005 said:
Also, throughout the whole movie my wife was asking me why this is everyone's favorite (hers is RotJ). I couldn't really narrow it down...
I can offer my opinion here, as I imagine the rest can.
But first, direct her towards my "The Way You Do the Things You Do" (or whatever)Thread: http://originaltrilogy.com/forum/topic.cfm/WHY-we-like-the-things-we-like-and-why-we-dont-that-which-we-dont/topic/11378/
IT'S MY TRILOGY, AND I WANT IT NOW!
"[George Lucas] rebooted the franchise in 1997 without telling anyone." -skyjedi2005
"Yeah, well, George says a lot of things..." a young 1997 xhonzi on RASSM
"They're my movies." -George Lucas. 19 people won oscars for their work on Star Wars (1977) and George Lucas wasn't one of them.
I actually think "Star Wars" is the best, but I can tell why people like ESB the most.
Thanks for pulling that out of that dying 30th Anniversary thread for me, xhonzi.
The thing is she wants me to narrow it down to ONE thing that makes it the favorite. Every scene was like "Is this why, the snow battle? Ah Yoda, is that why?"
I just gave her the Clerks explanation:
"Empire had the better ending. I mean, Luke gets his hand cut off, finds out Vader's his father, Han gets frozen and taken away by Boba Fett. It ends on such a down note. I mean, that's what life is, a series of down endings. All Jedi had was a bunch of Muppets."
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I think it's because it's where we find the best versions of the characters.
Luke: Luke is not the whiny, innocent, or powerless farmboy from ANH. He is mature, confident and powerful. He is a leader or the Rebellion and the guy we know will win the day. He is exciting! He thinks he can take Vader at the end of the movie and we're inclined to agree.
By the time RotJ rolls around, Luke is humbled and serious. Knowing that <spoiler>Vader is his father </spoiler> has also cooled his sense of action and revenge. This is where the character should go, logically... but it's not the best verion of him. He's more exciting when he hasn't yet tasted defeat.
Han & Leia: This is the love story, right? Their characters are a little thin in ANH and they are really three dimensional in ESB. Again in RotJ, their characters are sort of already at the end of their arcs. Han is whipped, Leia is a slave and then a boring rebel then an crappy speeder bike pilot, an ewok captive and eventually a wounded rebel.
Vader: Similar to Luke, Vader really feels his oats in ESB. Regardless of what Vader's motivation in serving Palpatine, The Empire and The Dark Side in ANH must be, he is on the hunt for one thing in ESB and it is <spoiler> HIS SON! </spoiler>. He doesn't take crap or failure from anybody and he is on a mission. This is the best Vader. The story naturally takes him to a place after fighting Luke where he begins to change. I think the RotJ Vader is the right Vader for that movie, but he's still less interesting than he was in ESB.
So, that's why it's the best. In my humble opinion.
IT'S MY TRILOGY, AND I WANT IT NOW!
"[George Lucas] rebooted the franchise in 1997 without telling anyone." -skyjedi2005
"Yeah, well, George says a lot of things..." a young 1997 xhonzi on RASSM
"They're my movies." -George Lucas. 19 people won oscars for their work on Star Wars (1977) and George Lucas wasn't one of them.
Not written or Directed by George Lucas.
“Always loved Vader’s wordless self sacrifice. Another shitty, clueless, revision like Greedo and young Anakin’s ghost. What a fucking shame.” -Simon Pegg.
Actually, I prefer Star Wars for its superior script, acting, editing, and more realistic places. Obiwan and Yoda are equally awesome.
"Close the blast doors!"
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Han Solo, Boba Fett and Vader are "badass" there's "romance" and Yoda talks about spiritual stuff.
Those are usually the answers given. And often it gets thrown in there that they remembered as kids how "shocked" they were that Vader was Luke's father and they "couldn't wait" to see Return of the Jedi in theaters, but when they finally did, they hated the ewoks and were disappointed it wasn't how they imagined. So ESB becomes their favorite.
When you look at their reasons, you can see why they didn't like Star Wars as much: no Boba Fett, the Force wasn't gotten into that deep, and Vader was little more than muscle (Vader does do a lot more fighting and killing in the original than in ESB though, when you think about it)
PS: ESB isn't my favorite of the series, I'm just telling you why I think so many other people put it as their favorite. I think generally speaking it came out at a time when Star Wars was at the height of its popularity, while RotJ was more towards its public decline... and the fact that Lucas rushed through it makes it feel a little less polished.
PPS: I don't get why ESB fans hate Lando and wish he died in ROTJ to "atone" for being forced to turn in Han & Co. (before helping save them). In ROTJ he didn't have much to do for most of the movie until the very end, but I prefer him as a "good guy" in his prime. I guess if you just want him to have more screen time, ESB is better for Lando fans.
Puggo - Jar Jar's Yoda said:
Actually, I prefer Star Wars for its superior script, acting, editing, and more realistic places. Obiwan and Yoda are equally awesome.
Well, of course they are, since they're the same character. ^_~
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C3PX said: Gaffer is like that hot girl in high school that you think you have a chance with even though she is way out of your league because she is sweet and not a stuck up bitch who pretends you don’t exist… then one day you spot her making out with some skinny twerp, only on second glance you realize it is the goth girl who always sits in the back of class; at that moment it dawns on you why she is never seen hanging off the arm of any of the jocks… and you realize, damn, she really is unobtainable after all. Not that that is going to stop you from dreaming… Only in this case, Gaffer is actually a guy.
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Puggo - Jar Jar's Yoda said:
Actually, I prefer Star Wars for its superior script, acting, editing, and more realistic places. Obiwan and Yoda are equally awesome.
Well, of course they are, since they're the same character. ^_~
No, they're not.
I see Yoda more as that teacher who always tries to mess with you and you hate him at the time but he becomes one of your favorite teachers in hindsight. He's more agitating, more relentless, more eccentric and puzzling.
Obi-wan is a cool old gentleman. He oozes reminiscence of nostalgic glory. He's a tome into the past and he's holding something back from you. He's from a more civilized age.
Yeah, Yoda is more the crazy old (goblin) man