The Problem With Padme

I know you guys so don't subscribe for star wars videos and I'm so sorry. Unless you like them in which case you're welcome for my art.

[@bookfish]

There's 2 reasons I liked Padme as a kid: 1. She looks cool. 2. Natalie Portman is pretty.

[@Puffballthegoat9186]

even though it's your opinion, I'll still handle it

[@MissPoplarLeaf]

As an adult, there are 3 reasons I like Padme: 1. Her storyline has some interesting possibilities for fan theories, like the "Anakin subconsciously mind tricked her into loving him" theory 2. She looks cool 3. Natalie Portman is pretty

[@questworldiangreenknight7455]

@@MissPoplarLeaf agreed.

[@usernotfound342]

@@MissPoplarLeaf the first reason is more like Palpatine tried to lure Anakin to love Padme and vice versa, that's why Palps ordered specifically Obi Wan and Anakin to rescue Padme in AOTC

[@JCT1926]

Which is really the same reason lol

[@rogercline5377]

Padme wasn't the only female character in the prequels. There was also fake Padme.

[@Day-eb9po]

Personally, I project all of my cool girl power fantasies onto Zam Wessel.

[@brianbalster3521]

fake Padme had Cool Dresses too! they Both were Awesome!

[@asterozoan]

What about Anakin's mother? You know, the one who was barely in it, then marries her slaver and dies to give the hero a motivation to be violent.

[@opheliapurple]

@@asterozoanin her defense what else was she supposed to do? Be single??

[@keenoled]

I like Padmé because the costume department got to flex like heck. To be honest, I kinda thought that was her storyline tho? Having cool outfits? So it all worked for me.

[@oof-rr5nf]

Best character trait ever

[@Ifailedeverything]

lisa schroder having cool outfits other people could wear to be Also Padme. That was my favorite part of her storyline. It was downhill after that.

[@JJA8020]

@Ethan Steel I mean she had impersonators who wore those fly as hell outfits while she pretended to be a servant so ye

[@dildonius]

That only works when you're talking about Episode I really.

[@venicebeachsportsnetwork6677]

Her hair awesome too

[@Wintermute01001]

I think the Padme everyone likes on Tumblr is mostly fanon rather than canon. They basically treat her the way the rest of the fandom treats Boba Fett.

[@iansteelmatheson]

nailed it.

[@BombasticLion]

Or maybe it's based on the cartoons where she does some cool stuff iirc

[@drewbryk]

Star wars generally kind of runs under it's own power doesn't it? The material itself asks you to carry it a ways

[@dildonius]

Bruh, watch the Clone Wars cartoon show.

[@kakarotlifted7302]

@@drewbryk Great point. It's too awesome to be shallow in any way to the fans.

[@SKMCTV]

I don't know, when I look for a potential mate, the number of children they murdered is something I take into consideration.

[@theFithWheel]

It deserves some weight.

[@13lackfriday]

1 ton minimum just to get a text back

[@Agent451]

Agreed. It's a finely-crafted list of requirements, actually. I'm sure it's something two or three minimum.

[@MattTheMagician23]

So when you're on a date with someone, you ask that person "how many children have you murdered?", because that's a totally normal question to ask a potential mate.

[@Kj16V]

So, should I be murdering more children, or less?

[@Kwijiboz]

Just to be fair, if Padme is stupid for not seeing that Anakin was turning evil, then the entire Jedi Order is as stupid as Padme, which was kind of the point of the prequels anyway

[@jakepinkphloid]

Kwijiboz uh yeah. Stupid is pretty much the defining characteristic of those movies.

[@thelastjediknight1]

Kwijiboz Honestly, the amount of people that miss the point about that is crazy. The Jedi literally said dozens of times they sensed a plot but couldn't understand it. Palpatine played them masterfully and they crumbled from within. As for Padmè, Lucas and Portman said she wanted to fix Anakin. It's not unusual at all for people to marry people they want to change.

[@jakepinkphloid]

Will Waterman the Jedi are stupid. An idiot would have been able to see what was going on without using the force. You expect me to believe that no one asked "cui bono?"(who benefits). Anyone who stopped to think about who was benefiting the most from this war that's tearing the galaxy apart they would have come to the obvious answer of Palpatine. It's not that the Jedi are stupid. It's that those movies are stupid.

[@thelastjediknight1]

pink phloid You mean a guy that the senate demanded stayed longer and had big public approval and who had fought off a huge threat to the Galaxy bravely with an army of troops? Yup, everyone could see what was going on there. EVERYONE knew he was behind both sides of the war. They totally didn't just fear for their lives with the atrocities of the infamous Grievous, Dooku etc and look to the republic for protection or anything.

[@jakepinkphloid]

Will Waterman Brave? it's not like he lead troops into battles himself. Even if he had a high public approval(which I don't recall in the movies where it says that) anyone who was looking for corruption or some kind of puppet master would have looked at him. It's common sense. I don't care how high someone's "public approval" is when granting them unlimited power in your government people it would raise alarms.

[@JamesShelnutt]

Padme was in the film cause Anakin needed someone to fall in love with & have babies that would become Luke & Leia.

[@jillmo6458]

I think this is honestly the best answer and while a mild-mannered housewife that makes babies and then dies because that's her only function would not have been the most feminist icon, it would've been a more honest portrayal of her role in the films--from a purely mechanical point of view, she's there to make the babies that will go on to save the galaxy from their psycho dad and his boss. Even in the original trilogy they mentioned her one singular time and never even said her name--they said Vader's name at the end, but when talking about mom, nothing except that she's "kind but sad." Vader said nothing about her at all to Luke and he was supposed to be married to her, and Luke never asked about her even though you'd think he'd have wondered about his mother in the last twenty-something years. She should have just been a side character in the prequels and saved us all George's awful attempt at a modern female protagonist.

