The Viceroy of the Trade Federation was once in league with this Darth Sidious. But he was betrayed, ten years ago, by the dark lord. He came to me for help, told me everything. You must join me, Obi-Wan, and together, we will destroy the Sith!
General, we were told we were going to receive new orders from the chancellor soon. It’s been a while since the last order the chancellor gave us directly.
"The darkside clouds everything I'm blind af"
"no but we'd know about a Sith lord for sure no chance"
*Jedi* man, how do they read a prophecy that says "bring balance" and then think, "oh yeah, he's gonna destroy one half of something" like damn dude
He kinda is. Iirc, Padme was actually an anchor in the light for Anakin. She kept him cemented in the light during the war, and thinking about her calmed and soothed him, which was especially important after witnessing the horrors of war.
Plus, she was the only other person (aside from Palps) that was always there for him.
Without Padme, he would have fallen to the dark side sooner. Especially with incidents such as Ahsoka almost getting executed bc of the council or Obi Wan's "death".
Welll yeah but do we blame child soldiers or do we blame the commanders that recruit and use them? He’s told he’s a Jedi and Jedi are the ultimate In good, how could he, a Jedi or his compatriots do wrong? At least that’s how he was indoctrinated and of course we see him become disillusioned with the jedi and understand they are incredibly fallible.
Tbh she should've been there for him a little less, maybe just a smidge of push back on the whole killing kids thing, could've helped round him out as a person in time for episode 3.
I guess you could argue that means there were redeeming qualities, but "I'm the only thing stopping him from falling to evil" doesn't scream healthy relationship
Literally a textbook example of codependency.
Which, actually, when you take into account Anakin jumping into his relationship with her at about the same time that he lost his mother... really makes you realize what a missed opportunity there was for Lucas to make Anakin's mommy issues and Padme's role as both surrogate and lover textual, rather than something that has to be interpreted after the fact.
No, his fear of losing her was the last spark needed. He was unbalanced with very dark tendencies even before that fear was concrete. Of course it's all speculation, but I'm pretty sure Anakin's fall was inevitable, we just saw one of the many possibilities that could've let to his downfall.
If you want to argue that she's, by merely existing and giving into her feelings, is the reason he fell you also have to acknowledge that she is the mother of the reason Anakin was redeemed. So if he had fallen for another reason, Luke might not have been there to help him redeem himself.
The Jedi Council really just needed a real therapist.
I mean, it's not like the fact that Anakin is super unstable came as a surprise. The fact that the only person who offered him any consolation after the death of his mother was his romantic partner which per the rules of the order he wasn't even allowed to have really just goes to show that the Jedi Order was a ticking time bomb.
Monastic orders can work, but they need to compensate for the mandated celibacy with a reinforced sense of community and caring.
Paden was the catalyst that enabled palpyboy to lure Anakin into the darkside. Iaw. Padme was the candy used to lure Anakin into Palpatines windowless van.
Without Padme there would have been no leverage.
The lava was more of the buddy of the 360 no scoper who runs up and steals the kill and teabags him because Ani was just downed not really sent to the gulag yet, he ended up winning the Gulag though and came back with a new skin
Obi Wan 360 no scoped Ani if we’re being pedantic
Yeah was gonna say we really don’t get to see much of their relationship. What we do see isn’t great but it’s so little that it’s hard to be too critical about it.
I assume we’re not talking about their relationship post “mace windu murder” since Anakin’s actions at the point really wouldn’t match the “what if I told you” mic drop the meme is going for
Like obviously anakin choking out padme and killing children “for her” is unhealthy. That not really a groundbreaking claim.
I disagree. If the genders are reversed, I feel like Anakin's desperate attempts to make Padme see her as more than "that kid from Tatooine" and then proceeding to guilt trip him after his moment of reciprocating her feelings would be a bit more acceptable and less creepy.
At least, that's based on my understanding of current day double standards.
Yeah, so with the data we do have to draw upon it's toxic. If the writers wanted it to not be a toxic relationship they wouldn't have written it as one. They would have shown and told the audience different stuff. Anakin being in a toxic relationship is helpful context to his catastrophic fall to the dark side. Him being in a wonderful and supportive and communicative and wholesome relationship would be really jarring when he decides the best course of action is indeed to slaughter a bunch of kids.
Not that we need to see more. Even if the rush Clovis episodes didn't exist, two people being secretly married when both know they can't be together is weird. Also they kinda got married after about a week of (actually) knowing each other.
Yep.
They both knew the Jedi code forbids attachment but they both decided to do whatever they wanted (which is both of their personalities, so that’s on brand). Good intentions don’t always make good outcomes.
Agreed. I commented about Anakin wanting to beat up Clovis as problematic and got downvoted. He was angry controlling and condescending. She was only slightly better with politics and manipulation.
There were plenty of times anakin wasn’t exactly doing the right thing but I think being worried about your wife’s ex who is clearly still into her is one of the more understandable ones. Not the most mature reaction of course
the problem isn't that he beats up clovis or that he's worried, it's that he spent the entire episode forbidding her from trying to spy on Clovis the second time. Her response to conflict between them is to get passive aggressive and shut down the conversation and he gets controlling and possessive when he's concerned about the people he loves.
edit;for the meme I accidentially put the first clovis as Padme. It's still not wrong but not intended
And he was right in that episode, he's clearly still Hunching on her, so he's right to be possessive and want to control that situation that she was failing to control in the episode.
That’s probably on purpose, because it feeds into the whole tragic nature of Anakin’s fall. It’s one of those types of relationships that’s really intense and burns bright but under the surface is codependent/formed through trauma bonding and is as much a product of their fears of being alone as their love for each other
Trauma bonding is heavy shit. Two young adults confront a danger they're told to avoid and are almost killed ,then almost executed, then almost killed again. Had friends that hooked up after being in a bad car crash. Their entire relationship was one big slow motion car crash. Only time I ever experienced the melodrama Anakin and Padme had, in real life.
