Saga What is your favourite Lightsaber Duel?

Thought this might be fun. Sorry if its already been done before....

If you would like to rank them in order from your favourite to least favourite like I have, that would be kinda cool also..

I have also added 2 more battles that I couldn't fit into the poll.

My rank from favourite to least favourite would be:

1- Yoda v Palpatine Revenge Of The Sith

2- Anakin Skywalker & Obi-Wan Kenobi v Count Dooku Revenge Of The Sith

3- Mace Windu v Palpatine Revenge Of The Sith

4- Obi-Wan Kenobi v Anakin Skywalker Revenge Of The Sith

5- Luke Skywalker v Darth Vader The Empire Strikes Back

6- Obi-Wan Kenobi & Qui-Gon Jinn v Darth Maul The Phantom Menace

7- Rey v Kylo Ren The Force Awakens

8- Yoda v Count Dooku Attack Of The Clones

9- Luke Skywalker v Darth Vader Return Of The Jedi

10- Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker v Count Dooku Attack Of The Clones

11- Obi-Wan Kenobi v Darth Vader A New Hope

12- Obi-Wan Kenobi v General Grievous Revenge Of The Sith




Cheers

 

What about Obi-Wan and Grievous?

That's not who I would vote for, but someone else might want to.

 

Gday

Read my above post - It would only allow me to fit in 10

 

Ah, very well then.

 

Duel of the Fates

 

Luke vs Vader in ESB.

Very moody, you can really feel the struggle from Luke, versing a much more experienced duelist.

 

Luke vs Vader in TESB; not just because it's a great duel... it's also (IMO) one of the best sequences ever put to film and has some of the best cinematography in film history.

 

It was very one sided though, Vader was just toying with Luke most of the fight. I do love that duel but Duel of the Fates takes it for me. The 2 vs 1 was more evenly matched than Vader vs Luke in ESB. And the moment when Obi-Wan sees his master killed, the shield lowers, and he comes out fighting, best part of any saber duel IMO.

 

Here is my ranking, this is just my opinion on this -

1- Luke Skywalker v Darth Vader The Empire Strikes Back - a classic duel from a classic film

2- Luke Skywalker v Darth Vader Return Of The Jedi - not as deep & dramatized as the Empire duel but still very appropriate

3- Rey v Kylo Ren The Force Awakens - I actually like this duel as it didn't feel as choreographed as the prequel duels, it was much more natural & raw, again making it feel more real which is part of what made the film so great.

4- Obi-Wan Kenobi v Anakin Skywalker Revenge Of The Sith - Great duel & by far the best of the prequels, however it still felt far too staged & choreographed for it to feel any real depth regardless of the importance of the duel in the saga.

5- Obi-Wan Kenobi v Darth Vader A New Hope - The first dual we see sets the feel for Star Wars duels regardless of the simplicity of it as that's what made it great

6- Obi-Wan Kenobi & Qui-Gon Jinn v Darth Maul The Phantom Menace - By far the best thing about Phantom menace & for me is the only saving grace about the movie (specifically the Obi-wan / Darth Maul duel due to the sheer energy of it)

7- Anakin Skywalker & Obi-Wan Kenobi v Count Dooku Revenge Of The Sith - an abysmal duel in my opinion only marginally better than the AOTC version

8- Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker v Count Dooku Attack Of The Clones - Abysmal & summed up the movie

9- Mace Windu v Palpatine Revenge Of The Sith - Rather silly duel really(just look at the faces palpatine pulls), Palpatine should of never have been given a lightsaber other than the fact that Ian Mcdiarmid quite obviously didn't feel comfortable wielding one, the character lost so much depth holding a lightsaber in my opinion.

10- Yoda v Count Dooku Attack Of The Clones - Cartoon characters, this is when yoda died sadly (the all powerful yoda that we saw in Empire that is) by turning him into a cartoon character like a 900 year old frog leaping around, what a joke.

11- Yoda v Palpatine Revenge Of The Sith - They were two of the deepest characters in the Star Wars universe, but Lucas insisted in obliterating their character depth by giving them a lightsaber each & pairing them off against one another in a slapstick duel that you struggled to take seriously, someone should of told George that this was not what those characters were about. Each of these two characters didn't need weapons, the dark side & the light side of the force were their weapons each of them using it to their best advantage, but by this time the prequels were far from being saved.

12- Obi-Wan Kenobi v General Grievous Revenge Of The Sith - No comment, Ive said enough.

 

It's a fave of mine as well. The part you mentioned particularly, the speed of the choreography possibly tops any other in the series.

