The Official Episode III Reaction thread!!! [Spoilers]

[EarthBound]

Originally Posted by Master'sBaneSwiftSnowmane

Ok, I reread that part of my post (the "Old Ben" part) and I didn't make my point very clear. In TESB at the veryvery end Obi-Wan says something to Yoda about not thinking that Luke would make it and everything would fail. Then Yoda says, "No, there is another." and Obi-Wan's reaction might as well have been, *gasp*"ReallY?! I never knew!" When in fact, he was present at the twins birth, he knew where both of them went and he doesn't remember Leia at all. On Tatooine everyone knows him as "Old Ben" but Leia calls him Obi-Wan and it doesn't seem to shake his memory of her at all...thus I came to the conclusion that he simply has a very bad memory.

I wondered about that, too. I've thought that Leia is a "known" to Ben so it would be more surprising...like Yoda holding a small hope for Darth to turn back from the Sith to acting like a Jeti again.....perhaps?

[Beor]

That was a kick ass movie. I feel sorry for Anakin, but he sort of did it to himself. Consumed by hate, just like Melkor.

[Tessar]

Lemme see if I can show how I rationalize the 'Old-Ben' thing.

Leia did not act as if she knew Obi Wan herself. I believe her line was "General Kenobi. Years ago, you knew my father in the clone wars. Now he begs you to come to our assistance."

The point being that her father knew Obi Wan. She didn't say anything about his being a Jedi Knight. She might not have even known he was one--just that he was a 'great general'. The Alliance needed strong leaders, and since Obi Wan was a well known leader in his day, she probably wanted his help planning an attack on the Death Star--what the Alliance probably hoped would be one of their largest victories.

I'm sure Obi Wan hoped that Luke would defeat Vader because he himself had trained Luke, and knew that Luke had experience in dealing with the Force and in using a lightsaber. Leia had none. I'm sure Kenobi was afraid that Leia couldn't be trained in time, while Yoda held out some hope that Leia could be trained.

Also consider the implications. If Vader turned Luke to the Dark Side, then Leia would have had to face off against two VERY powerful sith. Luke was just as powerful as his father, and much younger to boot. Leia never would've been able to take on both Luke and Vader at once.

[Master'sBaneSwiftSnowmane]

Ummm...Tessar, I think you kind of went off on a tangent...I didn't follow most of that. I always thought that Leia said, "Help us Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're our only hope..." I've even watched it on the new dvd's (not my wonky VCR that's eaten my tape six different times) and that's what it sounded like.

But, I was talking to my brother and he and I came up with a different explaination: Obi-Wan knew about Leia he just decided that, for reasons we could not fathom, not to tell Luke or even let on that they were bother and sister. All the while Obi-Wan thought that Luke would be the choosen one and that Leia wasn't, so she couldn't beat Vader or the Emperor. That was what Yoda was refering to when he said that there was another. Obi-Wan was being all negative and Yoda was being psotive and letting him know that if Luke failed, well, they still had another shot.

Har, another thing, who always assumed that Leia was older? I know I did. Don't get me wrong, I know that they're twins...but I always figured that she was born first. Perhaps that's just me.

[Finrod Felagund]

WHEN leia says that Kenobi knew her father...I was always under the impression she meant Bail Organa

[Master'sBaneSwiftSnowmane]

No, I think Tessar was refering to Bail. I just reread Tessar's post and understood it better too. It sounds a lot like the theory my brother and I came up with. Sorry 'bout that Tessar.

[Halbarad of the Dunedain]

Originally Posted by Master'sBaneSwiftSnowmane

Ummm...Tessar, I think you kind of went off on a tangent...I didn't follow most of that. I always thought that Leia said, "Help us Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're our only hope..." I've even watched it on the new dvd's (not my wonky VCR that's eaten my tape six different times) and that's what it sounded like.

But, I was talking to my brother and he and I came up with a different explaination: Obi-Wan knew about Leia he just decided that, for reasons we could not fathom, not to tell Luke or even let on that they were bother and sister. All the while Obi-Wan thought that Luke would be the choosen one and that Leia wasn't, so she couldn't beat Vader or the Emperor. That was what Yoda was refering to when he said that there was another. Obi-Wan was being all negative and Yoda was being psotive and letting him know that if Luke failed, well, they still had another shot.

Har, another thing, who always assumed that Leia was older? I know I did. Don't get me wrong, I know that they're twins...but I always figured that she was born first. Perhaps that's just me.

