Michael Lee's Train of Thought

I went to see a sneak preview of Star Wars: The Clone Wars today.

I'll admit that I'm apart of a generation that loved the original Star Wars trilogy and could only be disappointed by the Episodes 1-3.

But this, while not recapturing the feel of the original Star Wars films for me, was a whole lot of fun. I enjoyed it and wasn't disappointed by it -- which is really the first time a Star Wars experience has done that for me since the first Phantom Menace trailer. And to be fair, it would be very, very hard to truly recapture that feel, and that's not really a fair standard.

This was recognizably something in the Star Wars universe, but something good for today as well. It's certainly something with a kids audience in mind -- but it's solid fun and definitely worth seeing if you were a Star Wars fan -- even if you have found yourself less of one after the prequels.

Labels: animation, movies, scifi, starwars

Within the last two months I had the chance to see -- in the flesh -- two of the people that had a huge influence in making me who I am today. They were, in both cases, people that are a little eccentric and odd. And it was interesting to rate my reaction to both.

At the recent Salesforce.com conference, one of the speakers was Star Wars creator George Lucas. You don't get to be a geeky person of my generation and not have been hugely influenced by the original Star Wars. But George was very odd -- it might have been that it was a strange environment for him; I don't think he talks to thousands of people on a regular basis. And for the conference the topics of discussion were limited to his work with Edutopia, a very worthy program relating to helping and inspiring educators. And as a technologist, it is nice to see a discussion about how technology makes the world better, and not just the work environment better.

Sadly, I've been less impressed with George over the last decade than when I was a kid -- perhaps because he was foolish enough to do something new that was close enough to what he did when I was growing up. And that colored my experience, I'm afraid to say. He's odd and eccentric -- but it wasn't something that meant as much to me as I thought it would. [As opposed to another -- more technical -- keynote speech by Cisco's CEO John Chambers, which was very inspirational and impressive.]



On the other hand, when I was in London recently on vacation, I stopped by a convention in Earl's Court where Tom Baker, my first Doctor Who, was making an appearance. Tom Baker was the only living classic series Doctor Who I hadn't met, and my life would be different without Doctor Who in the same way that it would be different without Star Wars.

As you would expect, Tom Baker is as eccentric as you would expect. But he was, in person, a delight at this point in time. He acted as if he had known you forever, in a way. I've met my share of actors before -- and it has pretty much always been pleasant. But meeting Tom Baker literally put a smile on my face for hours -- and even now, makes me smile when I think about it. Perhaps because Tom Baker hasn't gone back to addition Doctor Who, and his work on Little Britain is hysterical on its own -- that there's something different about the experience of meeting Tom Baker that was different than seeing George Lucas.

Amazingly, I think this means that I've met a good percentage of the major influences in my life -- as I had a chance to see Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and Douglas Adams a decade or so ago. And at San Diego Comic Con I was able to see Stan Lee and Mark Hamill.

It's interesting to think about how all of these influences tie together to make me who I am today.

Labels: doctorwho, salesforce, starwars

I'd recently rewatched Star Wars episodes I - III, and well, this article that has apparently been around for a few years makes a lot of sense.

Labels: starwars

It's a big anniversary for Star Wars this year -- one that I'm not really going to dwell on the number, because it's a bit disturbing as a member of the original Star Wars generation.

I've actually got very little going on this weekend -- so I'm going to celebrate by going through all six films this weekend.

Star Wars in some ways is less fashionable since the prequel films disappointed so many of us. But the original films weren't just a part of my childhood -- they were my childhood, and nothing can take that part away.

Labels: starwars

I was watching the commentary for the awesome Heroes episode Company Man today, and besides being really impressed with how the NBC site has their on-site commentary tracks visualized, I realized who they need to cast at some point to absolutely prove that they're making this show for me. Mark Hamill. They've hired someone from Star Trek (George Takai). They've had both The Master (Eric Roberts) and The Doctor (Christopher Eccleston). Malcolm McDowell starts soon.

So all they need to do to win Geek Bingo is for them to cast someone from Star Wars, and Lost apparently has Billy Dee Williams coming up. [see Lost Spoilers if you want]. So Mark Hamill it is.

Labels: doctorwho, heroes, lost, startrek, starwars

Wil Wheaton's Star Wars Review focuses on one of the things that has been on my mind concerning how the first Star Wars Generation reacted to Episodes I to III. The original Star Wars films are, for the geekier among us -- more than just an enjoyable nostalgic movie from our childhood. They in a very real sense are our childhood -- they're every birthday and Christmas for a half a dozen years.

