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When I was in the store the other day I noticed my daughter was looking at a Darth Vader mask that was sitting on the shelf near the cart. She had never seen the movie “Star Wars”, but she was quite intrigued with the mask. My husband had good chuckle when he saw her looking at the mask and he went over to push the button at the bottom. When he did this my daughter jumped in the air as the voice started talking. Though she thought it was cool to look at, she did want anything more to do with it after that.

When I was young, my cousin also had a Darth Vader mask. It was over 20 years ago and I remember it very clearly. My cousin was very into the “Star Wars” trilogy and we would often have fake sword fights in the backyard. We would use tree branches as swords and we were always careful not to really hurt each other. He would often wear a Darth Vader mask when we were playing, even though it was far from his favorite character. Everyone knows Darth Vader was deemed a bad guy, but he was still immensely popular with the kids.

Today, the Darth Vader mask is something that many kids play with and the sound effects are very real. When I was a kid I had to make my own sound effects and I have to wonder if that wasn’t more fun. Though the sound effects of the new Darth Vader mask sounds much like James Earl Jones, I think we had more fun using our own voice instead. I wish there were more toys today that allowed a child to use their own imagination instead of supplying the noises themselves. I almost feel strange around toys that can do so much for themselves as it is.

Unless I can find an old Darth Vader mask I guess I will have to get her the talking one if she decided she is no longer afraid of it. My husband momentarily considered buying it for himself, but when he thought about how scared she was he put it back on the shelf for another day. Perhaps in a few years she will enjoy these toys more than she does now, but until that time, I am happy to make the sound effects for her. The Darth Vader mask may not even be out by then, but I am sure they will be another talking toy on the shelf that she will wish to have.

Get a load of the “Star Wars” nuts we have living amongst us. Uh oh, I didn’t realize you may be one of them. I suppose if you are, then there’s a good chance you have a Darth Vader mask somewhere in your home. In fact, odds are you’re traipsing around your house or apartment in it right now. Okay, maybe you just save it for random conventions and Halloween bashes. Either way, everyone has to admit, this is one cool costume. There’s no dissing the antagonist of all film antagonists. Darth Vader is the classic bad guy, who represents the dark side like no other. Heck, even his own son didn’t know who he truly was. Now that’s some serious evil deception. Are you worthy of the mask?

I have to admit, I was never a huge “Star Wars” fan. Nor was I ever a “Star Trek” kind of guy. EVER! But, there was this one Halloween back in the 80s. I was just a small child at the time. Maybe 10 or 11 years old. My mother had taken us to a local shopping mall to go trick-or-treating. I was ninja of course. That was always a cool costume in the 80s. You couldn’t go wrong with a katana on your back and some throwing stars in your belt. Anyway, I soon noticed that the shopping center was having a costume contest. So as I strolled casually from store to store, collecting my candy, I was on the look out for amazing get ups. Then I spotted the ultimate. Oh it wasn’t just a mere Darth Vader mask. No, this was a perfect costume replica. I’m pretty certain it was James Earl Jones in the local mall that Halloween night. The Darth Vader mask even made that cool breathing sound as he walked with confidence. It was a site to see.

So, now that I’ve got you all fired up about “Star Wars” again, and you’re probably scurrying around your home searching high and low for that old Darth Vader mask, I have to let you in on something. Your wife threw that darn thing away long ago. Okay, well let’s hope she didn’t anyway. Because at this point you’re going to need that Darth Vader mask for this upcoming Halloween night. Who knows, you may just win a costume competition with it like that guy back in the shopping mall did. Cue the “Star Wars” theme song!