What would you have done differently?

[darthcoolness3]

Rewrite the scripts for Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith to not make Anakin sound so whiny and immature

 

[dax]

Rewrite the scripts for Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith to not make Anakin sound so whiny and immature

Then, you might as well do the same thing with A New Hope and the Force Awakens so that neither Luke nor Kylo Ren sound whiny and immature either.

 

[NealKenneth]

Basically, the film should have enhanced the original trilogy as much as possible and NEVER contradict them.

The story should have started with Anakin around 16 to 21 yeas old and Kenobi around 30 to 35 and had them be the main characters. It also would have been a really good idea to flesh out Uncle Owen, Boba Fett, Luke/Leia's mother and Alderaan. Anything that was resolved in the original trilogy that didn't have much development.

The big moments of the original trilogy should have been untouched. Yoda, for example, defintely should NEVER have been seen, only mentioned. His reveal in Ep 5 is so perfect and should have been preserved.

As for the story, it was right to focus on Anakin's turn to the dark side, the fall of the Jedi and the rise of the Empire. I would have started with The Clone Wars already in progress and Kenobi recruiting Anakin to join in the fight. As the films go on, Palpatine consalidates more and more power, which Anakin and Kenobi feel very differently about. Eventually Anakin betrays Kenobi and the Jedi order as Palpatine declares himself Emporer.

That's the basics, which aren't all that different from what we got...the real problem was execution. Had it all been well written and directed, it would have been good enough for me. For more specific ideas, here's a few:

1) As a Jedi Knight, Kenobi leads a squadron of clone troopers. One of these clone troopers eventually becomes his own man, deserting the war effort to become a bounty hunter: Boba Fett.

2) At the start of the story, Kenobi is married to a royal of Alderaan named Padme. However, as the films go on, Padme falls in love with Anakin and becomes pregnant with his child. This becomes a major reason for Anakin and Kenobi's falling out.

3) I would have used misdirection regarding Darth Vader. Basically Kenobi would have several apprentices besides Anakin and one would appear to kill Anakin and take the mantle of Darth Vader. It's not revealed what truly happened until Empire Strikes Back.

I have other ideas too. Maybe soon I'll start writing my own fanfic of the prequels.

 

[sycamore]

Get rid of the "Rule of Two". It's a terrible storytelling device. Unbelievably boring just to have two Sith around at any one time. And given that there was some ENORMOUSLY powerfully Jedi (like Yoda, Mace Windu, Qui Gonn Jinn and others) it would have been fairly easy to find the Sith and root them out. It's just inconceivable to me that two Sith can take on an entire army of Jedi consistently, without being discovered and exterminated.

If you insist on keeping the Rule of Two, then have a similar rule restricting the Jedi. "The Order of Eight", "The Council of Twelve", something like that. Something that will raise the value of the Jedi and not make them appear so flimsy (at least the rank and file) in the face of the Sith.

 

[sycamore]

Nice ideas Neal Kenneth. So laughable that the fans can up with 10 good ideas off the top of their head, and Lucas couldn't come up with one.

 

[Nathaniell]

I started a fanfic of the prequels a long while ago. Not even finished the second one

 

[dax]

Get rid of the "Rule of Two". It's a terrible storytelling device. Unbelievably boring just to have two Sith around at any one time. And given that there was some ENORMOUSLY powerfully Jedi (like Yoda, Mace Windu, Qui Gonn Jinn and others) it would have been fairly easy to find the Sith and root them out. It's just inconceivable to me that two Sith can take on an entire army of Jedi consistently, without being discovered and exterminated.

If you insist on keeping the Rule of Two, then have a similar rule restricting the Jedi. "The Order of Eight", "The Council of Twelve", something like that. Something that will raise the value of the Jedi and not make them appear so flimsy (at least the rank and file) in the face of the Sith.

There's a reason the "Rule of Two" exists for the Sith. Anakin himself stated that they think "inwards, only about themselves"...meaning that teamwork and friendship has never been the Sith's strongest suits. The dark side of the force has made each of them too power-hungry and self-centered, they nearly wiped each other out of existence. Even in both the prequels and the originals, we see that the Sith could never have more than 2 members in their group because the master would order his 2 apprentices to kill the other (like what Emperor Sidious made Anakin do to Dooku in RoTS and what he tried to make Luke do to Anakin in RoTJ). Even when that is done, the 2 Sith lords are plotting to kill each other behind the other's back.

