SuperBraxton

I wasn’t even supposed to meet Braxton.

At work there was a story in the pipeline to cover Braxton and his Lego drive before Christmas of 2016.

My reporter, Bryant Somerville, had been working on this as a project with another photographer. One that is far more skilled than myself at putting stories into pictures.

One day I accompanied Bryant to Nationwide Childrens Hospital to gather some video of Braxton and his mom heading in for treatment. This was to be used for some potential set up video.

Well, sometimes funny things happen.

Circumstances changed and now here I was, assigned the task of seeing this story out.

That in and of itself isn’t a big deal.

It happens all the time.

So, on December 2, 2016, Bryant and I headed to Pataskala to interview Braxton and his mom about his Lego drive.

Just another day.

Just another story.

Then… I met Braxton.

As a photog, you cover stories about sick children far more often than one would think.

They all register.

They do.

But, when you leave their homes, enter the news car, cut the story and go home… they fade, because you get up the next day and you’re onto the next thing.

Not this time.

Sitting and speaking with Braxton’s mom, Brittany, you began to get an idea about this little boy and who he is.

This boy.

This boy who is about to take on brain cancer… for the third time.

It’s hard to describe the way Brittany would light up when speaking about her son. She glowed with enthusiasm and love. What made it even more amazing is that right there, in the same room as our lengthy interview with Brittany were the kids. Braxton and his two sisters sat there and never, ever made a peep.

If you’ve ever conducted an interview when children are around you would know that in and of itself was no small feat.

We wrapped our talk with Brittany and headed upstairs to talk with Braxton.

You see, we weren’t doing the interview at their home.

We were at his grandmother’s, which had become the Lego set stash house and we entered a room with over 340 Lego sets.

We mic’d Braxton up and sat him down amongst the boxes that had poured in.

Now, you never know how interviews with kids are going to go. Sometimes they’re amazing and sometimes, well, let’s just say they are less amazing.

What we discovered was a little boy, who in the face of the latest fight of his life…. only wanted to make other kids happy.

Braxton was so thoughtful and brave. He spoke of the harsh reality of seeing his friend die and keeping in perspective what the important things in life are.

I was shaken.

Externally, I was fine. I still had some video to shoot.

Internally this little boy had touched a nerve. It’s a nerve that I often times struggle with.

A nerve WE ALL struggle with.

In a time when so many of us, myself included, put ourselves first, here was Braxton. If there was anyone entitled to complain or feel sorry for himself it was him.

Yet, no.

He was selfless.

This was my first custom lightsaber. It was perfect for Braxton.

All he cared about was being able to give back to other kids the one thing he loved to do so much while he was going through treatment.

Building a Lego.

Since that day, since that moment, Braxton has been an inspiration.

I certainly don’t always nail it.

In fact, if you were to get an honest opinion from a lot of people you’d probably find that I’m kind of a prick with an overzealous love for Star Wars and Alabama Football.

Still, I try.

I try to be like Braxton.

We can all try.

Is it really asking too much?

If an 8-year-old boy fighting cancer can, then what is your excuse?

What’s my excuse?

Being able to tell someone’s story is always a privelege and it was certainly an honor to share Braxton’s.

Today we rush to find superheroes in any place we can.

In sports.

At the movies.

No thanks.

We can all find something heroic from this child, this…

SuperBraxton.

So long, buddy.

 

 

 

 

Rogue One: Home To Maybe The Single Greatest Moment In Star Wars Movie History

As Rogue was winding down I had resigned myself to the fact that while I had enjoyed this Star Wars stand alone film immensely, I wasn’t going to get what I wanted.

The prospect of a Star Wars movie taking place between episode three and four meant that there was the remote possibility of seeing Darth Vader in his prime.

The Darth Vader we’ve never seen on-screen.

Some might argue that we got that in A New Hope, but I don’t quite think the character and aura of Vader had been established when that movie was made. Now we have his history. We have his ruthless back story and even some viciously brutal stories in other mediums such as books and comics.

