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gffa · 3 years

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I finished A Test of Courage and I have a lot of thoughts. Overall, I enjoyed it very much and would recommend it for anyone who enjoyed Light of the Jedi first, as long as you keep in mind that it’s a YA novel and that the mild complaints I had were indeed very mild.

I’ve noticed the same thing with Light of the Jedi where this era of the Jedi is more willing to just straight up infodump on the reader How The Jedi Work, in comparison to how the prequels Jedi will show you these exact same philosophies and actions. I’m pleased with this because literally everything the Jedi say and do in both of these books is a moment of extreme #VINDICATIOOOOOOOOOOOON for me, as well as they make for some stellar quotes. On the other hand, I’m just braced for impact about how the willingness to tell-rather-than-show is going to be used against the prequels Jedi, so it’s a complicated feeling for me. However, if you don’t have my baggage about this, it’s all upside, because the Jedi are very, very much in tune with How The Force Works here.

I feel like someone at Lucasfilm really must have projected that 2010 The Clone Wars writers’ meeting where George Lucas explains how the Force works on the wall of the planning for these first two books because, seriously, they are NOT FUCKING AROUND with how “yes the dark side is bad for level 100 psychic space wizards” and “yes the Jedi are super fucking psychic” and “yes the Jedi are of the light and that’s a good thing”.

The book is less about the Nihil and the Great Calamity and more about four kids (two Jedi and two diplomats’ kids) trapped on an alien planet and how the circumstances force them to deal/not deal with their issues. The Nihil are there, but they’re not woven into the heart of the main plot. Which is fine, I didn’t really miss having them be part of it, just a heads up that this is more about Jedi Worldbuilding (even though the Jedi are only half the story) than it is about the plot tying into the Nihil story.

Having read Lando’s Luck before this, it was hard not to compare Rinetta Gan and Avon Starros, as they are very similar characters (spunky young girl who is rebelling against her politically incredibly important and distant mother, while the father is gone, who basically has no flaws and is entirely precocious) and it kept me from really connecting with them as characters.

I do think the book suffers a little from having the characters being almost insufferably without any kind of real flaws when they don’t have an actor’s chemistry to really bring that kind of character to life. I was fond of them by the end, but there was nothing really there for me to grab onto! And my affection for Ireland’s creating the kind of characters that mean a lot to her (especially as a young black girl who wanted to see more of herself in the books she loved) does a certain amount, but it’s dimmed by how similar Avos and Rinetta wound up being for me. Vernestra never really seemed to have much of a character arc, other than “genius young Jedi Knight at fifteen”. Imri (the Jedi Padawan) actually has some stuff he goes through, Honesty (the other diplomat’s son) also got to go through some stuff. I wish the girls had struggled a bit more so I could have sunk my teeth into their story. They’re very cute and sweet, I enjoyed their pov chapters, don’t get me wrong! I just wish they’d been allowed to be a little more obnoxious or feral.

The climactic arc of the book was kind of amazing if you look at it in terms of being a repetition of a theme that’s threaded all throughout Star Wars and I will only say this: I am about 70% certain it was thinking very much about the Obi-Wan and Anakin relationship, basically writing it in reverse, and it was kind of AWESOME to consider it through that lens. And, even if that’s not the case, just the sheer Jediness of it did my heart good. THE JEDI ARE EXACTLY WHAT I HAVE ALWAYS LOVED ABOUT THEM.

Overall, I think Light of the Jedi was a stronger book, even taking into account that they were aimed at different audiences, it suffers a little from the girls being a little too perfect for me (mileages are going to vary!) as well as tell-rather-than-show, but I read almost all of A Test of Courage in a single night, had a blast with it, took probably 40 screenshots to yell about, and came away feeling incredibly fond of the Jedi Order all over again.

#high republic #the high republic #a test of courage #a test of courage spoilers #novels #meta

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kenobihater · 3 years

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Any trans obi hcs??? Spare trans obi hcs pls 👉👈

yes, my favorite topic! some of this will be specific to obi-wan, and some will be only tangentially related to him and more about general star wars trans headcanons.

okay, so i hc obi-wan as coming out early on in his padawanship with qui-gon. qui-gon, despite his many flaws, was completely supportive in this, and though he didn't really know very much about the topic, he was more than willing to learn. the rest of the jedi were supportive as well and helped him begin his transition. i imagine transphobia still exists in star wars, but i don't like to believe that it's very widespread, because i'm really over the concept of trans misery porn, y'know? i'm tired of real world bigotry showing up in fantasy when the piece of media doesn't have any commentary to make on it, and simply because authors can imagine a world with magic, but not one without the innate suffering and repression of minorities *cough cough the witcher and homophobia cough cough*. so I hc the jedi and general populace as trans-inclusive. the empire is probably bigoted, but i'm not as into the empire era as i am the republic era, so i don't have a ton of attachment to that particular hc.

i do, however, hc the kaminoans as transphobic. their whole "genetic superiority" thing doesn't sound at all like they'd be friendly towards anyone who subverts their ideas about the gender binary. so, i feel like obi-wan would clash with them in that regard, especially when it comes to military procedure about the clones under his command who are trans.

