Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens

Non-Spoiler review. I'm gonna do a more spoilery review in a few days.

Okay, lets get this out of the way. I've already seen it more than once, and I loved it more the second time. Granted, it's probably still only the the third best Star Wars film, but that's not a bad thing. It kills all of the prequels (there were prequels?) by a long shot. The Force Awakens might as well been called "The Faith Restored". Thank you JJ Abrams for being the Star Wars fan I thought you were.

I've heard this is a Star Wars movie that can be seen by someone that's never seen a Star War before and still enjoy it, and that's definitely true. The Force Awakens has a short learning curve.

I'll get the bad out of the way first. The main issue I had with the film is that it recycles a lot of plot points from previous Star Wars films, but I look at that as if you're gonna try to restore faith and recapture a lost audience, might as well start from a safe place. Even with the basic Star Wars plot, it leaves a lot of questions open where you can see potential places where the sequels may go. It's not completely obvious where the next films will go. My only other real disappointment in the film is that the score wasn't all that remarkable. It has the old Star Wars musical cues we all know, but I didn't hear anything new that blew me away.

On to the light side. The new characters are fantastic! I wasn't sure how the new guys would play, but they totally carry the movie and you care about each of them. They succeed in bringing a new generation of fans to the franchise. Finn is a great, funny, original character. Rey is the new, upgraded Leia for the next generation. Poe wasn't in the movie all that much, but he just became the Star Wars character I'd most like to have a beer with. Kylo Ren plays the intimidating, conflicted villain that the series needs. I can't wait to see what they all do in the rest of the series.

The action is great and the film is shot beautifully. If you're worried about JJ Abrams lense-flare, then worry not. It's non-existent. There's a lot of creative and interesting shots that we've never seen in a Star Wars movie before. None of the long, walking exposition shots to be found here, nor any of the shot/reverse-shot style of dialog. The film is paced beautifully. I don't think I took a breath the first 30 minutes of the movie either time I saw it.

It's easily the funniest Star Wars film as well. JJ Abrams nails the humor and character interaction. The dialog is a vast improvement over anything the the prequels. The stunted dialog and robotic behavior is completely gone! It's an emotional film, too! I got choked up a few times the first time I saw it, but even more so the second time when seeing my nephews react to it. This is the nostalgia I needed.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is the Star Wars movie you're looking for. While derivative, it delivers the fun, action and humor fans craved. It successfully restores faith in the franchise, and gives it the kick in the pants it needed. This is fun for the whole family!

5 (out of 5) Death Stars - Yes, I'm grading on a curve. It's a flawed movie. I don't care!

Mind Blown!

Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

What are Star Wars and Star Trek fans gonna argue about now that the franchises share the same director?  Can you just imagine how it would go?

"The last Star Trek movie had superior direction than Episode VII.  Ugh, and those lense flares on the lightsabers!  Are you kidding me?"

"Um...weren't they directed by the same guy?"

"Oh yeah..."

J.J. Abrams, uniting geeks since 2015.

It's really weirding me out that there's no colon in the title of Star Trek Into Darkness.  Shouldn't there be a colon between Star Trek and Into Darkness?  Otherwise, isn't the title saying that they are taking a trek, based in the stars, into darkness.  And what kind or darkness?  Space is dark, or do they mean darkness as in emotional tone?  I don't know why I'm hung up on that.

If you've been following my blog at all, or just look at my online name, it won't be a surprise to you that I'm not a huge Trekkie.  I didn't get into Trek until The Next Generation, which I loved.  I've also watched a fair amount of the more recent shows like Voyager, Deep Space Nine, and Enterprise, but I never really got into the Original Series.  Even the films featuring the original crew I've only seen once or twice each.  I understood the characters and the relationships, but I always felt like the Original Series and crew was a little before my time.

I was one of the guys that embraced the reboot and changes made in 2009's Star Trek.  I thought it was a good way to introduce Star Trek to the mainstream and a new generation, while still showing some respect to the Original Series.  In some ways I enjoyed Into Darkness even more than the previous film.  I didn't have to spend any time accepting a new cast or wrapping my head around the fact that it's set in an alternate timeline.  I was able to just sit back and enjoy the movie for what it is, and for most of the film that worked for me.  However, many things happen in the second half that really detracted from the film, and not just from a Star Trek perspective, but from a general storytelling one.

