A Renewed Hope: Star Wars The Force Awakens Review

Finally the day had come for me to get my butt into a seat at the movie theater to see the new Star Wars. It had begun to feel like I was the last one going to see it. Most of my friends had already seen it, some multiple times. But something always seemed to come up, until finally in a galaxy not so far away...the stars aligned. So with much anticipation, I settled into my seat and waited for the movie to start. I shared my excitement and accomplishment, by taking a picture of my ticket and posted it on social media.

It isn't every month (although not so true anymore since Marvel's success train pulled out of the station) that you get a movie you're really excited about. Since I first heard that there was going to be a new Star Wars movie, I was looking forward to a new story. But then it was revealed that original characters were returning played by the very same actors that played them previously. I was sold. The opportunity to see Han Solo and Chewie with the Millennium Falcon--in theaters--the way the generation before me did in the late 70s and early 80s, how could that not be exciting?

The Star Wars logo pops up on the screen...the scrolling paragraph creeps its way along, growing smaller the further into space that it floats. The familiarity is definite and welcoming. You get a brief, "Here's what you've missed" to bring the audience up to speed before being introduced to the current setting as the story unfolds.

Now, I won't spend too much time breaking down the movie. In all honesty, I've already started to forget details, it was over two weeks ago. But retelling everything that happened would also be a bit boring I would think. As I've said before, most people have seen it multiple times now and don't need a recap. If I were a reader, I would much rather prefer the author get right down to it and provide their opinion. So that's what I'll do.

I've heard thoughts on the movie from quite a few people. The consensus: it was a nostalgic call back that was fun and entertaining--it was a good movie and liked a lot by many. There were some complaints. As with anything, there is always room for improvement. For some, it was not a great movie, and for others a disappointment. I have not spoken to anyone who felt it was a disappointment, but have heard about it. I had a conversation with a co-worker about feedback that he had heard, people thought the movie was too much like A New Hope. In fact, some people thought it was a completely recycled story. I would disagree. Was there a lot of similarity? Yes, there is no denying that. But, was that a bad thing? No. If you're going to add on to a long standing franchise that is well beloved by Star Wars nerds/geeks/fans, you will want to add fan service to the first movie following ten years after a trilogy that many would like to forget.

A New Hope paved the way for the original trilogy and I see The Force Awakens doing the same thing. It doesn't have to be completely original, if you think about it, the characters and even the galaxy itself has reverted back to it's past ways. There is an evil force threatening the peace and existence of good and there is a group set on stopping them. It's been many years after a tragedy that saw the disappearance of a great jedi. Is it not plausible that history would be doomed to repeat itself? There is real life evidence of the same thing happening in reality, World War I and II ring any bells? So to fault Star Wars for repeating a plot that our favorite characters once faced, and now our new characters, not really fair.

I spent a day and a half catching up on podcasts with Star Wars related content, all episodes that I had been waiting on until I watched the movie. The most of the hosts were positive about the movie and shared my opinion and a couple liked the movie but made mention of it's "faults". There was no originality. The opening with a space ship, a young person on a desert planet, the wise old man, the droid with a secret message, a Death Star-like super weapon. But it was a different young person in a different situation. Rey had no family and was struggling to survive in a harsh environment, different than with Luke, The wise old man was keeper of a secret. But he was also Max von Sydow, and that's enough said right there. The droid with a secret message...yes I know, but don't you deny BB8 was cool and adorable--unique and independent. He asked to stick with Rey, she didn't even want him around at first.

I could go on but that's not the point. It's common for movies to use tropes. The Star Wars movies are no different. The original movies were riddled with references that George Lucas took from other films. So it's not surprising that another director did the same thing by paying homage to the Star Wars legacy with some fan service in The Force Awakens. If the movie had been completely different than A New Hope, I'm sure there would have still been people complaining. You can't please everyone and everyone is entitled to their opinion.

But I'm going to focus on the positive. We got a new Star Wars movie and more on the way. Anything is better than Episodes 1-3. Am I right? May the force be with you directors of episodes 8 and 9, may the force be with you.

Goodbye Spaceman, Farewell Headmaster

In light of the recent announcements on the passing of two extraordinary men, I felt it necessary to tribute a post in their name. David Bowie and Alan Rickman. Both claimed by cancer at the age of 69. To be barely recovered from the news of Bowie's passing, only to be hit with another wave of sadness upon hearing about the passing of one of my favorite actors, it's crazy.

