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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

PT The hype leading up to each episode

Discussion in 'Prequel Trilogy' started by Jedi Knight Fett, Apr 16, 2017.

  1. Jedi Knight Fett

    Jedi Knight Fett Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2014
    Talk about what you remember from the lead up to TPM, AOTC, ROTS and what your favorite merchandise was and all the crazy stuff about the late 90s and early 2000s!
     
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  2. Darkslayer

    Darkslayer #1 Sabine Wren Fan star 7

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2013
    I still have the issue of Time titled "The Last Star Wars." I could not resist diving into the spoilers! My parents had blacked out Harrison Ford's quote with a sharpie :p
     
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  3. Darth__Lobot

    Darth__Lobot Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 29, 2015
    I'm guessing the younger fans won't be able to relate to downloading trailers over a 14.4 baud modem. (I'm so old that my first modem was 2400 baud!!!)
     
  4. Ginkasa

    Ginkasa Jedi Grand Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jun 13, 2002
    I remember seeing the trailer for TPM the first time in front of October Sky. I recall a screensaver we had on our PC leading up to Episode I. It showed screenshots of a few different scenes with a corresponding line from the movie. The two I recall it had were Mace Windu saying "You speak of the prophecy of the one who will bring balance to the Force. You believe it is this boy?" and Padmé saying "Are you sure about this? Trusting our fate to a boy we hardly know?" I also remember having the PC game for TPM and watching the scenes from the movie in the opening menu; in particular the lightsaber battle between Obi-Wan and Maul right after Qui-Gon was killed. I watched it over and over and over.

    AotC was the first one where I actively looked for information about it before hand. I knew everything that was going to happen in the movie before watching it which was a first for me. The only time I watched MTV's TRL was to see the premiere of the music video for Across the Stars.

    I recall going to the theatre to see The Incredibles just so I could watch the trailer for RotS on the big screen. Fortunately The Incredibles is a good movie as they did not show the Star Wars preview in front it. Of course, by this point it wasn't a big deal to download the trailer and I watched it pretty regularly. I had the soundtrack before watching the movie and listened to it pretty constantly in the lead up. This was the first one that came out after I got my driver's license, so I was able to take myself to the midnight premiere which is a cherished memory. I won a Darth Vader Lego set by correctly listing three of the bounty hunters present in the scene in ESB.
     
  5. Cryogenic

    Cryogenic Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Jul 20, 2005

    [face_laugh]

    I can relate to that. My first computer modem, on a shared computer, was a 14.4 modem.

    Yikes. Those were the days.

    So, anyway...

    One of my favourite bits of merchandise back then, aside from some of the Star Wars video games (especially "Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II"; and the really cruddy game me and my brother made), was the fabulous CD-ROM "Star Wars: Behind The Magic". Anyone else ever own that? It kind of kick-started the madness for me. I mean, sure, I was aware of Star Wars and had seen the films a little before that product came out, but given that it was largely a pre-Internet era at the time, that product was one of the first things to put me in touch with various behind-the-scenes bits, design snippets, and ideas that would massively expand my fascination with the series. Indeed, I can probably shake a finger at that very product for maxing out the bandwidth of my brain and filling me with all sorts of intellectual fascinations and obsessions with character, place, and symbolism that have continued (and nearly eaten my brain alive) to this very day. "Artoo represents the eccentric and unknowable subconscious, Threepio the ever-chattering 'active' mind". Wait, I thought, this is crazy! Perhaps it is; perhaps I am...

    Blegh.

    The other big happening around that time, the immense stirring in the loins of the cosmos, circa the end of the millennium, was, of course, the TPM teaser trailer. That thing just about blew everyone's socks off, including mine. I taped it from a kids' television programme in the UK, on the BBC, called "Electric Circus". I even transferred the audio from the tape (NICAM Stereo sound) onto my PC, which was quite a trick in the day, so that I had it in clear digital sound. I remember it sounding extremely warm and good. VHS tapes may not have had fantastic picture quality, but a stereo recording struck from a tape, or played through good speakers, wasn't anywhere near as lacking. Also, around the same time, I certainly had an Internet connection (first got online in 1997 -- CRIPES! TWENTY YEARS!) and used that to grab and read what I could about the then-upcoming Episode I. "Episode I". The very term still does something to my brain. I gathered a handful of pictures, including one of Anakin sat at the dinner table in his home with his bowl haircut (that image really fascinated me for some reason), and put them in a slideshow set to music. I had this primitive program that enabled you to do that; like a crude movie-trailer maker. Fun times.

