Bingowings said:
In an ideal world we would have seen some of those glory days but that's impossible without reshooting the films from scratch.

Whatever way you cut it the Republic and the Jedi are already on their way out at the beginning of Episode One (possibly after centuries of behind the scenes manipulation by the Sith or just by the sheer weight of the conflicting interests it had to keep in balance).

Sidious exploits a very exploitable situation.

It may be that there never really was a golden age and that it's as mythical as Camelot.

A thousand generations is a long time to build up monumental nostalgia compared against even Galactic peace and democracy could be made to seem dull and disposable.

Like Joni sang, "You don't know what you've got till it's gone".

Scenes from say CALIGULA (the feasting scenes, not the sex stuff) or other said Roman movies (like maybe GLADIATOR?) could be inserted for the sake of showing Senators or rich people in general enjoying themselves (as well as come across as gluttoness and weak). Or, if it's possible, say during a scene when Sideous is walking down a corridor talking to Maul or someone else, you take said scene and put it in a room they pass or in a room/window in the background, with the implication that Palpatine/Sideous sees the avarice and gluttoness behavior of what the Senators do behind closed doors and it is what is propelling him to create the Empire to begin with (along with the threat of a neighboring Empire taking them over).

That is why I say get rid of the TRADE Federation and just rename them the FEDERATION. Make them a seperate entity that is competing with the Republic (and a large outside threat) as opposed to a mere member.

Here is another idea: if the Calimari could be inserted in a few scenes throughout the Prequel films (say in the background of some of the Neimodian scenes, especially on the bridge of the command ship), as well as put the "rebel symbol" but in a slightly different form, you could create the implication that the Neimodians/Calimarians were the ones funding the rebellion in the OT movies, and that what we see in the OT is just a continuation of what we see in the Prequels.