Emotions are running high across Star Wars fandom at the minute, the emotional rollercoaster that was The Last Jedi and now the series finale of Star Wars Rebels.
As the dark lord himself said “search your feelings,” here at Fantha Tracks we have been doing some soul-searching and can reveal moments in our Star Wars fandom that have evoked true emotion, whether it be joy, sadness, happiness, anger, fright, disappointment or love.
We’re ready to share – are you?
Clair Henry
High
I’m struggling to choose my one high that evoked emotion as I’m so lucky there are so many! So I feel it is only right that I go right back to the start to when it all began, a long time ago in a cinema in Bangor, County Down.
Sitting in the Tonic Cinema with my dad and granddad watching the crawl with a sense of anticipation followed by awe and wonder when the opening scenes were shown. To this day I still can remember the fear I felt when Darth Vader came through that door, the sense of delight when the woman put something into a robot and then became the tough talking determined Princess. It was something as a girl from the 70s I needed (Barbie and Cindy dolls just didn’t cut it with me!).
To this day I remember walking out of that cinema coming home and immediately putting on a white sheet and pretending to stop the trash compactor just like the Princess tried to do.
I owe a lot to Star Wars. It’s certainly shaped me and I have made so many wonderful friends because of it!
Low
I’m a very positive person, so low points for me to find are a struggle as I pretty much accept the films, books and comics and enjoy them, so this is not such much a low point as such but more a dawn of realization that made me very sad.
I had queued up all night with my husband and daughter in a hall in Orlando and we were one of the few who got into the 40th panel. I was elated – I knew what was coming, just not how or when! I loved every single minute of it, but something was missing and I couldn’t put my finger on it, even right up to the point when Billie Lourd finished her eulogy about her mum. The strings started to play (I’m actually welling up now as I type) it was then I realised that Carrie Fisher had gone and would not be returning to complete the arc of the most powerful female role model, both on screen and off (apart from my mum). She was sorely missed on that panel and in the run up to The Last Jedi. Her wit, banter caustic remarks, even Gary!
As I watched The Last Jedi and the General was sucked into the void of space, it shocked me but I was prepared to say goodbye, so to see her come back filled me with mixed emotions because in reality it was only temporary. I thought Carrie was magnificent in the film and as I watched it for the 8th and final time on the big screen it was time to finally say goodbye.
If another actor finishes Leia’s story it will be big boots to fill, even bigger than Solo. I look forward to seeing what J.J brings to the story, but one thing though we all must do is to….
CARRIE ON ??
Paul Naylor
High
So, there I was, a dream come true had been gifted to me. I was working for regional press covering Celebration Europe back in 2016. One of the events I was asked to sit in on was the Rebels Press Panel – at which I got to ask Dave Filoni a question. That in itself was quite something, but that wasn’t the emotional highlight of my Celebration experience – or indeed what I consider my most emotional response to Star Wars per se.
You see, in order to attend the Rebels Press Panel I had to acquire a wristband from a hotel outside of the conference centre at a certain timeslot. In doing so, I missed my opportunity to get a band for the must-see closing ceremony.
Understandably, as the time of day arrived for the closing ceremony I was more than a little bit miffed not to have the credentials to be in on the action.
I sat in the near empty press office where journalists had been gathering throughout the event to send their thoughts back to media partners around the globe.
I paced up and down like a caged tiger in that office, and as the time drew nearer for the grand finale I decided to take a walk and check out some of the merchandise as it would be pretty quiet. On the way to check out the latest Hasbro offerings I walked past the main hall and something snapped in me. It was now or never.
The last few stragglers were being admitted when I brazenly approached. A member of staff asked to see my wristband. Clearly I did not have that. I showed him my Rebels Panel band and started to explain that I couldn’t get a band because of blah blah blah blah.
Just then the amassed crowd erupted inside and I don’t know whether the guy just took pity on me or whether my timing had been impeccable, but he ushered me in and told me to stand at the side and watch from there.
It was amazing. Everything I could have hoped for. Hamill, Fisher, their dogs and so much more. The then directors of Solo were brought out onto the stage, as was Alden Ehrenreich.
The energy in the room was palpable. It was amazing to have witnessed such momentous Star Wars events in the flesh. And as it came to an end and folk started to leave the room, I flocked out with them.