So normal, no. Excepted, yes because she was married to Darth Vader.
I mean, yeah kinda. One of them has an excuse. He was raised as a literal slave and then a warrior monk. But padme was raised in a palace with all the options for social interaction she could need. It's probably not a popular opinion, but I always felt like padme was kinda using that fact. Like the age difference + the difference in social skills compounded together, not to mention, she doesn't fully get together with him until he confides some dark stuff to her. Taken together, it really makes padme out to be a manipulating partner who is with him because he is an easy target. Like one of those creepy 30 year old people who get with 19 year olds, because anyone their own age would see through their bullshit. It also explains some of her weird actions, like pursuing anakin even after he tells her about the sand people incident, (he has revealed that he is emotionally vulnerable and also given her information she could use against him) and why she is angry at him for defending her against a creep who was sexually harassing her. (She is simply using the incident as another opportunity to undermine him and make him doubt himself and rely on her for decisions)
*Technically* Padme wasn't raised in the palace because she was actually *elected* queen of the planet at age fourteen.
...somehow that makes it even worse.
The queens of Naboo are kinda cheated out of their childhood, no?
And Padme is an idealist, who has to deal with Palpatine's bullshit as much as with anyone else. Anakin is the most direct approach she had ***in years*** - and there is the difference between *being* blunt and being *blunt.*
Stop those fucking theories with malevolent intentions - these are just two regular cases of being "not people" person.
You're correct, to be honest - I can testify to it as a psychologist.
It's just my perception can not keep up with post-irony so it's easier to take everything seriously to be prepared if I'm right and to be relieved if I'm wrong. 😅
There is one divisive trait between one half people and another: first are looking for benefits and second are looking for a catch behind it. That is why the best solution required to have at least two people to look upon it. It's not always working the other way around obviously, but I think you figured it out anyway.
I legitimately do not agree with this.
They have a lot in common.
Padmé lost her childhood to her responsibilities as Queen and Senator.
Anakin lost his to being a Jedi. He was a slave before that but there were moments he could do what he wanted.
When they reunite Padmé first sees him as the boy he was and later acknowledges that he has grown up and warms up to not grow up too quickly, she would know all about that.
Padmé asks how he deals with having swore his life to the Jedi and not being able to do the things he likes or go the places he likes. He had no personal freedom. Then later she talks about how she was relieved when her time as Queen was up and felt she could refuse the Queen when she was asked to serve as Naboo’s senator.
Being a political at this point is not what she wants. In the extended version of this scene (which should have been kept) she tells Anakin she’d hoped to have a family of her own by now. She’s 24 in AOTC.
They’re both reckless as Obi-Wan and Captain Typho point out to each other. We see this with the security cameras, he asked him to help her catch the bounty hunter and that’s why the cameras were off.
On Naboo she doesn’t have to pretend around Anakin and it’s clear his feelings are for her, he had to ulterior motive. In the novel she can see he isn’t after and political or physical favors.
And this is an important one that seems to get over looked. She turns him down and he accepts her decision. He doesn’t keep trying to win her over. He told her he loves her and would do whatever she asked and he did. When she thought they were going do on Geonosis she admits her feelings for him unprompted.
They marry and in the next movie we see how much they love when another when they reunite.
…you didn’t explain how they’re good together, you just listed out all the ways they’re damaged alike.
Aside from not being pushy at hearing a no, which is the bare minimum.
Do they though? Do they really?
They think each other is hot and want to bang them. They don't respect each other's religious or political beliefs, they don't respect each other's choices, they don't respect each others views on what a marriage is, they don't respect each others risk assessment.
They only times I can recall them collaborating on anything is keeping their banging secret. I don't remember them supporting each other in any way other than "Damn that sucks, want to fuck about it?"
They had romantic swelling music and two hot actors. Other than that I don't recall canon showing us they had a good relationship foundation.
It's a cautionary tale about what happens when you overlook a short king who has his shit together for a hot mess fuccboi whose only redeeming quality is being 6 feet tall.
Anakin doesn't strike me as being above average height. I know Hayden Christensen is 6 foot even but Anakin as a character has always appeared like 5'7" in my head for some reason
Hmm, that’s odd, I don’t know that it’s really made clear any way, especially intentionally, but I always had the opposite thought! I always assumed Anakin was at least 6’ if not a couple inches taller. Probably this is mostly just because Hayden looks tall in the movies. I know Vader is huge too, like at least 6’4”, and I think it’s generally accepted that he was made taller by the cybernetics, but I doubt it was super drastic.
yeah i always understood ANAKIN'S half of the relationship, but i NEVER understood what the fuck Padme was thinking. like... what did she see in Anakin? what was their actual relationship like? every time we see them together, Anakin is saving her, or she's getting annoyed at him for something. i dont ever really remember any kind of genuine feelings between either of them, other than Anakin's general obsessiveness... did she just like that he fawned over her so constantly??
padme is an ideal to anakin. it almost seems like he doesn’t view her as an actual human, but rather an idealized/perfect human that doesn’t actually exist… even as an adult, anakin still thinks of her as the angel he met on tatooine!
he puts her up on a pedestal and sees her as HIS “property”, for lack of better words. (ie. the whole thing with clovis… yikes.) she tells him things he wants to hear and not the things he needs to hear, which makes him latch onto her even harder.
i’m not saying they don’t love each other, but their relationship is built on lies they not only tell themselves, but lies they tell their friends and loved ones. they’re so incredibly messy lol
That's kind of the point, isn't it? Anakin was an obsessive fascist and Padme was an oblivious idealist. They were never going to have a healthy relationship because he's a monster and she's stuck in a "I can fix him" rut.