I'm not as anti-the prequels as many people I know are. They're not the original Star Wars -- and how could they be -- and I'm not sure I can separate my childhood nostalgia when I watch them. And that makes some things work, but also emphasizes every little flaw.

Of course, it is possible for that sort of nostalgic revisit to work in their own rights as well -- the new Doctor Who is still recognizably the series that I discovered as a kid, but is a complete modern upgrade as well. And while the nostalgic elements of Battlestar Galactica are less frequent, it's something that is very good for today, and stands on its one terms despite any distant nostalgic memories.

And tomorrow is another day where nostalgic franchises return, as we go to see the new James Bond movie Casino Royale. It is odd because it promises to be a back-to-basics Bond film, but there was a fair amount of controversy in the past about it.

Labels: bond, doctorwho, galactica, nostalgia, starwars

Apparently, the original, pre-Special, Han-solo-shoots-first versions of Star Wars are actually coming out on DVD. Good to see that financial motives finally trumped George's artistic sensibilities, because this was the version we all wanted anyways. [And I think it makes the Special Editions easier to accept -- as an alternative, it's a great thing, but it's not really what we want as the original if you're trying to recapture childhood memories.]

Labels: starwars

Which Non-Star Wars Movie has the most Star Wars Actors?

I've always been curious about what Movie has the most Doctor Who actors, and I would imagine it would be somewhat similar as this list...

Labels: starwars

You know, there's something strange that now, all of these years later, I think there's something quite strange and wrong that Revenge of the Sith won the People's Choice Awards. There's a time thajavascript:void(0);
Publish Post t I would have thought that would be an obvious pick, but I don't think it was the best film of 2005 by any stretch of the imagination...

(And I'm not one of those people that despises the Star Wars prequels...)

Labels: starwars

Michael Sheard, who appeared in several of the best Doctor Who stories, including Pyramids of Mars and Remembrance of the Daleks, and was memorable as Admiral Ozzel in the best Star Wars movie, The Empire Strikes Back, passed away recently.

But he was also a really friendly, full of life individual. He had been a guest of honor at CONvergence twice, and he endeared himself to our entire community, and I know from many of the other tributes I've seen that he'd done the same sort of thing all over, and he'll definitely be missed.

Labels: convergence, doctorwho, starwars

While I have placed an order for my tickets, I'm surprisingly not looking forward to the next Star Wars movie this week. Perhaps after finding both Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones disapppointing, I'm just not able to get into this one.

Hopefully, that will change by the time I actually get into the movie theater. I still want to like a new Star Wars movie -- and not just in the theater, but over the coming months and years. There's not a chance that it will have the impact that the original Star Wars or Empire Strikes Back had, because I'm not that young impressionable child anymore. And I fear that the dreams of this movie that I've had since I first read about Darth Vader and Obi-Wans lava duel can never be matched by any film presentation.

We'll see.

Labels: starwars

Ok. Yeah, I'm providing free advertising for candy here, but the Star Wars M&M's trailer is amusing enough as it is...

Labels: starwars

Gem Geek or Rare Bug - The Column: Whose Film Is It Anyway?

I really enjoyed Graeme's column about special editions. Like many of us who had their lives changed by George Lucas's original Star Wars, the absense of the original versions of the films makes the whole DVD release something that's not nearly as exciting as it once would have been.

Yeah, I'll get the new Star Wars DVDs of Episodes 4-6. But they aren't the ones that I really wanted.

Labels: starwars

I want the original Star Wars Trilogy on DVD
I'll want Special Editions (or Ultimate Editions, or whatever) as well -- but I want the original version as well, of course.

Labels: starwars

The Betamax
How many times can you purchase Goldfinger?

For me, of course, it's the original Star Wars trilogy that I've purchased a zillion times. And, as always, the version I most want to buy is THE ORIGINAL, NOT-VERY-SPECIAL EDITION on DVD.

Though, of course, I'll buy the special edition as well. I'm sad like that.

Labels: starwars

PVP -- one of my favorite comics (both on-line and in comics form) has a really good commentary about Star Wars and Attack of the Clones

(BTW, going to see it for the third time tonight.)

Labels: starwars

Star Wars: Attack of the Clones opens today.

It's a Star Wars movie. Enough said.

Labels: starwars

Ok, the Star Wars fans -- including Episode 1 skeptics, are saying that Episode 2 delivers what a Star Wars movie should
(and considering I've already got firm plans to see it three times, and probably four times...)

