Star Wars

[jellibeans]

At what age did you let your dc's(probably only ds's are interested) watch Star Wars?

[mariza]

At what age did you let your dc's(probably only ds's are interested) watch Star Wars?

DH showed DD her first Star Wars movie this summer when she was 5.5 and there was no going back, she LOVES anything Star Wars. DS was about 3.9 and slower to warm HP to it, but now at 4.5 he is just as into it as she is. They love it all, the original, the prequels and the clone wars books and cartoons. I'm not a big fan, but I'm outnumbered :D. I think I will introduce Harry Potter this weekend because I cannot take 24-7 Star Wars anymore!

The only bad thing about having a girl SW fan is that the merchandising is so geared for boys, DD would love it if there was a pink star wars shirts.

[rlu]

I was 8 when the first movie (i.e. Episode 4 aka New Hope) came out and a princess with a blaster was appealing. I was a sci-fi kid and found the movies appealing.

DS is nearly 7. We have not shown him the first released trilogy (i.e. Episodes 4 - 6 the Luke trilogy) but will whenever he asks to at this point. I'll hold off on the Anakin trilogy as long as I can.

When DS and his classmates talk about Star Wars they are generally referring to the Clone Wars cartoon series (which DS has not asked to see yet). I read the Star Wars Easy Reader books to DS about a year or two ago (can't really remember now - time flies).

As a teen I had a girl's Star Wars shirt. What the heck happened to that?

[katydid1971]

DH was so excited to share Star Wars with DS. This Christmas DH had a Star Wars marathon with DS. DS was 5.5. DS is MAD about Star Wars especially anything Yoda Anything Lego Star Wars is the ultimate at this house. I have a bunch of lego storm troopers all over the family room floor right now. ;)

[ahisma]

DH just showed the boys Star Wars yesterday, Episode 4. They're 4 yo and 2.5 yo. I was hesitant, they literally haven't seen anything other than PBS...ever. They liked the space and the rockets and were totally disinterested in the fighting scenes.

It was prompted by DS1 studying rockets in school and wanting to see a space movie. Truly, I think DH was bummed that they weren't more into it.

[niccig]

DS got into it just before his 6th birthday. All the boys with older siblings were crazy for it in pre-K. It took DS a little longer. He thought star wars was scary and wouldn't play along, but a little into K,and he started to ask to see it.

He gets a star wars book from the library EVERY week! I'm getting very tired of reading them.

[pinkmomagain]

DH got DD3 totally into Star Wars starting around 4yo.

[bnme]

About 5. They LOVED it and were not scared at all. You may want to watch before. As we were watching there were some parts I wasn't thrilled with them seeing, but all in all they loved it and it bought up some interesting conversations.

[Elilly]

Ds was allowed for his 6th birthday. That said, he had dh's old star wars toys before age 6.

[jamesmom]

DS got into it when he was 6 years old. Now he's part of a group of Star Wars loving kids in his class who play Star Wars at recess every day. :)

[georgiegirl]

DH introduced DD (who will be 5 in 2 weeks) to Star Wars in January and she's completely obsessed. It is annoying How all the merchandising is for boys. DD would love a princess leisure shirt and action figure for her birthday and it would be nice to be able to find that at target. We are going to Disney world in may and I plan on signing her up for Jedi training academy.

[BeachBum]

My son watched it when he was 4....and we got the whole series when he was 5. All the little boys in his preschool class are WAY WAY into it. I really prefer the original movies, but I do let him watch the other ones.

[dogmom]

4? 5? He now watches the Clone Wars on Cartoon Network. Although I have a block about him watching episode III with Anakin killing the kids. I know other parents who have the same block. Probably wouldn't bother him, but it does me.

[dogmom]

DH introduced DD (who will be 5 in 2 weeks) to Star Wars in January and she's completely obsessed. It is annoying How all the merchandising is for boys. DD would love a princess leisure shirt and action figure for her birthday and it would be nice to be able to find that at target. We are going to Disney world in may and I plan on signing her up for Jedi training academy.

Oh and my DD watches also. Someone bought her this, it's like the Polly Pocket dolls.

http://www.wdwmousetalesstore.com/products/Disney-Star-Wars-Princess-Leia-Fashion-Polly-Pocket-Doll-Set.html

[AngelaS]

My oldest watched it around 4. She LOVES it. The one that's scariest is episode 3. She saw that around 9. She and her younger sisters love them all, but think that 2 is gross because it has the most kissing (ew!--her words). LOL

[elizabethkott]

J first saw SW in early October- so he was over 3 1/2. He loves loves loves loves loves Star Wars. To the point where it went beyond just him dressing up as Luke Skywalker, and the entire family had to dress up as well, including the poor baby being subjected to a Chewbacca costume.
We have light sabers (5) a blaster, and more "Star Wars Guys" than I can count. The guys are great, though - he will happily spend a large majority of the day playing with the guys. (Only downside - he keeps losing them all over the house and has a meltdown when he can't find one. And he keeps trying to "freeze" Han Solo by getting him wet and putting him in the freezer... we actually had one Han Solo decapitation incident when a frozen Han fell out of the freezer and his poor frozen head snapped off.)
We started with the original movies, mostly because I hate the new ones.
Here's a funny link for parents thinking about introducing their young one to Star Wars:
http://video.aol.com/video/talking-to-your-kids-about-star-wars/649277137

[SnuggleBuggles]

5ish. We talked about scary scenes before they happened. Only the original 3 have been viewed so far.

