For four days, a galaxy of Star Wars fans took over Indianapolis, Indiana. We were there, and we can sum up the experience in four words: Fans, Freaks, Frenzy, and Fun.

Fans are the thousands of people from around the world, who we stood in line with, ate with, shared cabs with; and they were what made Celebration III truly memorable. Freaks (and that's meant in the endearing way) were the people that are such huge fans that they poured their time and money into AMAZING costumes and other projects, making the atmosphere more authentic and enjoyable for the rest of us. Frenzy is the tedium of the line, followed by the mad rush of people inside the convention. And Fun are the shows and exhibits that were the reason we waited and rushed and also the 'after hours' fun with a city full of fellow fans.

Fans

      Perhaps the best part of Celebration III was the people we met. Upon returning home, the biggest disappointment about coming home was the to return to real-life, with 'normal' people. It's amazing how liberating it was to be surrounded all day and night by people with whom you had so much in common. Normal bathroom conversation is not about what costume you'll work on when you get home, but here it was the norm, especially discussing whether you want to do prequel or original trilogy costumes. So, with that in mind, here's our tribute to the other wonderful fans we spent five days and four nights with.

As soon as we got to the airport, we could already tell whom we'd be bonding with. The people behind us in line saw our HOTA buttons and badges and started asking us about the group and the convention. Even the guy behind the counter who checked our baggage knew where we were headed before he looked at our tickets. In our first line of the weekend, we lined up to get on the plane, and stood talking to a man from California who was just on a layover on his way to Indy. It was easy to pick out all the other Star Wars folks out due to their badges and shirts and jackets.

Once we got to Indy, we lined up for cabs together, and we shared a minivan with two other fans, talking about our plans for the weekend. We walked into the hotel and it was already full of folks breaking in their stormtrooper armor or practicing for the Lego competition (one of whom we'd get to know quite well by the end of the weekend), not to mention the kids running around having lightsaber duels.

Thursday morning, opening day, and we chose a slow start. We called Jody (SarkaVrae around the boards) to find out when she'd be getting into the convention center, and we headed out shortly after her. When we got there the line was AMAZINGLY long but moving. We got our place, and were almost immediately talking with the folks around us. It turns out that the woman in front of us was also from Kansas! And we had a fun time talking to the couple behind us (from Tennessee) about the costumes they were going to wear later. Once we got inside we met up with Jody and her friends (John, one of her friends, was one of the guys who'd been practicing his Lego building the night before).

Friday, the line to get in was not as bad, probably due to the persistent rain that seemed to mute everything. However, once we were inside and caught another show, we had our turn to work at the FanForce table. We met several fellow FanForcer-ers, and one in particular (Hama from theforce.net boards) sat with us to keep us company; everyone was impressed with his X-wing origami. We were pleased to see the amount of interest in Fan Force. Several people walked up to ask about or look for a chapter in their area, or even wanting to start their own. There was also someone from Kansas during our time at the table. He seemed really excited about driving to Kansas City for the Episode III premiere. And a reporter from the Toronto Star, Canada interviewed Sarah!

Friday night we got to schmooze with the FanForce, Rebel Legion, and 501st at their party at the Hyatt, not to mention some of the actors like Jeremy Bullock. Saturday we met back up with the people we'd met in line on Thursday by chance, now in their full costumes. That night we hit the town for one last hurrah with Jody and John. Then Sunday we had to say goodbye (but with a list of phone numbers and email addresses). But even on the trip home we saw many of the new acquaintances and got to talk to them one more (but hopefully not the last) time.

Freaks

      We've been to conventions and premieres and the like before, so we've seen people in costume, but never to the degree that we saw this weekend. Such a large percentage of our time was spent taking pictures of these dedicated fans. Every day in line was a parade of Padmes and Jedi and even the occasional Darth Jar Jar. As soon as we got inside on Thursday and sat down to eat our lunch, a very young Grand Admiral Thrawn sat down next to us.

Of course, there was a throng of slave Leias to be seen, most notably one who looked JUST like Angel star Amy Acker, and of course HotA's own Bikini Leia. There were also a lot of really good Obi-Wan doppelgangers; who would have thought so many people could look so much like Alec Guiness or Ewan McGreggor.

