It had been a long time since I had seen Episode II: Attack of the Clones. I did not realize how much of the feeling behind Episode II I had forgotten.

If the music from Episode I set it apart from the other movies, the vast, various and vivid scenery did the same for Episode II. It is a shame that most of the scenery was computer generated. I would love to visit the waterfalls of Naboo. Listening to the commentary made me realize just how much those guys work to get every detail right (even though there are always the goofs that slip in).

And the movie is so full of surprises. The biggest one to me was the Clone Army. From the title, I expected a huge attack of bad guys. Boy was I surprised to find out that they were part of the Republican army and the predecessors of the Stormtroopers in Episodes IV, V and VI. I had a hard time rooting for them even though I knew that for the time being they were the "good guys." And yet at the end of the movie when the scene showing the clone army entering their transport ships we are treated to the Darth Vader theme song, an acknowledgement that not all is as it seems. George Lucas has really done good with this movie, setting up new ideas and keeping everything mysterious for Episode III (due out THIS YEAR!!!).

One of the biggest disappointments when I first saw the movie two and a half years ago was Hayden Christensen's portrayal of Anakin Skywalker. He seemed to be quite whiny and I do not see the future Darth Vader being quite so whiny. According to Lucas in the commentary, he wanted to show Anakin as a good kid (in Episode I), who through circumstances turns to the Dark Side. I remember after watching Episode contemplating what would turn him to the Dark Side. I came to the conclusion that Darth Sidious would do something to either Anakin's mother or to Padme in such a way as to make it look like someone else (a Jedi) had done it. The Emperor would then use Anakin's anger and hatred of the Jedi to turn him to the Dark Side.

As it turns out, I was not altogether wrong, though I was not entirely correct, either. In Episode II Anakin goes to find his mother only to find that Tuskin Raiders have all but killed his mother. After his mother dies in his arms his anger and hatred get the best of him and he ends up killing the whole tribe of Tusken Raiders, men, women and children, all. That is not something that a true Jedi would do. He has begun his descent. So my theory that his mother would be involved turned out true, though on the face of it, it does not appear that the future Emperor is involved.

And after having recently watched Episode VI again, I am not sure that Padme is involved either. Luke asks Leia what their mother was like. She does not remember much, but the fact of the matter is that she does remember her. Which means that for a few years after the twins' birth, Padme is still alive. If Palpatine does something, it is not kill her. And something else that has to be resolved is that Leia was with Padme for the first few years of her life. So that means that Vader is no longer with Padme because he does not know that Leia is his daughter until Episode VI. Lucas has a lot of questions to answer in Episode III.

And speaking of Palpatine, we get to see exactly how cleverly genius he really is. On the one side he has the Republican Senate grant him "emergency powers" that enable him to create a Republican army to suppress a secession of ten thousand systems (according to Count Dooku), while at the same time working with Count Dooku to form the secession, not to mention the Death Star.

One of the biggest mysteries that comes up is that of who actually orders the clone army. Dooku seems genuinely surprised at having encountered such. I had thought it was him, but while watching the movie this time I came to think I was wrong. While watching the commentary, my suspicions this time around were confirmed when Lucas promises that this particular secret will be revealed in Episode III.

Since I will not be able to watch anything for the next few days, I went ahead and watched Star Wars: Clone Wars that was broadcast on Cartoon Network last year. It is a collection of twenty three-and-a-half minute episodes (except for the last which last about seven or eight minutes) that show some of the happening during the Clone War that Yoda had announced the beginning of at the end of Episode II. Those parts of the cartoon do not really add much to the story line, but it interesting to see Obi-Wan donning the same armor that the clones have on.

But there are parts that do. For example, Darth Sidious orders a Sith wannabe to seek out and destroy Anakin. That is not exactly something I would have thought he wanted done, but then we find out that it is all a ruse to just get Anakin riled up. It works.

At the end of the series, Obi-Wan announces that the Republic is victorious, declaring the Clone War at an end. That would seem to indicate that there will not be a Clone War in Episode III, but I am trying to remember if Leia, in her holographic message to Obi-Wan during Episode IV, recalls the Clone Wars, plural. If so, perhaps their is more to come. At the very end, Yoda sees more darkness from the shadows of the Sith. It is also my understanding that their will be another Cartoon Network series of Star Wars due out, which may shed some more light on the subject, or it may just beg more questions to be answered.

Though it is a bit of a trivial matter as far as the story line goes, one of the most interesting parts of Star Wars: Clone Wars was the introduction of how light sabers are made. It makes you wonder how the Sith get a hold of the main material needed to create their light sabers.

Episode III, here we come!

