Our Love Affair with Han Solo

When we first see Han Solo in Star Wars Apisode IV: A New Hope, he's confidently sitting in a booth in the Mos Eisley Cantina; he can understand his partner, Chewbacca, but we can't. He knows his business, he knows his ship, and he can get Luke and Obi-Wan where they need to go, no questions asked - for the appropriate price. In those moments, he becomes one of the most memorable characters in history. A rogue, a scoundrel, someone out to make a buck no matter how it comes about.

Then we find out he's in trouble. Money trouble, like we all have been in at some point or another, though not many of us have people calling for our heads for not getting them their money! This is where we start feeling a little sympathy for Han, and start wondering if maybe that tough-guy laissez-faire attitude is an act, or a shell he keeps around himself.

Han is always ready with a witty comeback; he's the cynical opposite to Luke's bright-eyed eagerness throughout A New Hope. I think we all knew from the first moment he and Leia met that they were going to be together, but watching him grow to respect her was one of my favorite moments in my movie-watching days.

By the time Empire Strikes Back came around, Han had grown - he'd stuck around, he'd thrown his lot in with a cause, and he hadn't done it for money, he'd done it because it was the right thing to do. One could say it was good influence on Princess Leia's part, others might say he had it in him all along. When he was frozen in carbonite, how could anyone's heartstrings not be tugged? When she subsequently rescued him in Return of the Jedi how could we not be happy for them?

Han further involves himself with the Rebel Alliance during the mission on Endor to bring down the second Death Star's shield. We see him captured by ewoks, then acting the general (a promotion he gets at the beginning of Return of the Jedi) and completing his mission, then we gt to see him have a happy ending. I think Han is the sort who doesn't get happy endings much,which makes us feel even happier for him.

Han Solo is the guy guys want to be, the guy girls want to find. He's definitely an archetype: the sidekick, the co-hero, the cowboy, the rebel with a heart of gold. He's been my favorite character since "Well that's the real problem ain't it?"

In the original Star Wars trilogy, Han Solo was played by Harrison Ford, who is arguably the only actor to have gone on to have a lucrative career.