another interesting thing to consider abt the clones and their ideas on gender is that mandalorian culture has a strong emphasis on how unimportant gender is. you can find this reflected in both their language and culture - mando'a isn't gendered, and women can be and are warriors. so, i feel like the clones would have a really interesting view on gender, considering they're being raised by a bunch of biological essentialists (the kaninoans) and a cultural group who likely have a very liberal view of gender (the cuy'val dar). i 100% hc that there are trans clones (sidenote: even if not for the more inclusive ideas that the cuy'val dar likely instilled in them opening their minds to the possibility, the numbers alone means that there statistically has to be a few trans clones in the ranks) who identify as such, but are likely closeted on kamino and stay closeted until they believe the jedi are trustworthy.

since i hc obi-wan as trans and the kaminoans as transphobic, he'd be at odds with them in regards to how trans clones are treated. i hc that he would be the one to put into practice more inclusive policies when it comes to gender non-conformity and gender variance in the ranks. we see on multiple occasions how he treats all of his soldiers with dignity and respect, and i believe he'd extend that to helping ensure they have the resources in order to transition, even if he can't grant them civil rights.

now, on another note i think obi-wan would probably end up going stealth in his day-to-day life, not out of a fear of transphobia, but because he strikes me as a deeply private man when it comes to matters of the self. dgmw, he can be very overt and full of bravado, but when it comes to talking about his true emotions (ie his grief over qui-gon, his feelings for satine, his concern for anakin) he seems to falter and struggle with this at times. he uses his charm as a mask, and isn't very good at dropping it. considering how much of a personal issue my owm gender identity is, i feel like even though i like to think transphobia isn't widespread in the gffa, obi-wan usually keeps his past to himself because he doesn't really view it as anyone else's business. also, i view him as non-dysphoric after he transitions, which is a pretty common occurance for post-transition trans folk, so he likely wouldn't even think that much about his gender, especially in a galaxy that largely doesn't care.

he definitely comes out to anakin of course, and early on, too. anakin, being a young child at the time, doesn't really care but is still supportive when he's a little older. satine knows, as do all of obi-wan's friends and any of the clones under his command who have come to him about their own gender identity. the council knows, and i feel it was likely that obi-wan went to them in for advice in how to best go about supporting the trans clones under his command, as well as requesting that they institute an army-wide change in policy, even if just unofficially.

i think he'd be more open about his identity if transphobia was more widespread, because he knows that he's in a position where he could change a few people's mind with his influence, but again, i find the idea of transphobia in star wars to be kind of sad and don't like to think about it.

finally, if you're curious as to the reason i hc obi-wan as trans, it's because he's a paragon of healthy masculinity, and someone i want to see myself in. seeing myself in a character is actually the reason i hc any character as trans. now, obi-wan isn't perfect, not by a long shot, but he's a good man. he struggles with his emotions at times, yes, but he is more than capable of just expressing himself through anger, a trait central to toxic masculinity. he's also noble, and compassionate, and confident, and displays a lot of the traits that i strive to emulate in my own way when i think about what it means to be a man.

so, yeah, that's why i have "obi-wan is trans :)" as my header. this is Very Long, so thank you for allowing me to infodump about my trans obi-wan headcanons!!

#i just... love trans obi-wan so much #headcanons #obi-wan kenobi #len answers #len's meta

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bisexualmikisayaka · 3 years

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ugh it’s really annoying that 90% of the clones are treated as red shirts by the writers because it completely destroys the effect of “jedi care about their clones” that tcw tries to impart. like people have said this before more eloquently than i will but they really can’t expect us to believe that anakin and the 501st have a mutual respect going on whenever they’re on screen and the 501st have insane casualties. same with the 212th and obi-wan, the 104th and plo koon, etc. like, i feel like one of the biggest flaws of tcw is how little the clones have meaningful features in the series. yes, we have some minor insight into their lives on kamino, as well as some decent clone-centric episodes, but in the grand scheme of the show’s seven seasons it’s barely anything. they’re the backbone of the war, but how often are their loyalties and lives explored? how often is their faith tested, their preconceptions challenged? hell, for that matter, what of the jedi? afaik obi-wan is the only jedi with significant military experience - how did they make that transition? did the jedi and clones chafe in the early days of the war? were any jedi like hey, this is really fucked up that we’ve completely capitulated to the senate who’ve forced us into leading these child soldiers to their deaths before barriss (whose own very complex motivations are, like, barely explored or shown)? i know it’s a kids show, but you can be a kids show and still explore complex moral themes, like a crumbling republic mass producing a slave army and then manipulating the local monastic space wizard order into heading it. that’s why umbara is probably my favorite arc - it’s well written, actually handles clone-jedi conflict while exploring clone motivation and morality, and it’s a damn shame that its aftereffects aren’t explored more in universe.

don’t get me wrong. i enjoy believing that the generals and their troops have a good relationship. one of my favorite things to consume content for is anakin + ahsoka & the 501st, and obi-wan and the 212th is a close second. i live for plo’buir, and a good half of my ships involve clones and jedi. but as much as i like it, the implications are near impossible for me to ignore, yknow? during umbara, fives compared krell’s plans to anakin’s, and the way he talked about his general’s plans implied that at least torrent respected anakin, even if he’s batshit. what about the rest of the 501st? i just wished the writers focused on anakin genuinely interacting with the majority of his clone forces and trying to keep their causality rates down as well. same for all the jedi, really. i don’t know where im going with this but all my fanworks set during tcw era take place in a world where being a good general means not fighting this war at all, really, but in the case that it does, the clones aren’t treated like disposable props to be discarded to show how badass the jedi are or how high the stakes are for the war. you cannot argue that the clones are people then allow them to be treated as canon fodder without exploring what that narrative looks like in universe.

