#Ive got an r2d2 one as well

[majorproblems77]

What’s your current loungefly design?

I currently have a Grogu bag!

He is well loved.

What about you? What's your current bag?

[monsterbisexual]

sry i have to be a nerd rn the autism compels me idc lol so in no particular order:

han being just unfrozen from the carbonite n not being able to see n all sick n stuff but still v funny in the scenes at the beginning where jabba sentences em all to death n luke saying he used to live here (tatooine) n han going like "well ur gonna die here u know. convenient" w/e that means. n when he was like so how are we doing, luke says oh abt the same as always n han goes "that bad huh?" (paraphrased n theres more i forgot rn tho)

the way the ending of this trilogy is so joyful n theyre all celebrating cuz they did it they won theres hope!!!! vs ending of the prequels trilogy being like basically everythings gone to shit n its all v tragic n we as viewers who knew going into it anakin would end up darth vader somehow/sometime its inevitable n that bit ive seen from the beginning of the ROTS novelization "This story happened a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. It is already over. Nothing can be done to change it." (<= yes i googled it for the exact wording but its so !!!! n the whole intro bit ive read is rly good too it makes me kinda nuts)

ewok violence!!!!!! seriously w/out those lil teddy bear dudes i dont think they wouldve pulled off that mission n i like how many stormtroopers on speeder bikes ended up crashing into trees n exploding

c3po being so anxious n distressed at all times he just wants to chill but hes always gettin thrown into perilous situations :(

also he is gay married to r2d2

both padme before she died in ROTS n luke in this one insisting theres still good in anakin :(((( also that hes a lot like his mom n i feel things abt it in general n cuz he never got to meet her etc :(( but also that being a way bigger deal coming from luke whos only ever known his dad as vader this scary evil guy vs w padme that was her husband!! so . yea luke my special little guy :(( i also luv leia cuz im p sure she'd feel the opposite way if she was the one who was in lukes shoes n got to fight vader i think she wouldnt forgive him n i dont think she'd refuse to keep fighting him n thats also great!!! they are different <3

i kin that guy at jabbas palace who was crying when he saw luke had killed the rancor in self defense i think it was his pet his lil (big dangerous scary) buddy :(

when the ewoks are have the gang surrounded w weapons etc but they think c3po is a god n han's like hey maybe we could use this to our advantage so they dont kill us yknow n then c3po says that wouldnt be Proper n han's like. PROPER? n its cuz its against c3po's programming to impersonate a deity . obviously

leia killing jabba by strangling him w the chain he'd been using to keep her close by him literally 10/10 moment for me. #feminism (disclaimer this Is a joke)

all of R2's expressive beeps n sounds 🥰

"i am a jedi like my father before me" n how luke's compassion for this horrible villain despite everything leads to anakin finally rly fulfilling his chosen one prophecy n bringing balance to the force by killing palpatine to save his son. and yea obviously the emperor being killed is a p big deal for the rebellion n everyone overall

max rebo

so for the 40th anniversary of rotj (starred war) this yr we are getting to see it in theaters actually which is exciting for me n my younger brother was tellin me he watched esb aka the previous movie last night to get ready for today n i jokingly was like "remind me how that ones goes again?" cuz itd been a min since id seen it n he just started giving me like a genuine play by play starting w the 1st scene it was so funny i luv him.. star wars autism runs in the family <3 (hes probs not but his encyclopedic knowledge is even more insane than mine cuz he Remembers everything n also that movie he was tellin me abt is his super fav one i think)

[atopfourthwall]

Ive only recently gotten into classic Star Trek so I don't think I can properly answer but what is it specifically about Discovery and recent Star Trek that classic Trek fans hate?

Putting this behind a cut because... it's a lot.

Well, first of all a big rejection of it is just on an aesthetic level. Up until the 2009 movie (which was considered a reboot, even with time travel elements), Star Trek tried to treat the original series and how it was portrayed as pretty sacrosanct. Sure, they might occasionally make jokes about goofier aspects of it and discard some of the stupider stuff (like how in the final episode, penned by Gene Roddenberry himself, that women weren't allowed to Captain starships), but how TOS looked? That's how the 23rd century looked. Buttons and multi-colored outfits and boxy computers and smooth, undetailed ships WAS what was appropriate for the time. When Scotty came back in TNG, they had him on the holodeck and it was the TOS bridge. When DS9 traveled back in time to that era for an episode? They went onto the Enterprise and visited it. When in an Enterprise 2-parter we had a TOS-era ship? It looked like a TOS ship. They even did a 2-parter on Enterprise to explain why Klingons had smooth foreheads when later (and earlier) they didn't. Star Trek up until then cared about maintaining that continuity of appearance. But Discovery is set in the TOS era... but nothing looks like TOS. Even when we got the Enterprise and those uniforms and we saw inside the ship, it was an upgraded form. The only logic I've seen people try to argue about WHY it doesn't look like it actually did was "Well, audiences won't accept something as cheap as TOS being futuristic." Well, then you've got a few responses there: -Don't set in TOS era, then. -That's horseshit, because audiences from the 90s through the 2000s accepted it just fine. Even a piece of dialogue from DS9 explained it perfectly: "I LOVE 23rd century design." It LOOKS cheap, but it was just the aesthetics of the period. And the Enterprise 2-parter it still looked good in HD. Hell, arguably it looked BETTER in HD because they knew how to light it and create mood and its own unique flavor. -It's even more horseshit because people are STILL going back and watching it even today, as indicated by you saying you've started watching it, so clearly it's not that much of a barrier. But what's even more egregious is the TECHNOLOGY. You might be able to accept updated aesthetics if at least matches what was present during the period... and it doesn't. Holographic displays and communication (holodeck technology AT ALL, frankly - it's possible it was there, but TNG seemed pretty adamant that the holodecks were fairly new, very impressive technology), weapons not looking or acting like they traditionally did, Enterprise and Discovery having R2D2-style repair droids that certainly did not exist in TOS, the wrong sound effects being frequently employed, replicator technology for good-looking food instead of food dispensers that gave out marshmallows and cubes, and honestly the tech level shown in Discovery looks just as advanced - if not MORE advanced than seen on TNG 100 years later. And this is a minor thing, but despite the attempt to make the future LOOK futuristic, from a cultural perspective, the future looks... way too damn similar to now. The excessive swearing (it was said in particular in Star Trek 4 that while they certainly did cuss, it was less common and they sure as hell weren't dropping F-bombs), a party on Discovery that looked like a rave (when previously it seemed like the most popular music and culture of the 23rd/24th century was considered fairly high-brow entertainment [classical music, Shakespeare, great works of literature and plays, etc.] - and while you could certainly argue that that snootiness and love of that stuff is a problem with Star Trek and a sign of how sterile and homogenized it is, THAT is the future they presented and a character in Voyager loving some of the goofier parts of 20th century culture like jukeboxes and old sci-fi serials was considered unusual), and just the general way people talk betrays the idea that the writers aren't thinking about how society changes in the future. It's just the modern day, but with cooler technology. But hey, let's set aside the general aesthetics - some people aren't going to mind that and find

ways to handwave away a lot of stuff (even Discovery season 2 TRIED to handwave away stuff like the holographic communications, but did a piss-poor job of it). This brings us to the problem of the WRITING. And the problem with the writing is a big Michael Burnham-shaped indentation. To be clear, I don't mind Michael as a character or her actress - there are interesting aspects to her, centering a Star Trek show around the science officer is a neat idea (though that means you should probably NAME IT AFTER HER and not around the ship, because it suggests this is a standard ensemble group and not JUST her)... but the actual execution is that it feels like the entire universe bends over backwards for HER. She has a unique relationship with a beloved longtime character that is retconned in. She has unique relationships with several important characters to the point where the fate of billions of people hinges on her and the decisions she makes. She is presented as almost always correct about everything, and those that oppose her are often wrong, naïve, or active enemies. Now, this is less of an issue in the third season - but that has its own unique problems - but in the first season, the resolution of two major storylines (mirror universe and the Klingon war) revolves around her and her relationship to the Terran Emperor and Lorca. In season 2, her mother trying to help or save her is the basis of the ENTIRE friggin' plot with time travel and the like, with special knowledge and history having to do with her and everyone ready to abandon their lives for her so she won't be alone when she has to go to the future when arguably they barely know her (the timeline of the show is debatable). Season 3 has a few different problems with her - the first is that she keeps being involved in things that don't concern her (why is she going down to Trill?) and she keeps violating orders. Now, her violating orders is a problem throughout the entirety of Discovery - in fact, it's kind of the instigating factor OF the series. And arguably, other Star Trek characters are guilty of that and they face no consequences, just as she faces none... and yet it's the brazenness with which it happens, and in those other series it's arguable because the series tries to avoid excessive continuity changes for its episodic nature, so the status quo MUST return to normal... but Discovery is pivoted as one of MAJOR continuity, so her lack of consequences (and indeed eventual PROMOTION) is baffling to the point of frustration. Now again, let me be clear here - she is not a bad character in and of herself. Honestly what it shows is that being the science officer on a starship is not where her talents lie. She should be in a position where she has a lot more freedom to act and not in a major command structure... but being in that command structure, what we see in season 3 is that she lacks the discipline, emotional maturity, responsibility, leadership qualities, and general other traits necessary to be a Captain. Only once during season 3 did she display such a quality - putting the safety of the Federation above a friend and colleague... but other times she will happily disobey orders and put herself and others in harm's way, creating potential new problems. Now, again, Star Trek is rife with characters doing that... but usually not the Captains. And, in fact, when this happened once on DS9 with one officer disobeying orders and putting their own personal feelings above the greater responsibility, it was made VERY clear that the incident would mean that they would never be able to command a starship because of the unofficial reprimand. What's even more frustrating about her is that the character is ALWAYS shoved to the forefront so much to the point where we just get sick of her. SHE is the one giving log entries (usually pretty piss-poor ones, at that - very flowery and nonsensical and kind of dumb) and not the Captain. SHE is the one given so much focus and how the plot of the episode affects her. Barely anyone else gets any focus episodes - I STILL can't

remember the names of some of the secondary characters because they're so rarely said, and a PTSD-related plotline in season 3 for one of the secondary characters basically gets resolved OFF-SCREEN. Michael would be fine if we actually had a chance to miss her... but we never do. Arguably one of the best episodes of the show is in season 2, when it focuses on Saru and his people because Michael DOES take a back seat. It's his story and his development and problems relating to him and his people. And even if, again, we forgave the idea of so much focus on her even in plots that aren't about her... she never seems to really change that much. She'll TALK about how she's changed, but I see no real difference in the way she acts (MAYBE season 1 to 2, where in season 1 she was stiffer and more Vulcan-like, but that's it). But hey, let's assume that's not a problem for you - you really, REALLY like Michael and are fine with so much focus on her. Simply put, the writing of the rest of the show... is just kind of dumb. The ship is powered by magic mushrooms that let it teleport everywhere because the universe has super fungus capillaries throughout it that nobody can see and also it's magic and can resurrect the dead. The time travel plot of season 2 doesn't make any sense when you sit down and diagram it. Well-established Trek lore is just kind of sprinkled in, but now in ways that doesn't match what it was before or at least in ways that completely recolor how it's supposed to work, because it needs to serve THIS plot. Everyone remembering a murdererous monster fondly after she leaves because "Hey, she was coooool." The explanation for the big mystery in season 3 is just fricking stupid and one of the two big reasons why I've finally given up on Discovery, because it's just so absurd, doesn't match how anything works, and just feels like the writers giving the middle finger to the audience because they care more about "YOU MUST FEEEEEEL THINGS!" instead of it making sense. And indeed, there is certainly a balance to be made of plot vs. emotion-driven storytelling - some stories are dumb, but are forgivable because the character writing and emotion are so strong that they override how goofy the plot is... but sometimes a plot is just so dumb it overrides anything I'm SUPPOSED to feel. And it would help if I already liked the show, already gave it some benefit of the doubt... but I don't and it hasn't done enough to impress me. A little thing that's a problem with ALL of current modern Trek shows is that whole sprinkling lore thing - I don't think a single episode goes by in ANY current modern Trek series that doesn't have a random reference to classic Trek lore. A name, a line of dialogue, etc. It comes across like the creators don't trust you to enjoy it on its own merits, but want you to like it because "Hey, remember thing? We know about thing! Like us because we mentioned thing!" But hey, I recognize that these are things that other people may not have any problem with or just disagree in general. But for me and my family, these are the big ones that keep us from enjoying it. Hell, my brother and dad still watch it for hatewatching purposes, but I was done after season 3. I gave it plenty of chances to impress me, and while each season MARGINALLY got better as it went along, I'm tired of waiting to actually like it and to stop feeling like it thinks I'm a fucking idiot. If other people still like it, great - it clearly appeals to them in a way that it doesn't appeal to me and they are free to enjoy it. Other people probably have their own issues, but this long, rambly bit is the major stuff for me.

