How to make Star Wars Episode 1 2 and 3 better

[RatRace123]

Well, I'd set the backstory a little different.

I'd have the Jedi be a much smaller force (no pun intended) even though during the time of the prequels there were only several hundred or so. Given how the Jedi and the force are talked about in the original trilogy it doesn't make it seem like the Jedi were that strong in number before the rise of the Empire. Han, as someone who's traveled across the galaxy, never heard of them, and he would've been alive during the time of the Clone Wars.

I'd also have Anakin start out older, maybe as old as he started out in Episode II, and make Obi Wan older too. Considering Obi Wan is only in his late 50s or somewhere around there in the Original trilogy. I don't think, even counting for years of being a hermit on Tatooine, that he would look as old as he did.

And, as for the character portrayal. I don't really know how, but give Anakin a better reason for going to the dark side. Oh and make his personality more in line with the Clone Wars cartoon (I know what your thinking, but seriously that show is the best characterization of a pre-Vader Anakin. He's charismatic, likable, heroic, has some badass moments and he's rarely mopey.)
Obi Wan's character was pretty good in the prequel trilogy overall; more than once I've heard that he was the best thing about the prequels and I agree. Just change some parts of his character arc in the Phantom Menace, namely his reaction and reason for training Anakin in the first place.

Tone Jar Jar down, but he can be kept in.
Padme is also crucial, but the circumstances surrounding her death should be changed. In the Original Trilogy, Leia remembers seeing her mother, now I guess you can handwave that as her getting a brief glimpse of Padme right after her birth and that memory sticking.
I would have Anakin get her pregnant, then have her give birth after he becomes Vader. And then like a year or a few months later he tracks her down and tries to get her to accept him, she refuses and he kills her in a fit of rage, none of that losing the will to live stuff; force choke/ dead! But Obi Wan was also tailing Vader and before Vader can take Luke and Leia for the dark side, the two battle with Obi Wan ending victorious. The he takes the two into hiding and... you know the rest.

Good lord, I did not intend for that to be that long.

 

[Veylon]

Fix the Prequels? Here's my go:

Spoiler

The Phantom Menace is pointless. All it does it get Anakin from Tatooine to the Jedi and provide some backstory for the Galactic Civil War. Also, Ani's still a little kid, so he isn't yet the person that can make the choices that lead to being Vader.

Solutions:
Get rid of Qui-Gon. He's entirely superfluous.
Have Anakin be from Naboo so there's something at stake for him when the droids show up. Also have him in his teens.
Make the droids actually threatening. Or maybe just have droidekas. Those were actually decently dangerous.
Knock the Jedi down a few pegs in stature. They don't need a absurdly gigantic temple (how do they pay for that?) and have them be considerably humbler.

Now the plot can be this: The droids invade Naboo and tear up the place. Anakin's mad because of how craven his government was in giving in immediately and wants to fight. Obi shows up as an investigator and is almost assassinated. He meets Anakin, senses him as a possible recruit, and together they escape back to Coruscant where Anakin begins training. The Senate is gridlocked and useless and eventually Anakin drops out early to use his burgeoning force powers to help liberate his homeworld. This is where he could meet Padme, who's a resistance leader; a role he himself sees himself in. He gets to be the hero of the hour and attracts attention, but we get to see that he's also rash and cocky. Palpatine can close out the Episode by pondering a very minor setback to his plans (y'know, shrugworthy), but also an opportunity. This would also be our chance to see Darth Maul (who was completely and utterly wasted in TPM).

Attack of the Clones was a fractured mess. We've got a mysterious army that no one much bothers to investigate too much, the baffling question of why Anakin's mother is still a slave on Tatooine, and the disaster of a Romance story, and pointless politics.

Solutions:
Kill the Clone "mystery". Make it clear from the beginning that it's Palpatine's idea and that it's controversial.
Use the Senate. Have a big meeting about what to do about the Separatists. Everyone's all agitated and wants something to be done, but nobody wants to risk themselves. So now Palpatine has a opening to push the Clones as a disposable cannon fodder solution and elevate his standing.
Anakin is pro-Palpatine, Padme is anti-. He sees the guy as someone who can get things done and protect Naboo, Padme wants Naboo to break off and be independent.
Introduce Darth Maul as the (apparent) leader of the Separatists. He's here to make it seem as though the Sith are back and thus force the Jedi into Palpatine's camp. He shows up, strikes, and vanishes. Anakin becomes obsessed with taking him down after Naboo is attacked. This event also serves to paper over the growing differences between himself and Padme.
Anakin can be shown as growing ever closer to the Dark Side and Palpatine as he openly uses his power more and more aggressively in the service of the Republic, whereas the Jedi don't take sides and only fight Maul.
This drives a wedge between them and the people (and Anakin), who resent them for not using their power directly for the Republic, setting the stage for Order 66 later on.
The film can culminate with Anakin fully giving in to the Dark Side for the first time, calling on it's power to kill Maul. Palpatine admits to him that he is an ex-Jedi (though not revealing all his plans) and encourages him on his path.

Revenge of the Sith is the best of the three prequels, but that isn't saying much. The final battle between Vader and Obi was ridiculously underwhelming emotionally. "From my point of view..." has no place in to-the-death confrontation like this. The whole film was about tying up loose ends that were left dangling for too long. Anakin's fall was far too abrupt.

Now we get into the real action! Palpatine's been gathering power for two movies now and it's time to grant himself total power.
The Jedi oppose this, declaring that it would fatally undermine the Republic. Anakin finally and completely breaks with them over this. They realize that he has fallen to the Dark Side and try to capture him, but he kills several and escapes, though he takes severe injuries in the process
Palpatine reveals this to the public, that the Jedi tried to murder their hero and portrays them in the worst possible light. He then (to popular acclaim) denounces the Jedi as traitors, declares the Order disbanded and orders them to surrender themselves. When they refuse, he sends in the troops (led by Anakin) to deal with them.
Palpatine is then formally made Emperor and makes the behind-the-scenes arrangements for Anakin to make the surgical strike to take out the Separatist's leadership.
Obi seeks out Padme while he is gone, explains his fears about Anakin's fall, and they make arrangements for Obi to try to bring him back for his own sake. Obi tests her newborn children, realizes their force potential, and arranges for them to be spirited away.
Anakin is lured by Padme to a surprise meeting with Obi. Anakin is enraged by her betrayal and they shout at each other. Shouting turns to fighting and Obi and Anakin have their big duel with accusations flying back in forth. Somewhere in there, Padme is killed, once and truly driving Anakin over the edge. Obi manages to escape, but Anakin receives the wounds that will force him to live in the breathing suit that makes him Darth Vader.

 

[ShadewearOnline Scott]

--Have characters that the audience actually cares about.
--Re-cast Anakin(both actors) and don't make him annoying and petty. Make him eerily threatening, almost like a Damien from The Omen; this little kid who has a darkness about him.
--Make the villains less clumsy and laughable and much more threatening. The droids? Really? They were wastes of space and were never a threat to anyone... except maybe themselves.
--Decide what the tone and audience of the movies are. If they're aimed at kids, then ditch the whole darkly political angle. Kids don't give a crap about trade federations and political in-fighting. If the movie is aimed at young adults/adults then up the emotional aspects of the movie, ditch the slapstick and focus on the development arc of Anakin.
--Create subplots that drive the emotional arc of each character rather than having every character essentially be the same from movie to movie, with the exception of Anakin, whose arc was clunky and, at many times, illogical.