I was impressed with the music from Episode I: The Phantom Menace even before I saw the movie for the first time. I walked into the theater and the soundtrack was playing. I did not know at the time it was the soundtrack, though. Instead of the usual duh-duh-duh-DUUH-duh, du-du-du-DUU-du theme music, "Duel of the Fates" was playing. That kind of music always makes me feel alive. I think it is the music of the movie that really sets it apart from the first trilogy. John Williams really outdid himself. Watching the doors open and seeing Darth Maul standing there as Queen Amidala's entourage tries to pass is breathtaking. The music accompanying the duel between Darth Maul and the Jedi is outstanding.

But, of course, there is more to the movie than the music. There is the movie itself. Another impressive feature is that everything seems to be technologically advanced. Obviously George Lucas and his crew had more at their disposal for this episode than he did when making the first trilogy. (I see the same problem with Enterprise. Even though the Enterprise series is a prequel to the Original Star Trek, it seems much more technologically advanced, though there are some parts of the bridge that play on what was seen in the original series. I do not know how the crew justifies this, but...) I have, in my mind, anyway, come to grips with what has happened and why things seem so much better in the Star Wars past. There was obviously some sort of major war and oppression as the Emperor took reign over the republic. Looking at our own experiences here on Earth we can see that those countries and areas of the world that are most oppressed are the least technologically advanced. It seems that the same happens in space, as well.

One of the biggest disappointments of the movie is its lightning pace. There is so much to take in, I do not know how anyone could just watch it once and understand the movie. I wish Lucas had given the movie another half hour and did a little more development. As it is, by the time you absorb one piece of information, ten others have passed you by. And I cannot fathom how he will do Episode III justice. There are so many unanswered questions and problems to resolve, I would think he would need another ten hours to get through everything.

One of the most exciting elements of the story was the light saber dueling. Episode IV establishes the light saber as the weapon of a Jedi Knight, but as Han Solo said, (to paraphrase) "There's nothing like a good blaster in your hand." During the first trilogy, there was no real inspection as to how the light saber would come into play, except for close combat. But in Episode I we see some of the best dueling in all of moviedom (is that even a word). Rumors are that Obi-Wan and Anakin will duel at the end of Episode III. If I were a betting man, I would have to place my bet on Obi-Wan, for two reasons. First, he is older and much more skilled. But in Episode IV, Darth Vader as much as admits that Obi-Wan had gotten the better of him at some earlier time. As of Episode IV, "Now I am the master." We shall see. Obviously neither one of them is killed, and perhaps the rumors of a duel are just that, rumors.

In the end, Episode I leaves me with more questions than answers. In fact that was one of the things that really turned me on. Immediately after I finished watching the movie, my first thoughts were that it was an OK movie, but not really worthy of the name Star Wars. But I had a thirty minute drive home from the theater and on the way I was able to use that time to think about and go over what had happened. That is when the pure Star Wars magic really hit. That is when I realized that all those questions came together to make Episode I the great picture that it is. Perhaps tomorrow when I watch Episode II for the first time in a long time, I will be reminded of some of the answers. But if I recall correctly, there will be even more questions.

It sure does feel good to be able to say that Episode III is going to be released THIS YEAR!!!

This time it was Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.

I have always wondered at the title. I have never heard the term, "Jedis," so I assume (not a good thing to do) that the term can be used either as a singular term referring to one single Jedi, or as a plural term referring to a group (the group?). So does Return of the Jedi refer specifically to Luke or to a return to the Jedi ways, starting with Luke? I do not believe that anyone is under the impression that Luke is an actual Jedi Knight at the end of The Empire Strikes Back. Luke, himself, returns to see Yoda to complete his training, despite the fact that he calls himself a Jedi knight in front of Jabba. And Yoda states that even though his training is complete, he is not yet a Jedi. Not until he confronts Darth Vader. So if Yoda does not consider Luke a Jedi, I do not think the audience should either, at least not when he is at Jabba's palace to rescue Han Solo.

But I still do not have an answer to my question. Is the Jedi in the title singular or plural? Can a clue be found in the working title? I remember seeing a preview in the theater more than a year before Episode VI was released calling it "Revenge of the Jedi." Presumably someone (Lucas?) came to their senses and realized that revenge is something that should be far from a Jedi's mind and changed the title. But since revenge is an emotion that the Jedi as a whole would certainly shun, can it then be assumed that revenge would be a one-time mistake by a single Jedi? If so, then the Jedi referred to in the title would be singular, referring specifically to Luke. But then we come around full circle again, because Luke was not a Jedi at the beginning of the movie, and one could argue, not until the end of the movie.

