NationStates Jolt Archive

which one do you prefer more and why?

:eek: IMPOSSIBLE CHOICE!!! (given that you disregard the Star Wars Prequels, 'cause they messed up everything)

*Implodes*

I just can't choose. I love them both. Why wasn't there an "I can't decide" option?!

I prefer Star Wars... I mean, yeah, Wizards and all that is fine. But when you have a Death Star it doesnt matter much.

which one do you prefer more and why?
Let's see...which campy B-movie series that has garnered an utterly ridiculous amount of fan attention it does not deserve do I like more...

...

Um...nope. Not going to decide. Because I don't like either of them.

:eek: IMPOSSIBLE CHOICE!!! (given that you disregard the Star Wars Prequels, 'cause they messed up everything)

*Implodes*

How the hell did they mess up everything?! :eek:

They brought the story together, you get to see in more detail how darth vader came about, and what happened to spawn the original 3 movies...

How the hell did they mess up everything?! :eek:

They brought the story together, you get to see in more detail how darth vader came about, and what happened to spawn the original 3 movies...
As cliche ridden as the first three movies (Episodes IV-VI) were, the second trilogy was even worse. George Lucas lost what little writing ability he ever had, spawning such horrible "romance" stories as the Padme/Anakin story, or the mindless, dull action of, oh, EVERY ACTION SCENE IN ALL THREE MOVIES.

As cliche ridden as the first three movies (Episodes IV-VI) were, the second trilogy was even worse. George Lucas lost what little writing ability he ever had, spawning such horrible "romance" stories as the Padme/Anakin story, or the mindless, dull action of, oh, EVERY ACTION SCENE IN ALL THREE MOVIES.

but if they didn't have the padme/anakin story how'd we have our protagonist Luke Skywalker?

but if they didn't have the padme/anakin story how'd we have our protagonist Luke Skywalker?
If you're going to write a romance story, try making it actually interesting, instead of the...I'm sorry, I have no words to describe just how bad it was.

Furthermore: who cares? Altogether it's just Star Wars, something that never should have garnered the fans it did. It's not that great. It never will be great. Learn to have some actual taste, PLEASE.

How the hell did they mess up everything?! :eek:

They brought the story together, you get to see in more detail how darth vader came about, and what happened to spawn the original 3 movies...
*sigh* Had they only hired an actor that could act to play Anakin, and found someone that could write dialogue (and a love story), and not create gaping plotholes, and stayed away from the Messiah-theme, and the midi-chlorians, and Jar Jar...
And if they only had focused a bit more on the actual rise of the Empire and the politics and...:(

Yes, I've got lots of things to complain about, and I am aware that there are some people out there who don't agree with me. I just prefer the original trilogy, and to pretend that the prequels don't exist. ;)

Personally, Star Wars rocks, but, I think the books are far better than the movies, and honestly i never watched Episodes II or III after seeing Episode I. The first three movies were good, Lord of the Rings was ok, but, Star Wars still beats it.

I just prefer the original trilogy, and to pretend that the prequels don't exist. ;)
Absolutely.

I voted for Stars Wars over LOTR but only because I'm too heavily invested emotionally in the books to be able to appreciate the movies beyond the gorgeous scenery and cool giant battles scenes (never mind that Legolas never climbed up on a war-oliphant ... see, that's what happens). Ending up with plot-holes in SW is understandable, it's being made up on the spot, sort of, but in the LOTR they had a complete, integral plot already laid out and yet felt the need to do things like send Aragorn over the cliff on the way to Helm's Deep, or have Faramir take Frodo and Sam to Osgiliath. :headbang:

Tough one, but I like the story from Lord of the Rings better, so I'll have to go with that.

I'm biased though. I've been a fan of LOTR for a LONG time.

The books/comics/games have far better plots than the movies, but the original Star Wars trilogy is my choice. I find the LOTR books too boring. Movies were good though.

LOTR cos much as i like it, and generally like scifi, i still find star wars a bit naff...