[@Phoenix-zy1cx]

@@jillmo6458 I totally agree that per her function George was writing the worst stereotype of housewife/mother (think roles played by Julianne Moore) to make babies and die. It's really too bad, because she could have been literally any kind of character who then becomes the mother of Luke and Leia. She could have been an adversary at first, a bounty hunter, a beautiful dancer freed from a horrible pleasure palace, literally anyone else. She just had to end up being vaguely remembered as "kind, but sad" which you would be at the point that your psycho husband murders children. :-/ Also, could she have at least died bravely? As it is, they say she dies of sadness (UGH) but she was also just Force-choked until she went into labor, and that seems like domestic abuse turned murder. Which is a really dark, interesting story point... but George made her Sadme.

[@richardbourton4523]

Phoenix Ember I prefer to accept the theory that Palpatine took her life force away to save Vader. He said that the Force could used to create life (probably Anakin himself) but it’s also possible that Anakin was dying on Mustafar and when Palps knelt over him he used this power to steal away Padmé’s own life force to save Anakin and create Vader. It makes complete sense: he can use Anakin’s anger at killing Padmé to properly complete his transformation into Vader. This also retroactively fixes Anakin’s apparently instant change from ‘he needs to stand trial’ don’t-murder-the-chancellor mode to I’m-ready-to-murder-children-now mode by implying that his turn to Vader is not complete until the very end of the film. It’s less jarring to think of it this way. It also makes the ‘dying of sadness’ guff better. The medical droids can’t work out what’s wrong with her and weakly suggest sadness, in actuality their instruments can’t detect what is happening that is killing her because it is the Force. Watching Revenge of the Sith with this in mind improves it immeasurably and this theory is fairly textually supported as well so it’s not like it’s just made up fanon nonsense with no basis. Shame it isn’t explicitly in the film though, because it’s taken this long a comment to lay out the idea, but just a single duplicitous lingering smile from Palpatine when he says ‘I’m afraid... in your anger... you killed her’ might be enough to make this theory fully canon. Then Padmé wouldn’t have had to go out in such a pathetic way and the tragedy of Vader’s fall would be all the more ironic. I hope the last word was read in Palpatine’s voice.

[@glitch_goblin]

@@Phoenix-zy1cx My only problem with your comment is I don't understand the dis on Julianne Moore but maybe I just haven't been paying attention to her choice of roles lol

[@chocolatecharley99]

Instead of fans hating the female characters that the writers made and wrote for,(and also hating the actresses and women being in the movies) ... why don't they just hate the writers and their incompetency?

[@archer1949]

If they had gotten rid of that "she was elected" nonsense and made her the heir of a heredity monarchy, a lot of the stuff that came later would have made more sense.

[@billvolk4236]

You can just imagine the weird, convoluted line of reasoning that George Lucas went through when coming up with the character of Padme. "Okay, so, who was Luke and Leia's mom? Well, Leia's a princess, so I guess her mom has to be a queen. But wait, we can't have hereditary monarchs on the good side because we've established that the bad guys are bad because they're not democratic. Whatever, just say she was an elected queen. Wait, but since Leia's relation to Anakin was a secret, I guess she had to be raised by someone else. Fuck it, have Padme die of the big sad and have Leia coincidentally raised by a completely separate elected monarch. She'll be a princess twice-over for no reason." It did not occur to George that a country that elects its monarchs would not have princes or princesses because its line of succession would not be based on blood, or that Leia could have just been an elected monarch herself and then she wouldn't need any royal ancestors.

[@httohot]

@@billvolk4236 go read the fucking *AMAZING* book: plagueis. It is 100% about palpatine and his master setting up episodes I-VI and it makes the sith all the more badass and competent. Being that Palpatine is from Naboo it details the politics of naboo going into detail about why a teen became an elected official (their monarchs are elected on Naboo and it is not hereditary) If a monarchy ever willingly switched over to democracy, as opposed to being forced, this is what it would look like. Leia is a princess because her adopted mother is a proper queen, there is no connection to padme's royalty. Naboo has royal family lines but no princes/princesses

[@z-beeblebrox]

@@httohot " If a monarchy ever willingly switched over to democracy, as opposed to being forced, this is what it would look like." Umm...England would like a word with you.

[@httohot]

@@z-beeblebrox Umm...the glorious revolution 1688 would like to have a word with you the key word here is *willingly*

[@z-beeblebrox]

@@httohot I don't follow why the keyword would be "willingly". I mean just in general it would not realistically look like that. Turning a monarchy into a powerless figurehead that still follows hereditary rules is way more politically stable than upending the whole system to make the monarch an elected leader with actual power.

[@KaiInMotion]

"Kylo, you're like really hurting my feelings!" Lmfaooooo

[@Cdr2002]

I think a lack of anger when she deserves to feel anger is exactly the main problem with her character, thank you for pointing it out

[@matthewwalker2190]

As a little gay child who wasn’t allowed Barbies. Padme was my everything. The drama, the hair, the outfits, the romantic conflicts. I really brought a level of reality tv chaos when playing with action figures who was meant to be in battle. I’m surprised my friends kept me around

[@stephenzaborski8656]

Bravo!

[@nsaylor97]

I think it’s a lot this, little gay boy me idolized her for sure!

[@matthewware8973]

I'm also gay and love Padme!

[@KD-ou2np]

My brother and I used to play with my full size barbies and his tiny lego star wars figurines together. I wish I could remember the stories we came up with 😂

[@audreyeley3704]

As a lesbian, Padme was my gay awakening 😂

[@bob8mybobbob]

I liked her in the first movie because she was a genuinely kind person who wanted to do well for her planet and wasn't afraid to storm the "castle" at the end. And then after that, she was just "I'm here. And I love this guy for some reason. I'm pretty sure he's evil, but that's fine. Wait no, it's not. I'm dead."

[@Rbkid2008]

would have been cooler to see padme disagree with the chancellor and actively fight (politically) against him because she sees through his shit(since she can't go off fighting in arenas because she's preggers) and have a real reason for anakin and padme to disagree. then after he offically sides with palpatine, padme goes to confront anakin. she tells obi-wan about it and obi-wan says it's a bad idea because anakin's changed, but she goes anyway while obi-wan stows away just incase he needs to stop anakin from killing her anakin chokes her out like he does when they confront each other, fight scene, blah blah blah, except after the birth of twins, obi-wan sends her to alderaan with leia because it's a far off planet or something and she'd be safest there. Then she dies eventually and Leia remembers how sad her mother used to be and we see why. It's not a perfect idea, but hey, better than what we got.