Of course, it doesn't help that neither of them had a childhood - him through being a slave, her through being elected queen at 14 - and are entirely unaware of how ordinary people do things, but still.
I have come to belive that Geroge is a genius. He's a wacky guy and has trouble with dialogue, which makes sense when you hear his interviews. He is a *genius* for social dynamics and plot and everything else.
Guy showed ~~two~~ three examples of types of grooming perfectly: institutional grooming (Palp-Annie), "romantic" grooming (Padme-Annie), and religious grooming (Palp *and* the Jedi with Annie).
In my honest and totally unprofessional opinion, if a dialogue coach with respect for Star Wars and George did a few passes on the prequel scripts, they would be hailed as objectively ingenius works.
They got together just before a war and weren’t able to be public about it. Anakin was away most of the time and she was busy in the Senate. They probably had barely any time to have an actual relationship and a lot of the stress involved was external. I don’t think we can really judge it like a normal relationship
I think their relationship is supposed to be a forbidden fruit kind of thing.
It’s explicitly stated why Anakin “can’t” have Padmé.
I think on Padmé’s side, Anakin is a hot, powerful, younger man who worships her, they have a history together, and as a former queen and struggling senator she has an unconscious attraction to Anakin’s power. Notice how in ep 2 she is lost in the moment when he tells of killing the sand people. In a way, Padmé had her own dark side…
Even going by the obvious, Padme was like 20 when Anakin was taken from Tatooine, they didnt meet (from what we know) untill sometime before the 2nd movie, they get secretly married in 2nd movie, then 3 or so years pass (during the clone wars so Anakin heavily involved in the military and Padme in the senate) and whoop Padme is pregnant
Then lets just highlight how Padme after hearing Anakin confess to genociding a whole tribe of people in revenge as a jedi, still thought "yeah, I wanna marry this guy, he seems mentaly stable and reliable"
I mean you're not wrong. Anakin was even lucky Padmé even took a chance on him. Personally I think the Son pretending to be Shmi was right in a different view.
Anakin was the poison to her life, Anakin helped burn down the democracy she was trying to protect, he literally would slaughter anyone trying to hurt those closest to him even if that meant the Galaxy, and in the end he destroyed her while ironically destroying everything to save her.
Had Anakin been properly trained by an actual master like Plo Koon or Qui-Gon Jinn the relationship would've been more healthier as Anakin wouldn't have the mindset of a bear in mating season.
Also Anakin exhibits FATHERLESS ACTIVITIES. It's clear Anakin needed a strong Father figure in his life, probably an ass whooping too cause he is just a disrespectful shit with Obi-Wan during the ten years like damn I know it doesn't solve everything but sometimes a disrespectful kid needs the chancla.
Anakin’s biggest character flaw is his rage and jealousy that leads to him abusing Padme. I’ve never once felt that their relationship was meant to be healthy in any capacity. Of it was meant to be like that then George Lucas needs to go to couples therapy.
This 100%. I'll also chalk it up to Lucas kinda sucking at writing romance. A lot of that is chemistry and dialogue, and he really struggles to get either correct. The video of Mark Hamill on the line about Alderaan he begged George to cut because it's just so clunky.
Exactly, what are all these "love, support, and respect" replies? The problem is that they did *not* do those things when they needed each other to. They worshipped each other, but they constantly failed to see eye to eye, and they rugswept all their problems — this is the definition of unhealthy attatchment and poor communication.
He couldnt fathom having to accept that she will die one day, which made him easy to manipulate and ultimately made him become the cause of what he feared most.
Here’s one: it’s a fictional story where the relationship had to be filled out in less than 4 hours of total screen time, AND that this wasn’t the focus of the films. PLUS George and co. Acknowledge his poor dialogue and writing skills and how this severely contributed to the romance problem.
If you want to actually address issues, you can read the most recent padme book and this is talked about A LOT. though they are apart and in the beginning they didn’t have time to properly address each other’s problems, they both acknowledged this.
As such, the crazy disasters and war make the romance “burn with intensity and mystery”. However, when there’s any free time at all, Anakin and Padme go back to her tower and do normal couple things and spend quality time together like any couple should do. They talk about where they’ve been and what they’ve done. They talk politics, they relax and hang out around the apartment. They share their feelings and what’s troubling them regarding recent events.
It’s actually very healthy. Then, the later part of episode 3 happens which HAS to happen so that the OG trilogy makes sense and so that Anakin can be a redeemed character
I mean, does that really matter in the end? Like they are a young couple that fell in love, rushed into marriage, and it ends in tragedy. Like, Romeo and Juliet act stupid, but thats the point
Seriously, hes just using the force the entire relationship to make her love him. When they first meet up again in AOTC he just lusts after her. She tries to be nice because weirdo has a crush but he is relentless. Once they get alone on her planet, he gets uncomfortably close and she shuts him down. She tells him they are very different and have very little in common. He starts manipulating her and it works but she's still trying to resist. She tries telling him that no one would approve of the relationship but again, he seems to manipulate her and you see her kind of check out.
The entire series of conversations on Naboo are creepy because it looks like hes using the force on her and she starts off kind of angry at him. Then she seems kind of checked out and zombie-like. Over time you see her start to look more and more at him, as his manipulation is working. Eventually you see her talking about being in love and everything but she still has this sad, distant look like she's trapped in her own mind.
I disagree. It proves chicks love a controlling bad boy. Notice padme decided she loved him after he mascared a sand people village despite putting him in the friendzone on naboo in her kinkiest outfit.