 

I don't know why people place the OT (and TFA) duels on a pedestal and claim that the prequel duels are all silly and choreographed. News flash, they are ALL choreographed. But the PT duels are more technical and martial arts inspired. By comparison the OT duels are just lazy (from a choreography standpoint). Mark Hamill never learned to duel as well as Ewan or Hayden did. Major props to those guys for learning the craft. That said, I'll rank the duels like this with categories for energy, innovation, skill, emotion, and story with an overall rating (max of 5 stars for each):

1. Duel of the Fates ( Obi-Wan Kenobi & Qui-Gon Jinn v Darth Maul): ★★★★★
Energy: ★★★★★ Arguably the most energetic duel in the saga
Innovation: ★★★★★ First 2 vs 1 duel we've seen, also the first double sided light saber we've seen. And the speed/intensity of the duel is much higher than the OT duels. Something we hadn't seen before until this duel.
Skill: ★★★★★ Ray Park was fantastic as was Ewan, Liam did an admirable job as well.
Emotion: ★★★★★ Particularly after Qui Gon was killed. And the music...wow.
Story: ★★★★ The build up was there but there wasn't any talking during the duel, but the facial expressions said it all.

2. Obi-Wan Kenobi v Anakin Skywalker Revenge Of The Sith: ★★★★1/2
Energy: ★★★★★ Particularly the opening where Vader/Anakin beasts all over Kenobi
Innovation: ★★★ Not much new saber wise but the backdrop, effects, and length of the duel was new.
Skill: ★★★★★ You can tell Ewan and Hayden worked their azzes off for this one.
Emotion: ★★★★★ Particularly the end of the duel "I hate you!" "You were the chosen one..."
Story: ★★★★ This duel has been building up since 1977. The only reason I don't give it 5 stars is some of the silliness "If you're not with me..." and "I have the high ground".

3. Luke Skywalker v Darth Vader The Empire Strikes Back: ★★★★
Energy: ★★★ Highest energy part on the bridge.
Innovation: ★★★★★ This duel certainly took the duel from ANH to new levels.
Skill: ★★ Sorry but Mark Hamill is not very good with a light saber.
Emotion: ★★★★★ The big reveal at the end of the duel packs an emotional punch.
Story: ★★★★★ The story is a major strength here and this is probably the #1 duel in this category.

4. Yoda v Palpatine Revenge Of The Sith: ★★★★
Energy: ★★★★★ Can't get much higher energy than the magic frog flying around everywhere.
Innovation: ★★★★ We've never seen a force battle like this so that was pretty innovative.
Skill: ★★★ I guess the skill of the computer artists...
Emotion: ★★★★ Everybody had been wanting to see this fight so it does pack an emotional punch with the fate of the galaxy in play.
Story: ★★★★ The fate of the galaxy rests on this duel.

5. Mace Windu v Palpatine Revenge Of The Sith: ★★★1/2
Energy: ★★★★ High energy particularly at the beginning when Sidious takes out other jedi quickly.
Innovation: ★★★ I'd say Sidious destroying 3 jedi so quickly was innovative as was the ending.
Skill: ★★ They had to do a lot of creative editing on this one to overcome the actor's saber shortfalls.
Emotion: ★★★★★ I give this one high marks for emotion because the ending changed the tone of the whole movie.
Story: ★★★★ This duel changed the whole story.

6. Luke Skywalker v Darth Vader Return Of The Jedi: ★★★
Energy: ★★ This duel slows down quite a bit until the end.
Innovation: ★★ Nothing much new duel wise since ESB
Skill: ★★ Sorry but Mark Hamill is not very good with a light saber. Randomly hacking away at the end.
Emotion: ★★★★1/2 I think the reaction to "perhaps she will" was a bit over the top but still good.
Story: ★★★★1/2 Not quite as impactful as the ESB duel but packs a punch.

7. Yoda v Count Dooku Attack Of The Clones: ★★★
Energy: ★★★★★ Can't get much higher energy than the magic frog flying around everywhere.
Innovation: ★★★ For Yoda's CGI, but since it was a little overly CGI'd lower marks for that.
Skill: ★★★ I guess the skill of the computer artists...
Emotion: ★★★ I admit we did feel some emotion when Yoda whipped out the green lightsaber.
Story: ★★ So Yoda saves the good guys, not much else to it.

8. Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker v Count Dooku Attack Of The Clones: ★★★
Energy: ★★★ Anakin vs Dooku providing some energy in the dark.
Innovation: ★★ Someone besides the emperor using force lightning. But other than that not much we haven't seen.
Skill: ★★★★ Ewan, Hayden, and Dooku's stunt double did an admirable job.
Emotion: ★★★ They don't really know Dooku so not much there but Anakin getting his arm lopped off was impactful.
Story: ★★ Meh

9. Anakin Skywalker & Obi-Wan Kenobi v Count Dooku Revenge Of The Sith: ★★★
Energy: ★★★★ The end was higher pace with Anakin vs Dooku
Innovation: ★★ Pretty much no new innovation here. We already saw these guys duel in AOTC. I guess the double hand amputation was innovative.
Skill: ★★★★ Hayden did a good job in this one as did Dooku's stunt double but the fight wasn't that long.
Emotion: ★★ I guess Dooku getting killed was mildly shocking.
Story: ★★ Last obstacle out of the way for Anakin to become Sidious' new apprentice.

10. Obi-Wan Kenobi v Darth Vader A New Hope: ★★1/2
Energy: ★ Compared to every other duel, this was slooooow
Innovation: ★★★★★ First light saber duel so this is an automatic 5 stars
Skill: ★ Lowest skill level of any duel in the franchise. David Prowse dueled as Vader but was replaced with fencing expert Bob Anderson in ESB and ROTJ.
Emotion: ★★★ We don't really know much about the characters at this point but it was emotional when Ben was struck down.
Story: ★★★ Again we don't really know much about the characters at this point but the confrontation was intriguing.

11. Obi-Wan Kenobi v General Grievous: ★★1/2
Energy: ★★★★ High action at the beginning but not that long.
Innovation: ★★★★ I have to admit the 4 light sabers was pretty innovative.
Skill: ★★★ Props to Ewan but there was plenty of CGI involved I'm sure.
Emotion: ★ Not much here, just a kewl saber fight.
Story: ★★ So Obi Wan is hunting down Grievous, not much else.

12. Rey and Finn v Kylo Ren The Force Awakens: ★★
Energy: ★★ They are mostly newbies with sabers so not much high paced action.
Innovation: ★ Nothing really that we haven't seen before.
Skill: ★★★ Better than Mark Hamill but still doesn't touch what Ray, Ewan, Hayden, etc... did in the PT
Emotion: ★★★★ After Han Solo's murder and Finn's injury Rey has something to fight for.
Story: ★★ Since we don't know much yet about Rey and Kylo not much here but this could change later. The fact that Finn fights with a light saber for so long against a dark force practitioner bothers a lot of people, including me.

​

 

Honorable mention to Obi-Wan vs Jango Fett which is not technically a light saber duel. This was a really cool fight (although slightly ruined by kid Boba Fett). If you ever wanted to see a jedi vs Batman, watch this fight since Jango Fett is basically Batman.

Per my rankings above, I will give out awards in each category:

Energy Award: Highest energy duel goes to Duel of the Fates (Phantom Menace). Particularly after Qui Gon is killed.
Runner Up: Obi-Wan vs Vader/Anakin in Revenge of the Sith (particularly the opening volly)

Innovation Award: Since it was the first light saber duel ever, it has to be Obi-Wan vs Vader in ANH. The one that started it all.
Runner Up (Tie): Since they both took dueling to new heights I have to say this is a tie between Luke vs Vader (Empire Strikes Back) and Duel of the Fates (Phantom Menace). Each of these took saber dueling to a new level.

Skill Award: Easily Duel of the Fates (Phantom Menace). Ray Park is the most skilled actor to ever hold a light saber and his skills brought Ewan and Liam's skills up a notch.
Runner Up: Obi-Wan vs Vader/Anakin in Revenge of the Sith. Ewan and Hayden worked their azzes off for this duel. It's said that by the time they were ready to shoot they were better than their stunt coordinators and fencing instructors.

Emotion Award: There are a few good candidates for this award but I'll go with Obi-Wan vs Vader/Anakin in Revenge of the Sith "I hate you!" "You were my brother..."
Runner Up (Tie): I can't choose between these two so I'll mention both. Luke vs Vader in Empire Strikes Back and Mace Windu vs Sidious in Revenge of the Sith. Both endings were very dark and very impactful.

Story Award: Luke vs Vader (Empire Strikes Back) takes the cake with this one with the "I am your father" reveal being one of the biggest twists in cinematic history.
Runner Up: Luke vs Vader (Return of the Jedi). Another major twist with Vader tossing Emperor Palpatine down the chute.