[@strawberryqueen0382]

deanielamborghini You would enjoy the Clone Wars cartoon series. Every character is 10 times better.

[@oneironaut420]

There was some really interesting deleted scenes of Padme meeting with Bail Organa, Mon Mothma and other senators about their concerns about Palaptine's power grabs. They met in secret a couple of times and promised not to tell anyone about their meetings. This gave Padme a secret to keep from Anakin, contributing to his distrust. She led a delegation of senators to voice their concerns to Palpatine, who dismissed them. This whole subplot really gave her something to do and showed that she had a hand in the early origins of the Rebel Alliance.

[@jaydenc367]

you mean how leia was told of what her mom was like? I mean I think what we got still made sense

[@iusethisnameformygoogleacc1013]

@I am a black cat AND I BRING THE APOCALYPSE It's more like audiences tend to have very real problems enduring movies that long, particularly when it's the stuff that they all wished was not even in star wars (the entire political side of the prequels is still almost universally detested) making it that long.

[@xCorvus7x]

@@iusethisnameformygoogleacc1013 Universally detested? Why would that be?

[@SparrowhawkSilver]

I really like the theory that Anakin, unconciously or not, mind-tricked/force-influenced Padme into falling in love with him. The creepy stares, especially in Episode 2, would make a lot more sense that way.

[@liiindseyyy]

Sperber Ah this is a good theory!!

[@klassickasey]

yeah, Obi-Wan was her true love imo

[@blobbly8845]

Oh shit good theory... from three years ago lol

[@sendmorerum8241]

@@blobbly8845 The film is even older so what are you saying?

[@usernotfound342]

the theory is just a theory, it's not a canon fact

[@danielinskip8427]

Padme's not an idiot, she helped Palpatine become Supreme Chancellor, he seems like a great guy.

[@jasonkinzie8835]

He is a great guy! If by "great guy" you mean someone who delights in being pure evil.

[@danielinskip8427]

@@jasonkinzie8835 It's called being facetious.

[@jasonkinzie8835]

@@danielinskip8427 I know. I was joking to.

[@jaydenc367]

Actually she didn't, she didn't trust Palpatine very much.

[@andrewjenkins9965]

​@@jaydenc367she trusted him enough when he said "The guy who believed in your cause and sent two Jedi to negotiate with the Trade Federation on your behalf is terrible, he should be deposed and replaced."

[@MariahSyn]

Padme lost what brains and willpower she had due to plot convenience. If she had been a strong willed individual she would have slapped Anakin silly at the farm post Tusken massacre he might have not gone dark if she held up proverbial mirror. Don't even get me started on how creepy and stalker Anakin was, lol

[@samlerf]

We literally know that Anakin didn't slaughter the tusken with a conscious mind, as told by the Episode III novelization. And Padmé is strong in the Force, as told by Yoda, so it's definitely possible that she understood that on a basic level.

[@samlerf]

@Sheev Palpatine I talked about the tuskens. No, Anakin DID kill Dooku on purpose - that's why both the episode III Novelization (old canon) and "Lords of the Sith" (Disney canon) refer to Dooku's death as Anakin's first deliberate murder. The younglings are more complicated. We know that the dark side, in many ways, can be like a drug, a rush of energy and adrenaline, as well as a high, a bringing out the worst in people. "Dark Lord the Rise of Darth Vader" told us about the younglings: "But his loyalty to the dark side had been so new... he'd wondered if he could really call on all its power to yield his actions and lightsaber. As a reply, the dark side had whispered: "They're orphans, they're better off dead".

[@h.c.49]

@@samlerf I read the Revenge of the Sith book like six times (I have no defense or rational reason why) and I don't remember that for some reason. I'm definitely not saying it's not in there, but I am curious about where it is.

[@samlerf]

@@h.c.49 In the scene where Anakin beats Dooku and in his thoughts while killing the separatist leaders. Though parts were set up in the Episode III prequel novel "Labyrinth of Evil".

[@h.c.49]

@@samlerf ah.

[@masterchill6784]

0:05: "This ask is fabricated to make it look like more than one person sent me this question" caught me off guard :D good one

[@booksvsmovies]

I love the idea of Padmé. Badass Senator/Queen fighting for democracy is a good concept for a character but she was written so poorly. Her outfits are aces though. 10/10

[@homestuck_official]

They are but like 90% of them are straight-up asian regalia ripoffs

[@nocussing7418]

@just a KZbin commenter and?

[@matthewsawczyn6592]

Traits that were already done better by Leia

[@adwoaadu-parko4329]

When he told her that he murdered a whole village (children included) she was like "okay but you didn't mean it" and then she acts shocked when he murders all the little Jedi? Like girl...the pattern was there. You were chilled before why not be chill now?

[@jamesdrummond7684]

Natalie Portman is Jewish so it checks out that she doesn't give a shit about any that aren't "her own"

[@mickymcbryan4814]

My parents showed me Star Wars in chronological order when I was in the children's hospital. I'll be honest, my infantile amnesia wiped out everything about that movie except 1. R2D2 (which I then decided was the name of my IV) and 2. Padme's nice dresses. I like Padme because of her dresses. She's a badly written character in a nice dress and I have come to accept this.

[@GloomEmbraced]

"Kylo, you're really really hurting my feelings"

[@Alkinski]

"Who are you?"

[@WookieSenshi]

+Alkhilion "I'm your grandma!"

[@Dartyus]

@@WookieSenshi "shut up grandma!"

[@ChupeTTe]

Rey episode VIII - IX

[@thegreenmanofnorwich]

Killing children never bothered Padmé. As evidenced in episode 2 where she marries him soon after mass murder.

[@13576bard]

"Hmm the supreme chancellor has asked me to return to Naboo because my life is at risk here on Corusant. Who shall I appoint as my representative in the senate? A trusted advisor? My head of security? Perhaps I could use a hologram to represent myself because that technology exists?? No I'll appoint Jar Jar Binks! The bumbling buffoon who got banished for being clumsy!!"

