My brothers and I are HUGE Star Wars fans and we've always wanted to go to Star Wars Celebration. When they announced that it would be in Chicago in 2019, we decided to attend. When the tickets went on sale 11 months before, I was online and in the system within 19 seconds. Of course, the most coveted Jedi Master Passes were already sold out! I bought myself a 5 day pass and got Ryan and Luke Thursday, Friday, and Saturday passes.
As the months went on we got more and more information about what celebrities would be attending Celebration, what the panels would be, and how they would tackle the issue of long lines. I think there ended up being 70 celebrities attending with 40 of them offering autographing/photo sessions. They also released information about the lottery process. Instead of people camping overnight to get into the larger panels (Episode IX, Galaxy's Edge, The Mandalorian, and Episode I) or for exclusive merchandise (Lego, Funko, and Hasbro), there would be a lottery system. I ended up winning the Hasbro and Mandalorian lotteries! Yay!
On April 10th, Theo and I got up and got ready to head to the airport to meet my parents (who were driving up from Ohio) and to pick up Luke, Andie, Porter, and Kenna who had flown in from Utah.
[I asked my brothers if they wanted to borrow my robes, but they passed]
[Theo wouldn't nap in his bed... the moment I put him back on the floor he fell asleep. I am so ready for this Phenobarbital wean to be DONE!]
After picking up Luke and his family from the airport, we drove to our Airbnb on the Near North Side. It was a cute, two-level apartment with a garage, four bedrooms, three family rooms, a large kitchen, and two bathrooms. It was perfect for us! That night we went and did a little grocery shopping and then to Giordano's to get some classic Chicago Deep Dish pizza!
Later that night Ryan arrived and we all made plans for the next few days.
Thursday, April 11th:
Since SWC doesn't open until 10 AM, Luke and I decided to run out and get some Firecakes donuts. They were so fresh and good!
My parents, Andie, Porter, Theo, and Kenna stayed at the Airbnb, while Luke, Ryan, and I headed to SWC!
We arrived at 9:30 AM, got in line with everyone else, and then entered the show floor at 10:00 AM. Good thing McCormick is one of the largest convention centers in the United States because there were probably 20,000 people (maybe more?!) there!
[World Record Storm Trooper made of Storm Troopers]
[Millenium Falcon]
Thursday was called "The Bounty Hunter Preview." This means that the show floor and all the booths were open, but there were no panels. It gave us the chance to just walk around without having to worry about being late to a panel.
We made our way over to the Tattoo Pavilion so Ryan and I could look into getting permanent reminder of SWC and our love for Star Wars.
I ended up getting a water color style Jedi symbol tattoo! I know, I'm such a nerd!
After I was done we ran into my college friends, Garr and Sally. The five of us explored the convention for the rest of the day.
[Mandalorians]
[Tie Fighter]
[X-Wing]
Jason Palmer designed this gorgeous Star Wars Saga Mural for Celebration. The final piece was covered up and would be revealed after the trailer dropped for Episode IX.
[Sally and Garr]
[Tattoo healing process]
After getting some more pictures we all headed over to see the Rancho Obi-Wan collection, which is the largest private Star Wars collection in the world!
[Show Room Floor]
After a long day of walking around, we decided to head back to the Airbnb so we could make a plan for Friday.
Friday, April 12th:
We didn't get into the Episode IX panel so when we got to the convention center Luke and I headed to the Star Wars Show stage to grab spots to watch it on their big screens, while Ryan went and got his Sith tattoo.
[Sith vs Jedi]
Luke and I were able to get into the Star Wars show area and grab a great view of the big screens.
When the Episode IX panel started the entire crowd freaked out! And then Stephen Colbert came out on stage and I freaked out even more! I've been watching Colbert since he was on the Daily Show in the early 2000s. He's a Star Wars super fan and I'm so excited they got him to host this panel!
