I grew up watching the Star Wars prequel trilogy and love them to no end. But they are flawed films, so, like others before me, I’ve been working on my own fix. I’ve also become a little obsessed with creating a ‘no-spoiler’ version of the prequels. One that could be watched before the original trilogy without spoiling any of its twists.

The previous entry in this series saw Padme and Anakin at the lakeside house on Naboo, whilst on Coruscant, the politicians began discussing an emergency powers act. The full list of entries can be found here.

Obi-Wan Gets Captured

It’s been a little too long since we’ve seen Obi-Wan. After witnessing the Separatist Council’s formation, seeing a Droid factory and commenting that he shouldn’t have gone to Geonosis alone, he would naturally try to get back to his ship. He should not be having a good time.

The scene should find him on the run. It might even open with a brief shot of Count Dooku, deep in meditation, sensing the presence of a Jedi and ordering his capture. Obi-Wan will find himself sneaking through the dangerous terrain of Geonosis.

He should look tired and scruffy, and there should be droid patrols everywhere. There could also be a shot, in the dead of night, of Obi-Wan at a campsite, wide awake, watching out for patrols. It should be obvious that he was wrong to go alone.

When he finally reaches his ship, his astromech, R4, will ask (or beep) why he’s been gone for so long. Obi-Wan can then say that there are too many patrols. He had to take the long way back. I’m chiefly including this for continuity, to explain why Obi-Wan hasn’t contacted Bail Organa about the Droid factories. He can also tell R4 that he hasn’t slept in days and can’t think clearly.

In the actual film, Obi-Wan had to relay his message via Anakin (Coruscant is out of range). That will also be true of this version. Crucially, however, he won’t send the message. I want the crux of Obi-Wan’s story to be that he’s fearful of putting Anakin in harm’s way. Here, that should come back to bite him. He’ll hesitate when he realises that the message has to be relayed via Anakin. Since Anakin will inevitably attempt to rescue him. He’ll need to say all this to R4.

He’ll hesitate for long enough that his ship gets detected by a droid patrol. He should also step away from the ship to think for a moment. In the distance, a Geonosisian scout can watch him from a nearby cliff. The incoming droids will catch him before he can run back and send the message. This means that his overprotectiveness, facilitated by sleep deprivation, will lead directly to his capture.

I Don’t Like Sand

Before going any further, I want to quickly deal with his infamous, “I don’t like sand,” line. There’s an easy fix to this that will further the love story. The scene can start with Anakin and Padme looking out over the lake. Padme might comment on how strangely peaceful it is, given the galaxy’s problems. She can then tell the story, from the actual film, about swimming in the lake as a kid and drying out on the sand.

Then, instead of talking about his visceral dislike of sand, Anakin should be like, “let’s do it,” and jump into the water. Padme close behind. They should actually go swimming, is the point. Afterwards, when they’re laughing on the beach, they can have their first kiss. It should be a spur-of-the-moment thing, unlike the actual film’s weird, depressing kiss. Still, Anakin should then back away and become a bit uncomfortable. He might awkwardly reiterate that Jedi aren’t supposed to have relationships.

As a side note, the tone of these lakeside scenes is important to get right. Since there is a risk of it clashing with the rest of the movie. I briefly mentioned this in part 11, but I want to bring it up again. Anakin and Padme should genuinely enjoy being around each other. That, combined with their childhood friendship, is important for their love story. All the same, their scenes should be a bit melancholy. They should be very aware of the escalating galactic conflict.

The awkward kiss should be followed by a scene of Anakin meditating on the balcony. Padme will find him there and start to apologise for the kiss. He should begin saying that it’s okay, and that meditation helps Jedi to think and hone their senses.

At this point, Anakin should suddenly become concerned, as he senses that Obi-Wan is in trouble. This may require a bit of dialogue to sell. For example, Padme might ask if he senses anything, and he gets a flash of Geonosis. I’d like this scene to be reminiscent of Luke sensing Cloud City in Episode 5.

It’s always seemed weird to me that, in the actual film, Anakin doesn’t immediately decide to rescue Obi-Wan. He’s meant to be rebellious and emotionally attached to people. In this version, he doesn’t have to go to Tatooine (Shmi died in episode 1), but he should want to save Obi-Wan on Geonosis. His concern will also make their episode 3 duel more heartbreaking.