Yet, on-screen, it has always felt that there was this part of Vader that had laid dormant.

So, as I watched the rebels complete their mission by making the ultimate sacrifice I had come to terms that the best we were going to get from Vader was his force choking of Director Krennic. That would have been ultimately sufficient given the overall greatness of Rogue One.

I was infinitely happy with this film.

Gareth Edwards had directed a wonderful surprise in Star Wars lore and my thirst for adventure in a galaxy far, far away had been quenched for another year as we wait for episode eight.

I was happy.

Then it happened.

As the struggling rebels were doing everything they could to possibly get the stolen Death Star plans away, it happened.

The hallway goes dark.

The rebel scum paused, peering into the darkness.

The silence is broken by breathing and then that red lightsaber ignites and Vader appears.

I’m not sure what sound I uttered when Darth Vader flashed on screen, but it could have been anything from a little girl squeal to a F%^k YEAH!

Over the next few seconds we got to witness the ultimate sith lord in all his viciously, brutal glory. Slashing through hapless rebel soldiers.

Force choking them into the ceiling, holding them up with a fist and then back swinging them into oblivion.

It was glorious.

It was sublime.

This phenomenal film effort was capping everything off with the nerdiest cherry of them all and I was giddy.

I sat there, just  in awe, despite what was ultimately a failure of Vader’s to secure the stolen plans.

The scene is even better upon the second viewing.

I can’t wait until the bluray release of Rogue One, so I can go through that scene frame-by-frame and savor every single moment.

We can all argue the place Rogue One has in the history of Star Wars film, but there is no denying the amazing appearance by Darth Vader.

If you disagree your lack of faith is… disturbing.

The Thing About Columbia Is…

B&W photo I took of the now gone Drive In sign.

I’m not so sure I can sufficiently explain the magic that surrounds the town in which I grew up.

Actually, I’m not so sure there is any magic at all.

What I can tell you is that somewhere deep inside my bones is Columbia, PA.

For better or for worse, this little town on the Susquehanna River has scorched my DNA in a way that no other place (save for maybe Tuscaloosa, AL) has.

Whether I like it or not, I was shaped there.

Whether I like it or not, this place is a permanent part of who I am.

So, despite the fact that not a single member of my immediate family exists in this area anymore I still feel the overwhelming need to visit Columbia.

I need to see it with my own eyes.

My feet need to walk the streets.

It’s an atmospheric recharge the likes of which no other place can provide.

Most people find it to be a bit insane.

That is why I returned there once again to attend my 20 year high school reunion. It was a small reunion, hell, I mean, we only had a graduating class of 74 to begin with, but despite being tiny in attendance, it managed to be a huge innate way of “touching base”.

All gathered at Columbia Kettle Works

Seeing old friends and interacting with them, laughing with them and being in these places with them provided such a spark that you can’t get from creeping on a Facebook profile.

It was just so nice.

There’s an inexplicable guilt I carry with me when I think that not a single person of my clan resides where I grew up. Someone should be the headquarters that all can return to when they need to feel the way I do when I take a few steps down Locust Street. I mean, that is of course if they do need to feel the way I do.

I did say that to most it all seems a bit crazy.

Life choices, all realistically for the better, have driven me away from south central PA.

I have a wonderful family and live in a fantastic place in central Ohio, but there is no such connection to this community like the one that was forged along the river.

Columbia has it’s problems and they really aren’t ones I can comment on. I’m not there to be part of the solution so anything I say is just fleeting and from someone not rooted in a way that can offer true help.

Regardless of what others say, mainly those snobs in and around Lancaster County or beyond, I am nothing but proud of the fact that I claim Columbia as my home.

Roll Tide.

There Goes My Hero…

Vader’s Vault’s “Hero”

One of my first memories of going to the movies happened when Return of the Jedi came out in theaters.

I was five years old when episode six was released in May of 1983 and to this day I can vividly recall the moment when R2D2 launches a NEW lightsaber to Luke Skywalker as he flips himself up off the plank and releases this GREEN blade on the galaxy.

