The Force Awakens

So, who here's NOT a Star Wars geek? When are you going to see the Force Awakens?

I haven't bought tickets yet, but I have the 23rd off, so I think I'm going to try to go to a local dine in Loews on that day. I've also managed to not see any trailers or promo material. I know some broad strokes, but other than knowing 2 characters, that there are new X-Wing and TIE fighters (mostly because of the X-Wing minis game), and that for some reason, the bad guy has laser cross guards on his lightsaber. I also know that Jar Jar Binks is the big baddie over the entirety of the Star Wars universe, and that Abrams first two initials stand for Jar Jar.

What's your story?

I'm going to be the guy everyone hates here and say I don't plan on ever seeing any of the new Abraams SW. If JJ Arbaams made Star Trek for people who hate Star Trek, I feel he'll most likely end up doing Star Wars for people who hate Star Wars...

I wouldn't say he made Star Trek for people who hate Star Trek; he made it for a new generation of fans. I'm a huge fan of Star Trek, from parts of TOS through Enterprise, and I thought it was done well.

I also try not to go into movies with an expectations; that way I'm never disappointed.

I'm curious, and will see it in the theater, but probably sometime in 2016. I don't need to wait in line for it.

Setting expectations low is the key to enjoying film, definitely. Also avoiding trailers is very important to manage one's blood pressure. Most trailers tell far too much of the plot of movies to stomach.

I'm actually about to head out to go see see it. :-)

I'm seeing it next Tuesday (we hoped to avoid most of the early showing madness, but still to see it asap).

Just realized I may not to able to see it Wednesday. Let's see if/when I can go.

I saw the first three films in the theatre when they were released (IV, V, VI) but have never watched the three prequels. Just not that big of a fan really although since playing in a Force and Destiny game here my interest has been piqued a bit. Mostly because I don't know what the hell the other players are referring to half of the time. :-)

I have heard that new film is actually pretty good, hope those that go to see it have a good time.

As you might expect, I'm a bit of a Star Wars geek. I've seen them all in the theatre when they originally came out -- and the idea of seeing a Star Wars with my boys for the first time together is almost enough to bring tears to my eyes.

I have a family of four. Our schedule is:

tomorrow, 9am: IMAX 3D
tomorrow, 3:30pm: 2D SD
tuesday, 11am: Cinerama special laser-awesome-projector

After that, subsequent viewings will depend on quality. :)

I had tickets for noon friday but then things didnt work out. Now i plan on going sometime in the next couple weeks. I am real excited to see it.

Also for the Star Trak reference i didnt hate Star Trek just didnt get into it. I liked the new movies they had but still not going to theaters to see them.

Saw. The orginals in the theater. Was super disappointed with the prequels and admitted they were bad right away.

Lol so no update on our game tomorrow is what you are saying. Lol

Yah, it'll be sketchy. I gave away the 7pm tickets tomorrow -- so it could have been worse.

Overall, I think it was a great addition to the Star Wars cannon. Likable new characters, no goofball jar-jar, Ewoks or over-the-top C3PO. Definitely some plot components that will cause a stir -- but in the end very connected and reasonable. Also well made, and a lot of fun.

Thanks, falryx. I'm a big SW fan, but have mixed feelings about JJA. After Lost, I'll never trust his judgement, heh. Sounds like the new one isn't a disaster, which means I'm suddenly excited to see it. However, I HATE theatres, and would pay double to see it on my TV instead. Not sure when PPV will become available.

You should take the day off some time in January and do a matinee. That's what i am planning on doing.

Saw it Sunday. I almost cried I was so happy. :-)

"Hate" might have been a bit of a strong word. "Perhaps "not like" would have been more appropriate. Still, after having heard about the plot of the movie and several spoilers, I now know this movie is as shit as I was expecting it to be, so I do not regret my decision to not see it...

Wait, you've heard bad things about Star Wars? Even my most critical friends thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact, I haven't heard anyone speak less than highly of it.

As for Star Wars, again, even among super Trekies, only a small handful disliked it, as far as I know.

I haven't seen the new movie yet, but I wouldn't be so quick to judge something that you haven't seen. Especially with all of the positive reviews I think it's probably worth at least 2 hours of your life to give it a watch.

Worst thing I've heard about it is that it's not as great as the originals.

In my opinion -- and I saw the originals in the theatre, thankyouverymuch -- it beats ROTJ easily and definitely gives the other two a run for their money. But the truth is, not everyone will like it (as not everyone likes Star Wars).

Calling something shit without seeing it is just idiotic. Last Air Bender was shit.


Also I dont hate you for your opinion just you dont get one. :-)

I am in the same boat with you seeing the real ones in the theater when I was young. This one in my opinion is pretty much tied with Empire. I need to see it a couple more times to see what i missed. Also any "holes" i know were mean for other future movies.

