Latest / Most Things Kenobi - A Star Wars Podcast / Episode 112: Listener Stories - How Has Star Wars has Helped You Through a Hard Time? Part 2

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Episode 112: Listener Stories - How Has Star Wars has Helped You Through a Hard Time? Part 2 · Most Things Kenobi - A Star Wars Podcast

0:00
Hello there. It's most things.
0:02
Kenobi, this is the podcast you're.
0:05
Looking for? Hi everyone.
0:19
Welcome to another episode of Most Things Kenobi, a podcast
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about Obi Wan Kenobi and all things Star Wars.
0:26
I'm your host, Lauren. And I'm your host Leanne.
0:30
And this week we are going back to our listeners stories about
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how Star Wars got them through a difficult period in their life.
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We did part one of this a few episodes ago.
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I don't know how many ago was it Leanne?
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Probably three or four, yeah. Yep.
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Yeah. So you can go back and listen to
0:48
part one if you like. This is Part 2 of that because
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we reached out to all of our listeners and gave people the
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opportunity to send in their stories.
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And we got a lot. We sure did.
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Responses. And they're all so lovely, like
1:02
just wonderful stories of hope and perseverance and character.
1:07
Yeah, yeah, we know a lot of people are having hard times
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these days in these times. Saying.
1:15
Yeah, it's been a minute, a minute of frustration for I
1:20
don't even know how many years now.
1:25
It's been a minute times 10 years.
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Yeah, exactly. But what have we always said?
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Around every corner there's hope and and light For every down,
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there's an up. For every darkness there's
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lightness that is Star Wars, essentially.
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And that's why we want to share these stories with people.
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Because ultimately, when you get down to it, they're all stories
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of hope and perseverance and like you said, all the Star Wars
1:51
things. Yeah, so.
1:53
And also just a reminder, if you didn't hear our part one, we
1:57
want to make it clear that those that shared their stories, we
2:00
want to respect their wish to either say their name or not.
2:03
And so if we do not say their name, it's because they have
2:06
requested us not to or they submitted something anonymously.
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And if we do say their name, it's because they said go ahead.
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So we always want to respect all of our listeners and fans
2:17
requests when it comes to that. Some of these are really
2:19
personal and we really appreciate you sharing.
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The stories with us and with everyone, it's one of these
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things where I think we all are in this together.
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We just don't realize it sometimes.
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You know, and it's amazing what a fandom can do it under the you
2:39
know, when you allow it to be a positive thing in your life, it
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doesn't have to be Twitter quarrels and thumbs down versus
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thumbs up and whatever the kids say these days.
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You know, it can be a bonding experience which you and I have
2:58
found through not just our Patreon, but just in general
3:02
with the people that message us. Yes, it's awesome.
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All right. Shall we dive?
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In Yes indeed. So our first submission for this
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episode is from our friend and listener and dear heart.
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Leah Leah says How did Star Wars help me?
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I could write a whole book about how it has helped me through
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both good and bad times during my life.
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I'm old enough to have seen them first run in the theaters when I
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was a kid. You lucky that was me, not her,
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she says. I think I was too young to
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appreciate A New Hope, though. It was just called quote Star
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Wars then and told my parents it was quote just OKI did see
3:43
Empire Strikes Back when it was released, but because I didn't
3:46
remember much about A New Hope, I was confused through a good
3:48
part of it. I vaguely remember being
3:51
surprised that Vader was Luke's father, though.
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Two years later and A New Hope was rereleased in the theaters,
3:57
and I thought I might give Star Wars another go.
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I came out of the theater completely elated, and my life
4:03
was changed forever. From that moment on, I was a
4:06
fan. In the two weeks it was playing,
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I saw it seven times. You go, girl.
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When Empire Strikes Back was rereleased a few months later, I
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saw it five times in the theater.
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I counted down to the release. Have returned to the Jedi and
4:18
actually marked days off the calendar from New Year's 1983 to
4:21
May 25th, 1983. Can I just pause and say how
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awesome this is? I know a kindred spirit, like
4:30
100%. I'm just like, yes.
4:32
Yeah, I would do the same. Leah is an OG, OK?
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She goes on to say. The thing about Star Wars for me
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at that time was it was a big escape.
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Without getting into too many personal details, I will say I
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had an emotional and difficult childhood full of challenging
4:48
situations. Through it all, Star Wars would
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come to give me valuable lessons.
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When I was feeling overwhelmed, I would look at Leia and gain my
4:56
own strength from hers. When things were at their
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lowest, I would look at Luke's optimism for a sense of hope.
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When I had to deal with someone who seemed difficult, I would
5:05
think about Han and how sometimes the people around you
5:07
can open your eyes and change your perspective and during my
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darkest days. I would look at Vader and think
5:13
about how he eventually turned back to the light through the
5:16
love of his son. Oh, I love that.
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I really love all of that sitting in my bedroom at night.
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I would scribble my own fan fiction into my journal.
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A few years ago I found one of these old journals and the
5:29
stories within where every bit is ridiculous and cringe worthy
5:34
as one would imagine a 12 year old might write.
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But the actual content and strength of it doesn't matter so
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much as the fact that Star Wars gave me that outlet.
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I found as I skimmed through the journal that my writing
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abilities did improve through time though.