Definitely "The Lord of the Rings."

"Star Wars" is a good movie series, don't get me wrong. But they are quite overrated and definitely riddled with faults. There's the overall cheesyness factor ("Return of the Jedi" and Luke's melodramatic righteousness, the Emperor's Wicked Witch of the West qualities in "Revenge of the Sith", the nauseating love story in "Attack of the Clones", the ridiculous scenes with little Anakin in "The Phantom Menace", etc.), the way it all appears to have been, as another poster said, made up on the spot (the attraction between Luke and Leia in "A New Hope" and then their kiss in "Empire" and suddenly they're brother and sister???!!!, Padme dying in childbirth and yet Leia remembers her in "Jedi" but Luke doesn't, the fact that the Jedi can sense all this spiritual crap but Vader didn't know his kids were still alive, etc.), and all of the nauseating re-do's by Lucas and Co.

Then there's the fact that the "Lord of the Rings" movies had some excellent effects and action sequences, but underneath it all, each film had a storyline and characters to identify with. With the "Star Wars" movies, that can't exactly be said for all of them, particularly the prequels.

Overall, the "LOTR" stories are much more interesting, developed, and well-written and the characters are much easier to identify with. Aside from all of that, "LOTR" is just more enjoyable than "Star Wars." That's my take.

LOTR cos much as i like it, and generally like scifi, i still find star wars a bit naff...
Haha... everyone knows deep down it sucks.... :P

Anyhoo, I hate Star Wars with a passion, and love LOTR so... easy choice for me :D

Well I went with Lord of The Rings, but I like Star Wars a lot too. There are a lot of similarities between Lord of The Rings and Star Wars so in general storyline they're somewhat the same, destroy the evil lord.

Star Wars is better, because LOTR didn't have lightsabers

Lightsabers are officially the best thing evah

How does one prefer something less?

I was hoping that a "Star Wars Vs. Star Trek" thing would pop up so I could show this thing (http://www.ifilm.com/player/?ifilmId=2748374&pg=default&skin=default&refsite=default&mediaSize=default&context=product&launchVal=1&data=&realId=2748374&bw=200&mt=QT) that StumbleUpon showed me. But this is close enough.

I VOTE OPTION 3.

http://putfile.com/pic.php?pic=main/7/19317142194.jpg&s=f10
:)

Gotta go with Star Wars hands down, no argument at all. I love Star Wars, could never get into LOTR, tried just didnt do it for me.

which one do you prefer more and why?


none, i rather have a root canal and a prostate exam. thank you very much.

i prefer the old star wars...even tho. LOTR was prettier!

It's close, but I'm going with LOTR

Haha... everyone knows deep down it sucks.... :P

Anyhoo, I hate Star Wars with a passion, and love LOTR so... easy choice for me :D
*sigh* at least you like star trek :p

(and you don't like babylon-shitty-5...thank god)

LOTR, which i didn't even expect to like because normally i really don't like the fantasy genre, but i love both the book and the movies. I've never been a huge Star Wars fan, though i loved the Ewoks when i was a kid.

LotR. Don't get me wrong, I LOVED the orginal Star Wars, but as I get older I realize that a lot of that love is the love of the MEMORIES of watching it as a kid.

LotR though keeps growing on ya the older you get because you can see more and more layers in it.

Having said that, I prefer the books over the movies any day. Tolken knew what he was doing, and while I can understand Jackson's choices as a director to make them into workable movies... Legolas's acobatics, off color dwarf jokes, radioactive green scrubbing bubbles, and other changes just annoy the hell out of me.

LOTR. Sure, they both have mythological resonance but IMO the writing in LOTR, both the original literary piece and in the film, was better, the effects were at least as good as in Star Wars, the acting was leagues better.

I just watched the entire Star Wars series at a convention. They were having a "Heckle Star Wars" party. We found ourselves at a heckle-loss during "Empire Strikes Back" (it was that good), but the rest of the time we couldn't heckle them fast enough. During "Return of the Jedi" you couldn't hear the dialog over the audience reaction.

