A Brief Retrospective | Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (Part 9)

[@Venom96930]

I love how finally someone made an alaysis of this movie, that appreciates good things about it but also criticize it and say what vould be done better., this is how Prequel criticism should look like.

[@ericsbuds]

totally agree

[@cowboys8897]

I agree. I love Tpm, I think it's a good movie overall, but it does have some flaws. I can think it's good but also acknowledge what it could have done better. I lot of prequel criticisms are very surface level or based on misconceptions, so it's refreshing to see actual criticisms made. There's a channel called Anomaly Inc. and he debunks dumb criticisms of the prequels while providing good criticisms of them.

[@jauregi2726]

I can't believe I still have to wait 26 hours! Is the Senate bogged down in procedures or something?

[@robot36077]

"There is no civility, only politics. The Republic is not what it once was. The senate is full of greedy, squabbling delegates." - Senator Palpatine

[@A-W80]

@@robot36077 This Palpatine fella seems to have his head screwed on right, a good understanding of the problems and a big heart on top of it, he's sure to get my vote

[@crusader2112]

@@A-W80Palpatine 2024

[@buddyisbored2355]

The Disney-lorian kinda just said "we put hyper drive in it now it can go anywhere" sadly, and the other ship's been long gone because apparently a reliable vessel you can live in isnt popular anymore. Still a fine ship, especially if you're fighting in atmosphere, I imagine any Naboo ship is pretty good at that. But not exactly a home base like his last one.

[@АлексейМомот-щ7о]

They regressed his character. He goes back to bounty hunting in Season 3 when he was clearly setup for leadership role with a new ROYAL STARSHIP. It kinda has subtlety of a sledgehammer. They can't argue that he was never setup to be a leader 😮😂

[@thebreadcircus]

It really makes you appreciate how uncomfortable Rebel Alliance scouting missions could be. Venturing out for a week at a time, stuck inside the cockpit of your Longprobe Y-Wing. You definitely want a decently sized ship if you'll be staying aboard for any length of time. -DZ

[@Murtinuto2]

It's amazing how you can pull so much amazing content out of a 2 hour movie. I assume you will covering the 2 other prequel movies as well. Your channel is amazing and your style of content is extremely comfy

[@Murtinuto2]

Amazing

[@thebreadcircus]

That's the plan, moving on to Attack of the Clones as soon as we've finished this movie. I get the feeling each one will be longer than the last. You may be the first person who's said "comfy", and now you mention it I see what you mean. It's both surprising and pleasing to hear. -DZ

[@alexwilbrecht6962]

Disney-lorian got the old ship blown up by a bigger arquitens. Now he only uses the N1, doesn’t seem to be doing much bounty hunting anymore though

[@АлексейМомот-щ7о]

They regressed his character. He goes back to bounty hunting in Season 3 when he was clearly setup for leadership role with a new ROYAL STARSHIP. It kinda has subtlety of a sledgehammer. They can't argue that he was never setup to be a leader 😮😂

[@thebreadcircus]

Originally I hadn't planned to mention it, but I figure if I'd left that out, we'd get comments saying we forgot to bring it up. However, I'm not sure there was any criticism of Disneylorian. That's just a pretext to talk about Star Wars instead, explaining how things work in the setting. What kind of income a character would require to have a personal starfighter. How difficult and expensive it is to maintain various models of starfighter. The maximum range of a short-range fighter like the TIE or N-1. How someone in Mandalorian armour would use an N-1, given a lack of hangar on its mothership. These are all fascinating questions, regardless of how well a TV show explores them. I'm not sure why anyone would infer that to be a criticism: surely that's the point of the reboot. If the Disney show doesn't line up with the canon, that's intentional. It's not as if The Bread Circus has special access to troves of lore, the big rat can read the same books and websites as we do. By making these changes and discarding the old restrictions, they believe their universe has been made more interesting than the original. Well, that's up to all of us to judge for ourselves. -DZ

[@711desmond]

@@thebreadcircusthe mandalorian was good but I think its overstayed its welcome

[@blepblops]

Yeah... That would have been a better use of the ship in Disneylorian... Unfortunately though...

[@RemnantCult]

I know the N1 has flaws, but ever since I saw the N1 as a kid, I have always had a soft spot for it. They were so different from my favorite X-wing but still felt like they belong in Star Wars. I love how it feels like an American WW2 corsair corncob plane translated into Star Wars and it still fits. Lucas loves his WW2 references.