I can't really get into the plot too much without spoilers, but I will say that if you've been following the rumors about what Into Darkness was going to be about, I can say that much of what I heard was true, to varying degrees.

Everyone is back for another adventure.  This time the crew is responsible for tracking down a terrorist that has committed several attacks against the Federation.  This terrorist is a rogue Starfleet member named John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch).  He's retreated to Kronos, the Klingon homeworld.  Admiral Marcus (Peter Weller) tasks Kirk (Chris Pine) and the Enterprise to hunt him down, even though this may risk full on war with the Klingons.  This manhunt, as well as travelling so close to Klingon territory isn't something that sits well with several members of the crew.

Without revealing anything, they do a twist on a familiar Trek story, but I felt that many of these elements were totally forced.  Even if you weren't aware of any internet rumors or spoilers, the film has few surprises.  This will be especially true if you're familiar with the previous Star Trek film Into Darkness mostly references.

Another thing that really bugged me about the story is that they setup a climax that's supposed to have all this emotional significance, but a previous scene in the film has already let you know that what you're watching is not going to have any real consequence.  Knowing this takes all the impact out of it, and you could feel that the audience wasn't really affected by this either.  They should have been moved by it.  Another twist in the film is spoiled simply by having Peter Weller playing the role.  This isn't Weller's fault, but he's become one of those actors that when you see him in a role, you kind of have him pegged.  I didn't find these things plot holes (there are a few though), as much as just telegraphed storytelling.  It doesn't completely ruin the movie for me, but the more I think about certain plot elements, the more they bug me.

Plus, with shoehorning these familiar Trek elements into it, it takes away from this being original.  Why go through the trouble of rebooting Star Trek and going in a different direction if you're just going to spend a good portion of your second movie doing fan-service to previous stories?  The sad part is that until we get about halfway through the film, it still felt like it was going for something original.

Even though the story was a bit of a disappointment, I wasn't disappointed at all with the look of the film or the action.  J.J. Abrams certainly knows how to make an action packed film that's filled with great effects and is never boring to look at.  There are some great sequences throughout the film and it doesn't let up for a minute.  People have joked for a while that when he made Star Trek he really just made a Star Wars film, and now it's clear that he really is ideally suited for Episode VII.  I can't wait to see what he does with it now.

Seriously, this is only a slight exaggeration this time around.

The 3D is actually good for a change.  I saw this in RPX and this is an example of where I thought it enhanced my enjoyment of the film.  I just heard that 30 minutes of this was shot in IMAX, so even though I didn't see it in IMAX, I'd recommend seeing it in that format if it's available to you.  Oh yeah, this movie's got lense flares galore.

Another strength is that it does have some very funny dialog.  The cast still has great chemistry, and that's holding these films together.  I was a little surprised by how much people say "shit" in the future though.  You'd think we would have phased that out by then.

While in the last film, I thought Uhura (Zoe Saldana), Sulu (John Cho), Chekov (Anton Yelchin), and especially Bones (Karl Urban) had their moments, I felt like this time the real standouts were Scotty (Simon Pegg) and Spock (Zachary Quinto).  Simon Pegg in particular is a total scene stealer.  I also enjoyed Benedict Cumberbatch's performance even though there were many things about his character that bugged me.  I wasn't quite sold on Chris Pine this time around though.  While I really liked him in the first film, I had a harder time buying into some of the scenes where he was trying to be intense and angry.  I think some of this comes from how the characters were written though.  The motivations of both Kirk and Harrison weren't consistent for me.

As far as summer blockbusters go, there's a lot to like about Star Trek Into Darkness.  If you're a fan of the last Star Trek or sci-fi action in general, then it delivers on exactly what you're expecting.  However, if you're a Trekkie, your mileage may vary, especially in the third act where even a non-Trekkie like myself had issues with some of the forced plot elements.  Still though, it has great effects, tons of fast-paced action and enough funny moments to please those looking for a good time at the movies.

3.5 (out of 5) Death Stars

Fixing/Rebooting the Prequels - From an obsessive Star Wars geek that won't let it go...

