Who is the story really about???

Vader only changes in ROTJ. In ESB he's still evil. He does not suddenly question his loyalty to the Emperor in ESB, despite what he says to Luke. His defense of Palpatine against Luke speaks much louder than his offer.

 

The entire plot of ESB is driven by Vaders search for his son.

 

Vader's character does indeed drive the plot of ESB, but I still think the arc of the OT is about Luke's and the Rebellion's quest to rebuild society out of the mistakes of the previous generation. It all very much relates to Anakin, but it's Luke who takes the central stage in terms of character.

The Phantom Menace wasn't driven by Anakin's character, nor was Attack of the Clones. Yet, the arc of the PT is still about Anakin's rise and fall.

 

The plot is often driven by the villain. Palpatine's drive to take over the galaxy drives the prequels, after all. But Luke is the dynamic character in the original films, including ESB.

Anakin takes center stage in AOTC more so than in TPM. He didn't have a journey in TPM, in fact, he's only a lead character while they're on Tattooine. Other than that segment, it seems like the other relationships drive the story. In AOTC, his half of the story largely focuses on his decisions and relationship with Padme. Obi-Wan has the plot-centered half, Anakin has the character-centered half. Similar to ESB, in a way. Vader may drive the plot, but Luke, Han and Leia are the characters who are developed.

 

The story is about Anakin.

 

The heart of the trilogy is family and cycles they complete.

We meet a boy in TPM: innocent, promising, and finding happiness amidst despair. He's taken from his mother, only to find a father figure who he respects, admires, and confronts on any given day.

He falls in love with a woman, and together, this new Skywalker family determines the fate of billions of people; indeed the galaxy itself.

His son, again: innocent and longing for adventure redeems the sins of the father.

This is the beauty of the work: we can strip away all of the layers and find at the heart the story of a family: the dangers of love, of power, and the consequences of choices. And we learn that we can turn it all around.

 

The entire series revolves around Vader. Without him, Star Wars wouldn't even exist!

 

The whole saga primarily revolves around the rise and fall of Darth Vader.

[]=====#[]<---------------- M_N! ----------------

 

Star Wars is about "a boy, a girl, and a galaxy!"

L8r

 

Rogue,
Nice trailer reference!! I bow to thee.

 

And hey, I think it works for the OT and the PT.

I guess to seriously answer the thread question, Star Wars is ultimately about the rise, fall, and eventual redemption of Anakin Skywalker played against the backdrop of the rise and fall of the Galactic Empire. The fact that ANH and TESB focuses on Luke does not negate the overall story.

L8r

 

Anakin.

What's interesting is that if you asked that question to someone who'd only ever seen Ep4 they would have answered "Luke". If you'd then told them that the entire saga is actually about Anakin Skywalker, they would have replied "Who's Anakin Skywalker?"

 

Good vs. Evil.

And the journey of the hero. The hero, Anakin, who falls from grace and then is redeemed. The hero, Luke, who stay true to the path. That's the color.

Good vs. Evil is what it is about.

 

"The old trilogy was always made to focus on Luke, and nothing in the prequels can change that. Unlike Frodo's story, which runs parallel to the other stories, Anakin's journey ends in Episode III. Bringing him back was Luke accomplishment, and is only part of ROTJ. Anakin has no journey through ANH and ESB; he is a static character there."

So true. Look, you guys can believe whatever revisionist history you guys want, but its Luke's story. It was made to focus on Luke.

"Anakin is no more the hero of the original trilogy than Padme is the heroine"

True.

 

I think its the story of how a little droid can save the galaxy over and over and over again.

All hail Artoo!



Now seriously, a way I look at it is the fall and rebirth of Galactic civilization. Kind of like the Fall of Rome.

 

I don't think the story is about a who, it's about a what. It's about choices. And how those choices affect a family and a galaxy.

 

Overall, it's about Anakin. Episodes 1 and 2 are about Anakin. Episodes 4,5, and 6 are about Luke and Vader/Anakin. Episode 3 will probably either be about Anakin/Vader or Anakin/Vader and the twins. So it's about Luke and Anakin, but mostly Anakin.

 

The story is really about Obi-Wan Kenobi. It's about how he helps Anakin destroy the Jedi Order and then about how he helps Luke rebuild a new Jedi Order. You see, he really hated the Old Jedi Order because he nearly got sent to AgriCorps in that system.



Depa Billaba

 

Actually, Depa. There is a lot of heart in that concept.

On one level, it is about Good vs. Evil and choices. And how love can unite a family, a group of friends, a nation or a galaxy. And how hate can destroy those bonds.

But the story - or the color as I called it above is: The Journey of the Hero.

There are three real heroes in the whole saga, from Campbell's perspective of the hero and the whole journey. (Not that other Jedi aren't, they just don't have the full character development in the Saga to really qualify as making the Campbell journey - IMHO.)

Primary: The journey of Anakin Skywalker - Rise, Fall and redemption.
Secondary: The journey of Luke Skywalker
Supporting: The journey of Obi Wan Kenobi.

 

This is one of the stupidest arguments i have seen on these boards. ANY story has a central protagonist and a central antagonist (the good guy-the bad guy)the main protagonist is considered to be the focal character of the story. Without him the conflict and defeat of the antagonist is not possible.