Colbert then brought out Kathleen Kennedy and JJ Abrams and interviewed them for a few minutes before bringing out the main cast. It was so fun to hear from each of the cast and to see how much the crowed reacted when each persons name was read. I think Billy Dee Williams was my favorite. Colbert asked him how he got back into the Lando character after all these years, and he said, "Baby, Lando never left." He was a hoot! At one point Billy Dee also mentioned all the characters coming together to fight against the ultimate evil in the universe. I think he got a side-ways glance from JJ (since they are not allowed to reveal ANYTHING about the movie), but we learned later who he was referring to... MAYBE?!
At the end of the panel they dropped the Episode IX teaser.
AND
IT
WAS
AWESOME!
At the very end of the trailer you can hear Emperor Palpatine laughing! WHAT?! I looked over at Luke and we were both in shock!
Then Ian McDiarmid, the Emperor himself, came out on stage and smiled at the crowd. Everyone went crazy! After the crowd calmed down, Ian said, in his Emperor voice, "Roll it again!"
I CAN'T WAIT FOR DECEMBER!
After the panel, Luke, Ryan, and I went to the Celebration Store. We heard the line was 8-9 hours long on Thursday, but it was significantly shorter today.
During our three hour wait, we discussed the new trailer, Harry Potter, all things Star Wars, and Kingdom Hearts. It was fun just to hang out and talk to my brothers who are fellow nerds.
Once we got into the store we were a bit disappointed to see that a lot of the shirts and jerseys were already sold out. I did buy a lunch box for Garr, a mug for dad, a pin for mom, and then a few pins for Luke, Ryan, and I to share. Luke and Ryan each bought a Star Wars/Chicago shirt.
After getting out of the store, we headed over to the Hasbro booth so I could buy my lottery win: Limited Edition, Exclusive, Black Series, Episode I Obi Wan and Darth Maul figures.
We then met up with Garr and Sally so I could give Garr his lunchbox. We said goodbye (since they only had tickets for Thursday and Friday) and made plans to meet up at the next Celebrations.
We then got an Uber back to our Airbnb. Theo, Porter, and Kenna had another great day with Andie, Mom, and Dad!
[Desset at Mollys Cupcakes]
Saturday, April 13th:
We arrived at Celebration and headed straight over to the Funko booth to get in line. Luke was 5th in line and we were so excited! But then we were told that we were in the lottery winners line and we needed to get in the general line. We went and got into another line and then we were told that was the wrong line too! UGH! Finally we found the right line! Turns out we made it just in time because they capped the line right after us.
We were told that our line would start to move after all of the lottery winners had their chance to purchase the exclusive merchandise first. We settled in for the long FIVE HOUR haul.
BUT we ended up having so much fun while we were in line! So many cosplayers walked by us and we were able to get so many fun pictures.
[BB-8]
[Queen Amidala and her handmaidens]
[Darth Vader]
[Marty and "Darth Vader" from Back to the Future]
[Bob Ross Jedi]
[A huge Wookiee]
[Emperor and a well dressed Storm Trooper]
[Family Guy Boba Fett Chicken]
[Trooper being attacked by Ewoks]
[Purple Ren and Rey]
[Jawas]
[Storm Trooper Rick]
[Pilot]
[Darth Vader]
[Mickey Mouse Rebels Pilot]
[Droid]
[Snow Troopers]
[Boba Fett]
[Shakespeare Trooper]
[Dark Side Warriors]
[BB-8]
[Kylo Ren]
[Jedi]
[Hamilton Trooper]
[Family FaceTime]
After five hours of sitting on the ground, talking, and chasing down cosplayers, the line finally started moving and things started getting CRAZY! When a line is capped it means that no one else will be allowed in the line at that time. But that didn't stop people from making their own line and trying to cut into our line. The Funko Crew did a good job keeping people in order, but there were a lot of people who were really angry that they were not allowed to get in line.
The reason I got in line was to get an Ahsoka and Darth Maul figures, an Ahsoka pin, and the blue exclusive set of six. The Ahsoka pin and Darth Maul were sold out (bummer), but I was able to get the Ahsoka figure and the blue set of six.
After making our purchases, we headed over to the Windtrust Arena to watch the "Sister of the Force" panel. This panel was hosted by Ashely Eckstein who plays Ahsoka Tano in The Clone Wars and Rebels. She also has her own clothing line (Her Universe), which I love!