[@Murtinuto2]

I dont know if its you narrating or someone you hire. Either way its perfect

[@thebreadcircus]

It's our narrator, writer and editing assistant, DZ. -ED-1TA

[@Ardejas]

I love how everything is supplemented by EU lore. That's how I always saw things, and it was frustrating to listen to people complaining about things that had answers.

[@cheater21211]

Will you be covering all three prequels in this series? I have deep love for the whole trilogy and would love this kind of analysis on all of them! Also I wanna hear your opinion on Jango Fett's Seismic Charges

[@Sparkykueken]

Your take on what the spaceship fight should have been is just so much better than the fight depicted in the movie. And with such simple, minor changes to the actual picture. Basically just some changed dialog lines, and maybe an additional scene pre-battle laying out the plan to take out only the communication antenna to disrupt droid communication. Easily conveyed with some engaging discussion as well, even combining it with Qui-Gons throwaway line: "The fighters may not penetrate the shields to do significant damage to destroy the ship." - "But we don't have to. All we need to do is damage the comms so the droid army is disrupted. Concentrated fire on the exposed antennas and some superficial torpedoes on that should do the trick!" I can almost see the scene play out in my head, it fits so well. It gives them a plan, and it gives Anakin some clear intent during the fight instead of just randomly lucking out.

[@thebreadcircus]

I agree with everything you've said. You can get huge results from such a small number of subtle changes. My favourite part is that this way, the outcome is different from the plan. Anakin doesn't just swoop in to accomplish Bravo Squadron's goals for them, by accident. He exploits a combination of luck, his own experience, and all the experienced pilots in the battle. Only together can the heroes win. -DZ

[@lba_e_ross2152]

Another good vid as usual

[@thebreadcircus]

I hope you're nicer than the Ross in our Discord server. That guy is extremely sus. -ED-1TA

[@Gr13fM4ch1n3]

I'm listening to this at work and I turned my head to the left when I heard the door knock sound effect. I work a fucking hermetic plating laboratory with no wooden doors in the entire complex. Wtf. 😭

[@MrShrog]

This is a comment for K-Dam the Kakapo

[@thebreadcircus]

Kakapoe Dameron salutes you (with a foot.) He also winked. He said you'd know what that meant. -ED-1TA

[@lemokemo5752]

THE FORCE IS STRONG IN ANAKIN

[@hansjuker8296]

Best part of my week. Buts its GOON-guns....

[@rumlr8851]

ALMOST AT 10K WOOOO

[@thebreadcircus]

It's pretty exciting, that's for sure. -ED-1TA

[@derechte1835]

I am deeply saddened By the fact of me missing the premiere of this new part because a travel along the Central Europas hyperpace lanes. Something like this cannot Happen again.

[@westonsimmons561]

Something to note the n1 and ani's podracer the scenes are echos of each other

[@Kattaclysem]

i feel like this channel is good to watch even if you like disney star wars. personally i enjoy the new stuff (not ep 8 or 9, nor the obi wan show, im not crazy) and like to keep up with the new canon, but i also really enjoy learning how things were before the new canon. i was young when the prequels were made, so its cool to see how people viewed them compared to the star wars that was available then

[@michaelcase8231]

On the N-1s, if the astromech had been loaded at a 90 degree to the ships center line, and then the astromech just turned its head, the layout would have made much more sense than allowing the astromechs to telescope their heads about.

[@komo6103]

Or the armour could've just been extended to account for the legs. Though personally I still take issue on such a sleek fighter having such a large vertical void just so an astromech could fit in it is waste that one would normally put every effort into avoiding. The N-1 should've had top insertion, as all that meant would be that the hanger needed an automated or remote controlled crane to let R2 in.

[@antonisauren8998]

To be fair, N-1 could do without astromech at all. It's short ranged interceptor so why bother? It's there to put R2 into the movie and nothing else.

[@komo6103]

@@antonisauren8998 Short range, sure, but still lightspeed capable. Though I do agree it's entirely an excuse so R2 can be with Anikin during the scene.

[@soremuss]

I've become addicted to these, I really wish I could help financially. One day.

