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42.

I think everyone has their specific (or multiple) soft spots for a geek franchise. It’s only recently that I’ve been schooled… well, tutored… in what makes Star Wars so incredible. I don’t have any epic “waiting in line as a small kid with my folks” stories, although I heard them from more than half of the people I waited in line for the midnight premiere with. Since I was never properly introduced to Luke, Han, Leia, and crew until recently, I couldn’t comprehend the emotional charge my fellow geeks were foaming at the mouth over as Episode III wraps up and sets the stage for the original three films. (You’ve all seen it by now, right?)

My soft spot? Hitchhiker’s Guide, which recently made it to the big screen after decades of uncertainty and the passing of its creator. As a wee geekette of 8, I was ready for more challenging material than the Little House and Chronicles of Narnia books could provide. My dad began sharing his Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy books, although eventually Dad bought me my own copies so we wouldn’t have to argue over who would be first to read So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish. I began asking for Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters with my kid meal at the drive through. Digital watches were no longer a really neat idea. My pat answer to, “Can I ask you a question?” became “42.” Yeah, I was hooked for life.

In college, copies of the BBC miniseries and the radio show albums only fanned the flames of my enthusiasm. Working at the local PBS affiliate snagged me a “Don’t Panic” pledge drive shirt. Rumors had filtered back to me about a potential movie, but I shrugged it off as not impossible, but very very improbable.

Fast-forward a few years to when the movie was a looming reality. I marked opening day on my calendar and refused to read any spoilers or reviews until I could see it for myself. In the grand tradition of each incarnation retelling the story and contradicting previous versions, the movie conveyed another possibility for the day the Vogons blew up the Earth. The introductory number with the dolphins had me laughing so hard it hurt. It didn’t bother me that the screenplay deviated wildly from the wholly remarkable original book, although I found a few places where I was expecting the next line and it never came. Some of the plot twists, including the Arthur / Trillian / Zaphod love triangle, were fun, although the Zaphod character was played up too over the top. When the credits rolled, my gut feeling was that the movie was enjoyable, but not spectacular. There was a lot of lost potential.

As I stood in line for the midnight showing of Episode III, I wondered what a rabid fan premiere for Hitchhiker’s Guide would have looked like. Vending carts dispensing Babel Fish? Towel rental? Catering by the Dentrassi? Definitely Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters all around. Unfortunately, Hitchhikers will never reach the fever pitch of Star Wars.

I always thought there was something fundamentally wrong with the universe.