No. I basically had the whole movie basically explained to me. I came up to my own conclusions that it was bad.

We'll, how you reach the conclusion is up to you, but I do think that's a bit unfair and short sighted. It's like saying a book is bad after reading a summary of it. Less so, as the visual experience us a big part of a visual media.

I literally grew up watching Star Wars (was too young to see originals in theaters). Saw VII today and literally didn't stop smiling. It may very well be my favorite. I'll have to do some thinking on that. As far as JJA's history I thought he was the perfect choice because his Trek movies were basically Star Wars movies with Kirk and Spock. They were all about the good vs evil and the gun fights/crazy action that are central to Star Wars. Also, Kylo Ren is much better written and acted than young Anikin from the prequels (still can't figure out if it was HC being a bad actor or terrible writing, but it makes me sad as the actual story of the prequels had a lot of potencial). Making the comparison because the two have very similar personalities and situations.

It's a good question. I don't think Hayden was a very good actor, for sure, but it's also true that George Lucas isn't that good at writing dialogue and when he had the means to "tell the story he wanted" I think it inhibited his creativity. Episode 4 is so good, in part, because you have to imagine a lot of stuff and it works (and things look used and lived in). The prequels all look too pristine, and George's addiction to CGI didn't serve the story well.

So -- maybe a little of both. Episode 7, however, eschews all of that gratuitous CGI to tell a very good story. Truthfully, it has some relatively significant holes in it, in my opinion, but it's still a lot of fun. :)

I have a ticket to go see it tonight, but I woke up feeling a bit ill this morning, not sure if it was because of the Christmas party last night or just because this weather sucks. Either way, I have a wedding to go to tomorrow, and I don't wanna risk being so sick I can't go or go and feel like crap. I'll see how I feel at 8, but if I'm still sick-ish, I'll go mid next week.

Got back from TFA a bit ago; it was good, definitely way better than the prequels. It was definitely a JJ Abrams movie; the first 5 minutes screamed it, and I liked it. The battle scenes really make me wanna play X-Wing/Armada, and setup a new FFGSW game. However, I wasn't super impressed. It was fun, I liked it over all, but I found a bunch of issues. I'll avoid saying more from here.

I never saw the original trilogy in the theater, but I definitely grew up with them. My dad was a fan, and I was raised as a fan. I initially liked the prequels (as a kid) but once their fun wore off and I thought critically about the story, I got really disappointed. I read some EU material, and liked less than I read (probably the 80/20 rule). But I kept on liking the core of Star Wars.

I think that TFA is a good stepping stone for the rest of the trilogy, but unlike A New Hope it very clearly says "I'm part of a trilogy!" So I feel that TFA doesn't quite stand on its own as well as its predecessors, but definitely feels like a proper Star Wars film. I'm glad Lucasfilm/Disney didn't tie their hands too tightly, so the story really could go anywhere from here. The casting was very good, even if certain characters got less screen time than I'd hoped. I watched it in 3D IMAX and felt that the 3D made it harder to pay attention because there was so much more motion. Any of the plot holes that I noticed weren't huge problems, and any of those I've heard from others are predominantly opinion/preference -level—rather than glaring plot holes. I admit that the new doomsday weapon isn't scientific ... but it's still pretty cool (not that Star Wars was ever about science).

Edit: And I do plan to see it in the regular theater so I can pick up all the details I missed.

Much like Keleth, I left wanting to play a Star Wars roleplaying game almost immediately.

There are times that I think about breaking out my old 1st/2nd edition Star Wars RPG books and running one of the old-old-old adventure modules. Unfortunately, I don't think there's a copy of the old version out there for other players, and I am unable to invest in the newer systems.

Personally, I have to wait until SW:TFA is released on disc or streaming. Practically everyone around me has already watched the film in the theater, but for my preference I like sitting at home nowadays.

Actually. http://d6holocron.com/

I own the d6 books - so would happily play a WEG Star Wars adventure. :)

d6holocron 503'd for me - but there are PDFs of the rulebook out there in sufficient numbers I wonder if the information has gone public domain.

Hmm, they might be undergoing maintenance. Maybe try it later in a few days?

I own both first and second editions. Nowadays you can find many more copies of the d20 versions, but used book stores still have copies of the West End Games d6 versions (1st and 2nd edition). Right now there are a dozen copies of 2nd edition on Amazon, all for less than $20.

I would love to play in such a 1st- or 2nd-edition game. I've been meaning to introduce my kids to it, but they're enjoying our D&D5 campaigns so much I feel like I need to draw those to a close first.

On an unrelated note, the holocron is up again.

SW TFA Cake. More photos here

That is some nice work!

For all the Kylo haters. Lol

http://youtu.be/FaOSCASqLsE

Okay, that was funny. :P