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Matsu
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Join Date: May 2004
 
2020-12-11, 13:10

The last episode of the Mandalorian (chapter 15) had a scene which perfectly captured everything that's right about this show and by comparison really highlights the major deficiencies of the prequel trilogy (and in some ways the sequel trilogy, which has different problems). I think if the prequels could have had more of the texture of the sequels, they would already have been a lot better, but they still fail badly in comparison to just one scene here:

The extended scene in the Imperial Officers' mess proves Favreau and the writers/producers understand both the material and the audience. The whole sequence takes about 5.5 minutes from early dramatic tension, a contextual cut away scene, the building dramatic tension at the airing of philosophical differences, to guns (nee blasters) a-blazing. We advance the plot while capturing the essential political struggle from both points of view, no less in expository dialogue that also fleshes out a character's history, and it's all fit within a contextually appropriate sequence in the story arc.

OK, Less than six minutes to define a character, the essence of the difference between the empire and the republic, and the plight of those caught between them, and then... guns! just about perfect for this story telling vehicle. Did Lucas do as much as well in 6+ hours worth of prequels?

I can't think of a single scene that does it as well in any of the prequels, nor does the entirety of the prequel trilogy manage to drive the point home with a blaster as well, despite spending countless plodding scenes on the basic concept. Sure, you can do this stuff long form to emphasize different subtleties, but you have to know what your material is. Star Wars is not War and Peace.

Last edited by Matsu : 2020-12-11 at 20:16.
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