The re-release of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith blew away expectations, making tons of money at the box office. Almost no one saw it coming. No one, that is, except Star Wars fans who were kids in 2005. For that generation of fans, they often cite it as their favorite in the whole saga. Revenge of the Sith, at the time, was believed to be the end of the Star Wars films. At least according to George Lucas. So the hype going into it was massive. Now, YouTube channel YungJunko has uploaded a video exploring the hype, merchandise, and fan reaction to Revenge of the Sith back in 2005. You can watch this trip down memory lane right here:

This video has a ton of vintage footage that is sure to give several fans all the nostalgic feels. Not only is there footage of packed theaters opening night, but there are many old commercial clips for all the merchandise. There was a lot of merch. This was the era when 7-11 released their “Darth Dew Slurpee.” There were also Lava Berry Explosion Pop Tarts, inspired by the duel on Mustafar. You know, the one where a guy got his limbs chopped off and immolated. Yummy! And of course, there were the toys. Even the little Jedi kid who the stormtroopers killed (played by George Lucas’ son) got an action figure. It was a wild time.

In terms of hype and merchandise, nothing can really beat the original trilogy in terms of pop cultural hold. It was a true juggernaut. But Revenge of the Sith came out in an era where it had to compete with other fantasy/sci-fi franchises like Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Spider-Man, and more. The film still managed to grab a hold of the public imagination, and the public’s wallet, in a big way, nearly 30 years after A New Hope hit theaters. Take a bow, Mr. Lucas. No one did it quite like you.