Sphero makes great RC style toys that teach kids programming. R2D2 is now available for $40.

R2-D2 App-Enabled Droid via Amazon Read the rest

The Making of "The Empire Strikes Back", the rare 1980 French TV movie documentary about the second film in the Star Wars trilogy, was considered lost until recently. Since clips surfaced a few years ago, it's been considered the "Holy Grail" for Star Wars fans. Directed by late director Michel Parbot, the hour-long film has now been found and posted on YouTube. Watch it while you can. Read the rest

Create your own version of "Smell-O-Vision" by watching one the first three Star Wars films and lighting these officially-licensed candles from Merchoid when the scene coincides with the smell.

List of scents:

A New Hope:

Wookiee: Ever wondered what a walking carpet smells like? Bantha Milk [erroneously spelled 'Banther' on the candle]: Love the smell of bantha milk in the morning? Trash Compactor: Find out what was very nearly the last smell Luke, Leia and Han ever experienced X-wing Cockpit: Perfect for playthroughs of Battlefront's aerial combat Cantina: Eau de scum and villainy Lightsaber Duel: Do you prefer the smell of the dark side or the light side?

The Empire Strikes Back:

Han Solo Carbonite: This smell is all Leia had to remember Han for a long time Millenium Falcon: She may not look much, but she's got it where it counts (the smell) Inside of a Tauntaun: Thought it smelt bad on the outside? You've experienced nothing yet! Yoda's Cooking Pot: Yoda's legendary Force powers are only eclipsed by his cooking skills. Smell it for yourself!

Return Of The Jedi:

Rancor: The only way to smell a Rancor without ending up its lunch Sarlaac Pit: Add a new dimension to your favourite ROTJ scene Jabba's Palace: Admit it, you've always wondered what Jabba smells like Ewok: Do they smell as cute as they look? Let's find out! Death Star Destroyed: The sweet smell of rebellion

The candles are available in sets, starting at $36.99 (one film) and going up to $127.99 (entire trilogy on display board). Read the rest

Anything Star Wars gets my attention, but today's stage of VR doesn't excite me. Maybe this will be the thing...

I dunno what a VR series is either. TV you virtually live?

Via Venture Beat:

Vader Immortal: Episode I — the first in a three-part series — was written and executive produced by David S. Goyer, and it takes place between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope (a period the excellent Darth Vader comics tackle as well). Players trek to Vader’s castle (it first “new canon” appearance is in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) on the volcanic world of Mustafar in a “yet untold” story in the Star Wars universe.

“Whether it’s hearing Darth Vader’s breathing behind you and physically turning to face him in person or wielding a lightsaber with your own hands, Vader Immortal captures the ultimate wish fulfillment,” Oculus head of experience Colum Slevin said in a statement. “Untethered VR immerses you in this universe and places you at the center of this amazing story.”

Absolutely stellar work by comic artist and "animotion" director Dmitry "Ahriman" Grozov of Saint Petersburg, Russia.

Follow Ahriman on Patreon and Instagram.

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Every year, Halloween costumes get weirder and more complicated. Case in point: this inflatable Han-in-Carbonite one.

Here's how it works:

For $59.99, you get the adult-sized costume (and a battery-operated fan to inflate it), plus gloves and a mask for the full effect.

Previously on BB: Other Han-in-Carbonite items

(Geeks are Sexy) Read the rest

LEGO Han in Carbonite is reason enough for me to buy the LEGO Star Wars Carbon-Freezing Chamber.

While LEGO Lando isn't to be seen, he's clearly still a traitorous jerk! LEGO Han is getting frozen in carbonite! LEGO Boba and an Ugnaught are included to run the operation.

LEGO Star Wars Carbon-Freezing Chamber 75137 via Amazon Read the rest

My eight year-old nephew clicked this X-Wing fighter together in about 3 hours, and then spent two days playing with it, nonstop.

This Luke-era X-Wing, with Luke and R2 minifigs, was the project of choice for my nephew. He said he loves to build LEGO, and attacked this set with gusto. Unlike my daughter's massive collection of Star Wars LEGO, which is all carefully organized on our living room shelves, nephew plays with his LEGO builds hard.

It is fun to watch.