Be that as it may, it is a great movie. I thought so from the first time I saw it. But to show you how easily I am influenced by others (not a good trait, I know), I also recall reading that at least one person said a more appropriate title would be Return of the Muppets. Thinking about it, I remembered all those blatantly fake alien types in Jabba's palace. In the commentary for Episode VI, Lucas addresses the point by stating that at the time computer graphics could not be used as they are today and so there were limits to the imagination they could put on the screen. I tend to fall in the opposite camp. After watching Episodes I and II, I felt that computer graphics were used too much. They are certainly an improvement over Muppets, but I have a hard time relating to any aliens that are not humanoid. Perhaps after science can come up with proof of non-human sentient life somewhere other than on earth I can get rid of that prejudice. Star Trek has spoiled me, I suppose.

Another thing that has influenced me greatly while watching the series this time around has been the commentary. And to tell the truth, I am not sure it is a good influence. Some of the talk revolves around how "silly" they were while filming, or how Lucas made the films to be a surrogate for the old Saturday afternoon matinees. It is almost as if it was supposed to be for little children, and it has made me feel somewhat insulted. I mean, having spent a little time on stage while in junior high and high school, I know that what you see on stage does not necessarily reflect the fun that the cast has. But I almost feel like they were looking down on their audience. Perhaps I should skip the commentary on DVDs for Episodes I and II.

But I came to the conclusion as a fourteen year old, and am still of the opinion (for now), that no matter what other people think, I love the movie. I do not know how many times I have watched it, but it has not been enough.

One poignant moment came after Luke surrenders himself to Imperial troops. After Darth Vader dismisses them Luke tells his father that he knows their is still good in him and that he should return from the Dark side. Vader says, "It is too late for me, son." I have to wonder if this is Anakin speaking, more so than Vader. It is almost as if Anakin is telling Luke to be careful not to fall into the Dark Side. In any event, I am glad that Vader was wrong in his statement, in that at the end of the movie, he does what is right, killing off the Emperor and saving his son's life.

And speaking of the end of the movie, did they switch Anakin Skywalkers? I seem to recall the Anakin Skywalker returning to the Force with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda as an older man. The one in the Trilogy DVDs seems to be younger and he seems to have longer hair than I recall. I also seem to recall someone who smiles at the other two. This one stands off to the side without much of a smile. Unless I am completely off, I have to think that this change does not do much to add to the greatness of the saga.

But it has not deterred me from looking forward to tomorrow, when I watch Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

Happy New Year!

I watched Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back today. I have to say that when I first saw this movie, I did not like it. Actually, it was not so much that I did not like it as it was it did not really do anything for me. Or, how best to explain it? Of the three films in the original trilogy, it did the least for me, despite the revelation of Luke's parentage. (During the commentary, I learned that this was such a closely guarded secret that even David Prowse, the man inside the Darth Vader costume, did not know until he saw the movie in the theater. This also begs the question, what secrets will be revealed in Episode III? I have heard not a few people speculate that Emperor Palpatine is Anakin Skywalker's true father.) But looking back on it, The Empire Strikes Back is a good movie, if not a great movie, and it has some stuff quite relevant to the saga as a whole. It is indispensable to the story-line, and I have much more admiration for it now than I did when I watched it when I was only twelve years old.

Still, watching it again, I have a couple of questions about this one as well.

Because of what we know from Episode II, I find it hard to believe that Boba Fett turns into a simple bounty hunter. He is a clone, just like the other clones that form the Stormtroopers, except that he was allowed to grow at a normal pace, rather than an accelerated one. It seems to me that he could have taken a much more powerful position in the Empire. Or maybe he was after money more so than power. Or maybe the Emperor would not give him the time of day since he was a clone, albeit a clone different from the other clones.

Just before Han Solo is about to be "iced," Chewbacca starts a ruckus. Boba Fett raises his weapon to fire, but Darth Vader stops him, pointing the weapon down. Why does Darth Vader care about Chewbacca? Again, it is only speculation I have read, but is it because the old Anakin Skywalker somewhere deep inside recognizes his creation as a small lad, that of C-3PO who is being carried piggy-back on Chewbacca? That might be one explanation, but as one reader pointed out concerning why C-3PO, R2-D2 and Obi-Wan did not recognize each other, we're talking about a very common device that was last seen decades prior to this incident (Episode III notwithstanding). And in this incident, we are speaking of a sighting across a dimly lit room. So the question is raised once again. Why does Darth Vader interfere with Boba Fett?

Finally, just an observation, but it seems that R2-D2 is always quite slow, but somehow always able to stay with the crowd when they are running away. You just gotta love the movies!

Next stop: Episode VI!