I was a few steps out onto the main concourse when the remaining crowd inside erupted into applause. I turned to re-enter and the same member of staff who had helped me before, smiled, held back the curtain, and said: “In you go”.
I grabbed a seat this time as Warwick Davis sped towards the stage on his Segway. He had the honour of revealing the logo that would celebrate 40 years of Star Wars throughout 2017. There was then a recap in video of show highlights.
When all was finally done, I exited the room and a short while later tracked down the member of staff that had understood how much I needed to be in that room. I found him and threw my arms around him and grinned. Walking away I think I told him I loved him, at which he laughed.
As I got on the escalator, it dawned on me what I had just witnessed and how much I would have missed and I am not ashamed to say I became quite overcome with emotion. Well, a quick weep does us all good doesn’t it?
Low
Controversially among my peers at Fantha Tracks, I – like so many Star Wars fans – have not yet fully come to terms with Rian Johnson’s sequel to the superior The Force Awakens. There are many aspects of The Last Jedi that I enjoy. I enjoyed the opening battle most of all, but so many of the ideas from TFA that JJ handed to Rian were either ignored or crudely discarded.
Symbolically, when Luke tosses the Skywalker saber over his shoulder, I believe this is Rian taking the baton from Mr Abrams and saying: “thanks for that, but I’m ignoring Episode 7’s many setups into 8 and doing my own thing“. The saber is quite literally the baton.
Rey’s training could, and should, have been better; Luke should have been more rounded and less of a straight-from-the-teat green milk connoisseur; Leia should have been given a glorious death – oh wait, she was, until that awful ‘Mary Poppins’ moment.
For me, TLJ is the patchiest of the episodic Star Wars films. I have seen it 5 times on the big screen and of course I will purchase the Blu Ray on release, but I have never felt quite so deflated coming out of that initial midnight screening in December 2017.
Martin Keeler
High
Easy one for me this – The Force Awakens Panel at Celebration Anaheim. I had been to Celebration Europe in Essen which was amazing but nothing could have prepared me for the emotion that was in the room for the opening of Celebration Anaheim. I had managed to get a Jedi Knight pass when they went on sale so my trip in was easy as we had reserved seats near the front, however we still had to get there quite early. We were shown into the arena lobby whilst they finished the technical rehearsals and whilst we were waiting, much to our delight, J.J. and K.K. came through. They were greeted with a big cheer and there was lots of “mornings” and “hi”‘s as they made their way in.
Once seated you could feel the excitement building. You have to remember that although we had had the teaser trailer it was rumoured (or maybe even confirmed) that we were getting a full trailer and we could not wait. However before that we got all sorts of magic moments. Most of the cast on stage, Lee Towersey and Oliver Steeples with R2, the first public appearance of BB-8 and then at the end J.J. announced that we would see the “2nd teaser trailer”. If you were in the room you will know what the atmosphere was like, if not you may well have seen it on YouTube.
And then at the end….”Chewie, we’re home” and our first glimpse of Han and Chewie in the Falcon. There were many tears and hugs with strangers (who are now good friends) – Star Wars was back and it felt so, so good!
Low
Still upsets me today. That scene in Return of the Jedi during the battle of Endor when in the heat of the battle some ewoks are running from pursuing scout walkers and then (in a rather out of the blue moment) there is a scene where we focus on a couple of ewoks who get caught in a blast. They both get floored, but shortly after the lead ewok gets up to 
escape but like a true hero it’s not leaving without its buddy. The ewok prods the other unconscious hero and goes to run but then the horrible truth kicks in. The floored ewok isn’t unconscious, its dead. The war is over for both as the survivor kneels down and grieves for his fallen comrade….Seriously Richard and George, I did not need to see that 28 second scene of nightmares! I get that war is bad and that there are casualties.
Until that point those little bears were heroes who, maybe through naivety, took on the empire and were winning. Why did you have to show us that? WHY!!!!!!
Mark Newbold
High
I’m fortunate to have had many Star Wars highs over the years. The thrill of seeing Return of the Jedi on pirate video a few weeks before its UK release, having a letter in Cosmic Correspondence printed in Return of the Jedi Weekly back in late 1983, meeting Ralph McQuarrie in 1997, my first Star Wars Insider article, interviewing Irvin Kershner in 2007, having some of my interviews used in The Making of Return of the Jedi by J.W. Rinzler. All amazing moments, but if I had to pick one absolute high it would be last year at Celebration Orlando. As the star-studded 40th anniversary panel finished, the curtain pulled back and John Williams….JOHN FREAKIN‘ WILLIAMS….stood there, baton in hand. After the crowd noise dimmed to a shimmering hum of anticipation a lone flute played the opening notes of Princess Leia’s Theme….and I lost it.