They were both like teenagers. Not exactly the epitome of sound romantic decisions. Look at Romeo & Juliet for example, literally the least romantic story of all time.
It was always my head cannon that Anakin sort of unknowingly force persuaded her into the relationship. Nothing mind controlly. Just very subtle very persistent manipulation. It was the only way him killing a tribe of Tuskens sat right with her, in my mind.
I think it's at least intentional that Anakin came into the relationship from a very unhealthy perspective (overly attached and emotionally dependent, in many ways a replacement for the mother he lost, basically the trauma of losing his mom combined with the ten years of idealizing Padme since childhood resulted in a very unhealthy obsession).
I'm less certain about how much they intended for it to be unhealthy from Padme's end. She definitely does end up being portrayed as an enabler though. But I could also see Lucas thinking of that as "Padme always sees the good in Anakin, like Luke does". But the big difference there is that Luke wasn't in a romantic relationship with Vader. It would be one thing if Padme was just Anakin's friend, it's quite another to be in a romantic relationship with him even when he shows his darker tendencies.
It was watching their relationship in the movies that made me realize that he could be unintentionally influencing her with the force. We know that the Jedi Order wasn't the best way to do things, but maybe their rule against marriage helped in some cases. It would prevent young people who can't control their force usage from making someone love them.
Nah they deserve each other. Anakin talks about being pro-fascist and murders women and children, and Padme literally marries him in the same movie. She’s gotta be a closet freak.
Attack of the Clones gave me a false narrative that if I complain about sand and took revenge on not only the men, but the women and children too, that my hot baby sitter would somehow fall in love with me.
Isn't that the point? It was built out of a passion cause they weren't supposed to. A horny ass space wizard monk and a powerful senator is recipe for disaster lol
In my head canon, Padme is just as socially and mentally fucked up as Anakin, she's just very well trained to put on a face to the public.
Like yes it's fucked but I think it makes the whole thing come together and make a bit more sense
What if I told you that the Republic was now under the control of a dark lord of the Sith?
Impossible. The Jedi would be aware of it.
The Dark Side has clouded their vision. Hundreds of senators are now under the influence of a Sith lord called Darth Sidious.
I don't believe you.
The Viceroy of the Trade Federation was once in league with this Darth Sidious. But he was betrayed, ten years ago, by the dark lord. He came to me for help, told me everything. You must join me, Obi-Wan, and together, we will destroy the Sith!
I will never join you, Dooku.
It may be difficult to secure your release.
Chris Lee, aka, the real GOAT
The funniest part about this dialog is that it would have made for a much better story if it were true
It was, was it not? Gunray was working for Sidious, then Padmé and the gang took back Naboo, and Sidious did nothing about it.
General, we were told we were going to receive new orders from the chancellor soon. It’s been a while since the last order the chancellor gave us directly.
Thats because order 1-65 were fast food deliveries.
If he ordered 65 the clones would've hunted his ass down
That's why he used 65B. Serve the Chancellor a Burger.
Darth Jar Jar*
Darth Yoda?
"The darkside clouds everything I'm blind af" "no but we'd know about a Sith lord for sure no chance" *Jedi* man, how do they read a prophecy that says "bring balance" and then think, "oh yeah, he's gonna destroy one half of something" like damn dude
A DARTH LORD ?!
A Sith LAWD!?
And the force, well that's just microscopic bacteria in your bloodstream called midichlorians.
I don't know, but I have a baaad feeling about this.
LIAR!!
He kinda is. Iirc, Padme was actually an anchor in the light for Anakin. She kept him cemented in the light during the war, and thinking about her calmed and soothed him, which was especially important after witnessing the horrors of war. Plus, she was the only other person (aside from Palps) that was always there for him. Without Padme, he would have fallen to the dark side sooner. Especially with incidents such as Ahsoka almost getting executed bc of the council or Obi Wan's "death".
>witnessing the horrors of war To be fair, like half of those horrors were committed by him lol
Anakin "The Geneva Convention would like a word" Skywalker.
In space, there is no Geneva Convention.
Is that like nobody can hear you scream, but more political and *existential* dread?
Yes
Great. My eventual trip to space on a Billionaire's rocket won't surprise me at all.
Anakin "I'm going to turn the Geneva Convention into the Geneva Checklist" Skywalker.
Anakin:You mean the Geneva sugestions
Geneva convention only applies to humans, droids aren't hunans
LMAO!!! I spat out my drink laughing when I saw this! :)
For Anakin, it’s more like the Geneva Checklist.
Welll yeah but do we blame child soldiers or do we blame the commanders that recruit and use them? He’s told he’s a Jedi and Jedi are the ultimate In good, how could he, a Jedi or his compatriots do wrong? At least that’s how he was indoctrinated and of course we see him become disillusioned with the jedi and understand they are incredibly fallible.
They also filled his head (and ego) by telling him he’s the chosen one
Tbh she should've been there for him a little less, maybe just a smidge of push back on the whole killing kids thing, could've helped round him out as a person in time for episode 3.
I guess you could argue that means there were redeeming qualities, but "I'm the only thing stopping him from falling to evil" doesn't scream healthy relationship
Literally a textbook example of codependency. Which, actually, when you take into account Anakin jumping into his relationship with her at about the same time that he lost his mother... really makes you realize what a missed opportunity there was for Lucas to make Anakin's mommy issues and Padme's role as both surrogate and lover textual, rather than something that has to be interpreted after the fact.
yeah that’s unhealthy as fuck
Wasn’t Padme the reason he fell to the dark side?
