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Flash forward to 2004, PM, (Post Matrix.) What's the deal now? Suddenly throwing the simple archetypes of your heroes on the screen isn't enough. The depth of your characters and your story have to get pretty deep. No, you don't need to spout tons of Zen philosophy, but the entire crux of 'The Matrix' is what IS reality, and is it worth being in the real world if it's such a bleak place, or is it better to live in relative peace and comfort but in chains. Sure there were also a lot of cool fight scenes thrown in (I'm not getting THAT artsy on you) but the idea if this is more then just ANOTHER sci-fi/action flick.
Now look at 'Episode 1 & 2' and that sense of depth is lacking. There isn't a lot of development of the angst and guilt Anakin feels over leaving his mother on Tatooine. There isn't an inkling of why the Jedi could be so powerful but not notice there's a rotten apple in their midst. These levels of depth make the stories interesting, and make you care about the universe every is in. Unfortunately this feeling isn't there any more in the Star Wars universe. Sue, there's the sporadic whine of Anakin (so THAT'S where Luke got it from) but that's it. Just enough for you to go 'Oh, just shut up' but not enough for you to go 'So why the hell are you such an annoying runt?'
Finally, you KNOW how things end. No matter what, you know Anakin doesn't resist the Dark Side. You know to look at 'Episode 1 & 2' where the key question is 'So when does Anakin hook up?' Seriously, that's what it comes down to. We know what's going to happen; Anakin goes nutzo, sells out everyone, and gets thrown into the Vader suit to terrorize the galaxy. And the movies don't go beyond that.
Should fans not go to see 'Episode 3?' Not by any means. Let's be honest, we've all seen movies that are much, much worse. Hey, I dragged to good friends of mine to 'Fire Birds' over 10 years ago... and they never EVER let me forget that. And to expect anyone to capture 'lightening in a bottle' is expecting a lot from any artist.(No, 'LOTR' doesn't count. Remember, this is one biiiiiiiiiiiig movie, not 3 separate ones.) However, there is nothing wrong with expecting a good story, especially from someone who many of us admired for taking a hokey genre and making it a great one.