The Phantom Menace 3D Release

[cooleddie74]

Dooku and the clones do a LOT of the work but it all comes down to Anakin's decision. Anakin turning to the Dark Side ensured Palpatine's takeover. If Anakin hadn't, Palpatine would have fallen.

AND been killed. Mace Windu was mere seconds away from striking him down. Anakin's intervention was the only thing that saved Palpatine from certain death.

I still have doubts as to whether Palpatine was really in a place to be killed. He goes from feigning weakness to lighting up Mace like a Christmas tree in a matter of moments.

I suppose his Sith lightning was his trump card, to be played if and only if Mace got the upper hand and was on the verge of defeating or even killing him. Do I believe Palpatine would have just allowed himself to be struck down? No way. He'd have put up some last-second defense, whether it be Sith lightning or something else. But he needed Anakin to be the one to attack Mace, so he needed to leave himself vulnerable long enough for Anakin to show up, assess the situation and lash out against the senior Jedi. My main point is that Mace could have theoretically killed Palpatine at any moment...or at the very least tried like hell to do so. Even if Palpatine was feigning to a degree, he was prostrate on the windowsill and vulnerable to a lightsaber blow from above. Mace could very well have done it if his timing had been right.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Mace hesitated. My interpretation was that he hesitated because at first he didn't want to simply kill Palpy. He realized, but only too late, what needed to be done.

 

[Mach5]

Only a Jedi Master of Yoda's patience could have waited that long.

Yeah, but Yoda is like 800+ years old. What's 23 years to someone with such a life span?

 

[cooleddie74]

Only a Jedi Master of Yoda's patience could have waited that long.

Yeah, but Yoda is like 800+ years old. What's 23 years to someone with such a life span?

Hey. 23 years is still 23 years. And I suppose his vast age helped matters when it came to waiting...but remember, Yoda's health failed and he died just one year after Luke began his training with him. Yoda was already on his last legs when Luke first arrived on Dagobah, even if he didn't say so in EMPIRE. 23 years can be an eternity when you think you might be on the verge of dying at any time. Perhaps his immense strength with the Force helped keep him alive long enough for Luke to mature, realize his Force powers and come looking for him.

 

[Trekker4747]

Perhaps his immense strength with the Force helped keep him alive long enough for Luke to mature, realize his Force powers and come looking for him.

Sort of like with my grandma and the finale of Walker, Texas Ranger.

 

[cooleddie74]

Perhaps his immense strength with the Force helped keep him alive long enough for Luke to mature, realize his Force powers and come looking for him.

Sort of like with my grandma and the finale of Walker, Texas Ranger.

Hey. Face facts.

Anyone who didn't live long enough to see the finale of WALKER probably had their ass kicked by the third fist hidden in Chuck's beard.

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOzTvDlT_Yw[/yt]

 

[sonak]

Dooku and the clones do a LOT of the work but it all comes down to Anakin's decision. Anakin turning to the Dark Side ensured Palpatine's takeover. If Anakin hadn't, Palpatine would have fallen.

AND been killed. Mace Windu was mere seconds away from striking him down. Anakin's intervention was the only thing that saved Palpatine from certain death.

yeah, Anakin's big contribution to Palpy's rise was cutting off the arm of a distracted guy. What an amazing fulfillment of destiny.

"you Anakin, the creation of the Sith, the subject of Force prophecy, will fulfill your destiny and chop off the arm of a guy who's not paying attention to you, kill a bunch of unarmed diplomats, and wipe out a bunch of children with the help of a buttload of troops. It will be glooooorious."

 

[cooleddie74]

Dooku and the clones do a LOT of the work but it all comes down to Anakin's decision. Anakin turning to the Dark Side ensured Palpatine's takeover. If Anakin hadn't, Palpatine would have fallen.

AND been killed. Mace Windu was mere seconds away from striking him down. Anakin's intervention was the only thing that saved Palpatine from certain death.

yeah, Anakin's big contribution to Palpy's rise was cutting off the arm of a distracted guy. What an amazing fulfillment of destiny.

"you Anakin, the creation of the Sith, the subject of Force prophecy, will fulfill your destiny and chop off the arm of a guy who's not paying attention to you, kill a bunch of unarmed diplomats, and wipe out a bunch of children with the help of a buttload of troops. It will be glooooorious."

