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No matter how many years pass, Star Wars rejuvenates. "Let those who were born before 1983 rise!" 60% of the ExCeL London room, about 3,500 people, stands up and applauds. "Let those who were born after 2008 rise!" The smallest of the auditorium brandish swords of light left and right, jumping to be noticed. 1983 is the year in which Return of the Jedi, the last episode of the original Star Wars trilogy, was released. In 2008, however, the first animated film of the franchise, The Clone Wars, was released, whose initial inspiration – and late success – is due to the small screen.

Between both premieres has passed a more than prudential time, almost three decades, which in the language of the Star Wars universe translates into eight new films and half a dozen television spin-offs belonging to the canon. That is, what Lucasfilm, part of Disney since 2012, considers the official account of the two sides of the Force.

Between both premieres, there has also been enough time for starwarsmania tobecome a family legacy. 25 years in which Jedi masters have instilled the lesson in young Padawan with extreme discipline: proof of this are Rick and Aiden, father and son, both disguised as Mandalorians. "When I first saw Return of the Jedi, I was the same age," says Rick. "Imagine how old I am."

Aiden laughs. Aiden tries on his helmet and poses in front of a stranger's camera. Aiden looks to his teacher for approval. The little Mandalorian is one of those born D.G.C. (After the Clone Wars) who has crossed the pond with his father to attend the Star Wars Celebration, the annual convention for fans of the franchise that takes place this weekend in London. Although he acknowledges that the Disney+ series have been his catechism, he has also "seen the old movies in full" – episodes I, II, III, IV, V and VI – several times with Rick.

The audience during a viewing of 'The Mandalorian' in London.Kate Green/Getty Images

Around 20,000 people will attend this event in its four days. Panels, signatures, activities and costume contests make up its program. Also merchandising sales spaces: a symbol of capitalism in its purest state. Because there is much to celebrate, and much to commemorate too: 2023 is precisely the year of the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi, as well as the 15th anniversary of The Clone Wars. Two special events confirm this on the convention agenda. Two multitudinous encounters with old faces and old voices, among which the iconic Luke Skywalker and Han Solo are missing. You can't have everything.

In the corridors of the convention center there is a feverish delirium, a shared euphoria that a twenty-year-old dressed as Ahsoka defines very well: "We celebrate what unites us." It is the feeling that unites young and old, because there is no age to pay tribute to the milestones of a saga with which half the planet has grown. Freakism properly understood is the true potion of eternal youth. There seems to be no other explanation for the imperative need to celebrate not only an annual event, but also a fictitious anniversary, as is the International Day of any fandom. That cult of nostalgia, that monkey of the past, that attraction for the retro, that mania for many absurd to romanticize the feeling of belonging to a community without borders. Star Wars Day is May 4, but it could well be another of the remaining 364.

On the shoulders of a gigantic stormtrooper, a princess Leia with a pacifier walks through the exhibitors of the convention. For her, as for the rest, Grogu is simply Baby Yoda. A fandom feeds on references and gets drunk on memories: only then does a celebration of such dimensions make sense. It doesn't matter how much time passes, because it's always going to be the anniversary of something.

The fan's anniversary takes on a superior character, a quasi-religious consideration. On the anniversary of the intergalactic fan, the precariousness of eighties special effects is venerated against the spectacularity of the current CGI. It matters not so much what changes, but what remains. That's why Return of the Jedi returns to theaters on April 28, 40 years after its release. That's why Disney+ launches in August the live-action series of Ahsoka, the undisputed protagonist of The Clone Wars. To celebrate what unites Star Wars fans, and to make sure they keep doing it until the machinery gets tired. Meanwhile, the geek's heart will continue to function, albeit with pacemakers.

  • Star Wars
  • London
  • cinema
  • Series
  • Disney

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