Ashely talked with other women in the Star Wars Universe and they all shared stories about how much it means to be part of something so great. It was very empowering for women and the ladies did a great job!
We then headed back over to the Show Room Floor to see what else we could see.
[R2-D2]
[Ian McDiarmid (Emperor Palpatine) and Hayden Christensen (Anakin Skywalker)]
[Obi-Wan and Vader]
We then headed to Maggiano's where we had dinner with everyone (even Josh!).
Sunday, April 14th:
SNOW! What do you expect in Chicago in the spring?!
Heading to Star Wars Celebration by myself!
I was lucky enough to win a ticket to the Mandalorian panel on Sunday morning. This is the first Star Wars live action TV show that will come out in November on the Disney Plus streaming service. The show is directed by Jon Favreau and Produced by Dave Filoni. It stars Pedro Pascal as the Mandalorian, Gina Carano as Cara Dune, and Carl Weathers!
[The Mandalorian section with their Mandalorian helmets. They kept chanting "MAN-DA-LORE"]
After talking with the main cast they showed us (and only us, the live streamers were not allowed to see the exclusive footage) a trailer and a few clips from the show. It looks awesome and I'm excited to watch the show when it comes out this November.
After the panel was over I stayed in the arena so I could watch the next panel. We were told we could stay for the 90 minted in-between the panels, but some of the arena workers tried to kick us out. It was a blizzard outside! I wasn't leaving!
The next panel was a conversation between Warwick Davis and Alan Tudyk. They are both hilarious and the panel was so much fun!
After Alan Tudyk's panel, I stayed in the arena for the final panel of the day: The Clone Wars! This is the real reason I was here! The Clone Wars was on for six seasons before it was canceled. The fans were very upset and after four years of complaining they are going to give us the final season!
It was so much fun to see all the voice actors and actresses up on stage together with Dave Filoni. You can tell how much they all love The Clone Wars and how excited they are to finish it. I can't WAIT!
After the panels were done, I called Josh to come and pick me up. Mom told me that she would watch Theo so Josh and I could have a date night. Thanks mom! Josh and I went to Shaw's Crab House where we had lobster bisque, crab cakes, KING CRAB, surf and turf, and a piece of chocolate cake. It was delicious!
Josh knows how much we all love Garretts Popcorn so he went and bought a HUGE canister for us! It was filled with cheddar, butter, and caramel popcorn. I felt like I ate this non-stop for the next two days, but we still couldn't put a dent in it. Luckily, my parents drove up from Ohio, so they volunteered to take the leftovers home.
[Popcorn canister and Kenna for scale]
Monday, April 15th:
Today was the final day of Celebration!
When the doors opened I made my way to the Star Wars Show area to watch the Episode I 20th Anniversary panel.
[Ian McDiarmid (Emperor Palpatine) and Ray Park (Darth Maul)]
[Ahmed Best (Jar Jar Binks) and Anthony Daniels (C3P0)]
The panel was a lot of fun to watch, especially the banter between Warwick Davis and Anthony Daniels!
After the panel I went to pick up a few posters, walked the Show Room Floor one last time, and then called my dad to come pick me up.
During the Closing Ceremony they announced that Star Wars Celebration would be in Anaheim next year! WHAA?!
I knew I would have fun at Celebration, but it seriously exceeded my expectations! I think a big part of this was that I was able to hang out with my brothers and have fun. Thanks to Luke and Ryan for joining me on this adventure. Until next time, May the Force be with You!
Tuesday, April 16th:
On Tuesday we decided to head into The Loop so Andie and Kenna could see Chicago for the first time.
[Stans Donuts for breakfast!]
[Navy Pier]
First walked over to Millennium Park where we saw "The Bean" (aka Cloud Gate) and then we walked up Lakefront Trail to Navy Pier.
["The Bean"]
Dad then took Luke, Andie, Porter, and Kenna to the airport so they could fly home. It was so much fun hanging out with them this week and we are excited to see them all again in August!
Even though we still had one more night in the Airbnb, Theo and I decided to drive home that night so we could see Josh and sleep in our own beds.
Thanks mom and dad for watching Theo while I went to Celebration!
[Poster from Celebration]