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

Re: Star Wars prequel novelizations - the Revenge of the Sith book is genuinely one of the best things I have ever read and changed my life.

THANK YOU, anon, for reminding me about the Revenge of the Sith novelization.  I just reread it, and my crops are watered, my skin is clear, and — I cannot overstate this — I actually remember why I love Star Wars.  That love has been for too long stolen by The Fandom Menace sucking the life out of those movies to invent a new definition of suffering while digesting them slowly over a thousand years.

Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Stover is one of the greatest works of adventure fiction I have ever read, and it continues to inspire the way I write action sequences and character conflicts.  It does so damn much to transform a movie that is, to be honest, just okay.  There are a couple of big additions from the novel that make the whole Skywalker saga richer, and there are about five hundred little tweaks that deepen the lore in a way that shows that Stover loves Star Wars to the core.

First big addition: having Obi-Wan tell Padmé that he’s in love with Anakin. This is great because yay, queer representation!  But within the specific context of RotS, it also sets up the super-important contrast between Obi-Wan and Anakin.  Obi-Wan, Stover’s novel makes clear, is the quiet and unassuming embodiment of everything a Jedi is supposed to be: he’s selfless, loving, hard-working, and incredibly skilled with the Force.  Obi-Wan falls in love with Anakin, realizes that Anakin doesn’t love him back in that way, and... lives with it.  He spends time with Anakin, supports Anakin, enjoys Anakin’s company, and doesn’t act like the world will end if Anakin isn’t his.

Anakin loves Obi-Wan, in a siblinglike way, and he loves Padmé.  But he’s got a nasty habit of expressing that love through possession and control, through going behind Padmé’s back to “fix” her life without her permission.  Anakin falls in love with Padmé and immediately concludes that he cannot possibly live like this: they must begin a secret relationship, and he must both marry her and remain a Jedi.  Later he destroys the Jedi and eventually Padmé herself because he sees himself as having no way out of that dilemma.

And all the while, Obi-Wan is there in the background.  Also in love with someone with whom he cannot have a relationship, and just… dealing with it like an adult.  Because millions of people are in love with people who don’t love them back, and that’s just how it is sometimes.  It’s selfish to obsess over “having” their love at all costs.  For Anakin, that obsession with saving Obi-Wan and Padmé eventually leads to him killing them both.

When Yoda tells Anakin that he must deal with his fear of losing Padmé through letting go, Anakin takes this to mean “let her die.”  But what Yoda means is not “let her die,” but rather “love her the way Obi-Wan loves you: quietly, selflessly, and with a willingness to do what’s best for her, whether or not that means you get to have her.”  And Anakin never understands that, because Anakin’s view of the world is so intensely egocentric.

Second big addition: updating the Force to explain the Dark Side. Revenge of the Sith, even more so than any other Star Wars, is all about the contrast between the Dark Side and the Light Side.  Here, Stover’s contribution is brilliant; he makes the Dark Side egocentric and the Light allocentric.

Terminology! “Egocentric” in psych refers to the perspective that focuses on how the world affects you and how you affect the world.  At the extreme, egocentric thinking can be believing that a baby is crying in a deliberate effort to annoy you, or that every person in a crowded cafeteria will remember what shirt you wore when you ate there a week ago.  “Allocentric” refers to the perspective that the self is one of several disparate elements buffered around by the world.  At the extreme, allocentric thinking can be failing to realize that others are reacting to your presence, or viewing your own life as one thing you can give to help others.

Stover doesn’t use those terms, but he does describe how Dooku “drew power into his innermost being until the Force itself existed only to serve his will” (p. 64).  Later, Obi-Wan “gave himself to the living Force… the Force moved him, let him collapse as though he’d suddenly fainted, then it brought his lightsaber from his belt to his hand” (p. 285).  Dooku ultimately loses his fight against Anakin because he focuses on how everyone is responding to him, and misses that Anakin and Palpatine are beginning to build an alternate alliance right under his nose.  Obi-Wan ultimately wins his fight against Anakin because he allows the Force to shove him around, and sets aside his concern with both his own life and that of his best friend while fighting for the greater goal of peace.

Not only that, but Obi-Wan’s understanding of the Force moves beyond that of most Jedi.  He compares “the will of the Force” to “the will of gravity,” in essence stating that simply because it is beyond human comprehension doesn’t mean it doesn’t have its own rules.  One can be a Jedi without needing to understand the Force in the same way one can be a pilot without needing to be a physicist.  In RotS, we see that his refrain of “search your feelings” is a way of calling on a Force user to be mindful enough to accept realities that are already evident, if one can only allow oneself to have that knowledge.

Stover also uses these competing perspectives — allocentric and egocentric — to explain why the Jedi Order falls.  The tight control the Order exerts over the Jedi moves them away from the will of the Force and toward the will of the Council.  Its insularity creates a sense of superiority, which is the reason so many Jedi fail to see their clone troopers as threats until it’s too late. Stover tweaks the Jedi Purge scene to emphasize that the only reason Obi-Wan and Yoda survive is because of their selflessness.  Obi-Wan takes the time to befriend his alien mount, repeatedly confirming her well-being, and then she shields him with her body when his troopers open fire.  Yoda respects the Wookie command and puts himself in a position to assist rather than lead the resistance movement on Kashyyyk, meaning that when a fight breaks out between him and his troopers the Wookies don’t hesitate to side with him.  Yoda and Obi-Wan are the only two Jedi who truly give themselves to the service of others, and thus they are the only two to survive the Purge.

...and the million little favors this book does for the movie.

During the opening battle, having Obi-Wan tell Anakin to “use the Force” to fly a narrow trench and having Anakin roll his eyes at such an obvious suggestion.  It’s a callback to A New Hope, but one that drives home how much more the Force is integrated in the lives of Old Republic Jedi than it is in the lives of Imperial kids like Luke.

Fixing the minor continuity error from Episode III to Episode IV — why would Admiral Motti dismiss Vader as following outdated superstitions if there were millions of Jedi within his lifetime? — by explicitly stating that the Sith are considered a dead culture.  Ergo, Vader’s “ancient religion” isn’t the Force in general; it’s specifically the Sith creed.

Making Palpatine scarier and more seductive than he is in the movie.  Stover’s rhetoric about killing even the Jedi children is frighteningly rational and coherent, and he uses it to give Palpatine some stomach-churning speeches while corrupting Anakin.

Using the novel format for all it’s worth.  Stover skims over the physical-comedy elevator sequence in favor of having Dooku and Palpatine discussing their plans for the war.  He only tells us about Anakin’s conversation with Yoda after the fact, in scattered flashes as a panicking Anakin runs through the halls of the Jedi temple.  He gives us intense focus on Anakin’s mindset while trying to land the broken halves of Invisible Hand, less on what the ship itself is doing.  He cuts away from Anakin and Obi-Wan’s final battle, toward R2D2 and C3PO as they struggle to drag a dying Padmé into her ship out of a desperation to find some small way to help her.

Revealing that Palpatine spends the entire story trying to kill Obi-Wan.  This gets hinted at in the movie, but Stover includes several moments throughout Palpatine’s “rescue” from Dooku when Palpatine sets Obi-Wan up to die, and mentions like eight other attempts on Obi-Wan’s life as orchestrated by Palpatine.  It’s a great character addition, that Palpatine assumes he cannot get Anakin to fall unless he first eliminates Obi-Wan.

Expanding Padmé’s role in the movie (set dressing, and later refrigerator filling) by having her secretly organize and launch the Rebel Alliance right under Vader and Palpatine’s noses.

Those are just examples of how Stover clearly knows the Force, gets the Force, and strives to make the Force more internally coherent.  How he sometimes translates, sometimes preserves, and always improves the pacing and tone of the film.

I haven’t even touched on the FUCKING AMAZEBALLS imagery or introspection in the book yet, but this post is getting wicked long, so I’ll go ahead and leave it here for now.  Point is, all y’all should go out immediately and get a copy from your library and/or used bookstore, because Nonny is right and it’ll change your life.

[dokoni-mo]

[MAJOR SPOILERS FOR JEDI: FALLEN ORDER, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE GO PLAY IT IF YOU HAVEN'T I WILL GET ON MY KNEES AND BEG]

(also I apologize for the lengthy post wh o o ps)

Been replaying Fallen Order because of my obvious Star Wars hyperfixation and can I just rant a lil bit?

I have barely played any other Star Wars games (aside from both Force Unleashed games and Battlefront II), but Fallen Order is definitely one of the most powerful narratives I've seen in a video game. Plus, Cal is my favorite Jedi and BD-1 is my favorite droid in all of Star Wars, all you R2D2 and C3PO stans can come at me because I WILL F I G H T .

I just got past the Ilum section and have only 2 more sections to go to until Fortress Inquisitorius where I can see our evil space wizard husband <33 THEY DID VADER SO WELL IN FALLEN ORDER I CANNOT EVEN, One of his best appearances in all of SW Media. I remember playing through the first time and witnessing how the game went from Action/Adventure to Sci-fi horror in the span of 0.5 seconds all while screeching because-- I mean It's Vader. I love him so much. Oh my god. 11/10 would let that man force choke me any day (sorry not sorry Cal).

He scary tho.

-🐬

ITS BEEN A LONG PERIODICALLY TIME SINCE IVE PLAYED FALLEN ORDER BUT YOURE ABOSLUTELY RIGHT and i heard cal is gonna be in live action soon too?? LIKE HE REALLY DESERVES IT AND IF THEY DONT SHOW HIM WITH BD-1 I AM GOING TO RIOT IN THE STREETS,,, as much as i love the story of fallen order i just wish they did some of the level different like the one with those turning things made me so MAD UGH but then again im shit at video games so LMFAOOOO

BUT THEY REALLY DID DO OUR EMO HUSBAND SO WELL IN THAT GAME BECAUSE LIKE,,, THEY MADE HIM SO SCARY BUT SO HOT AT THE SAME TIME LIKE THE POWER HE HAS PLSSS LORDDDDDD 🚶‍♂️🚶‍♂️🚶‍♂️🚶‍♂️🚶‍♂️

[jasontoddiefor]

Title: Mouse Droids and How To Fix Them – A Quick And Easy Guide [Livestream] Summary: Luke has a Space Youtube Channel and Leia watches his videos to de-stress from a terrible day. Mouse droids are named and the Empire and its terrible quality are dragged through the sarlacc pit. AN: Anyway, did somebody said TIE-Fighter story prequel? No? Too bad.

Leia was a well-composed and well-behaved serene princess right up until the doors of her rooms closed behind her. The moment she was out of sight, she kicked off her shoes with such a force that they soared half across the room and crashed against her wardrobe with a loud crack. She took the pins keeping her braids in place out of her hair and threw them onto the dresser. Then as graceless as a regular fifteen-year-old girl, Leia dropped onto her bed and screamed into her pillow.

Today had been terrible.

Leia hated all the pointless festivities that only ever served to make everyone there feel important and powerful but did absolutely nothing for the people they were supposed to govern. She couldn’t understand how her parents managed it. They were good and selfless people, always calm and serene even when the newest governor was basically spitting one insult after the other at them. Leia always wanted to shout back, it was her first instinct. Idiots who couldn’t be bothered to contribute anything productive or kind, should shut up and stop hindering others from doing their job. Leia had kept her mouth shut of course. She had smiled pleasantly as her mother had taught her and acted as expected from her.

