# Star Wars: Going to watch the series for the first time. All together or spaced apart? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 29, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473 "2012-05-29T19:31:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/81 "2012-05-30T23:26:48Z")
Two questions: 1)Why is it called “machete order”? 2)Would TPM still reek of suckitude without JarJar (the most reviled character in the saga, IMPO)? ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2012, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/82 "2012-05-30T23:38:01Z")
> [@Rhaegar](#): > > Dang, if you already know that Anakin becomes Darth Vader, then it probably doesn’t matter what order you watch it in anymore. That was probably the coolest part, watching the Empire Strikes Back in the theater as a kid and hearing Darth Vader saying in his James Earl Jones voice, “Luke, I AM your father.” To be fair, I think babies emerge into the world knowing this fact these days. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/83 "2012-05-31T00:13:49Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > To be fair, I think babies emerge into the world knowing this fact these days. It’s in their midichlorians. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/84 "2012-05-31T00:16:23Z")
I’m a 26 year old guy who has seen all 6 movies, so here’s my 2 cents. I watched the original trilogy as a kid when they came on TV. I thought they were long and boring movies. Eventually I came to appreciate them as I grew up, but even to this day I am not wowed by them. I was pretty young when phantom menace and the others came out. I saw episode 1 and 3 in theaters, caught episode 2 on dvd. I ended up really liking 2. I thought 1 was entertaining, and 3 was mostly garbage. I say watch them all at a rate you feel comfortable with, in whatever order makes the most sense for you. The prequels are not that much worse than the original trilogy overall, though they aren’t nearly as much “fun.” I cared as much about the characters in the original as I did in the prequels. I’m not one who cares much for “big reveals” or plot twists, so maybe that’s why the original trilogy never made such a big impression on me. Anyhow, you’re in for an overall enjoyable movie experience, but I don’t think it’s going to blow your mind, or leave you feeling like you’ve wasted your time either. Taken as a whole, the six movies are entertaining and pretty engrossing. Episode 5 is by far my favorite (but not for the reveals, it just had the best pacing I felt like), followed by 2. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/85 "2012-05-31T00:23:53Z")
> [@Agent\_Foxtrot](#): > > Very impossible. I would give a pinky finger to un-know two things that were spoiled for me due to pop culture: What “Rosebud” meant, and that Vader is Luke’s father. > > I’ve seen a couple of suggestions for the order to watch the movies in:[ul] > [li]4, 5, 6 only[/li][li]1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6[/li][li]4, 5, (1), 2, 3, 6[/li][li]4, 5, 6, 1, 2, 3[/li][/ul] > Any others? Should I make a poll? [Random.org](http://Random.org) came up with: 5, 3, 2, 6, 4, 1 But seriously, though, you should just watch them in the order they came out (like everyone did). ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/86 "2012-05-31T00:33:21Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > 1)Why is it called “machete order”? Because it was originally proposed by a [del]guy[/del] vain asshole who writes a blog called [Absolutely No Machete Juggling](http://www.nomachetejuggling.com/2011/11/11/the-star-wars-saga-suggested-viewing-order/). ---
**Author:** ![CyclopticXander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@CyclopticXander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CyclopticXander)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/87 "2012-05-31T01:45:22Z")
> [@Idle\_Thoughts](#): > > But seriously, though, you should just watch them in the order they came out (like everyone did). Like we all did? How is that a more interesting option for the rare occasion of an adult Star Wars virgin? I’ve always thought the episode ordering was an interesting artistic choice and wondered how the story would play chronologically to a fresh mind. Lucas claims that chronologically is his intended order and indicates that is how he would like it to be viewed in the future. Now maybe he is full of shit and it doesn’t work that way at all, but I for one would like some more data before I just make the knee jerk reaction that most of the internet does about it. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/88 "2012-05-31T05:12:19Z")
When you’re done with the theatrical releases, dig up the Lego Star Wars videos (may still be on YouTube), then watch the Robot Chicken Star Wars parodies, _then_ watch the Family Guy Star Wars Parodies. The casting in the FG parodies will make you re-think the series, once you sides stop hurting from the laughter. ---
**Author:** ![Rhaegar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/51bf81/32.png) [@Rhaegar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhaegar)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/89 "2012-05-31T05:42:21Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > To be fair, I think babies emerge into the world knowing this fact these days. Oddly enough, my two boys actually grew up watching the Clone Wars cartoon series more than the movies. To them, Anakin was a total hero, not the annoying kid in Phantom Menace, nor the annoying teenager in the other two prequels or the menacing Darth Vader in the original movies. They were completely non-plussed when they finally watched the Revenge of the Sith and saw Anakin turn into Darth Vader, and their beloved Clone Troopers like Captain Rex turn into the Stormtroopers. ---
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/90 "2012-05-31T06:20:52Z")
Someone made a good point - there are actually spoilers in the original 4,5,6 that are revealed by 1,2,3 - more than just the big one. EDIT: You want to watch these because they are a part of the culture, right? Then watch them in the order everyone else did - 4,5,6,1,2,3. I don’t see any reason to skip 1 if you are going to watch 2 and 3 anyway. ---
