And that is all i have to say about that.

For now

*wack* *wack* "Time to take a breather, my ex-friend?" "Yes, ex-master, getting old is really a pain." "Tell me about it."

Or:

*wack-wack-wackety-wackety-wack* "So Yoda never taught you technique?" "Nope."

And Revenge of the Sith wasn't the only one with battle sequence- Attack of the Clones, on Genonosis? And you can't honestly say that the battle against Darth Maul was bad if you're into the fighting.

Also- it's not as if the originals didn't have romance. Han/Leia anyone?

Oh yah, and as lame as the muppet aliens/trash-can droids were in the originals, at least it looked like they were actually IN THE ROOM with Luke, and not bad computer generation. The prequels are way to green-screen for my taste.

Yes, but while they were certainly IN THE ROOM they didn't look even a LITTLE BIT REAL. But I suppose that one's just a matter of preference.

The OT was an amazing breakthrough in how stories in films were told. The story drew me in to the films, to the extent that I felt emotionally connected to the characters. I felt as if I were fighting alongside them, struggling to restore freedom to the galaxy while battling internal conflicts (Leia and Han's tumultuous relationship; Luke's struggle to accept his heritage, as well as his doubts as to his ability to become a jedi; Vader's divided loyalties to his master, his own plans, and his love for his son; Obi-Wan and Yoda's desperation to topple the sith and recreate the jedi order, etc).

I didn't feel any connection to the characters in the prequels. Sure, Obi-Wan is hot, but that's not the connection I mean. I just couldn't get in to the story. It was too confusing (example: what was AotC about, anyway?), the acting was stale, and the lines cliche. And there was way too much cg, to the extent that I couldn't even believe that the films were real, as I had with the OT.

In the OT there was a physical and emotional sense of realness, a kind of similarity to the films that I could identify. The prequels don't have that - they're too fake. The excessive cg told my brain 'not real', and even though I know that star wars is fiction, the cg was so unreal that it became blaise.

Sometimes cg works well enough to fool the eye - and brain - into believing that it is real. The alien machines in War of the Worlds were incredible, and I still have the hardest time figuring out if some of the people in Happy Feet are real or just really good cg. But in AotC and RotS, the cg was so excessive and so fake that my brain dismissed it (I zone out a lot during those films, which may explain why they confuse me.)

The OT keep me riveted. The prequels only succeed in giving me the urge to do something else.

Although they're in the same saga, and make sense if you watch them all in a row (Hayden's 'i will eat your children' smile at the end of Jedi isn't nearly so creepy), the OT will forever mean Star Wars to me.

The original was amazing, with that I agree. But I think I like Anakin as a youth better than Luke, who seemed really unrealsitically composed all the time. Anakin was much more realistic. I also liked the prequels better because they obviouslyhave better action sequences and graphics. The orgininals wee alright thoguh. I like the Han/Leia romance

Ah, finally someone who shows some sense. The prequels were excellently made and acted. Not only that, they meshed all of the episodes together. We finally learn the backstory of who and why Vader came to be.

However, the romance between Padmé and Anakin just falls flat ... I never could see her interest in him (I could see the other direction). It felt contrived, wooden, and like the characters were being forced into position to fit the canon of Episode VI.

For me, the original trilogy (and Han shot first/only!) was a story first. Eye-candy (including special effects) was secondary to story. And at the time, the aliens did seem real and alien, and the special effects were amazing (yes, they're cheesy now). But we loved Star Wars not for the amazing special effects but for the simple good vs. evil story and characters who we were immediately sucked into giving a damn about.

The prequel trilogy just doesn't have it. It has the amazing special effects, but it feels like special effects in search of story instead of story in search of special effects to bring it to the screen. Plot holes were big enough to drive the Death Star through, and not even the novelization of AotC was enough to sell me on the idea of the Padmé-Anakin relationship (in fact I hurled the book across the room with a loud "BS!" cry when I came to this line about how no one had ever told Padmé she's beautiful before Anakin did--that all the men she was involved w/ in her political career loved her only for her brains and didn't notice her looks ... I've also got some nice waterfront property to sell you on Dagobah).

The Original Trilogy is WAY better than the Prequel Trilogy. In my opinion, there is no contest. I'm not alone in this opinion either. SO many hard core life long Star Wars fans had their dreams shattered into a million pieces with the debut of the Prequel Trilogy. There's even a documentary being made entitled "The People vs. George Lucas" which deals in part with fans disappointment over the Prequel Trilogy.

