Originally posted by: TheCassidy

But Jedi would never have worked without Empire, for that emotional pay off - and the same goes for Empire.

To be honest, back in 1980 it wasn't Empire that was great, it was waiting to see it that was so much fun...

I am not saying one doesn't complement the other, I am just saying that the only reason ROTJ & the PT are good films to a SW fan is because of the moments that tie the movies together, and nothing original in those movies makes you love them.

ESB doesn't have one moment in the movie that is recycled from ANH, it is totally original in its tone, story, character depth. The best moment of the movie 'I am your father!" contradicts everything that was stated in the original movie! ESB's great moments aren't all what has to do with the 'saga' in my view. The asteroid chase and the dialogue through that whole sequence is one of the best moments of the movie, yet it has zero to do with the overall story. The carbon freezing sequence is another great part of the movie, but if you look at the overall story now either 4-6 or 1-6, it doesn't have any 'tie in' moments that you waited to see.

ROTJ & the PT are loaded with them, and that is why SW fans are willing to accept mediocrity for more SW story, including myself when it comes to ROTJ. When Palpatine says to Anakin in TPM, "We'll wait to see how your career progresses...." only works in the context of the saga, and a true SW fan would appreciate that line. ESB has zero of that stuff, it has no little innuendos that only work when you watch the movies in order, and that is cause Lucas was still just trying to make a great movie at that point, and then once ROTJ came and the PT came out, it was more about the overall story and not the greatness of the movies. I am not saying what Lucas did was wrong to try to craft a story that works in segments with each episode, but it is very hard to watch all 6 in a row to really enjoy it, and that is why many here just can't sit down and watch TPM on a Saturday night like they can do with ANH, it just isn't as good a movie.