But that didn’t mean that she hadn’t wanted to strip the gloves off her hands and show him how much of a bloodthirsty royal she really was. She shouldn’t have desired it, but it annoyed her so much when others purposefully misunderstood her. It had been a year since she picked her coronation color. When would people finally stop commenting on it?

Yes! Princess Leia Organa had chosen white! She’d forgone five-hundred-years of tradition and picked the color of the snow on Alderaan’s mountains, of ice so cold it burned, of the sheets upon which they wrote the names of their dead.

Leia wore the color of war, mourning and remembrance and she wore it well.

How could she not when the Empire was murdering innocents, subjugating whole worlds and waging an unjust war? Picking green or blue would be an insult upon the suffering she had been forced to witness. She didn’t want to be remembered as another impassive royal, bowing to the whims of the Empire. Leia hadn’t been meant to live in a tyrannizing Empire in which she had to watch her every word and step. She wanted to speak her mind and missed the Republic she never got to experience.

Her parents, while displeased she out herself in such danger, had understood it. Most Alderaanians understood it and supported her, but not that stupid new governor. Instead, he went on and on about her image and character flaws – and worse! Talked about marriage.

Leia was already dead set on staying unmarried. Her parents had been lucky. Despite their marriage being arranged, they’d loved each other. Or maybe they had been in love first and the political advantage of the marriage was just a bonus. Leia didn’t entirely know, but she knew to one hundred percent that all her potential Alderaani suitors sucked. They were arrogant and petty or worse, both of that but way older than her as well. She could marry somebody from a different planet, but the Old Houses would frown upon that and then she’d have to deal with more in-fighting and risk losing control of Alderaan’s society and give the Empire even more access to her planet. It was bad enough as it was.

Groaning, Leia rolled onto her back and got up from her bed again. She’d hate herself in the morning if she didn’t dress out of the fine robes completely. She fetched herself her sleeping clothes and washed the make-up off her face. It felt like taking off uncomfortable armor and she was more than glad to get rid of it. Leia didn’t mind dressing up. As a child, she had loved trying on her parents’ much too large clothes and she still loved picking out dresses together with her mother, but sometimes she wished it all wouldn’t take so much energy.

Redressed, Leia returned to her bed, ready to pretend to fall asleep when she knew that she wouldn’t be able to close her eyes now. Her mind was too unfocused, her thoughts all jumbled up. She laid still and waited until another moment had passed before reaching for her bed stand and pulling out her secret private comm.

Leia had three of them. One for official business, one was the officially private secret comm – the one every important person in the galaxy was supposed to have and hide – and then there was her own, which she used to stay up-to-date with activities unbefitting on an Imperial princess.

She checked the holonet, skimming through articles that made her blood boil and delightfully bright art that called for resistance. She was pleased to notice that more and more Alderaani artists were choosing lighter colors in their barely legal paintings and downright joyful when she saw an account post images of white flags. Those posts would probably be taken down once the meaning behind them spread a little more, but Leia was proud nonetheless. She had caused this, this was her contribution to the Rebellion.

In a better mood already, Leia went through her notifications. She had a few replies to articles she had written and- oh.

 [Notification: Scrap Hunting has started a livestream – 1 Min ago]

Smiling widely, Leia clicked on the link connecting her to the video. The livestream had indeed only started recently, and not even properly. Leia had missed the last one sadly because she’d been in the Core, too far away for Scrap Hunting’s terrible holonet connection to reach. Alderaan was just close enough to Tatooine for Leia to watch them.

She couldn’t quite recall how she had stumbled upon the channel. She had just been clicking through some random videos one day and there it had been. Leia wasn’t all that knowledgeable about ships – her parents had kept a keen eye on her since the Speeder accident she’d had when she was ten – and didn’t really have much access to the hangers either. Droids, on the other hand, Leia knew plenty about. They were everywhere and nobody wanted to live without them, which made them the perfect spies with the right adjustments. Leia knew how to wipe a droid’s memory so clean, it was shinier than any crystal and how to hide protocols upon protocols in their storage. Her favorite droids were C-3PO and the R2D2 unite serving on the Tantive IV. Artoo especially had a lot of personality. Leia needed to sort out her Binary so she could catch all the colorful curses the astromech liked to inflict on people.

The two boys running Scrap Hunting – well, only really Luke actually – were sympathetic. They didn’t talk about droids like they were simple tools and they were proficient in fixing them up. Therefore Leia was very pleased to see that the title of the livestream was Mouse Droids and How To Fix Them – A Quick And Easy Guide. This would be fun, the right kind of distracting noise she needed after such a long day.

X

“Alright, we’re all set up now,” Luke said. “Hello everybody! I’m Luke and welcome to another episode of Scrap Hunting!”

He waved at the recorder and then picked up a small back droid from his table. “This is what today’s livestream will be about! An MSE-series droid! A lot of you guys said you’d like more livestreams and the weather’s been pretty good recently and I fixed the signals so I hope this works out just fine.”

Luke smiled and reached for the first tool lying in front of him. “I decided that fixing up this little guy here should be fine for a shorter video. I don’t have to think so much about what I’m doing and can talk at the same time.”

He began taking off the outer casing of the droid and carefully set it aside. “I know, I know, I’m always talking, but nobody complains about it.” Luke stopped spinning his wrench for a moment to think. “Okay, alright, maybe my uncle complains about it sometimes but that’s what he gets for making me check all the vaporators on my own. Anyway, I talk a lot and so does this chat. Lots of people joining in here! Hi!”

Luke looked through the chat, returned greetings and explained how he had gotten the droid as payment for helping out in a repair shop.

“And I know the owner thought he was just giving me so boring little plaything, but do you know how versatile these MSE droids are?”

X

Leia definitely knew how useful they could be. She grinned when Luke comically shook his head when people began sending in question marks and began belittling the tiny Mouse droids. They made excellent spies, infiltrators and guides. Underestimating them just because they were cute was fatal. Leia was happy when Luke reacted as outraged as she was and began elaborating on what the droids could be used for.

X

“And like, I get sending the droids back when they trigger your instincts, I wouldn’t keep around a droid that reminds me of a womp rat or a krayt dragon.” Luke paused, the half-open mouse droid lying on his lap, and apparently considered his suggestions.

“Okay, maybe I would actually want them. Could you imagine a droid krayt dragon? So cool.”

Luke reached for the nearest datapad and took a few notes, then put it next to him on the table and returned to working on the MSE.

“But yeah, point being: Why did the Aar’aa sell them to the Empire so cheaply? Add some extra software and boom, you can sell them for twice the price. Then you’d even make a bonus. Oh, well, I suppose the Empire at least made a good deal there.”

The MSE droid laid bare now and Luke could easily access its memory. He took his datapad once more and connected it to the droid. After a few seconds, he had access to its memory and immediately frowned.

“Or it did not. What is this programming? I researched what I could find before, downloaded some protocols-“ Luke looked away from his datapad to point down, “-links in the description as always. But just- honestly. Who wrote this protocol?”

He gently knocked his head against the droid’s frame. “I’m so sorry, don’t worry, I’ll speed up your processors.”

X

The next hour, Leia spent listening to Luke ramble on about what changes he made and why. Once or twice she even threw her own suggestions in the chat and watched contently as Luke picked up on them and began to work with them. She wished she didn’t have so many duties and could spend her days doing things she actually wanted, take a more active role in the rebellion. But she supposed that as long as she could escape annoying politicians for a while, she’d be fine.

Leia glanced at her chrono. While it appeared to be midday still on Tatooine, it was already early morning for her. She should head to sleep soon.

Thankfully, the livestream was also wrapping up. Luke had reassembled the droid and screwed the last bolt down.

 “And done!” Luke said and helped up the repaired Mouse droid. “A Quick And Easy Guide to Mouse Droids. Now, the only thing left is repainting and naming it. Same rules as always, highest donator gets to choose the color and the name.”

Leia watched as a lot of people began donating. Some just threw in five credits, just to support the channel. She’d done so before as well. It was only right to help somebody else and give him a thanks after cheering her up. Leia typed the first one, then stopped.

She was tired, had been for at least thirty minutes now, but her mind was finally calm as well. She was still and upset, but not so that she wouldn’t be able to sleep.

Leia shouldn’t waste her allowance on this, but Leia had also had a terrible horrible no-good day and wanted to name that Mouse Droid.

X

“And that was it!” Luke announced. “Many thanks for all your donations. I’ll keep you posted on what my next project will be. Hopefully something a little more interesting than this little buddy here. Now let’s see… The highest donation is one- one thousand credits from @rebelroyal!?”

Luke’s voice was awfully high-pitched, shock visible all over his face. “Is this real- oh gosh. Thank you so, so much! I’m not sure- Many thanks for supporting this channel! You may name any future Mouse Droids I come across, oh Force. Right. Uhm. What is your suggestion?”

Leia eyes her discarded white dress on the floor and chose.

X

History’s eyes on you @ rebelroyal

Paint it white and name it Emmy! Many thanks for all the lovely content you provide.

Little Emmy, it turned out, look much better in white than it did in the awful black so representative for the Empire.

X

[Notification: Twin Suns @skyseekerpilot has mentioned you in a new post]

Twin Suns @skyseekerpilot

I have adopted 4 more mouse droids to keep our ship clean!

Twin Suns @skyseekerpilot

[Foto: Five Mouse Droids standing in front of Luke, who was sitting on the ground, smiling cheerfully. The droid in the middle was Emmy. It was a little banged up and had a couple more scratches. On its right were an orange and a blue droid, freshly painted from the looks of it. On Emmy’s left were two black ones]

@ rebelroyal The orange and blue ones have been painted and named already, care to do the honors for the other two?

X

Leia smiled fondly at the picture and began to type.

History’s eyes on you @ rebelroyal

How about yellow and green? Benny and Penny so it rhymes?

Twin Suns @skyseekerpilot

Done :D

[Foto: The two previously black mouse droids have been painted as well and are furiously cleaning the floor of a ship]

[peanutworm]

I was tagged by @trouble-connecting

Sorry this took me so long but i realized i traffic more in comfort tv shows than comfort movies ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Top 7 comfort movies

Literally almost any scooby doo movie

Ive loved scooby doo since forever. I know way too much about it as well. So if you ever need to know random scooby doo trivia hmu

The prince of egypt

If you havent seen this movie, you need to. Its got absolutely beautiful animation and music, ive loved it since i was a kid and ive watched it at (the VERY) least once a year

101 Dalmations

I adore this movie so much. I just love it. The music, the story, the animation, nanny saying “YA BIG LONG-LEGGED LUMMOX” ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Phantom of the Opera

While its not exactly a “comforting” movie i do watch this one a lot. I had to out it on the list after i realized i not only know all the songs but i have almost all the dialogue memorized somehow.

Star wars

R2D2 is my patronus. (Fyi: I havent seen 8 or 9 yet and i feel like i should plan to keep it that way)

101 dalmations 2 patch’s london adventure

Yet another movie ive loved since i was a kid. Thanks to my bro paying for disney+ i got to watch it again and AGAIN REALIZED I KNOW SO MUCH OF THE DIALOGUE?! Its a really stupid and hilarious movie tho imo and i love it so much.

Rocky Horror Picture show

Theres actually a weird backstory to how i learned Time Warp before i even knew RHPS existed. But im not gonna get into that bc it gets slightly complicated. After watching it the first time though, i was completely bamboozled by how FREAKIN bizarre it is and yet i continue to watch it. The music just gets me, bruh.

Ima tagggg @vaguelyethereal @existencialvoidofexistence @givememyhatbackyourabbit @katthedemonslayer @foofyschmoofer

You dont gotta do it if you dont wanna but i love yall and i like hearin from ya

[lajulie24]

Star Wars modern teacher AU: brainstorming part 2

Earlier today I put out the call for ideas for a Star Wars modern AU in which Han, Leia, and Luke are all teachers at a high school/secondary school/whatever you call the school before university where you are. Check out the original post here if you’re interested.