    For one reason or another, I was a little late seeing TPM. I don't think I saw it that first weekend. I was trying to co-ordinate going to see it with another "Star Wars" person. I think that was why. A couple of my closest pals at the time saw it ahead of me. One of them, who doesn't particularly like Star Wars or science-fiction or fantasy in general, unsurprisingly disliked it. The other one was more enthusiastic, to the point of revealing to me, on the phone, that Qui-Gon died at the end (not that it was particularly hard to guess that in advance). I was slightly irked that he had confirmed that detail; more as an act of showing off that he'd seen the movie ahead of me. So, anyway, I went to see TPM with my Star Wars friend some time later, and I think we were both pretty wow-ed by it; if scratching our head or pondering things in a few places. It was a mega-loud auditorium; the sound was actually cranked up too high and I remember the discomfort to this day. It slightly marred the experience; and, back then (even now), I never went again for a repeat viewing of a movie. But it was really something to see on the big screen that first time going in. The underwater sequence, for me, was an early highlight. And I'll never forget my friend turning to me with glee when Darth Maul appears from behind the blast doors. A memorable, once-in-a-lifetime experience. Everyone (apart from my Star Wars-hating friend) was in a mega-hyped state back then; or, at least, that's how my brain remembers it. Some kid even performed on-stage at my (somewhat staid/conservative/British) school dressed as Maul before the movie opened here. Crazy stuff.

    The build-ups to AOTC and ROTS also had their excitement, but nothing like TPM for me. I remember pouring over the news of who got to be the new Anakin; and I remember one of the first images, from ROTS, was this slightly skinny dude from AOTC now looking rather He-man-like. I think "Across The Stars" may have played a few times on the radio back then; I know that "Duel of the Fates" did. Probably the two pieces that most scream "prequel" to me. I also remember when Grievous was revealed for the first time (that shot of him on the bridge of the Invisible Hand). I could see he was obviously a digital baddie; but I thought he was pretty cool and only all the cooler once I finally saw the movie. The other thing that created a bit of unsteady buzz was the notion of lava surfing. I remember people speculating on whether Lucas was now indulging himself beyond sense; or would he actually be able to pull it off? Net history hasn't been too kind to these films, but I've never really been in accord with the dismay -- especially not toward ROTS. That, for me, was an explosive end to the PT era; capping Lucas' epic thirty-year odyssey with majestic power and finesse. I was already assuming a bit of a defensive posture where the prequels were concerned in 2004; this would intensify after seeing ROTS (twice as it happens -- yes, I did go back for more Sith). While I can understand people's issues with the prequels, I've never quite been able to see what the precise source of so much hate might be. I'll freely admit I had the best time with ROTS of the three, and did take a little longer to adjust more in the case of Eps. I and II; but, really, I don't think I'd go back and change anything. The atmosphere around these movies was like nothing else. The new Disney era, in my humble opinion, doesn't really compare; nor could it.

    A fairly basic, rambling response. But I hope that paints its own picture. :)
     
  6. B99

    B99 Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Nov 10, 2014
    I remember getting a Kit Fisto toy from Burger King! LOL wish I still had it.. :(
     
  7. HevyDevy

    HevyDevy Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 13, 2011
    What was the quote regarding? I'm curious.


    I can't really remember the hype for TPM and AOTC like I can the lead up to ROTS.

    As a more casual fan at the time of TPM's release it was to me just another SW movie to go and see. Even after viewing it at the cinema I didn't really segregate it from the OT until I heard other's lukewarm reactions. For the record it is still one of my favourite films out of anything I've seen.
    I do remember the pizza hut ad in '97 where the kid finally takes of the Vader mask he has been wearing everywhere and he turns out to be Yoda, and this being directly before I saw the OT for the first time I didn't really get the joke :p. Retrospectively, I must have been really out of touch.

    TPM ads were running pretty rampantly in '99 of course, but I wasn't involved in it in any personal way. AOTC was just vaguely discussed by people at school, heard a few mentions that it was better than TPM (subjective bias, I do wonder what those people would think after all this time), and one specific exchange was - Me: "Does Anakin turn?" "No, but he kills a village of Tuskens." "Why?" "They killed his mom." That made me very curious.