Beth

[daphne]

We made DS wait until he was 6. DD lucked out & got to watch along with him at 3 1/2.

[vludmilla]

At what age did you let your dc's(probably only ds's are interested) watch Star Wars?

My DD 4.5 absolutely loves Star Wars. I don't think it is something only boys would be interested in watching.

[Melaine]

My kids haven't watched it and it will probably be awhile, but my family has always been way into it.

For the girl fans: http://www.etsy.com/listing/55239071/galactic-princess-waldorf-inspired?ref=sr_gallery_4&ga_search_query=star+wars+waldorf&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

http://www.etsy.com/listing/66686963/fancie-force-be-with-you?ref=sr_gallery_8&ga_search_query=star+wars+wood&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

http://www.etsy.com/listing/56979396/scrabble-tile-pendant-star-wars?ref=sr_gallery_4&ga_search_query=star+wars+wood&ga_page=2&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

http://www.etsy.com/listing/61142131/r2d2-star-wars-custom-applique-girls?ref=sr_gallery_10&ga_search_query=star+wars+girls+tee&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

http://www.etsy.com/listing/63250989/star-wars-dress-67?ref=sr_gallery_29&ga_search_query=star+wars+dress&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

[s7714]

My older DD was 6 when we started letting her watch the movies IIRC. She's a HUGE Star Wars fan. She's now 8 and has seen all the movies. We watch The Clone Wars on Cartoon Network and so my younger DD has been seeing those since she was a little over 4, but she hasn't seen the movies yet.

[katydid1971]

I recorded the Clone Wars one time and watched it and I thought it was very scary. It didn't have any of the characters I knew on it. Was this just a fluke or is this the case usually?

[katydid1971]

My kids haven't watched it and it will probably be awhile, but my family has always been way into it.

For the girl fans: http://www.etsy.com/listing/55239071/galactic-princess-waldorf-inspired?ref=sr_gallery_4&ga_search_query=star+wars+waldorf&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade


OK I really have to stop looking at Melaine's posts because she is going to drive me into the poor house ;) That Waldorf Princess Leia doll is sooooo cute!!!!!

[s7714]

I recorded the Clone Wars one time and watched it and I thought it was very scary. It didn't have any of the characters I knew on it. Was this just a fluke or is this the case usually?

CW does have a lot of violence/fighting in it and the characters could be incredibly scary to some kids. If you haven't been following the show it's quite possible you wouldn't recognize any of the characters. Some of the episodes do have familiar characters in them (Anakin, Obi Wan, C3P0, Padme, etc.) but like a soap opera, there are a lot more characters than that so they're not always in every episode. ;)

[vonfirmath]

At what age did you let your dc's(probably only ds's are interested) watch Star Wars?

I don't remember how old I was when I first watched Star Wars, but I'm a big sci-fi fan. Star Wars, Star Trek, Babylon 5, all of it.

You'd be surprised how many dds end up at the conventions.

[artvandalay]

My boys are 4 and 6. They've been watching Clone Wars cartoons about a year. My 6 year old got into the movies last year at age 5. He's seen all the movies. He's pretty obsessed with SW at the moment.

The SW only movie that he doesn't like is Episode 3 - the last of the newer ones - where Anakin becomes evil. It's the darkest of all the movies IMO. My son became really upset when he started killing all the good people and the ending scares him. So he will watch any SW movie except this one.

[katydid1971]

a friend posted this to facebook the other day and I thought it was funny
http://www.interrobangstudios.com/potluck/index.php?strip_id=982

[klwa]

I think right around DS's 5th birthday, DH started showing him the movies. Our agreement was that he WOULDN'T show he third (where Anakin becomes Darth Vader) until DS was older. And then I got home from the grocery store one day with it on. With the excuse that "But DS ASKED to watch that one!" Yeah, uh huh, right. So, now he's watched all fo them. DD has been in the room, but hasn't really paid attention, thankfully. But, she knows all the key players by name & knows who's good & bad. (But, it WAS cool when we went to WDW this winter & DH & DS got to get their picture taken with Vader & a storm trooper.)

ETA: I watched the original trilogy at the theater, although I think I only saw Return of the Jedi at the time of its original release, since I was 6 at the time. But I do remember walking into the theater for Empire Strikes Back & someone mentioning that Vader was Luke's father and crying because I didn't know that. So whether I'm remembering somethign from when I was 3 & my parents were insane enough to take a 3 year old to see it, or if I'm remembering it being re-released to theaters before ROTJ, I don't know.

[lil_acorn]

Our son was 5 when he started watching the Star Wars series. I think the older ones are okay, it's the newer ones, especially the last episode #3 that are the darkest.