It's hard to imagine the people would actually prefer the PT, which relied more on CGI then anything else, to the magical OT which started an epic. I would love to ask George Lucas what he was thinking about when the pieced the PT story together? I want to ask him why Jake Lloyd? Why Jar Jar? Why did Padme die before Leia had a chance to spend some time with her and, therefore, remember her later on in life? I suppose I'll never get the chance to ask these questions or get answers. That's okay. I just don't think I can take another person defending the PT because it had "cool action sequences." Blah blah blah...(no offense, I just view that as a very weak argument)

I agree with you on some things, but not all. Lucas did make a lot of blunders as far as connecting the prequels to the original story - such as the one you mentioned with Padme' dying before Leia getting to know her AND Obi-Wan knowing about the emperor after he viewed security tapes. (How did he know Palpatine declared himself emperor? He was announcing it at the senate while Obi and Yoda were at the temple.) There's a few other inconsistencies that Lucas overlooked too, but I won't mention them all. As far as the computer generated scenes, some added to the prequel and made it better IN MY OPINION. One of the biggest gripes I've heard though was changing Anakin/Vader when he appeared at the end of ROTJ. Most think Lucas should have kept the original scene as is, but I think I understand why he did it. (I also think he should have had Christensen inside the suit when Luke took the helmet off. They did have him in make-up for it, but that's beside the point.) This is what I believe Lucas tried to say by changing the scene: - Luke enabled the good side of Anakin to take possesion again. His spirit had died and was kept "prisoner" inside Vader's shell. This happened when Anakin was young and not burned yet. When Vader/Anakin died after saving his son - he was redeemed and was allowed to enter the Netherworld as he was before turning to the dark side because of his self sacrifice. - I could be wrong, but I don't think so. In any case, I have to defend the prequels. Through them we finally understand why and how Luke's father ended up turning to the dark side of the force. I think this added to the originals and made the whole saga better. Sorry to have to disagree with you, but that's just my thoughts on the subject.

Thank you for your well worded and respectful reply. I have to state here that I actually do like the Prequels. I didn't walk out of theater after watching The Phantom Menace full of anger and hate, like so many I have read about. There were many parts I enjoyed about the PT but, overall, I don't feel that they will ever measure up to the OT. IMO, claiming that the PT is as good as or better than the OT is the same as saying that the movie Clueless is better than Casablanca (just to pull two random examples out of the air).

I can understand what you mean about Lucas replacing the older version of Anakin with the younger version in the last scene of ROTJ, when Luke sees his ghostly mentors, but I'm one of those people who feel Lucas should've left the OT as is - I like the special editions but don't feel the changes were necessary. However, many of the changes didn't effect the essence of the story. Anakin's ghost in younger form, IMO, did change that essence. I believe Lucas should've left the ghost as the older Anakin.

Yes, the prequels were Vader's backstory and part of my disappointment with the PT lies with the letdown in that story. Jake Lloyd was the worst possible choice for a young Anakin (IMO) and Hayden C. wasn't much better. I guess the intent of the love story was to draw the audience in but instead Anakin and Padme's love felt forced, especially on Padme's part. The movies seemed to be less about substance and more about a spectacle of CGI lights that didn't stir me the way the OT did.

Still can't agree with everything you said. I just saw an interview with Hayden asking Lucas about reshooting ghost of Anakin and he said almost word for word what I did. It was the innocence and purity that young Ani had that Lucas wanted the character to revert back to. The time when Anakin's soul was free of the hate and fear that surrounded him as Vader. I have to disagree as far as casting Hayden Christensen too. I think he did a remarkable job portraying this lost soul. I do agree about Natalie Portman's portrayal of Padme' though. It wasn't as good as Hayden's perfomance. Didn't seem real enough. She made it appear that her love for Anakin wasn't a strong as his was for her. She was the main reason Anakin turned to the Dark Side after all. He gave up everything he ever believed in just to save her.

I think the interview was done by Moviefone. You should check it out. It explains a lot.

I didn't mean to imply that you were wrong. I simpy do not like how Lucas replaced Sebastian Shaw with Hayden Christensen in the ROTJ scene. I guess we're going to have disagree about Hayden's acting skills. Though he wasn't terrible, he wasn't great either. He didn't sell me as a lost or tortured soul. More of a whiny prepubescent. There was bit of an edge of darkness to him in some scenes but there wasn't enough to make me really feel that he was going to become Darth Vader. Darth Vader is one of the most recognizable villains there is and the person who played him should've had greater talent. I don't like finding myself becoming annoyed with the future Darth Vader.

As to the love story, it fell flat on both sides for me. It wasn't as raw, as real, as romantic as the Han/Leia love story. The OT is superior in every way to the PT in my way (except for CGI but, as I've stated before, that's not what's important in a movie to me).

