- I guess that is a possible explanation, but I think it would have been a lot cleaner if Lucas just didn’t include R2 or 3PO in the prequels at all. There is zero reason they needed to be there other than nostalgia.
I agree with this. I like the idea of the story happening from the perspective of the two droids, but in the original trilogy they play a crucial role in the action while in the prequels all they do is hinder it. Their presence always felt very unnecessary to me, and they’re forever being used for goofy humour (such as everything that goes on in the Battle of Geonosis scene) which just never landed for me.
What’s more, their inclusion makes it an even bigger coincidence that they end up with Luke and the OT heroes. Lucas should have created two new droids to fill an R2-3P0-like role and dynamic if that’s what he wanted.
They’re used for goofy humour in the Original Trilogy too. R2-D2’s saw gag, R2-D2 shocking the Ewok, C-3PO setting up the Ewoks to attack the stormtroopers, Salacious Crumb poking out C-3PO’s eye, and even before this with C-3PO’s body gag at the end of The Empire Strikes Back and moments in A New Hope. They’ve always been used for goofiness to defuse the tension of moments. It’s sort of needed for kids in Attack of the Clones especially as Jango getting his head cut off is pretty grim stuff. Same really with the ending of The Empire Strikes Back.
C-3PO during Geonosis and general also has a lot of symbolism with Anakin. At the start Anakin builds C-3PO to help his mom through well intentions. This reflects back onto Anakin as he’s very selfless but there’s also a very independent streak in him at the same time. C-3PO has this too but is more neurotic. Then you get to the Battle of Geonosis both are at a crossroads. C-3PO’s body swap represents Anakin being torn between his desires and his duty. Just as Anakin represents C-3PO’s imbalance and alliances being blurred on a galactic scale. These things are also interchangeable. They eventually go their separate ways but not really as this leads to further symbolic meaning with Luke and friends later on.
There’s no coincidence if you watch the films I-VI as George intended. I don’t mean this to be rude to anyone who prefers watching them IV-VI, I-III as I know these things are subjective but so many of the problems some have with the Prequels I find tend to be from watching them as the second trilogy instead of the first. So many things work better in watching and understanding the story through the gaze of how George intended them to be viewed instead of watching them backwards as so many of the perceived plot holes aren’t actually plot holes. The story is also much more clear and you can see how seeds are being planted to eventually eclipse the entire universe.