MF TERNIAN REPORT: Droid Memory Wipe

[Darkseid]

http://www.millenniumfalcon.com

[VT-16]

So... The only one with any real insider-info will be R2...

[BearaceDougie]

Very Classic R2/C3PO

R2 Knows All!

[nomad]

no wonder r2d2 is so head strong about what directions the pairs adventures should take.

[fritistat]

We always kind of knew that this was going to happen, but we just didn't know how. Very well done...it adds some levity to the situation (which has presumably turned very bad).

[pjvader]

poor bastard 3po! i hope he does the thing he does when his shoulders drop and looks all sad when he delivers the line "Oh dear" and shakes his head! i reckon this will probably be the last line of the saga? and this will segue into the closing montage? hmmmmmm

[texapocalypse]

Nice. I was hoping R2 would get to keep his memory. It makes him one of the biggest bad-asses in the entire original trilogy.

[Dingo]

and this will segue into the closing montage?

I think that it's more likely to be Obi-Wan on Tatooine, so that it's a full-circle when things open again in the skies above 20 years later.

[Tim Lehrbach]

I've been staying away from all spoilers that aren't pics, but decided to read this one.

The scene sounds straight out of the OT to me...clever and simple, I like that R2 knows everything, and 3PO nothing.

[SVTCobra]

I was just thinking about R2 finding Obiwan in the desert and how come he doesn't remember them. Then I thought they really had no interaction together in the prequels. Interesting..

[Dogg Thang]

Yeah, I really like this except the thing about them being his daughter's droids. Simply because she barely acknowledges their existence. I mean, if I was captured and suddenly a whole bunch of people turn up with my dog (assuming my dog could speak, which it can't yet) I would think that my dog had actually brought help and come to rescue me. I would thank my dog a lot for getting me away from the foul stench of Tarkin.

But, no. Leia gives us none of that.

Still, that's nitpicking and I'll let it go. Compared with all of the other unacknowledged encounters with the droids, this is but a drop in the ocean.

At least Luke appreciates the droids. Maybe that's why he didn't turn to the dark side...

Dogg.

[Jedi Master Matt]

Good work George! Should come across as a great moment of levity at the end of a very dark film. I wonder if the "Oh, dear" moment has already been seen on the Anthony Daniels web doc when the camera zooms in on Threepio. There's only one way to find out...

Tern, does this exchange occur in the hallway of the Tantive?

It seems we're getting spoilers from everything in the movie except the "duel". Do we have a definitive explanation of how Anakin ends up in the lava yet?

[Bandersnatch]

But, no. Leia gives us none of that.

Maybe she gives them a quick "thanks guys" on the Millennium Falcon on the way to Yavin...

[Dingo]

Dogg Thang, if you remember though, it's not really until both groups are running across the hangar that Leia sees the droids are fully there. The only other mention is when Luke bursts into her cell, and it's the name "Ben Kenobi" that really stirs her up, making her forget about everything, including the droids. It's another of those really small details that disappear in the main story.

[Bandersnatch]

That's what I've always felt, like when people ask the stupid question "why doesn't Vader recognize 3PO in ESB?" The answer is the same reason I wouldn't recognize my first microwave oven from the early 80's...

[taku]

That's what I've always felt, like when people ask the stupid question "why doesn't Vader recognize 3PO in ESB?" The answer is the same reason I wouldn't recognize my first microwave oven from the early 80's...

Well he did remember 3PO in AOTC, despite not seeing him for 10 years. No doubt he's seen quite a bit of him inbetween AOTC and ROTS, so it's not like forgeting your first microwave.

I think the reason why he doesn't acknowledge him in ESB is because of his view that Anakin is dead, and such attatchments died with him.

[Salacious Crumb]

Agreed, this report begins to tie-up some of the loose ends we've heard Ewan constantly refer to - it also leaves us with the intriguing possibility of R2 knowing all. If the force was strong in a droid...

Although this is a bit of a tangent it makes that door slamming shut on R2 before the Luke vs Vader duel and "I am your father" scenes in ESB all the more poignant. The wise little guy can do nothing more to look after Luke.

Anyway I see no problem with Vader not recognising C3PO. As well as protocol droids looking much of a muchness in the OT, "That name no longer means anything" to him.

[Cheesus]

Well he did remember 3PO in AOTC, despite not seeing him for 10 years. No doubt he's seen quite a bit of him inbetween AOTC and ROTS, so it's not like forgeting your first microwave.

I think think context comes into play on this one.

When Anakin visits the Lars homestead, he sees a protocol droid and probably assumes there's a likelyhood that it's 3PO. Even then he asks, "3PO?" (or is it Padme?) indicating he might not be sure.

When he sees 3PO next (let's assume he was too tied up with Obi-Wan to notice the droids moving toward the Falcon) on Bespin, he really doesn't have anything to associate with his past life. He doesn't really know 3PO is Luke's (all conversations with Han & Leia indicate it's their droid). Given his obsession with Luke, 3PO likely isn't even on his radar screen (I'm not counting that stupid Star Wars Tales story where he has a "moment" with the pieces).

As for Anakin seeing a lot of 3PO in between ATOC and ROTS, I wouldn't count on it if we're to believe the Clone Wars stories. Based on what we've seen in the cartoon, books, and comics I'm guessing he was able to visit Padme 3, maybe 4 times tops in the past 3-4 years.

[Bandersnatch]

Indeed, the context is the thing.

He is searching for his mom in AOTC, and he has direct contact and conversation with his old do-it-yourself protocol droid. In ESB, Anakin (and 3PO) have gone thru some major changes, and there's lots of shit going on in the room. Not only has Anakin/Vader denied his past by this time, it wouldn't really help the plot of ESB much if he stopped to chat with a dismantled droid...

[CoGro]

I like it.

nice C3P0 moment.

[The Dark Shape]

Why does it matter if Vader recognized Threepio in 'Empire'? Does it have any effect on the story in one way or another?

[Dogg Thang]

Besides, that has been debated on a million times since Ep1 and, aside from the droid=appliances argument (which I personally don't subscribe to), very little has come of it.

Dogg.

[Bandersnatch]

Why does it matter if Vader recognized Threepio in 'Empire'? Does it have any effect on the story in one way or another?

That's why I called it a "stupid question..."

[vanillazinger]

Are we still on about remembering the droids? That's soooo 1999.

[Bandersnatch]

Nothing's more recognizable than a shiny protocol droid with an serial number for a name.

[Jinh Warrior]

It was all about the safety of Leia!

It's Like a superhero keeping his identity hidden from the ones he loves, for their own safety.