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So now she goes on to say a lot about all the different things,
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about how social media and all the different magazines, fan
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clubs, the things that she, you know, went through and found
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creativity through and found a commonality with others through.
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I think she wraps it up perfectly and says up until now
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most of this has been me going down, nostalgia Rd. so I will
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add something more recent to the way Star Wars has helped me.
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A few months ago I had a big health scare and ended up in the
6:11
hospital for over a week. While I was there I felt very
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alone and would listen to various Star Wars podcast, MTK
6:18
being one of them and this would help me feel better.
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I also had several kind messages from people in the fan groups
6:24
I'm a part of online coming in daily and that would always help
6:27
calm my nerves. In addition to health issues, my
6:29
family has been going through some upheavals and the support
6:32
of the fan community is something I cannot even begin to
6:35
express my gratitude for. I often wonder how different my
6:38
life would be if Star Wars did not exist.
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And I can't imagine it because I've made so many wonderful
6:43
friends, had so many fun in life enriching experiences, and have
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learned so much from the films, TV shows, books, and the fandom
6:51
at large. If I ever ran into George Lucas
6:54
somewhere, I think the only words I'd be able to express
6:56
with any coherency would simply be thank you, THIS is THIS is
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it, folks. Like.
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She. Did it from like.
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The start, which I can't say. I was born in 1983 and I'm
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jealous of everyone who was there.
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But who else can completely identify with with what was read
7:19
here? Oh my gosh, so many parts of it.
7:22
Writing stories in your bedroom based on something your nerdy
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little child self like. Yes.
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Felt like they had to just express themselves somehow.
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I said relate to that and the fact that she was in one of the
7:36
fan clubs back in the day and I had like pen pals that you wrote
7:40
letters to. I love that.
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And now we have like the modern day version of that with our
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kind of our Patreon group and. All the other little fandom
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clicks that you can be a part of.
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It's actually one of the better things that the Internet
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provides is you can find your people.
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You know, your fellow nerds. Yes, you can take comfort
8:00
together in your adorable nerdiness.
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Yes, and and I just she she really hit the nail on the head
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when she said she thought of Leia, she thought of Luke, She
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even thought about Han, which I think is amazing because.
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These are characters we identify with that we sympathize with,
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that we look to for comfort or for strength, or for just being
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completely real, even, she said. Vader eventually turned back to
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the light through the love of his son.
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Everyone gets a second chance, you know, and that is so
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wonderful to hear and know and see.
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I don't know. I just this resonated with me
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because not only do I look to Star Wars as an escape, but
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these characters are real to me. Yeah, they're role models for
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people. Yeah, I hear it so many times.
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I can't even tell you how many times do you remember when we
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were probably in middle school? So what would Jesus do?
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Bracelet for Everybody had. Yeah.
9:02
Oh my gosh. I hear so many people thinking
9:05
like, how would Obiwan handle this situation?
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I've heard this story. I don't.
9:09
I can't even tell you we needed what would Obiwan do?
9:12
Bracelet. Well, I mean, it's coming.
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I just. I loved this story.
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Leah is just such a dear soul and I'm glad that while she was
9:22
having her little house scare little.
9:25
I'm not trying to demunicize it at all.
9:27
Her health scare earlier this year that she was able to at
9:29
least have some podcasts to listen to.
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She told us that she was listening to ours, and I hope
9:35
she's doing better now, but I really, I I I know you and I
9:39
have said this many times. Our Patreon group is really an
9:41
amazing group of human beings, honestly.
9:44
Hundreds of the most. Incredible people I've ever met
9:47
in my life. OK, our next story comes from
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Lexi. And they say when I was a little
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girl, Star Wars truly was my happy place.
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I collected bits and bobs, read the guide books cover to cover,
9:59
and obsessed over every bit of lore and trivia I could find.
10:03
But of course, as I got older and life got busier, I had less
10:06
time to enjoy it. For the past few years I have
10:09
been going through the tumultuous period of my early to
10:12
mid 20s. Yeah, I had a quarter life
10:14
crisis, that period of life. It's a thing.
10:21
Everything felt a little off, and my time started to belong
10:23
more to school, work or internships than it did to me.
10:27
It has been a transformative period, but one unfortunately
10:30
marked by anxiety and depression.
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However, with the release of the Kenobi Show, I was drawn back
10:35
into Star Wars in earnest. Despite everything I've gone
10:38
through in the past few years and the ways I have changed, I
10:42
am relieved that I am still able to connect with that part of
10:45
myself, the part that gets so much joy from these stories.
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The part that loves rooting for the characters, and the part
10:52
that loves discussing lore and theories and listening to others
10:55
do the same, especially most things Kenobi.
10:58
Thanks. I watched Return of the Jedi in
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theaters last month. This was a while back now with
11:05
the same childlike wonder I had as a little girl watching
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Revenge of the Sith in the theaters in 2005.
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Returning to this fandom, help me realize that it's so
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important to make time to enjoy things just for the sake of pure
11:18
enjoyment. Yes, preach.
11:21
It is totally valid to gush and cry over Satine crease and flip
11:25
out about how cool Luke was in The Mandalorian.
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Right alongside way to your decisions that affect my life
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and career, I've learned that it's all about balance.
