With all movies now available on home video, recently I watched the nine core Star Wars films in order from Episode I through Episode IX, ignoring standalone movies like Solo or Rogue One. Here then is my attempt to rank all nine films in the Skywalker Saga.
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Ranking the Skywalker Saga Read More »
This separatist movement, under the leadership of the mysterious Count Dooku, has made it difficult for the limited number of Jedi Knights to maintain peace and order in the galaxy.
Senator Amidala, the former Queen of Naboo, is returning to the Galactic Senate to vote on the critical issue of creating an ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC to assist the overwhelmed Jedi….
When ranking the nine movies of the “Skywalker Saga” there is never a question of which film comes in last. 2002’s follow up to Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace jumps forward a decade when a Separatist movement threatens the stability of the Republic. Standing against allowing the rising tensions to turn to war, now Senator Amidala (Natalie Portman) returns to Coruscant. An attack on the Senator’s life will bring her back into contact with Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and his padawan Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen), and bring Anakin one step closer to his dark destiny.
Much of the film focuses on Anakin’s two primarily relationships. Though he loves and respects Obi-Wan, Anakin is bristling over not yet earning the rank of Jedi Knight. The seed of Anakin’s contempt for the Jedi Order buried in the first film continue to grow. His obsession for Padme is more simple, but there’s a darker side to it as well. Aside from such a relationship being forbidden by the Jedi, there’s also the manner Anakin peruses Padme, while assigned to protect her, through both guilt and seducing her into a relationship she knows is wrong.
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Star Wars – Attack of the Clones Read More »
Hoping to resolve the matter with a blockade of deadly battleships, the greedy Trade Federation has stopped all shipping to the small planet of Naboo.
While the Congress of the Republic endlessly debates this alarming chain of events, the Supreme Chancellor has secretly dispatched two Jedi Knights, the guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy, to settle the conflict…
Now that the “Skywalker Saga” is complete, it seems like a reasonable time to go back and look through the various Star Wars films. Unlike some, I come not to condemn The Phantom Menace. Despite its flaws, the film has genuinely great moments, strong new characters, and vivid new worlds all while doing more world building than any Star Wars property other than the original Star Wars. Does it measure up to Lucas’ original? No, certainly not. But it’s far from the weakest Star Wars film.
Set at the end of the Old Republic, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace introduces us to the young boy who would grow into the most terrifying creature in the galaxy. Jake Lloyd is cast as the boyish slave Anakin Skywalker. Lloyd is your average kid actor and the failures of Anakin here have more to do with the choice to make him far younger than necessary than Lloyd’s performance. We’re also introduced to Queen Padme Amidala (Queen Amidala ) of Naboo, a young ruler struggling with the occupation of her planet by the Trade Federation, and Jedi Knight Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) who arrives on Naboo with his apprentice Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor).
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Star Wars – The Phantom Menace Read More »
Star Wars Adventures #31 gives us a Rey and Poe Dameron team-up as Rey lives out a long fantasy of spending time flying a working X-Wing and gets some piloting pointers from the Resistance’s best pilot in this all-ages adventure.
The banter between the pair, something not seen much in the sequel films, is the best part of the story. As many of these stories do, “Squad Goals” brings in characters from other corners of the Star Wars galaxy. Issue #31 brings back the buzz droids from Revenge of the Sith who attack Rey and Poe while training as Rey proves an able student for Poe (even if her mentor only destroyed one Death Star).
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Star Wars Adventures #31 Read More »
The unexpected appearance of a familiar face rocks the Dark Lord of the Sith as Darth Vader #2 picks up from the first-issue cliffhanger of Darth Vader coming face-to-face with Padme Amidala. As expected, the woman is revealed to be Sabé (the former Queen of Naboo’s doppelganger and bodyguard). Although, in my opinion, artist Raff Ienco could have made her look a little more like Keira Knightley.
Issue #2 offers quite a bit of art, but not much story. Many of the panel’s focus on Vader’s remembrance of his lost love brought back into focus of seeing someone wearing her face years later. Despite neither trusting each other, the pair find a mutual bond in wanting to know the truth about happened to Amidala (although the way the events have played out since then we know for certain Darth Vader never learned the full truth about the final moments of Padme’s life).
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