Star Wars Episode 7 Pregame

© by Gerald So | geraldso.blogspot.com | 6:00 A.M.

Eleven friends and I are seeing The Force Awakens tonight at 10:30. John Ricotta and I are arriving three hours early, anticipating a long line going into the auditorium. Hard as it is to believe now, we prepared the same way for Episodes 1–3.

As disappointed as I was in those movies, I'm not as excited for Episode 7. As a forty-something adult, how can I have the same sense of wonder I had when I saw the original trilogy in the late 1980s? (I didn't have a VCR or cable TV, so I had to wait for broadcast.) I don't have the same sense of wonder I did even when I saw the prequels.

I'm far from the biggest Star Wars fan, but the saga remains special to me. The basic story was about a character who yearned for more in life but didn't know how to achieve it, perhaps didn't believe he could. Yet, by Episode 6, the boy had matured and accomplished more than he ever dreamed.

Before the mention of midichlorians, the Force to me represented the power of belief, not that I could move things with my mind, but that I could work around any physical limitation if I stayed positive and open to solutions other people might not see.

Here's hoping Episode 7 delivers a similar message.

Read my spoiler-free reaction.