10 Times Star Wars Gave Fans What Wanted (and They Hated It)
2. Darth Vader's Origins
When the prequels were officially a go, fans couldn't wait. For the first time in 16 years, we would see more lightsaber duels. More space battles. More Yoda and Obi-Wan. But the one element that people were really hyped for was watching Anakin Skywalker turning into Darth Vader.
Sadly, Anakin's characterisation was among The Phantom Menace's biggest problems. Although the actor portraying him, Jake Lloyd, gets a lot of flak, he did the best he could with the material he was given... which was awful. His dialogue was so terrible, no actor could've saved this role.
However, people were optimistic that Anakin would be done right in the sequel, Attack of the Clones. Not only would we follow Anakin as a young man and a full-fledged Jedi, we would finally see him descend into the Dark Side.
But somehow, Anakin is more annoying this time around. Instead of coming across as conflicted and torn, he acts like a whiny brat. When he brags about his superiority over Obi-Wan or creeps on Padme, you never believe this guy is Vader. The prequels had a perfect opportunity to flesh out one of cinema's most iconic villains, and completely screwed it up.