I knew I could count on y’all for some great ideas! And you inspired some additional thoughts I had as well. Thanks to @jainadurron, @luv15, @elliesfandoms, @amilynh, and @cicfics for all the great stuff thus far. I’ll try to summarize your ideas and add a few of my own here, and we can keep the convo going in the notes. (Mostly we’re having fun, but maybe some of us will be inspired to do some kind of fic, moodboard, or fanart from this?) And if you have other ideas (including ideas about other characters, situations, etc) please throw ‘em in -- definitely not too late to join in.

Character assignments:

Leia Organa: My first thought was Leia as English/literature teacher, although several other folks proposed that she could make a great Government/Civics/History teacher as well. I agree with @jainadurron that she gives off English teacher vibes--and then I had a thought: she’s the literature teacher, but she ALSO teaches speech and debate, and she’s the debate coach.

Han Solo: I had Han as the new shop teacher, and several folks suggested that he teach auto mechanics and/or have another job as well, like being a coach of one of the teams.

Luke Skywalker: Originally I had Luke as the music teacher or the band instructor (although I wasn’t completely certain about that), but we had lots of other good ideas too. @luv15 suggested that he’d make a great guidance counselor. @cicfics requested he be the drama teacher so that we could get into school productions. @jainadurron suggested arts of some sort, or maybe philosophy.

Lando Calrissian/ the Rogues: @elliesfandoms said “Lando is maybe he same subject teacher as Han, but at a nearby school? And the Rogues are obviously the various sports team coaches.” I love the idea of Lando as a teacher at another school, but maybe a subject slightly closer to Leia’s? Like, maybe he used to teach shop but then he got into some other stuff? Or he’s a science teacher of some sort? Remember, he’s all respectable now.

Bail Organa: According to @amilynh, he used to be on the school board. (What happened? Was he recalled or something?)

The Dark Side/The Bad Guys: Several people suggested Vader and Palpatine as the evil superintendent or evil principal and evil superintendent. @cicfics pointed out that Palpatine would for sure ban books, and I totally agree with that.

Scenarios:

From @jainadurron: I first thought of a scenario that forces Han and Leia together was actually something they staff did at my school. Teachers had to go to various classrooms throughout the year to watch how other teachers worked, so they’d just survey a part of someone’s class and take notes. With your specific description of Han being the kind of teacher who gets along with the rough kids, maybe Leia takes note of how great So-and-So does in Mr. Solo’s shop class and how hard he works. Why can’t he just work that hard in English? Macbeth is not that boring! Anyway. So, maybe Leia is just trying to figure out how Han works with these kids or something like that.

Another suggestion from her: Maybe Mon Mothma is the principal and Vader or Palpatine the superintendent. The Superintendent is proposing budget cuts and Luke’s class is in jeopardy of being cut.

From @amilynh, a suggestion that Han’s a coach and keeps having kids leave Leia’s class early because of games or practice, which puts them at odds.

Some ideas you helped spark:

The Millennium Falcon is Han’s car, of course, and per usual, it’s a hunk of junk that has been souped up for high performance. Since Han’s a new teacher, the first day his car gets towed from the teacher’s lot because someone (Leia?) thinks that car obviously belongs to a student and is tired of them taking up all the teacher spots. Kenobi helps straighten things out and get Han’s car back. (I haven’t decided whether Kenobi is a fellow teacher or vice principal who got demoted by Palpatine or what.)

Han and Leia meet when her car, the Tantive IV (or maybe that’s the make and model of the car?) breaks down in the teacher’s parking lot right before an important meeting. So he offers to take her in the Falcon. (Also he teaches her something about auto repair or something? I’m not sure.) Maybe it’s a school board meeting?

Threepio is a fellow teacher who has a bad habit of interrupting things at private moments.

R2D2 is the custodian whom people forget is there, but who secretly knows all kind of dirt about people at the school, and has keys to everything. (Kind of like the custodian in The Breakfast Club.)

Maybe the big conflict has something to do with Leia’s speech and debate team? Or Palpatine is cutting arts funding to the entire school and is on a tear to ban books?

I had another idea involving some of the teachers having a Book Club, and Han doesn’t think he wants to join, but at the last minute he decides to come and gets a new outlook on literature (also, to his surprise Lando is in this book club and he had no idea that Lando knew Leia).

What’s Chewie doing in this AU? (I would prefer not to make him Han’s dog, but an actual human along with everyone else.)

Okay, y’all. Ideas, round 2. Hit me with more of the good stuff. Anyone can play (and I’m totally open to there being some EU/Legends stuff in here if we want to throw that in as well, or some Rebels or other stuff if you want to add more characters, or other ideas you have).                                          

[goddamnmuses-a]

Dan Watches: Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope

Alright so I did this for Episode I which you can find here and then Episode II which you can find here and then Episode III which you can find here. So here’s my weird live reaction/note taking/whatever this is.. to Episode lV.

I remember this being my favourite of the original trilogy because it sets everything up and basically kick started everything but lets see if that changes when i’ve finally got through all of these. 

Also I’m just watching whatever version i can find online because I can’t be bothered to go and find my dvd of it so yeah.. whether we get weird updated version or original effects or whatever, who knows. 

All the old effects like how C3p0 looks and r2d2 are impressive. 

There wasn’t really anything in the opening crawl i felt like commenting on, no big THEY DID THAT IN THE OPENING? but i guess it’s the first one that came out so that makes sense. 

WTF did the stormtroopers use to get that door open, that was so explosive wtf.

Also the blasters are like set to 10000 and smoke is everywhere. 

How did nobody shoot the dorids?

Yooo little Ani nice suit my dude. 

Hold on, she sent a msg with r2 to go to Obiwan which for 1 howd she know he’s alive? I’m gonna presume her dad said or something and 2.. ..why not just.. go yourself? 

So when they’re set to stun a Stormtrooper can shoot someone no problem

Also we dont get enough stun weird circle blaster shots

Ohhhh she didnt go because the scan for lifeforms thing alright ill allow it

but my dude.. even so.. maybe just shoot it just in case? like.. droids exist and people know about them?

DARTH VADERS LITTLE HANDS ON HIPS! Omfg he’s like “God damn, this bitch again.”

This Vader is a sassy boy. 

I love this guy who works with Vader and doesnt mind chatting back to him. 

Loving the droids in the desert. 

R2 does not look like it would work in a desert. 

C3 like “He tricked me into going this way” stop being a lil bich. 

WOOTINI!

The crawler thingy is badass. 

I thought that was a magnet it was just a big sucky pipe. 

GONK

Oh yep theres the new effects. 

Droids sleep? I guess power saver mode. 

Wtf is that dome droid

Luke! Luuuuuke! Iconic 2 words there. Well reused for that episode of Rebels where Obiwan watches from a distance. 

Bocce.. what a classic language. 

OMG OWEN JUST LET HIM GO INTO TOSHE STATION TO PICK UP SOME POWER CONVERTERS JEEEEZ 

How is that “wasting time with friends” and not chores, going into town to get something sounds like a chore to me. 

Why did they get an atromech anyway? Like.. what’d they need the other droid for? 

C3 is a real bro lbh, if it wasn’t for him, R2 would be with the jawa still. 

Oooh oil bath. sexy. 

I wonder if people ship R2 and C3 because tbh it makes sense to me. 

Luke got an erection at the mention of the rebellion. 

Now it’s getting harder at that random blurry image of his sister. 

R2 is a cheeky lil shit. 

This is just some good home life shit. 

Dat soundtrack. 

You know what.. it’s a really nice home. 

Is it just me or is Owen dressed kinda Jedi-y. 

So is “Sand People” like the racist way to say “Tusken Raider”?

Obiwan, thats a ridiculous fucking noise. 

“Hello There” iconic. 

You know what the Prequels do add a lot to this. 

A young Jedi named Darth Vader.. im sorry.. thats just not a name. 

For someone who wants to get off the planet, Lukes like “Naa but i gotta get home”

Obiwan also just being like “You know what, fuck it here.. lets go.”

You know what as much of a bitch as that guy who gets force choked is, he’s a good actor. 

Also Tarkin yay. 

NOOOOO OWEN AND BERU! YOU BASTARDS!

I feel like he should have dropped to his knees or something there. 

That is a scary droid. 

Cool door close. 

Thats a weird ass CG droid with a hole in. 

None of the other storm troopers gonna wonder why Dave’s being weird? 

Wahey! Figrin Dan and the Model Nodes! Love that Jizz music. 

Who just ugs on the back of a bartenders shirt? Wtf Luke

Yo he didnt even pay for his drink, free drinks?

Who gets the death sentance in 12 systems and goes around bragging? 

The first arm cut off and theres all sortsw of blood which there shouldnt be because lightsabers cauterize the wound, tut tut. 

Gooood scene with Han and Obi, honestly i keep forgetting to comment because im just watching xD

Wahey! Greedo 

If we’re doing a han shot first thing.. Greedo shot first in this version and missed and then Han shot him but tbh i prefer the Han shot first.. makes him more interesting. 

Jabba looks smaller. 

Casual Boba Fett appearance. 

Yooo Poncho. My boy Cal approves. 

Fuck those weird long nose aliens. 

The Falcon looks so good. 

Get those poor guys by the Death Star laser a damn rail. 

We just cool with igniting the lightsaber in front of Han and Chewie? Chewie at least knows wtf it is.

Chewie is a badass. 

Let the Wookie win. 

WTF that isnt the lightspeed effect.. it’s like a weird blanket tunnel 

The fact they get onto the Death Star with no issue is kind of ridiculous. 

The motion of Darth Vader is kinda just.. not fitting right. 

Han just pat Chewie like hes a dog. Rude. 

Han just gets caught up in this without a choice rly. 

He just wants those sweet credits. 

Also Set Design on Star Wars is amazing. 

Leia just lounging all sexy like 

Also does she have a stain on her tit? .. Not that im looking >.>

The Jedi being called a religion is kinda weird but i guess accurate. 

This has to be the worst star to a friendship for all three of them. Chewie seems cool though. 

I also thought the trash compactor scene was earlier on in this movie than it is. 

Who the fucks voice was it that said “Thats your imagination” ? 

How the fuck are they standing if the water is that deep?

I liek the touch of the monster whos name im sure i learnt but forgot let go as if it knew the trash compactor was about to turn on, that implies it has a safe spot down there that it stays. 

Some of the voices sound off on this but ah well 

Hans already a little Handsy with Leia but i think Harrison Ford was sleeping with Carie at the time so like.. i get it. 

Obiwan just strolling about, as you do. 

I love just these giant pits with walkways with no rails. If I worked on the Death Star it’d be a nightmare for me to get around. 

“NO WAIT THEY’LL HEAR!” ...and they’re not gonna hear you shouting?

Stormtroopers just shooting the shit is the best. 

You know what with everyone being like “Wow that ships a shitheap.” I can understand why the prequels made their ships look nicer and newer. 

I love that shooting a door panel in star wars just makes it so the doors wont open at all, thats some good shit. 

Lukes as bad of a shot as a Stormtrooper. 

First little kissy incesty moment but hey it was on the cheek, universally thats fine but im sure at the time this was him setting up that Luke and Leia were gonna end up together, before he decided they were siblings. 

Vader just standing there, lightsaber already out like “Ahhh Mr.Kenobi I’ve been expecting you”

As lack luster as the chroeography is in this fight im kinda thinking of it as like, they’re reading each other, like Obiwan and Maul’s final fight. 

I don’t really know why Obiwan just chooses to die like that but heyo. 

Vader stomping on Obiwans clothes? Why? I guess because he gave himself to the force and thats the first time he’s seen that? 

I love the gunner seats moving around, idk why i just love it. 

Whats the point of the ear peices if they’re just gonna shout at each other. 

Not mentioned it until now but everyone says Leia wrong. 

