History Franchise / StarWars

* BadassAbnormal: All the Jedi and Sith: warrior monks with ImplausibleFencingPowers, blaster-bolt-deflecting {{Laser Blade}}s, and [[PsychicPowers telekinesis.]]
* BadassArmy: The Jedi and Sith, and the Grand Army of the Republic, when they aren't being put through ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy.
* BadassBeard: Many, many examples.
* BadassGrandpa: Yoda and Obi-Wan on one side, Palpatine and Dooku [[EvilCounterpart on the other.]]
* BadassNormal:
** Han Solo can't use the Force, but he gets the drop on Darth Vader, takes the Millennium Falcon through nigh-impossible manoeuvres, and knocks the galaxy's most feared bounty hunter into the Sarlacc (albeit accidentally) while blind.
** While nowhere near the level of Han, Leia has her moments, notably in her first encounter with Vader where she not only lies to his face, but talks to him like he's an idiot. She later strangles Jabba to death. (The fact that she later turns out to be Force-sensitive notwithstanding.)

Opening with a tale of a [[LaResistance brave rebellion]] fighting [[TheEmpire the evil empire]], the story centered on Luke Skywalker, a simple [[FarmBoy farm boy]] who finds himself [[JumpedAtTheCall drawn]] into that conflict when some [[RobotBuddy robot buddies]] show up at his [[TheCallKnowsWhereYouLive doorstep]] with some [[PlotCoupon important information]]. As he embarks on TheHerosJourney, it encompasses three films and meets many now-legendary characters like [[EverythingsBetterWithPrincesses Princess Leia]], the LovableRogue Han Solo and the OldMaster Obi-Wan Kenobi.

* ''Star Wars Episode IV: Film/ANewHope'' (1977)

* ''Star Wars Episode VI: Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' (1983)

* ''Star Wars Episode I: Film/ThePhantomMenace'' (1999)

* ''Star Wars Episode III: Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' (2005)

Lucas has long argued that the prequel's story existed in some form or another from the beginning of the saga, as the films featured the subtitles, ''Episode IV-VI'' (although the subtitle "''Episode IV''" wasn't in the first Star Wars film until its 1981 video re-release). ''A New Hope'' and a few elements of the original trilogy also make slightly more sense when seen against the {{backstory}} in the prequels, though others are more complicated. The original trilogy was released to theaters again in 1997 for the [[MilestoneCelebration 20th Anniversary]], featuring a few new special effects, cleaning up a few perceived {{Special Effects Failure}}s, added some deleted scenes and tweaked some original scenes. The films were slightly tweaked once more for the 2004 DVD release and changed to better match the Prequels by replacing Boba Fett's voice with Jango Fett's, replacing Clive Revill as the Emperor with Ian [=MacDiarmid=], and replacing Sebastian Shaw as Anakin's ghost with Hayden Christiansen.

''StarWars'' was inspired by the 1930s serials and comic strips of ''ComicStrip/FlashGordon'' and ''BuckRogers''. And by [[IsaacAsimov Asimov's]] ''{{Foundation}}'', most manifested in the Imperial capital of [[strike:Trantor]] Coruscant and the concept of the decaying [[TheEmpire Galactic Empire]] itself. And by ''SpaceBattleshipYamato's'' WorldWarII naval battles InSpace, and AkiraKurosawa's mystical samurai heroes and bumbling sidekicks. (Kurosawa's film ''TheHiddenFortress'' was particularly influential on Lucas.)

* ''DarthsAndDroids''
* ''BlueMilkSpecial''
* ''[[LegoAdaptationGame Lego Star Wars]]''
* ''Film/{{Spaceballs}}'' (a parody by Creator/MelBrooks)
* ''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlFOiFLLd0g Hardware Wars]]''

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The Star Wars Franchise has its own ''extremely encyclopedic'' wiki [[http://starwars.wikia.com/ here]]. With over 82,000 articles, it is among the largest wikis on the entire Internet (even many academic wikis are eclipsed by it) and there isn't anything StarWars that is not covered in it.

