Karen: Last week we discussed the big news about Disney buying Lucasfilm and announcing they would make new Star Wars films. This week, talk about who is your favorite Star Wars character(s) and why. A warning - the first person to mention Jar Jar will be relegated to the Sarlaac pit.
NOTE: This post was updated on May 21 2020 - the image below is a bit more modern than our original 2012 date of publication. -Doug
To start out today (I guess..), I'd have to go with the 'chemistry' of the big three from the original trilogy (Leia, Luke and Han..). I liked the Han/Chewie relationship that just worked with NO explanation needed.
ReplyDeleteTarkin and Kenobi were AWESOMELY cast, providing great gravitas as anchors for the first flick.
ReplyDeleteChewbacca. He's got the look, and the best lines.
When I first saw Star Wars, Han was my favorite character, but by ROTJ it was Luke. My favorite scene from any of the 6 movies was when Luke rescued everyone at the beginning of ROTJ. When R2 tossed him his light-saber and Luke went into Jedi mode, I finally understood what being a Jedi Knight was all about, and I liked it. I thought Lucas actually did a decent job of evolving Luke as a character from a naive farm boy into a Jedi Knight. (Even though the timeline of his training is impossible).
ReplyDeleteAs far as the prequels go, Qui Gon Jinn was my favorite character by far. Too bad they killed him off in the first movie.
I really wanted to just post something like WZOJQ – X1B and then leave.
ReplyDeleteAnd, just to be clear, we’re talking about the films here right, not all the other mythos ?
One thing I do find touching about Star Wars is the amount of back story even completely incidental and barely seen characters have. Where an extra would normally be craving a line, a word or a facial expression, anything so their character can have a name, in SW, even the guards who get shot in the first 3 seconds all have names, backstories and 401k’s.
I love the fact that Christopher Lee’s amazing longevity enabled Lucas to get both he & Peter Cushing into the series.
If we’re choosing based on the name, I’d go for Finis Valorum. That’s Terence Stamp’s chancellor, the last goodie. His name means ‘the end of worthy deeds’.
But my favourite, end of the day, is Obi Wan Kenobi. I particularly enjoyed watching, 30 years later, Alec Guinness’s richly layered performance as Lucas had clearly told him the back story. Look at his eyes when he’s lying to Luke. There’s really not much depth of characterisation in those films, but what there is is with Guinness and his delivery is sublime. If you strike me down....
Richard
BTW,is my eyesight going, or is Alec Guinness conspicuously absent from that montage? I get that Obi Wan is there in the form of Ewan, but both Anakin and Vader appear....so where’s Ben?
ReplyDeleteRichard
I am going to agree with William (seems only fair!). I really connected to Luke as a kid and my favorite parts of ROTJ were those with him demonstrating his growth as a jedi and a person.
ReplyDeleteBut I also really like Obi-Wan, and I think Ewan McGregor is a real bright spot in the prequels.He does a great job "channeling" Alec Guinness.
IG-88! Okay, not really, but since I'm no longer such a big fan of SW, I can't really say I have any favorite characters. I guess I'd have to sort of agree with david_b about the chemistry of the original cast, although I would expand it from three to five, i.e., to include both Chewie and CP30. Both were pretty vital to that dynamic.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a kid, though, watching all of the films for the first time, Luke was by far my favorite character. The Luke action figure is the first I bought, and I even had a Luke Skywalker t-shirt.
Edo, good call.. I love the Han-Threepio banter in 'Empire' the best. Won't go into quotes here, you all know the lines.
ReplyDelete"Hurry Up Goldrod, Or You're Going to be a Permanent Resident Here..!!'
"WAAAAIT FOR MEEEEEEEE"
Chewbacca
ReplyDeleteGotta go with Han Solo...he's just cool! Plus his character arc is pretty good...he really changes over the course of the trilogy.
ReplyDeleteMike W.
I'm a big BOBA FETT fan---but I often compare Boba to Wolverine---I liked the character ALOT better when there was still some mystery---the kid Boba Fett--blechhhh, that was one of the many aspects of the "prequels" that I abhorred.
ReplyDeletestarfoxxx
When I first saw Star Wars, I was 8, and Luke Skywalker was my favorite character. However, by the time The Empire Strikes Back came out, Han Solo was my favorite character, and has been so ever since. He's a rogue, and anti-hero, and he has almost all of the good lines. Also, like Mike W says, he really did grow as a character throughout the trilogy. The dude is just cool. I too liked Boba Fett (in fact I loved all of the bounty hunters) and agree with starfoxx that he's better with an air of mystery. Some things are better left unknown. I also like the droids, and Leia is actually a cool character, though I didn't care a hoot for her when I was a kid. Obviously, Darth Vader is one of the greatest movie villains of all time, and would have made #2 on my list here, but the prequels ruined him a bit, making him into a whiny wuss. Finally, I'll give a shout out to Lando Calrissian, a very underrated character. I'd love to see a movie or TV seris with him, Han, and Chewie together in their younger days.
ReplyDeleteHan Solo for sure.
ReplyDeleteOne reason the prequels aren't very good is that there is no character like Solo. Besides the fact that he's inherently cool and displays some growth throughout the trilogy, he sort of stands in for us, the viewers.
In the prequels, everyone is either a space monk or a politician, spewing Lucasian gobbledygook. It would have been nice to have a "normal" person show up and help Obi-Wan at some point during the prequels, it might have added some fun.
Karen wrote:
"A warning - the first person to mention Jar Jar will be relegated to the Sarlaac pit."
You mean "Senator Binks"?
Han Solo -- 'Don't everybody thank me at once."
ReplyDeleteYeah, who doesn't love Han Solo?
ReplyDeleteLeia: "I'd sooner kiss a wookie."
Han: "I can arrange that."
Gold.
Only one? I'll cheat a little bit and say mine is a tossup between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Han Solo. Kenobi for his cool demeanor no matter what situation he finds himself in, e.g fighting Darth Vader to the death on board the Death Star no less. Han Solo gets kudos too, just for being such a badass in the original trilogy. Han woulda fed Jar Jar to the Rancor for sure! Or else clean up after Chewbacca when he's shedding! :)
ReplyDelete- Mike 'these aren't the droids you're looking for' from Trinidad & Tobago
Lando Calrissian
ReplyDeleteI'd like to have seen more Lando too.
ReplyDeleteBilly Dee Williams was at our local comic and entertainment expo a couple weeks ago--looking good! Fun to find out he's a painter.
No doubt: Han Solo is my fav.
ReplyDeleteI do enjoy Obi-Wan in both the original and the sequels (as well as Clone Wars), and I will never turn my back on Chewie, Lando, or Leia.
--Joseph