They’re really harsh to Han tbf

This is like if you got an Uber to a place and then the Uber driver got pulled into a police station because you’re a terrorist and then you have a go at the Uber driver for wanting to leave after he’s got you out of there. 

Another kiss for Luke.. .. okay

I like how Biggs earlier scenes are deleted so when he shows up it’s just this random dude who somehow knows Luke

That air traffic control guy has no idea what hes doing, nobody is even in the air yet or moving, wait. 

Man X wings are cool, makes me think of Battlefronts VR mission thing where you get to pilot one and it’s the coolest VR thing ive done. 

For a space station the size of a moon you’d think they’d have enough fighters to just wipe out the rebels no biggy. 

ALSO if they know the rebel base is on that planet, why not just blow that planet up? 

YAY WEDGE

The targetting computer seems very invasive. 

Those turrets are useless. 

I would have rated it if they let that random dude blow up the Death Star.

Tarkins thinking face is beautiful. What a man, 

If Luke missed this shot, everyone knows he’s turned his targetting computer off, so they would be PISSED

RIP R2. 

HWHAT!? 

Woooo Mr.Solo. 

Well.. Well done Luke you killed a lot of people, some just trying to do a job and live their lives. 

Han, Leia and Luke all went off together all holding each other.. like.. Threesome? 

I’m sorry but after that, someones doing some fucking. 

Leia just giving her lovers, dont @ me, a medal. Thats why Chewie doesnt get one, he wasnt there for the orgy. 

R2 looking fresh. 

You know what, that is a good complete story that actually works on its own, i appreaciate that. 10/10. :P

[narkinafive]

this one’s a doozy

(i feel like i should have done sth like this for the prequels/the clone wars but oh well. i'll get around to it eventually! maybe! gotta do something while waiting for ix right lol)

oh, rebels. rebels rebels rebels. i know it's probably unbelievable, but i was so gutted by the clone wars cancellation that i really Did Not Like rebels at. it took... idk about two years for me to give it a real chance (and i was still deep in a previous fandom hole, so i didn't really get into it until like. the start of s4) (if you can guess what fandom it was you get a cookie) i am so glad i tried it again.

of course, ezra bridger is, was, will always be my favorite boy. i really did not expect him to waltz away with my heart! anakin has always been my favorite (and he still is, tbh), bc that kind of character and that kind of arc is so on brand for me, like. i LOVE my dark tragic messiah demigods, i really really do!!! but then this doofy dumbass kid with big blue eyes and a big blue heart and his many cat friends just punched me in the gut!

it's been a year and i've had time to digest the whole package. let me preface by saying that rebels is absolutely 100% perfect and my favorite piece of expanded sw media by a LONG mile. NOW. that doesn't mean that there weren't things i didn't like (going under a cut!)

many times, it tried too hard to tie into the greater saga - bringing in palpatine, the wbw, all the saga cameo characters, like... some of them worked better than others. the r2d2 and c3po cameos were the worst, w obi wan coming in at a close second. the best saga character cameo was definitely mon mothma (and bail). i really liked leia's episode, but. idk. it still felt a little shoehorn-y

i wish ezra's descent into the dark side had been more ... present? he gets some great, great moments. but it's kind of sudden (i've touched on this before so i won't keep going)

someone else has brought this up (and i ................. do not remember who sdfkjlsdfjlk) but pushing aside the Great Rivalry of thrawn and hera for the force stuff is... idk. that's a whole other thing

now i love the force shit. like i LOVE it. but i think rebels might have been stronger if it focused less on force shit and more on the early war effort, in the same vein as rogue one. i know it'd be more difficult to fill out four seasons rather than one movie, but as it got into s4 and closer and closer to episode iv... idk, put the force shit at the beginning of the season? idk. i really love how they did it, but... idk! it's complicated

oh, and speaking of complicated - maul. i love what they did with him, i love this sad garbage pile and watching him recreate his trauma onto others as a way of dealing with it... but i think it was a weird choice. maul is so... idk, grimdark? for such a lovely sweet show

kallus going to lira san better be bc he's being tried for war crimes lmao

sabine staying on lothal is... a choice. not one i hate. but i still don't quite understand it

and my biggest gripe, ironically one of my favorite parts of the show: ahsoka lives.

dont' get me wrong; i was so happy that ahsoka lived, i nearly threw my computer across the room when ezra yoinked her into the spacetime continuum. i am a diehard ahsoka fan and i will fight somebody to defend her honor. THAT SAID. the narrative of ahsoka going down at the hands of her former master? as he desperately tries to erase every part of his former identity? the great commander tano, clone wars veteran, an early casualty of the rebel alliance? it's so good. it's SO good. having her story end there would have been just some phenomenal shit. just superbly poetic. i'm glad she's alive! and the emotional impact is still the same, even with her coming back, but my god.

now. the things i love.

the character arcs. all of them. ezra bridger, war orphan, street thief, cast out by his people, finding he is stronger than he ever thought could be possible, giving his life for his people because he forgives them, and because it's the right thing to do. kanan jarrus, jedi knight, reclaiming his heritage and his jedi legacy (and yes, watching him die still hurt just as much as the first time aroundd) (and also, thanks to @aspiringwarriorlibrarian and @greatlakesrebel for pointing out many many many things, but first and foremost tonight, that dume the wolf was of course voiced by fpj) (i’m slow ok shut up). hera syndulla, who unfortunately had to learn the hard way how to balance love and war so she didn't become her father, pushing away everyone she loved for the greater cause. zeb orrelios, finding his people, learning he's not the last of his kind, leading the refugees to their ancestral home. sabine wren, forgiving herself and freeing her planet from oppression. and not just the hero arcs - the villain arcs, too!!!! darth maul's single minded obsession that kept him alive for 30 years ending in a 3-hit fight on a backwater planet because he just couldn't sustain that hate for so long. all of thrawn's cleverness couldn't predict the force. i don't have an issue with a single one of these!

THE FORCE (TM)!!!! there is so much delicious crunchy force nonsense, i could DROWN in it

among my many, many issues w the old EU, one of them was demystifying the force, quantifying and trying to label it too much. some things were quantified bc they needed to be (the holocrons, the sith code, etc) but most of it was kept as vague and nebulous as possible, which is GOOD. when it comes to mystical magic, less explanation is mostly always more

i love that we don't have clear cut answers for the loth wolves and the lothal temple, i could ponder that shit for WEEKS and never get bored

it does feel like a mostly self contained story. "been there made history" can get overused very easily (see: hbo rome) but rebels used it just enough to fit it into the larger saga

having rex survive both the clone wars AND the galactic civil war??? fuck yeah

kanan and ezra. kanan and ezra. there is so much i could say about kanan and ezra. it's everything to me. war vet finds plucky young orphan and adopts him? sign me tf up!! their relationship as it grows from mentor/mentee to peers is really really well done

and speaking of growth, ezra and sabine going from obvious romantic interest to battle forged siblings is not something that i was expecting but is definitely one of the best parts of the show

kevin has some really incredible tracks in this show: top of the list is 100% kanan's end credits, followed closely by it's over now. wow

and speaking of, the entirety of the last ten minutes of twilight of the apprentice deserves its own bullet. that shit is right up there with vader v luke round 2

the planet designs, mostly malachor and lothal, but when hera and sabine launch the dome, and the lothal sky suddenly turns to blue as the pollution is leeched out and destroyed... that shit is breathtaking

and so much more. like so much

this show holds such a special place in my heart :") now if only dave could bring back my son... like. PLEASE 

see you all in rogue one!

[romana73]

STAR WARS WOMEN 2 PART

Post written by ME. The animated gifs shown, however, AREN’T MINE and it DON’T BELONG TO ME IN ANY WAY. Sorry for my mistakes, but English isn’t my first language

HERE IS FIRST PART of this post:

https://romana73.tumblr.com/post/182414735626/star-wars-women-1-part

“You’re wrong, Leia. You have that power too. In time you’ll learn to use it as I have. The Force is strong in my family. My father has it. I have it and…my sister has it. Yes. It’s you, Leia��

(Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, from “Star Wars Episode VI, Return of the Jedi” movie)

In this post we will get to talk about famous scandal stone, scene in which, in "Star Wars. Episode VIII. The Last Jedi" movie, floating in open space, Leia save herself using Force. Many are snapped, outraged, protesting Leia isn’t a Jedi and she hasn’t Force, so that scene should be redone and she die or be rescued by some errant knight (male, of course!) In fact, it would be enough to read quote reported to me at this post beginning, pronounced by LUKE SKYWALKER lived voice, in last chapter of original saga, CREATED AND DIRECTED BY GEORGE LUCAS, STAR WARS DAD, to blush and hide in some lost cave. In this post I'm going, however, in chronological order, so, before talking about Leia, I have to talk about ...

SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY:

QI'RA:

Orphan, thief, fighter, ambiguous and HAN SOLO’s first love, from which she’s separated as a young girl. Three years later, Qi'ra and Han find themselves in Alba Cremisi base, a criminal organization for which Beckett, Han's accomplice thief, is working. Han discovers Qi'ra is pupil and woman of DRYDEN VOS, organization boss, from which she was saved and trained. In end, Qi'ra will KILL DRYDEN in order to SAVE HAN, but then she LEFT HAN, also if SHE LOVE HIM, to JOIN DARTH MAUL, SITH at service of Emperor Palpatine:

VAL BECKETT:

Thief, Tobias Beckett’s wife, strong, disillusioned, rude, actually she’s really in love with Tobias, till she will sacrifice herself:

ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY

JYN ERSO:

Daughter of Galen Erso, a scientist forced by Empire to create deadly Death Star. Jyn is forced by her father to flee away, just before Imperials take him. Jyn grew up with extremist rebel Saw Gerrera. When she becomes adult, Jyn is imprisoned by imperial, but she’s freed from Resistance who enlist her for a mission: to prevent Death Star from completing. At cost of her life, Jyn will steal weapon's plans, which shows weak point of Death Star, managing to get them to have the Princess LEIA ORGANA, REBEL ALLIANCE LEADER, so Rebels can destroy weapon:

"Star Wars. Episode IV. A New Hope","Star Wars. Episode V. Empire Strikes In Back","Star Wars. Episode VI. The Return of the Jedi":

LEIA ORGANA:

Daughter of jedi ANAKIN SKYWALKER and PADME' AMIDALA, senator and FOUNDER REBEL ALLIANCE. LUKE SKYWALKER’S SISTER TWIN, adopted daughter of BAIL ORGANA, Prince of Alderaan and Senator and Queen Breha Antilles. HAN SOLO’s wife and MOTHER of BEN SOLO, then became KYLO REN. Senator, RESISTANCE’S LEADER AND GENERAL, excellent fighter, especially with blaster, Leia is one who will put wheel of fate in motion, hiding in droid R2D2, plans stolen by Jyn Erso about Death Star and a help message for Jedi OBI - WAN KENOBI

Captured and tortured by LORD VADER, she will amaze him for her HIGH MENTAL RESISTANCE: "Her resistance to the mind probe is considerable. Can be extract from any information” (Darth Vader about Leia Organa, from the movie "Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope") Leia will only surrender when Vader and Governor Tarkin destroy Alderaan, her home planet, in front her eyes

Leia will be freed by Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Obi - Wan Kenobi. Three years later, Leia is one of REBELE ALLIANCE’S COMMANDERS and participates to evacuation on Hoth planet. ‘Cause of Lando Calrissian’s betrayal, she, Han and Chewbecca, will be CAPTURED and IMPRISONED by Darth Vader, who will torture and freeze Han into the carbonite. Successfully escaping with Lando and Chewbacca, later, Leia receives LUKE’S MENTAL CALL, to whom Darth Vader has cut a hand and runs to save him: "Ben... Ben, please! Ben. Leia! Hear me! Leia!" "Luke... we’ve got to go back" "What?" "I know where Luke is" (Luke, Leia and Lando, from "Star Wars Episode V. Empire Strikes Again" movie)

Six months later, disguised as a bounty hunter, Leia manages to enter Jabba The Hutt’s den, where Han is still frozen in carbonite. Leia manages to free Han from freezing. Unfortunately, their escape is discovered and Jabba closes Han in cell, keeping Leia as his slave. Luke and Rebel Alliance are coming to couple rescue. During battle, LEIA KILLS JABBA THE HUTT, throttling him using chain with which she was tied:

Later, before his death, Master Yoda reveals to Luke EXIST ANOTHER SKYWALKER: "Pass on what you have learned, Luke... there is...another...Sky...Sky...walker." (Master Yoda to Luke Skywalker, from the movie "Star Wars Episode VI, Return of the Jedi") Intrigued, Luke asks for explanations to Obi - Wan Kenobi ghost, who reveals truth to him: Leia is his TWIN SISTER. She’s THE OTHER SKYWALKER Yoda was talking about:

“The other he spoke of is your twin sister”

“But I have no sister”

”Mm. To protect you both from the Emperor, you were hidden from your father when you were born. The Emperor knew, as I did. If Anakin were to have any offspring, they would be a threat to him. That is the reason why your sister remains safely anonymous”

“Leia. Leia’s my sister”

“Your insight serves you well. Bury your feelings deep down, Luke. They do you credit, but they could be made to serve the Emperor.”