The Hero.

Well, actually, it was the V2, but whatever.

That moment.

That moment has stuck with me for the past 33 years.

The packed theater erupted into cheers during that moment and I had never experienced anything like it in my tiny life.

So, this past year when I became obsessed with custom lightsabers I only had one hilt in mind.

The Luke Skywalker ROTJ saber.

While many clamor for the graflex or Obi Wan Kenobi’s or some other excellently crafted piece of art, I really only wanted one.

The Hero.

Sadly, the pickings were slim.

Saber Forge has an excellent looking replica in their Prodigal Son, but I found the issues with their design plus the price point to be too much.

Solo’s Hold makes an EXCELLENT V2, but it’s just a hilt and I do not have the required skill to render the proper electronics that would compliment their piece.

Master Replica’s version looks like a Hero that swallowed another Hero.

Then Vader’s Vault went and hit it out of the park.

Now, granted, I am no where close to having this fine piece of work in my hands, but it is in fact on the way.

This is a functional piece of motion picture art that I have longed for my entire life.

While, yes, I know how silly that sounds I can’t deny the fact that it is a thing with me.

I don’t care if you understand it.

I don’t care if you think it’s absurd.

It doesn’t matter.

I know that for me, there is an undeniable appreciation for the skill and mastery that goes into a device like this and there is the eternal child in me that is giddy with excitement to ignite this landmark Jedi weapon in my own hands.

For now, though, I shall wait patiently for it to be constructed to my exact specifications.

Patience… I must have.

Stop… Motion Time

Recently my daughter and I have been discussing movie making. It really came with all the behind the scenes stuff on The Force Awakens home video release, but it also went back and touched a number of her favorite movies.

Our talk eventually turned to The Fantastic Mr. Fox and Coraline. Two of our favorites. I began to explain to her how such movies are made.

A painstaking process called stop motion animation.

She desperately wanted to try her hand at it, so I had her gather up a couple of action figures and we would try a test.

I said test, because I knew what this would take and didn’t want her to get hopes to high for some sparkling production.

We set up a table in our living room and chose Starkiller Rey and Kylo Ren.

Surprise! Star Wars characters.

We set them up and I steadied my camera.

80% of the movements were made by her. I’d often times hold the feet while she moved the arms appropriately.

It took 45 minutes to shoot and probably around 15-20 minutes for me to edit.

So basically, we spent an hour to make a :10 screen test, but it was a blast.

The end result is rather silly, but she loved it.

Look for more shorts in the near future, that is of course, after we build our sets.

 

UPDATE: We added some sound!

 

It’s A Shame About Rey

This past Easter my wife suggested that I get our daughter a Star Wars action figure as a gift.

After calming my overwhelming joy at the idea of scouring toy shelves for Star Wars figurines, I knew there was one and only one figure my daughter wanted.

Rey.

Prior to the release of The Force Awakens my kid was all about Kylo Ren. Kylo this, Kylo that. I bought her the Disney Store exclusive Kylo lightsaber and the super decked out hoodie.

She could zip it up and whine about Darth Vader too!

Of course, once the movie came out and it was revealed that Rey was the ultimate badass, well, things change and rightfully so.

It was now Rey this and Rey that.

“Hey Dad, why isn’t there any Rey in our Monopoly game?”

We’d walked up and down the aisles of Target, Toys r Us, and every other store only to find absolutely zero Rey figures.

In fact, the only abundant Rey thing I could find was her Lego land speeder, which the grandparents snagged as a Christmas gift.

So here I was, presented with a mission as vexing as finding Luke Skywalker himself.

I went to a grand total of 13 stores in the Columbus, OH metro area.

No Rey figures.

None.

Not of any kind, any series, and size.

WTF?

Why can I find a zillion Kylo Ren figures, but not a single Rey or even Captain Phasma, who is of course also female. It’s as if there’s a trend here.