Ever since Episode I came out I've often thought about what could have been done to make the prequels better or what would I have done differently.  I would actually fall asleep at night thinking it through.  Yeah, I know, I'm a massive dork, but I'm guessing I'm probably not the only obsessive Star Wars fan that's done this at some point.  After Revenge of the Sith came out though, it's something I kind of gave up on.  Star Wars was 'dead' at that point, right?  Thoughts would still pop in my head from time to time.  My interest was rekindled after watching the awesome Red Letter Media "Mr. Plinkett" reviews of the prequels.  They made mention of several ideas that could have been done to make the prequels better (and you'll likely see some references to that below).  Then when Disney announced the purchase of LucasFilm and that more movies were coming, it really got Star Wars on the brain again.  Also when you consider the J.J. Abrams is directing Episode VII, and he already did a successful reboot/re-imaging of Star Trek, maybe it's possible that down that line someone decides to take a crack at a similar thing for Star Wars.

I guess you can consider this blog post a living document.  I'm sure I'll revisit it from time to time and update it as I think of more stuff or mix it up a little.  This is also a really long post, so I've broken it up into several pages for the overview and each Episode.  Hopefully, that'll make it a little easier for you all to read.  With it's length, this might have a 'draft' feel to it, so let me know if you catch something I should fix.

This is all just done for fun, so hopefully you enjoy it, and feel free to add your own suggestions in the comments below.

First off, I know how this completely breaks the prequels. but since they're already broken, then who cares at this point.  I'm also not going to bother with renaming any characters and planets just to make things easier.

One of the easier and more obvious fixes is to first get rid of the whole concept of midi-chlorians.  Just throw Episode I.  This was mentioned in some of the Plinkett/RedLetterMedia stuff, but an example of this was that once the Jedi were aware that there was likely a Sith hiding at the top levels of the Senate, and there was a quantifiable way through a blood test to tell if someone has Force ability, then why wasn't everyone forced to submit to a blood test?  How is it any different than any employee having to submit to a drug test?  Anyway, I'm guessing that the whole idea of midi-chlorians was born out of George Lucas coming up with the name, thinking it was too cool not to use, and then throwing it in Episode I without any thought of how it would play out, or how it pretty much contradicts everything Obi-Wan and Yoda said about the Force in the Original Trilogy.  Then when he realized it didn't work, he just said screw it, and didn't bother with them for the rest of the prequels.  Getting rid of midi-chlorians would hopefully restore some of the mystery around the Force.
that out right away.  It's such a poorly thought out idea that I don't even know why it was put in the film. Not only did it ruin the mystery of the Force, but it wasn't even consistent in the prequels or referenced again after

This kind of leads into the second thing I would get rid of:  younglings.  Not kill them like Anakin did, or even the idea that there would be younger Jedi in training, but the idea that babies are taken from their families once it's discovered they have a high midi-chlorian count.  A better idea would have been to handle Force ability similar to how mutants are handled in the Marvel universe, where their powers typically manifest during puberty.  I'm pretty sure this is how Betazoids in Star Trek handled telepathy, as well.  This would also allow some interesting stories where you have 'prodigy' types showing significant Force ability at younger ages.  Anakin could easily be one of these kids, and that fact that he didn't get training until much later in life is one of the reasons why the Jedi found his power so dangerous and difficult to control, but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Jedi Academy on Dantooine

Another thing I would change about the universe is to show that becoming a Jedi is a revered thing and a great honor.  Kids would aspire to be Jedi and hope powers manifest when they are old enough.  Like imagine finding out around 11-13 that you're going to become a famous superstar athlete?  However, the random occurrence of manifesting Jedi powers is very low, and happens more amongst families that have a known Force sensitivity to them (I'll get to that later, as well).

When it's discovered a child has Force sensitivity, they contact the Jedi (or in some cases the Jedi sense them and they initiate the contact) and representatives show up to test the child.  If they pass, they are offered the privilege of training with the Jedi and moving to the Jedi Academy.  The families are financially compensated for giving up their children, so you can even show how desperate families attempt to 'fake it' and try to trick the Jedi in order to get the money.  It never works though. You can't fool the Jedi that easily.