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

And so the chancellor got "emergency" powers.

[@JavierPerez-cx4jw]

I mean she didn’t appoint Jar Jar. He was sent over as a Representative because technically he’s a war hero. I’m not saying that that wasn’t a stupid call, I’m just saying that that wasn’t Padme’s stupid call.

[@GeneralPadron]

Padme would not have a "force ghost". Padme was not even force sensitive.

[@SuperMovieLvr933]

Joseph Padron Yasss girl slaaay

[@phoenixwing50]

Yishai Thau haha

[@happymilk7433]

But you don’t understand: She is girl and she is pretty

[@rickandrygel913]

She's so strong, her sadness can kill.

[@Asher8328]

How dare you question George Lucas' writing skills. Haha, just kidding.

[@fantom5894]

They're not masterpieces--but they're fun popcorn movies, which is all you should expect from any Star Wars movie.

[@SonofSethoitae]

@@fantom5894 Most of each of the prequels is people sitting around talking about doing things without actually doing anything. Not exactly popcorn material.

[@fantom5894]

SonofSethoitae Not true. But nice try. Enjoy your Mary Sue Disney Star Wars,

[@SonofSethoitae]

@@fantom5894 It is exactly true. And I don't even like Disney Star Wars.

[@jaydenc367]

@@SonofSethoitae eh...they do stuff but they do talk quite a bit but it is important

[@nrcallender]

She doesn't just suddenly becoming actiony in Clones. She leads the attack on Thread in Episode 1, it's more that she becomes suddenly unactiony in Sith.

[@georgelionon9050]

Why people like Padme? Because Portman is hot. Thats all about it.

[@idontgiveafaboutyou]

Not just about looks silly

[@ThatBoomerDude]

Yeah, it is.

[@idontgiveafaboutyou]

prosperomage Only in this shallow society it does.

[@ThatBoomerDude]

Wendy Hull Yup. Like I said.

[@idontgiveafaboutyou]

prosperomage Most people with character wouldn't mind what she looks like. Just as long she's not a bad person.

[@malvy4974]

I think the more you watch star wars you see more and more when it was written by men with little to no consideration to how women actually think

[@CarEdy23]

I don't think that applies to Leia

[@malvy4974]

+CarEdy23 who is leia as a person?

[@CarEdy23]

Joel Bailey An important political figure that cares so much about her people she would die before putting them in danger. A person commited to her values (supporting the rebellion), a headstrong and bold person who would risk her life to save her friends.

[@malvy4974]

That's a character description not a person

[@CarEdy23]

Joel Bailey Well I can speak at lenght about her and how I think she would act in a certain situation, that's personality and characterization. I can say as much about her as I can about Luke or Han Solo. How would you describe as a person then ?

[@erikkingoftherats4412]

Valid points overall, I super agree that her death was absolute bullshit. I like Padme mostly because of the dramatic irony of her character. She is fighting tirelessly against a war that is entirely fabricated, where there is no real winner. She's trying to be in a relationship with someone we know is doomed. I don't know if you watched the (animated) clone wars TV show but it really gets deeper into Padme and anakins characters. It rounds them out a little more and makes anakin actually likeable (maybe also Padme in your case?) in that show she does pull of sweet stunts and has full episodes of her doing crazy diplomatic maneuvers while anakin hits stuff with his light up sword. Padme is probably my favorite charachter (other that han solo of course who is everyone's favorite character) because of her spirit. She believes in people and she truly wants the best for her people. No other star wars characters really cared about others without some serious character development. I like Padme and I chalk her weird flip flopping to bad sequel writing.

[@Thorne-In-Your-Side]

not mine motherfucker!!! my favorite character is *LANDO CALRISSIAN* and his stupid capes. He's a little theater kid, but at least he's got some god damn style. mans can womanize me any day.

[@artidoodleroo6688]

The reasons Padme is my favorite: 1. Literally the just dresses. I love big dresses. 2. I liked star wars politics more than lightsabers as a kid. That's why my favorite movie was Phantom Menace-

[@CarlMarxPunk]

It has always baffled me how people overlooked this on the prequels. So Naboo has a "Queen" so it makes sense the she could be a child, since she can inherit the throne BUT in episode II we are told that "queens" get elected to rule? as in, Apparently Naboo's government involves electing children to hold office? A CHILD IS ELECTED TO RULE A PLANET? The fuck is this writing?

[@iseeicyicetea]

maybe they are elected out of a very limited pool of high nobility and not by the general public, but by other nobles? maybe they put a child into power in order to use her as a puppet ruler? it's pure speculation on my part and maybe the movies or other sources disprove it, but i thought that might be a possible explanation to make some sense out of it.

[@Trollificusv2]

How about maybe the Naboonies intercepted Earth TV transmissions from the '80s of all those "comedies" where the kids are omniscient smartasses and decided they should be ruled by one?

[@Archimonde45]

Well, seeing as nobody actually answered your question, the short end of it is that Naboo elects queens from tween girls because it's their belief that these individuals are more pure and innocent, and that those are the foundations which make a good ruler. Their government is literally founded on the principle of upholding a certain, childish naivete. Hence why Padme went on to join the senate, rather than remain queen. She got too old for the role. Edit: This explanation is also in the video.

[@httohot]

They pick children because this is a lifetime job and they want the job to shape the person as opposed to a fully developed person coming in and making radical changes based on their personal preferences. Adults would be too easily swayed by power so they choose younger children to find those who are still pure. For example Padme at the time had already been a highly involved junior ambassador/politician despite being a tween.

[@johannesseyfried7933]

She is not even the youngest Queen Naboo ever had. Also, I am pretty sure there HAVE been Child Monarchs in History. True, most of them were forced to take over for their dead Parent, but still.

[@Cowabungas]

Padme is a bad ass in the Clone Wars animated series

[@tiburonroano]

yes she is!!! but this girl probably didn't see it.

[@Mokkari77]

Fuck you.

