It's The End of the World as We Know It-The TCD Gang's Last Fort Trip (BC)

[DaveInTN 3,247]

This guy was in his glory. And good for him. Other men his age are sitting someplace playing bingo or driving buses for Disney,

 

:rofl2:

 

Good one. 

[AC in A2......Aaron 693]

The 501st Legion does a bunch of charity work/free events and hospital visits for kids.

 

It appears to be a very good organization.

 

Thanks for sharing the parade pics.

 

Sweaty meat hooks and long camera boom arms SMB though.

[Memphis 105]

I hope those boxes on their chest are A/Cs or at least fans. I can't imagine how hot it must be in those black outfits and helmets.

 

[ImDownWithDisney 342]

I'm a Disney fan. I'm a Star Wars fan (not a geek). I am not a Disney/Star Wars mash up fan. I think it is pretty stupid to have Disney characters dressed like this. Anything for a dollar, I guess.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I think those guys in black are TIE fighter pilots.  I hope those TIE fighters are roomier than they look.

 

LOL!

 

Couple of comments:

 

First:

 

The "new" scenes in the star wars saga movies are actually not new at all. They were filmed as part of the movie back in its original production. The ideas were all Georges and was supposed to be part of the original movies. The problem? Even George couldn't figure it all out and the technology and techniques just would not permit him to add those scenes to his satisfaction. As technology progressed, he was finally able to add those scenes he wanted to later. One scene stands out to prove my point. There is a scene where Han Solo is talking to Jaba the Hut. In the scene, Han walks over Jabas tail, its a full view of Jaba and Han walks on his tail. Its obviously a younger Harrison Ford and was filmed back in original production. But George could not get Jaba to turn out the way he wanted so he cut the scene. Now, with newer technology, he could finally get that scene right and added it to the digitaly enhanced versions.

 

Thanks for the plug and compliments on my parade pics.

 

The guy with the pass walking down the street is a Disney photographer. I see him around all the time at most major events. If you goto the car masters at DTD this weekend, look for him there as well. He is assigned to photograph Chip Foose. Ive talked to him a few times, but never caught his name.

 

The guys in black are Tie Fighter pilots. though that last one would have trouble getting into the cockpit of one. Good thing there isn't gravity in space.

 

 

Oh, so you are one of those George Lucas lovers?

 

But Han shot first!

 

So that guy works for Disney?  That looks like a sweet gig.

 

LOL at trouble getting in to the cockpit.

 

:rofl2:

 

Good one. 

 

Glad you liked it.  So, now I only owe you 6 minutes and 55 seconds of good content.

 

The 501st Legion does a bunch of charity work/free events and hospital visits for kids.

 

It appears to be a very good organization.

 

Thanks for sharing the parade pics.

 

Sweaty meat hooks and long camera boom arms SMB though.

 

Yeah, I think this 501st and the next group we will see are good people.  Painfully nerdy, but good.

 

I hope those boxes on their chest are A/Cs or at least fans. I can't imagine how hot it must be in those black outfits and helmets.

 

 

 

You are not kidding.  I was hot sitting there in a t-shirt in the shade.  And a lot of those guys are not in the best shape for marching.

 

 

I'm a Disney fan. I'm a Star Wars fan (not a geek). I am not a Disney/Star Wars mash up fan. I think it is pretty stupid to have Disney characters dressed like this. Anything for a dollar, I guess.

 

Blasphemy!

 

You better not say that around any of the guys from the 501st, one of the big TIE pilots might sit on you.

 

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

OK, just to get this thing moving to the finish line, I'll post one more update today.

 

I think these large fellows in black must be more of those TIE fighters the Fiend geeks chimed in about.  It looks like Darth must be serving those breakfast sandwiches with two eggs and two sausages up on the Death Star:

 

 

I need to point out a few things in this photo.  First, note that the green shirt guy's kid put his shirt back on.  That is good.  Also note that I am closer to green shirt guy.  I was doing my best to get the large sweaty lady behind me off my back.  Literally.  So I shifted up and over a bit.  Didn't do any good though, so did she.  Ugh.  Also, see that guy with the bald spot way down at the bottom center of the photo?  You can see his head in most of the previous photos- he was sitting down in front of me and videoing the parade.  But, he is about to mix things up, as you will see.

 

These guys must be the nerds in the geek squad.  They don't have helmets.  What a bunch of losers:

 

 

I think these guys are dressed in the gear that stormtroopers wear on ice planets, but I could be wrong:

 

 

I think those helmets are lame.

