15 reasons why the Star Wars prequels are better than you remember

2. Tragedy

People were so vocally upset over Jake Lloyd’s performance as Young Anakin that the poor kid left Hollywood forever. Fans complain that he’s too sweet, too innocent, that Hayden Christiansen is just a boring movie heartthrob, that none of this is the Darth Vader they want…

This is exactly the point, and it’s why this characterization is genius! We have to sit through three whole movies following an affable protagonist who we know will eventually become one of the greatest villains in Cinema History.

Every point leads up to tragedy. We know everything is doomed from the very start, yet we yearn for things to go right anyway. All the heroes are making what seem to be the right decisions, but every step leads to the ultimate downfall of the Republic.

3. Unique Lightsabers

At the end of the day, isn’t Star Wars meant to be fun? Isn’t it all about making us go “cool!” “Awesome!” “Wow look at that!” What more can we really ask for? Why isn’t that enough?

When it comes to that “Wow factor”, George Lucas brings his A game to the prequels. The iconic weapons that Lucas introduced in the original trilogy are given constant upgrades. It’s incredibly creative and shows great innovation on the part of Lucas and the rest of the team at Lucasfilms.

Whether it’s Darth Mauls iconic dual blades or Count Dooku’s curved handle, the lightsabers in the prequels are cooler than in any other Star Wars sequence before or since. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the crossguard blade that Kylo Ren has, but it’s got nothing on Maul or Dooku. Samuel L. Jackson got to have his lightsaber be PURPLE! Just because he asked!

That’s what good, fun, enjoyable filmmaking should be about: everyone having a good time and making something that we can all appreciate for it’s pure awesomeness.