[Claire]

Just walked in from seeing it with Cassidy. My husband went to a midnight show last night. I couldn't go, since Chloe started barfing about 9 p.m., just minutes before we were walking out the door! Kids! My sister and her fiance were going to spend the night with the kids, but instead her fiance got to go to the movie in my place.

I really loved it.....I've been a bit ambivalent about it, not really looking forward to it, and now I understand why. I guess I just didn't really want it all to be done. Really done. Ugh.

I was thrilled to be able to see it for the first time sitting next to Cassidy, who was clutching a Darth Vader action figure in one hand and a light saber in the other. On the other side of her was a woman who sobbed the last 45 minutes of the movie. She and her husband came in decked out in old school Star Wars shirts, and talked with Cass for about an hour before the movie (we saw it at a plex that had SW playing on 6 screens). It was kind of cool to be seated near them. Also, a little creepy. They were WAY into it.

Okay......things I liked:

Spoiler:

~Palpatine getting ugly.....his fight with Mace Windu kicked major bootie. I had goosebumps the entire time. The way Cass feels about Vader, I've always felt about the Emperor, so for me, I knew that watching Palpatine show his true colors was going to be major. And it was. I was completely enthralled. And terrified!

~Count Dukoo.....I love Christopher Lee. Too bad Dukoo had to go down so quickly.

~The Emperor and Yoda flipping all over the place. Awesome.

~General Grievous. As soon as I played with the GG action figure, I knew he would be cool.....and boy was he. I looooved him!

~The opening sequence. Holy crap. Humorous, exciting, beautifully executed.

~The Wookies. I was so happy to see Chewbacca. I knew he was going to be in it, but there was something so cool about seeing him.

~"Execute Order Number 66." Wow. It was so hard watching all the Jedis going down.

~Obi Wan and Anakin's fight. You know how it ends, but still, to see it happen was incredible. Obi Wan crying, "You were my brother!" Oy.

~Anakin getting his armor/limbs/helmet/breathing thing. Wowza. Well done. And I got goosebumps as soon as I saw all the guys in the uniforms at the end of the movie, while the Emperor and Vader looked out at the semi-formed Death Star. I was thrilled. Wanted to go home and watch A New Hope.

Stuff I thought was just eh:

Spoiler:

~Anakin and Padme scenes. I wasn't all that thrilled by them. The only part of their conversations I really enjoyed or found interesting was their first one, when he said, "This is the happiest day of my life." I was particularly disappointed in their last encounter. Bah. I wanted a little something more from them. She really disappointed me for some reason.

~There were a few CGI things that icked me. When they landed the 1/2 ship at the beginning, it was so cool to get the close-up of Obi Wan and Anakin in the cockpit of the craft......but damn, they looked like cartoons. Ugh. I almost started laughing. Come on! You do all that incredible computer work, and leave that a mess? It would have been such a cool shot!

But that was it.....I really loved it. It wasn't the best movie in the world, but as Cassidy said, "It was the most important episode!" I totally agree.