Star Wars is such a household name at this point that even the few people on this Earth that haven't seen any of the movies (we can't be friends by the way) know names such as Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker. I personally grew up loving the franchise, having seen them all way too many times and previously owning upwards of 100 Star Wars related action figures. That's not to say I loved everything about all seven of the films, because that's certainly not the case. So, here's the order that I would place the movies in from worst to best.
SPOILER ALERT for those of you who haven't seen one of the most famous movie franchises ever made.
7. Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Is an explanation even necessary? But seriously, as the fourth movie made, The Phantom Menace is the first movie to serve as a prequel to the original trilogy that George Lucas shot in the late 70s and early 80s.
The story follows Jedi Master, Qui-Gon Ginn and his apprentice, Obi Wan Kenobi as they attempt to keep Queen Padme Amidala safe while settling a large trade dispute. As they're making their way through the galaxy, they come across a young Anakin Skywalker, living as a slave with his mother on a desert planet. Qui-Gon quickly realizes how force sensitive Anakin is, and takes him before the Jedi Council, requesting the child be trained.
If you ask me this film should've stayed in a galaxy far, far away. It's sort of irrelevant to the rest of the movies, other than the fact that we see the introduction of Anakin and how Emperor Palpatine infiltrated his way into the Senate while secretly being a master of the dark side of the force. With that being said, it was pretty cool watching Obi Wan strike down Darth Maul.
6. Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Another Star Wars prequel that simply wasn't that great, Attack of the Clones takes place ten years after Episode I. We now see Obi Wan as a Jedi Knight, training Anakin. After a failed assassination attempt on Padme's life, Anakin is assigned to protect her while Obi Wan investigates who the shooter could be.
It is in this movie where we see the budding romance between Anakin and Padme (that was slammed by critics) and the rise of the Clone Army. The final act of the film is where it gets most interestinjmg, as the audience sees a bunch of Jedi fighting droids. When the Jedi get surrounded, Yoda comes to their assistance with plenty of Clone Troopers to back him up. When the big bag guy of this movie, Count Dooku, manages to escape, Obi Wan and Anakin chase after him.
They engage him in a lightsaber duel but fail miserably, leaving Obi Wan with slight injuries and Anakin with a missing arm. Luckily for them, Yoda shows up and fights Dooku with both his lightsaber and his great knowledge of the force. Realizing that Yoda is too powerful, Dooku flees. The movie ends with Anakin secretly marrying Padme.
One good thing I can say about this movie is that it shows just how little Anakin can control his anger. We see that after he murders an entire village of Sand People after coming across his dying mother in their camp. This works because it hints at the fact that Anakin will succumb to his anger, and eventually fall to the dark side.
5. Episode VII: The Force Awakens
Jumping a little out of order, the next one on my list is actually the most recent film to have been released. The first in a brand new sequel trilogy, The Force Awakens picks up thirty years after the events of Episode VII. It is here we see the introductions of all new characters such as Rey, a scavenger living on a desert planet, Finn, a reformed First Order Storm Trooper, and Poe, an experienced fighter pilot for the Resistance.
This film mirrors the original Star Wars film in quite a few ways. We've got the hero living on a planet thats full of sand before being thrown into a war for the galaxy, tensions rising between the Resistance and First Order (essentially newer versions of the Republic and the Empire,) and of course Starkiller Base (a bigger, more threatening Death Star.)
Han Solo kind of even serves as sort of a Ben Kenobi role that Alec Guiness had in Episode IV. By that I mean he gets all of the new heroes together and gets murdered by the villain in front of them, quite possibly giving them the motivation they need to win the battle.
Although I ranked the latest installment of the franchise #5, I did really enjoy watching it. You could truly feel the excitement in the packed theater. It was also pretty cool to see the original stars back in the roles that launched their careers. One complaint I have though is the lack of screen time for Luke Skywalker.
I'm sure I'm not the only one a bit disappointed that Luke was only in the film for about the last ten seconds. Although I understand that it works for the narrative considering everyone and their mother was out looking for the last remaining Jedi, it was still quite a tease seeing him for such an incredibly short amount of time before the movie ends.
4. Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
We come back to the prequels again for #4. In Episode III we start off by seeing Obi Wan and Anakin battling Count Dooku once again, as he has Chancellor Palpatine held hostage. In attempt to rescue the Chancellor, Obi Wan is knocked out, but Anakin quickly gains the upper hand against Count Dooku. To the Chancellor's insistence, Anakin kills Count Dooku.
