Saga Ideal age to watch the Saga?

What would it be? The absolute perfect way for someone to watch the Saga for the first time? What's the minimun age to enjoy and understand the whole Saga?

I've seen a lot of people talking about watching SW with their 3-5-7 year old kid, and honestly, I don't think that's apropriate. Not because of the contet, but because they wouldn't understand it, aside from fun explotions and spaceships flying around. I'm asking for the minimun age for someone to truly get SW.

For me, it would be around 10-12, minimun. I don't think anyone younger than that would be able to understand the story and get invested on it.

Without the PT, the minimun age could be set slightly lower (around 8-10), which is ironic, since some people tend to think that the PT was made to appeal kids and the OT was more "mature".

Thoughts?

 

I would say 10ish is good. Star wars has a lot in it that is for kids, so it should be at a time when those aspects can be enjoyed as well.

 

I would say 8-12. They could enjoy and understand it all, and it assures the kids get to play with the cool toys and video games

 

I'm going to say 10-12 as well--younger depending on the kid (obviously).

 

Sorry, I made an open question and I also expressed my opinion; of course I've made up my mind, but I'm not looking for people who agree with me, I want to know what people think about it. No need to make assumptions about what I secretly want by starting this thread.

 

I owned a VHS copy of A New Hope and watched it a few times during my childhood, but I did not fully appreciate it until I watched the entire trilogy at 13 years old. Old enough to understand, young enough to still be amazed! I think that's a good age.

I say if you're old enough to read Harry Potter, you're old enough for Star Wars too

 

Why this obsession with understanding? That just takes all the amazement and wonder out of it.

 

I first saw the OT when I was 3.
It didn't take anything plot related away from it, but I still loved the films. That most likely is because little ones brains don't comprehend it, but at the time I didn't care. I loved the characters of Leia and R2, and Darth Vader was "scary". Sure I didn't get the story, but I liked it nonetheless.

When I rewatched it with the prequels when I was older, I definitely retained most of the plot and the characters better, but it was still fun and enjoyable, just as much so.

Because of that, I see no issue with letting a youngling watch the films from a very young age, and you can always take out ROTS if you feel the need to.

Watching them is for enjoyment, and sharing them with your little ones is supposed to be fun, not about how much of the story they retain or how well they understand.

 

at a young age, maybe not ROTS

 

Well, I saw Star Wars when I was four years old and I turned out fine!
(said she, whose life revolves around Neimoidians...)

In all seriousness, though, my family determined that, at four, I was old enough to watch Star Wars with them, and I am endlessly grateful for it. I don't think they meant for me to come away with a complete understanding of everything going on, and I'm CERTAIN that it wasn't their intent to turn me into the fan I am today; however, I do think they meant for me to have an amazing time experiencing a unique, exciting, ageless, and all-around fantastic film.

I think the younger, the better. Whether you saw the original in '77, became a fan when the prequels came out, or fell somewhere in between that, Star Wars is a huge part of so many peoples' childhoods. For me, it almost seems like a right of passage for a child to go through. Yes, your perception and understanding of the saga can be different, or even lacking, but, again, I think another part of being a Star Wars fan, or just showing someone the films, is allowing perception to evolve over time. My perception of Stars Wars now, at twenty-one, is, obviously, worlds away from what is was at four, but it doesn't mean I enjoyed Star Wars any less as a child, or love Star Wars any less now. In fact, I think nearly two decades of evolution as a fan has made me appreciate it that much more. And even if, at the end of the day, you don't create a Star Wars fan, you've at least given your children some exposure to a masterpiece of cinema. I think, as a cultural experience, as much as anything else, it's important to show children Star Wars.

There's something else to be taken into account: that childlike sense of wonder we experienced when we were shown something so over our head and beyond our imaginations. I've heard of adults being pretty astounded the first time they see Star Wars, but, let's face it, it's nothing like what we felt as children, the first time we see the Imperial Star Destroyer swoop over our heads.

I guess it somewhat depends on what you want. If you want your child to have a pretty good understanding of what's going on, while watching then 8-10; if you want your child to just have an incredible experience that will stay with them forever then definitely on the 4-5 end of the spectrum. I do think, however, that if you show a young child Star Wars, you should watch it with them for, at least, the first time around to gauge their response to some of the action. I wasn't bothered, in the least, by Ponda Baba losing an arm, the burnt skeletons at the Lars Homestead, the shootouts, etc; I just thought of it what happens in this world, and as part of the story, and, by the next day, I was watching Star Wars by myself. That doesn't mean that every four year old will react that way, though.

And let's face it...watching Star Wars together is the perfect bonding experience

 

I believe that if you show 'em to a kid under the age of 10 they will have a magical feeling with the movies that will keep them fans. I watched ROTS about the age 8-9 didn't bother me, heck I'm not sure if I even understood as I found them myself I didn't excatly watch them in any order!

 

I was age 10 when I saw "A New Hope" on the big screen. There had to have been something magical about my experience, because from that day forward a had strong passion for SW.
I actually think going to the movie theater has a magic about it that you can't get from watching at home.

 

I was at about 10 when I watched the OT. And Loved it. Strange thing is that Star Wars became my No.1 Saga only about 2-3 years ago, when I was about 20.

 

8-12. I don't think 8 is too young at all; you don't need a perceptive understanding of the plot to enjoy the films. When I watched Phantom Menace at the age of 8, the wonder and scope of the film enthralled me and opened up my love for storytelling upon an epic canvas. If I hadn't seen the film at such a young age, I'm not sure I'd appreciate films and books the way I do now.

 

I watched through the whole saga with my little sister last year, and she is 16/17 years younger than me (I'm 23 and she's 7), so she's still in that young stage. Quite a bit of it went over her head (I think she's still a bit fuzzy on the complexities of that whole Anakin=Vader thing, especially since she really likes Anakin), but the ~magic~ of it was communicated, and she loves the mix of characters in the cast. Now, she has about a zillion Lego Star Wars sticker books, watches The Clone Wars (she loves Ahsoka), and the two of us like to have occasional epic lightsaber duels with my toy lightsabers. I usually have to be Vader, complete with a mask from Target, and she is Jedi Princess Leia who is borrowing Luke's lightsaber. My husband often ends up the person she has to save from my evil clutches. It's something I definitely want to watch with her again as she gets older, but even if she doesn't 100% get it at this stage, it's a lot of fun for both of us to be able to share that experience together.

 

I'd say start at an early age like 4 or 5 but the only thing that's holding me back is ROTS. I didn't allow my brother is watch it until he was 8, so the age of 8, but then again people mature differently

 

I grew up on OT so I say it's never too early and not inappropriate at that age. Considering that I used to watch Conan and Aliens as a young boy with parental approval, star wars was relatively tame in comparison.

 

Considering I was about 3 when I watched A new Hope and the rest of the original trilogy I saw that is fine. I saw ROTS when I was eight with my dad, lets just say I was crying so hard that half the people on my row were telling me that it was going to have a happy ending. Every movie but ROTS is fine at any age! ROTS I would say for 11 or 12 up!

 

Rots wasn't bad except for burning man

 

Some kids grow up around Star Wars. Some discover it later (like me). So it depends for everyone.
But yeah, a 3 year-old is not going to understand TPM and probably won't even appreciate it.

 

Yousa speaksa the truths!
Yep, showing the movies to younger kids tends to produce fans to TPM, ewoks and gungans. I have nothing against TPM, but many hard core fans do. So if you don't want your kid to become a TPM fan...