Saga In which order should you be watching (or are you watching) the Star Wars movies? (Poll)

I don't know... Even if I agree that Episode IV does a better introduction to the Star Wars universe and its concept than Episode I, especially to the concept of the Force, what is the most important element for first time viewers when watching the entire saga? See how the saga has evolved by watching the trilogies (including the Sequel Trilogy) in their release order which is: OT - PT - ST? Or see how the story of Star Wars has evolved from the prequels to the sequels by watching the trilogies in their chronological order which is: PT - OT - ST?

I would go with the latter since a story seems more important when watching a series of movies than watching how a saga has expanded over the years.

But the element that causes problem here is the introduction to the Star Wars universe and the original Star Wars from 1977 (A New Hope) is the best option in order to introduce newer viewers who have never heard about Star Wars at all, or had the curiosity to search a little about it, than The Phantom Menace. And I think that's the problem when choosing the order to watch the movies.

On my side, I've been introduced to the Star Wars universe via a video game, I've never seen any movies before, and even when watching the movie, I've watch Episode III before any of the other movies. I let one of my friends do the introduction for me to the Star Wars universe since he has watched the OT when released on DVD for the first time in 2004.

But there are some new viewers who never had the chance to watch Star Wars before who have watch it in its chronological order and it seems also to work:

 

As long as people are being exposed to something they like, I don't think there's really any "wrong" introduction to the series. Like you, I'd hazard a guess that just as many people were introduced via ancillary material such as the comics, novels, video games, and animated series, as they were through the films. In that respect, it almost doesn't matter if people watch them backwards, so long as they're enjoying the individual films they watch. But if someone is going to go out of their way to expose themselves or someone else to the series for the first time by watching the films (which is why this is even a popular conversation in the first place), I think A New Hope can't be beat as an introduction, and sacrificing it simply for the sake of a linear narrative in turn sacrifices something vital and unique to the series.

Part of my problem is that, while (debatably) intended to be viewed linearly, the series wasn't itself created that way. The majority of people who saw the prequels in theaters between 1999-2005 were receiving the answer to a question that had existed for nearly twenty years: how did Anakin Skywalker become Darth Vader? This is a question no one making the original film even knew existed, let alone those watching it. A New Hope doesn't itself "know" that Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader are one and the same. Rather, audiences armed with that familiarity are required to project their knowledge onto the film's characters and proceedings. Star Wars, it's themes, characters, ideas, storylines, and whole world were created, and is still being created, backwards and forwards, and each individual film is a unique product of its time. To me at least, seeing how the story was non-linearly pieced together by so many different hands over so many years (how many other series can truly make this claim?) is more valuable, and I think provides a more organic exposure to the series.

And just because this is brought up a lot, I also suspect the sequel trilogy will help rather than impede this order, as it allows for 6+ hours of story to "fill" the ~30 year narrative and production gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, as opposed to merely jumping from one film to the next. That gap will really make it mean something in marathons or binge-watching when the viewer is re-introduced to Luke, Han, Leia, and the rest, as they've just spent three films away from them. As for the Anthology/Star Wars Stories films, my current impression is that they'll add context to and build off of what's already assumed to be known, and will probably be best viewed outside of the Saga.

 

That's assuming somebody wants to watch the spinoffs. They're not exactly related to the progressing story of the main saga

 

Currently I'm not interested about the spinoff movies, I'm putting all my attention on the episodic movies (Episode VII, VIII & IX). But it doesn't necessarily mean that I won't watch it.

 

Well said PymParticles!

 

I always figured when I have kids, I'd start them of with TPM. It seems the obvious place to start and it's also the most unabashedly "kiddie" of the Saga.
I kinda have second thoughts now, as like most, I'd like my kids to get the experience of the OT surprises. (Although, frankly as I mentioned elsewhere, I saw ESB last, so I didn't even have the full benefit of surprise. )

But the thing is-- The whole "I Am Your Father" thing is so ingrained in the public conscious, unless you what to hide your kids in a shed (which I'm not advocating,just to be clear. ) for 5 years, they're gonna find out about it at some point. Can you actually hide something like that from your kid until they're old enough to appreciate the films?

 

I've said it before: The shock value of "I am your father" pales in comparison with ROTS. It was a big deal in the eighties, but now, with the first trilogy as part of the package, it's taken on a new meaning. Instead of a "What?!" moment, it's a "Finally!" moment. It's exciting because we get to see the younger generation react to and deal with painful truths.
In my view, knowing what Luke has yet to learn also makes the Bespin duel more tense, since he's unknowingly confronting his father who could drop the bomb at any given time. It makes you think things like "How will this duel end? Will Vader tell him? How will Luke react if he does?"
It's kind of the same with the Luke-Leia connection. When Luke calls out to Leia telepathically and she hears him, you'll definitely think "So when are they gonna learn that truth?".

TESB hasn't lost its impact. The impact has just changed.

 

Depends. People might perceive the OT to be the "main story", the PT "what happened before", and the ST "what happened after"/

 

Some probably do.

 

Chronological order, of course!