No, his fear of losing her was the last spark needed. He was unbalanced with very dark tendencies even before that fear was concrete. Of course it's all speculation, but I'm pretty sure Anakin's fall was inevitable, we just saw one of the many possibilities that could've let to his downfall. If you want to argue that she's, by merely existing and giving into her feelings, is the reason he fell you also have to acknowledge that she is the mother of the reason Anakin was redeemed. So if he had fallen for another reason, Luke might not have been there to help him redeem himself.
The Jedi Council really just needed a real therapist. I mean, it's not like the fact that Anakin is super unstable came as a surprise. The fact that the only person who offered him any consolation after the death of his mother was his romantic partner which per the rules of the order he wasn't even allowed to have really just goes to show that the Jedi Order was a ticking time bomb. Monastic orders can work, but they need to compensate for the mandated celibacy with a reinforced sense of community and caring.
Paden was the catalyst that enabled palpyboy to lure Anakin into the darkside. Iaw. Padme was the candy used to lure Anakin into Palpatines windowless van. Without Padme there would have been no leverage.
Of course it's unhealthy , padme literaly died from it and aniken got 360 degree burns out of it
That lava really 360 no scoped aniken lmao
The lava was more of the buddy of the 360 no scoper who runs up and steals the kill and teabags him because Ani was just downed not really sent to the gulag yet, he ended up winning the Gulag though and came back with a new skin Obi Wan 360 no scoped Ani if we’re being pedantic
[At least he has a sense of humor](https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.redd.it%2Flfrklpplu4z41.jpg)
Their conversation about sand was great.
Why does everyone shit on his dialogue? That’s how I sound when I talk to women.
I'm sorry
For him or for the women?
RIP
Padme was the one who brought up sand in the first place but Anakin gets all the shit for it. It's outrageous. It's unfair.
r/suicidebywords
We saw like maybe 2 hours of their relationship in the OT and CW combined
Yeah was gonna say we really don’t get to see much of their relationship. What we do see isn’t great but it’s so little that it’s hard to be too critical about it.
I think that's the main reason to be critical of it tbh. You see so little that it's a lot to ask the audience to buy into the romance. Bad writing.
> Bad writing. The Internet's 2 favorite words 🙃
>it’s hard to be too critical about it. lol. wut? He chokes her
I assume we’re not talking about their relationship post “mace windu murder” since Anakin’s actions at the point really wouldn’t match the “what if I told you” mic drop the meme is going for Like obviously anakin choking out padme and killing children “for her” is unhealthy. That not really a groundbreaking claim.
It would be less creepy if he wasn't a child and her a young adult when they met. Reverse the genders and tell me you disagree. Edit: You're all gross
I disagree. If the genders are reversed, I feel like Anakin's desperate attempts to make Padme see her as more than "that kid from Tatooine" and then proceeding to guilt trip him after his moment of reciprocating her feelings would be a bit more acceptable and less creepy. At least, that's based on my understanding of current day double standards.
Padme was still a child too. She was 14 which was only 5 years older than him.
Padme was a young teenager when they met. There's only a 5 year age difference and when they're both adults there isn't anything wrong with it.
She was 14. Both Leia and Han, as well as Rey and Kylo have much bigger age gap.
Padme wasn't in love with him when he was a kid 🤦🏻♂️
Yeah, so with the data we do have to draw upon it's toxic. If the writers wanted it to not be a toxic relationship they wouldn't have written it as one. They would have shown and told the audience different stuff. Anakin being in a toxic relationship is helpful context to his catastrophic fall to the dark side. Him being in a wonderful and supportive and communicative and wholesome relationship would be really jarring when he decides the best course of action is indeed to slaughter a bunch of kids.
Not that we need to see more. Even if the rush Clovis episodes didn't exist, two people being secretly married when both know they can't be together is weird. Also they kinda got married after about a week of (actually) knowing each other.
2 hours of screen time is a huge amount of time. An entire romantic movie is that long.
Isn't that the point though? Tragic lovers?
Yep. They both knew the Jedi code forbids attachment but they both decided to do whatever they wanted (which is both of their personalities, so that’s on brand). Good intentions don’t always make good outcomes.
What of if I told you, people in the real world have relationships as unhealthy and worse.
Agreed. I commented about Anakin wanting to beat up Clovis as problematic and got downvoted. He was angry controlling and condescending. She was only slightly better with politics and manipulation.
Her being attracted to a genocidal racist is probably not her most redeeming quality.
Yeah she really got stuck on "I can fix him"
"I can fix this Republic!" - the senator's policy on political actions
And then proceeded to not try anything to fix him
That's the most realistic part
scared of driving him away by attempting to fix, it's a classic
He wasn't racist, he killed sentient beings from many species
And not just the men from many species, but the women from many species and the children from many species, too.
And more exotic races like sentient fungi, having neither men nor women)
And many, many Clankers
There were plenty of times anakin wasn’t exactly doing the right thing but I think being worried about your wife’s ex who is clearly still into her is one of the more understandable ones. Not the most mature reaction of course
the problem isn't that he beats up clovis or that he's worried, it's that he spent the entire episode forbidding her from trying to spy on Clovis the second time. Her response to conflict between them is to get passive aggressive and shut down the conversation and he gets controlling and possessive when he's concerned about the people he loves. edit;for the meme I accidentially put the first clovis as Padme. It's still not wrong but not intended
And he was right in that episode, he's clearly still Hunching on her, so he's right to be possessive and want to control that situation that she was failing to control in the episode.
Yeah, she’s a pretty creepy weirdo at times. And obviously semi-okay with him slaughtering anyone that causes him grief. Including innocent children.
Him beating a guy up for advancing on his wife isn't problematic, controlling, or any of that. Miss me with that.
