Now that the Star Wars Saga is complete (on film at least, there is still a TV series to look forward to), I thought I'd look back on my decades-long love of all things GFFA to find my 10 favorites. Here we go . . .

10. R2-D2 & C-3PO Action Figures

The first things I ever owned from the Star Wars universe were two action figure versions of the droids from Episode IV (then simply known as "Star Wars"), R2 and 3PO. I spent hours using these figures to spin my own "EU" yarns, years before there was an "EU" at all. They were the best toys I ever owned (until then, at least), pieces of magic from a world of magic that could only be seen at the local house of worship known as a movie theater and they sparked my interest in telling stories and creating worlds of my own that still burns strong today.

9. SPFX: The Empire Strikes Back

For weeks I had been looking forward to going to the city library for some kind of competition in which I was participating (can't remember what it was, but it involved reading books and collecting points and showing up to see who won). Then at the last minute, I found out that a show about the making of ESB would air that night, and a choice had to be made (no VCRs back then in the Frampton abode, boys and girls). Guess which one I chose?

8. The Star Wars Special Editions

I was too young to experience the mania of the initial releases for Episodes IV, V or VI (I saw them in theaters, but there was little mania at the showings I attended), so this was like getting a second chance at geeked-out Star Wars fandom. It was an oasis in the dark years between trilogies, and it made early 1997 a really great time to be alive. I have not seen lines at movie theaters like I did for those films since then, not even for the prequels.

7. Principal Photography Of Episode III On Hyperspace

My favorite thing about Episode III is not the film, but the time during principal photography in Sydney, Austrailia. I followed every development religiously during this time, logging on to Hyperspace daily and checking out the WebCam Addict thread in the forums every chance I could get. It was a great time to be a fan of Star Wars and a filmmaking enthusiast. I wish I had enjoyed the final film as much.

6. The Return of the Jedi Storybook

In elementary school, we were given order forms every month or so for new books that we could buy in advance (Reading Is Fundamental!). One month in early 1983, I was shocked to see that i could order the Return of the Jedi Storybook, months before the film was to come out (this was my version of spoilers in the VERY pre-internet days).

When the book arrived, I was in heaven. I had the story and some full color images of the new Star Wars movie, and surprisingly . . . none of the other kids had ordered it! I was instantly the most popular kid in class, and the debate about story points began . . .

5. "Han Solo In Hoth Gear" Action Figure

I knew there was a second Star Wars film coming, but until I walked into K-Mart that day and saw the new figures on the shelves, I had no idea what it would be like. That figure was the first one I owned from the Empire line, and it's still my favorite figure from any of the films.

4. Star Wars Insider On The March

I was in the final two weeks of Air Force basic training. My flight had just completed "Warrior Weekend" ( a few days of weapons training, survival training and comabt simulation). We had basically been awake for days. We were tired, exhausted, and we were making our final miles-long march out of the wilderness and back to the main base. We had stopped mid-way for chow and a surpise mail call. When my name was called, I was handed a package. I ripped it open to find the latest Star Wars Insider, containing some new Episode I images (including a finished shot of Darth Maul with double-bladed lightsaber). We weren't allowed to keep magazines in basic Training, so my T.I. (Training Instructor) made a bee-line to me and grunted in his Texas-drawl, "What the hell is that, trainee?". I showed him Darth Maul in all his glory. My T.I. paused a moment and then said, "If you want to keep that, I'd keep it out of sight".

Best day of basic training, hands down.

3. The Episode I Trailer

I sat through 2 showings of the mediocre film "Meet Joe Black" to see the Episode I trailer 4 times (the theater was showing it before and after each showing).

There was a crowd in front of the theater to see the first moving images from a Star Wars prequel, and the theater cleared out when the teaser ended. The power of Star Wars was on and at full tilt that day.

2. Revenge of the Sith Topps Sketch Cards

After years of wishing to do official Star Wars artwork, I got my chance thanks to the kindness of Tom Hodges (who suggested me to his editor as an artist who might be a good fit with the sketch card project). "Thrilled" doesn't even come close to describing how I felt being made a "Lucasfilm approved" artist.

1. The Darth Vader Poster

This was the moment Star Wars was born for me; standing in a friend's room, looking up at a poster of a man in black holding a red sword in his hand, not knowing what I was looking at but knowing it was something magical and mysterious. All I could say was "wow". The rest is history . . .

-Otis

otisframpton.com

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