Place: Wendy's
Lunch: Bacon Gouda Cheeseburger, chili, Fanta grape and lime custom mix
Frowning Counter Girl: "For here or to go?"
Me: "Here."
FCG: "..."
Me: "Bacon Gouda Cheeseburger, no lettuce, no tomato, cup of chili, medium drink."
FCG: "Do you want that in a combo?"
Me: "With chili and a medium drink."
FCG: "Do you want a drink?"
Meanwhile at the Coke Freestyle machine, a very very old couple is confused. They selected a drink, but it won't pour when they push the button. They are slow and frustrated.
Woman to me: "Do you know how this thing works?"
Me: "Yes." I step in and get their drinks.
Him: "We're old."
My food is ready. The burger has lettuce and tomato.
**sigh**
Like most Wendy's special burgers, I'm not tasting anything special at all. Mostly just the beef.
The big moment is nearly here. "Star Wars: The Force Awakens", the first non-Lucas Star Wars movie, arrives this weekend. Preview shows start tomorrow. Reviews are coming out today, and are insanely favorable. It's a guaranteed blockbuster smash. Not that it needs to be...the thing HAS to have already made its budget back in licensing deals. There's Star Wars themed Spaghettio's for freak's sake.
There's been a lot of social media discussion about the new movie. One common question asked a lot is "if I want to catch up on the movies beforehand, in what order should I watch them?" There's two common answers...watch them in the sequential order of events (the prequels, then the original three), or just watch the original trio and skip the prequels completely because they're awful. And they are, despite what the serious hard core Star Wars faithful will claim. I used to have a co-worker who was one of these people when the prequels were released. Watching him try to justify the prequels being "not that bad" to others was hilarious.
But then I thought about "The Force Awakens" trailer.
"There were stories about what happened."
"It's true. All of it."
The new movie is set 30-plus years past the original trilogy. It has new young heroes who clearly have no first-hand knowledge of the events of the past. They're experiencing all this for the first time.
Perhaps you should too.
Perhaps you will find this all the more special if you go in fresh. Then go back and watch the original movies after if you're curious.
So that's my suggestion. Don't watch any of them.
Just go and enjoy the ride.
