That headline will be funny to a very small number of people privy to a private joke of someone else’s making, but trust me, it’s kind of funny. So is the story, from Dvice:
Life in Japan really is a sweet little slice of science fiction. Currently, Japanese televisions and giant video billboards are running slickly produced video commercials depicting an army of Darth Vaders attacking Japan. Some of the amazing footage includes: Vader-head bomber planes descending en masse on Japan, Vader heads rolling off a robotic assembly line, a massive Vader army standing at attention, and a live action sequence in which Vader enters a room full of Stormtroopers and proceeds to literally stab a holographic projection of the country of Japan with his light saber.
Of course such scenes wouldn't be complete without classic sci-fi cut away shots of Japanese citizens gasping in horror (old school Godzilla style) as Vader takes over the televisions of the entire country. If this was hype for a new Star Wars movie it might be acceptable, but the fact that this is all promotion for Sankyo's new Fever Star Wars pachinko gambling machine (Japan's pinball-machine-meets-slot-machine gambling addiction) is just kind of sad.
DVICE: Darth Vader army invades Japan with old school gambling machines.
This gives you an idea of why many US-based companies are so eager to see Japan opened to casinos: Japanese people are really into gambling.
This might be a red herring, but is there a Wynn connection here? Wynn partner Kazuo Okada owns Aruze, a major pachinko maker. Rumors have surfaced of a possible Bee Gees musical at Encore. The machine title got me thinking–what if they combined the disco idea with Star Wars? You’ve already got Star Wars slots. It might look (and sound) something like this:
Will we see “Saturday Night Star Wars Fever” anytime soon at Encore? I doubt it, but you must admit that it’s an amusing image, and it would bring a whole new fanbase to the property, though I doubt that this is the crowd that Steve Wynn envisions for his new “signature resort.” It could work at a half-dozen other places, though.