I wasn’t fully negative on the prequel then. I rented the soundtrack from the library, read the comic and book. Played the ps2 game. I had the Rinzler book on the making. Since then I find the film very unrewarding, too much cgi. I do like John Williams end credit and sat in the theater to listen to it.
I just don’t think it’s nearly up there with Empire like Prequel kids do. And I have a great deal of issues with Return of the Jedi, but it’s still better than Revenge of the Sith.
Return has a lot of the same issues of Phantom Menace. But was much less impressive in scope. I think with episode I George tried to push digital too far, way too many effects shots. Jedi had its moments, the Jabba set Sail Barge, Death Star II. Space Battle.
The Duel of the Fates I enjoyed, but if you slow it down it looks like a dance off and not a sword duel. Too choreographed.
Jar Jar is horrible, and I used to say he is an accidental hero. The court Jester character. The fool. The only time I found he was hilarious was in that Temple of Doom episode of Clone Wars.
I disliked petulant Hayden Anakin. It’s all Obi Wan’s fault he’s holding me back. Someday I’ll be the most powerful Jedi ever, I promise you. In episode II. Though Padme and Anakin getting captured was funny, and Obi-Wan saying good job. We came to rescue you and got captured. I sort of like the movie serial goofyness of them walking around the droid factory. But the cgi of Padme on the conveyor was ridiculous. Like the Space Taxes in part one, what does killing Padme achieve when Jar Jar already approved the emergency powers. I don’t get the trade federation angle, and Sidious whatever he was doing. Other than the war has begun.
Even Midichlorians are understandable in Phantom Menace even if i dislike them. Though I’ll say Red Letter Media might have scored a point about no central protagonist in the film. Even when it’s supposed to be Anakin in Phantom Menace. There aren’t characters there are barely archetypes. I like Qui-Gon but what does he do in the plot other than to be likable and warm. He exists to get killed to set OBI up on his hubristic journey to helping create Vader.
Obi-Wan and his detective adventure is ridiculous but made me smile. His fight with Jango is not bad. I don’t hate Jango. Though I’m not certain he needed to exist or Boba needed to be a Clone.
I don’t have a lot of thoughts about Revenge of the Sith except for all the cartoonish looking cgi scenes. Obi-Wan riding a lizard. Fighting Grievous. Palpatine losing to Mace on purpose and pretending to be weak. Mace being blown out a window due to unlimited power. Anakin being dumb and easily fooled to join the Sith. Obi-Wan looking into the recordings of the Younglings. The overly flashy and without substance duel. Too much cgi,too much lightsaber twirling.
Some of it is forgivable, but not Padme dying of a broken heart and never establishing the rebellion. Yoda losing to Sidious like a putz. Yoda being Chewie’s friend, and no mention of this is made of this in Star Wars 1977. Leia somehow knowing her mother when she never knew her thanks to the retcon ending of the prequel.