What are we doing at the CultureFly office today? Oh, just staring out the window and imagining a Death Star slowly gliding into the Earth’s atmosphere. Before that, we were hanging around outside our local coffee shop asking strangers if they remembered that time Luke Skywalker needed to crawl into the belly of his dead tauntaun to keep warm. Weird how no one wanted to talk to us about how bad it probably smelled.
Clearly, we need an outlet to discuss all things Star Wars!
There are just so many moments in the series we can’t stop geeking out over. They thrilled us the first time, and even though we’ve watched them over and over again since, we still can’t get them out of our heads.
That’s why we’re presenting our favorite geek-out-worthy moments with the best Star Wars quotes and scenes, in no particular order. So, grab your Stars Wars subscription box gear and let’s get started:
#1 – “No, I am your father.”
Uh, spoiler alert?
Look, we know this may be an obvious one—Darth Vader revealing his identity to Luke Skywalker is one of the most famous scenes from Star Wars. But even after a hundred (or more likely, a thousand) viewings, this scene still absolutely rocks.
The claustrophobic feeling of that catwalk, Vader at peak ominousness, Luke getting his hand lopped off—all of these elements come together to give us goosebumps for days. For a lot of us, this scene is also the first time we learned that good guys don’t always win. The Empire Strikes Back has a seriously dark ending. It’s actually kind of traumatizing.
As an added bonus, Mark Hamill pulls so many great faces in this scene. We’re never going to get tired of sending gifs of Luke screaming “Noooooo!” to our spouses when they ask us to wash the dishes.
#2 – “I know.”
Speaking of Empire Strikes Back, we have to talk about the scene when Han Solo is frozen in carbonate. Betrayed by his buddy Lando, everyone’s favorite smuggler is seconds away from getting frozen by highly pressurized gasses (because, well, that’s the best way to ship fragile trade goods along the Corellian Run).
And what does Han do in this moment? Does he beg for mercy or try to escape?
Nah. He plants one last kiss on Princess Leia and then, when she tells him she loves him, he responds with a smooth-as-heck “I know.”
Note to guys: This line doesn’t work in real life unless you’re actually young Harrison Ford.
#3 – “Pan down from the twin suns of Tatooine…”
If we’re making a list of scenes from Star Wars to geek out over, then that list has to include the one scene in Star Wars canon that’s literally based on a Star Wars fan geeking out.
The opening scene of The Book of Boba Fett, where the infamous bounty hunter pulls himself free from the den of the Sarlacc, matches up almost exactly with an improvised monologue that Patton Oswald did for the sitcom Parks and Rec.
Coincidence? Homage? Either way, seeing a devoted nerd (fictional or not) getting their vision depicted on screen has to be one of the best scenes from Star Wars. (But no matter how good your own Star Wars ideas are, we advise against interrupting your local city council meeting to put them out in the world.)
#4 – “Mesa called Jar Jar Binks, mesa your humble servant!”
We’re just kidding! There’s no Jar Jar Binks scene that’s worth geeking out over. He didn’t make the list.
However, it is worth mentioning here that there’s a theory floating around the internet that Jar Jar Binks is actually a Sith Lord undercover. We could get into that. So, maybe one day we can add evil Jar Jar to the list.
#5 – “You were the chosen one!”
How about a scene that’s actually cool from the prequel trilogies? Obi Wan Kenobi’s duel with Anakin Skywalker (one of the most powerful Star Wars characters) is the highlight for us. It’s an evenly matched lightsaber fight with the lava pits of Mustafar serving as a thrilling setting.
McGregor and Christensen also do some of their best acting of the prequels, especially when McGregor’s Obi Wan Kenobi screams about how disappointed he is that his protege has turned to the Dark Side. It hits you like a lightsaber strike to the gut. So, be sure to watch Obi Wan Kenobi series to know what happens next.
#6 – “There is another.”
In The Last Jedi, Kylo Ren and his First Order fleet blast a hole into the Resistance’s flagship that sucks Leia out into space. It’s a shocking moment and—considering how Han Solo gets dispatched in The Force Awakens—we totally believed it was time for Leia to join her ex as a ghostly head in the sky.
But then, Princess Leia opens her eyes. She uses the Force to float herself right back on board the ship.