Now, if they fail the initial test, or decline the offer to train with the Jedi, a ritual is performed that cuts the person off from using the Force.  They can't exactly have Force sensitive people running around the galaxy unchecked.  Also, in the case of trainees that wash out of Jedi training, they are also put through the ritual before being sent home.  Being a Jedi is not easy, so even though you may pass the initial tests, there's no guarantee you make it through the Academy.

A concern was brought to my attention regarding the ritual and someone being cut off from the Force.  There was a concern about this ritual being used for evil purposes (which I actually think could make for some interesting subplots in different stories), or that anyone Force sensitive may be subject to this.  While the idea of being cut off from the Force draws from Expanded Universe, I figured I'd expand on this a bit to clarify.  The ritual itself would only be known about by the highest Masters of the Order, and would require several people with extensive Force knowledge to carry out.  So while someone could potentially steal this knowledge  they'd have to be a considerable Force user to do this.  It could also be a reversible process, as losing powers never seems to be a permanent thing in any media.

This wouldn't necessarily apply to anyone that's Force sensitive either.  Force sensitivity would be in a range, where people on the lower end may not be noticed by the Jedi or show any outwards signs of it, but it could give them enhanced abilities or senses.  That allows for someone like Han Solo, who has often been said must of had some level of Force sensitivity to be such a great pilot and get out of so many sticky situations, but never actually giving off any detectable signs of Force use.

Once at the Academy, they go through a schooling period with Yoda and other masters on the history of the Jedi, basic Force use, meditation, swordplay, etc.  Eventually, as their rite of passage, they make their own lightsaber, and are then paired with a Knight or Master in the field as an apprenticeship, going around and doing diplomatic things, settling disputes, etc.  This schooling period has no time limit.  Stronger users get through it within a few years, while other can take decades.  Most are able to finish around the time they are between 18 and 20.  Students that take a longer time to pass the Academy, are usually put on a scholar's path, and are more likely to become instructors themselves.

All Jedi are expected to make sacrifices though.  Jedi are not allowed to marry.  Marrying is an honor bestowed only once achieving the rank of Master, as they've shown they have a mastery of their power and emotion.  Since the chances are greater that a Force sensitive will also have a Force sensitive kid, this isn't something that they want any Jedi being able to do.  By the time time most Jedi reach the rank of Master, they are too old to have kids or no longer have the desire to, fully devoting their lives to the Jedi code.  The option is there for them though, and longer living species usually benefit from this more.

Jedi are allowed to have emotion though.  This whole Jedi as emotionless monks just isn't realistic to me, especially when you consider all the different cultures and species that can become Jedi.  You can't expect species from thousands of different systems to conform to the same emotional range.  It makes sense when you take a single race, like Vulcans, and make it part of their culture and history that they decided to purge emotion, but again, it doesn't work in the Star Wars universe.  Throughout the Star Wars films, you see Jedi express emotion, so again, it's not even consistent in it's own Universe.

The whole marrying thing though can be another point of contention with Anakin.  You can show that Anakin doesn't always play by the Jedi's rule, and that the Jedi Council is extremely upset with him once they find out he has married in secret.  The Council can look at this as just yet another example of Anakin circumventing the rules and jumping ahead of others.  Many on the Council are already upset with how quickly he's advanced and they feel he's skipped past much of his training even though it's a time of war.  His age in the first place was one of the reasons that some didn't want him trained.  Anakin sees this all as resentment and jealousy towards him.  You know, it's like of like how veteran sports players sometimes have issues with young players skipping college and not having good fundamentals as a result.  As Anakin hasn't always shown maturity, this is another reason the Council isn't super happy about this.

So this is more of an overview of how I think the Jedi should have been, let's get to some of the actual story elements.

One thing that's always bugged me about Episode I is how the ages for Obi-Wan and Anakin weren't at all inline with the original trilogy.  Based on their ages in A New Hope, they should have both been at least 10 years older at the beginning of the prequels.  I suppose, you could argue that years of war, injuries, Force use and the harsh Tatooine sun aged them, but whatever.  When you see Vader at the end of Return of the Jedi, he's only around 45 if you go by him being 9 in Episode I.  Did that look like a 45-year-old man to you when the mask comes off?  Even when you consider everything, I'd have a much easier time buying into it if he was in his mid 50's by the time he dies.

