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Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

The takes propose an accidental Luke–Leia sexual relationship, criticize Han’s treatment of Luke, and call Star Wars both great art and damaging industrial precedent.

Flex pick · Van Lathan

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:01:11Read transcript
  • The trilogy is said to become darker and better if Luke and Leia unknowingly have sex before learning they are siblings.
  • The imagined guilt is argued to give Luke a stronger pull toward the dark side.
  • Star Wars is called both one of the best films ever and one of the worst things to happen to Hollywood because of its industrial influence.
  • Han is called a cock-blocking dickhead who pursues Leia and tells Luke not to get cocky after Luke's success.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

Casting What-Ifs

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

The original casting search is reviewed across Luke, Leia, Han, Obi-Wan, Vader, Chewbacca, and physical Vader.

In the discussion (10)
Approx. transcript time · 01:05:10Read transcript
  • Lucas and De Palma auditioned actors together for Star Wars and Carrie, producing overlapping candidates.
  • John Travolta, William Cat, Robby Benson, Kurt Russell, and Charles Martin Smith are among the discussed Luke possibilities.
  • Andrew Stevens is said to have competed with Hamill for both The Oregon Trail and Star Wars.
  • Karen Allen, Amy Irving, Cindy Williams, Linda Pearl, and Joe Foster are discussed as Leia possibilities, with uncertainty around some claims.
  • Russell is said to have auditioned for both Luke and Han because his age placed him between the roles.
  • Jack Nicholson is an intriguing Han thought experiment, while James Kahn and Al Pacino later claimed to have declined the role.
  • Richard Dreyfuss was reportedly considered for the voice of one of the droids.
  • The lead actor from many Kurosawa films reportedly declined the mentor role because he feared it would diminish samurai cinema.
  • Orson Welles was considered for Vader’s voice but rejected as too recognizable; James Earl Jones was used without an initial screen credit.
  • Peter Mayhew and David Prowse were offered a choice between Chewbacca and physical Vader and selected the good and bad roles respectively.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

The Joey Pants “That Guy” Award

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Peter Cushing is proposed, then questioned as too famous in Britain for the category.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:09:31Read transcript
  • Peter Cushing is the initial answer as Tarkin.
  • His long run as a Hammer Horror lead makes the That Guy label questionable.
  • The remaining supporting cast is described as working British actors without an obvious second role for the panel to cite.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

The Dion Waiters Award for Best Heat Check Performance

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Darth Vader wins over the cantina ensemble, Greedo, inserted Jabba, and Admiral Motti.

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:10:38Read transcript
  • Vader is selected for dominating the film in roughly twelve minutes.
  • The cantina ensemble and Greedo are proposed as compact alternatives.
  • The digitally inserted CGI gangster is rejected aesthetically but acknowledged as a significant one-scene character.
  • The officer choked by Vader is the final alternate.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

Half-Assed Internet Research

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

The research block covers an early Han design, Lucas’s directing style, crew resistance, practical discomfort, the lost cut, and studio notes.

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:44Read transcript
  • An early script version made Han Solo a large green-skinned monster with gills.
  • Carrie Fisher recalled that Lucas gave little actor direction beyond faster or more intense.
  • The British crew reportedly disliked Lucas enough to stop promptly at quitting time even in the middle of a setup.
  • Hamill’s line about not seeing through the helmet was retained because he actually could not see.
  • The Chewbacca suit became foul after remaining wet following the trash-compactor sequence.
  • An early multi-hour assembly contained much more of Luke on Tatooine before later editors substantially tightened it.
  • Studio executives wanted Chewbacca to wear shorts, a note the panel considers disastrous.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

Apex Mountain

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

George Lucas, the franchise’s craftspeople, multiple actors, science-fiction lore, sound, and blockbuster culture receive separate apex checks.

Flex pick · Craig Horlbeck

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 01:15:55Read transcript
  • Lucas’s apex is placed around 1981 after Empire and Raiders, though selling Lucasfilm for four billion dollars is another candidate.
  • Star Wars is judged an apex for science-fiction movies, galaxy adventures, and film-created fictional mythology.
  • The movie is accepted as Mark Hamill’s apex and a possible early apex for Carrie Fisher.
  • John Williams is difficult to pin to one apex, but Star Wars is preferred over later cultural competitors.
  • James Earl Jones is placed closer to Field of Dreams, Coming to America, or Mufasa than to his uncredited Vader voice.
  • Harrison Ford receives an explicit apex check and is rejected because his apex had already been named earlier.
  • The movie is an apex for 20th Century Fox because profits and stock value rose sharply.
  • The film is credited with beginning the cultural ascent of nerd fandom rather than representing its final apex in 1977.
  • Its sound effects remain exceptional, including Vader breathing, TIE fighters, droids, and lightsabers.
  • The saga is called a leading story of absentee fathers because Vader reappears only after Luke becomes powerful.
  • The film is declared the apex of Apex Mountain categories because so many people, crafts, objects, and institutions peak around it.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

Picking Nits

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Coincidence, military competence, continuity, grief, Obi-Wan’s sacrifice, and the Death Star strategy drive a long nitpick section.

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 01:25:22Read transcript
  • The escape pod carrying both droids lands improbably close to Luke, possibly through the Force.
  • The Empire declines to destroy an empty pod despite detecting it, allowing the plans to escape.
  • The possibility that R2-D2 is Force-sensitive is raised to explain repeated favorable outcomes.
  • Stormtroopers fail to inspect the Falcon effectively and repeatedly miss exposed targets at close range.
  • The mechanics of mapping and navigating a vast galaxy are questioned and answered only with hyperspace and existing maps.
  • The princess's white outfit stays too clean after the garbage dump and fighting.
  • The mentor's claim that he never had any droids conflicts with later-created prequel continuity.
  • The panel debates whether later continuity may be used to judge a 1977 movie whose mythology was not fully fixed.
  • Leia, Luke, and the others recover almost instantly from planetary destruction, burned relatives, and the mentor’s death.
  • The mentor’s decision to accept death remains unclear because the Falcon crew might have escaped anyway.
  • Luke trusts a spiritual force learned days earlier enough to switch off targeting equipment during the galaxy’s decisive shot.
Star Wars: A New Hope poster
Star Wars: A New Hope

George Ellerby “Two Weeks with Pay” Award for Character Who Should Have Been Fired

Star Wars: A New Hope The Rewatchables

Grand Moff Tarkin wins for ignoring the Death Star vulnerability and losing the station.

In the discussion (2)
Approx. transcript time · 01:36:22Read transcript
  • Tarkin continues the mission after learning the enemy knows a catastrophic design weakness.
  • His choice is compared with a 28–3 halftime collapse and called a nightmare.
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