Eventually I succumbed to picking up a Kylo Ren figure and ordering Starkiller Base Rey on ebay for DOUBLE the actual retail price.

It is complete and utter bullshit that this amazing character is not given the same attention and focus in the vast Disney marketing machine as Finn, Kylo Ren, Poe, Solo, etc.

While my daughter adores the entire Star Wars universe she has developed a very specific attachment to Rey and how Hasbro and company failed to recognize this would happen is beyond me.

Luckily, on the day the blu ray hit stores I happened to enter a Target at the exact moment an employee was unboxing a new display.

I can only imagine that I looked like the comic book guy from The Simpson, immediately scouring the tiny cardboard shelves for toy treasures.

Sad?

Perhaps, but I was on a mission.

On this display was the coveted Resistance Rey. It’s Rey in her final scene outfit and of course, with the graflex lightsaber (even though that saber would make more sense with the Starkiller Rey, but whatever).

I felt like I had stumbled upon the ark of the covenant. There was a Han Solo as well!

Anyway, the fact is that it should not take the ridiculous luck of my timing for me to find an action figure to the most pivotal character in the revitalized Star Wars franchise and I shouldn’t have to scour Ebay in hopes that maybe I can find one for less than double it’s actual price.

Rey should be EVERYWHERE.

I can only hope that the failings that came with the release of VII will not be repeated with VII, because I know for a fact, someone is going to want whatever type of lightsaber Rey is wielding come December of 2017.

WHERE THE F IS REY??!!

Star Wars: An Obsession

The Force Awakens is a proper title.

My obsession with Star Wars had been dormant for years, suffocated by adulthood and those awful, awful prequels.

I think the first signs of the awakening happened last summer when we visited Walt Disney World and caught the final Sunday of the Star Wars Weekends.

Meeting Darth.

The wife and the kiddo battle Vader.

My Star Tours Dooku toy saber I built.

Being around many other fans, standing with Darth Vader, Star Tours and making a toy lightsaber, well, it was all just priming for what was to come.

My was perplexed and rightfully so. Where did this come from?

I wasn’t obsessed with a galaxy far, far away when we met, in fact there was hardly a mention of Star Wars until a couple of years ago when I tried to get my daughter interested in the original trilogy.

She balked at it.

My spawn found them boring.

I was a little crushed, then one day, she came around.

SHE asked to watch A New Hope and from that point on there was a new Star Wars nerd in the house and this old hermit, well, it was time to go on another damned fool idealistic crusade.

When I was a kid, my brother and I would play with the original Star Wars toys for hours in our grandparents’ basement. Setting up the figures and playing the vinyl soundtrack on an old console stereo.

Here I was, now, a father with a chance to connect with my daughter via something that was so rich in my own childhood.

With each passing nugget coming from The Force Awakens we grew more and more excited.

I stayed up and got maybe two hours of sleep when the final trailer debuted on Monday Night Football. I was going to be ordering tickets for opening night or else.

Along the way we even snagged my mother-in-law. She had never seen any of the Star Wars films, but borrowed all six and joined us for that opening night.

Finally!

I can’t really begin to express how amazing that evening was. Seeing a new Star Wars film with my daughter.

All of the firsts, happening to both of us.

We found the film to be amazing to say the least and saw it twice more in theaters.

Prior to the movie’s release I became aware of the custom lightsaber community.

I was hooked.

These elegant works of electronic art are far more than toys. They are intricate and amazing.

I now own two and my daughter has one as well.

On top of that it was a Star Wars Christmas.

Now we are poised and waiting for the future releases.

We’ve slowly began to accumulate action figures and various other toys.

Next up….

I want to start building lightsabers of my own.

What really nails it down is how my padawan and I bond over this stuff. We completely dork out over it.

Perhaps to some, it’s childish or they’re too cynical to view Star Wars as anything but a Disney marketing machine. A device only to sell toys, merch, and park tickets.

Maybe it is.

What I do know is that it makes us both incredibly happy and who knows, maybe the wife will come to the dark side as well.

Until then, may the force be with you.