I can't imagine a heckle-party for LOTR. Maybe a cheering section for the battle sequences and singalong, but there's not a lot to heckle there.

That's another point. You can live-action battle LOTR but it's hard to do many of the battle sequences from Star Wars. The hardware's too big. You can't build a death star or even a frigate, but pretty much anyone can pick up a sword or draw a bow.

I was hoping that a "Star Wars Vs. Star Trek" thing would pop up so I could show this thing (http://www.ifilm.com/player/?ifilmId=2748374&pg=default&skin=default&refsite=default&mediaSize=default&context=product&launchVal=1&data=&realId=2748374&bw=200&mt=QT) that StumbleUpon showed me. But this is close enough.
I love that. It's a nice look at the whole conflict. A reasonable one, rather than the damned wanking from either side. I

I love that. It's a nice look at the whole conflict. A reasonable one, rather than the damned wanking from either side. I
I like the reaction to the tie-fighters probably the best. And firing the Death Star...

Anybody with a small amount of common sense would realize that the Lord of the Rings movies were soooo much better. They were well-written, well-acted, and amazing! The star wars movies (at least the new ones) had crappy actors and crappy scripts. Not to mention that none of them won Best Picture at the Oscars. All three of LOTRs were nominated for BP and Return of the King won it!

I like the reaction to the tie-fighters probably the best. And firing the Death Star...
It's what would happen. There's a reason fighters are rarely used in the Star Trek universe. The sheer accuracy of weapons, and the strength of shields on starships makes fighters impractical at best and a liability at worst. The closest thing to a fighter anybody in Trek has would be tiny ships like the Birds of Prey of the Klingons. (Though, as any Trekkie would know, the size of that ship is debated extensively.)

*sigh* at least you like star trek :p

(and you don't like babylon-shitty-5...thank god)

Hey, I like SW, ST and LotR. As well as warhammer 40,000.

Usually, a guy can only like one or the other... Eventhough I voted SW, it was honestly a hard choice. I basically went for my childhood favorite.

(PS: I never did get into B5 thank god... Nor andromeda either)

The question we must ask ourselves here is "which is more entertaining?"

When it comes to entertainment value, the Star Wars franchise is by far superior. It's campy, silly, has action, easy to follow, great for the whole family. It contains all the elements of the classics: diamond in the rough hero, small town farm boy loses family and becomes a Knight, princess rescuing, lasers, evil empires get overthrown, good conquers evil, puppets, and a bunch of other mess.

LoTR is ... well ... a snooze fest. You have to spend so much time taking notes in order to follow the various characters and their individual plots plus keep track of the over-all plot that you just can't really watch this film. If a film requires the average viewer to watch it 10 times just to "get it", then it wasn't worth putting on film.

It's not Shakespeare, folks, it's escapism. LoTR, while being a far superior film in the technical aspects of film making, pales in comparison to Star Wars's "campy high school play" entertainment value.

My vote: Star Wars.

I love both series. But, if I have to get critical, then my vote is for the Rings. A huge factor in my love of Star Wars, is the nostalgia factor. The Classic trilogy is full of one-liners in moments that are just great. But the whole series taken as a whole is slightly less than Lord of the Rings.

Although I totally see Keruvalia's point on the easy-to-watch, popcorn-munching, mass appeal of Star Wars. You got to be 'in the mood' to camp out and watch LoTR.

Although I totally see Keruvalia's point on the easy-to-watch, popcorn-munching, mass appeal of Star Wars. You got to be 'in the mood' to camp out and watch LoTR.

True ... and I really was intending on just posting "Meh ... apples and oranges" ... but then thought it would be a fun little exercise in critical analyses.

LOTR, of course. At least LOTR has its' basis in the single-greatest work of English-language fiction of the 20th century. Star Wars is a pastiche of borrowed scenes, characters, and plot-points culled from a dozen different sources - none of which amount to much more than a vehicle for product tie-ins and soft drink rebates.