The news of Rickman's death had caught me entirely by surprise. Just before mid-day, I was sitting at my desk and received a call from my mother, who was working from home. She asked if I was getting ready to go to lunch, I replied with "Soon". Then in an oh-by-the-way sort of fashion, she mentioned she had heard Alan Rickman had passed away today, also from cancer and also at the age of 69. I was in disbelief. Much like with Bowie, any sign of illness had been carefully hidden. It was as if the cancer had just sprung up from nowhere and stolen the lives of two talented men. Once I was off the phone, I immediately googled Alan Rickman and briefly scrolled through the articles.

Many people have appreciated Rickman's acting over the years, he was as popular for his stage appearances as he was for his movies roles. I first recall seeing Rickman in the movies Die Hard and Robin Hood:Prince of Thieves, where he played Hans Gruber and the Sheriff of Nottingham respectively. I discussed the news with friends during my lunch, one friend mentioned the movie Truly Madly Deeply as her first encounter with Alan Rickman. I had not seen the movie, one of his earlier ones, just a year before Robin Hood.

I spent the next week hunting down Alan Rickman movies, to rewatch or watch for the first time. While Netflix did not have a huge selection, it did have quite a few and many I had not seen. Among them: CBGB, Bottle Shock, Blow Dry, and Gambit(not to be confused with the X-Men character). Netflix also had Galaxy Quest and Love Actually, the one I have owned on VHS for some time and the other I had recently watched over the holidays. Over the New Year's holiday weekend, my mother and I even watched several of the Harry Potter films. So skipping those this time, I watched Galaxy Quest, CBGB and Bottle Shock all in one night and it was great to see the many different roles of such a fantastic actor.

There has never been a movie of Alan Rickman's that I have not liked and now I've added a few more to that list.

By Grabthar's hammer, you will be missed! Farewell, Headmaster.

As previously mentioned, the news of Rickman followed swiftly on the heels of another obituary--that of music icon David Bowie. His death setting the precedence of surprise for that week. My first encounter (if you could call it such) was through the movie Labyrinth, where he played the Goblin King Jareth. It was one of the movies I adored as a child. I had all the songs memorized. It was not until I was older that I learned Bowie was so much more than dance magic. I got into his music, first with the 80s songs that my mother loved (China Girl, Let's Dance, Modern Love) and then into his older songs (Space Oddity, Changes, Heroes). I loved it all.

He was a master at reinventing his musical style and his own style. Even going as far as inventing alter egos for himself based on themes from his music, leading to a documentary and film revolving around one such alter ego Ziggy Stardust. The documentary and film both with the same name: Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, 1973/1979.

I'm ashamed to say, I have seen very few of his movies and those that I have were limited to minor characters or cameos like The Prestige or Zoolander. I now plan to go back and watch as many as I can:The Man Who Fell to Earth, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, Basquiat...

But one cannot mention Bowie without also discussing his eyes. Or rather the colors, yes, plural--more than one color. The right eye blue and the left black. While there is a rare genetic explanation(Heterochromia) for this occurrence in some. Such was not the case with David Bowie. The left eye was actually damaged(punched in the face) by his best friend and future music partner, George Underwood. The muscles in Bowie's left eye responsible for contracting the iris were paralyzed, causing the pupil to remain fully dilated, permanently giving him two eyes with different sized pupils(Anisocoria). His eye colors had always been one of the many fascinating things about him.

I hope you're floating peacefully far above the moon. Goodbye Spaceman.

The Doctor (Strange) Will See You Now

I'm sure I'm not the only one excited to see Benedict Cumberbatch breaking into the Marvel Universe this November, with the role of Doctor Strange. Even without everyone's favorite consulting detective in the lead role, a Marvel fan can be giddy over any Marvel movie in their near future.

I still remember when the fan-made concept art first appeared, a literal What If...Benedict Cumberbatch as a Marvel character. Only for the thought to eventually become a reality.

He is an excellent actor with a career that's taken off like a shot. For a while, it seemed there wasn't a movie out that didn't have the man's face or voice appearing in it. Yet, no comic book superhero movies. Marvel saw fit to change that and rightly so.


Recently, Marvel released a first glimpse of Cumberbatch in what is presumed to be his costume as Doctor Strange. Along with that they also released quite a few pieces of concept art. But no trailer...not an official one that is. Queue one awesome fan-made trailer, garnering much attention on Youtube it quickly caught the attention of many websites.