Anakin can, initially, be apologetic towards Padme. He’ll acknowledge that, though he’s meant to be protecting her, he can’t let Obi-Wan die. “I have to save him,” I’d like this line to mimic Luke’s delivery. Padme won’t require convincing; she’ll want to go to Geonosis as well. She’ll quickly dismiss any objection and note that, as a senator, she can negotiate a diplomatic solution. She might also volunteer a Naboo ship, for continuity.

The Interrogation

Back to Geonosis. We should meet Obi-Wan again in the actual film’s Geonosian prison cell (the one where he’s suspended in a force field). He can be brought into the cell by the Confederate Militia General. They’ll remember each other from the Phantom Menace, and the General might even be apologetic.

Obi-Wan, in turn, should be questioning the General about why he’s working with the Mega Corporations. It always seemed weird to me that ideological separatists would work with corporations that exploited them, and I want to bring that up. The General should seem uncomfortable about it. Count Dooku can enter the room before he responds, however, and declare that it’s an alliance of convenience: “We both fear Republic overreach.” This is to emphasise that Dooku is manipulating people.

Dooku, dismissing the General, can then speak one-to-one with Obi-Wan. As in the film, he’ll talk about a Sith Lord controlling the Republic. He’ll also talk about Qui Gon Jinn. The main change I want to make here is that Dooku should blame Obi-Wan for Qui Gon’s death. Ultimately, that will be a projection on Dooku’s part (he sent Qui Gon on the mission), but it will get under Obi-Wan’s skin. He also blames himself.

Finally, Dooku can accuse Obi-Wan of the same old recklessness. He’ll declare that it was stupid to visit Geonosis alone, and that it guaranteed his capture. In keeping with his projection over Qui Gon’s death, possibly after Obi-Wan refuses to change sides, he should order Obi-Wan to be interrogated. Just to make it clear that he hates the Jedi.

As an aside, this scene might also include Django Fett; he might even do the interrogation. Dooku could admit that he ordered the assassinations as a way of provoking the Republic, thereby demonstrating its tyranny. That can lead to his comments about a Sith Lord controlling it.

I’m not entirely sure about including Django here, but it would explain his involvement in the Geonosian arena battle. My outlined rules mean that he has to be involved. If he is included, then, after Dooku leaves, he should utter that Obi-Wan needn’t worry about his knowledge of Republic secrets. “I don’t give away secrets that I’ve been paid to keep.” This being a reference to the Clones.

The Emergency Powers Act

For continuity, there needs to be one more scene on Coruscant. Namely, there needs to be a brief explanation of how/why the Jedi and Clones arrive on Geonosis. Otherwise, it might feel too Deus ex machina. The real film has a brief conversation in which Mace Windu and Yoda plan both events. This has to be changed for the no-spoiler version. Yoda can’t appear until The Empire Strikes Back.

This scene can further be tied to the passage of the Emergency Powers Act. This aspect can play out in almost the same way. First, a senator will propose the act to an enthusiastic Senate. (I guess it can be Jar Jar. It is a little funny that he’s responsible for Palpatine’s unchecked power.) Palpatine, in turn, can talk about his love of democracy. He’ll promise to eventually give up his powers and will then announce the formation of the Grand Army of the Republic.

Mace Windu should be watching from the balcony. Afterwards, he’ll be joined by Bail Organa, who’ll comment that escalation can no longer be prevented. Windu, in turn, can counter that it can if they capture Dooku. He can then reveal his intended Jedi attack on Geonosis. For bonus points, he could add that “Master Yoda agrees.”

They should be joined by the Republic Judicial Officer, who’ll add that he’s been ordered to inspect the Clones on Kamino. It seems logical for a Republic officer to collect them, and it’ll let Yoda stay unseen.

End of Part 12

That’s pretty much all of the transition scenes dealt with (this has gotten way longer than I intended). The next part will get into the more action-heavy parts of the film. There should be fewer changes to make here, but I do have some thoughts.

See y’all then.

-Dexter