Now i ask you who is the ultimate(meaning above all else not best) antagonist of the Star Wars saga- sure there are alot of secondary characters who drive the conflict but who truly is the evil of the story overall.
THE EMPEROR
And who defeats him?
The ultimate(again meaning above all else not best) protagonist of the saga and the MAIN character.
ANAKIN SKYWALKER

That is the brilliance of what the Star Wars saga is- the main hero actually is a secondary antagonist at a point in the story.

Ultimatley its a story of redemptition and the character of Luke Skywalker plays the part of a secondary protagonist and more importantly the CATALYST for the Main Protagonist to fullfill his role.

Now there is some that will argue revisionist history blah blah balh

However always in motion is the future and what appeared to us in 1977 or 80 is only one or two parts of the BIG picture.
When Anakin is an antagonist its the MIDDLE of the story when its at the most conflicted.
Thats the point.
I think for many it is hard to accept that this awsomely evil character that scared the crap out of us in 77 could now be seen as the hero making the wrong choices

But that is what he is

Many think that yodas actions at the end of Attack of the Clones( the assult on geonosis and the duel) were super awesome butt-kickin cool but REALLY it is done to show that the jedi ideals were being compremised.

Even obi wan thinks its a "victory" until Yoda(who now sees the choices for what they are) corrects him.

Things are not always what they first appear to be.
If there EVER was a story that illustrated that statement it is the Star Wars saga.

All too easy

 

This isn't a stupid argument by any means. It's a very valid one. The order in which the movies were released and the fact that the hero becomes the villain for part of the story complicate things.

What I see, ultimately, is the struggle between good and evil not taking the physical shape in a "Jedi vs Sith" form, but rather taking a metaphysical shape in a "Luke vs Vader" form, within the very heart of Mankind.

In the ROTJ duel, Luke is fighting the evil in himself manifested in Vader, just as Vader is fighting the good in himself manifested in Luke. Both men are fighting themselves.

When the good in Luke wins out over the temptation of the Dark Side, Vader returns to good, and evil is banished.

The Anakin vs Palpatine conflict certainly is there, no doubt about that.

Palpatine can be seen more as The Devil, whereas Anakin can be seen as God. These are more supernatural beings taking the shape of men, and when the conflict is over and evil is defeated, Palpatine kills Anakin and Anakin kills Palaptine, thus both banishing themselves from our world. Mankind is a third element, which is influenced by the action of these two.

In the end, God preserves life while the Devil attempts to corrupts it. But, with that life preserved, and the two beings no longer influencing our world, the Rebellion (and Luke) must still win its own battle.

Society remains in the end, emerging victorious and restoring faith in itself once again. It is more than just "Good vs Evil," too, it is also about evolution. It's about generations. The new generation being greater than the old generation, and advancing society to the next level.

After the Empire is defeated at the end of ROTJ, we get a sense that the Rebellion has set things right and will not repeat the mistakes of the Old Republic (at least, not for thousands of years).

The true heroes of this story are the Rebellion, the idealists who return freedom and balance to the Galaxy. And Vader ultimately chooses to alter himself to join their cause in the end, thus learning and evolving to become one of them as he makes his final sacrifice and rid the Galaxy of the temptations of the Devil.

I don't know if it's so much a lack of acceptance that Vader is the hero as it is a story with multiple dimensions. Some people see Luke as just a part in Vader's redemption rather than the hero, and that is a valid argument.

 

This is one of the stupidest arguments i have seen on these boards. ANY story has a central protagonist and a central antagonist (the good guy-the bad guy)the main protagonist is considered to be the focal character of the story.

It is not a stupid argument. In LOTR: ROTK, it's actually Golum who ends up saving the day. Does that mean that he's the central protagonist?

Without him the conflict and defeat of the antagonist is not possible.

Without Luke, defeat of Palpatine is impossible. Anakin would not have been redeemed. The Rebellion would not have won. The Empire would have continued. And OT wouldn't have happened. If Luke hadn't blown up the Death Star, Leia and company would have died and the Rebellion would have come to a premature death. Therefore, by your definition, Luke is the central protagonist of the OT.


In the end, it really depends on how you look at the story. It's possible to have a story with multiple central protagonists (romance stories, for example, do it all the time). I personally think that Luke is the central protagonist in OT. (The PT is a little different, because we don't focus on anybody enough to get the feel that he (or she) is the central protagonist. I think it's a gamble between Anakin and Obi-Wan.)

Depa Billaba

 

the story is intended to revolve around Anakin.

But, to reinvigorate the saga for myself...I have been watching the movies and having the story revolve around Palpatine/Sidious. Give it a try...it's interesting.

 

The saga is being made into Anakin's story, but it certainly didn't start that way. It was Luke's story all the way. Lucas didn't decide that Vader was really Luke's father until TESB was being prepped. Even then, some drafts had Anakin and Vader as two separate people. It could have gone either way. Anakin could have been killed by Vader in E3 making it the story of how Obi-Wan and Yoda were helpless to prevent war in the PT and their efforts to bring peace in the OT. So it goes . . .

L8r