Blackwolf the Dragonmaster's Diary of Magecraft

Being a Chronicle of the Inner Secrets of, and Spells of Magick as Wielded by, the Philosopher of the Internet and Unofficial Sorcerer-in-Residence of the City of New York

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Location: New York, New York, United States

As New York's Unofficial Wizard, my mission is to encourage the Mortals of Manhattan to imagine responsibly!

Tuesday, May 01, 2007

On the Magic and Mystique of Star Wars

As many of you may know, 2007 marks the 30th Anniversary of the most sacred franchise in filmed entertainment history: Star Wars --- or, to be more specific, the original release of Episode IV: A New Hope. Today, my dears, it is dificult to recall a time when Star Wars was not a part of our daily national and international experience. But now, Lucasfilm Executive Editor J.W. Rinzler has once more dug deep into the Lucasfilm Archives to bring you perhaps THE most comprehensive history ever of the making of Episode IV. It is called The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Inside Story of the Original Film.

Once upon a time, my children, we once dismissed Star Wars as a so-called "science-fiction comedy." How little did we know in those days! We did not know at the time, as we know now, that the Star Wars Saga, like our own rise and fall of the Roman Empire, had not one cause, but many; and was not merely an event, but, rather, a process, spread out over countless millennia. Why, then, would we need to journey through six major motion pictures to understand and appreciate that simple truth?

Because, ultimately, what set Star Wars apart from other entertainment entities is the fact that it was a tale of, in the words of Walt Disney, "good and evil, the antagonists of all great drama in some guise." How wondrous and incredible, then, that, some three decades onward, we have others on this Earth who dare to appreciate it more and more. For such is the Star Wars magic and mystique that allows it to endure, as all great franchises inevitably must.

Still, I don't think I would not be inspired by the Star Wars mystery were it not for the incredible imagination of George Lucas himself. More than any other human, he and he alone has single-handedly given the world a Quest that I'm no longer sure will ever reach the end. Frankly, I'm not exactly sure about the to be continued part, either, but there you go. Anyway, The History Channel is devoting a prime-time special, Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed!, to the 30th Birthday milestone; I urge you to tune in on Memorial Day, starting @ 9 PM (ET) to explore it for yourselves!

Master Blackwolf