 

What's this?

 

A red stormtrooper?

 

Have I ever seen such a thing in any of the movies?:

 

 

Here are the cool guys:

 

 

Hey look, another girl! :

 

 

I think that brings our female count up to four or five.

 

Oh, and look at this- iPad guy now has a friend. Another guy with an iPad!  Trendsetters! :

 

 

Right about here is when one of the kids who had pushed his way up from the back ended up out in the street.  I guess since he did such a good job squeezing his way through everyone in front of him, he  couldn't stop.  A CM yelled at him and told him to get back up on the curb:

 

 

I think this is yet another girl, and another group of stormtroopers.  These guys aren't all white and shiny though- their space armor is all dirty.  Note that the guy with the bald spot apparently really wants this footage, as he has his video camera stuck way out:

 

 

It was right here that the guy with the bald spot decided that he needed to stand up and block the view of all of us dopes behind him- and Devores' buddy the pro photographer is out there sitting in the road.  But I'm back here trying to find a space to take my crappy pictures for this crappy trip report:

 

 

I have no idea who this alien is supposed to be- I guess he's a bad guy though, since he's with the 501st:

 

 

Here comes another old dude.  I have no idea who or what he is supposed to be:

 

 

And here's yet another alien.  Again no idea who:

 

 

Now here comes some sandpeople.  Sorry, but you'll need to find the TR from the guy with the red shirt and bald spot to see them better- I got mostly his back:

 

 

Wait- one of those sandpeople is carrying something.  It's a baby sandperson! :

 

 

That is creepy:

 

 

We need to take a closer look at that:

 

 

I hope to God that is not a real baby.  But, I'm not sure.

 

Odds are it isn't a real baby.  Where would a Star Wars geek get a real baby? The ratio of men to women is not in their favor.

 

There were a lot of sandpeople.  Here's another:

 

 

I case you're wondering, the sandpeople costumes do come in XL:

 

 

Here come some jawas.  I had to get their photos from the back, as red shirt guy threw up a pick on this one.  Bonus from this angle though- you get to see the two iPad guys:

 

 

Here's something interesting.  I guess this young man decided he should be a young Anakin.  I think that's a wig:

 

 

And now here is Obi Wan.  I disagree with this guy portraying a young Obi Wan.  In my mind, he's supposed to be old.  Also, why is he walking with the bad guys?:

 

 

Here comes something else, but I can barely see past red shirt dude.  I wish I had green shirt guy back:

 

 

More bad guys and more red shirt:

 

 

Blue Man Group? :

 

 

Hey wait- here's another banner.

 

It says this is the Rebel Legion.  And their banner says "We're the Good Guys." :

 

 

They had their own Wookie.

 

I don't think this is Chewbacca, is it? He has a lot of yellow fur around his shoulders:

 

 

 

Do you see the size of the feet on that Wookie?  Huge!  They are stilts.  The guy in that costume is probably 5' something.

 

After the Wookie, we have a flood of good guys.

 

I don't know who the guy in the cape is supposed to be, or the lady for that matter.  But that puts our lady count at well over six:

 

 

Next up, more of the Rebel Legion.  They are no where near as cool as the 501st.  That's pretty bad when you are looked down on by your fellow geeks.

 

TCD

[Lou... 3,118]

Wow, unbelievable. The end of humanity as we know it is near.

Those people in the costumes really creep me out. As you pointed out though, they could be driving a bus at Disney or yelling at kids to get off their lawns.

I know that the 501 whack jobs do some charity work, but I'm guessing that was an afterthought to justify their existence, so that normal people wouldn't think that they were the nut jobs that they are. 

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

Bail Organa & Mon Mothma (Leia's adoptive father & the eventual leader of the Rebel Alliance)

[caveat lector 181]

...And look at the size of the kids in that stroller. I disapprove of that type of thing:

TCD

I'm no engineer, but based on the castor in the rear wheel of that stroller, I think that "little" girl exceeds the design specs

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

That guy over there has a shirt that says "Han shot First." :

...I just googled it. Oh Boy! Little did I know that there was a huge brouhaha in the Star Wars geek community relating to a change made by George Lucas in a special edition re-release of one of the Star Wars movies in 1997. He apparently changed a scene in which Han shot somebody. The geeks were in an uproar, and had on-line petitions and such.

