In my ideal prequels, Ep1 would’ve had Anakin as a heroic protagonist. Ep2 would plant the seeds of darkness in him, becoming an antihero, and by Ep3 would be about him turning to the dark side, with the definitive turn at the climax. He may only become evil at the very end of the trilogy, but it’s a much more gradual progression that doesn’t feel forced.
Agreed 100%. The OT was very character driven. Every scene followed the POV of a main character. It almost never cut to a location unless a main POV character was there. In contrast, the Prequels would often suddenly cut to the Senate, or Palpatine’s office, or random battles with no main characters (in ROTS at least). It was more like a historical documentary than a character-driven story (with the notable exception of Phantom Menace). Consider the Order 66 montage, for example - something that feels very un-Star Warsy and doesn’t mesh well with the film language of the OT.
I think the Prequels should have been mostly character driven, to mirror the OT. Stuff like how the Clone Wars began, or Palpatine’s rise to power, etc. should just be part of the backdrop - a given historical background against which the story unfolds. The main action should exclusively follow POV characters like Obi-Wan, Anakin and Padme, just like the OT followed Luke, Leia and Han. A better way to depict Order 66, for example, would be something like Clone Wars Season 7, where we follow a single character’s POV experience through the massacre.