However, though I had trouble with AOTC and ROTS, I can live with those two. It's TPM that really gets to me. It was terrible. Mostly because of Jake Lloyd. TPM is a blight on the epic that is Star Wars. At least we have ESB, which cancels out the negative effects of that poorly made movie.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. That's what makes the world go round. Indiviualism! To be honest, I agree totally with you on PM. It was kind of lame. The only good thing about it was that it introduced Qui-Gon and the younger Obi-Wan. I hope you agree that Ewan McGregor did a fine job of protraying Alec Guinness' role. I don't think they could've found anyone better. Regardless; "Star Wars" is one of the best sagas that was ever made. It's the story of mankind itself - our strengths and weaknesses as a species.

I completely agree with about Ewan McGregor - he was the best part of the PT. One of my favorite characters was also introduced in the PT (Aayla Secura) so I can't hate it. I'm glad that we've had such a civil discourse. I'm discussed this topic with others who told me that my opinion was wrong! How can an opinion be wrong if it's an opinion? Yes, Star Wars is the best saga ever. Epic and wonderful.

I quite agree with you about an opinion being just that. We each have our own thoughts and have the right to share them. If not, we'd be no better than the Nazis. I do wish you had agreed with me about Hayden Chistensen though. Have you ever seen any of his other movies? I think he is an outstanding actor and blame Lucas for not allowing Christensen to extend himself more in the prequels; especially revenge. If you've ever seen "Higher Ground" (a Canadian series he starred in) or "Life as a House" (which he won an award) and "Awake" you might understand what I mean. I'm prejudiced as far as his acting ability goes in the films because I'm a devoted fan, but his reach was far more than what people gave him credit for. He is not to blame for Lucas' decision to hold him back. That is one of the reasons I continued the novel on my own. I believe I gave a little more insight to what Anakin was feeling and why he turned to the dark side. (it's posted on this site or was - I posted it over a year ago.) I've added to it since on other sites even putting Anakin's thoughts when Obi-Wan defeated him on Mustafar. If you'd like to read the updated version, send me your email address so I can send some excerpts.

In any case, the following are my thoughts of the saga: Star Wars = the enigma of mankind. Through the saga we can see all our hopes, dreams, ambitions, religious beliefs, doubts, fears, love, and hate brought to light through its characters. All that we stand for is contained in that one saga that will go down in history as the epitome of all we have achieved as a species.

You just might be right about Hayden. I've never seen him in anything else. Natalie Portman and Liam Neeson are fine actors but I felt they were stilted in the PT. It might be the same for Hayden; I'll take you at your word. But NOT Jake Lloyd. What on earth was Lucas thinking? Or whoever cast the kid. It was an awful decision. IMO, of course. Though the acting in the OT isn't award worthy (at least in the case of the big three) but I felt those three far exceeded all the actors in the PT. Just my opinion though. I understand that yours differs.

I just might have to check out that story you mentioned. I tried reading the novelization of ROTS and I didn't like it. Send me the link and I'll read it. :-)

I agree about Jake Lloyd, but think the movie was important to include in the prequels. Only good "acting" Lloyd did was when he looked at Mace when they said Qui-Gon couldn't train him. Hayden gave same look in "Revenge" when Mace said he couldn't be a master. Did like the connection to the two movies. Regarding Hayden, you've got to rent the movies I mentioned. Outstanding acting in them. Think "Awake" is my favorite. It's about a guy who has to have a heart transplant, but he's awake under anesthesia. He's paralyzed and can't let them know he feels everything. One scene might freak you out a little. The way he screams blew me away. That scream is worth an award in itself. That's the only hint I'll give you. Jessica Alba is in it too. Very good movie. A lot better than Jumper which came out earlier this year. Was okay, but nothing to take note of. "Life as a House" was very good too. Kevin Kline was in that with him. Hayden plays a troubled teen and goes to stay with his father for the summer so he can "straighten" him out. He plays same kind of role in the series "Higher Ground." Troubled teen who gets sent to a special high school in the mountains. A. J. Cook who's on the tv show "Criminal Minds" plays his love interest and they both did a remarkable job in the series. Hope you get the chance to see the movies. You'll understand what I meant about Lucas making a mistake by holding Hayden back.

U gotta agree with that. I used to think the prequels were good, but looking back i see they're just terrible cash ins on the star wars name. One is just unbearable, now I'm all like, WTF is this supposed to be???? Two, haven't seen it in a long time cuz I it's the only one I don't own, and three is yeah, decent. But the originals? W00t!!!

Klet,

I disagree with you that the prequels weren't good. The originals were great - and ALONG with the prequels - the whole saga was and still is outstanding. I do agree that Lucas used the prequels to cash in on the "Star Wars" name, but he also used the prequels to mesh the whole saga together - even Phantom - as weak as it was. I do think it was not up to Lucas' - or the fan's standards, but Phantom did introduce Qui-Gon to the saga.

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