* AllYouNeedToKnowAboutTheCryingGame: Whether you've seen any of the movies of this franchise or not, you know that Darth Vader is Luke's father.

* TheApprentice: The Jedi Order is founded on the concept of apprenticeship, with students (Padawans) trained primarily by a single Jedi Master before taking on the rank of Jedi Knight, then going on to take an apprentice themselves. The Sith use a variant: there is always a single master and a single apprentice in the Galaxy at any time, with the principle that the apprentice will eventually seek to overcome his master and will either succeed or die in the attempt.

* AttackAttackRetreatRetreat: Han's running battle with the Death Star's stormtroopers in ''Film/ANewHope'' contains several examples of this, from the iconic "Close the blast doors! Close the blast doors! ... Open the blast doors! Open the blast doors!" bit to the scene when he goes on the offensive against a squad, only to retreat after he "corners" them and finds a much larger squad waiting ready.

* BadassBeard: Many, many examples.

** Film/ThePhantomMenace: Nute Gunray and Rune Haako seem like this at first, but they're operating under Darth Sidious and Darth Maul's orders.

* BiggerBad: TheDarkSide.

* CharmPerson: The Jedi Mind Trick.

* TheChessmaster: A number of these, most obviously Senator/Chancellor/Emperor Palpatine.

* CosmeticallyAdvancedPrequel: The prequel trilogy compared to the original.

* CreepyCleanliness: The Empire's ships are always spotless and shiny, emphasizing their coldness and sterility. The Alliance's are always used and lived-in. (George Lucas had fights with the unionized cleaning staff, who kept trying to clean the Alliance sets up for contractual reasons after he had them deliberately dirtied.)

* DecadeDissonance: A bit of a clash between the prequel's and the original trilogies' style for technology. Perhaps [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in that the galaxy under TheEmpire is a CrapsackWorld. Though, to be fair, a good amount of the original trilogy spends time on barely-inhabited planets that are the site of Rebel or Imperial bases or galactic backwaters like Tatooine. Bespin is the most high-technology place visited in the original series and it seems rather advanced for an out-of-the-way Tibanna platform (albeit an important one).

* DigitalHeadSwap: Done for Count Dooku's light saber battles (justified, given Christopher Lee's age). It's particularly [[UncannyValley eerie and distracting]] as Christopher Lee's head seems to float above his stuntman's shoulders independent of his movements.

** ''Attack of the Clones''- Featured a Jedi massacre and the start of the Clone Wars.
--->'''Yoda:'''Victory? Victory you say? Master Obi-Wan, not victory. The shroud of the dark side has fallen. Begun the Clone War has.

* TheEmpire: One of the best known examples, and a TropeCodifier in many ways.

** And by C-3PO, thanks to Anthony Daniels' narrow escape from overdubbing.

* ExplainExplainOhCrap: From the first (or fourth, depending on how you look at it) film, "But if they traced the robots here, they may have learned who they sold them to, and that would lead them back... home!".

** The droid-hating bartender from Episode IV, as well as the Imperial officer that calls Chewbacca a "thing". As well, the Imperials on Endor refer to the Ewoks as "bear creatures".

* FastRoping: The clone troopers in Episode III employ this trope.

* HollywoodTactics: ''Made of'' this {{trope}}. Some cases are somewhat justified, as the Rebels have grossly inferior forces and really have no other options.
** This is directly mentioned in the novelization of ''{{Return of the Jedi}}'': the Rebels know going head to head with an enemy fleet is the one thing a guerilla force is never supposed to do.

* IAmNotSpock: Nearly the entire cast has suffered this to some degree. Most of them [[AdamWesting have embraced it]], while others were left resentful of being typecast (most notably Alec Guinness). Averted by HarrisonFord, though, who launched a successful acting career outside of the Star Wars films.

* LuckManipulationMechanic: Most species in ''Star Wars Saga edition'' have the ability to roll a single skill twice and pick the best result.