I am not making this up. I had no idea. But the guy with the t-shirt obviously did. I guess he has geek-cred.

 

so.... a co-worker and I had a discussion about this very topic just last week.

 

I am amongst my people here. 

 

 

I always thought Space Balls was a parody but now I'm not so sure!

[Big Kahuna aka John 71]

 

Wow...   First you get lady with Big Head picking her nose..  Then you get the Evil Emporer using the force to pull her finger out of her nose...   You could be George's twin...   I think you need to direct the upcoming movies... :rofl2: :rofl2:

[ftwildernessguy 778]

As a person cursed with a big bald head, I take offense at any references to same.

[AC in A2......Aaron 693]

Ipad guy, green shirt guy with arms like Stretch Armstrong, red shirt guy, and encroaching big heads all SMB.

The Legion of stormstroopers was pretty cool though.

[DaveInTN 3,247]

The emperor in the movies was scary.  The emperor in the parade looks like someone's grampa.   Nothing scary about him. 

[The Troll 67]

Yes, the Empire clearly needs a PT program (that's physical training for you non-military folks) and they need to learn how to march in step!

 

And one hair to split with Devores on his point about added scenes. He is mostly correct, but not entirely. There were numerous new scenes -- or, well, shots -- added that were not originally filmed in the 70s or 80s. For example, the shot of the wampa eating the tauntaun in his cave is totally new. It is not the footage originally shot in the 70s. In ROTJ there is a collection of cheesy shots of reveling people all across the Empire celebrating the destruction of the Death Star. At one point a Jar Jar Binks thing says, "Weesa free!" Yeah, that. Not originally shot in the 70s or 80s.

 

One interesting tidbit about the Han Meets Jabba scene -- it was also cut out because the editor pointed out to Lucas that it was totally redundant. Han's plight with Jabba was already clearly communicated in his confrontation with Greedo, so meeting Jabba was unnecessary and somewhat confusing. Plus it took away from the Big Reveal of the mysterious Jabba character when we finally get to see him in ROTJ. But, hey, there was money to be made, so Lucas threw it back in so suckers like me would pay again to see it in the theater.

 

I'm firmly convinced that Lucas did not make Star Wars, that it was largely a product of people around him. And now that those people are gone, he is too dimwitted to understand what was good about "his" movies to begin with, so he ruins them.

[BigTom 76]

TCD, I want to know, did you inform the twins that they had to come home and go to the Fort with you. We need trip reports at least once a month to help maintain sanity.

[Starbuc71 162]

Yes, the Empire clearly needs a PT program (that's physical training for you non-military folks) and they need to learn how to march in step!

 

And one hair to split with Devores on his point about added scenes. He is mostly correct, but not entirely. There were numerous new scenes -- or, well, shots -- added that were not originally filmed in the 70s or 80s. For example, the shot of the wampa eating the tauntaun in his cave is totally new. It is not the footage originally shot in the 70s. In ROTJ there is a collection of cheesy shots of reveling people all across the Empire celebrating the destruction of the Death Star. At one point a Jar Jar Binks thing says, "Weesa free!" Yeah, that. Not originally shot in the 70s or 80s.

 

One interesting tidbit about the Han Meets Jabba scene -- it was also cut out because the editor pointed out to Lucas that it was totally redundant. Han's plight with Jabba was already clearly communicated in his confrontation with Greedo, so meeting Jabba was unnecessary and somewhat confusing. Plus it took away from the Big Reveal of the mysterious Jabba character when we finally get to see him in ROTJ. But, hey, there was money to be made, so Lucas threw it back in so suckers like me would pay again to see it in the theater.

 

I'm firmly convinced that Lucas did not make Star Wars, that it was largely a product of people around him. And now that those people are gone, he is too dimwitted to understand what was good about "his" movies to begin with, so he ruins them.

I agree Lucas should have left the originals alone. Was there ever a reason for having greedo shoot first?...stupid. The whole added Jabba scene in the original star was was stupid, stupid and more stupid to add in. Jabas color and cg looks so terrible and the stepping on the tail could not be any cheesier or fake. It was left out in the original for a reason and should have been left out this time round. I will admit some of the "touch ups" did enhance the film like the added windows and flyby scenes at cloud city. Lucas is a smart man. Add 2 minutes of extra crappy lost footage and people will re-buy the same movie they already have 5 copies of. Hell, i did. Why do you think he held off on blu-ray for so long.