For a brief moment I felt very self-conscious, until I looked around and saw everyone else near me was crying as well. I was with my good pal Kevin ‘Big Kev’ Schwoebel of Big Kev’s Geek Stuff who leaned in and said ‘You are watching the man who wrote the music for Star Wars conduct Star Wars‘, before leaning back. After he said that I took a deep breath and focused. It was very much like my visit to Skywalker Ranch in 2013. Paul Bateman said ‘Take a deep breath, do a 360 and take it all in, because you’ll never have that moment again‘, and as usual he was right.
The Imperial March, the Star Wars Main Theme and the most spellbinding 15 minutes was over. The ‘Chewie, we’re home‘ moment at The Force Awakens panel at Celebration Anaheim reduced me to a sobbing wreck, as did Mark Hamill’s Carrie Fisher panel last year but as highs go – and I have tickets to see Williams conduct at the Royal Albert Hall later this year – I can’t imagine this truly magical moment will ever be topped.
Low
I’d have to step right back to 1983, when I was 12 years old and the realisation (which sounds faintly ridiculous in 2018) that the Star Wars saga was over hit me on Christmas Day. My folks had done me proud. Raiders of the Lost Ark on Video2000 and the Return of the Jedi soundtrack on cassette. There was no chance to watch Raiders on Christmas Day, so after dinner I went upstairs, got my Dad’s ancient single cassette player and played the Jedi soundtrack.
That first release of 11 tracks over 45 minutes, in non-consecutive order got played and played and played (it still does, I have a soft spot for those abridged, original soundtrack selections) but the final track, Ewok Celebration and Finale, choked me up. It hit me that Jedi was the last Star Wars film, ever. In ’83 we knew nothing about the Ewoks TV films, the animated shows, West End Games roleplay, the far-distant prequel trilogy that fans spent most of the late 80’s and 90’s dreaming of. No, this was it, and 12 year old me blubbed.
Now, you may have noticed that my highs and my lows mainly involve tears. There’s a good reason for that. Star Wars means the world to me, and good or bad – and there’s been plenty of both – Star Wars evokes strong emotions when it’s done right, or when it’s done wrong.
And now we’re at the end of another journey. Hats off to Star Wars Rebels for a grand four years, and here’s to the next adventure.
Richard Hutchinson
High
So many but the top of the bill must be loading the first level on Dark Forces. I remember first owning this on my old 486 PC and needing to upgrade my audio drivers to cope with the awesome sounds.
I’ve even recently downloaded for Windows PC and it still holds up pretty well and much better than many of the sequels do. First person shooter, blasting Stormtroopers….what’s not to like?
Low
I’m really disappointed with Star Wars Rebels, after having high hopes. Don’t get me wrong, there have been some amazing moments in Rebels especially some of the space battles.
But, bringing Ahsoka back, continuous winning against the odds, tired plots and storylines, inept Imperials….I feel as though the writers lost interest a long time ago.
Carl Bayliss
High
In my TLJ reaction piece I made mention of the adrenaline rush I get whenever I see the Lucasfilm logo and ‘A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away….‘ on a cinema or TV screen ahead of new Star Wars. A genuine buzz of hope and expectation, but also slightly apprehensive as my brain tells me that this is the point of no return – whatever I see in the forthcoming screen time can never be undone.
So I’d have to go with that moment where the possibilities are endless and I hand myself over to the storytellers to take me on the latest journey.
Low
I’m not much of one for dwelling on the negatives as I’m sure everyone has their own reasons for why things were included in a storyline etc and I even like a lot of the elements of the prequels, but my least favourite Star Wars ‘thing’ are some of the Clone Wars ‘filler’ episodes.
I loved the show as a whole, how it evolved over it’s run and indeed paved the way for Rebels, but there were a few story arcs that may have been fun or included possibly to lighten the tone of a cartoon about war and for me there were several times where these actually spoiled my enjoyment of the show.