 

I accidentally did this in my rankings but one pet peave of mine is when people call the ROTS duel "Obi-Wan vs Anakin". Technically it's Obi-Wan vs Darth Vader since he's already given into the dark side at that point. For clarification:

Anakin Skywalker:



Darth Vader:

 

I so love this Vader.

Anakin in the suit is great but good lord here Vader is just awesome.

Incredibly exhaustive breakdown.

Well done.

 

This was Vader's peak as a duelist. According to Lucas at this point Vader was a "9" in dueling skill. Up there with Yoda, Mace, and Sidious while Obi-Wan was an "8".

But the reason Yoda sent Obi-Wan against Vader (instead of Sidious) is because Sidious' force power was greater than Vader at this point. If Sidious started throwing senate pods at Obi-Wan there's nothing Obi-wan would be able to do to stop it.

Darth Vader (pre-suit) vs Mace Windu would have been a he11 of a fight tho.

 

I really enjoyed how Palpatine was pulling all those silly faces in his duel against Mace. It kind of showed that he was not quite all there mentally because his evil had twisted him so much that he had become in effect mad and mentally unstable with his obsession with the dark side

With his fight against Yoda, i loved all his silly mad laughs as well. Again, showing how possessed he had become with his obsession with the dark side . It was obvious he actually got a sick enjoyment out of it all

Cheers

 

Favorite Sith Lord is Vader before the suit. Even though he was only in this stage for maybe 2 days, he left an impact. He was far more disturbing, brutal and primal then older Vader's more tactical approach.

 

He's like a more powerful Darth Maul.

I'm thinking that even though Obi-wan was over-matched, Obi-Wan's experience dueling Darth Maul and his defensive style helped him survive Vader's onslaught. It's wasn't the first time he's gone against a very aggressive and skilled opponent.

I think pre-suit Vader beats Obi-Wan 9 out of 10 times. Obi-Wan got very lucky on Mustafar.

I also think pre-suit Vader can beat anyone in any of the movies besides Yoda, Sidious, and Mace. Yoda and Sidious' force powers give them an edge over pre-suit Vader but pre-suit Vader vs Mace would be an epic battle that could go either way IMO.

 

Luke VS Vader, ESB. The fight is just so... wow. Where to start. First off, the reasons for fighting it, all the themes and symbolism the fight itself encompasses are partly why I love it. It's a young student, charging head first into a battle doing to not only to protect his friends, but in revenge for the death of Ben Kenobi. He's making the same mistakes his father made, and Yoda and Obi-Wan both see it. Vader is there toying with Luke, trying to force him into breaking. Then, at the end of it all... we get one of the biggest cinematic twists ever! Then there's the lightsaber effects. Easily my favorite lightsaber effects in the Saga happaned in this duel. They're perfect. The blades have a perfect length, a perfect coloring, perfect width (thin, but not too thin), it's everything I expect to see in a lightsaber blade.

 

That's a good point. I never though about that. Yeah, I guess Obi-Wan's experience did help plus he knew Vader's moves since he trained him. Obi-Wan knew Vader was arrogant and used that against him. I think if Vader survived the Mustafa duel unmaimed he could kill Sidious and Yoda eventually. Mace Vs Vader would be a great duel, even though the game isn't canon, Anakin technically won. Haha

 

Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader VS Obi-Wan Kenobi is my favorite lightsaber duel in the whole Star Wars saga...

I think it has the best choreography out of all of them,although Darth Maul VS Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon comes close..and it of course was really emotional and epic story wise as well..

 

I'm going with RotJ as my favorite. ESB might be better technically and cinematically, and it certainly ends with an amazing emotional gut-punch, but RotJ begins where ESB left off and builds even more emotional resonance, and the choreography is outstanding in the way that it represents those overpowering emotions.

 

The duel at the end of Phantom Menace. It's truly one of the most exhilarating scenes in cinema. It's so fun! ESB comes next, the RotJ and Rots obi/Vader.

ANH Obi-wan/Vader and RotS Mace and Palps are dead last.

The Maul/Savage/Sidious fight in TCW was awesome too. In fact most of those duels are great.

 

It still kills me to to this day how they screwed up the Anakin/Obi-Wan duel..... the first half was GREAT... but once they go out over the lava it gets ridiculous and quite frankly boring

 

I liked most of the fight. Like you said the beginning was great (except for some of the pre-fight dialogue "You're breaking my heart" "If you're not with me..." *ugh*). The duel itself was really good until this for me...what the heck was this?



Then ya the swinging on ropes got silly along with the "I have the high ground". That's why for me the TPM duel tops it. It has the energy of the ROTS Vader/Obi duel without some of the silliness.