MAJOR Spoilers! (For the 1st 8 Star Wars movies)

I have been a huge fan of Star Wars since I was young. So young that I would sneak into my parent’s room grab the collector’s edition VHS tapes and watch them. The first time my dad found me watching it, he was not happy. Since then, it has become a tradition to binge watch all the episodes, usually when a new movie is about to release.

As the latest release of the Star Wars series is coming into view, fans are eager to have a few questions answered. Who are Rey’s Parents?  Who is Supreme Leader Snokes, and what is going on with Luke Skywalker?  All these questions will be answered in the second installment of the third wave, hopefully.

For those who are unaware, the second installment of the third wave is essentially the 8th episode in the series. In the past, George Lucas filmed movies four, five and six between 1977 and 1983. Several years go by and then movies one, two and three were made between 1999 and 2005. Ten years go by, and you had the seventh movie debut. Now we are approaching the eighth installment come December 15, 2017.  Wait, wasn’t there a Star Wars movie that came out in 2016? Yes, however in typical Star Wars fashion it is out-of-order and doesn’t directly tie into the main storyline. It’s best to think of it like Tokyo Drift in the Fast and Furious series. It doesn’t fit into the story when it is released, but that doesn’t mean it won’t get tied in later.

A recap of the episodes and the order best to watch them to avoid spoilers:

• I: The Phantom Menace (1999) (32 BBY)
• II: Attack of the Clones (2002) (22 BBY)
• III: Revenge of the Sith (2005) (19 BBY)
• Rogue One (2016) (15-0 BBY) Stand Alone Spin-Off
• IV: A New Hope (1977) (0 BBY)
• V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (3 ABY)
• VI: Return of the Jedi (1983) (4 ABY)
• VII: The Force Awakens (2015) (34 ABY)
• VIII: The Last Jedi (2017) (34 ABY)
• IX: Unknown (2019) (Unknown)

Solo (2018) (TBA-BBY) Stand Alone Spin-Off

[BBY- Before the Battle of Yavin; ABY- After the Battle of Yavin. The Battle of Yavin took place at the end of A New Hope (1977). It was the Death Star Explosion.

The Phantom Menace opened the door for Anakin to be trained as a Jedi. Anakin has grown up in Attack of the Clones and has become a skilled Jedi who defeats a clone army and later marries Padme. In Revenge of the Sith you watch Anakin turn into Darth Vader while his wife dies in childbirth to twins. In Rogue One they steal the Death Star Plans. In A New Hope they destroy the Death Star. The Empire Strikes Back by having Lando Betray Solo with the rest of the rebellion determined to rescue Solo. In the sixth movie, Return of the Jedi you learn that there is another death star and that Darth Vader had a redeeming moment. Finally moving into the recent installments with The Force Awakens you discover that the son of Leia and Solo has taken over his grandfather’s (Darth Vader) throne. The bad guys are building an even more destructive death star, and Kylo Ren does something unforgivable in the eyes of star wars fan and Chewbacca.  In the end, Rey finds Luke.  The Last Jedi picks up exactly where the last one left off which is not the typical George Lucas style. Without giving any spoilers the villain in this installment is called the Supreme Leader Snokes.

Somewhere in the 70-year timeline, the Solo movie will come into play as it reveals more about Lando, Chewbacca, and Han Solo’s history. Most fans will already know the correct order to watch the series, and will already be aware of the basic plots that go along with every installment. Few, however, know George Lucas kept the licensing and merchandising rights. During that time, people did not make much of a profit off of the merchandising rights. However, George Lucas did, and it was the rights to the first Star Wars film that allowed him to branch out and go on to create the following episodes.  From their George Lucas created LucasFilm and Industrial Light and Magic. As much as George Lucas enjoyed having realistic props, he also enjoyed using technology which was why he waited so long before producing the second wave of star wars films. He wanted access to more technology and thus started the Industrial Light and Magic studio which is the founder company of Pixar.

December 15, 2017, cannot get here fast enough for most fans, as they are eager to have another adventure. They are ready to fall back into the space western realm and have their questions answered.