The Fans Strike Back
Star Wars toys still bring me incredible joy even though my mother threw out my Millennium Falcon long, long ago. They remind me of countless hours spent with childhood friends recreating scenes from the movie and making up exciting new adventures. If we didn’t have all the ships, a shoebox and some crayons was all we needed to transport our imaginations to a galaxy far, far away.
Today’s fans have 11 movies, 4 TV series, cartoons and countless characters to draw from for their homemade adventures, but one thing hasn’t changed: What to do when you don’t have all the ships? Turns out, today’s fans are a lot more resourceful, and shoeboxes are so passé.
The Fans Strike Back is an exhibition filled with over 600 unique Star Wars items that span 40 years of stories, but this is no memorabilia collection. There aren’t any 1970s mint-on-card Kenner figures to drool over, though lots of officially licensed merchandise is incorporated into the displays. The detailed streets of Mos Espa and the bridge of Darth Vader’s ship put my childhood shoeboxes to shame. But the stuff that really blew my mind were the works that went beyond mere set decoration for the toys you can buy. That’s the primary reason this show exists, and why I really wanted to go. To see the elaborate things that fans have created simply because they weren’t available anywhere outside of highly guarded prop departments.
Blasters, Lightsabers, X-Wing and Stormtrooper helmets, even Ewoks! All have been made with painstaking detail. You just know the creators had tons of fun wearing the armour or making “Vrummmummmmm FVISH!” noises while waving their replica lightsabers. Now they’re safely in a display case, but there are some incredibly pleasing things that you can interact with, so don’t forget your camera. Photos of you menacingly pacing an Imperial Star Destroyer bridge, climbing on top of a speeder bike or sitting on the Emperor’s throne are sure to make you a social media star. (Well… maybe not.)
There’s cosplay costumes, Cantina alien masks, dozens of scale model ships, hundreds of Stormtroopers in every possible variation and subtle sound effects throughout. There’s even an entire section showcasing a ridiculously wide range of R2D2 branded merchandise. It’s an eye opening reminder of just how shameless Lucasfilm and Disney can be about licensing their imagery. But besides the R2D2 Crocs (seriously?!) is there anything else that made me say “I have a bad feeling about this”?
I wanted to hear the audio from the videos, because true fan passion doesn’t translate in subtitles. (UPDATE: The organisers got in touch to say that the videos are muted as they are in German, hence the subtitles.) And I really wanted to know more about the effort that went into each item. Who made it? How long did it take? That information is shockingly absent from an exhibition that prominently promotes itself as “made by fans”. There’s also the odd inclusion of a VR experience where you literally just sit in a chair that vibrates and shakes in sync with a generic ship that flies through space. It’s well done, but £7.50 is an expensive extra for something that doesn’t have any Star Wars IP in it.
Those are minor gripes, and they don’t really impact what is an extensive and enjoyable exhibition. The experience made me want to go home and rewatch my favourite film (Empire, obviously!) and I left with a renewed appreciation for the extent to which kids of all ages have embraced the world of Star Wars. May the Force be With You!
Plan your visit
‘The Fans Strike Back’ runs until 01 October.
Tickets from £20.50 adult / £13.50 child / children under 4 free
The venue is located at 81 Old Brompton Road, SW7 3LD — a five minute walk from South Kensington Tube Station
Visit fansstrikebackexhibition.com/london/ for more info and to purchase tickets.
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