#this isn’t even getting me started on how i WISH we got more insight into boba #and his role in the clone... social hierarchy ig?#does he have batchmates? was he allowed to socialize with the other clones?#also i know there’s that one guy who defects and saves arla but he’s legends only :/#Star Wars #sorry for the anakin focus btw i tried to tamp down on the bias

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legobiwan · 5 years

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I’m freaking out because i just...i’m SO psyched for the Kenobi series but i’m so afraid that they’re gonna give him a romance. I hate it because i...i just, and you’ve talked about this before, he’s he perfect Jedi. To Obi-wan, being a good person IS following the code, even after the order is gone. He wouldn’t have realistically ever left the order for kryze (even tho i don’t consider that canon that always felt ooc to me) or the others bc he’s completely devoted to the code above all else 1/2

Especially after what he saw happen to anakin and padme because of that attachment. I highly doubt he would, 8 years later, be willing to even have temptation of a romantic partner. And god forbid we hear more Rey Kenobi theories. I’m just worried Disney is going to do a disservice to his character bc hollywood HAS to have a romance plot in everything. Do you think they’ll go down that route? 2/2

So we’re dealing with a few different issues here. Let’s break this down:

“The Perfect Jedi”

Obi-wan attempts to be the perfect Jedi. He tries, oh so hard, to keep himself at that exacting, impossible standard. Of course, no one is the perfect Jedi - not Obi-wan, not Yoda, not Mace Windu - and certainly not Qui-gon. (And yet there is something in there, the delicate balance of striving towards excellence as opposed to striving for perfection, and it is an important distinction, one that I don’t think the Jedi, as a whole, always got correct as a sense of extremism took root within certain sectors of the Order.) Now, the reason behind this predilection - well, we could point at a few factors. Obi-wan’s sense of impostor syndrome (not at all helped by one Qui-gon Jinn, who seemed to be constantly thinking Obi-wan was somehow behind on his development, as shown in Master and Apprentice.)

(There’s a whole other meta I’ve touched on regarding the whole inter-Lineage…I don’t want to use the word trauma, but let’s just say they all inherited their predecessors’ issues and manifested them very differently.)

But yes, from the get-go, it seems that Obi-wan needs to prove himself. To Qui-gon, as a Padawan. To Qui-gon’s memory, when he takes Anakin. To Anakin, to prove he could be the Master of the Chosen One. To the Council. Etc. It’s a lot of pressure on one person. And the thing is, Obi-wan cracks, more than once. His sardonic, biting sense of humor is indicative enough of his less-than-perfect adherence to the Code, not to mention all the rules he bends for Anakin, his devotion to Satine - which is an interesting case study. In the end, Obi-wan does not succumb to Maul’s taunts to go feral/Dark Side but Obi-wan’s actions on Mandalore, precipitated by his very un-Jedi actions regarding Satine, set off a cataclysm of far-reaching events. As does his refusal to kill Anakin on Mustafar, which could be construed as a wild infraction of the Jedi Code. I mean, had Obi-wan killed Anakin, made *sure* of it and not walked away, what would have happened?

And yet, he tries to do good. Even as he realizes his faults, his part in moulding galactic events. Obi-wan could have done more, could have done differently, and yet despite his awful circumstances, he never gives in to hate. He is flawed, imperfect, but still holds on to some core part of himself. And I think that core part is something…that’s not the Jedi Code. The Code, in the end, is meaningless after Mustafar. (And I really REALLY hope the series touches on this idea of loss of faith, because Obi-wan held on to the Code so tightly, as a way of justifying so many of his actions because what else did he have? And I love existential crises when they’re not my own. HA!) The Code may have been his way of telling himself he was doing good - was doing what Qui-gon wanted, what the Council wanted, what was best for Anakin…but I wonder when Obi-wan sat down and thought about what he wanted for himself? Without expectation, without other people’s narratives. (Okay, so I may be projecting a bit here.)

I’m getting off-topic here. Would Obi-wan have left the Order for Satine? No. He would have thought about it, fantasized about it. But at that point, he would have been too wrapped up in expectations to actually do anything about it. And by the time the Clone Wars came around? He was too responsible, too enmeshed. And…you know, I get it. I’m around Obi-wan’s age in TCW/RotS. There’s so much narrative to unpack in your life, so much expectation that you can internalize or throw away and whose story is it anyway? Those around you? Your own? Some odd mixture therein? But Obi-wan wasn’t ready to let go of that narrative, of those expectations, of the ghost of Qui-gon and so, no, he wouldn’t have left the Order. But there would be nights, those nights. When the lights have dimmed in the quarters on board the Star Destroyer, when the company you keep is an empty durasteel table, half a bottle of Corellian whiskey, and twenty years of what if…

But you were asking about romance, about attachment. (So often conflated, although never one and the same. Or perhaps they are different terms for the same idea, not love in the carnal sense but illogical devotion to someone or something. I always like the idea of there being many words, ideas for love, as the Greeks made popular in our culture. Love, or attachment to an idea or a thing can be just as wonderful, as intoxicating and dangerous as it can be with a person.)