    ROTS however I first started to really anticipate when I got the January '05 (well that's when I bought it, it was labeled "May '05") issue of Empire magazine, the one with the Anakin/Vader holo on the front. I read that article over and over (they already knew some major details like Anakin and the Jedi younglings) and I started to browse the ROTS spoiler forums. A lot of the aspects of the fanbase became apparent to me then, like why veterans had to tell people to perhaps think twice if your source for spoilers is named "supershadow" (lol). When the official trailer came out people were going pretty nuts, I have fond memories of watching the download repeatedly, most prominent in my memory is reacting to Anakin's conflict in being asked to spy on Palpatine, it seemed like the film would have a more adult vibe. I read a few plot synopsis's from people who claimed to have seen the film, a lot of them turned out to be pretty accurate. And when the media got a screening of the extended cut prior to May 19, there was thankfully a fairly positive reaction, such as praises about improvements in the script and acting. One negative reviewer lamented "He turns... to save Padme!" to which someone responded along the lines of "Turning for love is a universally relatable reason for him to fall, many of the biggest things in history were done out of love." A wise retort, but it seems a little ironic looking back at it after discussing it all these years.
    I saw the film once at the cinema, then downloaded a bootleg so I could watch it a lot (yeah I'm cheap. I still bought the DVD and bluray). I was pretty impressed, it seemed so final, particularly without knowledge of the future Disney sale. I can't see myself ever anticipating a film as much as that again.
     
  8. Darkslayer

    Darkslayer #1 Sabine Wren Fan star 7

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2013
    It was the infamous quote about George's dialogue [face_laugh]
     
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  9. DarthAnakin96

    DarthAnakin96 Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Feb 5, 2016
    Unfortunately I only got quite into Star Wars when Episode 3 came out. I do remember my parents watched it first when we rented it before me and my brother could to make sure it wasn't too violent and scary :p
     
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  10. B99

    B99 Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Nov 10, 2014
    I watched it when it came out on dvd that year(Probably around Oct, Nov?) Then got all Ep III toy n figures for Christmas that year..
     
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  11. HevyDevy

    HevyDevy Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Apr 13, 2011
    Ah. "You can type this **** but you can't say it!" Lol.

    Highlights one of the major disparities between each trilogy. In the OT you have characters like Han (and actors like Ford) keeping things more human. In the PT dialogue is much more symbolic than character-driven, yet arguably more meaningful in terms of the big picture.
     
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  12. Darkslayer

    Darkslayer #1 Sabine Wren Fan star 7

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2013
    Another thing I still have: toy replicas of Yoda's (AOTC line) and Anakin's (also AOTC) lightsabers!

    I remember the summer after ROTS - I was only in 5th grade but I got a job so I could end up with the whole line of ROTS Legos [face_laugh]

    I still have most of them!
     
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  13. DarthAnakin96

    DarthAnakin96 Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Feb 5, 2016
    My first Lego set was a combo pack of a Arc Fighter and a tri fighter with buzz droids. I'm pretty sure I got it around the release or shortly after ROTS came out
     
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  14. B99

    B99 Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Nov 10, 2014
    One of my favs I got was the Mustafar play set!! May have gone up in value after R1! :p
     
  15. Darkslayer

    Darkslayer #1 Sabine Wren Fan star 7

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2013
    I still have that one put together!

    Really hope to see it re-made eventually with the modern-day Lego build techniques.

    Disappointed they haven't done a Yoda vs Sidious set, I NEED that one :p
     
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  16. B99

    B99 Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Nov 10, 2014
    Oops, I meant this.. Not lego.
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/2005-Hasbro...766557?hash=item2f01dda7dd:g:-0QAAOSwbsBXmuto
     
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  17. ezekiel22x

    ezekiel22x Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Aug 9, 2002
    Menace hype was insane. I remember the title reveal (and speculation how it just had to be a fake title!), hitting up Kmart to bask in all the merchandise, Darth Maul branding everywhere, the Pod-Racer video game. Watching the first trailer and being wowed by the explosion of color, the fantastic new environments, the amazing saber choreography. Really unique time to be a super fan.

    The Clones lead up was a different beast for me. I followed some spoilers but not anything close to an obsessive level. I'd out-grown the merchandise aside from some of the novels. Pretty much the movie itself was its own hype for me. It got me back into Star Wars in a big way after the Menace hype came and went.

    For the ROTS lead up, I remember watching an episode of the OC to see the trailer. The characters got locked in a mall. Also I was in a bit of a contemplative mood when I actually saw the movie. I visited a friend the week before, and we spent some time trying to relive our undergrad years. It was fun, but you can't go home again and all that. Seemed appropriate that SW was supposedly ending. Pretty naïve thing to believe looking back!
     
