H is for — Han Solo from Star Wars 
Some of my favorite characters are good-hearted rogues. Their good sides may be well hidden, and they may not always be on the right side of the law, but when it’s all on the line, the good shines through.
Perfect example: Han Solo. He’s a good-looking guy — a smuggler, soldier-of-fortune-type, cocky and cynical. He’s in it for the money. Just pay him, and he’ll ask no questions. He and his sidekick, Chewbacca the Wookie, travel the galaxies, dodging the authorities and bounty hunters, in his souped-up ship, the Millennium Falcon. He’s proud of his exploits and brags of them to Luke Skywalker, when Luke and Ben Kenobi want to hire him to take them to another planet.
When things go wrong and he gets tangled up with the Rebels, he extricates himself as quickly as possible, takes his money, and leaves. He wants no part of the rebellion against the Empire. He finds, though, that Luke’s and, particularly, Princess Leia’s regard is more important to him than he wants to admit, and that good side of himself, buried deep, begins to emerge.
I saw the original Star Wars movie in the theater, and my favorite moment was right at the end where Luke is careening down the trench, pursued by Darth Vader and the TIE fighters. Vader is just about to blast Luke into oblivion, when from out of nowhere, laser fire shoots into the trench, takes out the TIE fighters and sends Vader spinning through space. Han in the Falcon is yelling, “Yahoo!” and everyone in the audience, including me, is cheering along with him. Han the rogue became Han the hero, a key member of the rebellion, and I became a Star Wars fan for life.
Photo Credit: http://dstatic.computeruniverse.net
Photo Credit: Star Wars Wikia
Photo Credit: http://www.desktopextreme.com/
© Lori L. MacLaughlin and Writing, Reading, and the Pursuit of Dreams, 2015. All rights reserved.
Writing, Reading, and the Pursuit of Dreams 
Saw the movie but I don’t remember that. Come to think of it, I don’t remember a lot of the first movie at all except for the very boring, eternal sand, at the beginning
LikeLiked by 1 person
A desert planet is not a place I would like to be, either.
LikeLike
I’m a Han fan, too. Looking forward to the new movies.
LikeLiked by 1 person
So am I!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was wondering what castle that is in your header?
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m not sure which one you saw. I have a revolving header with five castles: the ruin on an island in a lake is Castle Kilchurn in Scotland, Urquhart Castle ruin on Loch Ness, Scotland, the castle with the round towers and moat is Bodiam Castle, England, the angular one with the round tower on the left is Arundel Castle, England, and the distant ruin with trees/vines on and around it is my ancestral Lachlan Castle. The photos were taken on our trip to Britain in 1995.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This post made me smile, because Star Wars (one) was a great time to be a young boy… anything was possible and in our imagination, we always had Han to help us out of trouble 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by!
LikeLike
I remember seeing it the weekend it came out. The lines were insane.
And Solo shot first!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, indeed.
LikeLike
It’s been too long since I have seen Star Wars!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know. Writing these posts makes me want to watch and read everything again.
LikeLike
I saw it in the theater, too, and I was maybe . . . six. 🙂 It made a lifelong impression on me. Love Star Wars.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was a little bit older than that (I won’t say how much 🙂 ) when I saw it. I never get tired of it.
LikeLike
Aww, this post will make any true Star Wars fan shed a tear. So true. You really captured Han Solo, and the reason we love Star Wars. I also saw this in the theaters, because my mom has always been a Trekkie sci-fi nerd. Yay, Mom!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yay, Mom, for sure! 🙂
LikeLike
I was a huge Star Wars fan as a kid. I still get a kick out of the scene between Han and Leia where she tells him she cares for him and he just says “I know.” What a cad!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ha, ha, yes that’s a great scene! And I love it when she does the same to him at the end of Return of the Jedi.
LikeLike
I was young when Star Wars came out- but I remember seeing it in the theater. It was so exciting! Love the movies and Hans. 🙂 Great post!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks! Yes, it was an exciting movie. I loved it!
LikeLike
what a fun post, my bro loves Star Wars!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s such a great movie!
LikeLike
I was in Jr High and had a huge movie poster featuring Han in my room. My first crush on a “real” man!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I can relate to that!
LikeLike
I read that Harrison Ford wasn’t that keen on the role – actually a lot of the actors weren’t too keen in the beginning and never expected Star Wars to become the success that it was. Han Solo seems to have become a favourite though, he’s fun and cocky but this makes it all the more meaningful when he comes back to help even though he isn’t obligated to. That ending where he shoots down the Tie fighters is pretty awesome.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s really interesting. I’ll bet they’re glad they went ahead and took on the roles. The movie’s become such a classic.
LikeLike
What a moment that was! Han’s my favourite character from Star Wars – when you think about it, he’s the one that goes through the most significant character arc. Looking forward to seeing what they do with the upcoming movie – I’m crossing my fingers it’s a good one!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Me, too! I’m hoping it’s more like the original series. I liked those so much better. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’ve captured my favorite character from the “Star Wars” films so well here… and I think the moment you’ve described is one of the greatest movie moments of all time! What a great turnaround for this character!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! I agree it’s one of the greatest moments. I get a grin on my face just thinking about it.
LikeLike
Pingback: “Star Wars” Giveaway – Winner Announced! | The Artistic Christian
Congratulations on winning the Star Wars Giveaway, Lori! If you’ll send an e-mail to theartisticchristian@gmail.com and let me know what address you’d like your prize to be sent to, I’ll put it in the mail right away.
Have a good one!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yay, whoo, hoo! That’s super! Thanks so much! I’ll send the e-mail pronto.
LikeLiked by 1 person