Realistically? An Obi-wan set adrift in Tatooine might get attached, despite everything. (The novel Kenobi does a fantastic job of illustrating this.) We yearn for connection, and someone who has all but cut themselves off from interaction with other beings…how long can you hold out?

This isn’t to say I would support a full-fledged typical Hollywood romance in the series. Because honestly? Not the time or place.

Now, if it is something where Obi-wan feels a connection with someone and then purposefully acts against it? I would be okay with this. As it would be in service to the idea that he is (tragically) cutting himself off, believing himself to taint others, to be less than. And given the trajectory of recent streaming, I’m more confident than I would have been a few years ago that a series can do without a “typical” romance. (Which…thank the gods for that development. I don’t mind natural romance (I’m looking at you, Good Omens), but the shoe-horned heteronormative plots I was forced to endure through the 80s, 90s and early 2000s were…tiring, to say the least.)

We’re in a new era now, with these streaming services, with the impact fandom has on media, with social mores changing for the better, in my opinion. (But seriously, it’s wild for an old fogey like me to watch unfold. A little weird, I’m not going to lie, but on the whole, a positive development.) I’m going to put my faith in a few things, including a) Ewan McGregor wouldn’t have signed on to this if it weren’t going to be something interesting and nuanced (and gods know he held out long enough, so I’m assuming the man has standards) and b) Disney wants our wallets and has a pretty good grasp of its demographics (probably a scarily accurate grasp, but that’s another story for another time), so I’m not too worried about a prototypical romance plot.

Now, as to Rey Kenobi theories, I have to admit, I enjoy them, only because I’ve been struggling for more Kenobi content recently. I doubt that’s the route they’ll go down, especially in light of all the rumours circulating about Episode 9. And so, in the end, what I hope (and believe) we’ll get is a very human story about a man who tried to live by a narrative and failed, and tried to reconstruct himself not totally escaping the chains of those events and people, but still trying to do good.

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themeatlife · 4 years

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Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - A Review

AND Reranking the Star Wars Movies

The Finale (Maybe)

2019 saw the end of several major pop culture series: The Avengers, Game of Thrones, and the Skywalker Saga of Star Wars (or at least it was proclaimed, we shall see a decade from now if it is resurrected). Having a major finale was en vogue.

So here is the spoiler-free review. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was enjoyable. It was imperfect, with a handful of glaring flaws, but nothing that would prevent die-hards or casual fans from enjoying the experience. You get the scale of things and at moments visually it is almost overwhelming. The action set pieces are fantastic. All-in-all, worth seeing in theaters.

Now for the spoiler-rific review below the line. If you haven’t seen it and don’t want to be spoiled (why are you reading this) then scroll until “The Star Wars Countdown” headline is at the very top of you window/phone screen.

——————————————————————

I’m probably going to skip a few things but this is the main storyline.

Palpatine has never really left. He’s been in the background in the Unknown Regions raising the Final Order, a super-ginormous fleet to rule over the galaxy once and for all.

We catch up with our new trilogy trio of Rey, Finn, and Poe and what is left of the Resistance, led by General Leia. Leia has also taken the lead in mentoring Rey in the ways of the Force. News of Palpatine gets to them and the trio find themselves planet hopping on a quest first to find a dagger which is the key to finding Palpatine and then a programmer to get C3PO to translate script on said dagger. Along the way they are being hunted by the First Order and Kylo Ren. This sequence is very Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, but better executed.

Once the dagger is decoded, it leads them to the remains of the second Death Star where they must retreive a device with the coordinates to where Palpatine is. There is first a showdown between Rey and Sith Rey a la Luke in the forest in Degoba. Then is the showdown between Rey and Kylo where Rey ends up stabbing Kylo with his own lightsaber (Kylo was distracted by a dying Leia, Force-calling out to her son with her last breathe) and then Force-healing him and leaving him on the planet using his Tie Fighter with the device. Kylo then sees a vision of his father Han Solo telling him Kylo Ren is dead and his son Ben lives. Ben then leaves to chase after Rey to attempt to help confront Palpatine.

So Rey arrives on Exegol where Palpatine and the Final Order are gathered and preparing to deploy, leaving a signal for her Resistance friends and Ben to find. While Rey confronts Palpatine, the short handed Resistance tries to take down a communication tower in an effort to prevent the fleet from deploying. Epic battle ensues. Lando Calrissian comes with reinforcements for the Resistance while Rey almost gives in to Palpatine in an effort to save her friends. Ben comes in and they both fight Palpatine. Ben goes down and Rey uses the lightsabers she and Ben were using (coincidentally Luke and Leia’s lightsabers) against Palpatine’s Force Lightning, eventually killing him and herself in the process. Ben revives Rey and then kisses her (WHAT?!?) and then dies. The Resistance takes down the Final Order. The Resistance returns to their base, the new trio hug it out. Then the film ends with Rey returning to Tatooine where the saga began, burying Luke and Leia’s lightsabers and with their Force ghosts looking on takes on the Skywalker last name.