[@Mokkari77]

Hey you decided to use curse words first. I'm just talking to you on your level.

[@veilder2332]

I'd just like to point out that the Clone Wars series (the CGI one, not the hand-drawn) is officially a part of the new canon. It isn't relegated to Legends status (or, as you said, EU).

[@jlg395]

LOL...who gives a shit about a fucking cartoon?

[@user-ok8yq6nc6x]

Padme already shot blasters and fought in eps 1 so it was established that she could do that

[@diesenutss]

This is why we needed Ahsoka.

[@Shapes_Quality_Control]

meloncholy&macabre No.

[@cryptgamer1113]

no just no

[@fantom5894]

Yes, just yes. But Ahsoka had the strength of personality that Padme lacked, and could have turned Ani away from the Dark Side. Thus, no Vader. So Ahsoka had to go.

[@cryptgamer1113]

if ahsoka could bring him back then she wouldve done it in rebels and shed help rots and ik that it wouldnt happen because we need vader but she would have if it was allowed but she wouldnt hes to far and only padme could obi wan just pissed him off coming and padme has a great personality ahsoka is just like a good character i like ahsoka but really who the fuck wants togruta and human babies but like no they have friend ship chemistry but not lover watch the clone wars and anakin and padmes relation ship that is a relationship

[@fantom5894]

I never said Anakin should have married Ahsoka instead of Padme. But if she hadn't left the Jedi order (Clone Wars end of Season 5) and stayed with Anakin through Ep3 she could have turned him. But Anakin had to turn to the Dark Side because Episodes 4-6, so she had to go.

[@sophiegm6736]

"I know you guys so don't subscribe for star wars videos and I'm so sorry." oh how times have changed...

[@mikew300]

Look up the fan theory of Anakin using the force to brainwash Padme into loving him. The prequels make A LOT more sense that way.

[@imkluu]

Yes, this does make more sense. It explains a lot.

[@volatiledinosaur8517]

Jar Jar Binks was the first to suggest to Anakin that she was hot. There was a theory about Jar Jar Binks secretly being a dark lord sith.

[@diesenutss]

in TCW their love looked genuine

[@jillmo6458]

I officially adopt this as my new headcanon because hey, the movies say Palpatine could darken minds--why not the most powerful Jedi ever? He subconsciously coerced her into loving him, he was so obsessed with her.

[@Shapes_Quality_Control]

It’s like watching Stephen King try to make his bullshit plot make sense.....

[@Yobachi2007]

4:28 Kylo would be like "Grandmother!"

[@patrickwalker6138]

lol

[@benfarrar741]

Here's a fun thing: I heard somewhere that Darth Sidious intentionally used the Force to siphon her life energy into Anakin. It was a two birds with one stone thing-Darth Vader's life was saved, and Palpatine got rid of a distraction in the process.

[@sophiaako7663]

We shouldn't be angry at Padme for being a terrible character, we should be angry at whoever wrote the only female character so terribly

[@greatsayain]

She shoots blasters a lot in episode 1. She does some running and I think she goes vertically up the side of a building with those cables. So her fighting and being physical is not unprecedented in Attack of the clones. It's not surprising she doesn't do a lot of that in ROTS as she some number of months pregnant. To be fair do we know the hobbies or friendships of any characters in the prequels. Most of the friendships are also work colleague. The one exception is Luke and Wedge or Biggs. But those guys are barely characters.

[@rbgg2010]

I love how in the arena scene, when the giant monster with the massive claws attacks her, it causes basically no serious harm other than to rip her shirt into a sexy mid-drift bearing top that makes her look like she just walked off the set of a Britney Spears music video from the 90's...Now THAT'S what you call character development!

[@MisterJoshuaTree]

I mean really she's just boring and underwritten... just like literally every other prequel character.

[@jrd33]

"boring and underwritten" is less noticeable when you are running around and fighting with a light saber. It's very noticeable when your character has nothing to do except be a motivation for the actions of other characters.

[@nathanielbables8652]

Technically she fought in the phantom menace

[@Puffballthegoat9186]

@Brendan Fitzpatrick Couldn't agree more

[@belias360]

The Clone Wars animated show gives her more of a character and more things to do separate from Anakin. But yeah, just going by the films...she's not that great.

[@usernotfound342]

I've recently watched TCW, not even that "saved" Padme's character, she only does more missions and reveals she had more ex boyfriends lol

[@AninOnin]

I think I like the Padme we're TOLD about, and not the Padme we're SHOWN.

[@stargirl7646]

Oh dang, your description of what if she had yelled at anakin instead and been justifiably furious made me so happy! Wish we got THAT Padme!

[@pkwytv]

I like her in the Clone Wars, but in the movies she’s a completely flat character.

[@joshthegoony]

The best part of Padme is the "breaking my heart" line. It's quotable 👌

[@FelixVasquezJr]

"You murdered all those kids? Let's have a baby together!"

[@michaelk4113]

Love your videos! You are clever, observant, articulate, have good comic timing...and...you crack me up! Thank you!

[@birdlegscass]

I haven't seen star wars in years but it sounds like she's showing major symptoms of being abused

[@LegandsandLabyrinths]

My personal head canon is that Anakin was using Force powers (possibly unwittingly) to force Padme to fall in "love" with him. And the reason she died is because her mind, warped by years of Anakin's abuse, couldn't survive once he withdrew. This doesn't actually help Padme as a character. But it salves my sanity.

[@kenknowlton3085]

Jenny is just jealous of Padme because she wants Anakin for herself!

[@velvetamore]

same tbh

[@jasonkinzie8835]

I thought she like Kylo?

[@mayavale4926]

How dare you insult my wife

[@Puffballthegoat9186]

But you're not anakin

[@alaricsoto1]

It makes sense for Padme to have a relationship with Anakin, because the original trilogy needs to happen.

[@usernotfound342]

this is the worst reason for it to happen

[@alaricsoto1]

@@usernotfound342 yes, I was being ironic of course.

