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SpaceX’s Falcon 9 Landing: a New Force Awakens in the Space Industry

Posted by Chris Tobias on December 24, 2015
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by Chris Tobias

Okay, I’m going to admit something that might cause some folk to insist that I should resign my commission as a bona fide geek–  I still haven’t seen Star Wars Episode VII:  the Force Awakens.  Now, before you start questioning my “geekhood,” I’m going to make it clear that I have plans to take my family to see it this Sunday after the Christmas shindigs have all come and gone.  So far though it just hasn’t been possible, what with all the holiday preparations, work and my son’s various athletic events.  But believe me when I say it hasn’t been for lack of interest.

falcon congratsMy friends have all been very kind in that they’ve been extra careful not to spoil anything for me.  Okay, maybe it’s because I threatened to visit violence upon anyone who so much as uttered a spoiler from very early on, but whatever the reason, I’ve managed to stay spoiler free.  That doesn’t mean I haven’t been getting general assessments of the movie, however.  My favorite was the following e-mail, which I got from Take Back the Sky co-founder and fellow blogger Jeff:

HOLY MOTHER OF DUCKLINGS AND ALL HER WACKY NEPHEWS IN A SIXTEEN-PIECE BUCKET YOU NEED TO SEE STAR WARS!

Like, really.  As in, misbehave if you have to.  It’s not just “not bad,” not just “better than the prequels”, not just “good,” it’s REALLY FRIGGIN’ GOOD.  As in, my wife, who loves the originals, actually places it ahead of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.  We can’t stop talking about how awesome it was on so many, many thematic levels, and can’t wait to go back (we only saw the prequels in the theater once, and like everyone else, had no desire to see them again).  Let me count just a few ways it’s awesome:
  • It’s like the original trilogy, but with good, deep writing.
  • It’s Star Wars with good acting and character development.
  • It’s Star Wars with dialogue that real people would say in real life.
  • It’s Star Wars with relatable human emotions.  There’s just so many wonderful, deeply poignant and emotional moments peppered throughout.  THE FEELS ARE STRONG WITH THIS ONE.
  • It’s no spoiler to say this, but…have you ever tried to get someone to watch Firefly for the first time by saying “It’s better than [popular sci-fi franchise]” half-seriously just to get their attention? I know this sounds equally hard to believe, but I’m dead serious when I say that Kylo Ren… is a more intimidating and downright terrifying villain than Darth Vader, possibly one of the baddest villains of all time.
We’ll just have to accept that this is all that anyone’s going to be talking about until at least January.  When you see it for yourself, you won’t find it in you to blame them.  After seeing JJ Abrams effectively save Star Wars, the title of The Force Awakens makes sense:  It hasn’t just “woken up,” Star Wars is truly alive in a way it never has been before, better than ever!
After an endorsement like that, how could I not want to see this film? (As if I didn’t already before, right?)
falcon9-hits-the-spot2015-12-21-879x485

Like a launch in reverse, the Falcon 9 hits the spot, touching down at LZ-1 at Cape Canaveral (image courtesy of Space News).

If you think about it, though, the last sentence of Jeff’s “review” could also apply to SpaceX.  No, seriously.  This past Monday night we might very well have witnessed the accomplishment with which Elon Musk’s private rocket company effectively saved the American space industry.  When the first stage of the Falcon 9 touched down like a downy feather on fire at Cape Canaveral, it didn’t just “wake up” the collective consciousness of the American public to the prospect of future space travel, it made the space industry seem “truly alive” in a way we haven’t felt since the very first launch of Space Shuttle Columbia.

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