[@thebreadcircus]

We appreciate the thought. Whenever you're ready and able is fine with us. Likes, comments and your subscription are plenty for now. -ED-1TA

[@nickbooze9766]

I'm subbing to your pateron after seeing that Connor O'Malley clip.

[@williamchamberlain2263]

Mouse wars

[@robwall4120]

This mans "Shorts" videos would still be 20 minutes long . Lol

[@DIEGhostfish]

48:044 "We didn't hit it THERE" would be pretty solid too.

[@Sigskogi]

Least likely channel to have an ara ara 🤣

[@vampsith]

The situation you’re describing at the end is VERY similar to the ending of Star Wars: Starfighter. You enter the Lucrehulk from another side and eventually end up damaging the main reactor BECAUSE Anakin had already done damage. It’s a fantastic game btw.

[@EdwardDanks009]

I was always bothered by Captain Panaka doing a barrel sweep over all his friends and coworkers when he gestures to have red group and blue group follow him.

[@spider-ball]

16:50 or according to Muppet Babies: "and one moving trash can"

[@trekanderson6701]

Another great video and analysis

[@ADogNamedStay]

I remember seeing a cross section where the r2 unit was disassembled.

[@TheMahayanist]

The most important Star Wars film of them all.

[@chrisbent5734]

The f*** is with the knocking noise @ 0:39 ?! I was wearing headphones and it made me jump because I thought someone was aggressively knocking at my door IRL! 😅

[@samthered4862]

29:20 Absolutely savage.

[@711desmond]

PARROT!

[@AshanBhatoa]

The Lucrehulk-class battleships do have three ventral quad-turbolaser turrets from the rear, also. These are momentarily visible earlier within the film.

[@TheREALSimagination]

The N1 Starfighter and the X-Wing gotta be my favorite SW ships. Luke sandspeeder and the Snowspeeder come in close second.

[@orsonzedd]

ah yes, the Y-Wing, my favorite flying death trap

[@RoyalKnightVIII]

29:22 he's just a bit behind 😅 needless to say he's doesn't have to deal with dual starships 49:38 This is another reason why Anakin should've been closer to 14 as in the earlier scripts. Lucas wanted a cherubic Anakin but it comes at the detriment of other themes and plot concerns. If he were a young teen he would have more wherewithal to improvise and the helmet would probably be more his size for him to speak with Olié. And his being older makes Lucas tryinf to make eveyone blameless for Anakin's presence unnecessary. Maybe Olié could've had a bombing run close to where the droid radio antennas from the start.

[@gadgez_]

Weirdly, R2-D2 is ALSO shown to have telescoping legs in Attack of the Clones, it's how he navigates the stairs when they're walking around on Naboo.

[@gabrielanderson8767]

I don’t know if anyone already said this, so maybe it’s silly to repeat. But perhaps the R2 legs are modular, and can therefore be replaced by other legs types? And as R2-D2 was originally a Naboo astromech, perhaps his legs were already fitted with this layout in mind. Then by Episode II, for whatever reason, they’re switched out for hoverthrusters. I’m not saying it’s a great fix, but it certainly is satisfying to me as a possible answer

[@AndyCandyZeroSugar]

After watching in one go your video on the Reboot Trilogy, I've been thoroughly enjoying your series on the Phantom Menace! I believe it was the first Star Wars movie I saw as a kid, and I remember loving it thoroughly - Jar Jar and all! Nute Gunray is still one of my favourite villains, I loved him, and Anakin destroying the Control Ship is still my favourite part of the movie. Your videos are rekindling that old love which lay buried for quite some time. Your style of presentation is interesting and your voice pleasant to listen to, and I look forward to seeing you retrospect on other movies in the franchise as well! The biggest surprise was how much lore there already was before the rodent came along! Love those bits as well, as someone who never really got into Star Wars but loved the video games, especially Kotor I and II, and Jedi Knight Jedi Academy.

[@DrownedLamp]

As always, the attention to detail is spectacular. Whether it's sleeping droids, ship shields or whovain ship interiors: assumptions/speculation are stated as such but nothing is just taken for granted. Hats off to the team! Now for nonsense. 0:59 OMG it's a slugcat! They did have a tried and tested battleplan; Tank & Spank. If Star Wars is indeed a long long time ago....I guess they invented it. Of course it wouldn't have actually worked in this case. Communication and shared improvisation between and Ani Rick could've added to the sequence. "Hello there Ani, I heard what you did." -Obi-wan "I never left the cockpit." -Ani *Sitcom Laugh Track* "They fly now?" -Finn "Always have, roger." -Vulture Droid

[@jamesa9004]

I just noticed that Anikin entered the ship with a rolling staircase, not a ladder clipped to the ship, since nobody could remove the ladder prior to takeoff.

