Despite my love for movies and tv shows, I resisted watching any of the Star Wars franchise. Thank goodness I was coerced into watching The Clone Wars series.
I always thought the Star Wars movies were confusing; they weren't in order for some odd reason. More importantly, I felt I had already received a significant spoiler. Everyone knows the "I am your father" spoiler, and it didn't seem worth the confusion because I already knew the biggest reveal. But, my boyfriend loves Star Wars and wanted to introduce me to the franchise. After much discussion, I begrudgingly agreed to watch one episode of the clone wars every time we spent time together, which at the time was about once a week.
I don't remember the first couple of episodes at all; I fell asleep through them out of boredom. It wasn't until Episode 101: Ambush played that I saw Master Yoda display great strength and demand of the force. I was thoroughly impressed. From that episode on, I was hooked.
Eventually, my boyfriend and I were having a hard time working out our schedules to see each other at least once a week consistently. I had a sprained ankle and nothing to do, so he graciously agreed to let me watch the show without him. I binged three seasons in a weekend.
He joked I was becoming obsessed. When I watch something I find interesting, I often Google things about how it's made, the actors, bloopers, etc. However, this was different. Star Wars is so universally known that if I google anything, I could spoil everything for myself or become confused and overwhelmed by the vast lure surrounding the franchise. He was my only source of information other than the show itself. I can admit I probably both amused and annoyed him with the insane number of questions I asked, knowing I would be upset if he spoiled anything for me.
A little over a year later, we have watched every TV show in the Star Wars universe and every movie except the last two Disney movies. I can't wait for the new Obi-Wan series to premiere on Disney+.
It's so exciting to understand all the references and memes. It's so much more than Darth Vader announcing himself as Luke's father. It's almost embarrassing now to think there was a time when I felt that was the biggest reveal of the franchise. There's the reveal of order 66, the bad batch's introduction, and now the potential resurgence of the Jedi with Grogu.
Star Wars has everything anyone could love about movies. It has a great plot and fantastic world-building. There are empowered females as role models like Ahsoka Tano, Hera Syndulla, Princess Leia, and Padme Amidala. There's the exciting commentary and integration of technology and humanity with the droids. It can be interpreted as a study of class systems, race, war, and government, examining how each alien species interacts with one another and how they organize their societies.
For those who love the making of movies, Star Wars revolutionized how movies are made. Practical effects, not CGI, created the Star Wars universe on screen from the aliens, technology, and landscape of different planets since CGI was still in its infancy. There is so much to learn about all the cool tricks used to make the films. Star Wars changed the toy industry and is an excellent example of nonlinear storytelling.
It can be easy to dismiss Star Wars as something only for geeks or nerds. After all, it is an entire universe with extensive lure and history that can be all-consuming without even getting into all the real-world facts. However, there is no denying how incredible the Star Wars franchise is and how deeply ingrained it is in our culture. There are so many aspects of the franchise that could appeal to many people that it is a disservice to yourself to exclude yourself from such a phenomenon.