As this is the first post in a series, I decided to go in with a huge problem that many people have with the prequels; that being Anakin Skywalker and the way he’s portrayed onscreen.

First off, we’ll start with the actor who played young Ani in the Phantom Menace, Jake Lloyd.

To take the criticism seriously, you have to give some thought to Lloyd and ask yourself a simple question: how good are child actors at acting? Really? The answer is, ‘Not always that good.’ It’s a simple problem with no simple fix: kids often haven’t experienced enough of life to successfully portray those emotions onscreen, and the more pressure there is to get the character right, the less likely they are to be believable.

While it’s fair to say that Jake Lloyd probably wasn’t the best choice to portray a child who would become Darth Vader, an even bigger consideration is the fact he was chosen in the first place. George Lucas sent out casting directors to single out kids who would fit in the part, and the final choice was down to GL himself. If the creator of Star Wars thinks that someone’s right for the part, then maybe he can see something we can’t, and maybe he has a purpose in casting a certain kind of actor.

Another point that has to be taken into consideration is that the 9 year old Anakin is given the unenviable position of the ‘Mary Sue’ in the movie. No-one likes a kid who is somehow better at everything than adults who’ve spent decades studying and training to be the very best. While it’s clear that Anakin’s force sensitivity is the key to his being a flying ace, it seems very unlikely he’d be able to destroy the droid control ship almost by accident. It’s clear that this was done purposefully by Lucas to mirror the way Luke takes down the Death Star on his first flight, but it does grate a bit coming from such a young character. But to be fair to GL and the movie, Anakin is ‘The Chosen One’, with a huge midi-chlorian count, and a destiny that will see him wipe out most of the Jedi, so why wouldn’t he be able to let the force guide him in a dogfight against a bunch of droids? After all, it was his skills as a podracer that made Qui Gon realise he was something special.

While 9 year-old Ani might not seem a likely precursor to Lord Vader, it’s important to note that at that age he wasn’t fully set on his path to the Dark Side. It was only later, after he had been taught how to use his Force powers, and once his love for Padme and fear for his mother became fully realised that he began his descent to the Sith and became Palpatine’s apprentice. It’s clear from the start that many people doubt Anakin has any special abilities at all; Obi Wan is sceptical and the Jedi Council refuse to train him, it’s only Qui Gon who realises his potential to fulfill the prophesy and takes the decision to defy the Council and train him. Clearly many people are doubtful that some scruffy boy from Tatooine who knows nothing about his abilities is unlikely to become the person who brings balance to the force. Then again, that’s probably the point.

If Anakin is set to have such a big part in the Star Wars saga, then he needs a big entrance that shows he is something special and gives Obi Wan a reason to trust Qui Gon’s judgement and take him on as his padawan. Helping Queen Amidala win back her planet is surely a good enough reason.

Though it might not have been executed to perfection, it is a classic idea of an unlikely hero that a person from humble beginnings with no pretensions to power will go on to be the most important person in the story. After all, Anakin’s story certainly didn’t end the way everyone imagined; it was only after holding the galaxy in terror that he eventually brought balance to the Force, so why wouldn’t the beginning of his story be just as unpredictable? If nothing else, the fact that the podracing hero from Tatooine will become the black-cloaked Sith only makes the final destiny of Anakin Skywalker even more tragic and profound.