(Luke Skywalker and Obi - Wan Kenobi, from "Star Wars Episode VI, Return of the Jedi” movie)

Meanwhile, led by Leia, Han and Luke, a rebels contingent on Endor to deactivate a shield prevents their fleet from attacking Death Star. In a moment of tranquility, Luke reveals to Leia that Darth Vader is their father, they are twins and SHE HAVE THE FORCE: "[...] And that's not all. It will not be easy for you to listen to it, but you must do it: if I do not survive, only you can save the Covenant " "Luke do not talk like that: you have absolutely exceptional powers that I do not have at all" "You're wrong, Leila: you have those powers too. Over time, you too will learn how to use them. Force flows in my family. In my father... in me...and in... my sister also... yes... it's you, Leila" "I know. It's as if... If I had always known " (Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, from the movie "Star Wars Episode VI, Return of the Jedi")

From that moment, Leia uses the Force to instinct. Looking inside her, Leia manages to PERCEIVE Luke is alive: “I'm sure Luke wasn't on that thing when it blew”

“He wasn't. I can feel it” (Han Solo and Leia Organa, from "Star Wars Episode VI, Return of the Jedi" movie)

Leia is ONLY WOMAN TO PARTICIPATE in person at Endor BATTLE

Given all this, it seems to me supported by TESTS AND EVIDENTS, SUPPLIED BY OLD SAGA, Leia HAS FORCE and it’s UNDERSTANDING, over time, Luke has taught Leia to use it. At this point, Rian Johnson and J.J. Abrams SHOULDN’T RECTIFY and CORRECT NOTHING to "Star Wars. Episode VIII. The latest Jedi" movie, ‘cause Leia has every right to use Force and call Luke through that:

Special Mention for MON MOTHMA: Human woman, senator of Galactic Senate and Imperial Senate, LEADER of Alliance for the Restoration of the Republic and first CANCELLER of New Republic. Faithful friend of Padme Amidala, Mothma was a POLITICAL MENTOR of Princess/General LEIA ORGANA. Always Mothma instructs JYN ERSO to find information about Death Star:

[filmista]

Retrospective: Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977)

🤖“A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” 🚀

A lot of us either are a Star Wars fan, or we know someone that’s a huge fan. Either way, there’s no real way to avoid coming across it; it’s so ingrained in the collective conscience of the entire cinema frequenting world, that we all are familiar with the basics of its universe. 

I’ve managed to avoid it until now during my 20 years on this planet, but I have a friend whose brother was an enormous fan of the franchise and owned multiple Star Wars sweatshirts that his sister would “borrow” but watch it she never could, because she found the whole world so far out there, that she thought it was hilarious. 

But alas, one day her brother convinced her and she decided to just give it a watch and actually ended up liking it. Ever since she’s been trying to get me to watch it, without much success in her endeavor. 

Until I recently got me curious about it myself, I thought if so many people love it there has to be a reason for it. And my experience was a huge success, I loved it on the second watch that is. 

The very first time, I actually ruined my experience. By really not paying too much attention to it and even talk during…

My problem was the attitude with which I approached it, I was expecting to not connect to it beforehand, I had a preconceived of what Star Wars was, which is a silly blockbuster that later became a money-making machine. 

Alas, I was wrong, and I deprived myself of a fantastically fun experience, because of my own preexisting conceptions. 

I admit to most of the time being inclined towards and maybe respecting, so-called deeper and intellectual films more, films that I can really sink my teeth into. 

I wouldn’t say I had a contempt for blockbusters and big studio films, I just generally don’t like them as much, I tend to find them over the top, too dramatic and sometimes a bit lacking in the emotional department. 

But the longer I’ve been watching films, and my recent experience with Star Wars, really has taught me something, there’s nothing with a film being innocent fun and just an adventure throughout. 

Afterward, I realized how ridiculous it is that I do value Jurrasic Park, which is also a huge blockbuster, but looked down on Star Wars, just because it all overall seems more plausible and is set in a world that’s still recognizable. 

There’s merit in building an engaging fantasy world, and in creating characters that are instantly likable and that the audience can care about. 

Star Wars (the whole franchise) has now become a piece of pop culture, and especially that first film, allows us to travel back in time, to the 70’s a particular period in cinema history, to the time of the first so-called blockbuster. 

My main beef with “blockbusters” is that I’m not talking about each and every single one, there are ones that I enjoy. 

But they’re often so formulaic and so played into what people will automatically like and be attracted to, and sometimes that results in something that I find lackluster, not spontaneous enough and without a fun, beating heart though.

And while Star Wars is the so-called first blockbuster, one of the films that changed film history. My dislike of it was completely unjustified. And the joke was on me because I missed out all those years. 

Whilst it is a big film and expanded into something even bigger over the years: a franchise. No one really knew whether there would be sequels, but George Lucas did set up the possibility for them. 

It really made marketing for these big films into a huge thing, the company in charge of making the action figures for Star Wars (Kenner) initially was unable to keep up with the demand, every kid that saw this at the time wanted one. 

Now that’s something normal, but Star Wars was really the first film to start that. and it’s mostly relatively unknown cast at the time, apart from Harrison Ford (who had previously starred in the George Lucas directed, American Graffiti) were propelled into superstardom and into 70’s icons. 

Everyone knows names like Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill, even if they’ve never seen a single Star Wars film. And everyone knows terms from the film, everyone knows what a lightsaber is and has a vague idea of what a Jedi is. 

So aside from all of its technical merits, and there’s quite a few, it’s above all else a historical document almost as well as a darn good piece of entertainment, and that’s more than enough in a film sometimes. 

And unlike some later blockbusters, Star Wars really is a charming and fun film, with a beating heart. You can see and feel the love that went into them, and the fun people involved were having. 

Its dialogue is super cheesy even corny, but it works because of the way the actors deliver them and their enjoyable chemistry with one another, also the cheesy dialogue is quite charming in its own right. 

The film is obviously more about what’s happening visually on screen, than any dialogue. And I think that was my problem initially, I always took it way too seriously… the terms didn’t make sense to me and annoyed me, and the world with all its creatures felt perplexing. 

This time I decided to just sit back, watch and not think too much and allow myself to be absorbed by it, really allow myself to be swept into the world. And it was a radically different experience. 

There are still terms of which I thought wait what is that, or what is that thing supposed to be? The truth is that doesn’t matter for one’s enjoyment of the film at all, once you stop trying to make too much sense of it, and look at it too rationally it becomes incredibly rewarding. It’s not about being realistic. the whole thing takes place in a fantasy world, Star Wars is like a surreal dream come to life. And it’s really a matter of suspending any disbelief and logical questioning and just accept that stuff is called the way it is, looks the way it is, and that it’s a world with giant slugs and rats that look tiny kangaroos. 

I was never before able to just let that element of it slide, and once you do start analyzing it, it can almost become funny. This time I set to myself: you’re gonna watch this, you’re not gonna question anything or laugh at anything. And I’m certainly glad me, myself and I had a stern talk. 

I generally don’t dig stuff set in space all that much or with intricate fantasy worlds. But Star Wars felt different, yes it’s in space. But it doesn’t feel confined to one space, nor does too outrageous… 

There’s something so familiar about that world, something we all instinctively know of how it works and that’s almost comforting and cozy to disappear in. 

It reminded me of when I would dive into comic books when I was younger, and just disappear into them an entire afternoon, Star Wars really brings back some of that childlike wonder and awe, and in that sense, it really is a purely magical film. 

I watched A New Hope, whilst feeling a little under the weather, and the afternoon passed incredibly quickly, which is what good films do: they make you unaware of time and space. It’s over two hours run time, actually felt quite short this time. And I can’t wait to check out the other ones as well. 

But to return to my previous point, part of why it’s so fun to disappear in and probably part of its enduring appeal and popularity is its coziness, the really lived in vibe of it all. The title also helps in this, by adding Episode to its title, it feels like being into introduced to a world that has always been there and that we’re just stumbling into it. 

It also doesn’t present us with any storylines, or conventions that are hard to grasp. You get an instinctive feel of the world and its rules and conventions. When it comes down to it, it really is a simple story of good vs evil, with the classical plot point of saving a princess thrown into the mix. 

The fun thing is that it does subvert some of these classical conventions, in any other story princess Leia would have waited passively for her rescue, whilst here she actually consciously chose to fight and resists until the end. At least in the first one, you don’t exactly find out why the empire is precisely so evil and why they want to rebel against it, but I figured it was just some sort of space equivalent to a fascist regime that wants to rule each and every one of the territories around it. Imperialism in space, heavy… 

The first time watching this, I questioned all of that too much, but this time I was like, okay the empire is run by some evil bastards in space, there are rebels fighting against them and they’ve got plans laid to destroy their massive weapon of mega-destruction. Which is what the empire wants to recover from the rebels, but of course, we all know Leia hid them in R2D2. 

Speaking of the robots, aside from their designs being super cute, as well as all the bleeps and blips. I loved how positively they were portrayed, no the robots are gonna take over and destroy all of us! 

That kind of film can be good, but it would be way too negative for Star Wars. Here they’re really seen as equals by the characters, and even worthy of being friends with. As well as having a personality as defined as the humans, the whole dynamic between R2D2 and 3CPO is both hilarious and heartwarming. 

And that’s again why it works so well, the lightness even the humor and all. There are moments of light bullshit almost that defy logic, like R2D2 and 3CPO talking the stormtrooper into letting them go, with the excuse of R2D2 having to go to maintenance, it’s like an almost ridiculously simple solution to the situation at hand. Lucas knows it’s nonsense, but just doesn’t care. After all, it’s part of the genre. 

If you really want to dig deep (well actually not that deep) but if you insist on an intellectual side to cinema, you’ll have realized that the force is actually one big metaphor for religion, a higher power. And that some believe in it and others don’t. Han Solo literally talks about the force in terms of: “I don’t believe in any of that hokey religious stuff”. 

But essentially it’s a metaphor for believing, for believing in something bigger than ourselves, that helps us overcome obstacles along our way. 

The whole given of The Force is actually incredibly well handled. At first sight, it seems like mumbo-jumbo - "The Force is an energy field that flows everywhere, you have to become passive and let yourself be led by it." In other words: relax and just watch what happens. 

That’s not exactly a very profound philosophy, given that it was apparently used for hundreds of years as a basis for peace and quiet in the Milky Way.

Yet it’s not bad that Lucas keeps it simple (and purposefully vague, you can see whatever you want in it) The Force is just The Force and no further bullshit. Everyone has an instinctive sense of what it is, but there are no long, pretentious monologues needed to make it work and have people grasp the concept. 

Seventies icons Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher have the nominal main roles, and don’t do a bad job at all, their friendship comes across as believable and is very enjoyable to watch.

The chemistry between Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher, also reveals hints of what’s to pass between the two later on in the story. The whole cast overall has fantastic chemistry with each other, you can’t really imagine that any of them got along badly in real life, they seem to be having too much genuine fun. But it is Harrison Ford who steals the show as Han Solo. It is only with his entry into the film, 45 minutes after the beginning, that everything really comes to life. All other characters are quite serious and have serious motivations. 