[@mstrainjr]

Okay, let's be fair here: 1) She was involved in politics before she became queen. Not sure if you count deleted scenes, but there's one called "Padmé's Bedroom" in which she explains this. The Clone Wars cartoon series also expands on her past some, and that's canon. 2) She often posed as a bodyguard. I would expect she's received some kind of combat practice. We see her shooting a gun in TPM, and she's pretty dang accurate with it, so it shouldn't surprise us that she fights some in AOTC. Okay, it's a bit stupid that the tiger-like nexu scratched her back and suddenly her toned midriff is exposed for the horny teenagers such as myself to observe.... But then in ROTS, she's reduced to talking about love and whining about shit. 3) Lucas and Portman both said that Padmé was attracted to Anakin on a subconscious level because she saw that he was broken and she wanted to fix him. Like how her daughter Leia was attracted to the scoundral Han Solo, Padmé felt an attraction to the darkness in Anakin and felt the need to be a counterpoint. It's weak, but that sort of explains it. And it's not that Padmé is stupid. Most people don't want to admit when a loved one goes bad. Mothers will often defend their murderous sons. Padmé was most likely in denial. Besides, she (as most people in the galaxy) may not have fully understood such terms as "the dark side". But yes, I see where you're coming from. I might just be making up excuses because, like Padmé, I'm living in denial, refusing to see the darkness of the prequels. I like your personality and the way you present your opinions, so you got yourself another subscriber. =)

[@willpina]

No, you don't sound lonely and desperate at all

[@willpina]

=)

[@mstrainjr]

willpina Dude, I said nothing about marrying her =P

[@imkluu]

You have soem goodpoints and it weakens my dislike of he character a bit but I still cna't getover her having a romance and sex with the child she had known before. It just creeps me out.

[@mstrainjr]

imkluu Yeah, that is a bit weird. Between that and the incest tone between Luke and Leia, I can't help but feel that Lucas was trying to sneak some fetishes into his movies.

[@rosslytle5700]

"Padme, you are so stupid. You are so stupid, we want you to be the queen." We've recently adopted a similar political system in the United States ...

[@Fargoth_Ur]

...There are people who seriously want to see Padme again as a Force ghost?

[@brandyloutherback9288]

Honestly, Padme's kind of sexist, like she serves 2 functions: 1. Titillating eye candy 2. Falling in love with Anakin and procreating with him so as to make the rest of the series happen. And another thing, it doesn't a whole lot of sense for Leia to remember her birth mother because she was only like 4 seconds old when Padme died! Ya done goofed George Lucas ya done goofed!

[@brandyloutherback9288]

Kind of, there was a picture of Padme in her Geonosis ripped Jumpsuit looking sultry while holding a gun all badass!

[@em791]

About the Leia part, there is this cool 100-minute fan edit of the prequels out there called Star Wars: Neon Noir. It takes the best parts of the prequels, eliminates almost all of the phantom menace and the dialogue and sets every scene to music from TRON: Legacy, Hanna, and various Nicholas Winding Refn films. Anyway the point is that they don’t re-edited Padme’s giving birth so that she didn’t die in the medical facility, but in an explosion when she landed on Coruscant. Of course they can’t include footage that doesn’t exist, but it could’ve gone: Birth -> 2 year time skip where she spends time in secrecy with the children -> returns to coruscant by herself for some reason -> clone/stormtrooper assassins blow up the shuttle on the landing pad -> Vader wakes up rebuilt -> Palpatine lies about him killing her and Vader lashes out in rage without screaming “Noo!” Sure two years of Vader being on ice may seem odd, but with lightspeed travel factored in the time Padme is with Luke and Leia may pass much slower than what’s going on on Coruscant. I may be wrong about the application of lightyears but that’s how I’ve heard the apparent age difference between Luke and Leia explained. That’s easily what George could’ve done.

[@davidroddick91]

Even a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, the pretty girls always wanted the bad boy, believing they can change them, and when the bad boy would do something bad, they would be surprised. Nothing has changed.

[@Sparkling34]

I think her having different campy outfits basically every scene is reason enough to like her

[@16belle00]

I love the way you frame things in your videos - you're really funny, thanks for making these :)

[@justjenn83]

I need you to know that a video you made six years ago is bringing a grown woman laughter and joy at 6:57 on a Sunday morning when she wanted to sleep til 10 but woke up from her period draining her life force after, like, three hours of sleep. Right now I hate everything but this channel. This is the only good thing. Thank you.

[@jillmo6458]

"That's going to be impossible because she literally has no character." - Rich Evans.

[@idfkwhatyouwantfromme]

"Who the heck is Padme?" I don't know. Who the heck is Leia in ANH?

[@zileris]

She was a princess who was personally involved in a espionage mission to steal enemy battlestation plans. Bullheaded and confident enough to both confront Darth Vader himself, smack talk with Han Solo, and handle a blaster in combat. Her quick thinking got them out of being surrounded and into the garbage chute, shutting the door to prevent Luke from being shot, and jumped to the co-pilots seat when Han and Luke manned the Falcon's turrets. She had a purpose and goal with the rebellion and wasn't afraid to act at any chance to do anything within her means. As far as princesses go, she's quite awesome.

[@idfkwhatyouwantfromme]

Haha. Thanks, Plinkett.

[@jaydenc367]

@@zileris Padme? a princess who was involved in a mission to take back her planet which was taken from her in terms of control. is smart enough to know something is up with palpatine. and can handle a blaster. not as great as leia but...eh Padme isn't terrible

[@vgovger4373]

jenny may not know this but, if you watch the deleted scenes from clones, it shows her parents home. it also shows us her sister, you get to know padme more and it also gives us her back story.

[@mauriceahlquist6538]

You are so brilliantly funny. loved this video. going to have to subscribe because you are quickly becoming one of my favorite youtubers.

[@SuperPanoply]

"She seemed kind of sad when her decoys died." What? I thought Padme died and Anakin hooked up with her double.

[@annedavis3340]

I like this headcanon

[@Xshinobi2k8]

I feel like the movies do her a disservice. I really liked her character in animated series. She is pretty strong will and well fleshed-out character in the animated show

[@TheStrangeBloke]

Everyone comes off better in TCW, but even then Padme isn't one of the better characters, and her interpretation in that show is a direct denial of who she is in the movies. **Jar Jar** is good in TCW.