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Just like you said, I don't even know how many Times Now, Leanne.
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I don't have to be so serious all the time.
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I recently placed my big stack of Star Wars books in my
11:46
workspace where I can see them easily and flip through them
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more often. I'm always happy to see them
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there, but more importantly, my younger self would be totally
11:55
stoked about it and then she would absolutely smoke me with
11:58
trivia. I love her for it though.
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This is so great. There is.
12:03
I was over here cheering. You can't see me.
12:05
I was waving my hands like a weirdo.
12:08
But. I totally get like, just for the
12:11
sake of pure enjoyment, it's great to gush and to cry and to
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root for the characters and all my goodness.
12:17
When Luke came in the Mandalorian like a boss down
12:20
that hallway, I just lost it. I felt zero shame.
12:25
I called everybody I knew who would have understood what I was
12:27
about to freak out to them about, which was you and Derek.
12:31
And that was it, Yes. My phone blew up with text
12:34
messages. You and friends from work
12:36
cousins like, have you seen it? Yeah, it's.
12:39
Just it makes you feel alive. It makes you feel like a part of
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you. Is that kid again that got
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excited the very first time. I love this story.
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I love it. I do too.
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There's there's something, I think it happens to all of us
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and we have to fight kind of to get back to our childlike wonder
12:56
and we start there and then we slowly lose it as.
12:59
More and more responsibilities like pull on us from work and
13:02
school and all this stuff. Enjoyment for enjoyment sake is
13:06
so important and as an adult so many people are uncomfortable
13:10
with it. We're we have so much pulling on
13:13
us all the time. Even small things, quote UN
13:16
quote, small things like dishes, laundry, chores around the
13:20
house, not to mention huge things like taxes, health, our
13:25
parents, all sorts of stuff that we.
13:27
We want to tend to our families, all of that.
13:30
So to set aside even 10 minutes to do something you just love
13:34
makes you feel guilty sometimes. And it shouldn't.
13:37
You really need it. Yes, it's self-care in a way
13:41
that doesn't really come off as conventional self-care, but man,
13:45
do what makes you happy. And if it's Star Wars stuff,
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huh, we're here to support that. Yes, welcome to our club.
13:53
Yes. Well, thank you so much for
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sharing this story, Lexi, that I I relate to it in so many ways.
14:00
Oh my God. All right, our next one is from
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Lucy and Teresa. Star Wars was there for us when
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our entire family was going through a deep emotional
14:10
struggle while we cut out toxic people from our lives.
14:14
It was a process of many months when our sister Mary was getting
14:17
away from a bad boyfriend and an unhealthy relationship.
14:20
He had become heavily involved in the family and it had greatly
14:23
affected us all. Star Wars showed us that there
14:26
is always hope and made a great escape for us when things became
14:30
too overwhelming. Lucy's favorite character is Obi
14:33
Wan and Teresa's is Anakin. Wow, who is that sound like
14:37
girl? She goes on to say.
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Obi Wan's strength of character helped us to preserve and
14:45
Anakin's caring and lovingness helped us to become more
14:48
compassionate. Star Wars also taught us the
14:50
dangers of anger and hate and how it can lead you down a dark
14:53
path. Even if you have been hurt or
14:55
betrayed, you cannot give in to hate.
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After her messy breakup, Mary started to watch Clone Wars and
15:01
began to love the character of Soca, and she helped Mary see
15:04
herself as a strong, independent woman.
15:07
That is awesome. It's so beautiful.
15:11
Again, the characters are real. They live in us.
15:15
They inspire us, yeah. They tell us what we should do
15:18
and what we should not do. I know who knew right when
15:22
George Lucas was just at a film school putting his.
15:26
Weird. Movies together.
15:29
Those first couple weird ones that he did, but he would become
15:32
this person who created entire empire, for lack of a better
15:36
term. That would be.
15:38
A mortal compass for so many people and it's it's really
15:43
fucking cool. I wish we could tell him, but
15:47
he's probably busy shopping at Costco, so I guess we won't be
15:51
able to right now. No Costco shaming.
15:55
I'm just saying those sneakers, George, the norm core that I
16:01
learned. About you could probably buy and
16:03
sell Costco 12. Times.
16:04
I mean, yeah, I'm just those shoes they gotta go.
16:09
They got. I know.
16:11
Sorry. Well, I love, I love that Asoka
16:14
helps her sister or their sister Mary, right?
16:17
See that she was a strong, independent woman.
16:19
It's hard when you're in an abusive relationship, whether
16:23
it's emotional or physical abuse, it it really messes up
16:26
your perception of yourself and you know, your relationship with
16:30
other people, so. Well, Asoka is an exemplary
16:34
character in a way of walking away from a bad thing that was
16:38
no longer serving her. And she became a better person
16:41
for it. So if Asoka stands for nothing
16:44
else, she turned away from something that was not a
16:47
positive experience for her any longer and went on to be her own
16:50
woman and her own Jedi or not, depending on when you ask her.
16:56
But she turned out to be a badass.
16:59
So I'm here for anyone who has enough confidence to turn away
17:03
from something, someone, a job, a situation, anything, and
17:08
remove it from your life and. Move on to better things.
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I think it's great. Yeah, totally.