Maybe the most impressive was the General Grievous costume, or rather rig, that one man was sporting. It was incredible! There were realistic Wookies, and characters only previously seen animated in Clone Wars brought to life in staggering detail. And, of course, the legions of 501st stormtroopers everywhere.

Frenzy

      What Star Wars event would be complete without LINES? I've not quite figured out what it is about the psyche of Star Wars fans that makes us SO enamored with standing in line. Perhaps it the desire to be the first or maybe just that we know it's a good excuse to socialize. Whatever the reason, this weekend did not disappoint.

We waited until the time that the fan club line started letting in on Thursday to get in line, even though it meant we had to start the journey through line on the other side of the RCA dome. It moved steadily though and in less than two hours we were inside, to a less organized kind of frenzy. If some of our pictures look strange, well you try taking pictures with dozens of others crowding around trying to get that perfect shot, and hundreds more were trying to squeeze by on their way.

Friday morning was our first toughening up, as we got in line earlier to try and make it into the Celebration store, but even Mother Nature wouldn't help us out. It alternated between drizzle and downright downpour the whole two hours we were in line.

The down side of lines is that they eventually reach a limit. By the time we got into the convention center on Thursday and Friday, the line into the celebration store was 'capped' for the day. So, knowing we HAD to get our 'stuff' (and the stuff for the folks back home), we went back to our room after the Friday night party, got a couple hours of sleep, and got up to stand in the cold for Saturday morning. Now, Saturday morning was probably the WORST choice, since the storm systems that had been moving in turned to bitter cold sleet and snow. At least they let us 'early birds' line up under a train track outside the RCA dome. But that didn't help keep out the cold, which we fought with layer upon layer of the t-shirts we'd packed and newspaper we'd taken from the hotel.

But, the wait was worth it as we made it into the store after a relatively short line wait inside. After that we avoided any more long-line events, but we got a few more on the flight home. Some parts of Celebration you can never leave behind.

Fun

      The first show we managed to catch was the One Man Star Wars on Thursday. All I can say is that you don't want to miss it, but don't sit in the front row. This guy is like Gallagher (but instead of watermelon juice, it's his spit and sweat that go flying). But don't let that deter you. Seeing one guy, dressed all in black and using no props, blast through the entire trilogy in an hour is nothing but amazing. and funny to boot! He manages to ask the questions fans have been asking for ages: Where is Chewie's medal at the end of A New Hope? If Leia's always known that Luke is her brother, why does she keep kissing him?

Later that day we checked out the LucasFilm Archives. It's nothing short of amazing to be just feet away from Hayden's Vader suit, or Padme's costumes, or all the lighsabers of your favorite sith and jedi. When you see the Chewbacca suit, you'll have a new appreciation for Peter Mayhew wearing that thing all day every day. And for all you model-makers out there, you'd gush over the detail of the original shooting models of the Millennium Falcon and Jawa Sandcrawler.

Friday, disappointed from being turned away from the Celebration Store line again, the Star Wars in 30 Minutes show helped restore our faith in the Force. While it is a tad longer than 30 minutes (more like 40 or 45), this very creative troupe takes on multiple roles to act out each movie in less than 15 minutes. Folding chairs become X-wings, and dark sunglasses and a cape signify a single actor switching between the roles of Chewbacca and Darth Vader. But, they capture the spirit and energy that makes us fall in love with Star Wars every time we watch it.

Saturday we headed out with Jody and John for one last night on the town. We had dinner at the Spaghetti Factory, one of Bart's favorites (that he's been missing since the KC location closed), and then explored downtown looking for a place to party one last time. We ended up at Jillian's, where we'd also spent Thursday night with several folks from theforce.net. However, instead of it being full of Star Wars fans, it seemed that the 'straights' were taking their town back. So we played some games (including a four-person podrace) and then headed to the dance floor. John was in his Jedi robe, which for the most part seemed to keep folks away. However, another Indy visitor from England, not in town for C3, struck up a conversation with him, trying on his robe, and eventually dragging him (and the rest of us) onto the dance floor. It had been dead up until then, but several ladies couldn't resist the chance to dance with a Jedi.

       It's a testament to the quality of an event like this that despite the bitter cold, the crowds and lines and other hardships, we still see the experience as overwhelmingly positive. There's nothing quite like so many people coming together for a concentrated dose of the same experience. It just leaves us asking, "When is CIV?"

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