I believe that disposing of The Prophecy/The Chosen One is the best change one can make in a PT fanedit, aside from cutting the toilet humor in TPM. I just don’t like retroactively trying to reframe the OT as also part of “Anakin’s saga.” It’s just my preference and if you like the reframing that’s fine with me.
I agree. Over time, I’ve mostly soured on the whole Chosen One prophecy. Both for the reason you mentioned, and also because I think it undermines the ideas of free will that the OT had.
To be fair in a real world context free will could apply to God. He, himself had free will and chose to die for sins. So it’s not unlike Anakin who ulimately decided on if he wanted to save his son or let him perish along with letting the Dark Side win. If anything it strengths the case of free will as displayed throughout both trilogies. You can choose to follow your destiny or you can ignore it and evil will prevail gradually if you don’t listen to your calling. The Prequels often deal with the push and pull between doing what is required and what is easy. The key difference is the oppressor is pulling the strings behind the curtain. Yet also Jar Jar had a choice on if he wanted to help the Naboo, Qui-Gon had a choice to free Anakin and Jar Jar, Padme had a choice if she wanted to help her people or not, and etc… Utimately Anakin had a choice if wanted to join Palpatine or not. I personally don’t see anything in the Chosen One prophecy that contradicts free will. If anything it makes Anakin’s fall more tragic as he had to become the very thing he swore to destroy and lose everything but his children to finally see his destiny was to bring Balance of the Force.