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OK, so this is from Sylvia. How Star was helped me through a
17:18
difficult time. Well, it's all about two things.
17:21
Faith and survival. Faith.
17:23
I'm not really religious in any specific way, but I consider
17:26
myself quite spiritual. There are things about being a
17:30
Jedi that basically inspire me to keep living when I was at my
17:33
worst and that changed my view on life, Slash added to my
17:37
philosophy. Even though we know the Order
17:40
was super flawed, to keep it short, most importantly, it's
17:44
seeking peace and yet being able to defend myself instead of
17:48
turning the other cheek, it gave me strength when I needed it.
17:51
Secondly, as a person with several mental disorders, I
17:54
needed this distinction between quote the light and quote the
17:58
darkness to find my own balance as regards survival.
18:04
Obiwan, my favorite. What a surprise.
18:08
Taught me everything about surviving and clinging to the
18:11
light. There were many times I had to
18:13
forgive myself for making a terrible mistake that led to
18:15
losing my closest friend. It took me years to overcome
18:19
this guilt and selfhatred and move on, and I really doubt I
18:23
would have been able to do it without him being there on the
18:25
screen in the books with his own story and his own strength and
18:29
weakness. Have a great day.
18:31
You're doing amazing work. Thank you and thank you for this
18:35
submission. Balance is so important.
18:38
I think we we see this often and read this often in these for a
18:42
reason. We're all just trying to keep an
18:45
equilibrium of sorts. Right.
18:47
What she was saying about learning to turn the other cheek
18:51
in a like a stopping being a doormat.
18:54
There's a difference between being strong, being kind and
18:58
compassionate and letting people just.
19:00
Walk all over you and take advantage of your truth, you
19:03
know, even temper. That's an important thing to
19:06
learn. And I'm glad that Sylvia was
19:08
able to kind of make that distinction for herself, because
19:11
we've all been there, totally right.
19:13
We've all been railroaded or whatever you want to call it by
19:16
other people just like plow right over you.
19:19
Sometimes we're taught to just take it, and it's a good thing
19:21
to learn to, to either put a stop to it.
19:25
Or learn how to walk away from it.
19:27
Or whatever it is for you to disengage and stop that
19:30
behavior. Because we teach people how to
19:31
treat us right. Yeah.
19:33
And it's no wonder Obi Wan's her favorite.
19:36
I mean, I'm sure there's more than one reason, but the reason
19:39
she gave here, I mean, this is this is textbook Obi Wan.
19:44
Think of the time he has lost and felt regret or felt like if
19:51
there was only something else I could have done.
19:52
I mean, look at his relationship with Anakin, I'm sure.
19:55
I'm sure he sat and thought, it's just like her example.
19:59
His story is one of perseverance beyond all of it.
20:04
To have these things, experience them and then move forward.
20:07
He's such a wonderful example. If we had a dollar for every
20:12
time we said if we could just be more like Kenobi, you know, I
20:18
mean, holy shit. Well, Sylvia, you're doing a
20:21
great, you're doing amazing work.
20:24
Have a great day. Honestly.
20:26
Thank you. Oh my God.
20:29
Do I get to read the next one? It's from Anna.
20:32
Hi Anna. It's my space.
20:34
Pickle. She's my space.
20:37
Pickle Okay. I won't do her disjust and
20:41
injustice by trying to read it in a German accent, but I'll
20:45
read it with enthusiasm because I know she has a lot of that,
20:49
she says. I live with a lot of anxiety and
20:53
feel the most safe in my own home.
20:54
So when Star Wars Celebration 2023 in London was announced, I
20:58
knew I could never make it. I was hyped.
21:00
Yes, I was excited, giddy, flying on a Star Wars high like
21:04
never before. But deep down I knew I couldn't
21:07
make it. I don't do well in crowds, I
21:10
never, ever travel alone and I damn sure never enter a plane
21:13
alone. I've been to London before.
21:15
I lived there for three months. I knew London.
21:17
I knew I could navigate it, but the anxiety ever present.
21:21
Did I get the tickets anyway? Yes.
21:24
Did I book a hotel on a flight? Yes.
21:27
Did I know deep down that I would cancel it all and stay
21:30
home the day before takeoff? Hell yes.
21:35
I was prepared. In my mind, I had already
21:37
written the message I would send to us in Charlotte.
21:40
For me, it was crystal clear that I couldn't make it, that
21:42
the anxiety would win like it always does.
21:45
It was the night before my flight.
21:47
I couldn't sleep. I was shivering all over.
21:49
Sweating like the anxious being that I am, I hadn't cancelled
21:52
yet. I was close though.
21:54
My body was clearly telling me that this trip to London was a
21:57
bad, bad idea. But then I thought of you ladies
22:00
and Charlotte and how honest you were about your own fears and
22:03
hesitations. I thought about all the amazing
22:05
things I was going to miss if I stayed home.
22:07
Experiencing the magic of Star Wars Celebration, meeting
22:11
Hayden, giving him a weird teary hug, attending panels, seeing
22:15
cosplayers, and most of all. Meeting my found family and
22:19
hugging them forever. And guess what?
22:21
I went. I grabbed my bags and flew to
22:24
London to have the time of my life and I couldn't be more
22:26
proud of myself for doing it. Celebration was a gift, Not
22:30
because of the massive props or costumes or the panels and
22:33
discussions. Not even because of Hayden.
