Governments have the most fun on Star Wars Day

On Star Wars Day, it’s normal to expect people within the Star Wars family and fans to celebrate, but today’s best tributes to Lucasfilm’s 40 year franchise came from governments around the world.

From the Senate in Australia to the Russian Embassy in the United Kingdom and the Canadian government’s department of transportation, each country found a way to pay tribute. Even Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, a lifelong Star Wars fan who once gave a review of of Return of the Jedi after getting a sneak peek back in 1983, managed to pay homage to one of his favorite movies.

Here are the strangest, best stories to come out of Star Wars Day.

Australian Senate and House of Representatives get into it

The senate has always been a controversial government body in the Star Wars films, which isn’t too unlike real world politics. During the reign of the Galactic Empire, the senate was effectively powerless as no one wanted to disagree or go up against Chancellor Palpatine. Just before the Battle of Yavin took place in Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope, Palpatine dissolved the Senate.

It may not have been the best marketing plan, but seeing an opportunity to jump on a trending hashtag, the social media manager behind the Australian Senate account tweeted out this message:

Without missing a beat, they also looped in the House of Representatives, teasing that they wish the Star Wars films had also included that fictional body so they wouldn’t feel left out. This caused a bit of a back and forth between the two governing bodies, each trying to outsmart one another.

It seems to be all in the name of fun, but we’ll never really know. When Jar Jar Binks gets brought up as a reminder of what the senators in Star Wars looks like, it does feel a little icy.

Twitter

Twitter

The Russian embassy asks for people to join their side

Earlier today, the Russian embassy located in the United Kingdom tweeted a photo of Darth Vader taking a selfie.

The reaction to the tweet has been a mixture of people pointing out that Darth Vader is taking a photo using the Instagram in-app camera — and an outdated version no less — along with the expected political responses.

It’s unclear if this is an ironic tweet or not, but we’re choosing to focus on Darth Vader being a total dad about this situation and taking the least interesting selfie with outdated technology.

Transport Canada recalls AT-ATs

Over the years, Transport Canada has become known for their pop-culture and April Fools’ Day pranks. To celebrate Star Wars Day, the government agency decided to send out a recall for 10,000 AT-AT units.

“The central hydraulic system could fail in extreme cold temperatures, such as on planet Hoth or in Northern Canada,” a statement from Transport Canada reads.

According to experts at Transport Canada, this could ultimately lead to impaired “laser cannon tracking, and affect the walker’s ability to maintain balance and could ultimately result in a crash causing injury to imperial troops.”

It should be noted, however, the only 2017 models of AT-AT walkers are being recalled. So anything beforehand should be fine.

Transport Canada

The full release can be read on Transport Canada’s official recall page if you’re looking for more details.

Alongside governments taking a break from running their countries, directors like Phil Lord and Rian Johnson tweeted their own celebratory remarks. The next Star Wars project, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, will be released on Dec. 15.