Star Wars rankings by series: part one
Contains Spoilers
With Halloween recently behind us, having seen the inevitable amount of Jedi and Sith costumes out and about, I thought it was time to revisit the Star Wars genealogy. One thing I began to think about while viewing the movies was how each set of three films is incredibly different from the other two; whether it be the writing, acting, or special effects, the series has definitely changed significantly through the years. The best way to compare the individual sets of three films is through a simple ranking, from worst to best. The following ratings do include some spoilers, so be warned!
3. The sequel trilogy
When the trailer for The Force Awakens was released, the hype could not have been more immediate and forceful. It opened with a wide shot of what seemed to be a familiar sand planet before a slight whisper slowly managed, “There has been an awakening. Have you felt it?” and the anticipated only went uphill from there. An unmasked stormtrooper, a new fun droid, x-wing fighters, a Sith with a three-sided lightsaber, and the Millenium Falcon led the way for what was more than a year of anticipation until the release of the film on Dec. 18, 2015.
The finished product was not worth the wait. I’ve never gone to a movie theater and sat through a film and thought How did they literally not come up with a single new idea? more than after viewing The Force Awakens on opening night. The entire plot was derivative of A New Hope, with the only differences being a new young leading cast along with Harrison Ford’s Han Solo and Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia donning heads full of gray hair.
The series kept falling out of grace, with the lone high point being the second installment, The Last Jedi. The reason for that lies solely in the fact that the new cast took a back seat to an aged, scruffy, and uncharacteristically grumpy Luke Skywalker. Yes, the filmmakers did Mark H amill’s character wrong by making him seem like a sullen quitter—a trait no fan could make sense of given his attitude in the original trilogy. However, just seeing the original protagonist back on the big screen in an actual role (looking at you, The Force Awakens) was enough to make this the best film in the sequel trilogy.
Now you may be thinking: What should you do as a filmmaker if you’re making films that are beloved by millions of devoted fans who have been begging to see more of their long-beloved characters entrenched in new adventures? Kill them all off, of course! That must have been the thought that Disney and their filmmakers had while making the sequel trilogy, at least.
Han Solo was the first to go in The Force Awakens, but one could argue that his death was necessary for giving antagonist Kylo Ren credibility as a true Sith with no remorse or feelings towards his family. That credibility, though, is revoked continuously throughout the series as Ren is seen as a whiny, high-tempered baby in all three movies.
After Han, the next classic hero to perish was Luke, who died near the end of The Last Jedi. This move nearly ruined any motivation that myself and many others had in seeing the final film in the series, Rise of Skywalker.
Speaking of Rise of Skywalker, the 2019 edition of the Star Wars series saw the death of Princess Leia Organa. The move was necessary given Carrie Fisher’s death in 2016, and was the only meaningful death in the sequel trilogy.
Rise of Skywalker was the worst concluding film in any of the three series. That says a lot, being that Return of the Jedi, the sixth film overall, was incredibly messy and all over the place (more on that in a later article). You can’t simply bring back to life a character like Emperor Palpatine, whose death in Return of the Jedi saw Darth Vader, the most forceful and brooding antagonist in any film ever, finally come full circle and return to the light.
Aside from the awkward return of Palpatine, the rest of the movie was awful, as well. There’s no question as to why this film is ranked 40 percent lower on Rotten Tomatoes than the first two in the trilogy. The final nail in the coffin for this series came in its very final line as the main character Rey, whose last name had previously been unknown, returned to Luke Skywalker’s childhood home. When asked who she was by a local, she responded with “Rey Skywalker.” The line acted as a symbol for how messy and uninspired this entire trilogy was.
To see where the final two series rank, look for part two of this article in next week’s edition of The Lamron.