Simple Solutions

As I watched the Prequel trilogy last weekend on Blu-Ray…I could not help but think of ways to have improved them.

1.Anakin Skywalker should have been older.  Seriously.  It is really clear that when Obi Wan speaks of him in a New Hope that he was a skilled pilot and a young man.  Make him 15, gifted, yet untrained, in the Force.  He’s bold and brash, he loves taking risks, with little thought of his own safety.  He doesn’t succeed by total blundering accident.  He’s also loyal to a fault, wanting to protect those he cares about.  Make him less whiny, more frustrated by the constraints of the Jedi, making the Sith grow in appeal, allowing the Emperor to tempt him.

2.  Dump the stupid “no love relationships for Jedi” thing.  There are plenty of reasons you could create to have the relationship be secretive.

3.  Make Darth Maul the big heavy of the trilogy.  He is an apprentice, but let the Jedi be tricked into thinking he is the leader of a new and growing Sith Order.  This could create plausible confusion for the Jedi Knights that would make them less inept.  They are focused on Darth Maul and his Sith Lords, never realizing the true Sith Master is the future Emperor.  It after defeating Darth Maul in the climactic duel of the second film, Anakin is horrified to learn that the man he respects, the Chancellor, is indeed the man behind the Sith Revival.  The first act of the third film is his seduction to the dark side, the second his betrayal of the Jedi.

4. Allow more than two Sith Lords.  In light of my previous suggestion?  This is mainly so they can keep Christopher Lee.  Heck, make it look like Dooku and Maul are the top Sith.

5. Allow the Jedi to start to discover their impending destruction….allow them to try and prepare, failing because Anakin’s switch to the dark side was the unforseen piece of the puzzle that makes the downfall of the jedi possible.  It makes them seem much less foolish and inept.

6. Give Mace Windu a good light saber duel in the first film.

7. No Jar Jar Binks.  Seriously.  Either that or give him some defining trait besides clumsy.  Make him a warrior that is always at bickering odds with Qui Gon and Obi Wan.  Give him something otherthan a racist imitation Jamaican accent.  But the best route is to dump him entirely.

8. Don’t use real accents for your aliens that “resemble” racist versions of said accents.  It is distracting when your aliens speak like 1940’s depictions of the Chinese.  If you must, I recommend the default Villain Accent.  British.

9.  You know what was missing from the prequel trilogy?  Han Solo, or a character like him.  Simple and obvious solution?  Make Anakin your Han Solo.  Unlike Han, who travels from Rogue to hero, Anakin goes from hero to rogue.

10. Finally, AGAIN, go back to the original films and make sure you do not contradict them.  It is kind of simple, but saves you plenty of hassle.