True ... and I really was intending on just posting "Meh ... apples and oranges" ... but then thought it would be a fun little exercise in critical analyses.

Funny point there... It's the same exact problem when people get into those pointless SW vs ST vs 40k tech debates. They're mixing apples and oranges and pears.


Another point about SW and LotR would be your preference of genres.

Sci-Fi or fantasy. While I'm a fan of both, I gotta say I like sci-fi more.
I think that was another deciding factor for my preference.

At least LOTR has its' basis in the single-greatest work of English-language fiction of the 20th century.

Funny ... I don't remember Boo Radley *or* Jim Casy in any of the LoTR series ...

Another point about SW and LotR would be your preference of genres.

Sci-Fi or fantasy. While I'm a fan of both, I gotta say I like sci-fi more.
I think that was another deciding factor for my preference.
No, that has little bearing on my choice - as I prefer proper Science Fiction over Fantasy 99 times out of a hundred. In fact, the only worthwhile Fantasy (IMO) is LOTR, and to a lesser extent the Chronicles of Narnia. Nearly everything else in that genre is derivative crap.

Star Wars is to proper Science Fiction as a jar of pablum is to filet mignon. Science Fiction, my ass. Melodramatic 'Space Opera' is a far better descriptive phrase - and it's an unashamedly derivative melodrama, to boot.

Melodramatic 'Space Opera' is a far better descriptive phrase - and it's an unashamedly derivative melodrama, to boot.

Lucas admits as such, so it was his intention. He did it brilliantly.

Funny ... I don't remember Boo Radley *or* Jim Casy in any of the LoTR series ...
Depends on what you consider the single greatest work of english-language fiction of the 20th century to be, I suppose. In my opinion, it's not To Kill A Mockingbird. Obviously.

Depends on what you consider the single greatest work of english-language fiction of the 20th century to be, I suppose. In my opinion, it's not To Kill A Mockingbird. Obviously.

Jim Casy's from "The Grapes of Wrath". :)

Yes, however, such things are completely subjective.

Lucas admits as such, so it was his intention. He did it brilliantly.
Doesn't put it on a par with Middle-Earth, whatever his intent in cribbing from Kipling, Asimov, Kurosawa, and a host of others might've been at the time.

Jim Casy's from "The Grapes of Wrath". :)
Boo Radley, however, wasn't.

Doesn't put it on a par with Middle-Earth, whatever his intent in cribbing from Kipling, Asimov, Kurosawa, and a host of others might've been at the time.

Again, subjective.

Boo Radley, however, wasn't.

I ... know ... I was mentioning the work you didn't ... I didn't feel the need to re-invent the wheel.

Again, subjective.
Hardly.

Who's better? A Renaissance painter, or a 21st-century cut-n-paste artist who uses photographs of the works of a Renaissance painter in an image-manipulation program?

I know the answer. Do you?

Starwars simply because the Sith owns everyone. screw those stupid little midgets

Who's better? A Renaissance painter, or a 21st-century cut-n-paste artist who uses photographs of the works of a Renaissance painter in an image-manipulation program?

The answer is completely subjective, based solely on the tastes of the oberserver. Derivative work is still an artform. And, incidently, only a few of those Renaissance painters were fundamental where many derived from their models.

I've seen people argue against the merits of decoupage for years, but the fact remains that it's still an art form, albeit a kitchy one. There is no such things as a greater or lesser art form.

Comparing the works of Monet to, say, the piss-Christ guy is a study in apples and oranges. Art must stand on its own and not be compared to other works.

There is no "right" answer to your question, just as there is no "wrong" answer. It's like asking someone if they're cold and then arguing with them that they're really not.

Starwars simply because the Sith owns everyone. screw those stupid little midgets

Star Wars has midgets too. Only they put theirs in costumes with more fur than just their feet.

