"There are some things you can’t share without ending up liking each other, and knocking out a twelve-foot mountain troll is one of them." - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
This is the first thing I thought of after re-watching the rescue scene from Star Wars: A New Hope. Once Luke and Han break Leia out of her cell, they are faced with the stiff challenge of getting out of the Death Star alive. Storm troopers are closing in on them, so they take the most logical course of action: jump into the trash chute. Not a pretty plan, but one that would have worked, had it not been for that trash monster or the walls trying to flatten them.
Unlike the wizarding trio referenced above, this is the first time Luke, Han, and Leia are all together. Luke and Han are familiar with each other (though hardly friends at this point), but these two scenes are the first time either encounter Leia, who is far from the damsel in distress Luke and Han probably expected her to be. Despite all this, their bickering during the blaster fight on the detention level is reminiscent of a group that's been together quite a while.
The crisis in the trash compacter is what really pulls the trio together. Han and Leia are both genuinely concerned for Luke's safety when he is dragged underneath the filthy water by the unknown creature. Once he's safe, the walls start moving. Once again, all three are clearly stuck in the same bad situation and have the same goal: stay alive. They may have their different reasons (from saving the Rebellion to money), but their united struggle binds them together. These shared experiences and ordeals are ultimately what cements their trust and friendship in each other. Just like knocking out a mountain troll.
Very nice blog. It seems to be a universal truth that crises that people share bring them together. I too find the trash compactor scene symbolically significant since the three are literally brought together and symbolically become a unit in order to survive.
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