Erin is a Friend of the Geek who considers herself a “jack of all trades, master of none” type due to the many things that she wants to do in her life. She is a team leader of a social media team, a loving wife to a starting game streamer, a writer, a blogger, an artist, a figure collector, a casual gamer, a semi-retired cosplayer, and a fujoshi. Erin has been a certified Star Wars fan since she was 13 years old, and here’s a story of how it all began.
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Star Wars has always been part of my life. While there were years of hiatus, my love for it never disappeared and actually became a key aspect of growing up. Luke, Leia, Han, Lando, Chewbacca, R2D2, C3PO and all the other characters became some of my friends, crushes, and role models at a time when being a geek was taboo and fellow classmates laughed at my geekiness. For me, Star Wars started my love for fandoms. If I didn’t discover that galaxy far, far away, I wouldn’t end up loving pop culture and meeting my husband. And I always thank my dad for introducing me to Star Wars.
Thanks to my dad, Star Wars became a part of my teenage years because he exposed me to it. In 1997, when the original trilogy was remastered and re-released in theaters by Lucasfilm, my dad brought me to the cinema to watch A New Hope. Years after, we also watched Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.
During A New Hope, I remembered my dad telling me that he watched the movie in 1977 in a not-so-full cinema. That time, George Lucas and science-fiction were relatively new in the 70’s. A lot of people thought A New Hope wouldn’t be a big hit because it was an unusual movie. Aliens, space battles, outer space planets, stormtroopers, and lightsabers were not common elements back then.
But my dad is a geek and a science-fiction fan, so he wouldn’t miss watching it. To make the long story short, A New Hope was released in a limited number of theaters in the US and quickly became a blockbuster hit, leading to being expanded on a much wider release. And that was how my dad was able to watch it.
So going back to that memorable experience, while we were watching, my dad was actually telling me the differences between the old and remastered versions, such as the buildings in Cloud City originally didn’t have windows or Jabba the Hut was just steady before,when on the remastered, he was already walking. But while geeking out, what really fascinated me was my dad being so happy just telling me about the movies and his love for them. And because of him being a fanboy, my love for Star Wars began.
Despite being a naive kid then, I became fascinated with this new world filled with different stories and lovable characters. Star Wars became a way for me and my family to bond because both my older sister and younger brother are huge fans, while my mother is a casual fan.
My husband, Marc, is also a huge Star Wars fan and it also became one of our bonding moments. Ever since I met him, we have watched every Star Wars movie that came out in theaters (starting with Revenge of the Sith). In addition, we incorporated Star Wars in our wedding by making Han Solo and Leia Organa Funko Pops our cake toppers. And of course, when the latest Star Wars movies came out, Marc and I watched it together with my family.
Overall, my love for the fandom lives within me even today. If my dad didn’t introduce me to Star Wars, I wouldn’t be the geek/fangirl that I am now. Star Wars will never disappear in our lives and it will remain in our hearts forever. Marc and I vowed that when we have kids, we will pass our love for the fandom to them. Happy Star Wars Week, everyone!
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