Star Wars Celebration Orlando 2017 is here, and once again, Mike Harris won’t be there. Fear not–there are plenty of ways to enjoy Celebration at home.
Star Wars Celebration Orlando 2017 is upon us! Spring is here, flowers are blooming and the masses will be gathering in Orlando for the 8th stateside Celebration, it’s going to be HUGE! Spring also brings a lot of rain showers, which is great as it will cover up the tears on my face. You see, I wont be going….again.
The first time I became aware of the phenomena known as Celebration was back in 2005 for the third event in Indianapolis. A customer brought it up while buying some Star Wars merchandise and I couldn’t believe I’d missed the memo, conventions solely for Star Wars, how did I not know about this!? It was that weekend and I wasn’t able to swing in it on such short notice, but at least I knew this was a thing now. I’ll make the next one for sure.
Nope.
Since then I’ve missed all 4, soon to be 5, U.S Celebrations for various reasons; unemployed, paid for a wedding, birth of our daughter, etc. Each time swearing I wouldn’t miss the next one and keeping my fingers crossed for a Chicago venue announcement, although I think that ship has sailed, and it will now rotate between Orlando and Anaheim.
Luckily, there have been a lot of ways to ease the pain and not feel like I’m completely missing out. Twitter has been a big help. All the information for panel scheduling is available on different online outlets and on the official Celebration app, and by following along on Twitter during the panel, I’ve kept up with all the announcements as they were happening. All the great fan sites will sometimes post end of day recaps too, I’ll read these too, to make sure I haven’t missed anything.
Thank the Maker for the Live Stream!
The biggest way to cope with the loss for me has to be the live stream presented by Star Wars and Verizon. All of the big panels and shows get covered, often in real time as they are happening at the event. I sat at work in 2015 and watched The Force Awakens panel and was able to see the trailer at the same time as everyone else. Was it the same as being there at the event? No, absolutely not, but I am so grateful for all the coverage and the hard work that everyone puts behind bringing that content to thousands watching throughout the day.
I don’t think that it makes the event any less special for the attendees who drive/fly/teleport there, and who spend a good portion of their time waiting in lines and fighting through crowds. I’d gladly trade my spot on the couch for the sweet smell of fan sweat and con crud.
Even with all the coverage, it’s still pretty hard knowing that I’m missing out yet again. A lot of exclusive merchandise is going to be missed although my wallet will thank me later, and that stuff can always be snagged online later, for an “inflated” rate however. I guess it’ll prevent a lot of impulse buys. I’ll have to wait on meeting Mark Hamill, which is pretty much number one on my bucket list, along with some other greats like Ian McDiarmid, Ray Park and Hayden Christensen.
The most important thing though is something that can not be live streamed or recapped in an article or in 140 characters, it’s the communal experience.
Missing the party
Over the last couple of years I’ve made some great connections with other people out there via the online community, and not being able to meet them is the proton torpedo down my thermal exhaust port. Star Wars has moved beyond just the films or the toys, or any one single aspect of the franchise, and is as much about the community as it is about the content. I know I’m not the only one who feels this way, I talk to people online everyday who live and breathe this fandom, and these experiences bring it to the next level.
It hurts knowing how many new friendships I won’t be forming while waiting for the Rebels panel or while debating some really good (and really bad) Snoke theories, but at least I’ll be able to live vicariously through my friends who are there.
Star Wars Celebration Orlando 2017
In 2015 Scott Ryfun from My Star Wars Story (great guy and great podcast!) coined #notatcelebration on Twitter as a way to share the pain of not being there, and it caught on as a way to commiserate with others while turning it around and making it a fun, positive way to communicate together. While Scott is going to be attending Star Wars Celebration Orlando 2017, I’m going to pick up the torch and run with it. So if your not going, follow along and use the hashtag!
And if you are going, be safe, have a blast, pour out some blue milk for me and I’ll see you at Star Wars Celebration 2019.
Mike Harris hails from the suburbs of Chicago and has been a fan for most of his life. Working as an industrial radiographer and raising a family with his wife take up most of his time, but there’s always room for Star Wars books and podcasts! Just looking to give back to Star Wars and the fan community, it’s been a source of fun and learning for him for so long.