Throughout the movie we see Anakin struggling. Not only is he having visions of his wife dying, but he also has to decide who to align with, the Jedi Order or The Chancellor, as they have conflicting views. Later on, Palpatine reveals to Anakin that he is in fact the Sith Lord the Jedi have been looking for, and promises that he can save Padme's life if Anakin helps him defeat the Jedi.
This film is so important to the franchise because we finally see what caused the fall of Anakin Skywalker, and the rise of Darth Vader. We see just how cruel Anakin could be, especially in the scene where he murders a bunch of children Jedi. When Obi Wan catches wind of what Anakin's been doing, the former master and apprentice engage in what is probably the most exciting lightsaber battle in all seven movies.
It ends of course with Obi Wan as the clear winner, leaving Anakin for death on a volcanic-like planet. That's just the beginning for Darth Vader. Emperor Palpatine finds his new apprentice near death and quickly has him transformed into the cyborg fans saw in the original Star Wars movie. The film ends with Padme dying after having given birth to twins, Luke and Leia. The two infants are separated in case the Empire ever went looking for them. Obi Wan stays close by and watches over Luke.
3. Episode 6: Return of the Jedi
It was a tough decision putting Return of the Jedi at #3. It is the final film of the original trilogy and some major things happen. First off we see Luke, Leia, Chewbacca, R2, C-3PO, and Lando rescue Han from Jabba the Hutt. After returning to Dagobah to find Yoda on his deathbed, Luke knows he must face Vader again.
The rebels, led by Han and Leia, team up with the Ewoks on the Endor in attempt to disable the second Death Star's shield generator. While they're doing that, The Emperor unsuccessfully tries to turn Luke to the dark side. After Luke refuses to join him, The Emperor begins to torture him with Force Lightening. Darth Vader, unable to watch his son endure anymore pain, throws Palpatine down the Death Star's reactor shaft, killing him, but being fatally wounded in the process. Vader dies after making amends with his son.
Return of the Jedi wraps up the original trilogy, and the story of Darth Vader pretty nicely. I'd say he redeemed himself when he saved Luke's life. The film ends with Han Solo finally getting the girl, and Luke smiling toward the Force Ghosts of Yoda, Obi Wan, and Anakin.
2. Episode IV: A New Hope
A New Hope, originally titled, Star Wars, back in 1977, is what first introduced fans to the saga. It's when audiences first met beloved characters such as Luke Skywalker, Ben Kenobi, Han Solo, Princess Leia, and of course everyone's favorite droids, R2D2 and C-3PO. Not only did fans get to know the heroes, but they also go their first look at the ruthless Sith Lord, Darth Vader.
The story kicks off as Ben Kenobi, also known as Obi-Wan, and Luke set off for the planet Alderaan. Not only did Obi-Wan just recently tell Luke about his former days as a Jedi, but he also told him about his father, Anakin Skywalker. Obi-Wan told Luke that Anakin was murdered by Darth Vader, his old apprentice who turned to the dark side. Luke and Obi-Wan hitch a ride on the Millennium Falcon with smuggler, Han Solo, and his Wookie co-pilot, Chewbacca.
They wind up coming across a destroyed Alderaan, and are pulled into the Death Star. Luke and Han rescue Princess Leia, while Obi-Wan disables the tractor beam and is confronted by Darth Vader. The former master and apprentice fight, ending with Darth killing Obi-Wan. His death is what motivates Luke to destroy the Death Star.
Although this was a great intro to a great saga, #1 on my list proves that sometimes the sequel is better than the original.
1. Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
The Empire Strikes back may be the best sequel ever made. In this movie we see Luke start his Jedi Training with Master Yoda on Dagaboah, Luke faces off with Darth Vader, and Han Solo is finally captured and sent to Jabba the Hutt.
Episode V contains one of the biggest movie twists ever. I'm speaking of course of the scene where Darth Vader tells Luke that he is his father. By now that seems like just another simple Star Wars storyline, but it came as a shock to everyone when the movie first came out. I can't even imagine seeing that in theaters back in 1980. It made the dynamic between Luke and Darth that much intriguing.
We also got to see father and son engage in a much more interesting lightsaber duel than the one between Darth and Obi-Wan in A New Hope. And who could forget seeing everyone's favorite bounty hunter, Boba Fett.
Even though I claim to be a huge Star Wars fan, writing up this list took me longer than expected. Any readers that haven't seen these movies are probably extremely confused and have no idea what any of this stuff means. With that being said, if you know your stuff, feel free to comment on how you'd rank the movies.