Obi-Wan still should have been a good 10 years older than Anakin, and I think in his late-20s or early 30s when we meet him in Episode I.  Obi-Wan was a headstrong Jedi that wasn't above challenging the Council or status-quo when he believed in something.  He's had an apprentice for a few years, and they make a good team.  However, on a mission to investigate some rumored and suspicious Force use on the Outer Rim, they unexpectedly encounter a Sith Lord.  Nobody has seen a Sith for a thousand years, but Obi-Wan thinks he and his apprentice can take him.  Unfortunately, Obi-Wan was wrong, and his apprentice is killed and the Sith escapes.  It is generally frowned upon by the Jedi Order to get your apprentice killed, and is many times grounds for the Jedi being expelled from the order.  Even if you aren't kicked out, it tends to make you a bit of an outcast within the Order.  Fortunately for Obi-Wan, this is one the instances where the Council doesn't think he did anything wrong.  They couldn't have possibly been prepared to encounter a Sith Lord.  This doesn't make Obi-Wan feel any better though, and he feels terribly about losing his friend and apprentice. He's looking to redeem himself and track down the Sith Lord.  This need to prove himself can be another reason why he's so adamant to train Anakin when he meets him on Tatooine.  It's his chance to do it right.  The Council have tasked him with finding the Sith, and are sending more Jedi to assist him, but it will be several days before they can catch up to him.

Following up on a lead, Obi-Wan travels to Tatooine to find the Sith.  Obi-Wan meets a 18-19 year old Anakin while breaking up a fight.  Anakin is banged up and Obi-Wan helps him back to his place, where he learns that he and his mother are slaves.  The life of the slave is the only thing Anakin has known.  He has a few scars to show that he's been beaten and abused in the past, but now his master uses Anakin to win T-16 Skyhopper races.  Anakin's strong Force sensitivity allows him to win most Beggar's Canyon races, and his success has lightened how harshly he and his mother have been treated.  He's a money maker.  Also, now when Obi-Wan says in Episode VI, "When I first met him, your Father was already a great pilot", he can be an actual pilot, not some kid that races space chariots.  Plus, with it being T-16 races in Beggar's Canyon, it allows you to have a callback to things Luke referenced in A New Hope.

As Anakin was born in the Outer Rim and Tatooine is 'off the grid', his Force sensitivity has gone unreported and largely unnoticed.  Plus, his master hides this as much as he can, as if other racers found he was Force sensitive, they would look at it as cheating and the Hutts might kill them all.

Obi-Wan witnesses a race and feels the strength of Anakin's Force use.  After a successful victory, another racer accuses him of cheating, and Anakin fights back, accidentally 'Force choking' the opposing racer.  At this point, Anakin's secret is out, and he needs to get off Tatooine immediately.  His master, who's actually grown to like Anakin, agrees to let him go as he doesn't want to see him killed.  He'll hide his mother and says that he'll be able to buy off the Hutts, so to not worry about them.

One thing you can show while on Tatooine is that Anakin is frustrated with government for allowing him to be a slave and ignoring the galaxies problems.  He wishes he would do something about them, or that politicians would just do it rather than talk about it.  He's bitter and angry, but there's a flash of dry humor in there.  I don't want him played as a complete brat or evil from day one.  His transition to the dark side needs to gradual and natural in line with what we know of his background and personality.  I also want to throw out the whole 'Chosen One' thing. It's meaningless.

So, Obi-Wan and Anakin travel to another planet, still in pursuit of the Sith, and find him.  Obi-Wan and the Sith fight and it's a tough, brutal fight.  Just as it appears that the Sith may win, the other Jedi finally catch up to them and the Sith flees, but not before revealing to Obi-Wan that something big is about to happen and the Sith will soon rise to prominence again.

They all travel back to Coruscant where Obi-Wan takes Anakin before the Council and asks to be allowed to take him on as an apprentice.  The Council refuses, but Obi-Wan insists that he's the strongest untrained Force user he's seen, and because of his upbringing he deserves a chance.  The Council isn't wild about him not having any time at the Academy, but Obi-Wan says not to worry about it.  He'll teach Anakin everything he needs to know in the field.

