Star Wars: The Force Awakens 2015 10 out of 10 (SPOILERS) 6 Questions I Wanted to Know before it Came out and Whether it answered those Questions

SPOILERS

SPOILERS

SPOILERS

Star Wars : The Force Awakens  2015  10 out of 10

"Who are you?"  Asks the trailer......Well we really don't ever find out the answer to that question.   We find out who the villain is and it is devastating.

I put off writing my thoughts on the Force Awakens until I saw it a second time.  I guess I needed it to sink in a little bit.  I'm sure there are already a million reviews about the movie so maybe I'll take a slightly different approach and maybe just ask questions.  The movie brought up as many questions as it answered.  So below are 6 questions I was asking myself and didn't post about before the movie came out and whether the movie answered them or not.

What I thought about the movie:  I loved the movie.....I'm a huge Star Wars fan and I've read a ton of Star Wars books and I listen to Star Wars Podcasts and have even discussed it on my own Movie Podcast . The movie captured the spirit of the originals and brought a new generation of Star Wars characters to the forefront.  Harrison Ford was awesome!!! The new cast was great.....I can't wait for the next film.

 I'll discuss the film itself in more detail when we do our next Podcast.

1.  Where is Luke?  and has he turned to the Darkside?

What I thought before the film came out:

I really don’t think they will go the direction of Dark Empire comics and have Luke go to the darkside.  Luke will probably show up towards the end of the film which means it will probably be a couple of years before we really get to see Luke in action again.

Answers we got from the Movie: 

Well I was definitely right about Luke.  Now we know why he wasn't in the trailer and the posters...  After all he was only in the film for the last minute and didn't even speak a line.  I think it was a great ending and only makes us want to know more about what Luke has been up to and what we will see from him in Episode 8.

2. What are Rey and Finn’s last names?

What I thought before the film came out:
Skywalker or Solo –the jury is still out.  I’m sure Rey is related to one of our former heroes.  The trailer where she talks about waiting for her family and the narration about the same eyes in different people makes you wonder.

Answers we got from the Movie: 
Okay ---so we didn't find out the answer to either question.  Finn may not be related to anyone and Rey doesn't seem to be a Solo.
The movie makes you think that she may be Luke's child.  Again the movie created more questions than it answered.   My guess is that she is Luke's daughter and that maybe the mom dropped her off on Jakku to hide her when Kylo Ren had turned on Luke and the Jedi.  I think the mom planned on coming back for her, but never made it back.  Rey's visions when she touched Luke's Lightsaber show a memory of her being left on Jakku--but she also had visions of Kylo killing Jedi.     Hopefully we will find out in a year and a half from now.

3. Is Snoke actually Plagueis?

What I thought before the film came out:
This is highly unlikely –but Abrams did bring back Khan in Star Trek reboot….and the fact that they haven’t shown us what the character looks like makes the rumors persist.

Is the expanded universe really dead or is that just a setup like Khan?  Before the  movie went into production on the movie Disney and Lucasfilm announced that the expanded universe was pretty much dead.   But aside from new post Return of the Jedi comics Rebels has basically just re -enforced  older stories from the EU.  When the EU was reset I thought that it made since for them to reset things post Return of the Jedi –but there really was no reason to retell things prior to that.   They continue to bring elements of the Pre Jedi era into canon—which can be confusing for die hard fans.    This makes me wonder if the movie is actually going to be giving us something more from the EU then we have been lead to believe.    I hope that someday they bring Thrawn back into the new canon.

Answers we got from the Movie: 
Again we really didn't get an answer to this....  The book adaptation of the movie does say that Snoke has been around for a long time which only fuels the Plagueis fires....Of course they seem to be borrowing elements from the EU and changing them so he could be a Plagueis like character, but not Plagueis himself.

4. Rey and Kylo could actually be a version of Jacen and Jaina?

What I thought before the film came out:
This goes back into dragging ideas back in from the EU.   Rey and Kylo could just be new versions of the the Solo Twins from the EU.

Answers we got from the Movie: 
They basically used the spirit of the EU without having the same characters.   Rey is very much like Jaina Solo  (Although she may be a Skywalker)  and Kylo is like Jacen (except his name is Ben Solo).    So we basically got very similar characters to Jacen and Jaina Solo in new characters.  

 5.Let the Wookie Live?   Was the death of Chewie in the expanded universe one of the biggest reasons it was abandoned?

What I thought before the film came out:
One of the main reasons I think they rebooted the  beside being able to tell stories without being tied to details the general public don't know about was to reverse the loss of Chewie.   They killed Chewie off in the books during the 19 book series about the Vong.   Once they decided to do new movies and bring Han Solo back –not having Chewie would have been a crime.