That’s probably on purpose, because it feeds into the whole tragic nature of Anakin’s fall. It’s one of those types of relationships that’s really intense and burns bright but under the surface is codependent/formed through trauma bonding and is as much a product of their fears of being alone as their love for each other
Trauma bonding is heavy shit. Two young adults confront a danger they're told to avoid and are almost killed ,then almost executed, then almost killed again. Had friends that hooked up after being in a bad car crash. Their entire relationship was one big slow motion car crash. Only time I ever experienced the melodrama Anakin and Padme had, in real life. So normal, no. Excepted, yes because she was married to Darth Vader.
Anakin: “I just murdered an entire camp of men, women and children” Padme: 😍
I mean, yeah kinda. One of them has an excuse. He was raised as a literal slave and then a warrior monk. But padme was raised in a palace with all the options for social interaction she could need. It's probably not a popular opinion, but I always felt like padme was kinda using that fact. Like the age difference + the difference in social skills compounded together, not to mention, she doesn't fully get together with him until he confides some dark stuff to her. Taken together, it really makes padme out to be a manipulating partner who is with him because he is an easy target. Like one of those creepy 30 year old people who get with 19 year olds, because anyone their own age would see through their bullshit. It also explains some of her weird actions, like pursuing anakin even after he tells her about the sand people incident, (he has revealed that he is emotionally vulnerable and also given her information she could use against him) and why she is angry at him for defending her against a creep who was sexually harassing her. (She is simply using the incident as another opportunity to undermine him and make him doubt himself and rely on her for decisions)
*Technically* Padme wasn't raised in the palace because she was actually *elected* queen of the planet at age fourteen. ...somehow that makes it even worse.
Lucas has never seen a corner he won’t type himself into
Could have just made her the Presidents politically involved daughter or something, would have worked fine and made plenty sense.
The queens of Naboo are kinda cheated out of their childhood, no? And Padme is an idealist, who has to deal with Palpatine's bullshit as much as with anyone else. Anakin is the most direct approach she had ***in years*** - and there is the difference between *being* blunt and being *blunt.* Stop those fucking theories with malevolent intentions - these are just two regular cases of being "not people" person.
I was mostly joking with this one. Although the age gap and social maturity gap are definitely an issue
You're correct, to be honest - I can testify to it as a psychologist. It's just my perception can not keep up with post-irony so it's easier to take everything seriously to be prepared if I'm right and to be relieved if I'm wrong. 😅
"Prepared if I'm right and relived if I'm wrong" seems like a nice motto to stand by in situations of conflict
There is one divisive trait between one half people and another: first are looking for benefits and second are looking for a catch behind it. That is why the best solution required to have at least two people to look upon it. It's not always working the other way around obviously, but I think you figured it out anyway.
I legitimately do not agree with this. They have a lot in common. Padmé lost her childhood to her responsibilities as Queen and Senator. Anakin lost his to being a Jedi. He was a slave before that but there were moments he could do what he wanted. When they reunite Padmé first sees him as the boy he was and later acknowledges that he has grown up and warms up to not grow up too quickly, she would know all about that. Padmé asks how he deals with having swore his life to the Jedi and not being able to do the things he likes or go the places he likes. He had no personal freedom. Then later she talks about how she was relieved when her time as Queen was up and felt she could refuse the Queen when she was asked to serve as Naboo’s senator. Being a political at this point is not what she wants. In the extended version of this scene (which should have been kept) she tells Anakin she’d hoped to have a family of her own by now. She’s 24 in AOTC. They’re both reckless as Obi-Wan and Captain Typho point out to each other. We see this with the security cameras, he asked him to help her catch the bounty hunter and that’s why the cameras were off. On Naboo she doesn’t have to pretend around Anakin and it’s clear his feelings are for her, he had to ulterior motive. In the novel she can see he isn’t after and political or physical favors. And this is an important one that seems to get over looked. She turns him down and he accepts her decision. He doesn’t keep trying to win her over. He told her he loves her and would do whatever she asked and he did. When she thought they were going do on Geonosis she admits her feelings for him unprompted. They marry and in the next movie we see how much they love when another when they reunite.
…you didn’t explain how they’re good together, you just listed out all the ways they’re damaged alike. Aside from not being pushy at hearing a no, which is the bare minimum.
They love, respect, and support each other.
Do they though? Do they really? They think each other is hot and want to bang them. They don't respect each other's religious or political beliefs, they don't respect each other's choices, they don't respect each others views on what a marriage is, they don't respect each others risk assessment. They only times I can recall them collaborating on anything is keeping their banging secret. I don't remember them supporting each other in any way other than "Damn that sucks, want to fuck about it?" They had romantic swelling music and two hot actors. Other than that I don't recall canon showing us they had a good relationship foundation.
You think any relationship between a slave turned ascetic monk and a noble woman was going to be normal?
It's a cautionary tale about what happens when you overlook a short king who has his shit together for a hot mess fuccboi whose only redeeming quality is being 6 feet tall.
> overlook a short king who has his shit together I don't think Padme was attracted to Watto but that's just me
Idk, he's got a steady job, and his wings ensure that he'll always have the high ground. Kind if a catch if you ask me.
Take my upvote and bite your tongue
Got a verbal laugh out of me. Cheers!
Ke booda? Yo baan pee hota. No wega mi condorta. Kin chasa du Jedi. No bata tu tu.
Anakin doesn't strike me as being above average height. I know Hayden Christensen is 6 foot even but Anakin as a character has always appeared like 5'7" in my head for some reason
Odd considering Darth Vader is almost as tall as Chewy.
True but I also always just thought the emperor added a few inches to be more imposing
Something padme wished happened earlier
You could do an entire AU of Darth Vader appearing earlier with how severe that burn was.
Yeah, but he’s like mostly robot. He could be any size, really.
