On December 16, thousands of “Star Wars” fans of all ages attended the premiere of the long-awaited “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”. But did the film transport us back to a “galaxy far far away?” The answer is overwhelming yes, as almost a month later, theaters still don’t have any empty seats for “Star Wars” movie goers, people are coming back for the third, fourth, and fifth times, and in less than a month, the film has become the fourth highest grossing film of all time- with numbers still rising.

If you or your family is not connected to the force, and therefore have not yet been exposed to the “Star Wars” universe, the biggest news of 2016 so far for many fans everywhere, is that J.J. Abrams with Lucasfilm has created a seventh “Star Wars” film- “The Force Awakens”.

And it’s about time since it’s been 39 years after the first “Star Wars” film- “A New Hope”, and 11 years since the last release of “Episode 3- Revenge of the Sith”. Following “A New Hope” came two sequels, then three prequels, and finally our generation has been generously given our own follow up.

The film does an excellent job of balancing the old characters with the new, and while familiar faces like Han Solo, Princess Leia, and a fleeting Luke Skywalker make an appearance, the film primarily follows, Rey and Finn- a scavenger and a stormtrooper, with sub-characters such as a new droid, BB8, and rebel pilot, Poe, as well as a new villain, Kylo Ren.

Rey and Finn are definitely a topic of conversation, as Rey is a woman, and Finn is African-American. It’s been a long standing issue in Hollywood that most lead roles are given to white men, and a mentality that movies with female and non-white leads don’t sell.

“Star Wars” had proved them wrong with Daisy Ridley’s (Rey) and John Boyega (Finn) become super stars almost over night and new Hollywood sweethearts.

Abrams has also confirmed that one of the characters in the Force Awakens is gay, but the identity of such character remains a mystery.

The film also keeps the feel of the original three movies, and their 70’s technology, while updating the tech but keeping things such as transitions between scenes, the yellow-printed story with a star board backdrop, and a soundtrack that still keeps familiar motifs apparent throughout the film. The greatest fear of “Star Wars” fans for “The Force Awakens”, that the movie would be too modern and would cease to feel like a “Star Wars” film, has not been realized.

The movie however, does not bring an entirely new story line, but instead acts as a good transition between the original characters and the new and echoes themes from “A New Hope”.

It’s not hard to pull out parallels, such as BB-8 and R2D2, the Death Star and the Sunsucker (as Abrams calls it, it is never named in the film), Han Solo and Obi Wan Kenobi, Yoda and Luke, Kylo Ren and Darth Vader, the list goes on. But the new main characters stand out on their own, and it’s apparent that we have already fallen in love with Rey, Finn, and the new heart-throb pilot, Poe.

My only complaint is the death of our beloved Han Solo, his tragic fate has ripped out the hearts of thousands of fans and thrown it in the blender.

Also the intense stare of Luke Skywalker, his character having no dialogue whatsoever. And last, but not least, Leia, who had already lost her family and her planet, but now her lover, son, and her brother- it seems that the original trio got handed a rough patch by Abrams.

At the end of the day, “Star Wars” is everything we hoped it would be. We got to meet new characters, reminiscence with old, discuss the cuteness of BB8, and debate on whether or not Kylo Ren is attractive. “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has connected the geeks of the past and the geeks of today and we are all in great anticipation for Episode 8.