[@usernotfound342]

no, Padme isn't better in TCW

[@eloujtimereaver4504]

She did shoot in the direction of things in the first movie, and a few times in Clone Wars. So I have no problem with her shooting things. It was a bit over the top to be kicking monsters and jumping out of planes though.

[@theninifiles]

This is the second one of your videos I have watched. And have to say, amazing comic timing. These are entertaining and your slightly acerbic (not too bitter) wit is perfect. I hope you are getting notice by someone who can take you above the chatter of other KZbin vloggers. Good luck.

[@TheIzzyNobreShow]

Love your stuff. Do more videos!

[@sena167]

descobriu esse canal depois daquele vídeo viral também, Izzy? O canal parece ser bem bacana mesmo.

[@aricente]

I stanned padme when she shot the window out in ep. 1 after they grapple hook up. Like, idk, that moment was an awakening

[@TheFashionAssasin]

Totally agree. In fact you nailed it well enough in your Point #1 to be a video all by itself. They do nothing to show her as an effective maverick politician. They never show why the Trade Federation or The Emperor consider her a threat. A few simple, short scenes of her using some real political guile would have gone a long way and Anakin seeing this might allow the audience to see his love for her beyond some creepy obsession. Showing why she still believes in the system..which is nakedly corrupt and that it's something that can STILL be fixed from within, would also establish her as a liberal precursor to the radical shift of the later Rebel Alliance. It would not only highlight her as a distinct individual with not only a coherent identity and political viewpoint but also via her limitations such as "working through the system" gave her a blind spot to what was going on around her. It reaffirms Leia as her inheritor and successor and redeemer just as Luke redeems Vader. What could have been.

[@Mokkari77]

You know what? You're right. Padme sucks. Dying from a broken heart after giving birth to twins? What a weak way to deal with a traumatic betrayal. Leaving your spouse and regressing, or vanishing for years without telling the people you love where you're going? Now that's how STRONG people deal with it!

[@jeremysmetana8583]

I don't hate Padme. Why would I? She's not even real. I hate George Lucas writing Padme. Natalie Portman is a helluva good actress. And Luke and Leia's mom ought to be a fascinating character. George Lucas blew it. Waste of potential. You want to hate something? Hate the wasted potential.

[@CureSmileful]

Exactly

[@knightofalleble9841]

Just curious if you've watched Star Wars: The Clone Wars. In general, the series just makes the prequels better and turns the characters into more believable, thoughtful constructs rather than mindless plot devices. Personally, following Anakin and Padme specifically, I would recommend the Season Two episode "Senate Spy" and the Season Six episodes "An Old Friend," "The Rise of Clovis," and "Crisis at the Heart." These episodes really point out the stresses of their relationship and they even break up for a short time. Also, as an aside, strength of character does not necessarily mean getting angry over something. Speaking from personal experience, sometimes it takes more strength to hold in those emotions, which Padme was trying to do in order to bring Anakin back from evil.

[@usernotfound342]

I've seen TCW, Padme is not much different from the prequels, she just does more missions, that is all. Anakin and Padme's relationship is portrayed poorly, they constantly argue, and randomly kiss for no particular reason. Not even TCW "saved" their relationship, or Padme's character at all

[@pwaks]

You forgot about Padme's lack of prenatal care, not knowing she was carrying twins. They have flying cars but no doctors. And don't you think that having twins would give you a reason to live? Her reason for dying was pathetic.

[@albertgarcia4468]

I love your videos!!You chop up n expose the movie in a fun way with common sense thinking.Keep it up. You should run for president ;)

[@petertownsend9148]

How do you feel about Padme in the Clone Wars series?

[@likedcascade6625]

Her character was definitely more... animated.

[@snowy_6177]

+Chris Hill BOOTY

[@ArtemisMS]

CW!Padme is pretty great. Same with CW!Anakin. I actually pretend the prequel films didn't exist and just keep Clone Wars as my canon prequels.

[@joelmole3157]

+Chris Hill YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

[@Shapes_Quality_Control]

Bridget Whelan See... you do that because your dumb.

[@thedashboard9562]

You know what would have been an interesting twist for the relationship between Padme and Anakin? If the two of them didn't fall in super special awesome extra gooey love with one another. What if the two of them just started having a physical relationship? Like he's protecting her on Naboo, and they learn they don't have enough in common to support a long term relationship, but their physical attraction to one another is intense. So they agree to what amounts to a friends with benefits type deal, figuring the war will keep their relationship distant enough to where they wouldn't have to worry about it getting complicated. But over the course of their "relationship" Padme discovers she's pregnant.

[@kennethconnally4356]

I always figured, just from what we hear in the OT, that Vader didn't know he had kids (he seems to discover/get the first inkling that Luke is his son while he's pursuing him through the Death Star trench, and he discovers Leia's his daughter while reading Luke's mind in RotJ), so it wasn't too likely that he was married to their mother. More like he had a one-night stand on Alderaan or something. Or maybe they were in a relationship but she broke it off when he turned evil, wisely not telling him she was pregnant. Come to think of it, that's a mystery that could have explored been in the prequels: what was the deal with Luke and Leia's mom? Leia has memories of her, so we know she survived for some years after giving birth to them. Did she send Luke away but keep Leia for some reason? Maybe Luke was already showing force powers and it would be too dangerous for him to grow up as Prince Luke? Or did they get shipped off to Alderaan and Tatooine after her death, but Luke just forgot all about it?

[@Komix777]

That's the worst idea I've ever heard.

[@maxben3391]

Fine, but I still want the love. She gets pregnant and then Anakin starts to reconsider what she is to him, and realizes that he wants to be a husband and father. That makes his later rejection of the jedi make more sense and his fall more tragic.

[@Ambar42]

Your honesty should run for president. It's precious.

[@ajgreen1997]

Everything you said is valid and illuminating, and I thank you for it. However, I was a little girl when I-III came out and I fell in love with the idea that someone could wear pretty dresses and have a scene where they kicked ass, even if it was only that one. That's why she'll always have a special, illogical place in my heart.