The creator, Alex Luthor, does this regularly on his Youtube page--I've checked out a few of his trailers so far, very cool.

This leaves one wondering, how will the official trailer do?

Oh, The Things You'll Be Tagged In...The Nine Threes

You think you're doing something nice when you tag a guy in your blog post and give him credit for your inspiration. Then he tags you in a chain post...thanks again Agent Palmer.

For a little fun, as he called it, I have answered the nine topics in this post and passed on the baton.

Three names I go by:

• Stef
• Fiz
• Sammy

Three places I lived:

• Arizona
• Kentucky
• Germany

Three places I have worked:

• Barnes & Noble
• Prudential Relocation now Brookfield Relocation
• Phoenix Comicon

Three things I love to watch:

• Supernatural
• Doctor Who
• Gotham

Three places I have been:

• Austria
• Vancouver
• Chicago

Three things I love to eat:

• German Food
• Pizza
• Ribs

Three people I think will respond:

• Lucy
• Sandra
• Jaimee

Three favorite drinks:

• Coffee
• Tea
• Coke Zero

Three things I am looking forward to:

• Podcasting
• Writing more with my blog
• Whatever 2016 will bring

2015 Wrap-up

I received some inspiration from a friend and fellow blogger, for a year end wrap up post (thanks Palmer, agentpalmer.com). It seemed a good way to get another post out and given the busy day I've had, it's going to be right down to the wire.

I can't complain about 2015, as a whole the year was pretty good. I had a busy year at work, completing my first year in my new position in July. I am surely thankful for my job--plus I enjoy it and the people I work with. A lot of good things happened in July, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

The beginning of the year saw the start of monthly Comicon volunteer meetings which are always fun to attend. I also attended my first ever Supernatural convention in February. It gave me the opportunity to become even closer friends with a great group of ladies and meet a bunch of other really great people as well. I met the guys of a very funny, interesting and well done show where they review and discuss Supernatural--Thomas, Ryan, and Mike (supernaturalthecrossroads.com). I'm a real fan of the show.

Then, May rolled around and the hustle of last minute preparations for Comicon with it. I've volunteered for Phoenix Comicon since 2012 and every year it keeps getting better. I couldn't imagine not working such an awesome event.

July was a great month. My sister and brother-in-law came to visit with my niece and we all got to celebrate her 1st birthday. Next, my mom and I had the opportunity to fly home to Germany to visit my family. We got to celebrate my Oma's 91st birthday and I managed to fulfill a childhood dream. I finally was able to visit the castle that my Opa had made up stories about during our bike rides through the hillside. This was very nearly my favorite month.

July was only barely beaten in that regard by August and September combined. A week that ran from the end of August to the beginning of September to be exact. I went on an amazing adventure to Vancouver, British Columbia. Not only was I fortunate to attend another Supernatural convention in the location the show (and many others) films, but I got to meet two great friends in person. It's funny to think that you could be so close to someone, talk to them every day, and yet have not met. Sandy and Lucy are two amazing ladies that I have the good fortune to call friends. Our first meeting was nothing strange, it was like we were meeting for the upteenth time. I'm looking forward to meeting the rest of our group this coming May.

In October, I took part in the 7DAG (s7evendaysageek) Podtoberfest. This was a 24 hour long podcast event. It was a lot of fun, which certainly made it easier to stay awake and engaged in the entire 24 hours. I was a part of the writer's room leading up to the big day. The writer's room was responsible for coming up with content for the different themed hours. This was a first for me, to be involved with something like this and I would gladly do it again.

At the beginning of December, the second annual Phoenix Comicon FanFest took place at the University of Phoenix stadium in Glendale. FanFest is the smaller winter convention run by Phoenix Comicon and many of the same volunteers from the big show work this one to ensure it runs smoothly. This was my first FanFest, I was not available to volunteer last year. It was much different than what I was used to from the big show. Everything felt much more relaxed and moved at a slower pace. It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed the fact that I had time to do a little bit of Christmas shopping. There were so many vendors, it was the perfect environment to do so.

These are my highlights of the year, it's not everything that happened or took place of course--but definitely things worth remembering. Now I sit here, having just ushered in a new year with family and champagne. I look forward to what 2016 has to bring and wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year!