It seems likeStar WarsDay somehow never gets stale year after year, with something new always ready for the unofficial holiday. Whether it’s some new creative fan art or a heartwarming show ofsupport from one harassedStar Warsactorto another, there’s always some kind of surprise waiting in the wings for fans and stars alike. This year, it seems one of those surprises came in the form of a road trip, shown to us by Mark Hamill.
On May 5th, which some who still believe in joy still consider part ofStar WarsDay (dubbing it “Revenge of the Fifth”),Star Warslegend Hamillshared a rather unusual video from a Las Vegas-based account on Twitter. The video showed two people driving what appeared to be a surprisingly faithful replica of Luke Skywalker’s landspeeder down a street in Vegas. The account, named “Las Vegas Locally,” focuses on various oddities found in and around its home city, and this certainly seems to qualify.
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The original tweet was simply captioned with the hashtag #MayThe4thBeWithYou, which is possibly how it got Hamill’s attention. Hamill himself, meanwhile, added his own comment, saying “May The Fifth Be Just Another Ho-Hum Day When People Leave Their Landspeeders At Home.” The “speeder” itself is instantly recognizable (if a bit chunkier than the original) even to those who haven’t kept up withStar Warslore and canon over the years. It looks right out ofA New Hopeitself, featuring the distinct “3 turbine” design and an authentically painted color scheme to simulate the wear and tear of a vehicle that’s spent years zipping through the desert. Or maybe that was real. This is Vegas, after all.
One interesting detail is the flapping fabric underneath, hiding the apparently street legal vehicle’s wheels. Obviously, there aren’t exactly many ways to make a car look like it’s actually floating in real life, so this low-tech option works well enough. Plus, considering how the originalStar Warsfilm featured a similarly crude but effective method that involved mirrors and petroleum jelly, it seems oddly appropriate.
Hamill has always maintained his enthusiasm aboutStar Warsand its fans, and the Luke Skywalker actor has always taken atleast a small part inStar WarsDayas an extension of that. It’s pretty clear that sharing this video, as well as every other post he makes about the series, comes from a genuine place of love and respect, and that’s far too rare these days. Especially now in a time where things like conventions and other meet-ups where fan engagement with the stars they love feels lower than ever, that sort of effort goes a long way. Maybe now that things are very slowly beginning to become safer, this sort of energy can help smooth the transition for some people.
Even thoughStar WarsDayis over for 2021, that shouldn’t discourage fans from continuing to show their love for the people who make their favorite series possible, and for those involved to continue appreciating the fans in turn. Everybody could use a little appreciation, after all. Granted, everybody could also use one of those landspeeder cars, but appreciation is good too.