** Darth Plagueis > Darth Sidious > Darths Maul, Tyranus, and Vader > Starkiller

* MerchandiseDriven: The franchise may not have started that way, but it definitely ended up there. There are about six different versions of the medical droid that works on Luke at the end of ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack''.

** In the prequel trilogy, Anakin is the Rogue and Obi-Wan is the Noble.

* OneProductPlanet: As with any good space opera, Star Wars provides plenty of examples of this: Coruscant is a Capital, Bespin and Kessel are Mines, Endor houses a Superweapon, the First Death Star itself was a Superweapon, Genosis is a Factory world, Tatooine is a minor Underworld, and Yavin and Hoth were Strategic locations. Naboo was Blockaded for a while.

* OrphansOrdeal: Luke is raised by "relatives" and seeks to avenge his father and find his true identity. After TheReveal that BigBad [[LukeIAmYourFather '''is'' his father]], he wishes that he really was an orphan.

* ProdigalHero: [[TheObiWan Obi Wan Kenobi]] exiles himself to watch over little Luke Skywalker from a distance, and then returns to the first line to be his mentor.

* PsychicRadar: The Jedi and the Sith both get to use their mental powers to look for people; usually each other. The most famous example is Darth Vader sensing the presence of Obi-Wan on the Death Star.

* RageHelm: Darth Vader's helmet has a chillingly penetrating stare.

* RuleOfCool: Lightsabers are the epitome of this trope. Rumor has it that this trope is the main reason why Mace Windu has a purple lightsaber, because Samuel L. Jackson thought it looked cool. (Also so that he would be visible in a huge lightsaber battle.) His lightsaber is the only one used in the movie canon that is not red, blue or green. This is [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by General Grievous in the Revenge of the Sith video game.

* SlaveMooks: The clones, in some people's point of view, and droids. An intelligent, self-aware, disposable, engineered worker race who must be brain wiped every few months else they get uppity.

* SonicStunner: This well-established genre-SF trope is overshadowed by the blasters, but present.

* StandardSciFiHistory: The trope is invoked in the movies, with the Decline and Fall of the Republic, Interregnum of the Galactic Empire, and with the Empire's end the Formation of the New Republic.

* TheStarscream: Vader only sides with Palpatine because he has no other options, and plots to overthrow him with Luke's help.

* SummonToHand: The iconic scene in ''Empire'', after which this was used in the prequel films as well.

* ThatManIsDead:

* TheyDiedBecauseOfYou: Episode III: Dialogue between Vader and Sidious
-->"Where is Padme? Is she safe? Is she all right?"

* TwoRoadsBeforeYou: Luke has to choose between staying on Dagobah and completing his training with Yoda, or going to rescue his friends on Cloud City.

* XanatosGambit / XanatosRoulette: Palpatine. The Clone Wars are the former because they bring benefit for him regardless of the outcome. The corruption of Anakain and othe schemes are the latter because of the many variables involved.

* {{Zeerust}}: Ships capable of destroying planets are less impressive when you realize just how easy it is to do so. (All you need is enough energy to accelerate the entire planet to escape velocity.) Other stuff, such as antigravity, is what Michio Kaku calls a Class II impossibility, yet it is commonly seen. (Han's even carried out on an antigravity gurney after he's [[spoiler:frozen in carbonite]].)

* GenerationalSaga: In ''RevengeOfTheSith'', Amidala states that this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause. In ANewHope her daughter, Princess Leia, is acting as a spy for the Alliance to Restore the Republic (commonly known as the Rebel Alliance, and, informally, as the Rebellion) and in ReturnOfTheJedi Leia tells Luke that she remembers her mother being very beautiful and kind but sad.

* ShoutOut: There are a few shout outs to the Oz books. Namely Princess Leia's hairbuns which are based on Princess Ozma's hair poppys and the Ewoks are based on the Teddy Bear tribe. Jedi comes from ''jidaigeki'', or samurai movies. Order 66 is a shout out to ''TheGodfather'', and the medal ceremony is very similar to ''TriumphOfTheWill''. The attack on the Death Star in ''A New Hope'' is a ShoutOut to ''The Dam Busters''. Additionally, look up "The Hidden Fortress" by Akiro Kurasawa and read the first part of the plot. If you don't get it, then substitute "peasants" with "droids".

