A while back, Andrea was telling me about a Twitter feed she'd found. Its premise was that the original poster had never seen Star Wars. To rectify this, her partner sat her down to binge Episodes IV, V, and VI while she live-tweeted her reactions.
When Darth Vader first appeared the original poster's partner gave her the quick 411. The way she framed her response smacked of a post-millenial, "Oh, so he's Space Voldemort." She was intrigued by the man in black, particularly his fashion sense. Taking in his choice of flowing shoulder accessories, she may have coined the hashtag, #teamcapes.
Her view of young Master Skywalker was not as flattering, calling him a crybaby, and even blaming him for the death of Obi Wan. The last time I did a rewatch of both trilogies, I had to agree. Luke came off as a whiny brat. Leaia was always the better leader - Luke just seemed to get lucky.
It annoyed me that Anakin was always given short shrift because he turned to the dark side, even though this fulfilled his destiny. An online pundit noted that after Anakin betrayed the Jedi Council and dispatched the younglings, the ratio of Jedi to Sith achieved greater parity. It seems he did, indeed, bring balance to the Force.
I have to confess to a certain simpatico with Space Voldermort. In 6th grade we did a production of Babes in Toyland, and I was tapped to be the villain, Uncle Barnaby. Costume issued me a cape and I used it with devastatingly dramatic effect on the two simpering leads, Alan and Jane. It was at that point I also understood the allure for Batman, another member of #teamcapes. There's something empowering about being able to grab a handful of fabric and flourishing it about for theatrical flair to cower weaker minded individuals. I absolutely relished the role.
When the cast was given curtain calls, everyone received hearty, heartfelt applause. I, on the other hand, was met with a thunderous chorus of boos and hisses. But I didn't care - I had my cape. I performed a final flourish, bowed, and strode off the stage like a dark side boss.
"On the Dark Side" - John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band
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