by Nick Stock

Created on: January 18, 2007   Last Updated: May 09, 2007

Return of the Jedi.
There you go, I figured it out. It was easy. You disagree? Fine. Instead of showing why Jedi (Episode six of six) is the best film of all, I'll go ahead and show the other films and show why they simply do not stack up. Just for reference, I'll go in episodic order:
Episode One: Phantom Menace. Okay, a lot of people disliked this movie, but I'm not one of them. It was good for what it was; an interesting glimpse into the galaxy of SW before Darth Vader and the Empire. When Jedi were loved and feared, and the planets were united under a Republic. There was some lightsaber play, which was well done, but the story was lacking, the acting wasn't great, and there was an eight-year-old kid who successfully destroyed a hostile space station on accident. I mean, c'mon.

Episode Two: Attack of the Clones. Here's another one that people didn't like too much; the acting from Hayden Christianson was dry, and Obi-Wan had so much gell-crap in his hair, he looked like a keyboardist from a hair band. The lightsaber duel at the end was entertaining (one word: Yoda), but not enough so to make it near the best of the films.
Episode Three: Revenge of the Sith. I loved this movie. I thought it was ninety-percent excellent. No Jar Jar Binks, plenty of saber play, and three particular scenes that evoked quite a bit of emotion; when the order is given, and the Jedi are slain en masse, when Anakin is sitting in the Jedi temple, contimplating the arrest of assumed death of the Chancellor (which smacks of Kubrick) and the last, after Obi-Wan has defeated Anakin, and he's telling of how deep he feels his friend's betrayal. This movie is one of my favorites, but it just doesn't outdo Return of the Jedi.
Episode Four: A New Hope. Many people feel that this is the best SW film, but I think the reasoning that people take to defend that point is flawed. People say that when SWIV came out, it blew their minds; the effects were unheard of, the visual display was second to none at that point, and that really got people's attention. However, I maintain that, while an entertaining movie, ep. 4 was only a exposition point in the overall storyline. We meet Luke, Han, Leia and Chewie, and we see the state of things in the Empire. Palpatine builds a death-machine because of all the enemies he has; there's a Rebellion; Darth Vader is known and feared throughout the Empire; there are no Jedi anymore; and we see the death of Obi-Wan Kenobi, a hero of the previous films. A good movie, but the best? Nah.
Episode Five: The Empire Strikes Back. I have nothing bad to say about this movie, and for all intents and purposes, it is extremely well done. But, the ending is a major downer, and there is no resolution to any of the conflict and story that is built up during the course of the film. Again, great movie, no satisfying resolution.

So, Episode Six has heartbreak, a great saber fight, the destruction of the second Deathstar, and the acceptance of goodness from Anakin/Vader, the only character other than C3PO and R2D2 to appear in all six films. The series of Star Wars is very much about the life of Anakin Skywalker, and six tells of the conclusion. It is a fantastic film, and should, in my opinion, be championed as the best of the series.

Learn more about this author, Nick Stock.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.