For all the goodness that LEGO STAR WARS has brought fans over the past 16 years, it's almost surprising that one thing that they haven't done until now is re-tell the actual STAR WARS Story. That changes later this year when Disney XD will air LEGO STAR WARS: DROID TALES, a five-episode mini-series that will re-tell the STAR WARS Saga through the eyes of C-3PO and R2-D2, beginning with a gathering of Original Trilogy heroes after the Battle of Endor following RETURN OF THE JEDI. After the two Droids tell their story leading up to the beginning of THE PHANTOM MENACE, "an accidental kidnapping occurs while the droids are reminiscing and suddenly viewers are taken on a new adventure that leads to encounters with familiar faces and places that prompt the re-telling of the entire saga."

It seems like STAR WARS REBELS just had its premiere, and here we are looking at the Season One Finale coming up this Monday night, March 2 at 9/8c on Disney XD. In FIRE ACROSS THE GALAXY, it looks like we'll be getting some classic Old Trilogy-style action, including a lightsaber battle between Kanan, Ezra and The Inquisitor, a fleet of Star Destroyers, and an appearance by Darth Vader himself! Since it's the first season finale, the episode will not be available to stream earlier (if it was, I'd be watching it already), but I do have a preview to share with you below. The Force is strong with this one...

Jedi vs. Sith. Empire vs. Rebels. Hasbro vs. Mattel. Polar opposites in some cases, fierce rivals in others. For the latter two, they're more alike than different, a pair of the most recognizable toymakers in the galaxy. While their competition is heated, for the first time in forever they're both bound by something greater than them both... a license known as STAR WARS. While Hasbro continues the lineage started with Kenner in bringing forth 3 ¾-scale STAR WARS action figures (among many other things), this past year has seen STAR WARS married to Mattel's iconic Hot Wheels line through a series of Character Cars, retailer exclusives and playsets. Bottom line: It's a great time to love STAR WARS, and as Disney and Lucasfilm ready the release of J.J. Abrams' THE FORCE AWAKENS for this December, there's some cool new toys that are slowly making their way into retailers. To have a little unofficial celebration of The Force here at Rock Father HQ, I've decided to offer-up a little something special - a Galactic Prize Pack featuring a pair of STAR WARS Hot Wheels Character Cars from Mattel, and a sought-after STAR WARS REBELS action figure from Hasbro's Saga Legends assortment. Will The Force be with YOU?

When I first heard that Walt Disney Animation Studios' BIG HERO 6 would be preceded by a short film called FEAST, I flashed-back to my horror days and John Gulager's 2005 PROJECT GREENLIGHT creature feature of the same name. Aside from the title, the two have absolutely nothing in common, yet I couldn't get the monster flick out of my head... until I saw Winston, the adorable little terrier at the heart of Patrick Osborne's now-Academy Award-nominated short film about the love of a man as shown through the meals of a dog. So how did FEAST begin?

Back when I was going overboard with my STAR WARS collecting addiction, I had this "Interactive Yoda and Lightsaber" that Tiger Electronics and Hasbro released. A lot of what was inside it was closely related to the Furby, and while 15 years has brought us Hasbro's forthcoming Furbacca (so cool), the robotic geniuses at Spin Master Toys just may have waiting in the wings what I'd always hoped that "Interactive Yoda" would've been. Straight out of Toy Fair comes this Sneak-Peek at Spin Master's LEGENDARY YODA. Take a look...

Just before Christmas last year, I got to test out a new iOS App that hit right in that sweet spot for us here - STAR WARS JOURNEYS: BEGINNINGS. Available now for iPhone and iPad, BEGINNINGS brings families a new way to experience the first trilogy of stories made famous in the classic, six-episode cinematic STAR WARS SAGA. With the prequels currently being explored in this 180-degree virtual experience, new add-ons featuring A NEW HOPE, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK and RETURN OF THE JEDI will be released in the months ahead, all leading up to the release of THE FORCE AWAKENS. Check out a preview and specs below...

When STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI was released in 1983, I found myself completely enamored with the new character creations in the film - particularly a "vile gangster" known as Jabba the Hutt. There was a "Making of" that had aired on television here and there, offering a glimpse at how skilled puppeteers pulled-off such a large-scale project. Now, 32 years later, filmmaker Jamie Benning has put together a 20-minute "filmumentary" that spawned from a Skype interview with puppeteer Toby Philpott. Check out SLIMY PIECE OF WORM-RIDDEN FILTH - LIFE INSIDE JABBA THE HUTT...

Dig the artwork of Sabine Wren on STAR WARS REBELS? Then you'll want to check out the new book, STAR WARS REBELS: SABINE - MY REBEL SKETCHBOOK. Written by Daniel Wallace with Illustrations by Annie Stoll (as Sabine), the 96-page book follows the similarly in-universe REBEL JOURNAL by EZRA BRIDGER that was released last fall, offering kids of all-ages a look inside the mind of one of their favorite new characters from the STAR WARS canon. Set to hit the streets this February, check out some preview pages and the official boilerplate below...

"Just like Daddy, I have a feeling that she'll come to love the Star Wars universe through the original trilogy... and by the time the 2015 reissue of the 1977 original takes place, she'll be just the right age to experience it on the big screen for the very first time." - February, 2012

It was three years ago that I posted STAR WARS - Teaching The Force THE ROCK FATHER^TM Way. Those three years already feel like a lifetime ago, as so much has drastically changed since that cold day when little Addie and I had our first big adventure with a Tauntaun and a Wampa outside. Written at a time when THE PHANTOM MENACE was being re-issued theatrically in 3-D as part of a now-discarded plan, I'd referenced a timeline that now no longer exists - a time when a 3-D reissue of the very first STAR WARS had been slated for this year. Instead, I won't be taking my daughter to see the film that Daddy and Mommy enjoyed as children, but taking my daughters (now plural) to see a brand-new adventure that we'll all witness for the first time as a family of four. When I posted that entry, few (if any) could've predicted that Lucasfilm and STAR WARS would be sold to Disney, and the adventures in a galaxy far, far away would continue in such a dramatic way.

On January 14, 2015, the first new STAR WARS comic books to bear the MARVEL imprint since the 80s will begin arriving at comic shops (new comics day is Wednesday), expanding the STAR WARS world into exciting new directions with stories that will become official pieces of STAR WARS canon. As these new tales take their places in a timeline that includes the motion pictures and select animated series' (like STAR WARS REBELS), these new books will be an excellent starting point to get new readers into comics, while bringing fresh tales with familiar characters to longtime fans like me. If you're curious what the future of STAR WARS comics holds, take a look at my rundown below - a cheat-sheet of what to look for in the months ahead (release dates subject to change)...