** Mentioned in ''NightAtTheMuseum'' 2.

* {{Archetype}}: Luke is literally a textbook hero, designed right out of the book ''[[BooksOnTrope The Hero With A Thousand Faces]]''

* BigBad: It's Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious overall, [[TheManBehindTheMan of course]], but each movie has a specific main antagonist.

* BilingualDialogue: Han apparently speaks (or at least understands) a variety of languages, including Huttese, Rodian, and of course Wookiee. Lando and Nien Numb communicate this way in ''Return of the Jedi''. [=R2-D2=], of course, does this constantly, since he only speaks Binary.

* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: In space battles, Rebel lasers are red, and Imperial lasers are green. In the prequels, Republic shots were blue, Separatist shots were red. Jedi use blue or green lightsabers while only Sith carry red lightsabers. And, of course, only a [[SamuelLJackson bad]] [[PulpFiction motherfucker]] gets to use a purple lightsaber blade.
** The expanded universe has made the lightsaber coloring slightly less straight forward. Yellow, Orange, Amber, Pewter, and even Black have been used for Jedi saber colors. However the Sith seem to maintain their characteristic red sabers no matter what. Leia herself used a different shade of red for her own lightsaber when she first became a Jedi.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Since the prequel trilogy was following [[VillainProtagonist Anakin,]] ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' had to be darker by default. As such, it was the only film in the series to garner a PG-13 rating. ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' is also noticeably darker in tone than its predecessor. The upcoming live-action TV series is also reported by Rick [=McCallum=] to be "much darker, much grittier" and Lucas describing the series as "bare-bones" and "action-heavy". It's also worth noting that there's a brief scene in ''Film/ANewHope'' that's darker than the rest of the film, [[AvoidTheDreadedGRating and the darkness of that scene was deliberate on the part of the director]].

** Nowhere near, sadly. The 2011 Blu-rays literally have the brightness turned up a teeny bit, and a few lightsaber fixes- mostly in Return of the Jedi- but that's about it. Colours are still all over the shop, lightsaber in Empire Strikes Back often look terrible, and a lot of the detail in the darker parts of the picture are still lost.

* DisappearedDad: Anakin was this for Luke, for awhile. Of course ''we'' know [[DaddyHadAGoodReasonForAbandoningYou what really happened]], but Luke didn't learn the truth until Episode V. Also, ironically, applies to Anakin himself, as he literally ''has no father''.

** ''The Phantom Menace'' might have one. As stated above it could be considered a BittersweetEnding with Qui-Gon dead but the battle of Naboo having been won. Keep in mind though that the entire purpose of Naboo's invasion was to make Sidious Supreme Chancellor of the Republic. The Good Guys celebrate their pointless victory not knowing that the BigBad has actually succeeded and is standing there among them as Palpatine. TheBadGuyWins, the Good Guys just don't know.

* FakeBrit: Leia in ''A New Hope'', [[OohMeAccentsSlipping briefly]]. Her accent change could be explained as indicative of speaking formally because she is a senator, much the same way Amidala's manner of speaking changed when she was under cover as her own handmaiden, and later when her term as queen ended.
** Another possible explanation: note the scene where her FakeBrit accent is most prominent -- when she's arguing with Tarkin on the Death Star. She's basically talking down to him, letting him know she is his equal and will not be intimidated... but when he points the WaveMotionGun at her home planet, she drops the pretense '''and''' the accent.

* IShallTauntYou: The Emperor is an expert at this, but pretty much all of the villains do it routinely.

* LargeHam: [[WorldOfHam Just about the entire cast at times]], but primarily Palpatine, Jabba, and of course '''{{BRIAN BLESSED}}'''.