I never said Lucas's writing was bulletproof. I just said Mace was a few seconds' away from killing Palpy. I'm one of the biggest SW fans I know and even I think that Lucas was smoking something pretty potent during the writing of the prequels.

 

[sonak]

No, I was acknowledging your point, not criticizing it. I was just mocking the writing for dropping the ball on how "pivotal" anakin was supposed to be.

 

[DWF]

Only a Jedi Master of Yoda's patience could have waited that long.

Yeah, but Yoda is like 800+ years old. What's 23 years to someone with such a life span?

Hey. 23 years is still 23 years. And I suppose his vast age helped matters when it came to waiting...but remember, Yoda's health failed and he died just one year after Luke began his training with him. Yoda was already on his last legs when Luke first arrived on Dagobah, even if he didn't say so in EMPIRE. 23 years can be an eternity when you think you might be on the verge of dying at any time. Perhaps his immense strength with the Force helped keep him alive long enough for Luke to mature, realize his Force powers and come looking for him.

Yes aparently Yoda developed Joseph Campbell desease that affects mentors and allows them to die before the story ends.

 

[cooleddie74]

No, I was acknowledging your point, not criticizing it. I was just mocking the writing for dropping the ball on how "pivotal" anakin was supposed to be.

Oh, I know you weren't criticizing. I didn't want it to sound like didn't think you were. I for one realize and recognize George's storytelling failings. As rabid a SW fan as I am, even I have trouble swallowing some of his twists and turns.

 

[DWF]

No, I was acknowledging your point, not criticizing it. I was just mocking the writing for dropping the ball on how "pivotal" anakin was supposed to be.

Anakin killed off Palpatine and ended the Sith, you can't get too much more in the of way pivotal than that.

 

[cooleddie74]

No, I was acknowledging your point, not criticizing it. I was just mocking the writing for dropping the ball on how "pivotal" anakin was supposed to be.

Anakin killed off Palpatine and ended the Sith, you can't get too much more in the of way pivotal than that.

True. A shame for the galaxy that it took him almost 25 years(and billions of innocent lives)to do it. But...still.

 

[Enterprise is Great]

An old person can go from being in good shape and then dying in a period of weeks or months. That probably happened with Yoda. Besides that he was just hanging on long enough so he could train Luke. The Force probably kept him alive for that long but once Luke was ready the Force just didn't sustain him any longer.

 

[DWF]

No, I was acknowledging your point, not criticizing it. I was just mocking the writing for dropping the ball on how "pivotal" anakin was supposed to be.

Anakin killed off Palpatine and ended the Sith, you can't get too much more in the of way pivotal than that.

True. A shame for the galaxy that it took him almost 25 years(and billions of innocent lives)to do it. But...still.

"Miss them not, mourn them not, for they have returned to the Force."

 

[cooleddie74]

Anakin killed off Palpatine and ended the Sith, you can't get too much more in the of way pivotal than that.

True. A shame for the galaxy that it took him almost 25 years(and billions of innocent lives)to do it. But...still.

"Miss them not, mourn them not, for they have returned to the Force."

Easy for Yoda to say. He didn't have old high school buddies, relatives and a summer cottage on Alderaan.

 

[sonak]

Anakin killed off Palpatine and ended the Sith, you can't get too much more in the of way pivotal than that.

True. A shame for the galaxy that it took him almost 25 years(and billions of innocent lives)to do it. But...still.

"Miss them not, mourn them not, for they have returned to the Force."

mmm, I found that line kind of unrealistic and a bit creepy.

And it doesn't gel with his wistful line about how "through the Force, things you will see, other places, old friends, long gone" in ESB.

 

[BillJ]

I actually set down and watched the DVD's of the prequel trilogy and was actually moderately entertained. Though the DVD transfer for The Phantom Menace was pretty bad.

I think spending some years away and then coming back and taking a fresh look definitely helps.

Two views though that didn't change even with time...

1. Ewan McGregor made a great Obi-Wan Kenobi.

2. Anakin was so unlikable in the second and third episodes I never really cared when he fell to the dark side.

 

[cooleddie74]

Even CLONES seems fresher after I spend some time away from it. Unfortunately, not fresh enough.

 

[sonak]

Even CLONES seems fresher after I spend some time away from it. Unfortunately, not fresh enough.

sooooooo much better than TPM though.