So my issues...

So, Palpatine is back? Last we saw his body fell down a shaft in the short-lived rebuild Death Star, thrown over by Vader in an effort to save Luke. I’m not sure how that even works that he’s back. I know they touch on it in the movie but seemed like we were done with the Emperor three (or is it six?) movies ago. But as a villain, Palpatine is effective.

The quest for the dagger and map device thing was a bit much. That actually could have been a movie itself. Like could have essentially replaced The Last Jedi with that quest. As much as I liked the The Last Jedi, I think a lot of the internet fanatics didn’t. And that hurt the Star Wars powers that be. And much of The Rise of Skywalker felt like it was actually attempting to write a lot of The Last Jedi out of the Star Wars timeline.

And yeah the Ben-Rey kiss was sudden. They seemed to have a very non-romantic connection so that was kind of out of place. Maybe it was more a goodbye kiss from Ben than anything, but it felt out of place.

And then the new trilogy as a whole. Although there was a new trio of main characters, the storyline was really dependent on the trio from the original trilogy. If the Force Awakens was the Han Solo movie and the Last Jedi was the Luke Skywalker movie, the Rise of Skywalker would have been the Leia Organa movie. And in many ways it was, but then it wasn’t. There is only so much you can do with extra footage. Rest In Peace Carrie Fisher, this movie needed more of you in it.

But with all that, it was still an enjoyable experience. It was imperfect, but that’s okay. No Star Wars movie is perfect (except for Empire). If you want comparison, better than Game of Thrones, no where near as satisfying as Avengers: Endgame.

The Star Wars Countdown

I ranked these almost two years ago. It didn’t change that much but I did switch a few and added the newer ones after I rewatched all the movies in the lead up to the Rise of Skywalker release. I FINALLY got my wife to watch them all with me. Disney+ and Netflix came in handy. So here are the updated Star Wars standings. I’ll do my college football wrap up later this week.

11 – Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)

Surprise surprise, I know. But yes, Episode I is by far the weakest and most disposable of the series (as evidenced by the omission of it in the Machete Order). Most of the major plot points are brought up again in Episode II, so not really that important to watch. And the action in it, while okay for the most part, do not make up for the most annoying and boring parts of the film – Jar Jar Binks, child Anakin Skywalker, and the Pod Race. If you must watch it, the main scene you need to watch is the battle on Naboo where Liam Neeson’s Qui-Gon Jinn and the Ewan McGregor version of Obi-Wan Kenobi take on double-lightsaber wielding Darth Maul played by martial artist Ray Park.

10 – Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002)

While Attack of the Clones is a step up from Episode I, this episode is plagued by two things: awkward pacing and the unnatural evolution of the love story of Padme Amidala and Anakin Skywalker. The way the movie was paced it felt like it was going by too slowly at times. Obi-Wan’s story arc kept me interested as he investigates bounty hunter Jango Fett and discovers the clone army. But man, that Padme-Anakin story is rough. Anakin comes off with a stalker-like creep factor obsession for Padme, and somehow Padme is infatuated with that? Yeah I’m not convinced, that dynamic always felt super awkward and forced. Not that Natalie Portman and Hayden Christensen couldn’t have chemistry. It’s just that in this movie, they didn’t…at least not convincingly. Cool stuff on the back end of this movie is the battle on Geonosis featuring a gladiator-style survival scene for Obi-Wan, Padme, and Anakin as well as the Jedi coming to their rescue. Samuel L. Jackson’s Mace Windu and Frank Oz’s Yoda show off some lightsaber skills as well.

9 - Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

This ended up being not as bad as critics made it out to be. It was fun and action heavy. I slightly different take on the Han Solo character by Alden Ehrenreich. It was fresh and it was Han as a young man less jaded than his original trilogy self. It was cool to see Woody Harrelson (Beckett), Thandie Newton (Val), Emilia Clarke (Qi’ra), and Donald Glover (young Lando Calrissian) in the Star Wars universe. There were a few things wonky with the movie though. I don’t know if I liked the live story between Solo and Qi’ra. The whole Lando and a droid thing was weird. And resurrecting previously deceased Sith Darth Mal felt a little empty (I know he’s appeared in other Star Wars projects but the cliffhanger at the end of this was Darth Mal’s first film appearance since Phantom Menace).

8 – Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Out of the prequel trilogy, I like this one the best. And while it was a longer movie (2 hours 20 minutes), it didn’t feel weighed down by some of the pacing issues of Clones. The ever-present forced romance between Padme and Anakin is still there though, and it becomes the primary reason Anakin turns to the Dark Side. While the premise seems feasible, the unnatural feel of the relationship hinders this reasoning. Over the course of the prequel series, they did a good job of planting seeds to make it seem like the Jedi are plotting to take over the Republic. So as a secondary reason for Anakin turning to the Dark Side, this reasoning works. Some people had a problem with the whole calling kids “younglings” but I didn’t really see that as a problem. The Old Republic could have talked like that, so it wasn’t an issue for me. So minus the whole Padme-Anakin thing and an unintended hilarious “NOOOOOOOOO” moment when Anakin turns into Darth Vader, it was a solid movie. It was sad to see several points where Anakin could have turned back but didn’t.