** And then there's Darth Maul...who has no personality to speak of and is basically a blunt instrument...
** It's not just the Sith. The smuggler who at first wants the war to leave him alone is named "Solo," Leia is Assyrian for "ruler," and of course, the kid who wants to leave his hick planet and travel the galaxy is named "Skywalker." And later, we get the gambler named Lando -- on Earth, a shortened form of Orlando, meaning "Land of Gold."

* OldMaster: Of course, being a sci-fi film that borrows heavily from classical myth, it isn't surprising that Homer's creation made its way to Star Wars.

* PsychicRadar: The Jedi and the Sith both get to use their mental powers to look for people; usually each other. The most famous example, of course, is Darth Vader sensing the presence of Obi-Wan on the Death Star.

* RockBeatsLaser: Notoriously, the Ewoks are able to defeat seasoned Imperial troops despite their primitive technology.
** With some help from blaster-toting rebels, of course.
** To be fair, the Ewoks did have a terrain advantage (both that they blend in better, and that smaller, more agile creatures are less hindered by all the foliage), backed up by extensive knowledge of said terrain, traps that have been laid out in advance, and no doubt a rather large amount of hubris on the part of the Imperial troops (would ''you'' take an Ewok as a serious threat if you hadn't seen the movie?).

* RuleOfCool: Lightsabers are the epitome of this trope. Rumor has it that this trope is the main reason why Mace Windu has a purple lightsaber, because Samuel L. Jackson thought it looked cool. (Also so that he would be visible in a huge lightsaber battle.) Also note that his lightsaber is the only one used in the movie canon that is not red, blue or green.
** This fact is [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by General Grievous in the Revenge of the Sith video game.

** On the non-romantic front, [[HoYay except in]] {{Fanon}}, Obi-wan/Padmé/Anakin is type 7, with the Jedi code (as drilled into him by Obi-Wan) telling Anakin his feelings for Padmé are wrong. {{Fanon}} puts them in...pretty much all the situations where there is at least one mutual attraction.

* UsedFuture: The original Trilogy is pretty much the {{Trope Codifier}}. To quote the page: "''Star Wars'' more or less defines the trope". See CreepyCleanliness, above.

** Basically the entirety of the Clone Wars. After all their effort and sacrifices, Palpatine's plan would have given him full power whether the Republic and Jedi had won or lost.

* BestFriendsInLaw: Luke and Han will presumably become this.

* UsedToBeASweetKid: Anakin before he went over to TheDarkSide. The prequels fill this in ({{YMMV}} as to whether they do so ''well'' or convincingly).

** Film/ReturnOfTheJedi: Luke during their final duel, after Vader [[AndYourLittleDogToo threatens to turn Leia to the Dark Side]], although that's more of a "Big Never".

** Film/AttackOfTheClones: Yoda hearing Qui-Gon's voice after Anakin's RoaringRampageOfRevenge against the Tusken Raiders

* ''{{Spaceballs}}'' (a parody by MelBrooks)

* ''FamilyGuyPresentsLaughItUpFuzzball''

* {{Bishounen}}: Luke. Just ... look at him. Obi-Wan Kenobi in ''Episode I'' and Anakin Skywalker in ''Episode II'' as well.

* SummerBlockbuster: The TropeCodifier, along with StevenSpielberg's ''{{Jaws}}''.

* ThreeDMovie: [[http://www.starwars.com/movies/saga/announce3d/ Plans have been announced to rerelease the six main films in theaters in 3D, starting with Episode I in 2012.]]

* AuthorExistenceFailure: George Lucas hired SF pulp novel author and Hollywood screenwriter Leigh Brackett to write the script for ''The Empire Strikes Back''. She wrote a first draft but died of cancer before she could revise it. Lucas wrote subsequent drafts himself, and later turned the script over to Lawrence Kasdan (writer of ''[[IndianaJones Raiders of the Lost Ark]]'') for polishing. (Lucas's revisions after Brackett's death notably included the creation of the LukeIAmYourFather moment. In Brackett's draft Vader and Anakin were two separate characters, and Luke sees Anakin's Force ghost before heading off to duel Vader.)