[@cyfreusz]

There is more and more Homeworld references. Does it secretly builds up to something? :)

[@terribleauthority]

Following up on what was said on the premiere chat, we need to stop all Imperial ship creation and development until we figure out exactly why the shield generators, or deflectors, for potentially the entirety of the command bridge are precariously located on top of it. Instead of a more sensible location, like... inside.

[@terribleauthority]

And of course, great video was always. One of the rare places you can always find productive SW lore discussion at.

[@Kaijudomage]

True, tho spaceships are made like ships are, a bridge on top or up front, it's pretty funny that most human spaceships are built this way in all sorts of series. But if the command bridge was inside like a submarine, they would have to be called spacesubs :P

[@komo6103]

You mean on the Star Destroyers? I thought that got retconned into sensor bulbs, not shield generators, and the RotJ incident was some sort of cascade failure when the sensors were destroyed?

[@terribleauthority]

@@komo6103 Yes, primarily on the SD. Not sure about a retcon, but sensor bulbs aren't a much better explanation. Ideally they should be what they're imitation, radomes, some sort of protective housing for the communicactions systems.

[@komo6103]

@@terribleauthority Personally, I think being sensors is far better. Unlike shield generators, they have to be exposed to even work, and there's plenty of examples of that already, the Millenium Falcon being the singular most obvious example, but the droid control ships also being another good one.

[@deathsheir2035]

13:06 Anakin isn't trying to actively move the ship. He is trying to figure out how to arm the weapons, so he can fire them. Even in real life, there are safety features on our jet fighters, to prevent accidental use of the mounted weapons. Anakin not knowing military vehicles, would not know that to first use the weapons, the vehicle needs to be turned on. So thinking, the big button is to arm the weapons so he can use them, pushes the button. Oh no, not what he wanted, however, it's what he needed. Next instinct, "okay big button didn't work, let's try this easy to notice lever." Nope, still not what he wanted, but now he's ready for space flight. We can assume, off screen, still pushing buttons, and flipping switches and levers, he eventually discovers the correct switch to enable weapon use.

[@DIEGhostfish]

7:34 not a box, a cleaning droid. Oh, huh, a power droid. I guess the cleaning one is indeed shorter and boxier.

[@midshipman8654]

the naboo fighter could probably also keep its silohette if the r2’s legs where parallel to the ships spin

[@garrettharriman6333]

In regards to the engines on the small tails protruding from the the N-1's engines: they make since for a starfighter that is expected to operate both inside and outside of an atmosphere. They are aerospikes. NASA has experimented with the design to have engine exhaust that is equally effective at sea level, high altitude, and in orbit. The problem NASA ran into is that the thin point on a aerospike overheats and burns up too fast to be of use very long. With heat sinks capturing the engine heat to preserve the spike and the more capable materials used in Star Wars that is obviously no longer an issue. I think the N-1's engine design and heat sink placement is perfectly serviceable.

[@thebreadcircus]

I can't believe the aerospike slipped past me. In hindsight, it's hard to imagine anything else. The shape lines up, the usage is exactly what aerospikes would be best at. I'm convinced, even if that wasn't intended during the design process, it's the most sensible conclusion. -DZ

[@DIEGhostfish]

35:05 According to at least one RPG source an Energy Torpedo is actually plasma that's currently undergoing nuclear fusion meaning they release absolutely massive amounts of energy, but burn out quickly, the bolts travel exceptionally fast to make sure they actually travel a respectable range before burning out. Downsides are they only fire straight, and take a very long time to recharge, especially on something like a Vulture Droid.

[@derechte1835]

I am deeply saddened Boy the fact of ne missing the premiere of this new part because a travel Alonso the Central Europas hyperpace lanes. Something like this cannot Happen again.

[@derechte1835]

I am deeply saddened Boy the fact of ne missing the premiere of this new part because a travel Alonso the Central Europas hyperpace lanes. Something like this cannot Happen again.

