[For complete coverage of Celebration IV, check out the Official STARWARS.COM Blog]

Just wanted to give a quick recap of my incredible experience at Celebration IV and, as a Lucasfilm insider, what I took away from the event.

I arrived at the convention Friday morning and spent a couple hours getting the lie of the land, ducking my head into random panels like the Aliens and Denizens costuming panel, the Slave Leia belly-dancing lessons, and checking out the Vader Project and Archives. In the Lounge, I watched a hand of sabacc dealt by Darth Talon, something you're not likely to see anywhere else but a Star Wars convention.

My schedule really kicked in once JW Rinzler's Making of SW panel started. I work with Jonathan on a daily basis and he still manages to enlighten me with tidbits of the creation of our favorite saga. The fanperson in me couldn't resist the Carrie Fisher hour, but afterwards it was right back to business. I touched base with many of the talented artists in Artist Alley and the Dark Horse booth. I caught word with Brian Robb, editor of Insider Magazine. Before long it was off to the Wizards of the Coast SW Miniatures panel which was already in progress. Since I would be on another WOTC panel later in the afternoon, Rob Watkins gave me a "come on up" look and I looked around and behind and responded with a "who me?" Once I knew for sure he was talking to me, I was happy to oblige. Immediately after the panel, it was a sprint down the hall to catch the last half of the Legacy of the Force panel and then a sprint back for the RPG panel to once again sit with Rob and SW RPG writer and editor Rodney Thompson. Desperate to take advantage of my presence on the panel, the most challenging continuity questions thrown at me came from Rob. Later that evening came the opening ceremony. Was it just me, or did the loudest cheers come during Licensing President Howard Roffman's mention of the release of Timothy Zahn's Heir to the Empire? As a caretaker/devotee of the EU, my heart swelled with pride and joy.

Saturday brought another early panel, this time our Continuity/30 Years of Publishing presentation where I gave a brief tour of a version of the Holocron database. I should also give props to Pablo's narration of the 30 Years of Publishing slide show- he literally saw the images minutes before the panel began and gave an outstanding presentation on-the-spot. Breaking from the convention for a meeting, I got back for The Force Unleashed presentation in the afternoon. It was the first time I saw the TFU actors in person and it was great seeing the chemistry between Sam Witwer and Nathalie Cox. Afterwards I had to introduce myself to Sam, knowing that he was a hardcore Star Wars fan from some e-mail correspondence with him involving SW continuity. Besides, he was Crashdown from Battlestar Galactica! The next panel I hit was Dark Horse's, during which Randy Stradley said this was the largest audience he'd seen for a Dark Horse SW panel - a testament to the quality of work Dark Horse has been putting out lately. To prove he was a fan, KOTOR comics author JJM pulled out his first action figure, C-3PO complete with gimpy leg. I managed to catch some of the 5/25/77 creator's panel, a movie showing again how Star Wars changed one person's life in a dramatic way.

On Sunday, I scoped out the Exhibition Hall checking in with my friend Amanda at the Gentle Giant booth. The life-size Jabba was definitely a highlight. I also saw the LucasArts booth with its LucasArts retrospective curated by Chris Baker. I finally found the Fan Hall and checked out the amazing Endor diorama. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to spot the custom white-bearded Rebel commando or the two-eyed Orrimaarko I had donated to the cause. I also stopped by the Wookipeedia/Unoffiicial Encyclopedia booth, and then it was off to the first Animated Clone Wars presentation. Sitting behind me were Ryder Windham who I had just met in person the night before and Killian Plunkett who received not one but two shoutouts from Producer Catherine Winder and #1 Plo Koon fan Dave Filoni. Not since George's arrival at Celebration IIII had I witnessed that much excitement for anything, Star Wars or otherwise. If there was a single moment to savor from the entire trip, that was it. I went to the Expanded Universe costumers panel, though unfortunately the guy who made the awesome Durge costume was not in costume because his costume made him bleed. Talk about devotion. Saw some of Starwoids, the Robot Chicken panel, a fanfilm called Figure Club and then finally caught the tail end of the Cross-Sections panel featuring Hans Jenssen and Richard Chasemore who thought I was sent by Lucasfilm to spy on them.

Even without future theatrical film releases, Celebration IV proved that Star Wars is stronger than ever. The Expanded Universe's role in Star Wars fandom has become more important, and the upcoming The Force Unleashed video game and Animated Clone Wars TV series show that this will only continue to grow. Fan devotion to Star Wars in our personal and, if we're lucky, professional, lives was clearly evident throughout the weekend.

Celebration IV was an incredible journey. Can't wait 'til the next one.