* GreenEggs: Blue milk.

'''[[StarWarsExpandedUniverse Expanded Universe]]'''

* ''Star Wars Episode III: RevengeOfTheSith'' (2005)

** RevengeOfTheSith: Darth Sidious again.

** RevengeOfTheSith: A rather [[MemeticMutation famous]] [[{{Narm}} scene,]] both the original and a renowned [[BlindIdiotTranslation translation.]] Also notable were three [[LargeHam hammy]] ones from Palpatine while cornered by Mace Windu.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Since the prequel trilogy was following [[VillainProtagonist Anakin,]] ''RevengeOfTheSith'' had to be darker by default. As such, it was the only film in the series to garner a PG-13 rating. ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' is also noticeably darker in tone than its predecessor. The upcoming live-action TV series is also reported by Rick [=McCallum=] to be "much darker, much grittier" and Lucas describing the series as "bare-bones" and "action-heavy". It's also worth noting that there's a brief scene in ''Film/ANewHope'' that's darker than the rest of the film, [[AvoidTheDreadedGRating and the darkness of that scene was deliberate on the part of the director]].

*** Yoda's head rub in an early scene of ''RevengeOfTheSith'' is intentionally modelled after that of ''SevenSamurai'' leader Kambei after his ImportantHaircut.

* NeverASelfMadeWoman: Averted in Film/ThePhantomMenace where Amidala is ruler of Naboo. By RevengeOfTheSith though, it's played straight as the film is all about Anakin becoming Darth Vader, but to give her credit there were three deleted scenes of her actively trying to stop the chancellor from taking over, and then helping found what would become the Rebel Alliance.

* TyrantTakesTheHelm: Palpatine gradually does this throughout the prequels, culminating with him declaring himself Emperor in ''RevengeOfTheSith''.

** In-universe, this is PAINFULLY apparent in the prequel films. C-3P0 and R2-D2 look dated and completely out of place when juxtaposed with sleeker, agile looking droids. The technology gradually gets more dated-looking as the prequels progress too, naturally because it's supposed to tie itself in with the Original Trilogy. Streamlined ships in Film/ThePhantomMenace slowly evolve into clunky, ships by RevengeOfTheSith. Sleek control panels seen at the beginning of RevengeOfTheSith somehow become overshadowed by a plethora of clunky buttons and dials by the end. Imagine if iPhones suddenly had receivers and rotary dials in the future.

* ''Star Wars Episode II: AttackOfTheClones'' (2002)

* AsteroidThicket: The asteroid chase from ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack''; revisited in ''AttackOfTheClones'' with the rings of Geonosis.

* BattleCouple: Han and Leia, and Anakin and Padme in ''AttackOfTheClones''.

** AttackOfTheClones: Count Dooku.

** AttackOfTheClones: Yoda hearing Qui-Gon's voice after Anakin's RoaringRampageOfRevenge against the Tusken Raiders

* CanonImmigrant: A'plenty. TIE Bombers in ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Boba Fett in ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Aayla Secura in ''AttackOfTheClones'', and the ''Outrider'' in the SpecialEdition.

* GunshipRescue: ''AttackOfTheClones'' has one of the archetypal depictions of this (which is a BigDamnHeroes moment too) but it is certainly not limited to any single movie, show, comic or book.

* RoaringRampageOfrevenge: Anakin slaughters the whole Tusken tribe that tortured her mother to death in ''AttackOfTheClones''.

* ''Star Wars Episode VI: ReturnOfTheJedi'' (1983)

* AscendedFridgeHorror: Although ReturnOfTheJedi vaguely seems to imply that defeating the Emperor defeated the Empire, [[hottip:*:(see [[http://www.cracked.com/article_16570_the-6-most-depressing-happy-endings-in-movie-history.html this]] article for why it wouldn't)]] the ExpandedUniverse makes clear that it did not.