[@DIEGhostfish]

45:53 "A problem with the main reactor" seems to be insufficiently severe to be "The main reactor just blew up" a power overload from the pilots into the main seems more lilely to have the slower exploding of the film. Annnd you covered the chain reaction yourself!

[@HandleMyBallsYouTube]

The N1 wouldn't have needed to be wider either to properly fit an astromech, we know they can rotate the head part a full 360 degrees, so there's no reason why the astromech couldn't just sit sideways with small little extensions front and back for the shoulders.

[@randomusernameCallin]

For the fighter and R2 they just needed to move the cockpit forward a bit and widen the other side of the for the droid arms. Then load the droid sideways.

[@DIEGhostfish]

34:02 Some sources say Blaster cannons can be as strong as at least medium laser cannons but at a far shorter range.

[@TheSnowKingMEC]

I think it would make more sense for the Naboo pilots to have a plan, but then that plan fails necessitating Anakins intervention. Maybe no one had any idea about the vulture droids. A new and warlike technology that ambush the Naboo on their way up.

[@BoserPSN]

38:18 what‘s that ship from? It looks familiar

[@thebreadcircus]

The Rocinante from The Expanse. And before you ask: it was legitimate salvage! -ED-1TA

[@BoserPSN]

@@thebreadcircus thankies!!

[@johnback3299]

hey fellas yet another amazing chilled nerd session, why is this not the voice of jarvis

[@thebreadcircus]

Thanks John! Good to see you're still watching. I hope you've been keeping an eye out for your name at the end. Hope you're doing well. Next episode is coming August 7th our time. -CA / ED-1TA

[@johnback3299]

@@thebreadcircus indeed i do mate thanks, corolla pilot might have to @that before someone else does haha hope you guys are keeping well

[@nerdherd1819]

It just occurs to me that having an auto-pilot that will launch the fighter and guide it into battle after being turned on and sealed is terrifying. Someone can scramble ships with their pilots in them, maybe even out of them, without the pilot's consent. It's a high center of gravity system that can fall apart if a major component is compromised. It also makes being a pilot at all in the Naboo Void Force terrifying. You WILL go to the battle and you WILL return victorious or die in it.

[@nickdarr7328]

I haven't finished the video yet but does he say the auto pilot takes you automatically to battle? I know ships are taken over for landing in the death star. Take off and landing are the most dangerous times for a pilot. So I'm guessing the auto pilot is just to get you out of the hanger safely

[@nerdherd1819]

@@nickdarr7328 around 14:50 "The autopilot solves this problem. When the spaceship is turned on, it starts flying itself into battle." At least the Bread Circus' phrasing suggests this.

[@thebreadcircus]

The lore does mention a secure system so that only the royal master computer can upload flight plans. It then goes on to say the night before, the Naboo resistance secretly broke in and uploaded the new autopilot profile. As for why a fighter ace would need an autopilot, that's even more flimsy. There's some suggestion that it allows the pilot to concentrate on other things. But remember than Anakin doesn't know anything about the N-1. He wasn't trained, doesn't have a manual, and can't even read the controls. I've always assumed Naboo's pilots can turn off their autopilot any time they like. That phrasing, "autopilot solves this problem" was more from a writing perspective than in-universe lore. Lucas just didn't want you to be able to blame anyone for the child getting involved in battle. -DZ

[@nerdherd1819]

@@thebreadcircus, fair enough explanation.

[@shrapnelbmg6267]

The N1 is a hyperspace capable fighter. This is shown in Ep2 when 2 of them escort the Senator's yacht to Coruscant. If not true of the model in EP1, then they clearly upgraded them in the next 10 years.

[@thebreadcircus]

Quite so, most of the discussion of the N-1's hyperdrive is based on the convoy from Episode 2. It's still a short-range fighter, but since it has a limited hyperdrive, that makes it more like the TIE Advanced x1 than a standard TIE/Ln. -DZ

[@theredrocketeer7194]

I also initially saw slats but now I see the rifling.

[@thebreadcircus]

Nice to know there was at least one! That's one of the details I've been most curious to hear about. -DZ

[@matthiuskoenig3378]

30:20 the vulture droid is my favorite ship in star wars. As a side note about energy torpedoes, most games treat them as a level of blaster tech, above laser cannons but below turbo-lasers. Their main weakness is slow recharge, but their stated advantage is almost unlimited ammo and relative cheapness.

