A man dressed as Admiral Ackbar snapped a selfie in the lobby of the Nippon TV building early Friday afternoon.
Steps away, about a dozen people gawked at a bleep-blooping replica of R2-D2 in front of a pop-up shop devoted to "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," the long-awaited seventh installment in the space fantasy series that was set to open across the country later that evening.
After a year-long advertising blitz that saw characters from the series plastered on everything from airplanes to candy, fans and brands across Japan were geeking out before the first screenings began at 6:30 p.m.
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