I saw Star Wars: The Force Awakens this weekend along with every other 12 year-old in the galaxy.  Having seen the most-hyped film of the year, I’m now ready to eat a few black-eyed peas for whatever luck that might bring, make a few weak resolutions, and launch into the New Year.

But as a food blogger, I must say that I was disappointed to see how Disney portrayed food in outer space.  The food on planet Jakku was disgusting and not encouraging to space travel. Rea’s incredible strength surely didn’t come from eating what looked like a huge, instantly cooked popover and a prefabricated wafer.

You’d think that amid all the explosions and lightsaber duels, Walt Disney would’ve pushed a few vegetable on the kids.  What a lost opportunity.  Beverages haven’t gotten their due in the series either. In the original episode, Luke Skywalker drank blue milk produced by the bantha, a shaggy, spiral-tusked mammal.  He and Yoda were also shown eating a nasty concoction of rootleaf soup. By episode two, writers had introduced Jawa Juice, a bitter brew of fermented grain and bantha hides.

Producers seem reluctant to give their characters any edible food to lessen the struggles of outer space.  But they’ve done their best to brand a number of grocery items here on Earth. Pictures of Darth Vader, Chewbacca, Yoda, R2-D2 , BB-8 and the full cast of Star Wars’ characters appears on soup cans, mac and cheese, cereal, toothbrushes, jelly bellies, fruit juice, M&M’s, crackers, and more.

IMO:  Ignore the hype and the critics.  Just see the movie, preferable at the Esquire, where you can stretch out in the oversized, reclining seats with a bag of popcorn and your 3-D glasses, and catch up on what’s been happening in space.  Star Wars is a bit of Indian Jones, Star Trek, Wonder Woman, and King Arthur rolled into one.  That’s a lot of nostalgia for your money.

What better way to kick start the New Year then with a classic, action-packed saga.  Follow up with a bowl of galaxy-inspired cereal and a glass of warm, blue milk.  That, and a good night’s sleep, should activate the force within you.