** ReturnOfTheJedi: Emperor Palpatine.

** ReturnOfTheJedi: Luke during their final duel, after Vader [[AndYourLittleDogToo threatens to turn Leia to the Dark Side]], although that's more of a "Big Never".

** From ''ReturnOfTheJedi'', "But how could they be jamming us if they don't know... we're coming...?"

* JoinOrDie: In ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Vader tells the Emperor that this will be the choice he will give Luke. Vader instead gives Luke a WeCanRuleTogether. In ''ReturnOfTheJedi'', The Emperor makes the same offer to Luke.

** Palpatine might be one as well, at least in ReturnOfTheJedi, though in any case [[MagnificentBastard he is in more of a position to be smug]]. Though he does pull a pretty good trick in giving the Rebels the location of the shield generator to lure them into a trap, he simply is too arrogant to acknowledge the possibility that the Rebels could overcome it.

** Also lampshaded by Carrie Fisher in the commentary for ReturnOfTheJedi:

* ''Star Wars Episode V: TheEmpireStrikesBack'' (1980)

* AsteroidThicket: The asteroid chase from ''TheEmpireStrikesBack''; revisited in ''AttackOfTheClones'' with the rings of Geonosis.

** TheEmpireStrikesBack: Darth Vader.

** TheEmpireStrikesBack: Luke after [[LukeIAmYourFather the big]] [[TheReveal reveal]].

* CanonImmigrant: A'plenty. TIE Bombers in ''TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Boba Fett in ''TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Aayla Secura in ''AttackOfTheClones'', and the ''Outrider'' in the SpecialEdition.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Since the prequel trilogy was following [[VillainProtagonist Anakin,]] ''RevengeOfTheSith'' had to be darker by default. As such, it was the only film in the series to garner a PG-13 rating. ''TheEmpireStrikesBack'' is also noticeably darker in tone than its predecessor. The upcoming live-action TV series is also reported by Rick [=McCallum=] to be "much darker, much grittier" and Lucas describing the series as "bare-bones" and "action-heavy". It's also worth noting that there's a brief scene in ''Film/ANewHope'' that's darker than the rest of the film, [[AvoidTheDreadedGRating and the darkness of that scene was deliberate on the part of the director]].

* JoinOrDie: In ''TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Vader tells the Emperor that this will be the choice he will give Luke. Vader instead gives Luke a WeCanRuleTogether. In ''ReturnOfTheJedi'', The Emperor makes the same offer to Luke.

** With all three of those characters absent from ''Film/ANewHope'' (the original cut, at least), Darth Vader fills the LargeHam role in that movie. Also, Yoda in ''TheEmpireStrikesBack''.

* MerchandiseDriven: The franchise may not have started that way, but it definitely ended up there. There are about six different versions of the medical droid that works on Luke at the end of ''TheEmpireStrikesBack''.

** TheEmpireStrikesBack also has the following between Han and a rebel technician.

* ''Star Wars Episode IV: ANewHope'' (1977)

* AntiHero: Han in ''ANewHope''. He is [[ItsAllAboutMe mostly self-serving]] until [[ChangedMyMindKid he comes through for them in the end.]]

* AttackAttackRetreatRetreat: Han's running battle with the Death Star's stormtroopers in ''ANewHope'' contains several examples of this, from the iconic "Close the blast doors! Close the blast doors! ... Open the blast doors! Open the blast doors!" bit to the scene when he goes on the offensive against a squad, only to retreat after he "corners" them and finds a much larger squad waiting ready.

* AvoidTheDreadedGRating: The reason for that scene in ''ANewHope'' where Luke discovers his aunt and uncle's horrifically charred remains. Justified, as George Lucas had no way of knowing at the time that standards would be tightened for G-rated movies within the next few years, so if he didn't shoot that scene and got a G rating back in 1977, he could've earned a PG rating if he submitted it in 1981 regardless.

** ANewHope: Grand Moff Tarkin, with Darth Vader as his [[TheDragon Dragon]].

* BigDamnHeroes: Han's return to save Luke in ''ANewHope'' is probably the best-known example, but there are many.