**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/91 "2012-05-31T06:49:20Z")
> [@LaurenIpsum](#): > > I recently finished reading **The Secret History of Star Wars** (highly recommended) which talks about this a bit. After the first movie came out, Darth Vader, due to his distinctive look, became something of a pop-cultural icon, so Lucas wanted to capitalize on this by making him a more important character who featured more prominently in the story. So he goes from being “one of the bad guys” to “THE bad guy.” > > On the topic of the prequels, one reason I don’t like them is because the ages of the characters don’t line up. I know, out of all the faults of the prequels, this is the one that really bugs me. Anakin is in his twenties and Obi-Wan is apparently in his late 30s/early 40s by the end of “Revenge of the Sith.” Yet in “A New Hope,” (less than 20 years later?) Obi-Wan is now elderly (even referred to as “this old fossil.”) When we see Vader unmasked in “Return of the Jedi,” he is played by a 70-ish actor. Drives me nuts. > > . I’d advise you to at least check out some episodes of The Clone Wars CGI show, they address two of your points. Anakin interacts with and befriends a young authoritarian republic captain named Tarkin, they get along swimmingly:D Fan wanking further I always assumed Vader had no real authority, he was just the Emporer’s pitbull, also Tarkin was the captain and a grand moff. Everyone else who mouthes off to Vader learns not to. Second the show depicts Anakin more like a young husband in his late twenties, rather than the petulant teenager the films show. Obiwan also seems a bit more mature(done through the voice acting and models). ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/92 "2012-05-31T07:19:39Z")
While I understand machete order, I’m still disappointed that it does nothing to increase the amount of screen time Danny Trejo has. CMC fnord! ---
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/93 "2012-05-31T11:06:16Z")
I’d watch them in numerical order, 1 to 6. The prequels aren’t as bad as they say, IMHO, 1+3 are better than 6. That being said, you’d probably find the original version of Episode I a bit childish and significantly different in tone from the rest of the films, so you might want to check out one of the fan edits for it, the “Phantom edit” is the most famous. Episode 2: Attack of the clones is the worst of the six, but has some key character development, so you can’t skip it so easily. Again, I prefer the fan edits. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/94 "2012-05-31T15:19:27Z")
I saw “Phantom Edit” and I thought it was significantly more watchable than the original. I swear to OG, that Jar-Jar character was the most offensive irritating creature to ever ooze from a screen. I saw the films in the order that Lucas released them. The ‘machete order’ (thanks for the origin story, **KneadToKnow** ) seems quite reasonable to me, but I might add episode 1 to the order somewhere IF it were the previously mentioned ‘Phantom Edit’ version. Perhaps even 1(a), 4, 5, 2, 3, 6. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/95 "2012-05-31T20:23:21Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Typo Knig** : > > When you’re done with the theatrical releases, dig up the Lego Star Wars videos (may still be on YouTube), then watch the Robot Chicken Star Wars parodies, _then_ watch the Family Guy Star Wars Parodies. The casting in the FG parodies will make you re-think the series, once you sides stop hurting from the laughter. And then go read [Darths and Droids](http://www.darthsanddroids.net/episodes/0001.html) from the beginning. Which actually manages to make Jar-Jar a sympathetic character, while making you want to smack R2D2. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/96 "2012-05-31T20:27:20Z")
Misas was typecast! ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/97 "2012-05-31T20:45:53Z")
> [@CyclopticXander](#): > > I’ve always thought the episode ordering was an interesting artistic choice. Need it be said…? “Artistic choice” had nothing to do with it. Lucas wanted to make the first movie, but he had enough material for (as I originally heard back in '77) four flicks. To get financing, he had to trim his script to what he thought were the most interesting bits (and what he thought would sell). NO ONE, INCLUDING LUCAS, expected the first movie to be a megahit (JEJ didn’t even want his name put on it, and he was not credited in the film’s original release), and when it came time for sequels, he had to start working backwards, filling in gaps. From that point on, he was basically flying blind (in the original story, Vader WAS NOT Luke’s father, and Luke and Leia WERE NOT brother and sister). Along the way, he made some horrible decisions in plotting his back story; hence, IMHO, the awful quality of the prequels. As originally announced (back in the early '80s), there were going to be three sequels to the original trilogy as well, documenting the restoration of the Republic, as seen through the eyes of R2D2 and C3PO. Plans for these seem to have fallen by the wayside (and mercifully so). ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/98 "2012-05-31T20:59:22Z")
I always thought the best parody was TROOPS. ---
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2012, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/99 "2012-06-01T23:25:49Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Yeah, its all a matter of degree but IMO the later movies (ie, the earlier numbered episodes) are more kiddy oriented. I don’t hate the later movies, but I don’t care for them that much either (not nearly as much as the earlier ones). Episode I is the only prequel that is kiddy-orientated Okay, in Episode VI, the Rebel Alliance are saved by teddybears, a nonsensical instant win button and cartoonish stupidity. In Episode II The hero massacres a village in a vengeful rage In Episode III, Whilst the Jedi are being exterminated, Anakin/Vader finds some children hiding “Master Anakin there are too many of them, what are we going to do?” He then snarls and ignites his lightsabre and it is soon revealed that he slaughtered them all. > [@kunilou](#): > > If you decide you want to go on, check out Episode I. True, there are many people in this thread who will argue that Episode I is the weakest one. I’d argue that the key to appreciating II and III is appreciating Episode I. If you don’t like it, you probably won’t like the other prequels, so don’t waste your time on them. The commonest gripe about EpI are Jar-Jar and little Anakin, things not present in Episode II or III ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2012, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473/100 "2012-06-02T00:47:38Z")
> [@Namkcalb](#): > > The commonest gripe about EpI are Jar-Jar and little Anakin, things not present in Episode II or III Okay, here’s an idea. Watch them in reverse order – 6,5,4,3,2,1. That way, you can finish every one of them saying “Aha! NOW I get it!”:smack: 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-going-to-watch-the-series-for-the-first-time-all-together-or-spaced-apart/623473.md?page=6)