Answers we got from the Movie: 
So they let the Wookie Live!!! and they Killed Han Solo.  I recall the reason that they killed Chewie in the books.  I agreed that after so many books --when all the main characters always survived it took away the danger in the books.   I hated that they had killed Chewie,  but I understood it.     The same goes for Han's death in the movie.  It had an impact that will totally effect many of the characters and makes things interesting --because no one is safe.  Like on the Walking Dead --the fact that they are willing to kill off main characters makes the show more interesting.   Han will be missed.  At least I still have all of Han's EU stories --still in my head...

6.  When will the first Rogue One Trailer hit?

What I thought before the film came out:
The first trailer for The Force Awakens broke on Thanksgiving over a year before the movie.   In my opinion we won’t see a Rouge One Trailer until sometime after the Force Awakens comes out…Maybe not until Captain America hits theaters……Just to not create confusion for non diehard fans.

Answers we got from the Movie: 
I think I was right on this one.....We probably won't see a Rogue One Trailer until the Star Wars movie has run it's Trench Run assault on Box Office Records.  The movie has already passed a billion dollars  Worldwide in slightly over a week at the Box Office.   It's daily numbers are insane and I'm sure we will not see a trailer for Rogue One until it's theater run is over.

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Marvel HQ at Disneyland

Everybody is thinking Star Wars and for good reason.......

The new movie is smashing box office records.....

Star Wars Launch Bay is getting all the attention and the other giant blockbuster franchise is getting sort of overlooked.  

 Just upstairs from Star Wars ...Spiderman has moved into the Disney parks for the first time ever with little fanfare.   The upper floor of Innoventions was already home to Thor and a collection of Ironmen suits....Well now the entire floor is Marvel as a part of Super Hero HQ.

A new section called the  V.A.U.L.T  is an area where character meet and greets can take place which currently features Spiderman  (soon to be scene in the upcoming Captain America: Civil War.
The V.A.U.L.T is a reference to Agents of Shield --which I'm glad to see is getting a little attention in the park as scenes from the show were on screens in the shopping area.

Classic Marvel Comic Frames cover the wall near the shopping area.

Where the Star Wars Launch Bay below had a total makeover--The Marvel HQ seems didn't get as much attention.....  Like I said the Thor section --as seen below...and the Iron Man section remain the same.

The biggest addition to the upstairs was bascially more shopping.

Like the Star Wars Launch Bay you can find some cool Marvel related artwork.

Merchandising is the key

Advertising for the new films

They also have the same D-Tech Phone cases that you can buy

The section where they used to have the power station shuffleboard game looks like it is just waiting for something to happen...  There is a sign relating to films that are still a ways away....The Infinity Gauntlet will be the main story for the next 2 Avengers films.

There is a cool X-Box area with playable games relating to Marvel.

I expect this area will get some more attention once the Star Wars craziness winds down a little and I expect some love for Captain America when the new film gets a little closer.....For now the Marvel HQ seems more like an after thought...

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Big Thunder Ranch –the Gateway to a Galaxy Far Far Away:

Star Wars Land is the biggest Disney news I could have dreamed of (Okay that is a lie I’ve dreamed of an entire Star Wars Theme Park –even before the new films were announced).  

Let’s just say that this is the most excited I’ve been for something new in the parks since the Indy ride opened.   Indy and Star Wars are my too favorite franchises so having them in the parks is like having all of my favorite things all in one place.   Once Star Wars Land opens a trip to Disneyland will be like a trip to my own private heaven.  It is almost like someone designed this place just for me.  

Big Thunder Ranch is the location for this magical addition to take place….. So The Big Thunder Jingle Jamboree isn't happening this year.

 The Horses and goats and  the Barbeque will be closing soon as well.   The Event area is already closed up.



So I thought it would be fun to take a look at this area as a good bye and dream about what will soon be here in its place.


The first question that comes to mind is how will this area behind Frontierland be transitioned to a Planet on the outer rim?   


Disney will have to get creative here as a planet in outer space is a strange transition from the backside of a runaway train in the old west.   I’m assuming that the BBQ restaurant area will serve as some type of transition section to the large section where the festival grounds and beyond are now.

So Long Big Thunder Ranch---it was nice knowing you.

P.S. I hear the Goats are being sent to the research lab and being turned into these things.  I can't wait.

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Star Wars Launch Bay: Meeting Vader

After Chewie…I  glanced over and the line to meet Lord Vader was about the same length as the Chewie line, so I figured I would venture over to the Dark Side    (The picture below was from my previous visit--the actual line was only 25 minutes)

Like the line for Chewie –the line for Vader featured cool props.   Lightsabers from the Sith characters like Count Dooku and Ventress.

They have a great display of Trooper Helmets in front of the main entrance to meet Vader…

Here is the Classic Storm Trooper Helmet

AT-AT Driver

Clone Trooper

And the new First Order Trooper

And then of course you get to meet the Dark Lord of the Sith himself.

I got a picture with the Dark Lord and some advice.    When Vader speaks ---you feel compelled to listen…..He is like the E.F Hutton of the Star Was Universe.

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