Saga Rank the Star Wars films, TPM to Rogue One (Locked- Use New Thread)

New, slightly different ranking after rewatching most of them over the past month or so. Thoughts only on the newest two, since I've given said than enough about Episodes I-VI over the years.

1. The Empire Strikes Back
2. A New Hope
3. The Force Awakens
   I've reached the point where I have to concede that this is the Star Wars film I actively enjoy watching the most. This is pure joy played at 24 frames per second for me. It's my movie crack. There's a passion and energy and sense of joy in this movie that I just find completely irresistible. There are too many scenes to count that get me grinning from ear-to-ear, and I am positively smitten with the new characters. Rey, Finn, Poe, BB-8, Kylo Ren, and that's ignoring how great it is to see all the familiar faces. Harrison Ford might give his best performance as Han, Chewie feels more like an actual person with a fully formed personality than in his previous appearances, and Luke's appearance at the end gets me pumped for the next film every. single. time. Is it perfect? No. Could it stand to be a touch more original with what it puts on screen? Yeah, for sure, but it's by no means a carbon copy of A New Hope. It definitely uses the same essential framework of that film, but in the service of telling a fundamentally different story; it's by no means a remake/reboot/rehash/retread.
4. Rogue One
   I liked this a lot the first time I saw it, but I didn't love it the way I love IV-VII. I didn't get a chance to see it a second time in theaters, but plopped myself on the couch and watched it again this afternoon. This time around, I loved it. Letting go of the "reality vs. expectations" that comes with seeing every one of these movies, plus the stylistic differences between this and the Saga films, I found myself really loving it. More so than Return of the Jedi, actually. While I adore that movie, and have since childhood (nostalgia and fan blinders aside, I think RotJ is genuinely a really good film) I found Rogue One to be more solid and consistent from start-to-finish. That said, I wasn't as immediately and thoroughly enamored with the characters as I was with The Force Awakens.
5. Return of the Jedi
6. Revenge of the Sith
7. Attack of the Clones
8. The Phantom Menace

 

1. TESB

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2. Rogue One - easily the most adult of the SW films and arguably the film that best stands on it's own (I feel very strange saying that). Honestly shocked at how much I like it. Some of the best acting in the series as well (and definitely some of the most believable characters)

3. ANH (I flip ANH and RO back and forth

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4. ROTJ

5. TFA - I flip ROTJ and TFA back and forth

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6 ROTS

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7. TPM

8 . AOTC


I didn't rank it, but the original cartoon network clone wars micro-series was really good (MUCH, MUCH better than the long running CGI TV show). If I could rank it I'd put it about even (if not slightly above) ROTS. I think it's arguably the best clone wars era thing to come out of SW period.

 

Currently...
1. TESB
2. ANH
3. R1
4. ROTS
5. ROTJ
6. TFA
7. TPM
8. AOTC

 

It did for me. Before I watched it again the other day I placed it as fifth, right below Return of the Jedi.

 

RESULTS AFTER 250 RANKINGS









More data here.

 

1. Aladdin
2. Mulan
3. Beauty and the Beast
4. Frozen
5. Tangled
6. Sleeping Beauty
7. Lion King
8. Pocahontas
9. Moana
10. Atlantis
11. Princess and the Frog
12. Little Mermaid
13. Cinderella
14. Brave
15. Snow White

 

1) ROTS
2) ROTJ
3) RO
4) TPM
5) TESB
6) AOTC
7) ANH
8) TFA

RO has raised my appeal for ANH though, it might pass up AOTC one day.

 

THX1138=ROTS>The rest of the saga.

 

From a few friends and family members I've talked about it with, the numbers for favorites are:

A New Hope: 4
Return of the Jedi: 3
The Empire Strikes Back: 3
Revenge of the Sith: 1
The Force Awakens: 1
The Phantom Menace: 1
Rogue One: 1

 

I want to rewatch Rogue One to give it another chance. I'll have to wait until it comes to Redbox though.

As it currently stands:
1. Empire Strikes Back
2. A New Hope
3. The Force Awakens
4. Return of the Jedi
5. Phantom Menace
6. Rogue One
7. The Star Wars Holiday Special
8. Revenge of the Sith
9. Attack of the Clones

 

1. TPM
2. RO
3. ROTJ
4. ROTS
5. ESB
6. ANH
7. TFA
8. AOTC

 

Updated rankings after seeing Rogue One a few more times.

1. ESB
2. ANH
3. RO
4.ROTJ
5.ROTS
6. TFA
7. TPM
8. AOTC

 

1. The OT
2. ROTS
3. R1
4. TPM
5. AOTC

Won't rank TFA until E9 is out.

