Does anybody here not like Star Wars?

[Too Much Fun]

There are a lot of stereotypes about Star Trek fans. I think most of them are unfair B.S., but one I'm not sure about is the idea that Star Trek fans have a grudge against Star Wars and that there's animosity between fans of each franchise. The reason I'm not sure about it is because I don't recall anyone here ever saying anything really bad about Star Wars, aside from some of the usual complaints that even Star Wars fans have, like Jar Jar Binks being a horrible character. So I'm starting to wonder if I'm the closest thing here to a person who embodies that stereotype of an anti-Star Wars Trekker.

I say 'closest', because I'm not exactly a Star Wars hater. My general take on the movies (I've seen all of them except "Attack of the Clones") is that they're forgettable, but respectable. Most of them don't have any major problems in terms of story, characters, acting, special effects, etc. that bothered me. They just failed to make a strong impression on me. I pretty much totally forgot about the movies as soon as they ended, and really couldn't bring myself to care about the characters. I don't know why. Maybe it's because I didn't grow up with Star Wars as so many fans of it did. I watched the original trilogy out of curiosity as a teenager just to see what the big deal was and when I'd finished, I just thought, "that was all right, I guess". Not quite a "meh", but not much more either.

The one Star Wars movie I really hate is "Revenge of the Sith". Maybe it's because I was so young when I saw the others (particularly "The Phantom Menace", which I see a lot of complaints about), but that's the only one I've seen that I thought was riddled with obvious flaws. Boring, generic special effects that looked like a computer game so I couldn't tell who was fighting who in big battle scenes, painfully unimaginative dialog that simply advanced the plot without any wit or eloquence, and stiff, wooden acting.

The few things I liked about it were that I thought Ewan McGregor's slavishly faithful impersonation of Alex Guiness was cute, and Anakin's mentor (forgot the character's name) gives the movie's one understated and interesting performance (at least until he turns into a cartoon villain with red eyes and a wacky voice). The final sequence was effective too, but it basically wrote itself. It only had some resonance because it was tying into the later movies...it didn't really earn its impact on its own.

I was disappointed that George Lucas, after over 30 years in the movie business, could not come up with more subtle, clever, and original writing than what he delivered in that movie. Perhaps the pressure of tying up loose ends to adequately set up the original trilogy was too much for him to be able to take the time to think up more plausible storytelling and more interesting conversations.

So how about the rest of you? Am I the only one here who wasn't all that enthralled with Star Wars from the beginning? I know most people aren't so keen on the second trilogy (although to my amazement some people seem to love "Revenge of the Sith"), but did anyone else find even the original trilogy underwhelming? It would be surprising to find myself the only person who feels that way on a Star Trek forum...now that's breaking stereotypes!

 

[RoJoHen]

Meh, I'm okay with it. I liked the OT a lot when I was little, but now that I'm older I've realized that it isn't all that special.

 

[captcalhoun]

i like all seven movies. and the Clone Wars toons and the novels - caveat i have not read all of the 100+ novels. only ~50...

 

[Kirkman1987]

I prefer Star Trek by a mile, but think Star Wars is a great film, masterfully made.

The problem with Star Wars and at the same time the greatest appeal is it's fluffy simplistic story. Star Trek Appeals to me because of it's thoughtful stories, Star Wars is a glorified serial.

Not that theres anything wrong with that. Apples and oranges

 

[Checkmate]

I like the original movie because, once upon a time, Lucas knew how to capture the movie going experience much like Tarantino does today. The second and third movies were okay, but they were progressively becoming more about selling merchandise and appealing to kids than making a fun movie.

The recent trilogy was just abysmal. It was a combination of horrible dialogues, horrible story, absolutely horrible storytelling and wooden acting (which is amazing considering who some of the actors were, which says far more about the directors and writers than the actors). The only thing that had any quality to it whatsoever was the special effects, and that's the only reason I'd ever watch any of them again. Even the fight scenes were either lackluster or flat-out embarrassing (namely any dealing with Yoda).

 

[Gaith]

I can understand not liking the Star Wars movies for their dramatic elements, but I've got a harder time grokking not liking the series' universe.

I'm a Trekker first and a Wars-ian second, but since I grew up with both, the latter films' images, creatures, music, sound and light effects, etc., are all hard-wired into my brain. I can't pick up a cardboard tube and not think of a lightsaber, and I'm prone to humming John Williams' scores to myself at random moments.

Heck, while I have serious problems with the aesthetics of the PT in terms of OT continuity, I have to hand it to the Lucasfilm team: while not as magical as the OT's sights and sounds (but really, what could be?), there's wonderful stuff to look at and listen to in the PT, from the architecture of Naboo to the babe-age of Aayla Secura.

True, A New Hope sometimes feels its age, and there are big plot holes, especially with the PT (which I personally disown, continuity-wise) factored in. And the first half of Jedi is dramatic dead weight. (Empire, however, really is a near-perfect movie.)

