Now that STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI is available on Blu-Ray and DVD, it feels like as good a time as any to re-evaluate what the best viewing order is for the George Lucas-created interstellar saga. I remember when this used to be a simple task. You'd just start with STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE and work your way forward through the original trilogy. Now, not only do we have episodes one, two, and three to contend with, but chapters seven and eight are lurking as well. Oh yeah, and then there's ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY. So, the question remains: In what order do you watch the Star Wars saga, exactly?
Coincidentally, this is the same question that Collider's own Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub asked Luke Skywalker actor Mark Hamill, while chatting with him in Dublin, Ireland, this past St. Patrick's Day.
"What is the order you would recommend people to watch the Star Wars series now," Weintraub asked Hamill.
To which Hamill replied, "I always think … the way they were chronologically released. Now, I may be wrong, because if you're starting out fresh, you probably go: one, two, three, four, five, six … uh, Rogue One?" After flashing a perplexed smile, Hamill continued to ponder the ouroboros that is the age-old Star Wars viewing order conundrum. "It's hard, I mean, wait a second," the voice of The Joker continued. "Rouge One comes before four! Yeah, so you go: one, two, three, Rogue One, four, five, six, seven, eight … I'm guessing."
After shifting the order of films around a bit, Hamill continued to delve deeper into the Star Wars rabbit hole by saying "It must be jarring for young kids, because the technology is so advanced now, that Star Wars (A New Hope) looks primitive to the prequels where CGI just flourished." Hamill then wrapped his thoughts on the subject by confessing, "I don't know, it's probably just up to the individual."
And there you have it, folks, straight from the farm boy's mouth! Personally, I think the order depends entirely on whether you're new to the series or not. And honestly, you can watch the saga any way you damn well please, that's the beauty of free will. In what order do you watch the Star Wars saga? Do you have any rituals related to when you marathon the series? Which generation of the films are your favorite? Let us know your answers to these questions in the comments section below.
STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI is now available to own on Digital, DVD and Blu-Ray.
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