May the Force Be With You

Our decision to let our older two girls watch Star Wars involved some negotiation between myself and my husband.  My argument was that it was exposing them to violence and adult situations when their only prior media involved a purple dinosaur, princesses, and some singing chipmunks.  My husband's stance was more along the lines of "would you feel this way if they were boys?" and "there can be lessons learned on making good choices and the consequences of doing so"....blah, blah, blah.

He won.

*A bit of history would be prudent at this point.  You see, my husband and I are ardent Star Ways enthusiasts.  I wouldn't go so far as to lump us in the comic-con and role-playing category, but we grew up loving the movies and have watched them countless times.  I'd also like to mention at this point that we are talking about STAR WARS....not Star Trek.  Yuck.  I can't believe I even just typed Star Trek.  If both of those sound the "same" to you, please do a quick wiki search before reading further.

So far, over the past two months, we have watched episodes I, II, IV, V, and VI involving frequent fast-forwarding through violent or scary parts.  There is also tons of q&a that goes on.

My oldest girl has absolutely fallen for the movies.  What can I say?  She is her mother's (and father's) daughter.  Since her first exposure to "Episode IV: A New Hope" (we went old school first), her world has revolved around Star Wars legos, iPhone light saber apps, watching The Bark Side video over and over, and bombarding me with perpetual quizzing that goes something like this:

-Does Anakin like Sandpeople?
-What color is Luke's light saber?  What color is Darth Vader's light saber?  What color is Anakin's light saber?  Doesn't Anakin lose his light saber?  What color is his new one?
-How does Leia do her braids?....I want my hair like that.
-Which droid runs away?  Why?
-You be the Emperor (to sister, who says 'no').  Okay, then you be the Emperor's assistant...Darth Maul.  And Mommy will be Han Solo.  I'll be Luke.
-Does Leia love Luke?  Does Leia love Han?

I delight in the fact that we can enjoy these movies as a family.  My second daughter is a little unsure of it all, but that is probably due to her age.  I love that Star Wars can grow with viewers.  For a child, it sparks the imagination of space and all things possible, while also depicting examples of compassion and consequences.  As a grown-up, I can appreciate the adult humor, the underlying themes of Christianity, and the visual effects.  So in essence, the movies, in my opinion, are for imaginations of any age to visit "a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away."

And yes, since you asked.....I am a dork.

What are your thoughts on Star Wars?  Love it?  Hate it?  Never seen the movies?