To answer your question as best as possible, when Yoda does mention that, "There is another..." Obi-Wan does not have any reaction. At this point in the film Obi-Wan is not even present, he is only projecting his voice in the force. When Yoda says no, there is another I feel that Yoda is just reestablishing something that the two Jedi already knew. Obi-Wan did not forget, he never showed any signs of forgetfulness, he didnt show any signs at all. Also you will notice Obi-Wan and Leia never come in contact in person.(in Ep IV, V, and VI)
And the only way Leia knows Obi-wan is because of her father Bail Organa. He most likely told her to seek out Obi-Wan Kenobi for his help, perhaps to discuss with Obi and Yoda if now is the "right" time.

[Insidious Rex]

Wow what a rapid fire movie… after the first 22 or 23 minute scene we get this machine gun attack of non stop WHOLE worlds from one to the next to the next and it was a bit jarring. Like being on a roller coaster. Im talking an entire scoped out world complete with an entire race and animal and plant life and machines and scenery and we see it for… 43 seconds… and then another one and we see it for 12 seconds… and then another one for a minute and a half. Then another 30 seconds. Then 4 minutes. Etc. Wow… talk about hang on to your hats.. And this goes on for over an hour and a half… wooo…

Never resolved the Obi One “I Don’t recall owning any droids” line from the first movie. And how is it that almost 20 years go by and the death star is just being finished when we see it skeletal in this movie? 20 years?? Come on this is the future. And they did it in like no time at all for Jedi. Even made it a *emperor voice * “fully operational death star” before its whole hull was set.

And speaking of oversights… um Luke and Leah are twins right? So whats the deal exactly? Padame’s pregnancy is constantly referred to as “the baby” until the very end when they “discover” its actually twins. And thus Darth never knows theres a second child which plays a big role in the first series of course. So they don’t have ultrasounds in the future but they have light speed travel and android armies? Come on…

Why was Chewbakah in this at all? That was unnecessary. We are to assume that 20 years before Star Wars he is one of the leaders of the Wookie race or at least the Wookie military? And that he somehow winds up in cahoots with Han Solo 20 years later as a basic smuggler and goods runner working for low life criminal mob bosses like Jaba the Hut? Whats with that. That doesn’t work for me. If he was so into the rebellion why would he do that? Because he had to be incognito? Then him getting back together with the rebellion was one massive coincidence? Eh…

First 30 minutes was rough… vial acting by Christenson and those awful awful scenes with him and padame. Good lord… and whats the deal with Padame in this one. Does she do anything besides sit around the apartment all day looking forlorn?

One of the biggest things I had a hard time swallowing was the transition from angsty easily influenced Anikan to the brilliant hard Darth Vader. I can see how he got bitter and dark. I think they did that well. But in the original series he comes off as SUCH a smart confident brutal genius of a character. Its hard to imagine the “boy” we see in Revenge of the Sith who goes back and forth about his loyalties and eventually gets tricked by Palpatine (and is still a little whiny even like he was in spades in the Attack of the Droids) is suddenly this brilliant brutal super smart master commander. Now granted 18-20 years go by and perhaps he really came together mentally and maturely but it was hard for me to just jump that gulf. Perhaps a different actor would have made this transition easier for the audience me thinks…

The Emperor was brilliant. I never knew it was the original actor from the third movie! So I was always impressed he looked so much like the “original guy” until someone told me that IS the original actor. Holy crap! What a brilliant move by Lucas to make a 40 something Ian Mcdermmid into a much older character in Jedi then taking him at 60 something and keeping him in the same role. Slap me silly…

Yoda makes every scene he is in. you can never get enough Yoda…

The parallel culminating fight scenes at the end were very well done I thought. I was very impressed. Both great duals. And properly climactic. The last hour or so BEFORE the helter skelter tying up of loose strings at the VERY end was by far the best part of the movie. Really very good stuff.

Vader “birth” scene allusion city to Frankenstein. Even down to the vacuum tubes which be breaks. Beautiful stuff. And in the end the Emperor’s creation is his own undoing…

So… was I the only one that felt the urge to shout ITLL GET YA DRUNK!! When Jackson was on screen?

QUESTION: Ok did Yoda know all along that Anakins son would be the chosen one to end the cycle? Did that occur to him only after he realized he couldn’t defeat The Emperor himself?

[HOBBIT]

It works fine, Chewbacca is a wookie - they live very long lives. Chewbacca is what, like 200 years old in episode 4? something like that, dont know if that is it exactly, but they live to be very old.

the wookies become really oppressed by the emperor and the empire - quite possibly for aiding in the escape of yoda - so Chewbacca no longer likes being there all the time.
-------------------

I don't think anyone else has said this - but you can definitely infer from the conversation at the opera like thing that Darth Sidious or Darth Plagueous created Anakin "he could manipulate midichlorians to create life" - that is what Anakin is - life made from midichlorians - no father.

