“Star Wars” has been part of my growing up, thanks to my father. In 1997, when the original trilogy was re-mastered and re-released in theaters, he took me to the cinema to watch “A New Hope”. Since then, my love for Star Wars grew. Now, I’m really a happy fan because two new Star Wars just came out.
As far as fans are concerned, big changes are coming in the next Star Wars installments. So many changes that I myself am excited with what will happen.
Leia Organa
At the same time, the changes also made me sad because of Carrie Fisher’s death. It makes me wonder how they’re going to write Leia Organa in Episodes VIII and IX. I don’t know what will happen, but watching the Star Wars movies will never be the same again.
After her death, every Princess Leia merchandise I see tugs at my heartstrings. One of them is my LEGO Princess Leia keychain figure (Hoth version).
It saddens me every time I look at this small keychain because I know I will never see my female role model in the next installments. This keychain may be small for some, but it definitely leaves a big impact on me.
Han Solo and Leia Organa
Another big change happening in the next movies is the relationship between Han Solo and Leia Organa.
For those who don’t know (spoilers ahead), in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”, Han died in the hands of his son, Kylo Ren aka Ben Solo. Han and Leia’s marriage were also on the rocks because of Ben going to the dark side. Unlike the original trilogy where the couple had a happy ending, this movie showed the opposite. Han died, Ben continued to go to the dark side, and Leia is mourning for his husband’s death.
Just seeing these LEGO figures of Han and Leia makes me teary-eyed because of what happened to their relationship. For Star Wars fans, people loved the Han/Leia pairing so much that some got devastated with its outcome. I’m one of those who was sad that it took me weeks to actually recover. These two figures may be small, but they are great characters that made a big impact on the fans even until now.
Rey
Of course, one of the biggest changes in the Star Wars universe is making Rey the lead protagonist of The Force Awakens. She turned out to be a Jedi who can wield Anakin Skywalker’s lightsaber. After watching the movie, Rey became one of my favorite female role models. So I was happy when my sister gave me this LEGO Rey keychain figure.
I know Rey is going to have a BIG role in Episodes VIII and IX and I’m excited for that. Apart from Leia, this Rey keychain figure is one of my Star Wars collectibles that I truly love. Rey started small in the first half of the movie. But by the end, she became more matured and is now one of the best female leads of Star Wars.
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For others, LEGO figures are just toys that are displayed or given to kids. But for me, these figures expresses my love for Star Wars. While I treasure them way before, I treasure my Han, Leia, and Rey LEGO figures now more than ever because of the great impact they gave not just to me, but to all the fans. They are inspiring and big figures in the pop culture now.
~Hainrihi
