I grew up during the 1990s and had already been exposed to Star Wars heavily through media and culture but I never had the chance to view it naively and unspoiled. The great reveal thus never had a huge impact on me as it could have. I came upon a lite analysis of a father showing his children the Star Wars film in order 4, 5, 1, 2, 3, and 6 and how they responded to this emotional roller coaster. The results are quite interesting and make for a good read.
I have to say, it seems so obvious now that "hiding in plain sight" is a theme of the prequel trilogy after reading that its a wonder this is the first time I've heard someone point out the similarities in, for instance, Pademe's body doubles and Darth Sidious' Palpatine act.
PainRack wrote:Anyone still remember how fans analyzed Sidious balcony with Palpatine balcony to conclusively prove that he's sidious?
Aye, I remember.
I'm embarrassed to say there was always the slightest doubt in my mind regarding the Sidious-Palpatine connection. I mean, I knew it, but I was also curious if Lucas was going to throw some kind of twist down the gauntlet. He didn't, of course, and I felt silly afterwards for having even that slight doubt.
McWeeny's analysis and reflections are interesting. This also settles the issue of screening it for one's children. By myself or with friends, I have no problems watching the films in chronological order. But if I have kids, then I think I'm going to follow his lead.