Way back in Empire, Yoda told Obi-Wan that there was “another” who could best Darth Vader, should Luke Skywalker flunk out of his Jedi training. Fans always speculated that Yoda was talking about Leia, but it took decades for that single line to actually pay off.
Unfortunately, we never got to see what the Star Wars franchise writers had in mind for Leia as a full-fledged Force user.
#7 – *Judgemental Porg Noises*
Leia might have escaped death in The Last Jedi, but the porg that Chewbacca cooked for dinner wasn’t so lucky. The scene where Chewbacca has to deal with a group of horrified porgs as he attempts to chow down on one of their friends is probably the best moment of comedic relief in the entire franchise.
Here at CultureFly, we come down strictly on the porgs-are-not-for-eating side of the fence for the following reasons:
- They’re cute
- Their giant eyes peer directly into your soul
- They’re better than Ewoks
We would, however, eat a tauntaun. But only if absolutely necessary!
#8 – “Take it! Take it!”
Everyone in Rogue One is doomed—and we love it. The suicide mission to steal the plans for the Death Star succeeds, with the data sent to their ship waiting in orbit. There, a group of nameless rebels prepares to pass that galaxy-saving intel onto their superiors.
But then, Darth Vader shows up.
Thanks to advances in special effects and action choreography, Rogue One is able to depict Vader as more menacing than ever before. Vader stalking down that hallway, using a combination of lightsaber butchery and Force mastery to slay a dozen outmatched Star Wars rebels is like watching a slasher movie.
It’s terrifying, and yet we just can’t look away.
#9 – "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.”
Going all the way back to the original Star Wars, one of the best Star Wars scenes has to be Luke and Obi-Wan’s first visit to the Mos Eisley Cantina. They’re there to hire Han Solo to take them off-planet in the Millenium Falcon.
Not only is this scene our introduction to Han and Chewie, and the beginning of Luke and Han’s try-hard dork vs cool dude dynamic that makes the original trilogy so much fun, but it’s also our first real look at the wider galaxy of Star Wars. Have a gander at all the strange creatures getting wasted in the cantina and just try not to geek out about the possibilities.
Of course, this scene is both geeked-out over and freaked-out over, as George Lucas went back and edited the film so that Han Solo killed Greedo in self-defense. That was a change that never sat well with fans. Around here, we’re strictly #HanShotFirst.
#10 – Broom Boy
To be honest, we’re still thinking about Broom Boy and wishing that we’d revisited him in The Rise of Skywalker. In case you’ve forgotten, during the coda of The Last Jedi, we spend some time with a lovable child laborer working the stables on Canto Bight. Broom Boy does what every Star Wars fan has done in the privacy of their own home: he pretends that his broom is a lightsaber.
Except, before that, he uses the Force to grab his broom.
As Broom Boy gazes longingly into space, we’re left to ponder what a galaxy far, far away might look like if the use of the Force wasn’t reserved for the descendants of royalty or aloof monks. It’s a storyline we hope Star Wars gets back to in the next trilogy.
Geek Out Over CultureFly’s Star Wars Galaxy Box
Regardless of which Star Wars scenes you believe are the best to geek out over, there’s one things we can all agree on—the Force should be for everyone. That’s why we created our Star Wars Galaxy Subscription Boxes.
Each quarterly box is curated with 7–10 limited edition mystery items in each nerd box that you won’t find anywhere else. Cracking open a box is a little like pressing play on a new season of The Mandalorian—we promise you’re going to geek out.
And who knows, maybe your favorite Star Wars moment to geek out over will be represented in one of our future Galaxy Boxes. The only way to find out is to subscribe.
Sources:
Vulture. Did Patton Oswalt Manifest This Book of Boba Fett Moment https://www.vulture.com/2021/12/book-of-boba-fett-patton-oswalt-parks-and-rec.html
Inside the Magic. ‘Star Wars’ Fans Are Convinced That Jar Jar Binks is a Sith Lord. https://insidethemagic.net/2021/10/jar-jar-binks-sith-al1/
Yahoo Entertainment. Carrie Fisher's brother reveals new details about Leia's 'Rise of Skywalker' role: 'She was going to be the last Jedi' (exclusive). https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/details-of-carrie-fishers-rise-of-skywalker-role-revealed-210514180.html