What about Episode III: Revenge of the Sith? Let me catch my breath first. As an individual entity, I would have to say, this film is extraordinary. Like many before me have stated, from the opening sequense, this film hits the ground running or, in this case, hits the space flying.

I was surprised that when my wife and I arrived 45 minutes before scheduled show time (and I thought we were early), we were allowed in to be seated. My surprise grew when I saw that the theater was nearly packed! We quickly got to the best available seats left and settled down.

All the corny humor in the beginning had me laughing but wondering when we were going to get serious. I've heard/read some complaints about this but, it didn't bother me in the least. Not only did it lighten the mood for the darker events to come later in the film, it also stayed on course with the other five in this regard.

As noted above, the opening action scenes were phenominal and it was cool seeing R2 kick some butt. I especially liked seeing Obi-wan come flipping out of the cockpit of his starfighter as it went skidding along a hanger deck of the Invisible Hand and as soon as he landed, igniting his saber into some waiting battle droids. The pace of this film was exhausting.

The acting was definately the best the PT had to offer. Put me in the category of fans who will be highly offended if Ian McDiarmid isn't nominated for best actor. The seduction was downright coldhearted if not rushed at times; evidenced by Anakin going from amputating Mace Windu's saber hand to collapsing onto his knees bemoaning his actions to pledging his loyalty to Palpidious, all in a matter of minutes. What could Mr. Lucas do though? So much deception, so little time. The comment Sidious makes to Yoda about Lord Vader becoming more powerful than both of them during their duel was very ironic. Ewan McGregor was also nothing short of spectacular. I hope Alec Guiness would be proud of his young likeness.

The various worlds, even though some only give us a glimpse, were visually stunning in expanding the SW universe. It was nice to see some transition models of OT vehicles, like the ARC-170 Fighter. The howl of the Tie Fighters could be heard as well. I most liked the wide variety of Clone Troopers and regret that more thought didn't go into their offspring. I maintain that Mr. Lucas go back and give all the Stormtroopers Jango Fett accents.

Some of the little subtleties I liked were: Seeing the Millenium Falcon take off from the landing platform (bottom right) as the Jedi heroes approached with the "rescued" Chancellor. Spotting George Lucas as a big, blue senator outside Palpatine's luxury box at the opera house. After using a blaster to kill Grievous, Obi-wan's "So uncivilized" comment. There are probably others I can't quite remember but, you get the point. I particulatly liked the tie-in scenes, lines and references to the OT.

The story flows perfectly into the OT but the visual effects, unfortunately, do not and can not. Mr. Lucas has tinkered with the OT the best he can to make this work, however, due to the time and place he created the OT, he has managed to paint himself into a corner, so to speak. After viewing ROTS, my wife and I went home and watched, episode IV: A New Hope, on DVD. Rather than going forward in time 20 years, it felt like the saga went back in time. The story is still a great story but, that's what we're "stuck with", visually, as fans. Fortunately, the OT as currently constituted, is a pretty good thing to be stuck with, indeed.

I hope everyone enjoyed ROTS as much as I did and that we can continue and pass on to future generations all the excitement and imagination these films have provided. May the Force be with you all, always.