[@thebreadcircus]

Perfect, that's a very convenient answer. Makes sense you could build a blaster using a different balance of trade-offs. It nicely eliminates all question of how the energy torpedo interacts with a target. There's no payload, no warhead, just the exact same kind of energy as a blaster bolt. -DZ

[@FormerlyAVM]

Just because Star Wars is science fiction doesn’t mean you can just make things up. “Meters “centimeters” nonsense terms. Who taught Anakin how to read?

[@antonisauren8998]

One of his owners. Do we know what he did for Gardulla? Working in the shop and garadge requires reading and base math.

[@Amoschp524]

You forgot the most important Naboo ground force, the Handmaidens. Thanks for another great video. I really liked your suggest that Anakin and Rick should have used the comms to talk, never realized that he was flying a N1.

[@thebreadcircus]

The Handmaidens get some attention in a future episode. -ED-1TA

[@nickdarr7328]

What is the puppet tv show you get the clips from? It looks better than most tv shows now days to be honest

[@thebreadcircus]

Gerry Anderson's productions. Search Gerry Anderson on KZbin. Those shows are used frequently. -ED-1TA

[@barterfour]

I always look forward to these when i get off work on Sundays. Great stuff :)

[@DerUberStern]

Might be the dollop of 40k nerd in me but I feel like if they just cycled out the B2 Super Battle Droid and just made the Droid Starfighter a multirole air and orbital superiority fighter, and ground based shock unit, the CIS may have fared slightly better. Picture it; clones are clearly capable of feeling fear. Drop a DSF into a clone line's backline, and have it start blasting and stabbing. Since it's weapons are both effectively unlimited in capacity and significantly stronger than blaster carbines - as well as the craft being fairly hardy against conventional small arms as per the Star Wars universe, you get this massive war machine that just starts impaling clones in reach, blasting into them from the rear flank, and being able to fairly swiftly reposition itself at will. I feel this would work better than the massive, slow, infantry based Super Battle Droids. Also just imagine the visual of this blood soaked, battle scarred Vulture Droid with like five or six bodies still rammed through on those spikey legs... Some of whom still move, cry in pain, and plea over comms for their brothers to save them, peppering the machine which claimed them with ineffectual, defiant shots of their sidearm.

[@DerUberStern]

This also means if the enemy holes up in an area the Vultures can't intercede, you have more material to use on the B1 units. Yes, they're cheap, fragile, and slow... But so are zombies, and you can melt down dead droids to make new droids. Lore implies the droids can be built faster than clones can be grown and trained, even after the acceleration treatments to grow em up.

[@matthiuskoenig3378]

B1s are not actually slow, we see them running in a number of scenes in the movies. They are only slow when marching in formation in the movies, which they only do against non-blaster armed enemies (like the gun guns and jedi), Unfortunalty the clone wars cartoon was lazy and always made them slow (because it's easier to animate larger groups if they are slow, and it's easier to write around slow enemies) and made them march in formation against blasters (despite never doing so in the movies, where they use cover).

[@matthiuskoenig3378]

Knocked out Droids can also be salvaged without needing to completely melt them down, B1s are infact specifically designed to be easily repaired and salvaged in the lore.

[@ChaosAndFractals]

naboo shi*s

[@thebreadcircus]

We blow out the mic on plosives. Still learning how to use the professional gear. You know how it is.. -ED-1TA

[@ChaosAndFractals]

@@thebreadcircus hey, it's super nice to see a new take on these movies. Love the content, thought, research, and work you put into this. Thank you

[@crusader2112]

Another great video. Keep up the great work. Peace ✌🏻

[@the_kryllic]

I'm really liking this release schedule and length of videos. The editing is fantastic, as always.

[@thebreadcircus]

Thank you. -ED-1TA

[@FriendlyDarkwraith]

Anakin and Rik absolutely should have communicated more and worked together to destroy the droid control ship (especially since Lucas deliberately had them interact earlier in the movie, with Rik teaching Anakin about the ship's hardware and Anakin impressing him by being quick on the uptake). The Naboo fighter pilots should have also come up with a more concrete plan that was explicitly stated rather than just being inferred; targeting the communications array, for example. That being said, I'm actually impressed with how closely Lucas made Anakin's attempt at flying a starfighter resemble his skills as a pod racer. A neat bit of poetry that helps reinforce suspension of disbelief just a little bit more. He even went so far as to have the engine and cockpit configuration on both vehicles be very similar.