** ANewHope: Luke after Obi-Wan is killed by Vader.

* DarkerAndEdgier: Since the prequel trilogy was following [[VillainProtagonist Anakin,]] ''RevengeOfTheSith'' had to be darker by default. As such, it was the only film in the series to garner a PG-13 rating. ''TheEmpireStrikesBack'' is also noticeably darker in tone than its predecessor. The upcoming live-action TV series is also reported by Rick [=McCallum=] to be "much darker, much grittier" and Lucas describing the series as "bare-bones" and "action-heavy". It's also worth noting that there's a brief scene in ''ANewHope'' that's darker than the rest of the film, [[AvoidTheDreadedGRating and the darkness of that scene was deliberate on the part of the director]].

* EverythingIsBetterWithSpinning: The spinning background that occurs in ANewHope after the Millenium Falcon first jumps into Hyperspace. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsNv6c6chBA See it here.]]

** Similarly averted in ANewHope where Princess Leia is a senator and member of the Rebellion with no man by her side.

** GeorgeLucas [[AuthorAppeal loves]] AkiraKurosawa. In addition to the many references to ''TheHiddenFortress'' in ''ANewHope'':

** Much of the Death Star attack at the climax of ''ANewHope'' comes from ''TheDamBusters'', down to the dialogue in places.
** The medal ceremony scene at the end of ''ANewHope'' is almost frame-for-frame out of the infamous Nazi propaganda film ''TriumphOfTheWill''.

** With all three of those characters absent from ''ANewHope'' (the original cut, at least), Darth Vader fills the LargeHam role in that movie. Also, Yoda in ''TheEmpireStrikesBack''.

** ANewHope has the following conversation between Han Solo and Obi-Wan Kenobi:

** Leia at the awards ceremony at the end of ''ANewHope''.

* RoboticTortureDevice: The interrogator droid in ''ANewHope'', and the device used on Han in ''Empire.''

* TellMeAboutMyFather: Luke asks Obi-Wan about his father but is only given the facts FromACertainPointOfView. Later, Luke's CallingTheOldManOut forces him to acknowledge this was wrong and tell the whole truth. (It is also implied, in ANewHope, that this is a point of contention between Luke and his relatives.)

* YouthCenter: Luke hangs out in one in a deleted scene from ''ANewHope''.

** On the "looks old" end of things, we have the motif of cybernetic hands now that we're entering the age of embryonic stem cells, and the vector graphics on the tactical display and targeting computer in ''ANewHope''.

* ''Star Wars Episode I: ThePhantomMenace'' (1999)

** ThePhantomMenace: Nute Gunray and Rune Haako seem like this at first, but they're operating under Darth Sidious and Darth Maul's orders.

** ThePhantomMenace: Obi-Wan after Qui-Gon was killed by Darth Maul.

* NeverASelfMadeWoman: Averted in ThePhantomMenace where Amidala is ruler of Naboo. By RevengeOfTheSith though, it's played straight as the film is all about Anakin becoming Darth Vader, but to give her credit there were three deleted scenes of her actively trying to stop the chancellor from taking over, and then helping found what would become the Rebel Alliance.

* OnlySaneMan: R2-D2 seems to cater to this, especially considering he never had his memory wiped and is fully aware of everything that has taken place since ThePhantomMenace.

* RequisiteRoyalRegalia: Padmé throughout most of ''ThePhantomMenace''.

** In-universe, this is PAINFULLY apparent in the prequel films. C-3P0 and R2-D2 look dated and completely out of place when juxtaposed with sleeker, agile looking droids. The technology gradually gets more dated-looking as the prequels progress too, naturally because it's supposed to tie itself in with the Original Trilogy. Streamlined ships in ThePhantomMenace slowly evolve into clunky, ships by RevengeOfTheSith. Sleek control panels seen at the beginning of RevengeOfTheSith somehow become overshadowed by a plethora of clunky buttons and dials by the end. Imagine if iPhones suddenly had receivers and rotary dials in the future.