Reboot Of The Jedi

So last night I watched Episode six. I thought it was fun, but there were some things about it that put me off, like most films. However, before I go into that, I will point out parts I actually liked.

• C-3PO is still my favorite character. In fact my favorite scene of all six films is the one which is just 3PO retelling the previous two films in Ewok language as if he were a sort of Homeric bard, complete with sound effects. Also, it is kind of funny to see that it is rather obvious that he's enjoying the moment when he realizes he's been deified by the Ewoks.
• R2-D2 is also a highlight, as it makes me laugh to see how opinionated a little repair droid can be. It's made sillier by the fact that he doesn't have a humanly recognizable face, so one has to dream up his "facial expressions" along with the words that translate the statements 3PO keeps replying to.
• Clone troopers actually can hit things in this movie, which makes it a sight better than A New Hope, since it is more believable.
• The final battle between Luke and Vader is more fun to watch because of the insinuation that Luke is finally a fully-trained Jedi, and so is as qualified as he'll ever be to take on his nemesis in a lightsaber duel.
• The Ewoks
• I may as well note here that i like how the tone changed in the last episodes regarding the relationship between Vader and imperial officers. In episode 4, Vader is obeying orders from guys in suits who can do nothing against him, and in the two following episodes he is installed at his rightful place making all the command decisions and being groveled at by the officers.

Now the obligatory reasons why I didn't think the movie was awesome...

• It goes by too fast. It doesn't start feeling like it's moving at a normal pace until just before the final battle commences.
• The opening sequence of rescuing Han is not really put into context properly, as the film opens with our favorite droids trudging in the middle of the desert with no proper explanation of how they got separated from the others. (Although I realize that this point explains itself afterward, I found it jarring, so I include it.)
• Jedi training must not be all it's cracked up to be. In episode 5, Luke spends what looks like two days doing cross-country runs and telekinetically moving rocks while doing headstands. Then he flies off. Early in the next episode, he flies all the way back to Dagobah to complete his training only to be told that he's done but he has to fight Vader before he can consider himself a Jedi. And this is why I'm calling it the Reboot of the Jedi; Yoda claims that Luke is the last of true Jedi. But one man does not a return make. A return would be if more Jedis emerged from hermit seclusion soon after Luke. But since Luke is apparently the only guy in the galaxy who has proper Jedi training anymore, he actually symbolizes a reboot, since he is solely responsible for rounding up a new crop of kids with force powers and training them all.
• Darth Vader is not all he's cracked up to be, either. Sure, that suit is a legendary symbol of evil forces these days, but the guy inside is not as fearsome of a villain as people like to think. The most villainous villain ever would have killed his own son once he realized that the kid was a threat to his supremacy over the rest of the galaxy. But he didn't. Instead, he practically went the cliche route of yelling "Save yourself! It's too late for me, but not you!" It can be believed that he's genuinely evil only when he['s in the presence (and under direct Sith mind control,) of the emperor. Beyond the emperor's presence, he has dreams of killing him and implementing twisted dreams of a benevolent dynasty over the galaxy. I will always believe Vader is misunderstood and that makes it impossible for me to dive deeply enough into the Star Wars galaxy to ever think myself a fan.
• What exactly told the entire galaxy simultaneously that the empire had fallen? The Death Star explodes, and in no time at all the entire galaxy is a show-stopping block party...