Oh, and by the way, I'm slightly insulted there's no Only the prequel trilogy: Episodes I, II, III option in the poll. It may remain on zero votes, but it would be nice to see some PT optimism.

 

I don't know if the poll can be modified...

 

No, but people would still want to get their "Star Wars" fix.

Well, here's what Drew McWeeny did for his kids four years ago this September.

http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/motion-...cial-series-with-a-first-viewing-of-star-wars

He talks about when he started the films with his kids and how he was able to keep their classmates from spoiling the films for them. There's also Darth_Articulate's co-worker who didn't know that Vader was Luke's father when he loaned her his Blu-Rays a few months ago. So, you can create different vibes and feelings for your kids that you didn't have and they'd have their own experiences.

The majority would be those who grew up with that order. Newer generations who start I-IX will have a different perspective like Lulu said, which is what Lucas himself said on the subject ten years ago.

 

Honestly, when I've watched Star Wars for the past couple of years, that's pretty much what I've been doing. It's not that I don't like the OT (I do!), but I just appreciate the PT so much more (especially since I saw them so many times growing up).

 

Actually, since this is a Saga Forum, there should be no "Only the original trilgoy" option either.

It's inevitable that a thread like this will pop up every now and then. We've all heard the arguments back and forth. I still say I-VI is the best order to watch all the episodes.

 

If the person/people you are showing them to know absolutely nothing about Star Wars, then IV, V, I, II III, VI. If they know of Star Wars but haven't seen it, then I-VI.

Here's, a question-- do you show them the Clone Wars movie as well?

 

Nah. It's the same thing with the upcoming "Anthology Films". I wouldn't tell a first timer to watch "Young Han Solo" and "Rogue One" before getting to ANH.

The jury's still out if that's how I'll watch the spin offs once they arrive. But I certainly wouldn't muddy the waters for first timers. That's a good question though. Would you routinely place the spin-offs in between the Saga episodes during your viewing?

 

That depends on what kind of watchthrough I'm after. If it's a Skywalker Saga marathon, then I'll stick to the Saga episodes, but if I want to go through the whole cinematic GFFA experience, the Anthologies and the TV shows are a must - and it has to be in chronological order, of course.
That'll be a fun project in a couple of decades!

 

I think including the Anthology films in Saga marathons after having seen Episodes I-IX already would be fun, and it's something I'm looking forward to in several years' time. I'm hoping that Rogue One, the Han Solo film, and anything else set during the Dark Times will help smooth the gap between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope for me. But yes, for first time viewers, Saga films first (I've already made clear my preference for release order, even in light of the ST) and then let them pick and choose which Anthology films they want to watch based off of their level of interest in the series (I'm assuming they're interested if they made it through nine films by this point) and in the subject matter of the various standalones.

 

For one thing, after watching episodes I-III first, you really get an appreciation for the duel between Vader and Obi-Wan in ANH and have a much better understanding of its significance. Obviously there are other ties you can make from the PT to the OT, but based on this one alone I would recommend watching the saga in chronological order.

And I also agree that with ST coming out it just doesn't make sense to watch it in release order.

 

The problem with showing TCW, is that the storylines presented in there are never resolved in ROTS. Ahsoka is never seen and mentioned in ROTS and that presents a problem. Now, if you were showing them the whole show and "Rebels", then you can get away with it. So for something like that, it's probably best to add TCW and "Rebels" after the fact. The other anthology films, well, that just depends on how well they are made. And how well they tie into things.

 

For me, the Episodic movies (Episodes I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII & IX) represent the core story of the Star Wars universe and are the most important ones. Even if the TV shows as The Clone Wars and Rebels as well as the other Anthology are cannon and are officially part of the Star Wars history, I don't think there are that important when doing a Star Wars marathon and when you want to understand the main story.

 

Yes, and the TV series!

 

Don't get me wrong, I like The Clone Wars (and Rebels), but that would take forever if shown in-between Episodes II and III, and it would throw off the flow of the Saga. Like the Anthology films, show them The Clone Wars and Rebels after they're done with the core Saga, or at the very least let them know that such things exist if they're interested.

 

I usually watch them in chronological order with TCW and soon I'll watch them with Rebels (when I get the Bluray) . Are there persons on the internet that watched Star Wars I-VI along with TCW in chronological order as their first SW experience and reported on it ?


It would be interesting to see how they reacted .

 

I haven't done that with SW, but I have with another franchise. In the summer of 09, I sat down to watch the "Highlander" franchise. I started with the original film, moved onto the series, but only with the episodes that I liked. Midway through, I stopped to watch the third film, then resumed the rest of the series. I don't own "Highlander: The Raven", so I didn't include that. After the series ended, I went into the fourth film and ended with the fifth and then second films. In terms of doing something like that, it is a pretty interesting thing to do. I'm sure it would be that way as well with TCW and "Rebels", especially once the latter finishes. But in terms of first timers, it probably wouldn't be wise to do that. You could do it with "Clone Wars" if you have both volumes and show the animated segment from "The Holiday Special" before showing TESB. CW is only two hours when taken together, which is the length of a feature film. And the animated THS segment is just over nine minutes.