I remember the hype well, it was crazy for a while. I remember there being lots going on in the mainstream media and there wasn’t a week that went by in the few months leading up to release when there wasn’t a picture of Obi Wan, Darth Maul etc in newspapers, magazines etc.

It was a great time to be a SW fan actually. I know the prequels aren’t viewed in high regards these days but before its release it felt like the best thing ever.

The “dark times” (excluding novels, games etc) felt like forever so I think everyone was happy to jump on the hype train and enjoy the ride.