22:35
It was a gift because of both of myself and Lauren, Charlotte, Z
22:40
Salome and Gio. You turn this moment into one of
22:44
my most cherished memories and I will forever be grateful for it.
22:47
What I'm trying to say is Star Wars didn't change my life.
22:50
It didn't save me or heal me. It's the people that did.
22:54
People like you. Oh my God.
23:00
Anna. Group hug commencing now.
23:05
All of us. Arms out.
23:06
Here we go. Arms out.
23:08
Hugs, hugs across the pond. I swear, what a beautiful story.
23:15
And. May I just say as someone who I
23:18
think I've said multiple times on this podcast, someone who
23:23
suffers with anxiety, I've suffered with it my entire life.
23:27
I hate flying. London was my first overseas.
23:33
Any flight that was over 4 hours, ever.
23:36
We did this, we did this thing. I get this.
23:39
I get this last minute. Don't want to do it.
23:41
You already know you're going to bow out and then you do it
23:44
anyways. You did it, Anna.
23:46
And you did it cuz of the bonds of the people.
23:48
And I think that is such a fucking beautiful thing.
23:52
And I can't believe Lauren and I are part of this.
23:54
I mean flattery. It's just beautiful.
23:59
I'm so glad we got to meet in person.
24:01
Anna is just one of the most delightful people.
24:04
I've had she's. Smart.
24:05
God, beautiful. Hilarious.
24:08
She's my spirit animal. I like to think that I'm hers.
24:11
I think we made this agreement over some really bad Mac and
24:14
cheese. Oh my God, it was.
24:17
It was. Terrible Mac and cheese.
24:19
It's celebration in London but but Oh my goodness, the people,
24:26
It's the people. Yeah.
24:29
I love this and she did get to meet Hayden.
24:32
She did. She has some good stories.
24:33
About it, yeah. She even knows how he smells.
24:36
Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking of.
24:41
That's weird. Don't worry, everyone was good.
24:45
I think it was slightly sweaty, but not bad.
24:47
Wasn't that? Yes.
24:48
Isn't that what he? Says, she said.
24:52
I won't forget it. I'll take it.
24:54
Sounds like Anakin and in a lot of Clone Wars gear, Yeah, yeah.
24:58
Yeah, exactly. Well, thank you, Anna.
25:01
This, I'm. I'm so glad you did it, because
25:05
I'm. We're proud of you.
25:06
I'm proud of you. I think everyone listening is
25:08
clapping right now. This next one is from Melody.
25:13
Star Wars has helped me have the courage to pursue my dreams.
25:17
I find myself doubting my abilities, but then turning to
25:20
characters like Padme, Leia and Satine, realizing they have
25:23
served the Galaxy. It also comforts me as it
25:27
reminds me of people in my life that I care about and it acts as
25:30
glue that helps me bond with people such as my best friend
25:34
Bree, who I would never have met without Star Wars.
25:38
That's you and I, Lauren. Yes, I was like I I.
25:41
Understand. I get this melody.
25:43
Absolutely. And what?
25:45
What role models Padme, Leia and Satine rulers?
25:49
Yeah, bad ass women love it. They have like more power in
25:54
their pinky fingers than I have in my whole body.
25:56
Same though. And shout out to Brie, because
26:01
she's got to be cool too if she was found through Star Wars,
26:05
right? Yeah.
26:07
We love it. One of the cool kids.
26:09
Tell Bree we said hi, all right. The next one is Anonymous.
26:14
They all go on to say the book Padawan helped me feel seen with
26:19
Obi Wan's emotions, reactions, and the overall feeling that
26:22
he's out of place. All of it felt like me and being
26:26
17 myself, I was comforted that even my favorite character could
26:29
feel this way, even as he grew to be an adult.
26:33
I like how each character is written with real emotions and
26:36
how they're still able to be heroes and role models.
26:39
The movies, though painful at times, are a huge comfort to me.
26:42
Because of this, I'm eternally grateful 14 year old me decided
26:46
to watch The Mandalorian. That is awesome.
26:49
You know, I've heard nothing but good things about that book.
26:52
Yeah. Yes, same and we haven't read it
26:55
yet. No, I got to get on it.
26:57
Because a lot of people have said that this book in
27:00
particular, like, really resonated with them and.
27:04
Well, it's Obi Wan being real. He's relatable.
27:07
How many times have we felt out of place?
27:09
Imposter syndrome is a big thing in my life.
27:12
When when I was 17, I didn't know who the hell I was or what
27:16
I wanted to be. I was just trying not to draw
27:19
too much attention to myself, right?
27:21
Any circumstance, right? Yeah, because being a geeky girl
27:25
was not cool back then. At least it's a little more
27:27
accepted now. Or a geek in general, I should
27:30
say. How many times have we said
27:32
that, you know, watching a movie or reading a book where you?
27:36
See yourself reflected back to you.
27:38
How important that is, you know. Yes.
27:40
And they're saying right here that the overall feeling of
27:43
being out of place, like how many of us.
27:46
So many. Had that experience, you know?
27:49
And to see a major character like, oh, Be 1 Kenobi feeling
27:52
awkward and out of place, it just normalizes it, right?