7 – Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

Before going into this film, I have to say that doing away with having the episode number in the title was a welcomed change away from the George Lucas era awkward titling. When I first saw this movie, I was awestruck. Filled with nostalgia. Almost like seeing a Star Wars movie as a kid again. But the second time around seeing it, I quickly realized that even though there were new characters that this was more or less a very borrowed plotline. It was basically the original Star Wars, only updated. Rey (Daisy Ridley) was like Luke (Mark Hamill), Han Solo (Harrison Ford, of course) like a less-Force oriented Obi-Wan. The First Order is basically the Empire resurrected, the Resistance is the Rebel Alliance. Starkiller Base is the Death Star. And Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) killing Han like Vader defeating Obi-Wan. But I was still thoroughly entertained, and the intro of Rey, Poe (Oscar Isaac), Finn (John Boyega), and BB-8 was a welcomed addition to the Star Wars universe and The Force Awakens put down a solid foundation for the franchise to build upon for its new trilogy.

6 - Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)

See above for the review. I will say for all it’s problems it was enjoyable for the most part and entertaining as hell.

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5 – Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

While The Force Awakens feels borrowed, The Last Jedi felt more like its own things. Some critical of The Last Jedi felt it similar to The Empire Strikes Back. While it did have some similarities, I think the major differences (particularly the Force Chat and dynamic between Kylo Ren and Rey, and some of the backstory behind Luke and Kylo Ren’s relationship) make it so much of its own story. It is the peak as far as quality of the newest trilogy. One of the coolest scenes in the entire Star Wars franchise was Kylo and Rey taking on Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis) and his Praetorian Guard. And while clearly the main focus of the film is the Kylo-Rey-Luke dynamic, the side plot of Finn and Rose (Star Wars newcomer Kelly Marie Tran) to Canto Bight in search of a hacker to disable a tracking device while Leia (RIP Carrie Fisher) and Poe try to lead the Resistance away in escape of the First Order were welcome storylines. Don’t listen to the haters online, this one is the best of the new trilogy.

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4 – Star Wars (1977)

Wow, trailers back then are nothing like they are now. Yes, I refrained from calling this film “A New Hope,” simply because that was not the original name of the movie. I respect this movie. It’s the origin story of Luke Skywalker. It featured ruthless villain Darth Vader (before we knew he was Luke and Leia’s father), a love interest (Leia before we and Luke find out they are brother-sister), and the cool rebel too cool to be in the rebellion (at first) in Han Solo. But as most movies of the time, the special effects feel dated (much more so in this film than the other two in the trilogy). And while it is the origin story, it was merely the tip of the iceberg. A strong foundation to build the rest of the franchise, but not the most compelling plotlines of the series (that is to come later).

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3 – Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)

I had this film actually up at 2 when I ranked this a year and a half ago. It isn’t an essential movie to the overall Skywalker storyline of the main Star Wars installments. But you get the sense of urgency and the sacrifice it took to steal the Death Star plans. Rogue One is one part chase movie, another part heist movie. Two types of movies I always enjoy. The characters fill out in a short period of time and feel so rich. It is the only Star Wars movie where all the main protagonist characters you are focused on the entire movie dies, making it not feel like a Star Wars film. But the death scene with Donnie Yen’s Chirrut Imwe and Jiang Wen’s Baze Malbus as well as Felicity Jones’s Jyn Erso and Diego Luna’s Cassian Andor are equally heartbreaking and powerful. The feels! While the film doesn’t add to the overlying plot of the entire series, it does add a bit of understanding of just how big the stakes were in getting those Death Star plans and how invested the Rebellion was outside of the core characters of the series in trying to topple the Empire. And then, well, Darth Vader totally owning the Rebels while trying to board Leia’s ship is badass and leads right into the original Star Wars. Loved this movie.

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2 – Return of the Jedi (1983)

A great conclusion to the original trilogy. We see the movie open with Jedi Luke displaying his control of the Force as the team rescues Han from Jabba the Hut. The Rebellion wants to strike one last blow to the Empire by taking out the rebuilt Death Star. The fight culminates on the forest moon of Endor. Luke reveals to Leia what she probably felt but didn’t recognize, that they are brother and sister. One of the strongest scenes was that final confrontation between Luke and Vader that ends with Vader saving Luke’s life from electrocution from the Emperor. Some people had a problem with the cute, fluffy Ewoks but I was okay with it. This is the movie where the extras added by George Lucas in the 1998 theatrical rerelease (and updated again in 2004) hurt the movie experience though. The extended musical scene at Jabba’s place was unneeded. We don’t need extra celebration scenes on other planets when its mission accomplished. And we didn’t need Hayden Christensen’s ghost in place of original Anakin actor Sebastian Shaw standing there with ghost Yoda and old ghost Obi-Wan Alec Guinness. But other than that, this was my second favorite Star Wars movie growing up.

