Despite being a cultured, sophisticated film journalist/critic—the kind of person who when dining out resolutely eschews any use of dipping sauce for fear that it’ll mar the purity of the McNugget—I have to admit I’m not immune to going full fan-mode when the occasion arises. I became all schoolgirl giggly when I got the opportunity to interview special effects master Douglas Trumbull; when the PR people were giving me the “wrap it up” signal during my video session with Stan Lee, I came close to snapping, “No! This is my moment!”; when Star Trek: The Experience was still running in Las Vegas, there was I, grinning like a fool and thinking, I’m standing on the bridge of the Enterprise!
And, to be honest, I have a bit of a fan’s defensiveness when it comes to Star Wars.
[But beware the fannish mindset when the object of affection strives to grow beyond expectations…]