27:56
We've all had the experience, but we all feel like we're the
27:59
only one. Yep, being alienated, you know,
28:02
it's such a it's an important thing to see.
28:05
Yourself represented in in stories that you read,
28:08
Basically. It's the point I'm trying to
28:10
make very badly. No, you made it.
28:12
I I'm sitting over here shaking my head.
28:13
Yes. Yes.
28:16
Our dear friend Deanna sent me a message on Instagram telling me
28:20
this amazing story about how her mom gave birth to her.
28:24
I think she said it was the day before they went to see Star
28:28
Wars and she gave birth like a few hours later.
28:30
That's like the next day. Yeah, so Deanna has always had
28:34
Star Wars in her life, just like right from the beginning did.
28:37
She come out with Leia and Luke. There's three of them.
28:45
She's the third skywalk, she. Is.
28:47
I knew it. No, that is a cool.
28:49
That's actually really cool. That's a cool fact.
28:52
Yeah, it's awesome, but she did say this, she said.
28:55
As I got older and into the present, when I'm stressed, I
28:58
put on some form of Star Wars. On Sundays I would come home
29:02
from church and take a nap on the couch with Empire playing,
29:05
always waking up in time for the Han and Leia kiss, and then go
29:09
back to sleep. I use it when I can't sleep.
29:12
Star Wars is my safe place and apparently always has been since
29:16
she was born right after. Yes, indeed, I love that because
29:22
I remember being like 10 years old.
29:24
And absolutely swooning over that kiss and like the I love
29:28
you. I know.
29:30
And I was 10 and I didn't know. I had no idea.
29:32
But I was like, oh. I want that so nice.
29:36
I get it. Yeah.
29:39
I'm the same, too. If I can't sleep, I use Star
29:42
Wars. It helps me fall asleep, like,
29:44
right away. Yeah, and?
29:46
And I think it's what Michelle said in our last.
29:49
Yes. Episode where we talked about
29:51
the stuff where it's like. It call it can calm your brain
29:54
because we know the parameters, right.
29:57
We don't have to engage. Yeah.
29:58
Familiar. Safe.
30:00
So yeah, I totally relate to this, Tiana.
30:04
Grace says. Whenever I get overwhelmed, I
30:07
just imagine I'm a Jedi and I let go of those feelings in the
30:10
Force. This approach has saved me from
30:12
having a couple of anxiety attacks so far.
30:15
I also adore Obi Wan. His strength in the face of such
30:18
pain and loss has inspired me to keep pushing forward.
30:22
Amen. Amen.
30:23
Amen. Check, check, check.
30:26
I mean, I can't agree with this more.
30:29
Well, that's kind of why I was doing the Jedi of Meditations,
30:33
you know? Yeah, release in our Patreon.
30:35
Absolutely. Because sometimes visualization
30:38
of like picturing yourself as a Jedi, like what would Obi One
30:41
do? You know, it's like that can
30:43
help turn off your fight or flight.
30:46
And activate your what is it? The parasympathetic nervous
30:50
system. So that you're calmer, You can
30:52
breathe through it and it's it's helpful because it actually
30:55
affects you physically, you know, it can calm your nervous
30:59
system down. And and that's why imagining
31:02
you're a Jedi, using the Force and all that, it's actually a
31:06
very practical way to help with anxiety.
31:08
I mean, as long as you're not picturing yourself being Anakin.
31:11
Who is anxiety inducing? You down?
31:14
Well, it does. Other things to me, but you
31:16
know, moving on. We love that.
31:21
Thank you. As your mom says, Leanne, that's
31:24
getting a little. Spicy.
31:25
It's getting spicy. Leanne, sorry.
31:30
Alice 83 Ashley said. I started watching Star Wars in
31:35
November of 2020 by watching The Phantom Menace.
31:38
Little did I know how much it would change me watching all of
31:41
the main movies and finding out there are TV series.
31:44
Yes, so much to dive into. When I was watching this, my
31:48
disability was bad. I couldn't get out of bed
31:50
without feeling dizzy, couldn't eat, because when I did, I
31:53
didn't feel great. So I had to get a feeding tube.
31:57
I went to the hospital right after watching The Phantom
32:00
Menace. Then after getting out of the
32:02
hospital a little later, I moved across the country to Japan.
32:05
Doing physical therapy and slowly being able to stand from
32:09
only 5 seconds at a time to being able to stand for 60
32:12
minutes in a few. Months.
32:13
Wow, that's amazing. Star Wars, especially Star Wars
32:17
Rebels, has helped me so much in trusting and believing in the
32:21
Force for me. God, even if it seems like it
32:24
can't get better, it can. Then I started to watch Star
32:28
Wars in complete chronological order with my mom, and we have a
32:31
closer relationship because of it.
32:34
Having autism, it's harder to connect with people, but Star
32:37
Wars has made it easier. And because of Star Wars, it
32:40
remotivated me to want to do entertainment stuff like
32:42
YouTube, voice acting, film, et cetera.
32:45
Wow, your strength is amazing to do all of that.
32:51
This. You're only talking about 2020.
32:54
It's amazing. Yeah, in just a few years.
32:57
Incredible to go from only being able to stand for five seconds
33:01
to six. Years.