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1 – The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Out of all the series, this is the masterpiece. If you ever want to make a successful sequel that continues the original story and add to the overall depth of a film series, here was the blueprint. From the opening battle on Hoth, to the core team getting split up, to Luke’s journey finding Yoda and training, to Han and Leia being chased down by the Empire, all the way to the climax of the film on Cloud City, we find our heroes being tested and pushed as well as finding themselves. The Han-Leia love story holds up and feels realistic. Luke’s internal struggle to train and fight off the darkness in him while confronting his fear of Vader feels realistic as well. And of course, the mic drop of all mic drops in sci-fi and maybe movie history – “I am your father.” I was eight or nine years old when I remember first watching and actually understanding some of what was going on. I remember yelling “WHAT?!?” as I watched. The most iconic moment of the series. It made this more than just a space opera. More than just a sequel to a sci-fi hit. Those words made Star Wars into an expandable series that they have since built upon twenty-fold. It turned Star Wars from a battle of good vs evil into an internal family struggle – the Skywalker family saga that impacted not just that family, but the entire galaxy. Luke’s fear was no longer about confronting some ominous unknown bad guy. It was Luke confronting his father, one he never knew. And the 1980 special effects hold up pretty well in this one.

The Force will be with you. Always.

#starwars the rise of skywalker #starwars

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movienotesbyzawmer · 4 years

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Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones

December 9: Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones

(previous notes: Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace)

Source: Blu-ray release, the box set with all six Lucas-era movies (2D)

I feel like in recent years I've seen a lot of rhetoric claiming that this is the worst of all the Star Wars movies. But I've always felt like the prequels improve as they go, at least a little. Like, Hayden Christiensen might not be especially good, but he's an improvement on Jake Lloyd. Is there less of the childish stuff in this movie? Let's press play and find out.

Opening crawl is first mention of Count Dooku; seems like the previous stuff was resolved and a new story is beginning. Maybe that's why it's common for people to recommend skipping Episode I, like it's not actually necessary.

We also at this point in the natural chronology don't know anything about clones. Just the title here.

Another decoy-Amidala, but this one gets blowed up right away. And that's Rose Byrne, right?

0:07:30 - Obi-wan does a "oh… oh yes…. Mm mm mm mm mm mm" thing which is stupid and I don't like it.

Wait, no Rose Byrne is a silent handmaiden lady I guess. Unless they're clonesies. Are they clonesies?

Hey, a glimpse of Coruscant's colorful nightlife scene! Or at least some commercial advertisements. Feels like we don't see much of the lives of regular folk of Coruscant much.

Super pretty imagery of this city at night with its traffic and lights and I know I say that every time but it's great.

0:14:30 - Obi-wan shooting himself through a hole in the window in pursuit of that flying robot villain is exciting! And then he just hangs onto it, and then the sniper snipes him off it and he just falls and falls! This is a good action scene.

Then later, Anakin just jumps and falls and falls on purpose like and it's fun to watch.

0:20:00 - Does the sniper have a weird disguise that goes away when she turns her head? Is that what I saw?

"This weapon is your life" says Ewan McGregor doing his best impression of Alec Guinness. I think it was supposed to be funny. And I think it succeeds. Helps to remember that EG's natural accent is Scottish. And you know what? Maybe a little bit ago when I didn't like EG's hammy delivery, I should respect that he's embracing the need for him to embody a young version of Alec Guiness's character, figuring out what that would look like while honoring the director's vision.

They're in a nightclub, and I think there's some genuinely imaginative vision around what people are doing in there.

Ooh! The sniper got sniped by someone else, and the shot of that second sniper zipping away on a jetpack is I like it.

Senator Amidala gives Jar Jar the important job of substitute senator while she goes and hides. Yeah right. Not very credible.

Now Anakin is venting to Amidala in a way that shows how cocky he is. He does the flirtation stuff so that we'll think he's sexy like Han Solo, but also visibly flawed with impatience. Meh. Okay.

Whoa, Rose Byrne just did some acting! She spontaneously shed a tear in a way that looked authentic! Acting… in a Star Wars prequel!

0:31:50 - A greasy spoon diner! I don't remember this. Obi Wan is doing some intel gathering and George Lucas decided to go all in on having this be a 50's-style neon urban railcar slop counter!

The romance. Anakin and Amidala. GL is also going all in on the overtness of that plot. Maybe it's fine? Anakin seems like a horny and awkward teen with a huge crush on someone out of his league but he's going for it anyway. Maybe we'll be convinced that she'd succumb to his charms?

0:39:00 - We're back on Naboo… this scene is oddly non-CGI-looking. Did they film this in a real place with that actual architecture?

The tension they're setting up between Anakin and Amidala is moving in a direction of NOT growing fonder of each other. She looks irritated, and rightly so. This is a move that experienced romance plot makers make, but will GL pull it off?

Meanwhile Obi-Wan is doing spycraft, going to the clone planet place and pretending he's the one who ordered the whatever. "That's why I'm here!" Kinda funny.