More reports are heard about suspicious Force use and large fleet movements in the Outer Rim, so as Episode I ends, it's revealed that the Sith have amassed an army of clones and they launch several attacks on the outer rim.  One of which is on Naboo, home of vice-Chancellor of the Galactic Senate Palpatine and an up-and-coming Senator, Padme Amidala.  The fact that their planet was one of the first to be attacked, has rallied much support behind them, and vice-Chancellor Palpatine is able to usurp power to become the Supreme Chancellor.  As there's been peace for centuries, there's really not much of a central, Galactic army, so Palpatine's first ask is to institute a draft and an armada is built.  All able bodied men are thrust into service, but ideal soldiers are cloned to build their numbers faster.  This cloning practice is eventually abandoned after many years (like after Episode III), when volunteers are easier to come by and a Imperial Training Academy is established.

Oh, and in case you're wondering, the whole droid army thing is scrapped.  I don't see how you can call it a Clone War if only one side uses clones.  I'm not opposed to either side using assault droids, but I think they should be used in more of a support role, and maybe more heavily by the Sith army, due to their overall smaller numbers.  Also, as tempting it would be to have Sith running around all over the place, you'd have to use them sparingly, a few apprentice types here and there.  Show that cloning a Force sensitive person is very difficult, if not impossible, and even when successful, the resulting clone is usually insane. This is par for the course in the Expanded Universe, but I understand that's not canon.

I would have this be where Episode I finished up, or you could probably combine some of this into the beginning of Episode II.

We begin Episode II a good 5-6 years later as we're deep in the Clone Wars.  Many years of war have taken a great toll on the Republic and resources are strained.  As the Republic loses more systems and resources, Chancellor Palpatine begins to use more unethical methods of securing manpower and resources for more clones and ships.   This is largely unnoticed by the general public and even the Jedi as all of their resources have gone towards fighting the war.  The Jedi have also taken heavy losses at this point, so their collective strength is dwindling.

Obi-Wan and Anakin are at the front lines of war and doing great.  Anakin's field training has been going amazingly well, and the two of them have formed a good bond of friendship, as well as a strong coordinated attack.  Anakin's strength in the Force has allowed for a very quick learning curve, and his already considerable ability as a pilot has let him to many victories.  His legend is growing as more and more reports of he and Obi-Wan's victories spread across the Galaxy.  The Sith army fears the names of Obi-Wan and Anakin.

Episode II is pretty much just the war.  You see that Anakin and Padme have met and there's a strong flirtation between the two, but as this is a time of war, they don't have time to pursue anything.  Obi-Wan also seems to have a flirty relationship with Padme, something that hasn't gone unnoticed by Anakin.  Obi-Wan has now achieved the rank of Master, so he looks at Pamde as somebody he can see himself settling down with after the war, but he can tell Anakin has feelings for her, too.  Anakin's success has also made him very popular with Chancellor Palpatine, who goes out of his way to shower him publicly with credit and praise (while many times neglecting to mention Obi-Wan's involvement or other Jedi).  They also have formed a great friendship, but nobody suspects anything amiss about it at this point.

At some point during Episode II, Anakin senses a disturbance in the Force and takes a detour to Tatooine to check on his mother.  He finds that she was killed during a clone battle, and he's upset that he wasn't told there was a clone presence at Tatooine.  The Jedi kept this from him as they believed his attachment would cloud his judgement and jeopardize their current battle plans in the area.  He grows closer to Padme as he confides in her about the loss of his mother.  He also expresses anger to Palpatine that the Jedi kept him in the dark, and he wishes he would have been stronger in the Force.  He thinks that if stronger, he would have sensed what was going to happen to her sooner, and been able to prevent it.  Palpatine sees this desire for power as an 'in' and gives him a Jedi Holocron as an archaeological hey may appreciate, which unbeknownst to Anakin, is really a Sith Holocron containing dark teachings.  Anakin sensing the Dark Side in the Holocron is a little unsure about using it, so he stores it to look at later.  Anakin's darker mood is noticed by other Jedi.  They are concerned about his rise in strength and that his popularity may give him too much of an ego, making him even harder to control.  To this point, you can show that Anakin has occasionally taken liberties with his orders, but since he's always been successful, the Jedi haven't really punished him, other than express a frustration with his insubordination.