33:02
Inspiration. Shows you how strong you are.
33:05
That takes mental and physical endurance.
33:09
You know, to do something like that.
33:11
This person is a real life Jedi. Yep, totally, totally.
33:14
And I'm not surprised that they're into Star Wars Rebels,
33:16
because look at all the strong characters that inspire, like
33:19
they say, trusting, believing in the Force.
33:22
Even if it seems like it can't get better, it can't.
33:24
I mean, you would be right there with Canaan and Hara.
33:28
Yeah. And Asoka.
33:30
All of them, it's like. I know her is not a Jedi, but
33:33
damn it, she's strong. Well, and I like that this also.
33:36
It helped a bond form between her and her.
33:38
Yeah, exactly. And good for you wanting to like
33:41
re getting remotivated to do the voice acting, entertainment
33:45
stuff that's that is freaking awesome.
33:47
Go after your dreams. Make it happen.
33:49
You can do it. You can do.
33:50
It you can do it, you've already proved.
33:53
Yeah, you're a freaking amazing. Beast you.
33:56
Can do it. And if you want us to follow on
33:59
YouTube, just let us know. We will.
34:01
We're fans already, all right? The next few we have are all
34:07
anonymous, so we're going to go through the very short.
34:10
So we're going to go through them one by one.
34:12
First one up, Star Wars helped me deal with the grief of losing
34:17
my mom to cancer, and I can relate to that.
34:21
Not that my mom passed away, but she had cancer, and Star Wars
34:24
was definitely there through her bout and.
34:28
Grief is a thing we all go through.
34:29
Yeah, I mean, it can either be a support for us while we need
34:33
escape, or it can be, as we've said a million times already, a
34:36
role model, you know, of keeping, keeping going in in the
34:40
face of things that are pretty devastating.
34:43
Leia Leia's a beautiful example of that.
34:46
Absolutely. Over and over and over again.
34:49
That's why I love her. I'm sorry to hear about your
34:52
mother with. Absolutely.
34:53
Sympathies, sympathies. OK, the next one said.
34:57
During Pandemia and Lockdown in Poland, I was reading Ruth
35:01
Balding's Fanfake Growing Pains. It helped me to stay sane with
35:05
my two kids. I was thinking to myself, what
35:08
would Quigon Gin have done in this situation?
35:11
Another bracelet? Yes.
35:14
What would Obiwan do on one wrist, and what would Quigon do
35:17
on the other? And never the two shall meet.
35:23
I like this idea a lot. I like it.
35:27
I'm not familiar with this fanfic.
35:29
Are you? I am not, but it looks like
35:32
we're going to have to be. Yeah, I wonder if it's about
35:34
Kwigon. Is it about Obi Wan?
35:36
I'm. I'm curious.
35:37
Well, if she sees my in with her kids, Kwagon is probably doing a
35:41
lot of that with young Obi Wan. That's my guess.
35:43
We'll check it out. Yeah, I'm going to have to look
35:45
this up. Next up, Obi Wan's character
35:49
helped to go through hard times by his example.
35:53
Of not giving up to the dark side, absolutely.
35:57
He is definitely a role model. Honestly, like, how many have we
36:00
read? I know.
36:02
This is just the repeating, you know, theme and so many of them.
36:06
It's because I guess it's because we're most things
36:10
Kenobi, so we draw a lot of Kenobi fans.
36:12
But I. Mean.
36:13
Yeah, but he's kind of awesome. So.
36:16
You know, and a really good role model.
36:19
And he has great hair. So that doesn't have anything to
36:22
do with. This, sorry, I think we've said
36:23
that in. Every.
36:24
I know. I don't care like.
36:27
Five episodes. Listen, it remains true, yes.
36:30
Yes, I love us. I do.
36:37
I love us too. Our next one.
36:40
Getting to know other fans makes me feel less alone in this
36:44
lonely world. And how many times have we said
36:47
this, I mean. It's the people as much as it is
36:52
the characters and the planets and the scenarios.
36:55
It's about the people. And I agree.
36:57
No matter how big this planet is, we can feel isolated.
37:02
We do feel isolated. Let me rephrase that and getting
37:06
to know others in this fandom that are likeminded and like
37:11
sold, so to speak. Or it's just it's a it's a
37:14
relief almost. And I really.
37:17
I think that Star Wars teaches acceptance of all all
37:21
backgrounds, all kinds, you know and and so that I think,
37:25
especially if you're introduced to that as a kid, that can
37:27
impression make an impression on you and then you just live that
37:32
way, you know And so when you find other people from the
37:36
fandom who are like that, you can feel accepted there in a
37:39
place that you might never have felt accepted.
37:41
You know in in another place where you may never have felt
37:44
accepted before, you know. And this notion that you can't
37:47
make real friends on the Internet is a lie.
37:50
It's a. Lie.
37:56
I think we should just make buttons that just say it's a.
37:59
It's a lie. So we have bracelets and pins
38:06
coming from this. OK, got it.
38:08
Yeah, making notes. Here's one that I I completely
38:12
agree with, Anonymous says. It helped me to escape reality
38:16
and to have a goal in life. Sometimes that's all you need,
38:19
and sometimes Star Wars comes in and helps you with both those
38:23
things, escaping reality and having goals.
