danah boyd | apophenia

Yes, it is finals season and i’m on lock-down, but some rituals simply cannot be broken. On 18 May 1999, i flew back from Amsterdam (with a flight full of Star Wars fans) to celebrate Jon’s birthday by watching the midnight showing of Episode I with a pile of friends in Seekonk. We had seen every re-release midnight opening night, celebrated by long goofy lines and various piercings (my piercer in Providence had a small Star Wars obsession). Jar Jar aside, we were dreadfully disappointed by Episode I. Yet, i returned for the sappy love story of Episode II, once again at midnight on opening night. Given ongoing disappointment, i had avoided even thinking about Episode III until i realized the release date. Jon and i giggled as we relived college years, celebrating his birthday by romping into the Metreon for a near midnight showing with a crowd full of light sabers and costumes, chanting and even executing “the wave” as people awaited dun-dun-de-dun…

When we walked out, we looked at each other and laughed. “At least nothing sucked” we both agreed. Light sabers galore, Episode III is nothing more than an action-packed filler piece to complete the puzzle. Little dialogue, no real passion, minimal substance. There’s something strange about seeing a movie where you know the beginning and know the end and are just waiting to see the interpolation. It’s been almost 28 years since the original one was projected – my entire life. What a funny end of an era. Of course, i don’t think that anyone at the Metreon tonite saw the original release in the theatre. We all grew up with it and somehow, needed the finale. Maybe now we’ve grown up?