Labels: starwars

Turn-on the Clones
Star Wars articles coming up more and more these days, of course, as we approach the one week countdown to release.

Labels: starwars

A Star Wars editorial by Michael Jantze of the Norm

Labels: starwars

'Star Wars' Fan Films Come Tumbling Back to Earth
interesting article about Star Wars fan movies...

Labels: starwars

Today's Heart of the City made me laugh -- but I feel a case of the Star Wars fever coming on.

Labels: starwars

Star Wars isn't mythology, according to Salon

Labels: starwars

Jedi Council Forums - Minneapolis, MN
Discusses Star Wars in Minneapolis. Time to start making plans for seeing Attack of the Clones!

Labels: starwars

Ninth Art - Article 10: The Story So Far
This article talks a lot about continuity in comic books, but the issues it raise also seem to apply to almost any long running series, including Doctor Who, Star Trek, Star Wars, and so on....

Labels: doctorwho, startrek, starwars

More Star Wars vs Fellowship of the Ring stuff
from Salon.

Labels: starwars

Salon.com Arts & Entertainment | "Lord of the Rings" vs. "Star Wars"
Really good article comparing the two; it used to be common to compare the LotR book to the original Star Wars, and now it's inevitable to compare the movies...

(and while I really, really love Fellowship -- it's not better than either A New Hope or The Empire Strikes Back.)

Labels: starwars

MTV News Online - 'Star Wars' Goes Pop: 'NSYNC Film Cameos For 'Episode II'
No, that's not true, that's impossible!

Labels: starwars

TheForce.Net's Episode II - News
Says that Channel 9 (KMSP) will be airing the trailer for Star Wars: Episode 2 on Monday during their 9:00 PM news program, if you want to record it or anything crazy like that.

Labels: starwars

eBay item 1478158481 (Ends Oct-30-01 21:55:34 PST ) - ILM STAR WARS EP2 Attack of the Clones tshirt
That's got to be just about the most expensive t-shirt I've ever seen.

(The money is going to charity, so it's a good cause...but wow...)

Labels: starwars

Harry's thoughts on Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones
Well, yeah -- I think we're somewhat jaded these days to these titles. I'm not excited about it really either, but it is a standard serial title, certainly -- as Harry points out.

And I think there is some wisdom of having the word Clones in the title -- they were mentioned in A New Hope, after all, and since they're very topical, it dovetails very nicely. And I'm not sure if the obvious The Clone Wars makes sense, since the movie series is called Star Wars.

But still, it is a blah title. But we'll get used to it. (And I think The Phantom Menace is a good title now.)

Labels: starwars

Some Cinescape articles of note:

Babylon 5 on DVD
Yeah! And actually, I don't want them to release them to fast, I'd like to be able to digest them all. But I haven't taped the widescreen editions on the sci-fi channel because I want them on DVD.

And then Ewan McGregor slams the new Star Wars title
but with a title like Attack of the Clones, can you disagree with him? And the whole story is available here, apparently with video footage.

Labels: babylon5, starwars

Star Wars: Episode II | Special Announcement: Episode II Title
ewww. Attack of the Clones. And I like The Phantom Menace as a title....

Maybe we'll get used to it...

Labels: starwars

TheForce.Net has a tv commercial for the DVD release of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (which, to tell a dirty little secret, I actually really enjoyed.)

Labels: starwars

Star Wars: Episode I | DVD: The Wait is Over
Yeah, I'll buy it again. Actually, I think it's better than a lot of people say it is -- it's better than Jedi, actually. It's no Empire or A New Hope, and Jar Jar is a bit much.

(They don't have the pricing on amazon yet, but they will, I'm sure..)

Labels: starwars

Star Wars has been updated with a whole lot more information for the second Star Wars film. Make sure you check the site today, I think they released some information that they really didn't intend to about the second movie.

Labels: starwars

Star Wars: Episode II - News has some neat busts of the major players in the next Star Wars film, including some of the more mysterious ones... Cool!

Labels: starwars

Have a very Wookie Christmas -- I'm sorry, I actually do want this to be included when the inevitable super duper Star Wars DVD set is eventually released. It's horrible, evil, and wrong on so many levels. It's not only the worst piece of Star Wars, it's the worst piece of Star Wars theoretically possible. But as such, it really is amazing -- sort of like getting I want to spend my Christmas with a Dalek and the like.

Besides, then you'll want to see Jar Jar Binks again as an antidote....

Labels: starwars