It’s been forty years since the original Star Wars trilogy came to a close in spectacular fashion, with Anakin retuning to the Light side and Palpatine meeting his doom at the hands of his apprentice. This movie added so much to the Star Wars galaxy, and introduced new elements that would become a big part off the franchise in later years.
Here are some of the best things that made their debut in Return Of The Jedi.

Jabba the Hutt

We’d heard talk about Jabba since the first movie, when Greedo confronted Han about his debt to the crime lord, but this is the first time we get to him on screen and find out just what a Hutt is. Jabba is one of the most revolting characters in the saga, and few people were sad when Leia killed him.
Jabba did open the door to more crime lords, though, and the different syndicates that would appear in The Clone Wars, showing us a small part of the vast criminal underworld spread across the galaxy.

Mon Mothma

She doesn’t have a huge impact on the movie, and is mostly remembered for her concern over the death of the Bothans, but Mon Mothma is a central part of the Rebel Alliance and provides an entry into the political storylines that would become central to the prequels and Andor. She represents a different side of the Rebellion, rather than flying a ship or firing a blaster, Mon is concerned with forming alliances, making allies, and working to bring down the Empire and restore the Republic.

Ewoks

Not everybody loves Ewoks, but these space teddy bears bring a couple of important things to the galaxy. The first is the small, primitive band of warriors overcoming a much bigger enemy. In some ways, this is similar to how the Rebellion fought most of its battles, and it’s a theme that’s repeat again with species such as the Talz and Lurman, who drive much stronger invaders from their lands.
The second impact could be even more important. With such adorable characters introduced into Star Wars, it opened the door to others, including Grogu, who steals every scene with his cuteness.

Emperor Palpatine

We got a glimpse of Palpatine as a hologram in ESB, but this is the first time we get to see Ian McDiarmid in all his theatrical glory. He’s since gone on to be one of the most enduring actors in the franchise, with his powerful performance in the prequels and Rise Of Skywalker. His role in Return of The Jedi is even more impressive considering he wasn’t yet forty years old when he took the part. Star Wars just wouldn’t be the same without his evil cackle and shriveled features.

Epic Duels

Where there’s a Skywalker, there’s usually a lightsaber fight, and right from the start in A New Hope, we got to see sabers clashing, but these duels were smaller and less epic, due to the technical limitations of the prop lightsabers. By the time of ROTJ, things had improved, and the legendary swordsman Bob Anderson was on board. What we got as a result was the biggest, fastest, and most powerful lightsaber fight ever seen on screen at that point.
It wasn’t just the aesthetics that made this duel so powerful, it was the story behind it of father and son fighting each other. This makes it more like the final fight in Revenge Of The Sith, where two people with a deep connection to each other engage in a brutal fight. Without Return Of The Jedi leading the way, we would never have got the emotional duels we see in later films.

Thanks for reading!

The Best Things Introduced in Return of the Jedi

Tweet