Good-bye, Carrie.

I've been a science fiction / space opera / fantasy fan for as long as I can remember. I was 15 years old when Star Wars premiered in 1977. When Carrie Fisher appeared onscreen for the first time, my reaction was, "Wow, she's pretty!" or something similar to that. Like I said, I was 15...and a boy. When Return of the Jedi opened six years later and Carrie donned that metal bikini...well, I was a 21 year old U.S. Army Military Police Investigator working on a joint narcotics team with the C.I.D. in Korea, but I certainly still took notice. After all, I was still a warm-blooded straight male of the species.

I was and always had been into Star Trek more than Star Wars -- I had always preferred the harder science fiction to the more fantasy-like stuff -- but I still thoroughly enjoyed the original trilogy, episodes IV, V, and VI for what they were -- a fantasy space opera filled with several larger than life characters and action and adventure. Years later, when the trilogy of prequel films came out, I went to the theater to watch with enthusiasm. Sure, they had their problems and were certainly...different, but I found something to like in each of them. I didn't "hate" them, and I still don't.

Last year, like millions of others, I went back to the theater to watch episode VII. Even though the film borrowed a lot from episode IV, I still found it entertaining and a worthy installment, and it felt so good to see Han Solo, Princess General Leia, and eventually Luke Skywalker up on the big screen one more time.

WARNING: ROGUE ONE SPOILERS BELOW!



Then, very recently, came Rogue One. I loved it. It was, in some ways, what I wish the entire franchise had been, and there were a few moments that made me grin a little extra wide -- the appearances of Grand Moff Tarkin, Bale Organa, the Mos Eisley Cantina bullies, the Red and Gold X-wing Squadron Leaders, and of course, the appearance and eventual fury of everyone's favorite Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Vader.

Then, at the end, we saw 19 year old Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia once more, albeit in CGI. That shot, too, made me grin a little wider and brought to mind the opening sequence of episode IV, just as I'm sure it was intended to. I left the theater that night feeling very satisfied with all that I had just seen and looking forward to episode VIII.

As you all know, we just lost our beloved princess/general. Carrie Fisher tragically passed away far too soon after suffering a heart attack. What has caught me totally off guard is how much I feel that loss. I didn't know Carrie. I've never met her. I don't even know very much about her other work, though I have seen her in a couple of other films. To me, she wasn't much more than an actress who played an important part in one of my favorite film franchises.

Or so I thought.....

Good-bye, Carrie. You never knew me, but apparently you meant something more to me than I ever realized...even now.