5 Reasons It's Time To Love George Lucas Again

There is no one more divisive in the Star Wars universe than its very own creator George Lucas. As a society of avid Star Wars fans, we have gone from love for the universe he created to hate for the universe he ruined. I would claim that the reason Lucas is such a cause for a line in the sand is because of his constant tinkering of the original trilogy and his highly debated prequel trilogy.

I loved seeing the digitally re-mastered movies in theaters back in 1997 because I got to finally live the cinema experience. I loved the prequels for the fact that it was my generation that was able to enjoy our own Star Wars trilogy release. I€™ve gobbled up every bit of media possible in relation to the Star Wars universe from action figures, novels, comic books and television shows. I am the definition of a Star Wars / Lucas fanboy because I buy in to what I€™m being sold without hesitation.

I€™ve consumed so much Star Wars merchandise and commercialization over the years, I make it a joke that I hope George Lucas has a nice cushy leather couch somewhere at Skywalker Ranch from my contributions over the years. But as I grew older I started to look at things a little differently. Although I€™ve given up the action figures and comic book collecting, I still love the novels and the Clone Wars TV show. I was still a loyal Star Wars fan but I began to feel as though the films were the films and that was as good as it was going to get as far as big screen adaptations were concerned. I hated seeing Episode I in 3D earlier this year and would have much rather spent my money on watching the standard release instead. I knew there was never going to be another live action movie but this is what I had to lower myself to for enjoyment on the big screen?

It was with this experience that I finally realized Star Wars was just a money-churning machine after all. I finally sold out, or woke up depending on the individual perspective, and started having my own feelings of reservation to what I had bought into for so long. It took me a long time to finally feel that way and I began to understand a fanboy's feelings in relation to what Star Wars had become. I understood the rage but was reluctant to turn my back on something I had loved since my childhood.

However my turn to the dark side was as short lived as an appearance by Jar Jar Binks in Episode III. With the Disney purchase of everything Lucas has done over the past 35+ years in relation to the Star Wars universe, I came to a new realization. I feel that instead of debating what we don€™t like about Star Wars and how much it has been ruined and tarnished, it€™s time we love George Lucas again.

We have been ever so critical of the special edition, of the prequels, of the reality of who shot first, to the re-release of 3D: it€™s time to give George a break. Star Wars was his baby and we all bought into everything he did with the hope that it would be different. We know the reality and we know the outcome. Lucas was just fortunate enough to be the creator that had the talent and resources to go back and tell the story he wanted. We need to accept this. As fans, our emotions have gone from love to hate because of the expectations we place on something that isn€™t ours. I feel it€™s time to go back to love for George Lucas. These are the reason why:

Contributor
Contributor

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” - George Bernard Shaw