Chewtobacca said:
RLM explained that it wouldn't make sense for Anakin to construct Threepio to help Shmi by observing that a protocol droid wouldn't be much use in the home.
That's his personal opinion. Where did he observe that?
It's the part where he quotes Threepio saying that he's not much more than an interpreter and says he doesn't say he washes dishes. Watch the review again. RLM does explain why he doesn't think that a protocol droid would be useful for Shmi.
Chewtobacca said:
If Lucas has to have Anakin build one of the two droids, it is more logical for him to build Artoo (to help himself)
But he didn't build the droid to help himself at the store, but his mother at home.
I know that. I already said that if a Protocol droid wouldn't help his mother and Lucas wanted Anakin to build a droid, a more logical scenario was the one I outlined.
Alexrd said:
Chewtobacca said:
a ruler might reasonably be expected to have more use for an interpreter than a mechanical droid on a day-to-day basis.
R2 served the queen on a day-to-day basis?! Where? And I thought they only met on the ship after he did a task that he was built to do.
I never said that Artoo did. I was outlining an alternative more logical scenario in which Anakin constructs Artoo in the films and the Queen is in possession of Threepio because she has a need for a protocol droid as a translator to help with her diplomatic functions.
TheBoost said:
Since at no point in TPM is there even a hint of what work Shmi does as a slave, I don't see how any argument could be made about what droid is more appropriate.
Although if they had been switched, I could hear this argument being made by RLM.
"What good is a spaceship mechanic droid to a slave? Wouldn't R2 make much more sense belonging to Padme, who actually owns spaceships?"
That's fair enough, but I was saying I think it makes more sense if Anakin didn't construct a droid for Shmi at all. (Whatver work she does as a slave, protocol seems an unlikely requirement.) Anakin constructs Artoo for himself -- not because he needs one, but because he likes to make make things.