During Episode II, you can show that the Senate's inability to act decisively has caused them to lose more battles than they should, and this allows Palpatine to gain more power and a longer term.

I know it's Savage Opress, but you get the idea.

Episode II concludes with Obi-Wan and Anakin tracking down the Sith Lord from Episode I, who they believe is the leader of the Sith forces.  They fight and Obi-Wan is knocked out early.  While Obi-Wan is out of commision, Anakin goes toe-to-toe with the Sith.  The Sith sensing his may have met his match, starts to taunt Anakin, thinking making him angry will weaken him, only Anakin gets stronger.  He eventually overpowers the Sith and is ready to deliver the killing blow.  Obi-Wan awakens at this point and distracts Anakin with a plea that they need the Sith alive.  The Sith uses the distraction to cut off Anakin's right arm and escapes.  Anakin is upset at both the loss of his arm, and that if Obi-Wan wouldn't have interfered, he could have killed the Sith and end the war. nbap;He also noticed that despite the Jedi's teachings, his anger made him stronger, and he thinks he can control it.

The last thing you see in Episode II is Anakin holding the Sith Holocron Palpatine gave him, eyes glowing from the red light coming off it...

Episode III takes place another 5-6 years later.  The Clone War has taken a heavy toll on everyone, and you can really tell just by how war-torn everything looks.  Cities are in disrepair and many systems are complaining about lack of resources and food.  Palpatine is still in power, but has begun to look upon all non-human species as inferior, and even anti-Republic, since many of the non-human species have tried to stay out of the fighting. He secretly begins to use some of these species as slave labor.  The Jedi finally start to take notice of Palpatine's brutal methods, and how he's managed to stay in power for far too long.  They know there's something more to him, and intend on investigating further now that the war is winding down.

Episode III begins with an epic battle and a final confrontation between Obi-Wan, Anakin and the Sith.  They finally best the Sith, but not before he betrays the identity of his true master, Palpatine, to Anakin.  The Jedi announce the death of the Sith Lord thinking that will end the war and force Palpatine's to relinquish his power.  Anakin has not yet revealed to the Jedi that Palpatine is a Sith due to their friendship and wanting to investigate it.  Lies are the way of the Sith, so Anakin doesn't blindly believe the dying Sith's accusations.

The war is finally over, and with the announcement that Anakin killed the Sith, he is the ultimate hero to the Republic.  However, the Jedi Council continue to sense his darkness and are upset when they find he secretly married Padme Amidala shortly after the conclusion of the war.  Anakin argues that he deserves this honor as the hero of the war, and that he should've been a Master by now anyway.  The Council disagrees and many express their reluctance to promote him due his arrogance and that he lacked official training.  Anakin is furious at this and says he's leaving the Jedi Order.  He takes off his lightsaber and throws it on the ground of the Jedi Council Chamber (Obi-Wan picks it up).

Already frustrated with the Jedi Order, he confronts Palpatine to see if what the Sith told him was true.  He finally reveals he's a Sith Lord, but that the Dark Side isn't what the Jedi's lies have told him.  Anakin has started to become addicted to the power of the Dark Side since the use of the Holocron, so he jumps at the opportunity to become his apprentice and continue his training.  He also believes that the two of them together can 'fix' what's wrong with the Senate and likes the idea that they'll simply do whatever they believe that needs to be done, even if force is required.  Anakin is initially a little off-put by how brutal Palpatine's methods are, but is still behind him because of their friendship, and Anakin would prefer to act than sit around and talk about it.  Palpatine gives him the name Darth Vader, and sends him out on series of missions to kill Jedi that have yet to return to Coruscant.

The Jedi sense this dark disturbance, and by this point they have figured out that Palpatine was really behind it all, so they attempt to stop him.   Palpatine and Vader together are able to fight them back, killing many prominent members of the Jedi council in the process.  Palpatine announces to the Republic that the Jedi turned their back on Anakin and killed him out of jealousy.  He declares himself Emperor, with Darth Vader as leader of his military, and says he will rebuild the Empire stronger than it was before.  He states the Jedi are now enemies of Republic and that citizens should report Jedis and evidence of Force use to the Empire for a reward.

