C3PO was an asshole.

I watched Episode IV: A New Hope yesterday with L. She'd never seen it before. It or any of the other Star Wars films.

Observations:

1. It's true. C3PO was kind of an asshole.

Not in the other films though, only in Episode IV. In the other films he's a verbose-yet-likable coward. A Guildenstern to R2D2's Rosencrantz.

But in Episode IV, he really is, he's sort of an asshole. Especially early on, after he and R2 go their separate ways on Tatooine. If no one else starts a "C3PO was an asshole" club, I may have to.

2. Darth Vader is single-handedly responsible for the destruction of the death star. I'd never noticed that before.

It's his decision to let the plucky band of rebels escape the Death Star so he can track the Millennium Falcon to the Rebel base. He lets them escape with R2D2 and with, therefore, the schematic plans of the Death Star's Achilles' heel.

Now, this is a big gamble. Way too big, if you think about what he's risking. And it totally doesn't pay off. In fact, everything goes completely to hell.

But strangely, as we know from the next two films, this will have virtually no effect on Darth's political career. Sound familiar?


3. As Tarkin gives the order to blow up Alderaan, Vader is standing with Princess Leia - he even touches her - but doesn't realize who she is.

4. In the cantina, Greedo says Jabba has put a price on Han's head so high that every bounty hunter in the galaxy will be out looking for him...


but these bounty hunters must not be very good, because it turns out Han was "hiding" at the bar in the largest spaceport ("the most wretched hive of scum and villainy") of Jabba's own home planet.

5. Obi Wan says, "You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."

This sort of thing gets said a lot throughout the series. The Emperor might even say it, I can't remember.

So, but if that's really the way things work, shouldn't their enemies be doing everything they can to keep them alive?

6. Much is made of Mark Hamill's whiny portrayal of Luke ("But I was going to Tashi Station to pick up some power converters! Waa!!"), but watching him this time, I see he does a very good job of broadcasting appropriate emotional cues from moment to moment. While still managing to reference 70's porn-star aesthetic! Hooray!

7. The fight scenes (blasters, x-wings, lightsabers, ...) are entertaining at about the level of (the old) Battlestar Galactica, and are not Lucas's strong suit. So... what are his strengths?

a) the grand overarching scale of the vision.
b) creatures, creatures, creatures. And 'droids.
c) choosing (and working with) John Williams for the score.
d) casting, at least in Episodes IV, V, & VI. Except for the Ewoks, who should be exterminated immediately.