[@ericsbuds]

gotta say, i am really glad i found your channel. your essays are unlike other reviews on youtube, and i really like the format you use. Namely, anazlying tactics, weapons, ships, etc. and so much more. thanks for the great videos as always.

[@Freeseraphim]

Ah, i love the innocence in thinking the inclusion of the n1 in mando isnt absolutely insane

[@0Defensor0]

There is one more reason why the telescopic legs of the R2 units aren't possible: the inside of the feet have some kind of containers (batteries maybe? I don't remember). If you try to compress the legs, these will collide with the body immediately, there is barely enough room for the legs to swing back and forth to begin with. And based on all information we have so far, those battery things are static components of the feet. However if those could somehow swing inwards, out of the way, the leg could be shortened by almost the height of the feet. The exact mechanics are still questionable though.

[@antonisauren8998]

They even could make it work without redesigning the ship. Just stick astromech sideways, like in many lego models. Legs won't increase fighter profile. It could be inserted form top like in the OT. It never bothered me much but after analising design further with Mandalorian, there is no sight of any dorsal access panel on model used in TPM. Even if there was, assume it was perfectly fit and clean so seams vanish due to image compresion, it just add complexity to overly cramped design for no reason. Another point, if it lacks any landing gear, are those in the hangar just connected by the tail without support at the engines? We should assume then they're plugged to external power source and run repulsors 24/7. But even then you have to turn them off sometimes for maintance. Do you put in on bricks then? :P

[@0Defensor0]

@@antonisauren8998 Some of the N-1 toys and model kits may have the answers, both the droid hatch and 3 landing leg openings are visible lines on the bottom. And I think we can assume that while they are plugged into their wall sockets, the repulsors stay on, that seems reasonable to me. Maintenance is most likely done somewhere else, probably on a lower level of the hangar building.

[@thebreadcircus]

You're correct on at least three counts: those are batteries on the inside of the leg, and they do seem to be fixed in place. In the Inside The Worlds books, there is at least one more level shown underneath Theed hangar. Parts of the deck slide open, and repulsorlifts can hoist ships to and from the maintenance level. While I do agree the repulsors have to be used while docked, there may be landing gear. At the start of AOTC, there's a distinct lack of legs: Amidala's ship very visibly has them, but the N-1s just hover. On the other hand, the cross-sections book specifically shows the existence of landing gear. I tend to assume there are legs, just like there are on an X-Wing. -DZ

[@EWLR89]

Ngl, if the Naboo starfighters had autopilot to the battlespace and astromech droids, it might have been worth it to launch more of them and have them fly some fake attack runs for target saturation. The Rebel Alliance fleet did something similar with freighters being in formation with the capital ships.

[@matthiuskoenig3378]

That would require retaking more hangars, which takes more time, which results in more time for the droid army to react and send a detachment to the city, or for internal city security to organise a better defense.

[@shira_yone]

Seems like they still need to be engaged directly from the cockpit (like Anakin did). I presume there would be safety measures such as needing the canopy to be closed to turn on autopilot (imagine it doing some kind of maneuver and then the pilot fell off), so it might be hard if not impossible to launch them and then get out of the plane before they took off from the hangar; not to mention how bailing from a moving craft is quite a dangerous endeavor. What @matthiuskoenig3378 said should also be a consideration.

[@EWLR89]

@@matthiuskoenig3378 Good point.

[@EWLR89]

@Ahona_Shirayone That's another good point. I guess it probably wasn't tactical thinking at the time, and would probably slowly turn into people throwing ships at each other...... I think R2 was able to fly Luke's X-wing out to him at the end of Hoth, but that might be something special about the X-wing.

[@pcarrierorange]

Joe 90 has been putting in serious work in the cutaway gags for these last couple episodes. Superb as always.

[@thebreadcircus]

We really appreciate seeing you around so consistently. It's amazing how relevant the MiG-242 is to TPM! I'm fairly sure this is the first time I've reached for a Joe 90 reference beyond the first episode. -DZ