At this point, we're pretty much left with only Obi-Wan and Yoda as the only known living council members.  All other Jedi have gone into hiding, but Vader hunts them down over the next decade or so.  Obi-Wan reports a bogus tip that a Jedi can be found on Mustafar, knowing this will draw Vader out.  Vader arrives, and they have their epic fight.  Obi-Wan is actually holding back through much of the fight as he's trying to get through to Anakin.  Obi-Wan has sparred with Vader more than anyone, so he knows his style and tendencies.  He's aware of a few weaknesses that Anakin was never willing to listen to Obi-Wan's advice to fix.  His own stubbornness finally catches up to him, as Obi-Wan exploits a flaw in Vader's technique and is able to de-limb him.  Anakin falls dangerously close to a lava pit, where he catches fire, and breathes noxious fumes, damaging his lungs.  Obi-Wan saves Vader from dying at that moment, still believing he can be saved, but Vader yells through the pain that he will vow to make Obi-Wan pay for what he did to him.  Obi-Wan is about to deal the killing blow, knowing there's no saving him at this point, but is interrupted by a large force of Stormtroopers and the Emperor.  Obi-Wan retreats without being able to finish Vader off, and now knows that he's going to have to go into hiding.  Also, seeing the Emperor means he knows that Yoda also failed in stopping him.

Obi-Wan and Yoda have a final meeting where they learn that Padme was pregnant with Anakin's child.  They know that any child of Skywalker will be a threat, so they decide to hide his offspring, but for some reason don't change Luke's surname.  I guess Skywalker is a really common name in the Star Wars universe, on a planet where his father was raised.  However, I suppose you could make a few arguments with that.  One, there's no effing way that Vader would want anything to do with Tatooine at this point.  In fact, I can just hear a meeting between Palpatine and Vader when trying to decide that planet to blow up to test the Death Star and Vader keeps suggesting Tatooine.  The same lack of connection to the central government and 'off the grid' nature that kept Anakin's nature hidden from the Jedi, could also be as effective for keeping Luke hidden, especially when he has Obi-Wan there watching over him, and possibly using some kind of Force trick to mute his presence in the Force.

I'm also debating whether or not it was known to Obi-Wan if he was aware of Leia.  If you recall a line said at the end of Empire, Obi-Wan refers to Luke as being their last hope, but Yoda saying there was another.  Did Yoda hide the birth of twins even from Obi-Wan?  Or perhaps because at that point Leia had no training in the Force that Obi-Wan didn't believe she'd be able to single-handedly stop Vader and the Emperor.  Anyway, Leia is adopted by the Organa's on Dantooine, but the Organa's invite Padme to live with them and raise Leia.  However, Vader knows Padme is still alive and has been trying to track her down for years.  Knowing that Vader will never stop looking for her and this jeopardizes her children's safety, shes lures Vader to a remote planet, and attempts to kill him, taking her own life in the process.

Then when you think about how why there are no Jedi in A New Hope and people refer to it as a dead religion, you can show how people were now afraid to show any kind of Force ability, and even have it against the law.  Plus, we've already established that the Empire was rewarding tips for turning in suspected Jedi or reports of Force use.  Also, with most of the Jedi being dead at this point, the random occurrence of Jedi being born is much less.  High members of Palpatine's cabinet look down on Force use, as they were the 'losers' of the Clone War.

After Vader is injured at the hand of Obi-Wan, the last remnants of his humanity are stripped away and he fully succumbs to the Dark Side and the brutal methods of the Emperor.  He no longer suffers fools or tolerates their mistakes.  This leads to the Vader we all know and love.  Another thing that bugged me in Episode III was the suit.  Why would he go right to the suit that we've known since the Original Trilogy?  Like there wouldn't be any changes or evolution to the suit over 20 years.  There were changes to the suit between Episode IV and VI.  Maybe the first suit chafed really bad, so he made a bunch of design changes to it.  Vader was technically proficient and a tinkerer, so it would seem likely that he'd make cosmetic changes to make it more intimidating. I think it would have been a great opportunity to introduce some new design or use some of the old McQuarrie concept designs.

That completes the circle back to A New Hope...

Pages: Overview, Episode I, Episode II, Episode III