3. Padme Amidala
Padme Amidala serves just one function in the Star Wars saga: She must give birth to the twins, Luke and Leia. Basically, George Lucas needed her uterus. And as soon as Amidala fulfills her maternal duty, she departs from the scene, like an ephemeral insect that dies after laying its eggs. Few of us mourned her passing. Despite appearing in a significant portion of three Star Wars movies first as an "elected" queen, then as a senator Amidala gives scant evidence of having a personality. At times, she seems little more than an elaborately costumed robot. It's hard to believe this bland woman could be mother to the feisty Princess Leia, who won our admiration with smart-aleck comments such as "Will somebody get this big walking carpet out of my way?" and "This is some rescue. When you came in here, didn't you have a plan for getting out?" But while we're not particularly fond of Amidala, there is one person who loved her deeply: Anakin Skywalker. And this brings us to Amidala's other important function she inadvertently motivates Anakin's transformation into Darth Vader. After Anakin's little-boy crush on Amidala turns to teenage lust, we begin to see glimpses of darkness in his soul. Jealousy and the fear of losing Amidala (as he lost his mother) stir up feelings of anger and hatred. Then, when he does indeed lose her, Anakin buries whatever humanity was left in his heart and becomes Darth Vader, devoting the rest of his life to evil. So, we're grateful to Padme Amidala for creating the circumstances necessary for Episodes IV, V, and VI. And we're also grateful that she's not in those movies. It's a hell of a lot more fun without her.