  18. cubman987

    cubman987 Friendly Neighborhood Saga/Music/Fun & Games Mod star 7 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Nov 7, 2014
    I remember the lead up to Episode I way more than the other 2 movies. I was in the Fan Club and remember getting most of my info on the movie from Insider for a while as internet spoilers weren't really a thing. I also remember all of the ads and promotions especially with Pepsi and Lays. Also it was a big deal when the action figures hit stores. More so for this film I remember going to Target like every weekend to look for the figures I needed. The thing I remember most is one of my friends coming up to me at school and telling me he got me a ticket for the midnight showing and thinking there was no way my mom would let me go (I was in high school) and being shocked when she said it was okay (she knew how excited I was for it). I have pretty vivid memories of waiting in line to get in, somehow snagging great seats and them having a bunch of giveaways before the movie started but not winning anything.

    The other 2 I don't remember the lead up quite as well. By this point you could find out more on the internet and they didn't quite have the same amount of ads and promotions. I know I went and got the figures but it wasn't as exciting as it was for Episode I for me. One big thing I remember following is the casting of Anakin and all of the casting rumors. I also remember seeing and immediately getting the teaser poster for AOTC and waiting in a long line to get tickets for the midnight showing when they went on sale for both films.
     
  19. Skywalker Family

    Skywalker Family Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Mar 15, 2017
    I counted down more for AOTC and ROTS then the TPM. Since I was a few years older for them especially Sith.

    After TPM I had to experience and enjoy all the hype. I still have the EW article about all the actor's who were rumored for Anakin. Hayden is not even mentioned.

    I echo an above post about watching The Incredibles in the theatre and seeing the ROTS trailer. It was a beautiful moment.

    I remember running to the store to buy the soundtrack for AOTC and ROTS. I did not listen to them till after I saw the movie.

    Most of money was gone at the end of the Summer of 2005 between Sith and buying anthing I could.

    One of my favorite things about seeing the first Lord of the Rings in the theatre was the trailer for AOTC.

    Good memories.
     
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  20. Alexrd

    Alexrd Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 7, 2009
    I'll say that the period around and between the Special Editions and TPM (1996-2000) were, to me, the best times as a fan. Unlike most, I was not the type of fan that had expectations, but curiosity. I was following the expansion, revision and continuation of a story released decades ago. I don't recall ever seeing something like that.

    Back then I had to download the teaser trailer from StarWars.com from the public library and save it on a floppy disk because my internet connection at home was extremely slow (56 kbps) and with an frustratingly short bandwidth cap.

    The build up for AotC was a little more subdued. Wether because TPM leveled the hype train, or because there were a lot of other major blockbusters released at the time, or the marketing campaign was more controlled in order to match the mysterious tone of the movie itself, the fact is that I almost went to see the movie without any knowledge over what was going to happen. I always felt the pictures and interviews were constantly a bit cryptic, which was great.

    ROTS was more bittersweet. It was the culmination and the end of the story. I made an effort to not to see/read much since it was going to be the last chapter.
     
  21. Force Smuggler

    Force Smuggler Force Ghost star 7

    Registered:
    Sep 2, 2012
    The lead up to ROTS was amazing.
    The original Clone Wars multimedia project was great fun. The books, comics, games, tv series, etc.
    Labyrinth of Evil was a great lead in to ROTS.
    The ROTS novel is one of the best novels ever imo.
    I remember for one of those novels, I wasn't feeling well but convinced my mom to take me to B&N to get whatever book it was. She wasn't going to be happy if I got sick but it was worth it.
    The first teaser trailer for ROTS is the best trailer ever made imo.

    For TPM I remember getting different toys, one of the comic issues, playing the TPM game, Episode 1 Racer for the GameBoy, the specialty toys from Pizza Hut and a portion of the pop bottles with TPM character faces on them.
     
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  22. Darth__Lobot

    Darth__Lobot Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 29, 2015
    TPM might have had the most hype of any movie I can remember (and you haven't lived until you've downloaded trailers over a 56K modem... and heck that was a really FAST modem compared to my first modem (2400 baud)).

    I will say that ROTJ had a lot of hype back in the day - I was a kid (7 or 8) but I'll never forget that they were selling t-shirts and other ROTJ stuff outside the movie theater... I don't know if I've ever seen anything like that since.
     
  23. Skywalker Family

    Skywalker Family Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Mar 15, 2017

    I love Labyrinth of Evil.

    Another great thing was buying all the books set between each movie.
     
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  24. Force Smuggler

    Force Smuggler Force Ghost star 7

    Registered:
    Sep 2, 2012
    Instead of waiting waiting 3 years between movies we got new stories several times a month.
     
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  25. Skywalker Family

    Skywalker Family Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Mar 15, 2017

    Yes, I loved going to my local Barnes and Noble to pick up each new one.
     
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