Star Wars Weekends

So the new logo is out and there can be no doubt that while Star Wars Weekends will have a strong Clone Wars presence there is an eye on celebrating the 30 year anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back.  If you were to poll long time Star Wars fans on which movie was their favorite of the entire saga, Empire traditionally comes out on top.  So this years theme coupled with Lucas’s own Celebration V event later this year should get Star Wars fans excited.

The Logo itself is darker than the last few years featuring Boba Fett, who besides Darth Vader may be the coolest looking villain/Bounty Hunter to hit the screen.  The old Madalorian Armor, complete with jetpack and the Mandaloiran Rage symbol on his shoulder are on full display as he takes on Mickey as Luke.  Mickey is swiftly moving to defend himself against the best Bounty Hunter in the galaxy sweeping his saber across to block a laser bolt.  Capping it off with the throw back style border from the original movie poster was another nice touch that fans will enjoy here.

What I like about this logo is the return to simplicity and a traditional Star Wars theme.  Featuring the Clone Wars last year made sense, but there is enough material they can use from the movies that it isn’t necessary to go there yet.  This logo very directly features two characters and little distraction.   The 2006 Photoshop logo as we continue to refer to it, had an array of elements that make it interesting to look at, but was just too busy with characters seemingly out of place.  (Check out Yoda and Luke and tell me they look like they are supposed to be there.)  My favorite logos of all time don’t overwhelm you with clutter.  The logo of the lightsaber cutting out a Mickey Pattern, the R2D2 projecting Mickey come to mind here.  Not that there are not some that offer a little more like the 2005 Vader Helmet Logo or the 2004 New Hope Poster Logo.  But this will work very well for not trying to do more than it needs to and in my opinion it is a good choice for this year. 

Beyond the good news of the poster of course is that Disney has opted to keep with the May/June set up again this year.  Thank the maker!  While two weeks may not seem like a lot to many people, this continues to be the best set of dates.  It makes it difficult for some families to the north to get kids out of schools, but the heat really starts coming on strong in June, so I appreciate the fact they are keeping with this set up.  New items are already hitting the parks and it is just a matter of time before info starts coming out on exclusive items and celebrities will begin being announced.  Booking is tricky if you are going to wait for celebrities, but now is the time if you want to plan to get the family out and see what Star Wars Weekends is all about.  This years logo is a nice start and has me looking forward to my visit weekend 1.