 

1. ROTJ
2. TESB
3. ANH
4. ROTS
5. TPM
6. RO
7. TFA
8. AOTC

 

I want to preface and say that I actually like all of the films. I am not old enough to have seen the originals in theaters, but I liked them before the prequels came out. I was young enough when the prequels came out to wear those VHS out. AOTC is really the only one I have a hard time watching consistently.

1. ANH
2. TFA
3. ESB
4. ROTS
5. ROTJ
6. RO
7. TPM
8. AOTC

 

1. ANH - saw it in 1977 when I was 6 years old. It's the reason I'm here on a daily basis. Even its flaws are perfect.
2. ESB - I mean come on, it's Empire.
3. ROTJ - still the best space battle, but a close second is....
4. R1 - thank you, Gareth
5. TFA - yes, big-time re-hash, but if you're gonna do that, do it well, and JJ crushed it. I'll give 'em one. ONE. Plus, Rey.
6. ROTS - the first 30 min. of this film is some of my favorite SW ever. Mind-blowing. And there's the opera.
7. TPM - worth the price of admission for Qui-Gon and podracing alone.
8. AOTC - least favorite, but I still love it. Across the Stars my second fave JW comp. after Leia's theme.

 

I don't really go in for rankings. But just to add something -- groupings:

Outer Trilogy:
TPM - AOTC - ROTJ

Inner Trilogy:
ROTS - ANH - TESB

Retro Trilogy:
ROTS - AOTC - TPM

Anakin Trilogy:
TPM - (AOTC-ROTS) - (ANH-TESB-ROTJ)

Annotation for the above:
Based on the "constitution" of Anakin, the performer, and the "world" configuration

Second annotation for the above:
The above trilogy can also be referred to as the Palpatine Trilogy; or the Jar Jar Trilogy

Clone Trilogy
(TPM-AOTC) - (ROTS-ANH) - (TESB-ROTJ)

Annotation for the above:
Esoteric/Theoretic - Tragic/Tragicomic - Awakening/Redemption

Tetralogy Trilogy I:
TPM - AOTC - ROTS - ANH

Tetralogy Trilogy II:
ANH - TESB - ROTS - TFA

Tetralogy Trilogy III:
TPM - AOTC - ROTS - TFA

Annotation for the above:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetralogy

And so on......

Not that that really answers the challenge.

But I just wanted to highlight some of the different structural configurations that exist within the master block of Star Wars. There are quite a few.

 

I know we're gonna do this all again after The Last Jedi comes out, but whatever.

The Phantom Menace: D
I'm very disappointed in you.

Attack of the Clones: C-
See me after class.

Revenge of the Sith: B-
OK.

Rogue One: A-
Very good!

A New Hope: A+
Great job! Here's a smiley for you

The Empire Strikes Back: A++
Wow! Amazing! in all my years of moviegoing I've rarely if ever seen work like this.

Return of the Jedi: A-
Good Job!

The Force Awakens: A
Keep up the great work!

 

The results here are pretty much as usual, nothing new here, as expected with a strong bias towards the OT. My personal ranking, even though I don't like rankings in general:
1. ANH - AOTC - ROTS: about equal
2. ESB
3. ROTJ - TPM: not necessarily the "worst" but slightly lower on my personal list
.
10: TFA: at this point still not accepted as part of the saga on my part. Who knows, maybe I will like it more after the next sequel
R1: have not seen it yet
I'm pretty much a saga person, who doesn't like to rank the individual chapters but prefers to see them as parts of a whole, just like the LOTR films and books, which were also meant to be told as a single story anyway.

 

1. A New Hope
2. Return of the Jedi
3. Rogue One
4. The Empire Strikes Back
5. The Force Awakens
6. Revenge of the Sith
7. The Phantom Menace
8. Attack of the Clones

I'm a big fan of them all, but that's my list when it comes down to it. After seeing it three times in theaters, Rogue One cracked my top 3. Such an excellent film. The world building, music, and subtle character stuff in that film made me fall in love with it.

 

1. Revenge of the Sith
2. The Empire Strikes Back
3. Attack of the Clones
4. A New Hope
5. The Phantom Menace
6. Return of the Jedi





7. The Force Awakens

I have not seen Rogue One

 

1. TESB
2. ROTJ
3. TFA
4. ROTS
5. ANH
6. TPM
7. AOTC

I only saw Rogue One once the whole way through and didn't think much of it when I saw it, so I need to watch it a few more times first to give it a fair ranking amongst the others

 

Interesting that several people haven't seen Rogue One yet - you really should. Particularly if you are an OT fan. Rogue One is like the most Star Warsy thing ever and is basically that film that everyone who played with Kenner action figures imagined in their heads (except better ).

 

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