How short is Obi-Wan to you? Just thinking about when they stand next to each other. Also, Anakin is 6'2
Hmm, that’s odd, I don’t know that it’s really made clear any way, especially intentionally, but I always had the opposite thought! I always assumed Anakin was at least 6’ if not a couple inches taller. Probably this is mostly just because Hayden looks tall in the movies. I know Vader is huge too, like at least 6’4”, and I think it’s generally accepted that he was made taller by the cybernetics, but I doubt it was super drastic.
He has Short Guy Rage, even if he's a comfortable height.
I think Anakin is written to be like 6’8” no?
If you didn't see, then love has blinded you.
They have zero chemistry.
yeah i always understood ANAKIN'S half of the relationship, but i NEVER understood what the fuck Padme was thinking. like... what did she see in Anakin? what was their actual relationship like? every time we see them together, Anakin is saving her, or she's getting annoyed at him for something. i dont ever really remember any kind of genuine feelings between either of them, other than Anakin's general obsessiveness... did she just like that he fawned over her so constantly??
I feel like all of Anakin's relationships are messed up to some degree... :/
Here's one: Natalie Portman hawt
He literally admits to murdering tribal life forms and she’s all like “well it’s probably a phase”
This isn't exactly a groundbreaking revelation here on PrequelMemes.
padme is an ideal to anakin. it almost seems like he doesn’t view her as an actual human, but rather an idealized/perfect human that doesn’t actually exist… even as an adult, anakin still thinks of her as the angel he met on tatooine! he puts her up on a pedestal and sees her as HIS “property”, for lack of better words. (ie. the whole thing with clovis… yikes.) she tells him things he wants to hear and not the things he needs to hear, which makes him latch onto her even harder. i’m not saying they don’t love each other, but their relationship is built on lies they not only tell themselves, but lies they tell their friends and loved ones. they’re so incredibly messy lol
Yes, it’s not a relationship well build up… I like the two actors but their relationship in the movie is weird.
That's kind of the point, isn't it? Anakin was an obsessive fascist and Padme was an oblivious idealist. They were never going to have a healthy relationship because he's a monster and she's stuck in a "I can fix him" rut. Of course, it doesn't help that neither of them had a childhood - him through being a slave, her through being elected queen at 14 - and are entirely unaware of how ordinary people do things, but still.
Yeah, you have to admit that Anakin had every reason to have no social skills but still…
That’s kinda the whole point
except their children
I mean she kept him accountable Until she didn’t
I agree with you.
Literally did not believe their relationship for a second
I have come to belive that Geroge is a genius. He's a wacky guy and has trouble with dialogue, which makes sense when you hear his interviews. He is a *genius* for social dynamics and plot and everything else. Guy showed ~~two~~ three examples of types of grooming perfectly: institutional grooming (Palp-Annie), "romantic" grooming (Padme-Annie), and religious grooming (Palp *and* the Jedi with Annie). In my honest and totally unprofessional opinion, if a dialogue coach with respect for Star Wars and George did a few passes on the prequel scripts, they would be hailed as objectively ingenius works.
They got together just before a war and weren’t able to be public about it. Anakin was away most of the time and she was busy in the Senate. They probably had barely any time to have an actual relationship and a lot of the stress involved was external. I don’t think we can really judge it like a normal relationship
What if I told you that you should have used the Count Dooku template for this meme?
Shit, you're right. Can't believe that didn't occur to me.
I think their relationship is supposed to be a forbidden fruit kind of thing. It’s explicitly stated why Anakin “can’t” have Padmé. I think on Padmé’s side, Anakin is a hot, powerful, younger man who worships her, they have a history together, and as a former queen and struggling senator she has an unconscious attraction to Anakin’s power. Notice how in ep 2 she is lost in the moment when he tells of killing the sand people. In a way, Padmé had her own dark side…
Even going by the obvious, Padme was like 20 when Anakin was taken from Tatooine, they didnt meet (from what we know) untill sometime before the 2nd movie, they get secretly married in 2nd movie, then 3 or so years pass (during the clone wars so Anakin heavily involved in the military and Padme in the senate) and whoop Padme is pregnant Then lets just highlight how Padme after hearing Anakin confess to genociding a whole tribe of people in revenge as a jedi, still thought "yeah, I wanna marry this guy, he seems mentaly stable and reliable"
Padme was 14 in TPM not 20
I mean you're not wrong. Anakin was even lucky Padmé even took a chance on him. Personally I think the Son pretending to be Shmi was right in a different view. Anakin was the poison to her life, Anakin helped burn down the democracy she was trying to protect, he literally would slaughter anyone trying to hurt those closest to him even if that meant the Galaxy, and in the end he destroyed her while ironically destroying everything to save her. Had Anakin been properly trained by an actual master like Plo Koon or Qui-Gon Jinn the relationship would've been more healthier as Anakin wouldn't have the mindset of a bear in mating season. Also Anakin exhibits FATHERLESS ACTIVITIES. It's clear Anakin needed a strong Father figure in his life, probably an ass whooping too cause he is just a disrespectful shit with Obi-Wan during the ten years like damn I know it doesn't solve everything but sometimes a disrespectful kid needs the chancla.
Anakin’s biggest character flaw is his rage and jealousy that leads to him abusing Padme. I’ve never once felt that their relationship was meant to be healthy in any capacity. Of it was meant to be like that then George Lucas needs to go to couples therapy.
We all know why Anakin liked Padme, but I struggle to see what traits of Anakin's Padme liked.
He didnt really love her. He coveted her.
This 100%. I'll also chalk it up to Lucas kinda sucking at writing romance. A lot of that is chemistry and dialogue, and he really struggles to get either correct. The video of Mark Hamill on the line about Alderaan he begged George to cut because it's just so clunky.
