Carl Roberts 
A great way to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the saga! Join Carl as he thinks back about his favourite moments in the Star Wars Franchise
On May 25th, we celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Star Wars! In celebration of this special occasion, I wanted to share some of my top 4 personal favourite moments from the Star Wars saga.
TOP 4 REBELS VS IMPERIAL BATTLES
- The battle of Yavin (Death Star Trench run)
- The Battle of Endor (Death Star Attack)
- The battle of Scarif (Attack on the shield gate)
- The battle of Hoth (Snowspeeders against the AT-AT’S)
Of course, I had to go with the battle of Yavin as my favourite, it was the first space battle in the Star Wars universe I ever saw and, to this day, still enthrals me.
TOP 4 MUSIC CUES
- The Imperial March
- Main Title/End Credits-A New Hope
- The Clash Of Lightsabers/Escape from Bespin-The Empire Strikes Back
- Duel of the Fates-The Phantom Menace/Revenge Of The Sith
Ok, so I cheated a little bit with number 2, but hey, sue me! I love the Main Title from A New Hope, as again, it was the first time I heard the fantastic Star Wars theme and the blast at the end of the film still makes me tingle to this day.
TOP 4 CHARACTERS
- Darth Vader
- Han Solo
- Boba Fett
- Luke Skywalker
Sorry, but I LOVE Vader! He is the ultimate bad ass in the galaxy and after his brief but memorable appearance in Rogue One, it just confirms that, to me, he is THE MAN!
TOP 4 LIGHTSABER BATTLES
- Luke VS Vader (Bespin)
- Luke VS Vader (2nd Death Star)
- Obi-Wan VS Darth Maul (The Phantom Menace)
- Anakin vs. Obi-Wan (Revenge of the Sith)
With apologies to Yoda VS Dooku, which came VERY close to cracking my top 4, these are my favourites. My number one is based on Luke trying to hold his own against Vader, who is superior and fully trained, against Luke’s complete novice. The fact remains, though, that when it starts, Vader only uses his Lightsaber one-handed, but by the climax, he has to go full on with both hands as he realises that Luke will not give up, is intent on killing him and is more powerful than he realised.
The fact that Luke is his son makes Vader hold back at the start. However, as the battle progresses, Vader has to fight for his life. During the battle, Luke starts to come into his own. He’s nowhere near as good as Vader, nowhere near fully trained, is completely undisciplined, but takes the fight to the Dark Lord until he makes the mistake in getting cornered on the platform.
TOP 4 VEHICLES
- The Millennium Falcon
- The AT-AT
- T.I.E Fighter
- The X-Wing
Of course, the Falcon takes top spot! How could it not? The fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy is the perfect vehicle to cheer for. From its first appearance in Mos Eisley through its heroic rescue of Luke during the original Death Star attack to its final attack on the second Death Star and its cheer-inducing return in The Force Awakens, the Falcon remains the greatest ship in the Star Wars universe.
And finally….
THE TOP 4 STAR WARS FILMS
- The Empire Strikes Back
- Rogue One
- A New Hope
- The Force Awakens
It had to be, didn’t it? The greatest sequel in history and a much darker film than its predecessor, Empire ticks all the boxes and more. With its cliffhanger ending leaving us all breathless and ready for more, to its shocking twist that we, as viewers, didn’t see coming, it’s the quintessential Star Wars film and the favourite of not only me but of millions of Star Wars fans worldwide. It’s the film that the rest of the saga and now the latest film instalments want to be but can’t seem to get near. Revenge of the Sith tried and did come close at one point with the destruction of the Jedi, but failed ultimately to scratch the surface of its much darker and riveting sister film.
ROGUE ONE COMES CLOSE
Rogue One did come close again, but fell at the final hurdle, which, to be fair, is not its fault. The fault, surprisingly, lies with A New Hope. Rogue One fitted perfectly into the saga, but its ending left us at the point we started back in 1977. We knew where the story was heading and the hope that would prevail at the film’s end. This, sadly, relegated the film into a worthy second place ahead of its “follow-up”, A New Hope, which, after Rogue One, now fits perfectly behind it.
Okay, so I’m a sucker for it, but The Force Awakens takes the 4th spot. I was hoping that sometime in the future, we would get a chance to reencounter our heroes, and thankfully, we did. It’s nowhere near perfect and I wanted more of Luke to be in it, but it was a great re-introduction to our beloved characters from yesteryear. one can only hope that The Last Jedi can follow it and go down the Empire route and give us a darker, less hopeful journey to go on going into Episode 9.
THERE ARE SO MANY MORE!
There are many more favourite moments I could write about, but these are my main ones. Of course, some will disagree with me, but that’s what makes us a large family. Every family has their own choices, opinions and convictions for why they have them, and we, as Star Wars fans, are no different. We have our ups and downs with each other, but ultimately we are one HUGE Star Wars family. It never ceases to amaze me that, in this day and age, with all the conflicts going on in the world that we fans, from our different nations, backgrounds, ethnicity and such can come together to celebrate our love of a family saga that started “A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…”
May The Force Be With You!
Introducing Carl! As the News Editor at Future of the Force, Carl has been an invaluable member of our team since early 2016. His expertise and dedication have made him an integral part of our editorial staff. Beyond his professional role, Carl is a fervent supporter of Liverpool F.C. and an avid follower of pop culture. He has a deep passion for Halloween, Friday the 13th, and the iconic movie franchises Star Wars and Star Trek.
He can be found either at his neighborhood cinema, enjoying the latest releases on the big screen, or at home streaming the newest blockbuster movies.
