The year was 1993. I was flipping through a stack of VHS tapes I kept at the small comic shop I owned looking for something to throw in to kill time. I came across a copy of the first Indiana Jones movie: Raiders of the Lost Ark. Feeling nostalgic (I was only 7 when I saw Raiders in theaters), I put the cassette in and began to watch it. Now, I’d seen it before, but I guess I had forgotten how really unique it was. All the characters were engaging, the sets were incredible, and those warm ‘fanboy-fuzzies’ kicked in. I was 7 all over again. Like a modern day archeologist, I made it my mission to locate Indiana Jones merchandise: A Temple of Doom Book and Record Set here…a Last Crusade puzzle there. Before too long I had amassed more items than could fit on two bookcases in my bedroom. Original carded action figures, movie posters…even an original Indiana Jones Marvel comic printed in German (which still provokes ironic giggles when I flip through it). Then an interesting thing happened: Life. I got a new job and closed my comic store down, but the fascination for Indiana Jones collectables remained. Over the course of the next 14 years, I watched my proud collection dwindle down to about 1/3 of its’ original scale. Out of necessity born from layoffs or space for kids, my Indy stuff shrunk, as did my reason for caring about collecting anymore. I was attending the San Diego Comic Con in 2007 when a young lady handed me something at one of the booths. It was a shiny gold coin made of plastic. Embedded on the front, was a fedora and whip. On the back, the words “Indiana Jones IV” shone. It was like finding the headpiece to the Staff of Ra. Indy’s coming back? Ok, something to be excited about, and the countdown began. I sat through the 12:01am showing this morning of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull wearing a makeshift Indy outfit, complete with hat, shirt and khakis. I read some rather harsh reviews the day before, and I was a little worried. Would fan reaction be identical to what a lot of critics were saying? I was going to like this movie, darn it. No. I was going to make sure I LOVED it. Harrison Ford wasn’t going to look ‘too old’. The movie wasn’t going to be Indy’s ‘Episode 1’. Russians would be just as cool for Indy to fight as Nazis. After watching the movie, I have to say…. I don’t know what I was scared about. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was a film made to pay homage to a series of classic movies originally made to…pay homage to classic films. (Does that make sense?) With plot threads that go back to the original Raiders, Indy 4 tied it all together, leaving JUST enough room for a jumping-on point for new fans to enjoy. The special effects WERE a bit distracting sometimes (when you’re used to watching the slight-of-hand, sometimes low budget visual effects from the first 3 films, you tend to notice little things like…oh, I don’t know, Indy standing in front of a CGI MUSHROOM CLOUD from a nuclear explosion, maybe?). And Harrison Ford did not look OLD. He looked AGED, yes. Sadly, this was a fact the movie kept reminding the audience of about every 20 minutes. Yes, you Indy screenwriters, we know Indiana Jones isn’t young anymore. But see, with fans such as myself that enjoyed The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles television show (now available in 3 different DVD box sets, AHEM) you understand the need for there to be a semblance of time passing for Indy. (The movie takes place in 1957. The United States is filled to bursting with the fear of communism.) The movie does a nice job of connecting these dots of fanboy goodness, with Indy even making a reference to a brief encounter with Pancho Villa as seen in the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles episode “Spring Break Adventure”. The movie also opens with Indy and company setting foot in a mysterious warehouse stacked from floor to ceiling with wooden crates. Sound familiar, Raiders fans? It’s a mixture of plot, dialogue and special effects for the rest of the movie. Karen Allen reprises her role as Marion Ravenwood also. While I would have liked to have seen more dialogue between Marion and Indy, it was one of those moments when they saw each other after years that you turn to the person next to you also wearing a fedora and beam. The ending was predictable and low key (and I won’t give anything away for those who haven’t seen it), but the little closure for Indiana Jones in the manner that it was presented can either be considered an ending by some, or a beginning by others. Why critics have hammered this movie as hard as they have is beyond me. It was well worth the $9.00 I paid to go see it just to watch the expressions on Indy fans like myself when Indy cracked his whip or landed a punch. Ben Burtt, you da man. Yeah, I’m proud I went. I’m happy to say I enjoyed the film, and I stand firm that fans of Raiders and Indiana Jones will be surprisingly pleased with the movie in general. Indy has always been the stereotypical underdog in every fight, so my money’s on Professor Jones. So dust off your khakis, pat the dirt off of your fedoras and cue the John Williams’ score. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a welcome addition to MY new Indiana Jones collection. *(Steve Boyd is Site Director for the website Comic Collector Live. He is proud to say he flew to Anaheim, California to ride the “Temple of the Forbidden Eye” Disneyland theme park ride 20 times in 1995. )