[@oneblueastronaut422]

Okay wait, this content is hilarious and I love it. I agree with you 99%. I have one gripe though. You point out that Padme has no reason to love Anakin besides the fact that he's super attractive, which isn't a basis for a real relationship. I fully agree. But then you say that Anakin has no reason to like her either besides the facts that "she's gorgeous and he was obsessed with her from childhood" which is basically the exact same thing as "super attractive" and yet this time you claim that that makes total sense that he should want to be with her. I don't know if you did this on purpose but you're basically saying that Padme will seek relationships based on complex and higher-level qualities however Anakin is only interested in attractive women. How do you know this to be true? Because Anakin is a completely blank character with no development besides his metamorphosis in to Darth Vader, we can't argue that we know that he is sort of a shallow person or womanizer. I could also see the argument that women look for more "real" qualities in men than men do in women, despite the fact that it's a kind of outdated stereotype, but you point out that Anakin is still acceptable to Padme as a summer fling kind of deal, which shows that Padme doesn't follow that outdated stereotype, as she's willing to have flings with attractive men who literally act like babies. So doesn't it make just as little sense that Anakin is interested in a real relationship with Padme *beyond* the summer fling as it does that Padme is interested in him for the same thing? TL;DR: Why is Padme above wanting to be with someone just because they're attractive but Anakin isn't?

[@JennyNicholson]

Good catch. The distinction is Anakin also hero-worshiped Padme from his first impression of her, as a 14-year-old dainty handmaiden and later queen who deigned to talk to him when most people only treated him as a slave. Honestly if she was even some level of average-looking and not covered in sand the latter part would have probably done the trick. Then he had years of lonely jedi academy to stew over his mental image of her. The fact that she's objectively also REALLY good looking is just the final nail in the coffin. His reasons for liking her are still questionable, but having someone on a pedestal is a powerful thing. Padme on the other hand met him from an older perspective, he left a much smaller impression and if she remembered him at all it would just be as a little boy. Even if she found him good-looking in Ep II, it wasn't the necessary "obsession" combo. She might as well be meeting him for the first time and has no attachment.

[@oneblueastronaut422]

Ah, yes, makes sense. I thought that might have been what you meant but I wanted to make sure. Thanks for the reply!

[@stevenbenson9976]

anyone who says "Padme is great" needs to answer this: without describing what she looks like, what her job is, or who she is in a relationship with, explain Padme. You can do the same thing with every other character. Just not prequel characters

[@oneblueastronaut422]

+Steven Benson we've already seen red letter media's reviews, bro

[@stevenbenson9976]

That's nice OBA but i don't think that makes it any less relevant.

[@acehealer4212]

“That would be a human reaction.” Women in fiction aren’t allowed to act like humans. They’ve got to fall in love with murderous manchildren and have their protagonist babies then die tragically. I wonder if Padme is a stronger character in The Clone Wars series. “Stronger” in the sense of having good characterization, not stronger in the sense of being better at fighting (but that would be cool too!) Edit: Although, I do think it’s cool if fans want to enjoy a fanon version of Padme with a different personality than Movie!Padme. Kind of reclaiming that character.

[@acehealer4212]

@Brendan Fitzpatrick I’ve watched a few episodes this week. I really like the show!

[@UHFStation1]

Really brilliant commentary. Glad I found this channel.

[@TheHayes32]

I can only like this once, unfortunately. You are the most witty, condensing and nonemotionally funny KZbinr ever. So funny and entertaining!

[@cherskiman5827]

If forceghost Padme shows up at Episode 8: "Kylo, you're really really hurting my feelings." Kylo would be like "Who are you?" *End scene*

[@reaganbartels9993]

*Dies from sadness again

[@jaynajuly2140]

I just realized that if I think of Luke’s family, I think of Leia, Anakin, Ben, maybe Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen, but I never immediately think of Padme as being related to him 🤨

[@aykutucar9913]

You're breaking my heart, not about Padme but what you said about prequel Yoda. I'm still not over it. Keep up the good content, and thanks for making a short video instead because reading is hard.

[@rodya255]

your thoughts process and ability of expression is amazing, and ridiculously attractive. don't ever lose it. one day, someone if going to be very lucky to be with you

[@rodya255]

sorry, swipe texting... so misspellings

[@ReignofIndepence]

I love your star wars videos

[@jasonmichaelnowakowski6691]

But I love Her.

[@hundolin9447]

Actually number 2. She does that stuff in episode 1 as well. I guess they teach their Queens martial arts too, huh? Other than that, nothing. Your argument is pretty convincing.

[@francescapatti2934]

Hundolin I read somewhere that on Naboo the queen is actually trained in fighting and firing a blaster, the handmaids of the queen also train with her.

[@ErizotDread]

I'm with ya. The biggest problem I have with the prequels is just the lack of any investment in what's going on, to the point that I had watched them multiple times, but still couldn't really get into them at all. They have an uncanny knack of slipping the mind 3 minutes after watching... The Phantom Menace is really great for sleeping to, though...no joke, I use that one to play in the background when I sleep all the time.

[@jimvargaco.6344]

Anakin is already fighting an uphill battle... cause those turn out well for him lol

[@comicalbooklets8328]

"I know you guys so don't subscribe for star wars videos and I'm so sorry." Man, I guess her channel must have changed a lot since 2016.

[@MrNisse-ef9by]

I blame Padme's apparent lack of common sense, on Anakin subconsciously Mind-Tricking her into going along with whatever he wanted, and not thinking about what crazy shit he was up to. But that also might just be me, Mind-Tricking _myself_ into thinking the prequels were actually good movies. ;)

[@MrNisse-ef9by]

clit_niblr036 The signs of his manipulation were all over the screen...we just never saw him wave his hand as he did it. But if he's so powerful...would he even need to...or would she simply fall under his sway as if it were natural?

[@kaileyhallett]

"Kylo, you're really hurting my feelings" 😂

[@kiwialberts8455]

I kept on looking at the poster behind you 😂😂 I WANT IT SO BAD!!