enjoyed by people of all ages. As a Generation X kid, I loved the original trilogy. I came to better appreciate the prequels as I got older. Now in my fifties, I am seeing people who are as young as I was come to enjoy Star Wars, too. And that is good.
Well, anyway, it began in earnest ten years ago tonight, with the long-awaited arrival of the seventh episode of the Star Wars saga: something that I dare say most of us had given up on ever getting to see. Lumps and all, it is a Star Wars movie as much as any movie can be. And I certainly do appreciate that.
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