While I'm on my Star Wars tangent, I think the majority will say based on storyline and characters alone, the prequels sucked compared to the original. My biggest beef with the prequels is the fact Lucas gave them so much more cool ships, technology, weapons and just about everything else then we fast forward to Star Wars where we see a walking box with a few flashy light bulbs. It's like making a western with laser guns. I guess it's like everything else these days.....just about the money, hence why Disney owns them now. I just hope Disney does not ruin the franchise with horrible movies in the future

[BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023]

It's like making a western with laser guns.

 

Hey that happened!

[Starbuc71 162]

Hey that happened!

I knew somebody would bring up that flick

[ftwildernessguy 778]

I'm no engineer, but based on the castor in the rear wheel of that stroller, I think that "little" girl exceeds the design specs

How about this one?

[ftwildernessguy 778]

I think that may be Kato Kaelin and his kid.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Wow, unbelievable. The end of humanity as we know it is near.

Those people in the costumes really creep me out. As you pointed out though, they could be driving a bus at Disney or yelling at kids to get off their lawns.

I know that the 501 whack jobs do some charity work, but I'm guessing that was an afterthought to justify their existence, so that normal people wouldn't think that they were the nut jobs that they are. 

 

1.  You previously admitted that you own your own personal working R2D2.

 

2.  Based on your unprovoked attack on the members of the 501st, I am wondering if you are a member of the Rebel costume group.   Was that you in the Wookie costume?

 

Bail Organa & Mon Mothma (Leia's adoptive father & the eventual leader of the Rebel Alliance)

 

Whoa.

 

If you ever need to replace your IH, you would be snapped up in a minute at SWW.

 

I'm no engineer, but based on the castor in the rear wheel of that stroller, I think that "little" girl exceeds the design specs

 

I would say you're right.

 

so.... a co-worker and I had a discussion about this very topic just last week.

 

I am amongst my people here. 

 

 

I always thought Space Balls was a parody but now I'm not so sure!

 

I see you and Nicki have Star Wars in common.

 

Y'all need to plan a trip to a SWW.

 

Great photo of the giant helmet.

 

Wow...   First you get lady with Big Head picking her nose..  Then you get the Evil Emporer using the force to pull her finger out of her nose...   You could be George's twin...   I think you need to direct the upcoming movies... :rofl2: :rofl2:

 

LOL.

 

I missed that the big headed lady had her finger shoved up her nostril!

 

Good catch!

 

 

As a person cursed with a big bald head, I take offense at any references to same.

 

My apologies to you and any other follically challenged people who may be reading along.

 

If you want to be cool, though, what you need to do is shave your head completely and get a neck tattoo.

 

I guarantee you I won't say a word about you in the future.

 

Ipad guy, green shirt guy with arms like Stretch Armstrong, red shirt guy, and encroaching big heads all SMB.

The Legion of stormstroopers was pretty cool though.

 

Yup, the SWW parade brought the DB's out of the woodwork.

 

And the nerds/geeks.

 

What a combination.

 

The emperor in the movies was scary.  The emperor in the parade looks like someone's grampa.   Nothing scary about him. 

 

I know.

 

If this guy really wants to scare kids, he ought to get himself a bus driver's uniform.

 

TCD

[Lou... 3,118]

1.  You previously admitted that you own your own personal working R2D2.

 

2.  Based on your unprovoked attack on the members of the 501st, I am wondering if you are a member of the Rebel costume group.   Was that you in the Wookie costume?

 

 

 

Yes to both. Seriously, I do have a voice controlled R2D2, but I received it as a gift. I didn't buy it for myself because I couldn't justify the cost for a toy.

I have been a SW fan from the very first movie, but that's because I prefer science fiction movies in general.

I see it as entertainment. It's a fictional story and going to the lengths that those people have gone to is just very weird to me.

Of the thousands of hobbies people can take up, I have to put dressing up in a costume where no one can see your face and marching around a few times a year, just strange.

I would love to talk to a bunch of those people and find out why they do it. I would also like to find out what their real lives are like.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Yes, the Empire clearly needs a PT program (that's physical training for you non-military folks) and they need to learn how to march in step!

