Yeah, also all good points. I guess these’re all less important if you’re positioning the prequels as just the ‘flashback’ showing Anakin’s fall, but for a proper focus on the wider saga, TPM is pretty key.

Totally unrelated, I’ve just been thinking a little more about the opening of TPM, in the scenario where we don’t have the Jedi board the Neimoidian ship. I know some think we need those scenes, so I was wondering if there was an approach where you could have the best of both worlds, and that led me to thinking about intercutting between the early Neimoidian scenes and the scenes of the Jedi on the planet. Perhaps something like this:

Opening crawl explains that Naboo’s been invaded, that Queen Amidala is at risk of capture, and that the Jedi have been sent to rescue her (she’s the metaphorical Death Star plans).
Open on an establishing shot of the Trade Federation ship bridge, and a later scene of them talking to Sidious:
- Nute: “The invasion is on schedule, my lord.”
- Sidious: “I have the Senate bogged down in procedures. They will have no choice but to accept your control of the system.”
- Nute: “The Queen has great faith that the Senate will side with her.”
- Sidious: “Queen Amidala is young and naive. You will find controlling her will not be difficult.”
- Nute: “Yes, my lord.”
Cut to scenes of the invasion of Theed, as Amidala sadly watches.
Cut to the original first establishing shot of the Jedi’s ship approaching the planet.
Cut to the first scene of the Jedi originally in the droid control ship’s waiting room. (This is now a room on the Jedi ship, perhaps via some VFX masking of the windows to show the ship approaching quite low to the planet.) Have the droid (dubbed) say “We have slipped past the blockade but our ship has been identified. I have activated the comms jammer, and will land us in the nearby swamp. You will have to move quickly.” Keep most of the rest of the scene, surrounding Obi-Wan’s feelings of unease.
Cut to the scene of the Neimoidians on the bridge, clearly showing a transmission going fuzzy. (Originally they were reacting to the Jedi fighting the battle droids on their own ship.)
- Nute: “What’s going on down there?”
- Comms guy: “We lost the transmission sir.”
- Nute’s friend: “Have you ever encountered a Jedi Knight before, sir?”
- Nute: “Well no, but… [hesitates] I will contact Lord Sidious.”
Ideally, manufacture a shot of the Jedi ship landing in the swamp/forest. (Perhaps with added VO of Qui-Gon saying “let’s split up”, or other voice implying they’re heading overland to the palace)
Cut to the scene of Neimoidians and Sidious on the bridge.
- Sidious: “What is it?”
- Nute’s friend: “The [invasion/plan] is finished! We dare not go against the Jedi.”
- Sidious: “This turn of events is unfortunate. The chancellor should never have brought them into this. Begin landing [more] troops.”
- Nute: “My lord…”
- Sidious: “Kill them immediately.”
- Nute: “Yes, yes my lord, as you wish.”
(Now we have a reason for the Jedi encountering resistance immediately on the surface, and our villains and Jedi are in conflict even though they’re not in the same scenes.)
Cut to the scene of the Trade Federation invasion fleet landing, and then the Neimoidians holocalling in to the droid commander:
- Droid: “Yes, Viceroy?”
- Nute: “Captain, we’ve searched the ship, and there is no trace of the Jedi.”
- Droid: “If they’re down here, we’ll find them.”
- Nute: “Use caution, these Jedi are not to be underestimated.”
Cut to the Jedi fleeing the droids and encountering Jar Jar, and continue from there.
Later, when appropriate (around the plot of getting Jar Jar and the Jedi to Theed), have the Neimoidians’ arrival on the planet and their discussion with the droid captain: “Viceroy, we have captured the Queen.” “Ah, Victory.”

(There’s also perhaps a place earlier on for Padmé’s insulting phonecall with the Neimoidians.)

Now, the Neimoidians have sent a whole military force to hunt down the Jedi, emphasising their threat to the invasion, and the first time we see the Jedi in action, we see how they handle the droids mainly through evasion, but also some good Jedi skill. We still get all of the important context of the Neimoidians and Sidious’ relationship, and the Jedi’s relationship and context, but we get more quickly to action whilst preserving each side’s threat/reaction to each other. We also get the invasion in earlier, which helps move the plot along and helps make ‘save the Queen’ our core macguffin instead of starting with negotiation.