[Asianmommy]

Funny that you mention it. I suddenly realized that the girls (ages 6 & 9) had never watched Star Wars before (they used to be afraid of most movies), and I think all of their friends have seen it by now. So, we just watched Episodes 4-6 within the past couple of weeks, and they loved them.

[AnnieW625]

We actually were watching Star Wars with DD1 tonight; she'll be 5 in a couple of weeks. DH did change the channel when Luke returned home. I was 5 or 6 when I first saw the movies so I am completely fine with DD1 watching them. DD1 has had Talking Yoda since before she was born; DH gave it to me the Christmas I was pregnant with her.

[Melaine]

DH did change the channel when Luke returned home.

I didn't see the real part of that movie for a looong time. I guess my dad was skipping it first for me, then for my siblings so I was much older by the time I actually saw it!

[Twoboos]

I want to say DD1 was 5, which would make DD2 3. :bag But we started out with just certain scenes of episodes 4-6. Honestly, if I think about it, I don't know if they've ever watched one in it's entirety!

They LOVE Star Wars, and also really enjoy Lego Star Wars on the Wii.

I :heartbeat: Star Wars. DD1 and I have debated which of us will marry Luke. :ROTFLMAO: ETA: DD2 wants to marry Chewie. :ROTFLMAO:

[BillK]

DH did change the channel when Luke returned home.

Refresh my memory - other that particular scene - are there any other scenes in the first 3 "Luke" episodes to be concerned about? I've been trying to think what else may be too scary / graphic for Zach but haven't really been able to come up with any ideas. Maybe the Cantina scene when Han blows away Gredo(sp?).

[o_mom]

Mine have never seen it (7.5, 5.5 and 3.5) and it will probably be at least a few more years for DS1. The last one (ep 3) is rated PG-13, so it will be even longer for that one. He is familiar with the characters and story from books, so he can talk about it with kids at school, but he hasn't actually seen the movies.

[egoldber]

My kids just saw Star Wars Episdoe 4 (the original first movie) for the first time a couple weeks ago. Younger DD thought it was a little scary, but my older DD loved it. We have The Empire Strikes Back on the way from Netflix.

Honestly, I thought the newer three movies were really terrible. I saw the first one in the theater, the second one from Netflix and never even bothered with the third one. But the original 3 is part of the context of modern culture (IMO ;) ) and we are trying to deliberately expose older DD to some of these more culturally iconic movies now that she is getting older.

[artvandalay]

Refresh my memory - other that particular scene - are there any other scenes in the first 3 "Luke" episodes to be concerned about? I've been trying to think what else may be too scary / graphic for Zach but haven't really been able to come up with any ideas. Maybe the Cantina scene when Han blows away Gredo(sp?).

I just remembered a scene in the original series that bothered my 6 year old (last year when he was 5) is the scene where Darth Vader removes his mask/dies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwjOMVPMnxU

This used to really freak him out. Finally my husband sat with my son last year and talked him through that part, letting him know that Darth Vader looks a little scary, but he is reaching out to Luke before he dies. He's ok with it now. Other than this scene, there is nothing else in the original series that was scary to him (and he didn't even flinch at the Cantina scene). He does not like the scene when Obi Wan gets killed, but it doesn't scare him.

But this scene (the end of the clip where Anakin is burning/gets limbs chopped off)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSwy412nttI&feature=related

really scares him even now at age 6. He won't watch this movie (Episode 3, Revenge of the Sith). And like I said, it's not just this scene that scares him, but he is really bothered that Anakin starts killing good people (Padme, Mace Windoo, the little Jedi kids, etc.). Of the the SW movies, it's the scariest by far. He begged to watch this movie, and we were really hesitant to show it to him, because we didn't think he was ready (and clearly he wasn't).

[BillK]

Yea - I'm out for them seeing any of the 3 most recent - at least for a few more years. The first 3 maybe - but the last 3 just all had too many dark moments for little ones imo.

[94bruin]

DD just saw the first one about a week ago. She's 5.5 yo. I think she's one of the first girls in her kinder class to watch it. A lot of the boys have already seen it in her class (and are mad for SW.)

As of now, she is still into princesses and such. Don't have to worry about girl SW merchandising, yet.

She has had us pretend that we are different characters from the movie, however. She always gets to be Princess Leia, of course. Our 2 yo gets to be R2D2, lol!

Actually, we were at Williams-Sonoma over the weekend. They have cookie molds & an apron centered with Star Wars theming.

[artvandalay]

Yea - I'm out for them seeing any of the 3 most recent - at least for a few more years. The first 3 maybe - but the last 3 just all had too many dark moments for little ones imo.


The original 3 are much more friendly. Not just in terms of violence/graphic stuff, but the original movies have some lightheartedness that the more recent movies lack.

Han Solo and Chewey add so many nice, funny breaks in the movies. The banter between Leia/Solo is fun. The newer movies really don't have anything like this (I think Jar Jar Binks was supposed to add humor in the newer series - and that turned out to be a big huge fail). He is by far the most annoying SW character ever.