But, even when I don't remember the movies themselves, I see things like Darth Vader getting jiggy to "U Can't Touch This", and the Star Wars lantern in my mind flickers once again to life.

So, no. I'm a Trekker who likes Star Wars.

 

[Goji]

I think the first movie is good but overrated, but I grew up in the 90s, long after its initial release, so I'm surely viewing it differently than its original audience. I like The Empire Strikes Back and think it's a genuinely good movie, building on the things that did work in its predecessor and delivering a more solid film with a more interesting story. Then The Return of the Jedi drops us into muppet land and it all goes to hell.

The prequel trilogy is just nonstop cgi fluff occasionally interrupted by bad acting. I am not a fan.

 

[nx1701g]

I like all of them.

 

[Aurian]

I like all of them. I prefer the original triology though.

 

[Shurik]

I like the original trilogy, Empire Strikes Back the most. I prefer to forget I ever saw the prequels.

 

[Orac Zen]

Honestly, I find all of the movies unengaging, uninteresting and just plain boring. I've tried to get into Wars but whatever it is about it that appeals to people doesn't work for me. At all.

To each their own.

 

[Jono]

I'm a pretty big Star Wars fan, loved the OT and I thought the prequels were okay so I don't dislike it. I also have to add that the tie-in material for Star Wars (books, comics, games, toys/collectables) have also greatly influenced my views on the franchise. They produced a fair amount of tie-in stuff and comparing it to Star Trek I think it is miles above in terms of quality.

 

[cultcross]

I think the first movie is good but overrated, but I grew up in the 90s, long after its initial release, so I'm surely viewing it differently than its original audience. I like The Empire Strikes Back and think it's a genuinely good movie, building on the things that did work in its predecessor and delivering a more solid film with a more interesting story. Then The Return of the Jedi drops us into muppet land and it all goes to hell.

The prequel trilogy is just nonstop cgi fluff occasionally interrupted by bad acting. I am not a fan.

Pretty much exactly my thoughts on all points.

 

[RJDiogenes]

I never cared much for Star Wars. I was sixteen when the first one came out and I laughed out loud when I saw the commercials on TV because it was so freakin' ugly. It boggled my mind when it achieved such mainstream success. The first SW movie I saw was Empire Strikes Back and I kind of liked it, so I went back and watched the original on VHS. My original impression that it sucked was correct. Not only are the aesthetics as boring as can be, but both Mark Hammil and Carrie Fisher are dull as dishwater. And the bloody robots are ridiculous. Alec Guinness and Harrison Ford were cool, of course. Then Return Of The Jedi came out and was disappointing.

I enjoyed the prequel trilogy a lot more. The casting was a lot better, for one thing, especially Liam Neeson as Qui-Gon. And the special effects, especially in the first movie, made me wish harder that someone would do a really good adaptation of some Golden Age SF.

The worst thing about Star Wars, of course, was its long-term effect on the medium.

 

[Skywalker]

I'm not a fan.

 

[cultcross]

^

 

[Pingfah]

I voted for "Only after the original trilogy".

But this doesn't really describe my opinion so well, I actually dislike Return of the Jedi, but enjoyed Revenge of the Sith. A better trilogy would be ROTS, A New Hope, Empire Strikes back. A happy ending film bookended by two darker films.

 

[byron lomax]

I say 'closest', because I'm not exactly a Star Wars hater. My general take on the movies (I've seen all of them except "Attack of the Clones") is that they're forgettable, but respectable. Most of them don't have any major problems in terms of story, characters, acting, special effects, etc. that bothered me. They just failed to make a strong impression on me. I pretty much totally forgot about the movies as soon as they ended, and really couldn't bring myself to care about the characters. I don't know why. Maybe it's because I didn't grow up with Star Wars as so many fans of it did. I watched the original trilogy out of curiosity as a teenager just to see what the big deal was and when I'd finished, I just thought, "that was all right, I guess". Not quite a "meh", but not much more either.

That's pretty much my position on the series, although my reaction was a bit more positive - I was hugely entertained - but I forgot about most of the characters soon after and never found the SW Universe all that interesting (besides some cool stuff). I don't feel attached to the franchise in any way, but if the original trilogy came on TV I'd sit down and watch for a while.

 

[Deranged Nasat]

I've never been able to get interested in "Star Wars", I'm afraid. It simply doesn't have any emotional impact on me, unlike "Star Trek", "Babylon Five", "Farscape", etc. Meaning no offense to its many fans, "Star Wars" has always seemed shallow and uninteresting to me. The Original Trilogy are decent films, for sure, but that's as far as my appreciation goes.

 

[Jadzia]

My father is a big star wars fan, but I've never understood the appeal of it, or why it has such a strong fan base.

I haven't seen all of the films. In fact I'm not sure which I have seen because I can't remember much about them now. It was all a long time ago, and they didn't keep me interested for long enough to sit and watch a full movie, so I only have half an idea what it's all about anyway.

I know my father has some starwars books and action figures stored somewhere dating from the 1970s from when the first film came out. He tells me that they're worth something.