LEGO Star Wars X-Wing Starfighter 75218 Building Kit (731 Piece) via Amazon Read the rest

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi was briefly called "Revenge of the Jedi." Apparently screenwriter Lawrence Kasdan had told Lucas that "Return of the Jedi" was a "weak title." In December 1982 though, Lucas went back to his original title but not before promotional posters had already been released, such as the one above that is currently up for auction at Sotheby's with an expected hammer price of 1,400 - 2,600 GBP ($1800 - $3200 USD).

From Wikipedia:

In December 1982, Lucas decided that "Revenge" was not appropriate as Jedi should not seek revenge and returned to his original title. By that time thousands of "Revenge" teaser posters (with artwork by Drew Struzan) had been printed and distributed. Lucasfilm stopped the shipping of the posters and sold the remaining stock of 6,800 posters to Star Wars fan club members for $9.50.

(via Uncrate) Read the rest

My 11 year-old paid more attention during Solo than I did. She insisted on Moloch's Landspeeder as her latest Star Wars LEGO. Read the rest

Unused footage of Carrie Fisher from The Last Jedi will be put to use in Episode IX, reports Hollywood Reporter. Mark Hamill will return as Luke Skywalker, as will Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian.

In January 2017, Lucasfilm issued a statement assuring fans that there were no plans for a digital re-creation of Leia, after reviving late actor Peter Cushing's Grand Moff Tarkin for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. In April 2017, Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy said Fisher would not appear in Episode IX. Abrams took over as director of Episode IX in September 2017 after the exit of Colin Trevorrow, and penned a new script himself with Chris Terrio, and it seems plans changed sometime after that point.

Also back: Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Domhnall Gleeson, Kelly Marie Tran and Joonas Suotamo. Richard E. Grant is joining the cast, as is Naomi Ackie. Read the rest

Darth Vader only appeared on screen for 34 minutes yet is the most visually iconic character of the original trilogy. Nerdwriter's Evan Puschak explains why.

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This excellent pizza cutter is not as clumsy or random as our old one.

What can I say? We needed a new pizza cutter. This one is modeled on the iconic Darth Vader lightsaber.

Underground Toys Star Wars Home Kitchen Pizza Cutter Lightsaber via Amazon Read the rest

Han Solo's blaster used in "Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi" sold for $550,000 at a Las Vegas auction on Saturday. Turns out that Ripley's Believe It Or Not bought it. Believe it... or not. The prop was part of a collection sold off by the movie's art director James L. Schoppe. From Rolling Stone:

Other items at Saturday's auction included an original "Biker Scout Blaster" (sold for $90,000) and an Ewok prop axe ($11,000) from Return of the Jedi.

However, Han Solo's blaster fell well short of the record for the priciest Star Wars item in the franchise's auction history: In June 2017, an R2-D2 unit that was seen in numerous Star Wars films sold at auction for $2.76 million, over its $2 million pre-auction estimate.

It was 1997 when Simon Jansen started his remake of the first Star Wars film -- Episode IV - A New Hope -- as an ASCII animation (or "asciimation," as he coined it). Read the rest

Solo: A Star Wars Story, the latest Star Wars feature film and Disney's fourth, offers something new even as it stays connected to the old. I have a few gripes, but Solo is a nice side chapter to the ongoing Star Wars mythos.

Set roughly a decade before A New Hope, the original Star Wars film, Solo chronicles the journey of a 20-something Han Solo from an orphan looking for a brighter future to the swaggering but lovable scoundrel originally portrayed by Harrison Ford.

Standard backstory fare includes Solo meeting the Wookiee Chewbacca and fellow miscreant Lando Calrissian. We find out where he grew up and how he came by his surname. He acquires the Millenium Falcon and his biggest claim to fame: making the Kessel Run in a record-breaking twelve parsecs. Solo brims with action and humor—I think it's a great stand-alone film.

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Here's an unusual opportunity for a hardcore Star Wars fan. An authenticated, screen-used segment of the original Death Star (yes, from 1977) can be bid on through eBay.

In partnership with Hollywood Memorabilia, this exclusive screen-used, sectional piece of the Death Star was featured in Star Wars: Episode IV and utilized for special effects. After filming, much of the Death Star was lost, but this authentic piece was discovered and salvaged. Very few of these pieces exist, and has remained mostly uncirculated with the Star Wars community, until now. The prop was kept by an ex-ILM employee for the next 37 years, and stored in a safe for the last 4 years.

This nearly two-foot-long piece of Star Wars history is expected to "sell for upwards of six figures," though the current bid is just over $10,000. Bidding ends June 3 and a letter of authenticity is included in the sale (I would hope so!). Read the rest