Hey! I spent a great deal of time on my Fowler-L.A.-connect-the-dots entry from yesterday so go read that again if you want some football. This will be a distinctly From the Sidelines entry.

Quickly all fellow Star Wars geeks, who is this and where is it from?

Anyone?

If you said Chewbacca's son Lumpy from the November 17, 1978 CBS broadcast called "The Star Wars Holiday Special", then you are either old (like me) or deranged (like me). Either way, I hold you in high esteem.

What the hell C.o.D?

Okay, okay let me back up a piece. You see, I'm just so damn proud of the The Boy®. During the Christmas holiday we spent five nights watching all the episodes of Star Wars. The Boy® (soon to be five) was already interested in stars, galaxies, black holes and such. Let's just say it was like throwing a match onto an open flame.

To say that The Boy® was transfixed would be a major understatement of galactic proportions.

We battle with light sabers (cardboard paper towel inserts). We fly our star fighters (pillows). We play Star Wars computer games. Doesn't everyone?

Last Saturday, The Wife® had to run some errands. The Boy® decided he again wanted to watch Star Wars VI. We watched it twice. We even forgot that The Wife® had been gone for four hours.

You see, Star Wars VI is The Boy®'s favorite because of the Ewoks and also because we find out that Darth Vader is Luke's father. That just blows The Boy®'s mind every time.

The Boy® knows we have Star Wars I, II, IV, V, and VI on DVD. He takes them out and lines them up in numerical order and then begins to illuminate me on the finer points of each episode.

He also knows Episode III is due out any time now. He's knows this because his buddy Quinn at pre-school is something of a Star Wars Jedi-Apprentice-wannabe and updates The Boy® on the progress of Episode III on a daily basis.

Monday, when The Boy® arrived home, he screamed (yes, screamed) up the stairs. "Daddy, daddy, daddyChewbaccaisgoingtoshowhisfamilyonStarWarsIIIQuinnsaidso."

Come again?

Now here you have to imagine The Boy® pausing about 3 seconds in between each word as he rolls his eyes in disgust at a father who can't understand toddler quick speak.

"I...said...Chewbacca...is...going...to...show...his...family...on...Star...Wars...III... Quinn...said...so."

"Oh," says the dense one.

"It's the first time we will see his family, Daddy!," says The Boy®.

"Um, actually it isn't."

"Yes, yesyesyesyesQuinnsaidso!!!!!," screams The Boy®

"Well, a very long time ago in a city very far, far away (believe me, North Dakota in winter is as far as it gets) there once was a Christmas special in which Chewbacca went home to his family and we got to see them."

"You...got...to...see...them?!?!," says The Boy® now dancing circles in excitement.

"Yep, that's right. Back when Daddy was a little boy."

After answering some questions posed to me from The Boy®, we then watched the second season opening of Star Wars: Clone Wars on the plasma during dinner and spent the rest of the night exploring the 'Net for references to the Star Wars Holiday Special.

(A very funny review, by the way, can be found at Salon.com.)

The Boy® squealed with delight since he was talking about how he could return to pre-school on Tuesday and inform the Jedi-Apprentice-wannabe Quinn that Chewbacca's family had already appeared previously. And that he had seen pictures and everything.

And that his father was a Jedi Master. Not some apprentice in waiting.

The Boy® is now counting down the days to May 19. I can't blame him. Can you?

Posted by maasx003 at March 22, 2005 8:59 PM