Chewbacca, affectionately known as Chewie, is known for his big heart and unwavering loyalty to his friends. Critic Te Arohi hopes Tom still feels the same way about his mates, after his flatmate put his phone number all over campus advertising a Chewbacca impression contest. A box of Major Majors were up for grabs for the champion.
Harry, the mastermind behind the prank, spent all of Friday morning putting the 100 posters across North Dunedin. His morning mish helped him set a new personal best on Strava, clocking in 6km over 2 and a half hours. Harry claims he stuck posters to “every single pole on Castle Street,” as well as handing “15 or 20 of them out to people directly in the library”. He recalled that he received “strange looks” for that.
Within five days of the posters going up, Tom, whose number was now posted 100 times around North D, had received around 120 Chewbacca impressions over the phone. They haven’t all been top quality, said self-described “moderate Star Wars fan” Tom: “Some have been pretty good but some sound like a cat screaming or some are just a genuine scream.” There were also polite calls, threatening calls and someone claiming “they were the proctor and I was in trouble,” Tom said. Katie, a student, felt the competition revealed a vital part of the Dunedin student psyche: “People are too gullible, they’ll do anything for a box.”
One female caller confessed her love of Chewie to Tom, saying she made out with one of the posters three times, and that it now has pride of place in her room. Mrs. Bacca then confessed her love to Joe, Tom’s other flatmate, over the phone. But despite accepting an invitation over to their flat for Monopoly and apple crumble, “the mysterious romantic must have disappeared into a galaxy far, far away, because she never showed.” A heartbroken Tom, holding back tears, told Critic Te Arohi that “I thought I found the one”.
Of all the attempts, though, only one caller could claim victory. According to Harry, Max’s call stood out from among the rest: “He called us when we were drunk and I just remember it being really good”. Max’s prize was a box of Major Majors, and in true Wookiee fashion, Harry said that “[Max] was pretty stoked about it. He stood outside for like 15 minutes - probably thought he was getting catfished or something.”
Of course, no good deed goes unpunished. Tom, the unsuspecting judge of Dunedin’s first and largest Chewbacca impression competition covered Harry’s “drawers, pillow cases and bed with bean bag beads,” most of which are still there today.