And one hair to split with Devores on his point about added scenes. He is mostly correct, but not entirely. There were numerous new scenes -- or, well, shots -- added that were not originally filmed in the 70s or 80s. For example, the shot of the wampa eating the tauntaun in his cave is totally new. It is not the footage originally shot in the 70s. In ROTJ there is a collection of cheesy shots of reveling people all across the Empire celebrating the destruction of the Death Star. At one point a Jar Jar Binks thing says, "Weesa free!" Yeah, that. Not originally shot in the 70s or 80s.

One interesting tidbit about the Han Meets Jabba scene -- it was also cut out because the editor pointed out to Lucas that it was totally redundant. Han's plight with Jabba was already clearly communicated in his confrontation with Greedo, so meeting Jabba was unnecessary and somewhat confusing. Plus it took away from the Big Reveal of the mysterious Jabba character when we finally get to see him in ROTJ. But, hey, there was money to be made, so Lucas threw it back in so suckers like me would pay again to see it in the theater.

I'm firmly convinced that Lucas did not make Star Wars, that it was largely a product of people around him. And now that those people are gone, he is too dimwitted to understand what was good about "his" movies to begin with, so he ruins them.

Nerd Fight!

Nerd Fight!

Nerd Fight!

J/K. Those are very good comments. I had no idea that Lucas made so many changes to the original films. Even adding a Jar Jar character? That is wrong.

One small thing I noticed when watching Episode 6 on Blu-Ray is that at the end, Luke sees a vision of Yoda, Obi Wan, and Anakin. The Anakin is the same young actor who played Anakin in the prequels. I figured that had to have been added in place of something else which appeared in the original. Turns out that was right. I am on the side of the fans who object to this tweaking of the originals. What if Da Vinci decided that he needed to paint a better smile on the Mona Lisa?

TCD, I want to know, did you inform the twins that they had to come home and go to the Fort with you. We need trip reports at least once a month to help maintain sanity.

Sorry, but I don't think that once a month thing is going to happen.

I'm sure that there will be Disney trips in our future, but not like we used to do.

As the title says, this was the last one.

I agree Lucas should have left the originals alone. Was there ever a reason for having greedo shoot first?...stupid. The whole added Jabba scene in the original star was was stupid, stupid and more stupid to add in. Jabas color and cg looks so terrible and the stepping on the tail could not be any cheesier or fake. It was left out in the original for a reason and should have been left out this time round. I will admit some of the "touch ups" did enhance the film like the added windows and flyby scenes at cloud city. Lucas is a smart man. Add 2 minutes of extra crappy lost footage and people will re-buy the same movie they already have 5 copies of. Hell, i did. Why do you think he held off on blu-ray for so long.

While I'm on my Star Wars tangent, I think the majority will say based on storyline and characters alone, the prequels sucked compared to the original. My biggest beef with the prequels is the fact Lucas gave them so much more cool ships, technology, weapons and just about everything else then we fast forward to Star Wars where we see a walking box with a few flashy light bulbs. It's like making a western with laser guns. I guess it's like everything else these days.....just about the money, hence why Disney owns them now. I just hope Disney does not ruin the franchise with horrible movies in the future

Nerd Fight!

Nerd Fight!

Nerd Fight!

J/K again.

You know what would be cool?

If we got all the Fiend SW fans together (even Lou), cracked a few beers (and a wine cooler for Lou), and let the discussion flow.

One thing you said that I agree with is that Lucas is a genius on how to rake in a buck.

Hey that happened!

Haven't seen it, and don't think I will.

How about this one?

I think that may be Kato Kaelin and his kid.

Very good!

Yes to both. Seriously, I do have a voice controlled R2D2, but I received it as a gift. I didn't buy it for myself because I couldn't justify the cost for a toy.

I have been a SW fan from the very first movie, but that's because I prefer science fiction movies in general.

I see it as entertainment. It's a fictional story and going to the lengths that those people have gone to is just very weird to me.

Of the thousands of hobbies people can take up, I have to put dressing up in a costume where no one can see your face and marching around a few times a year, just strange.

I would love to talk to a bunch of those people and find out why they do it. I would also like to find out what their real lives are like.

I agree with you.

I have some more comments and observations about these people coming up.

I imagine their real lives are not all that great. No doubt this is a group that endured a lot of wedgies. And worse.

TCD

[Lou... 3,118]

Haven't seen it, and don't think I will.

 

 

I understand  why you would say that, I said the same thing when it was first released. But, when it comes to renting movies, you tend to be more forgiving, so when we rented it, it wasn't as bad as the title implies. I found it entertaining and worth watching as a rental.