[Insidious Rex]

Originally Posted by HOBBIT

It works fine, Chewbacca is a wookie - they live very long lives. Chewbacca is what, like 200 years old in episode 4? something like that, dont know if that is it exactly, but they live to be very old.

the wookies become really oppressed by the emperor and the empire - quite possibly for aiding in the escape of yoda - so Chewbacca no longer likes being there all the time.

Well I dont necessarily have a problem with the time scale. Its the massive coincidence of him hooking up with Han Solo of all people who happened to stumble accross the path of Obi One and Luke. You know?

[katya]

Ok, two questions:

1. Who says Natalie Portman's acting was worse than Hayden Christenson's? There's some debate between a few of my friends....

2. Who's seen all six epidoses in a row so far? Now that I have them all at my house (except 3, of course) I'd like to try it this week sometime. (Exams? What 're ya talkin' about? I never heard about no exams...)

I don't have a problem with Chewbacca but we could've lived without him in there, I think. I think my biggest issue right now is the lava/magma planet. It's neat but hardly fit for living critters playing there.

[Tessar]

Originally Posted by katya

Ok, two questions:

1. Who says Natalie Portman's acting was worse than Hayden Christenson's? There's some debate between a few of my friends....

Natalie Portman is the better actor by far--I've found all of Hayden's acting to be flat and dead, while Natalie Portman at least has her moments in Star Wars, and acts flawlessly in several other films I've seen.

2. Who's seen all six epidoses in a row so far? Now that I have them all at my house (except 3, of course) I'd like to try it this week sometime. (Exams? What 're ya talkin' about? I never heard about no exams...)

Not, like, all in one day. I did that for Lord of the Rings, and that was hard enough .

[HOBBIT]

lucas went out of his way to connect the OT to the PT. certainly plausible that chewbacca was there- why not? He was alive then, why not.

be thankful that they didn't go with a young Han Solo (he was supposed to be on Kashyyk too). or a young greedo or something. (millennium falcon did make a cameo though).

Small Universe syndrome.

[Finrod Felagund]

Originally Posted by Insidious Rex

Why was Chewbakah in this at all? That was unnecessary. We are to assume that 20 years before Star Wars he is one of the leaders of the Wookie race or at least the Wookie military? And that he somehow winds up in cahoots with Han Solo 20 years later as a basic smuggler and goods runner working for low life criminal mob bosses like Jaba the Hut? Whats with that. That doesn’t work for me. If he was so into the rebellion why would he do that? Because he had to be incognito? Then him getting back together with the rebellion was one massive coincidence? Eh…

I believe that Han rescued Chewie from slavers.

[tolkienfan]

Originally Posted by Insidious Rex

QUESTION: Ok did Yoda know all along that Anakins son would be the chosen one to end the cycle? Did that occur to him only after he realized he couldn’t defeat The Emperor himself?

I thought Anakin was the chosen one. He did kill all the Sith eventually didn't he?

[Tessar]

Indeed. Anakin WAS the chosen one.

Luke didn't destroy the Sith directly--only indirectly by influencing Vader, who then killed the Emperor, and destroyed himself in the process.

SO, yes, Anakin did do that thang he was supposed to do .

[tolkienfan]

Yeah, that's what I was thinking.

[Twista]

Ach I love his redemption...

[Bombadillo]

I watched the original (and unedited!) trilogy over the weekend again, Katya, but I can't get a copy of the Phantom Menace.

My brother pointed something out to me. At some point, Han calls Luke "strong enough to pull the ears off of a gungar." Do you think he meant "gungan?" That would make sense, actually, considering the size of Gungans' ears, but I assumed they were unheard-of until ep 1.

IR, I think the mistake with Chewbacca is not the unlikely coincedence of meeting Han for eps. 4 5 and 6, but making him a Wookie commander in ep 3. IOW, he'll always be a big hairy smuggler and mechanic in my mind, and George Lucas only made him a general as an after(lapse of)thought. So he actually went out of his way to create that plot hole.

MBSS, I believe there were also some yellow light sabers in ep 2, but I can't be sure. Either way I don't see why there shouldn't be.

That "NOOOOOO!!" is being made fun of mercilessly on some sites already. I'm sure Lucas' intention was drama, but what a single-minded and stubborn guy--couldn't even care how ridiculous it was, so long as it was dramatic. There's such an idea as too much of a good thing, idiot!

Oh and Padme didn't really have a place in the movie at all in between the times when she announced her pregnancy and when she gave birth. Maybe one scene with her and Anikin, showing the degeneration of his rationality, was called for, but the rest were redundant. Padme probably was sitting around all day looking forlorn, but there was no reason to show that.

Come to think of it, there was a lot that didn't deserve to be showed on screen. And Grievous and Mace deserved more.

[Finrod Felagund]

If you really think about it...Anakin DID bring balance to the force...leaving but two Sith and to Jedi.