FRANCO’S FREE-FOR-ALL FRIDAYS!
Star Wars.
It’s gotten so ingrained in our culture. I mean, we’ve got Star Wars Day! May the Fourth, which is Sunday! We even got them “Pajamas with Yodas on them and shit.” (Go do yourself a favor and watch Raising Arizona. You won’t regret it.)
I defy you to find a person that has never heard of Star Wars.
Seen it? Well, that’s another matter entirely. But… definitely heard of it.
Now, which one is your favorite? You can have all sorts of answers — but the right one is Star Wars! I’m old. I get it. Some young-uns call it Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope.
But you gotta understand. I was there when it first happened. When it first came out. It was just… Star Wars. My argument for why it’s the best is simple: All the others don’t exist without the first one.
Yes! Empire is the better story. Yes, Return is jubilant. Yes, the prequels were haphazard but you get Darth Maul and Ewan as Obi-Wan. Rogue One was a standalone great! The back three were what they were, but we got to see new characters and were reunited with old friends once again. And now we even get TV shows!
I like Star Wars. All Star Wars.
You can probably see that I like the weird aliens/mask aspect of the whole thing.
The human characters are cool too. Transformation of Luke from the first movie to Return and his black suit tells a story.
But this whole thing spawned from the imagination of one guy. (Again: I know the back story and where things were derived/taken from. I won’t be engaging in any arguments at this point in time, thank you!) That guy helped fuel my imagination. Never in a million years did I ever think that I would get to thank the man personally. But, one day, the stars aligned (heh) and I did just that.
Universal Studios, Florida. My buddy Jimmy and I were at the theme park and taking a breather from the excitement and were having a nice cold beverage right outside the Jaws ride. I notice this man walk by and I say to my friend “Holy Cow! (Not the actual word I used!) That’s George Lucas!” My buddy says no way. Can’t be. I bet him 10 dollars and off I went. I had tunnel vision. Really didn’t notice anything or anyone else. (Later, I did notice a couple of plain-clothes guards with him.) I went to the man and said “Excuse me, Mr Lucas?” The man was taking a swig of his cola. “Yes?” He replied.
“I just want to say thank you for all the imagination you have inspired in me and shake your hand.”
I know. I didn’t think I could be so articulate in such a circumstance either.
George smiled and shook my hand. He said thank you. I told him I do what I do today because of comics and movies and definitely the creativity he helped spark in me. He was gracious and thanked me. Then I turned to my friend and said “You owe me ten bucks!”
I couldn’t believe it! I spoke with George Lucas and told him exactly how I felt about his work. I was so excited that I forgot to ask for a pic. So as he was now walking away from me I hastily snapped a pic of the back of his head. Blurry and distant but that was the back of his head in the crowd.
I was so excited I sent the pic to my wife. She responded, “Who is that?” Not the response I wanted. She just didn’t understand.
I sent the pic to my buddy, Art Baltazar.
His response: “Holy shnikes! Really? That’s George Lucas!!! I recognize him just from the back of his head!” Yes! That’s the response I wanted. See. Geeks get it.
Thanks again, George. And Happy Star Wars Day. May the Fourth be with you.
I love Star Wars.
Happy Friday!
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Franco and his forehead have traveled the world and he writes and draws stuff. Franco is the creator, artist and writer of Patrick the Wolf Boy and Aw Yeah Comics! Franco has worked on books/comics, including Tiny Titans and Superman Family Adventures. Franco was also a high-school teacher and is one of the principal owners of Aw Yeah Comics retail stores. Dan made Franco add that he has won three Eisners.
May 2, 2025
Was not a fan when it first came out. I was hard core Star Trek TOS and my loyalty was firmly in place. But I can tell you exactly what was going on the day I saw Empire. By then I was hooked.
In between, I became a fan. The novels of the movie “Star Wars” (see? I agree 100%) and “Minds Eye” worked their magic. Sadly the thrill at the end of Empire was never reached again.
“Return” seemed disjointed and the story didn’t flow like I had hoped. The rescue of Han was epic for sure. But the Ewoks killed any excitement I had by the credit roll.
I was excited when they (original 3) were rereleased so my kids could experience it like I had. But something wasn’t right….I distinctly remember Han fired first. And some excitement was there for the prequel series but that didn’t last either as too much CGI killed the art form of the originals.
As for the newest movies, the only one I really enjoyed was “Rogue One”. Helps if you just tell could stories and not worry about continued marketing and the next movie. There was some excitement around Baby Yoda but that was the end. I just can’t do the modern style of Disney anymore.
That all said, a very happy May 4th. I really enjoy reading your Friday posts!
May 2, 2025
Right there with you Buck. As much as I like (some) Star Wars, I am a decidedly Star Trek fan first and foremost, its rational humanist ethos being much more appealing (both personally and in terms of storytelling) than the overly dualistic (and simplistic) mythicism of the former.
And I share your critical assessment of the franchise. Of the more recent fare, I thought The Force Awakens was a pretty good movie if perhaps too derivative of “Episode IV” (aka “Star Wars”-compared to Star Trek, Star Wars seems to have something of an originality problem, IMO) and Rey being a bit too two-dimensional.
The only two movies I can really watch anymore, and with much enjoyment, are “Episodes IV and V,” Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back.” I can only do about the first third of Return of the Jedi–once Luke, Leia, Han, etc. are free of Jabba the Hutt and off Tatooine, I tell myself “And they all lived happily ever after” (if not completely true) and change the cable channel.
Lucas, at this point, was far more taken in by merchandising potential than by effective storytelling, with his hordes of paleolithic teddy bears proving a significant, if incredulous, force in the Empire’s defeat, cuteness triumphant over planet-destroying evil. R2-D2’s cuteness as a very mechanically adaptable and analytically capable droid is far more credible. And was enough.
May 2, 2025
Franco,
A wonderful post of your “Force-ful” encounter with Mr. Lucas. And I’m there with you: just “Star Wars,” having seen it myself in 1977.
May 2, 2025
There might be some Amish or similar cloistered groups who don’t know Star Wars, but for the most part, I think you’re right.
May 8, 2025
It’s no exaggeration or hyperbole to say Star Wars solidified the course of my life.
I was always artistic as a kid, but when 13 year-old me sat in the audience on the film’s opening night in the UK (December 27th, 1977, at the Leicester Square Theatre, in London’s West End) and that big old spaceship fried my brain as it passed overhead and then… robots, and Darth Vader, and… well, you get it… I knew right there and then I wanted to go on to work in the creative fields.
Nearly fifty years later, I’ve written and drawn for the big comic book companies, worked with many of the big animation houses and broadcasters and I’m now developing two feature films (one animation, one live action).
I owe that film, and George Lucas and his crew, a lot.