The Jedi don't need a similar rule because contrary to what PalpSidious said in Revenge of the Sith, they don't care about power and to quote Anakin again, "they are selfless and only care about others. Unlike the Sith, the Jedi believe in unity, comradery, and friendships which is why there used to be thousands of them.

It wasn't just 2 Sith that took on an army of Jedi, it was a combination of battle droids, clone troopers, and the betrayal from Anakin.

 

[I'm Old Greg]

When I saw the Phantom Menace as a kid I thought it was gonna play out like the Lion King did. Show Simba as a kid and how he grew up during the film and distanced himself from his family and his role to the pride.
I thought Lucas would show Ani as a kid and slowly grow up during The Phantom Menace as a young man and show how he distances himself from the Jedi. BUT NOPE.

 

[TheVileOne]

There are a ton of problems with the Rule of Two. For starters, it's a rule that the supplementary material constantly bends or practically breaks. Second of all, that rule wasn't always around. According to the newer canon, Darth Bane established a rule, so even though Yoda says "Always two there are," well always two there are not. It wasn't ALWAYS that way with the Sith. When the Sith first formed, there were a lot more than two going on the current mythology.

And when they established the Rule of Two, that's when the Sith went into hiding. So how would Yoda even know about the rule anyway.

My biggest notes for Attack of the Clones is that you would not have the Jedi looking so outwardly idiotic about Dooku, the clones, the clone army, Sifo Dyas, and the Sith.

Sifo Dyas was clearly meant to be Sidious. The Clone Wars TV series tried to fix some of these plot holes by making Sifo Dyas an actual character who commissioned the Clone army, even though the production of the clone army was clearly Palpatine's idea and what Palpatine wanted.

So I would've constructed it where the Republic did start building a clone army in preparation for the war with the separatists, but they are not allowed to use it without an official declaration of war. Also, the template wouldn't be Jango Fett either. Jango Fett can still be in there as a hidden assassin, but not as the clone template.

OR Jango Fett can remain as the clone template, but the Jedi cannot figure it out until it's too late.

Once again, Obi-Wan Kenobi figuring out that Jango Fett is the clone template and then tracking him straight to Dooku and the Separatists, who he's working for, and none of the Jedi questioning that is the height of stupidity. Oh. We have an illegal army that we apparently commissioned even though the council never did that and never had authorization...yeah let's use it!

 

[sirmarkus]

Rewrite the scripts for Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith to not make Anakin sound so whiny and immature

Better directing and a stronger actor than Hayden Christensen would've been a start. I also would have liked if Yoda hadn't drawn a lightsaber until the duel with Sidious. I still feel that he should have been able to own Dooku without having to resort to physical combat.

 

[I'm Old Greg]

I would have causes Lucas to suffer from a nervous breakdown again and let his friends take over production like they did on Empire.

 

[XStreme Skins]

Made Darth Maul the main antagonist throughout the trilogy. I liked Count Dooku but he was no Maul. I would have kept the idea of Anakin killing Palpatine's apprentice to replace him because seeing Grandpa Skywalker kill DM would have made him even more bad ass.

I would have made AOTC Episode 1. Phantom Menace is really the odd man out in the saga. A newbie could skip it altogether and not miss anything story wise. The onky reason to watch it is because of Darth Maul. At best I would have condencesed it's story down just to show Anakin as a slave child and fast forwarded to where EP II started. As separate movies they're kind of weak but bits and pieces put together could have made a more solid film and introduction to the new trilogy. And keep in mind Phantom Menace was the first Star Wars movie I ever saw so it has a soft spot in my heart. I actually enjoy watching it for that reason.

ROTS is the Prequel I would leave untouched because it is one of the best SW films overall. It's just as good as Eps IV & V. That should have been Episode II and III should have showed Anakin's struggle with becoming Darth Vader; losing Padme, while hunting down the last remaining Jedi.

 

[MaceB]

I would have causes Lucas to suffer from a nervous breakdown again and let his friends take over production like they did on Empire.

Dark.


In retrospect, it's hard not to say that Episode 1 and 2 were missed opportunities. If we had started with the brash and talented young Jedi Anakin Skywalker fighting in the Clone Wars besides his master, Obi-Wan Kenobi.... the Star Wars Universe would be very different right now. Not nearly as cluttered and confused, IMO.