38:26
Yeah, they're like kind of opposites there.
38:29
Well, Luke. Is the example of both right?
38:34
He had a lot of goals. But he also tried to escape
38:36
reality and through facing reality, he escaped his own
38:41
demons, thus fulfilling his goal.
38:46
Wow. We just went full circle.
38:49
We did. Okay, I think this is the last
38:53
one and. This is a really good one to end
38:55
on and we didn't even plan it this way.
38:58
Got him. A perfect tie in Clone Wars is
39:02
my comfort show. It always takes me back to when
39:05
I grew up watching it. Woohoo.
39:08
Yep. What do you think, Lauren?
39:13
Is it your comfort show? Am I or am I not?
39:15
Wearing a clone. War shirt right now.
39:18
Totally. Yeah, 100%.
39:22
I mean, it's so great that this is our last one because Clone
39:25
Wars is basically the foundation of.
39:28
Everything that started, most things, Kenobi and everything
39:31
that started our friendship and so it's, yes, comfort show 100%.
39:37
Yes, it's. Become a lifestyle now, I think
39:40
at this point. How many anniversaries have we
39:42
gone to for Clone Wars? We've been to all of them so
39:44
far. This is the 15.
39:47
From our our 10th one is that, yeah.
39:49
Yep, you got it there. When we were 2008, right that
39:52
that's where I got. This shirt, 2018.
39:55
Because the show started in. 2008 you got it, man.
39:59
I was surprised I made another mistake, Lee.
40:02
Numbers, no, but for real. We've been to every anniversary.
40:06
Maybe someday someone will come to the most most things can no
40:09
be anniversary. I I know.
40:11
I was just thinking the other day that when we first started
40:14
it, we were hoping that after the pandemic we could do live
40:17
shows at some point, maybe someday if we thought it was
40:21
listeners. Please, that would be so cool.
40:24
Anyway that would. Be fun.
40:25
Everybody who submitted thank you.
40:28
We have some seriously kindred spirits out there.
40:32
And we love you all go forth today knowing you are loved.
40:36
Yes. Stay strong, stay amazing, stay
40:38
awesome. And know that you have a place
40:39
here on the Most things Kenobi show, if nowhere else.
40:48
So by popular demand next week. We're actually going to revisit
40:54
the leadership topic, but flip it upside down and talk about
40:59
midlevel management and managers within Star Wars.
41:02
So we're going to be snarky, we're going to talk smack, and
41:06
we're going to probably stick to the dark side for this one.
41:08
So if you want to know who your bad bosses are in Star Wars,
41:13
come back next week because we've got them here.
41:17
OK, the last two episodes we've been comparing the duel from
41:20
Revenge of the Sith to the Kenobi series Duel.
41:23
And then we asked our listeners which one they liked better and
41:28
I did a poll on Instagram. You just went on Twitter a while
41:31
ago, I think, right? On Instagram 75% of people said
41:35
that they liked Revenge of the Sith better.
41:38
But then I got a ton of DM's from people saying they couldn't
41:41
vote because they liked them both equally.
41:45
And then I got a bunch of people saying.
41:47
They loved Revenge of the Sith, but they really liked Kenobi a
41:50
little bit better because it was more emotional and you got to
41:54
see Obi Wan in a way you'd never seen him before.
41:56
So it was an actual. It was pretty interesting to
41:59
see. People felt really torn about
42:01
having to pick one over the other.
42:03
I mean, it makes sense. I I, I it's.
42:06
I don't know that I can choose. I don't know if I can't.
42:09
I Nope, I can't choose no. I was going to try.
42:13
We're going to for just. A second I guess I would lean 98
42:19
two percent 98 towards Revenge of the Sith I.
42:23
Was going to say, I think Revenge of the Sith for you,
42:25
right? You always love that one?
42:27
Yeah, I think it's, I think it's it's the everlasting.
42:31
Yeah, but ah, God, the keno. We want to sound good.
42:33
It's so. Emotional.
42:34
It's so awful I can't decide pain.
42:39
Because. I pretty much think it's Kenobi
42:42
for me, because it's. It's your Obi Wan dude, That's
42:47
all you. It's like everything I ever
42:50
wanted Obi 1 to do, we finally did it in live action.
42:54
Totally. It was like taking the biggest
42:56
badass moments from Clone Wars and having you and McGregor do
42:59
it. It was just like, boy, yeah, OK,
43:01
I can die now. See when you put it that way, I
43:04
flip my answer. I don't know, it's.
43:07
Too much? I love them both.
43:10
So we understand our listeners difficulty.
43:17
Thank you so much for joining us here on the Most Things Kenobi
43:19
Podcast. We appreciate every single one
43:22
of our patrons and are grateful for your support.
43:25
If you'd like to support the podcast and become a patron as
43:27
well, head over to The Most Things Kenobi Patreon.
43:30
As always, you can follow us on Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, and
43:34
YouTube, and don't forget to subscribe on your favorite
43:36
podcast player. If you enjoy our podcast, feel
43:39
free to rate us on Spotify and Apple.
43:41
And if you need just one place to find all of these, head over
43:45
to Most Things kenobi.com. So until next time, my space
43:50
twin, may the Force be with you. Always.