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Celebration V? ALREADY?
Well, the rumor is gaining momentum that an announcement may be coming soon regarding the next celebration here in the US, possibly next year in Chicago….
I’m gonna be the wet blanket here and say….
NOT YET! It’s TOO SOON for another celebration. I fear that SW is gonna end up doing what ST did in the ’90’s and early ’00’s and run this thing into the ground until it’s not that special anymore and all that shows up are the real die-hards who dress up and kids with disposable incomes ready to just shop, shop, shop.
There’s no movie (I don’t count the ani-CW one as a “movie”…that’s more like a “big screen” premiere for the show on tv) to push, no major anniversary (yes I know…one could say ESB but…are they gonna wanna crank one out every three years like a movie?)and the “live-action” series won’t be ready yet either so…other than another cash-grab, what is this for?
I enjoyed CIII a lot…Indianapolis was convenient to get to, the hall was good, the downtown interesting and the con itself was fun (except for that store)…and we were awaiting the release of Episode III so the enthusiasm at that con was palpable…plus, there had not been any international cons yet so CIII really had a true global feel to it…one of my favorite things about that con was walking around and hearing so many different languages being spoken everywhere you turned..it was wonderful!
CIV was…good, but signs of con fatigue were already present…the autograph hall was way slower than past cons, and while the store was easier to do this time, other than the exclusive figures, it didn’t offer much beyond cheaply-made, overpriced trinkets and t-shirts. The vendor exclusive situation was a bit nightmarish and while it was plenty crowded, there wasn’t the sense of fun to the crowds that CIII had…not as friendly, or as international. Also, downtown LA was pretty lackluster for food and other after-con entertainment…Going to a SW celebration is an expensive proposition…heck, I’m still paying off cards from the last one…and the thought of going again so soon sounds a little less exciting than I thought it might. Between the hotel, airfare and of course shopping at the con itself, it can rack up quite the bill for just a single person…for families, it’s the equivalent to going to a theme park except…no rides! Yes, the memories are great and seeing a lot of the folks from behind the scenes is fun and meeting with the online community there is great as well, but…again, lets’ not see this beaten into the ground…between the “comic-cons” and the “wonder-cons” and the international cons for SW happening now, there is getting to be too much of a “good thing” to keep any one of them feeling truly special anymore…
I enjoyed the two SW celebrations I attended immensely…I just hope someone involved in planning this remembers that it needs to stay special instead of just by rote and providing Steve Sansweet a table to sit at and sign his over-priced boat-anchor books all day… (I kid, I kid…)
As tantalizing an idea of yet another con celebrating that saga sounds, if it’s next year, well…I will probably have to sit that one out… -
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