Princess Leia tries to save her people (although Leia is a really enjoyable character because of her boldness and sassiness), only to see her entire planet explode before her eyes. Heavy. Luke Skywalker, in turn, grew up without parents, with his uncle and aunt, who are also murdered at the beginning of the film. 

And Obi-Wan is of course little more than a wisdom-spouting old man who must stay serene at all times while scratching his beard. Han Solo, on the other hand, has absolutely no melancholy background. 

He is a mercenary, who is only out for money, and that gives him the freedom to spit out one-liners as much as he wants, to put his crooked grin on display and insult the other characters whenever he feels like it. 'Star Wars' is a series that keeps going in the direction of the bombastic.

Perhaps that is inevitable considering the genre film. The function of Han Solo's character is that he pierces through that bombast. Whenever it threatens to go all over the top, you just have to give him a scene, and immediately the atmosphere becomes lighter, more pleasant and enjoyable.

Another thing that can’t be avoided when talking about Star Wars, is just how beautifully worked out and brought onto the screen the whole universe is. While it’s all undeniably a product of its time and feels decidedly 70’s, it still holds up incredibly well and feels really realistic for its time. 

The different locations are all incredibly gorgeous to look at, and the special effects absolutely splendid. The colors and lights of some scenes is an absolute joy.  Whilst John William’s beautiful score, adds grandiosity and epicness as well as emotionally complementing certain scenes. 

Star Wars is undeniably a piece of film history that can’t really be avoided.  I wouldn’t have called it a masterpiece before, rather a very well made piece of entertainment. But now I’d have to change my view: a film can be a masterpiece, precisely for being an incredible piece of entertainment. 

"Someone Has To Save Our Skins. Into The Garbage Chute, Fly Boy."

[abdicatedarchive]

imessage || rose and juniper

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍: imessage // february 2021.

𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆: rose x juniper.

𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐆𝐄𝐑𝐒: none.

𝐃𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐒: rose watches a studio ghibli movie and then later juniper watches a new hope.

june to rose: so if I were to watch a star wars movie this weekend... which one would I need to start with? june to rose: also where would I be able to watch it?  rose to june: new hope, it’s very important that you start there!!! and Disney plus ✨💕🦋 june to rose: oh, duh! I should have remembered that disney owned star wars... I'll let you know when I watch it then. rose to june: I am watching howl's moving castle, but i s2g if it doesn't end well. we are going to have beef. june to rose: lol I need to know what part you’re on then rose to june: WAIT SHE JUST TRANSFORMED rose to june: wait no!!! i've been lied to!!! june to rose: I’m so confused 😂  rose to june: she's at the queen's, about an hour in june to rose: ohhhh okay 🙃 rose to june: if this is a movie about learning to love yourself even though you're ugly, i am calling for a citizen's arrest 🚨 june to rose: I know my rights... I ain’t sayin nothing... june to rose: honestly I mostly pay attention to calcifer and markl when I watch... rose to june: okay on first watch, you do have to pay attention to the main story. forgive me for doing what is right 😇 june to rose: you have a point rose to june: you will learn as we hang out that i am never wrong 🤩 june to rose: haha I’ll keep that in mind june to rose: also, just look at my love... [insert gif] rose to june: that's a fucking mood for sure ✨ rose to june: wow sophie is just kissing everybody, no fucks given 🤡 june to rose: by everyone, you mean two people?? or am I forgetting more? rose to june: three, but still, i call shenanigans june to rose: who’s the third one???? rose to june: calcifer, howl, scarecrow june to rose: oh lol does calcifer really count tho? rose to june: wow, just because someone doesn't have a physical form doesn't mean they don't have feelings. that's embarrassing for you june to rose: lol wow okay, coming after me june to rose: you’re right, my bad rose to june: i forgive you ✨ june to rose: in my defense, I know something you don’t know june to rose: bless, thank you 😊 rose to june: do you have something you want to share with the class???? june to rose: wait, no... you might know already june to rose: I haven’t seen the movie in a while, but I’m pretty sure you might have seen the big thing... rose to june: i'm all finished june to rose: ooh okay so isn’t calcifer essentially howl since he’s howl’s heart?? rose to june: i still think it counts, and i stand by that argument june to rose: fair, but you see where I was coming from, right? I mean, technically, you are correct, and I’ll give you that rose to june: i respect the drip hahaha june to rose: lol stop, I snorted june to rose: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMejd6QyB/ june to rose: should I call you karen?? I feel like that’d be disrespectful tho. you’re much cooler than a karen. rose to june: not to be dramatic, but if you call me karen i will physically fight you. 👊  june to rose: I totally respect that 👀🤣  june to rose: now I’m stuck on tiktok ugh june to rose: https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMejdkwnk/ rose to june: hahahha - june to rose: why am I starting with episode iv? rose to june: because it was the first one made, and the prequels are terrible (but i do love them, they are meme worthy) june to rose: fair, but I don’t get why they wouldn’t start with one?? okay, it’s starting june to rose: damn, I have to read??? rose to june: because they didn't know they were going to make prequels ... it was a stand alone film. so it's been changed to episode four post production. and yes reading is required or you won't know what is going on june to rose: that actually makes a lot more sense june to rose: oh I know r2d2!! june to rose: and I must say, I’m a huge fan of the acting with these guys getting hit in the halls lol june to rose: I’ll try not to spam you too much rose to june: feel free to spam! rose to june: yes the acting is amazing, and the lazers never hit anyone!!! june to rose: I have no clue what is happening june to rose: if anything hurts my precious R2D2, I’m suing june to rose: SUING rose to june: i am not spoiling anything, but i am glad you're invested already june to rose: bby seems to be okay, we can postpone the trial... june to rose: it takes place in space, why wouldn’t I be invested? I’m also just super confused... june to rose: is this the episode that has the quote “I’m not the droid you’re looking for?” the one guy just said something about droids to the gold robot thing. rose to june: yes it is that episode, and close enough on the quote hahah june to rose: oh the gold one just introduced itself as c3po june to rose: what’s the quote?? rose to june: [insert gif] june to rose: ohhhhhhh I was pretty close lol june to rose: wait so do his aunt and uncle know his father is darth vader??? june to rose: Luke, I mean rose to june: yes they know, im pretty sure. don't quote me on that. june to rose: aye aye june to rose: is it c3po or c3p0?? he said oh, but idk how this works... june to rose: anyway, it... he? makes me think of the gold robot in meet the robinsons... rose to june: c3po, the po stands for protocol and they are a third generation model june to rose: got it... but what does the c stand for? rose to june: that is a great question, it's a nod to george lucas for some post office type thing. i saw it on a forum a long time ago june to rose: lol I’ll take your word for it june to rose: that one old dude with Vader has some killer cheekbones rose to june: space nazis 👀 but yes very good cheekbones june to rose: oh shiiiiiiiiit. Luke’s family 🥺😳 june to rose: THE QUOTE!!!! june to rose: ooh, I recognize chewy rose to june: baby hannnnnnn, i am in love with him june to rose: he’s all yours lol rose to june: sooooo generous hahaha june to rose: I try. That’s what friends are for, right? Lol june to rose: leia is a badass june to rose: wait where’s yoda?? rose to june: patience young padawan, there are more films!! june to rose: I guess I’ll have to watch another one maybe next weekend

[i-just-like-commenting]

Star Wars rewatch,part 1: Episode IV, A New Hope

I’d planned to write this last week, but life got busy, so instead it’s my last little May the Fourth celebration! I’m also updating my project from my initial plan; I’ve heard the animated series The Clone Wars praised so much as connective tissue between episodes II and III that I’m going to try to watch as much of it as keeps my interest (it’s available on Netflix). My schedule is thus now:

IV (May) V (May) II (June) Clone Wars (June-September) III (October) VI (October) VII (November)

General Impressions, or the Movie on Its Own

Well, Star Wars: A New Hope holds up pretty well after all these years. I was first exposed to the franchise through Muppet Babies (no, really) and I can’t remember how old I was exactly when I saw all the movies; maybe 7 or 8? It’s an engaging and exciting adventure story with likable characters and a lot of world-building that manages to be immersive without being overwhelming.

That said, the technology hasn’t aged well – by which I mean the depiction of computers, not the special effects. They have big keys spaced far apart, with tiny screens. Oh, and at some point in the future we decided the best way to transmit files was manually? And copying files erases them? I suppose perhaps they were being jammed for the former, and trying to keep up the flimsy pretense of being neutral for the latter. Still, it’s all very seventies in terms of its computer technology.

There’s also no way this movie would be rated PG today, not with the charred corpses of Owen and Beru, or that severed arm in a pool of blood in the cantina.

The Special Edition Stuff

I definitely remember seeing the Special Editions when they came out in 1997 (I was 13 at the time). Seeing the films on the big screen, especially that opening as the Star Destroyer first appears, was amazing. But even then, I knew there were changes that did not work.

Twenty years later, it’s easy to see how much Lucas overestimated the quality of CGI at the time. Machines and things left blurry in the background tend to look pretty good, but living organisms, especially if they are close to the camera, do not blend well with the background at all and look horribly out of place. Comparing it to, say, Maz Kanata in Force Awakens and you can see how technology has come a long way. Besides, a lot of the additions are completely unnecessary. A few droids floating around with the Stormtroopers? A few aliens in the background? They work. But having things walk between the characters and the camera is disorienting and serves no purpose. Mos Eisley doesn’t look bustling, it looks like they set the shot up poorly.

Nothing is worse than the Jabba the Hutt scene, which left the audience I was back then completely cold. It is truly terrible, and you can tell that Jabba wasn’t initially supposed to look like what he did. (Side note: has anyone confirmed if the design of Hutts was completely ripped off from the Regul? Because I think they were.) It breaks up the flow of Luke and Ben’s transition to the Falcon, and having Han make a deal with Jabba rather than being on the run after murdering one of his minions (“We’re a little rushed”) meshes better with him being on bounty hunters’ hit lists in the sequel.

That said, I do like Biggs having a short scene with Luke to give a little more impact to his death, though I wish there was even more.

Continuity, Part 1: Relation to the Original Trilogy

I know Lucas made a lot of changes as the trilogy went on, but I can easily believe that he had two things planned from the start. The first is that Han and Leia were going to end up together. While Luke has an obvious crush on Leia, and she’s fond of him, the banter between her and Han is more typical “romantic interest” writing. It’s also obvious that, for all of their hostility (he resents her class status, she resents his feigned mercenary attitude) they take a liking to each other pretty quickly. Han’s “Either I'm going to kill her or I'm beginning to like her” is absolutely real, as is Leia’s admiration of his courage (as he leads what could be a suicide charge, something he mocked Luke for earlier). Given that she isn’t as despondent over Han leaving as Luke is, and her remark that “I knew there was more to you than money,” it’s safe to say that her “I wonder if he really cares about anything. Or anybody,” was more an attempt at goading him into action than sincere dismissal of his character. Plus that wink. 😘

I played a little game of adding “married in the future” to a lot of their snarky lines, including Han telling Leia to “Get on top of it!” in the garbage chute. It made me giggle. I am so immature.

The other plot development that complements this film nicely is Darth Vader being Luke’s father. Alec Guinness’ acting, the way he won’t meet Luke’s eyes, gives a strong impression that he’s hiding details from him – which it turns out he was. And of course the conversation between Beru and Owen becomes all that more sinister in retrospect:

Aunt Beru: Luke's just not a farmer, Owen. He has too much of his father in him. Uncle Owen: That's what I'm afraid of.

The first time through, Owen comes across as simply a worrywart, concerned that Luke will die the way his father did if he ever sets foot off the farm. But if he knew that Anakin Skywalker had gone to the Dark Side, was one of the worst villains the galaxy, well yeah, he’d be very afraid that Luke resembled his father and want to shelter him from any chance of learning of the Force.