0:44:45 - Okay, another A&A scene. He has that line about sand getting everywhere. She looks really damn fly. They kiss a bit and then she changes her mind. See, this is a weak link in the romance plot. We don't buy it. She's not such a sucker that she'd want to kiss him now. She didn't go, "oh he was so charming when he talked about where sand goes that now I'm not only less annoyed by his churlishness but I'm actually turned on". Or did she.

There's something about Obi-Wan's intel gathering, realizing that this huge army of clones is being put together, that's very James Bond-y. I mean that in a good way.

Naboo countryside is hella pretty.

Oh ick. A very very stupid romance scene just happened. See, Anakin fell off a blob creature and it looked like he was hurt! This worried Amidala! She ran to him but it turned out he was okay! They laughed and laughed at this merry misunderstanding and rolled around together! Oh merry! And…. SCENE.

Now Obi-Wan and Jango Fett are having a fight on a platform place and it's pretty exciting and still kind of like a Bond movie. Even more so because of "gadgets" like the devices on JF's outfit. And a dippy little "this is not good" comment from Obi-Wan that would fit in okay coming out of 007.

A&A go to Tatooine and talk to the salvage dealer who used to own Anakin. I like where that CGI character visibly starts to recognize the grown-up Anakin.

Obi-Wan followed JF & Son to a pretty red planet with an asteroid field and it's fucking beautiful and they do this wicked sound effect with bombs and it looks and sounds mother fucking amazing. Seriously god damn. The SOUND.

1:11:40 - They're at what will be the moisture farm of Luke, et al. "I'm Owen Lars and this is my GIRLFRIEND Beru." See, because this is BEFORE they're married. She's JUST his GIRLFRIEND.

1:14:20 - Okay, they just did a weird thing where A&A have an exchange, then hug. But the camera just shows their SHADOWS. And Anakin's shadow looks like he maybe kind of has some semblance of a VADER HELMET. I'm not even that convinced that that's what they were going for. If it actually conveyed that, it'd be cooler. As is, it's a little awkward. But I wouldn't discourage a director from going for this kind of thing.

Anakin found the Tusken Raider camp where they'd brought his mom and he found her just in time for her to die. Like she was just hanging on long enough for him to witness her death. Melodramatic. Then he goes and slaughters everyone… this turns out to be important because it's the catalyst for him turning dark, but it's sort of a weak explanation for something so important.

So HC just did a rage monologue about how he killed everyone, and okay it's not good, but I really don't think it's HC that isn't good. I think he did his very best with really dumb writing.

1:34:30 - Ooh, we're back in that neat senate hall. Jar Jar was suckered into proposing that Palpatine be given special powers, and it's super easy and it just works, and the Jedi are like "oh, hm, bummer". I'm just not impressed with the story.

A&A have arrived on Geonosis and it's quickly quite actiony and rather like a video game where they have to fight robots and hop on platforms at just the right time. I dig it.

It's a little odd now… so I already forgot how A&A got captured in the video game factory place, but they're quickly hustled to an execution arena to be munched to death by monsters before a delighted audience. With Obi-Wan. Just a little odd, but now it's pretty fun action.

Oh yeah, Mace Windu cut Jango Fett's right head off! Forgot that. Another case of an interesting villain ending disappointingly. Except that it's important because his "son" witnesses it and looks vengeance-y.

1:56:40 - Yoda heroically shows up to save the good guys with a force of soldiers that look kind of like Stormtroopers. Those are clones, right? I guess so, but the movie didn't quite ensure we know that. I mean, if they're going to treat the audience like children with their jokes, maybe they could extend that same expectation to plot explanations.

Okay, so now they're in a much bigger battle. I like the flying thing that delivers a walking tank thing! Lots of exciting things to look at. It's not that clear which side is which, not by looking at the battle, but maybe that doesn’t matter too much.

They shoot down a globe-shaped ship as it's taking off and it's pretty. So is lots of this battle stuff.

How does Anakin have a lightsaber now? His was broken earlier. I'm probably not the first to ask that. I probably overlooked the explanation. Seems like they trimmed stuff out of this part of the movie to improve the pacing.

2:07:50 - This is the part that worked well enough that it's probably the main factor in holding this movie's reputation above that of Episode I: the light saber duel with Yoda! Those of us who had played the Dark Forces PC games were already familiar with how it would look to see a Yoda-type wailing on someone with a light saber, but it was a pleasant surprise for many, and it definitely worked.

Then Dooku escapes on a ship that does a really sweet-looking panel-unfurling thing. Love it. And then he goes to Coruscant. Very visibly. Which is for me to love some more.

The movie ends right after that, with Yoda observing that it's dumb to think of this as a victory because now the Clone War has started. Then we get suitably disturbing imagery of the Clone Army being imposing with, significantly, the Imperial March in the background. It's okay. Then a shot of A&A getting hitched. With, a little less significantly, the new tragic-love theme in the background which John Williams was probably pretty pleased with. And over. Okay.

Yeah, better than Episode I. Less childish. Although it's harder to point to a climax, it somehow seems less anti-climactic than Ep1. No less impressive visually, but with new locales compared with the first one. And it's true that you can get all the information you need by starting here instead of with the first one.

(next: Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith)

#star wars #episode 2 #attack of the clones

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