A long time ago in a Galaxy far, far away seems like it opens itself up to a lot of possibilities. The Star Wars universe – aside from The Force, the alien lifeforms, and the sand monsters – seems to work according to much of the same principles as ours. They have gravity, they need to eat and drink, they wear clothes much as we do, and there are clear humans present – but, what about playing bingo as we do? Would bingo be a successful game in the Star Wars Galaxy?
We know that gambling is a popular pastime in the Galaxy already. Tattooine hosts some of the Galaxy’s finest podracers, which are the stuff of sporting legend, all of which are available for punters to bet on the outcome of the race. And Lando Calrissian’s fateful game of sabacc resulted in Han obtaining the iconic Millennium Falcon. But what about our bingo?
Firstly, there may be some issues in gambling with the Force. The Force can be used for such a large range of things that those possessing it may be susceptible to testing to see if they might win at a casino. Though, critics could argue that no good Jedi would break the rules in this way – and that Sith Lords with the Force would have little cause to cheat at gambling.
What format would bingo take in the Galaxy? There’s obviously the Mos Eisley cantina that would likely ramp up the tunes and have the bartender Wuher call out the lucky numbers. Or, we’re sure that somewhere in the Galaxy, perhaps being cooled in vaults on Hoth, there is internet connection for the Galaxy’s residents to play online bingo. We can imagine Luke and Leia taking a rest from commanding the biggest resistance in the Galaxy to play on the William Hill bingo site. The game can help sharpen their minds on 80 or 90 ball bingo as they try to get the full house and wait for further orders to continue saving the Galaxy.
But, where could the game be best played? Would the format differ from high society in Coruscant to the swamps of Dagobah? And the Ewoks of the forest moon of Endor would definitely have their own variety of the game. What about one played by battle droids? Can battle droids consciously play bingo – or would their autonomy forfeit the fun of the game? Bingo in the Star Wars Galaxy throws up more questions than it answers, and, should George Lucas need new ideas for the 19th Star Wars film, maybe some of them will be answered.
One of the greatest things about Star Wars is the almost endless possibilities of what could happen in the Galaxy. The light speed planet-hopping opens itself up to a new take on something that we love from our own Galaxy. And let’s face it, if we can handle Jar Jar Binks, we can handle anything the Galaxy throws at us.
