Thanks for taking more answers from the older set. I was feeling like this forum was more likely to be able to talk about our favorite characters from Barney Miller than the PT.
1. In one sentence, what is your description of a villain?
A villain is someone who intentionally thwarts the aspirations of other well-intended characters in the story.
2. Do you consider yourself a Star Wars fan? On a scale of 1-10, 1 being not a fan at all and 10 being a “super fan”, what would you consider yourself?
I'd say 6. I probably would have rated myself higher before I ran into this forum, but then I adjusted where the top of my scale was.
3. In what order did you first watch the Star Wars films?
A. Just to be a bit pedantic, I saw them in this order: 0,5,6,1,2,3. There was no episode number on the first Star Wars movie I saw. And, in fact, I remember being excited about Empire being Episode V because that meant that there would be three more movies about what happened in the time between Star Wars and Empire, since Star Wars was implicitly Episode I in my mind.
4. Who is your favorite character from the films?
Lando. Seriously. I'm a sucker for characters with ambiguous allegiances and realistic motivations. He's a powerful guy who's suddenly put in a tough spot, and he tries to play it both ways to the best of his abilities (sacrificing his friends' opinion of him and a guy he doesn't know in order to save both his friends and his city). When it's clear this strategy won't work and he's not likely to save his friends or his city, he switches tactics adeptly without tipping his hand to anyone. And a nice cape too.
5. Who is your favorite villain from the films?
Boba Fett (yeah, I'm one of those).
6. What is the first thing you think of when you think of your favorite villain from the film?
I think of how shockingly competent he is compared to those around him. This helps with my villain definition--it's not really quite enough to just TRY to thwart the heroes and fail repeatedly, you have to actually succeed every now and then.
7. If your favorite villain was not the Emperor, what is the first thing you think of when you think of the Emperor?
The surprise I felt about the lightning. I just did not see that coming at all, and it certainly bumped him up on the villain scale for me. Scared the bejeezus out of me the first time.
8. If your favorite villain was not Darth Vader, what is the first thing you think of when you think of Darth Vader?
His voice. Without James Earl Jones, Vader would have been a much emptier suit.
9. What is Senator Palpatine’s motivation for becoming the Emperor?
10. What is Anakin Skywalker’s motivation for becoming Darth Vader?
I'm going to have to pass on those. They weren't adequately explained in the OT, and I was too busy with self-injurious behavior during the PT to notice.
11. Do you feel sympathy for the Emperor?
No.
12. Why or why not?
He was presented exclusively as a villain, and the only development was in revealing his various deceits. I was impressed by his machinations, but that's not quite the same thing as sympathy.
13. Do you feel sympathy for Darth Vader?
No.
14. Why or why not?
While he was certainly redeemed at the end, I think it took so long for him to come around to it that I'm not sure I could relate to his motivations for doing anything.
15. When the Emperor died in Episode VI, what emotions did you feel, if any?
Relief. There was lightning coming out of his hands fer crying out loud!
16. When Darth Vader died in Episode VI, what emotions did you feel, if any?
A little boredom, honestly. I was never the biggest Jedi fan, and this was one of those Soap Opera moments that just dragged for me. Maybe it would have been different if I'd felt sympathy for him, but either the filmmakers or my cold, cold heart prevented that from happening.
17. Do you think the Emperor fits into your description of a villain from question one?
Yes.
18. Why or why not?
Lightning. Hands. But seriously, his goal was to crush the rebellion, which was pretty much everyone you cared about in the movie up to that point. That's serious thwarting.
19. Do you think Darth Vader fits into your description of a villain from question one?
Yes.
20. Why or why not?
He spent almost all of his time chasing down and otherwise making life difficult for the rest of the characters. A little redemption at the end doesn't mean the character is not a villain in general.