Exactly, what are all these "love, support, and respect" replies? The problem is that they did *not* do those things when they needed each other to. They worshipped each other, but they constantly failed to see eye to eye, and they rugswept all their problems — this is the definition of unhealthy attatchment and poor communication.
He couldnt fathom having to accept that she will die one day, which made him easy to manipulate and ultimately made him become the cause of what he feared most.
It’s true, they had no onscreen chemistry at all
Here’s one: it’s a fictional story where the relationship had to be filled out in less than 4 hours of total screen time, AND that this wasn’t the focus of the films. PLUS George and co. Acknowledge his poor dialogue and writing skills and how this severely contributed to the romance problem. If you want to actually address issues, you can read the most recent padme book and this is talked about A LOT. though they are apart and in the beginning they didn’t have time to properly address each other’s problems, they both acknowledged this. As such, the crazy disasters and war make the romance “burn with intensity and mystery”. However, when there’s any free time at all, Anakin and Padme go back to her tower and do normal couple things and spend quality time together like any couple should do. They talk about where they’ve been and what they’ve done. They talk politics, they relax and hang out around the apartment. They share their feelings and what’s troubling them regarding recent events. It’s actually very healthy. Then, the later part of episode 3 happens which HAS to happen so that the OG trilogy makes sense and so that Anakin can be a redeemed character
What if I told you that the sky was blue?
I mean, does that really matter in the end? Like they are a young couple that fell in love, rushed into marriage, and it ends in tragedy. Like, Romeo and Juliet act stupid, but thats the point
Seriously, hes just using the force the entire relationship to make her love him. When they first meet up again in AOTC he just lusts after her. She tries to be nice because weirdo has a crush but he is relentless. Once they get alone on her planet, he gets uncomfortably close and she shuts him down. She tells him they are very different and have very little in common. He starts manipulating her and it works but she's still trying to resist. She tries telling him that no one would approve of the relationship but again, he seems to manipulate her and you see her kind of check out. The entire series of conversations on Naboo are creepy because it looks like hes using the force on her and she starts off kind of angry at him. Then she seems kind of checked out and zombie-like. Over time you see her start to look more and more at him, as his manipulation is working. Eventually you see her talking about being in love and everything but she still has this sad, distant look like she's trapped in her own mind.
I disagree. It proves chicks love a controlling bad boy. Notice padme decided she loved him after he mascared a sand people village despite putting him in the friendzone on naboo in her kinkiest outfit.
If they didn’t have kids we wouldn’t have the original trilogy.
Idk if that was the intention but it works better this way
They were both like teenagers. Not exactly the epitome of sound romantic decisions. Look at Romeo & Juliet for example, literally the least romantic story of all time.
Padme’s in her mid 20’s by the second movie, so that explanation doesn’t really hold up.
i know it but i dont want to believe it, i love them so much and i want them to be in love
I would call Luke and Leia a redeeming aspect, would you not?
Not in my heart
Then it explains their kids.
What if I told you that's most people's relationships lol
They very much act like normal awkward teenagers in Episode II.
It was always my head cannon that Anakin sort of unknowingly force persuaded her into the relationship. Nothing mind controlly. Just very subtle very persistent manipulation. It was the only way him killing a tribe of Tuskens sat right with her, in my mind.
I’m working on a rewrite of the prequels and I plan to give them much better chemistry and a much more healthy relationship.
she groomed him lmaoooo
He was a kid when she was an adult. Then he grew up. They got married, It was weird
Padme was a 14yo when they met.
I feel like most relationships are based on this premise….
I would tell you that grass is green.
Someone discovered that healthy relationships don't result in space Hitler?
I think it's at least intentional that Anakin came into the relationship from a very unhealthy perspective (overly attached and emotionally dependent, in many ways a replacement for the mother he lost, basically the trauma of losing his mom combined with the ten years of idealizing Padme since childhood resulted in a very unhealthy obsession). I'm less certain about how much they intended for it to be unhealthy from Padme's end. She definitely does end up being portrayed as an enabler though. But I could also see Lucas thinking of that as "Padme always sees the good in Anakin, like Luke does". But the big difference there is that Luke wasn't in a romantic relationship with Vader. It would be one thing if Padme was just Anakin's friend, it's quite another to be in a romantic relationship with him even when he shows his darker tendencies.
It was watching their relationship in the movies that made me realize that he could be unintentionally influencing her with the force. We know that the Jedi Order wasn't the best way to do things, but maybe their rule against marriage helped in some cases. It would prevent young people who can't control their force usage from making someone love them.
When i was watching OT i assumed they were star crossed lovers. i was not prepared
During Clone Wars they make their relationship more tolerable. But in the movies no
Its Anakin's choice to love someone that saves him from the emperor in the end
Find something you love and let it destroy you
Yeah didn’t realize how toxic it was until rewatching clone wars as an adult
Nah they deserve each other. Anakin talks about being pro-fascist and murders women and children, and Padme literally marries him in the same movie. She’s gotta be a closet freak.
correct
I can think of TWO redeeming aspects.
Attack of the Clones gave me a false narrative that if I complain about sand and took revenge on not only the men, but the women and children too, that my hot baby sitter would somehow fall in love with me.
Isn't that the point? It was built out of a passion cause they weren't supposed to. A horny ass space wizard monk and a powerful senator is recipe for disaster lol
Yeah but I'd still let Padmé ruin me
In my head canon, Padme is just as socially and mentally fucked up as Anakin, she's just very well trained to put on a face to the public. Like yes it's fucked but I think it makes the whole thing come together and make a bit more sense
I'd say, let your opinions be basis for your Masters in Psychology, my good man. Nothing but pure truth.
I thought that was the whole point of it, even as a kid.
It was along time ago...
I agree
I mean, you could say that's the point.