Continuity, Part 2: Relation to the Prequel Trilogy

That said, the relationship between Owen, Beru, Anakin, and Obi-Wan would make a lot more sense if Owen wasn’t Anakin’s step-sibling who he met only once. The convoluted connection between Luke and his aunt and uncle in the prequel undercuts everything in this film. How can Beru be an expert on Anakin’s character? Why is Owen resentful of Obi-Wan taking Anakin away if he only met him long after he became a Jedi?

If I’d been writing the prequels, I’d have made Beru be Anakin’s decade-older sister (allowing them to preserve his miraculous birth if they really wanted to go that way) and Owen her boyfriend who wants to buy her freedom and treats Ani like his little brother. Beru would be close to Anakin and Owen would have been around when Anakin left. It would raise the emotional stakes of them losing Anakin to the Dark Side a lot, too. Though maybe this is something Clone Wars tried to fix? I guess I’ll see.

After rewatching this film, I do actually buy that R2D2 secretly knew everything that was going on, while C3PO had his memory wiped. There are gaps in C3PO’s memories (he’s been in “several” battles, “I think”) and R2 obviously knows who Ben is, and again there’s a bit of an exchange between them like Obi-Wan suspects something is up.

There is one thing that the prequels do explain – why is Vader so hesitant when fighting Ben if he’s such a powerful Jedi? Well, he knows how it ended last time (with him having severed limbs at the edge of a pool of lava) and he’s being cautious.

Continuity, Part 3: Relation to the New Films

“If the Rebels have obtained a complete technical reading of this station, it is possible, however unlikely, they might find a weakness and exploit it.” And thus an entire movie was born. I don’t think I needed to have this “plot hole” filled in, but it worked out into a pretty good story, even if I desperately wanted more time to get to know the characters (who are pretty flat).

Obviously there are parallels between A New Hope and The Force Awakens, though not as much as people like to claim. TFA borrows from all the original films, and it’s impossible to draw direct parallels between the characters. Sure, Rey is an obvious fill-in for Luke, and Kylo Ren for Darth Vader, but Vader never captured and tortured Luke; they don’t even meet in this movie, which was probably according to Ben’s plan, separating himself from the group and luring Vader away from encountering his son. Beyond that, parallels start to break down. Person who sends off plans and gets caught by the villains? Leia and Poe. Only Leia wasn’t the one to destroy the Death Star…Duo who wind up stumbling on to the hero after being separated wandering in the desert? R2D2/C3PO and BB8/Finn, but C3PO didn’t defect from the enemy forces and free Leia at the start of the film, nor was he Luke’s love interest. Han is Han I suppose and Leia is General Dordana, and maybe Maz is Ben…? There’s a lot more originality to TFA than people want to give it credit for.

Conclusion: Bring on the Droid Revolution

DROIDS ARE SLAVES. That was the big gut-punch of watching it this time around. Like, how did I not see how horribly mistreated they are? They’re sold on market, wear restraining bolts, can have their memories wiped at their owner’s whim, or even “deactivated,” a fate C3PO clearly fears as much as a human would death. The cantina owner is bigoted against them, declaring that “We don’t serve their kind” and throwing them out of his establishment. Even C3PO’s attitude reflects a life of slavery: “We seem to be made to suffer, it’s our lot in life.”

Everything about droids is coded for them being an oppressed underclass, yet this has never come up in the films, ever. Are we supposed to be cool with it because they’re machines? They’re obviously sentient, though, and meant to be sympathetic. We spend a lot of time with R2 and C3PO before we even meet Luke, and them splitting up accomplished nothing other than character development.

They’re also obviously capable of emotion as well as intellect. I wasn’t joking when I said R2 and C3PO are the purest ship, they really are. C3PO is a classic tsundere character, claiming he doesn’t care about R2 right up until his counterpart is injured in battle, when he offers to sacrifice his own parts to save him. Seriously, I suspect “counterpart” is just droid for “life partner.” It may not be sexual (they’re gonadless robots for crying out loud) but it is true love, and I now ship it.

[carolinagoris]

Do you believe outside forces can influences our actions? Do you believe we are in complete control of our lives? In the trilogy, Star Wars, there are characters that may have been influenced to act by outside forces and others that have total control of their beings and free will. They can be distinguished as determined and/or compatibilist, soft determinism. In order to get to compatibilist one must understand determinism. The theory of determinism is that everything is only matter and all matter follows laws, no exception to the physical world. Determinism means that no man is of free will since all humans are connected to the universal nature and part of the physical universe, all of which follows causal laws. All actions are causally determined because humans are part of the physical universe and biological realm (Chaffee, 166). Everything that happens in the world is because of a cause and effect relationship as explained, “each action is the net result of the forces that are driving it” (Chaffee, 180). The decisions and actions that people make are already determined by causal laws and are beyond one’s control. Any action can be traced back to a cause. A cause can be influenced by inborn instincts, conditioned behavior and brain chemistry. Determinism consists of universal causal laws such as human nature, the environment, psychological forces, and social dynamics that take effect on human actions. D’holbach believes that people are not to be responsible for how they behave because they didn’t choose their environment; they were a passive agent molded by forces beyond their control.” (Chaffee, 179) This means that all humans are in fact, void of free will and free will is just an illusion. All your actions and reaction are predetermined. D’Holbach was a mechanist materialist who believed that all matter follows determinate physical laws and that there are no exceptions to physical world. Since Droid is a machine, a physical material made from matter, he is obliged to live his life and journey through universal causal laws. Freedom is an illusion to r2d2. All events and actions R2D2 has taken throughout the trilogy had been brought upon by previous event. Those events are effects of a past cause. Due to his environment, nature, social dynamics, and how he is psychologically programed to function he acts and is therefore determined. To be free is to act from no motive. R2D2 is determined because he technically cannot improve himself, being that he is a machine; he cannot seek/achieve spiritual transformation or enlightenment. He cannot create a better world since he is only a tool. He cannot be able to raise children morally responsible since he can’t even have children. He cannot hold wrong doers responsible and punish rehabilitate them. These are things a determinist can’t do. Although he is a determinist, r2d2 shows a compatibilist side (soft determinism) in the first movie, Star Wars Episode IV New Hope. For example, when he shows Luke a certain amount of footage from the hologram of Leia that she had stored in his memory bank. He did not show the entire clip because he knew that the video was not meant for Luke. Instead he chose from free will to show Luke part of the clip so that Luke can be influenced to find help. A compatibilist shows some free act on will but all events are still brought about by previous events in accordance with universal laws. His laws include his mission to find Obi-Wan, a physical cause, and also a psychological force/constraint because he was programmed to do the mission. These external factors are what had led him to the event of meeting Luke but his internal motivation to show the clip proves that he is soft determinist in this certain occasion. Compatibilist is the theory, also explained as soft determinism, where all events including an individual’s action have a cause and effect relationship. However, human action may be considered free if they are not a product of external influences or constraints, and are internally motivated (174). Soft determinism or compatibilist is the theory that “all human actions are brought abut by previous events in accordance with universal causal laws,”(Chaffee 175) like determinism however, “we can consider human actions “free” if the are the result of internal motivations, not the product of external influences or constraints.” For a compatibilist some acts are free, some are un-free, but both have causes. Free acts have internal psychological causes; un-free acts have external physical causes. Free will does exist and is compatible with determinism as well as moral responsibility as Stace defines. If there is no free will than there can be no morality. Actions are free is they’re a result of internal motivation and not a product of external influences or constraints. In the film of Star Wars, Episode V: Empire Strikes Back, R2D2 is determined and all his actions are in accordance to universal causal laws are these following facts: every time R2 is called upon to open doors/gates/fix spaceships, he does his duty. It is as if he can’t help but to attend to his callings, which are all external factors. This is due to his programming, universal causal laws, physical causes which are applied to all that is matter and he is in fact material. But although he has no choice but to answer his callings, he shows free will when he choses to risk his life to save his friends and complete these missions throughout all three movies of Star Wars. He holds that moral responsibility, therefore, is a compatibilist as well. An example from The Empire Strikes back is when R2D2 fixes the Millennium Falcon’s hyper drive, which allowed them all to escape from Cloudy City. He is a determinist because previous events has led up to him showing up when he is needed along with physical forces that causes him to make his way/journey. Another example is from the movie Star Wars Episode VI Return of the Jedi. When the gang got trapped in a net which was al caused by Chewbacca, and R2D2 sets himself and the rest of the gang free with his gadget. It was partially because he wanted to set himself free, his nature to survive, but also to save the rest of them, which is in his morality and personal responsibility. This act was internally motivated although the causes that got him there in the first place were caused by prior events. His will is to save them, but his determinist is proven in psychological forces to answer calls, complete missions, for he is a computer/robot, a material thing and part of the physical world, no exception to universal causal laws. He is determined to risk his life in order to help his friends out, part of his social dynamics. His environment causes him to take actions. Star Wars shows many philosophical theories of free will and determinism. Determinism says that everyone’s fate is predetermined and nothing you do in life will change your trajectory. You are a product of your environment and the relationships with others. Your psychological make-up, biological make up and the social dynamics will shape you into exactly who you are meant to be and nothing you do will change that. Compatibilist being that some human actions are free just as long as they are not influenced by external influence or constraints, and are internally motivated.

Carolina Goris , 2014

[fic-dreamin]

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant

3.0 out of 5 stars Worth a read, but gets repititious Coincidentally I just finished reading How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare, which used actual text from the Bard. After having a dose of Shakespeare and learning to memorize his works, when I got my hands on this I had one immediate response. . .Ha. Ha. Ha!I got a good laugh, as the timely classic story we all know so well is put into the form of a stage play with a lot of Thee's, Thou's and the like.Not nearly as skilled writing as the Bard's trademark rhyming and other fantastic uses of the English language. Now I'm still unfamiliar with recognizing iambic pentameter, but that's supposed to play a big part in this retelling.Here is an excerpt that folks should be able to place:HAN: Pray tell, what shall the cargo be?OBI-WAN: -Myself The boy, two droids, and ne're a question ask'd.HAN 'Tis what, a touch of local trouble here?OBI-WAN Nay, let us simply say it thus: we would Imperial entanglements avoidHAN Aye, there's the rub, so shalt though further pay. Ten thousand is the cost, and ev'ry bit Shalt though deliver ere we leave the dock.LUKE Ten thousand? Fie! We could our own ship buy For such a sum as this.HAN -A goodly jest! For who should pilot such a ship -- shouldst thou?LUKE Thou knave, I could indeed!. . .As you can see, this is how the entire book reads. It makes the Shakespearean fan have a good laugh and enjoy the Star Wars in a different light.Also note there are some illustrations throughout that are kinda cool. Go to Amazon

5.0 out of 5 stars Very well done! I got a copy of this book to review from the Quirk Books in exchange for an honest review. When I saw this book was releasing I really wanted to read it, I love Shakespeare and Star Wars and was eager to see what would happen when the two are put together. The result was very pleasant; I enjoyed the dramatic way Star Wars is done in play form and the wonderful illustrations throughout. I really enjoyed reading this.This book covers Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope in a very Shakespearean format. The book is broken down into Acts and Scenes. Each line is prefaced by who is speaking it (just like in a play). There is a Chorus that covers action scenes too. The whole thing is written in very Shakespeare like language. The book is also interspersed with some wonderful drawings of our heros in their Shakespeare-modified gear.The only bad part about this book is that I already know how the story goes and ends. So given that, there weren't a lot of surprises here...but there were some. One of my favorite additions were R2D2's soliloquies. Sure he may speak in squeaks and beeps when others are on stage with him, but as soon as he is alone then the soliloquies start. R2D2 does elaborate asides on C3PO's annoying personality and on his own sneaky plans. These are hilarious, add a lot of depth to R2D2, and are just perfect for him.There are some other additions to the story as well. For example in an aside Obi-Wan debates what and what not to tell Luke about his father. These little asides actually add a lot of humor and thoughtfulness to the story. I thought they actually even improved the story some and made it more complex and interesting.The language is very Shakespearean, but I still found it easy to read.Read more › Go to Amazon