Green Phoenix - Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker Review

THIS REVIEW WILL CONTAIN MANY SPOILERS FOR THE MOVIE.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!

***

 

In 2012, George Lucas sold Lucasfilm to the Walt Disney Company, following his announcement of retirement and the largely lukewarm or cold reception to Lucas' most recent films. Following this purchase, Disney began a complete overhaul of the Star Wars extended universe, eliminating the last 30 years of extra content (save for the movies and CGI TV shows) and beginning an all new sequel trilogy, furthering the story of Star Wars into the years after the Battle of Endor.

With that goal in mind, The Force Awakens was released in 2015 to...a lukewarm response. People seemed to enjoy it well enough, but felt that it was just too similar to Episode IV: A New Hope (To be fair to them, they're not wrong). Not exactly the strongest start to a new trilogy, but maybe Episode VIII would fix everything?

2017's Episode VIII: The Last Jedi did NOT fix everything. In fact, when coupled with the release of Solo 2018, it was considered by many to be lowest point in Star Wars history. The franchise was in dire straits and, somehow, Episode IX was going to have to fix the mistakes of The Last Jedi, conclude the story introduced in The Force Awakens, and be worthy of book-ending the last 42 years worth of films and resolving the entire "Skywalker Saga" in a form that audiences (many of whom were already turned against the film because of Episode VIII) could appreciate and enjoy.

So...did Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker meet those expectations? Well...if any of you saw my initial Twitter thread following the release of the film, you might get some sense of my opinion. But let's go into more detail.

***

Green Phoenix - Star Wars: Return of the Jedi Review

At long last, we come to the conclusion of the Star Wars saga, as determined by the Machete Order. I will not be exploring the new trilogy until the release of The Rise of Skywalker and can properly analyze the entire trilogy in retrospect and with hindsight.

That being said, with the first two films in the original trilogy now explored, and the two flashback episodes that show us the rise of Darth Vader and the fall of the Jedi, its time for both prequel and original series storylines to come to an end in Episode VI: Return of the Jedi.

Released in 1983 as the final film in the original trilogy, the Machete Order treats Episode VI as the final conclusion to the Skywalker story and was also the conclusion of the series in Episode Order, one of the very few strong points of that viewing order.

With this basic introduction out of the way, let's take a look at the final story in the Star Wars saga (until Disney completes their first trilogy).

***

Green Phoenix - Stars War: Revenge of the Sith Review

By the time Revenge of the Sith was announced in 2004, I was 10 years old and it became perhaps the first film that I can actually remember my excitement for its release. I come from a family of Star Wars fans, though my dad has always preferred Star Trek, and the reveal of Episode 3's title made us all exceptionally excited.

So when the film came out in May of 2005, my entire family went out to go see the film in theaters, something we only really did for the Harry Potter films. And even to this day, Revenge of the Sith remains an essential part of my childhood, even as I recognize its many many flaws.

With that introduction and understanding out of the way, we will now take a look at the fourth film in the Machete Order and the last of the "flashback films", Star Wars: Episode 3 - Revenge of the Sith.

***

Green Phoenix - Star Wars: Attack of the Clones Review

According to the Machete Order, following the conclusion of The Empire Strikes Back, we as an audience are expected to go back in time and watch Episodes 2 & 3, in order to see the fall of Anakin Skywalker, the rise of Vader and the Empire, and the collapse of the Jedi Order, so as to see the connective tissues and elements that will be critical for Episode 6's story when we come back to it.

With that in mind, we now move to the second film in the Prequel trilogy, skipping The Phantom Menace due to its narrative superfluousness and will instead treat Episode 1 as if it were a supplemental film like Solo or Rogue One.

Released in 2002, Attack of the Clones acts as a reintroduction to the characters introduced in The Phantom Menace and shows the start of the Clone Wars and the beginning of the relationship between Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala, a Senator in the Galactic Republic.

***

Green Phoenix - Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Review

Following the massive success that was the original Star Wars (later retitled as Episode 4: A New Hope), George Lucas found himself swamped in cash and ready to deliver a powerful new addition to his Star Wars mythology.

Teaming up with director Irvin Kerschner (who would later direct films like Never Say Never Again and RoboCop 2) to deliver a film was hopefully superior to the original film in every way.

Kershner had a tall order to fill in not only surpassing the original which was already being considered a classic and the start of the blockbuster era of American cinema, but also had to build up elements which would have to be paid off in the already planned third and "final" film in the Star Wars trilogy.

And Kershner succeeded in just about every way.

Up next in the examination of the Star Wars franchise by going in Machete Order, the film widely considered to be the greatest film in the Star Wars saga.

Episode 5: The Empire Strikes Back.

***

Green Phoenix - Star Wars: A New Hope Review

It's Star Wars.

I don't think I need to go into too much detail as to the cultural and historical significance behind the first episode in this cinematic saga. It is the first true blockbuster and the film which, along with Jaws, helped to create the modern summer movie season.

After last week's editorial on the Machete Order, I thought it would be fun to examine all of the films in the Order from a critical standpoint. I will be skipping every other week (with the occasional literary suggestion or editorial) and will also have to give myself some time in October for the "Halloween" review season.

So let's start our Star Wars run with the first film in the Machete Order, Episode 4: A New Hope.

***

Green Phoenix - The Machete Order

I am a huge fan of the Star Wars franchise. Despite the many issues in the prequel trilogy as a result of George Lucas in his later life and the strange decisions of the Disney trilogy (ahem...The Last Jedi...ahem), this series remains a quintessential part of my childhood and a tie between mine and my parents' as well.

But with that fascination, there comes a critical question which must be asked, especially if you decide to introduce someone to the new series.

What Order Do You Watch the Star Wars movies?

In today's editorial, I will explain my preferred watch order and what I like about it.

***