Now there's a battle I'd like to see; Ewoks vs. Hobbits.

The other thing LotR has going for it is the compleatness of the world. Tolken did so much in creating the backstory that it's hard to compare it to Star Wars (and before anyone brings up extended universe, I'm going with the cannon Star Wars movies and nothing else) which was a bit tossed together.

Star Wars hit with the architypes, but then Lucas was aiming for them (and hit too well as he has admited later), so it leaves us with very little human drama and growth. Tolken shot well wide of the mark for his characters so the main ones under go a lot of growth and change.

Besides, Gandalf is just cooler than Obi-wan any day. ;)

Now there's a battle I'd like to see; Ewoks vs. Hobbits.
I think the Ewoks would win, unless someone was actually around to lead the Hobbits.

I have a thing for Orlando.. Lord of The Rings it is, then!

Sauron gets my vote for best badass in black.

Yoda-Gollum

Obi-Wan and Luke's lightsabers glow blue. Darth's lightsaber glows red. Gandalf and Bilbo's magic swords glow blue. The Balrog's magic sword flames red.

Obi-Wan Kenobi -Gandalf

Darth Vader The Witch-King

Emperor Palpatine Sauron

http://www.jitterbug.com/origins/lotr.html#frodo

If we're just talking about the original three films, I would say Star Wars.

If we include all six SW flicks, then it's Lord of the Rings for me.

I think the Ewoks would win, unless someone was actually around to lead the Hobbits.

Well, we've already seen the Ewoks stand up to a division of Imperial Stormtroopers, including Imperial Walkers. Of course, they had some help.

The best the hobbits have come up with were 4 reluctant heroes who almost stumbled their way to victory. Of course, they had some help.

Now the Ewoks always seem to be armed, although their tech is relatively low. One could assume the hobbits could churn out iron swords and armour, if they weren't spending too much time at the pub. And overweight soldiers in metal armour can't outrun giant logs on ropes.

I hate to say it, but the odds are in the Ewok's favour. That's just wrong...

I don't understand how the stormtroopers were defeated by the Ewoks.

[The stormtrooper armour] also protects the troopers from very harsh environments as well as projectiles and impact weapons.

(taken from Wikipedia because I couldn't be bothered to find a better source) Now, projectiles and impact weapons I assume are shrapnel/cannons/bullets and that sort of thing, or their Star Wars equivalent. If the stormtrooper armour provides decent protection from that, it should definitely have no problem stopping rocks or arrows.
It's hard to choose. LOTR are slightly better movies (compared to the last 4 Star Wars movies. I liked ROTS despite what everyone says, but I agree that II was bad and I was horrible), but Star Wars has Imperial Star Destroyers, Darth Vader and force choke. Star Wars.

Never read a Star Wars book I found likeable.

They're both so different. Honestly? I can't thing of anything that really bored me in the original 3 star wars movies. They were just good fun.
The Lord of the Rings do take themselves very seriously. That's why it's so easy to mock them (althought the Star Wars prequels are way more mockable..). And the Battle outside Minas Tirith (can't remember the name, because it's about 4 years since I read the books, Pelinor Fields?) bored me to death, even though most people think that the 3rd film was the best.
Hate the Star Wars prequels (too much CGI, way too dizzying, at leats LOTR tried to use models/ real sets where possible).
I can't decide... :confused:
Oh, screw LOTR...

[Oh great... I killed another thread]...

[Oh great... I killed another thread]...

Don't worry, this thread was dead at conception. It just hasn't realised it yet.

i'm very surprised lotr is winning, I though star wars had an entire cult.

i'm very surprised lotr is winning, I though star wars had an entire cult.

Star Wars has an enormous cult following. However, the general age group of this forum is relatively young (under 30), and big part of the Star Wars fanatical cult are older fans who grew up with the original series. There's less of a nostalgia factor at play for the younger crowd.

The answer is completely subjective, based solely on the tastes of the oberserver. Derivative work is still an artform. And, incidently, only a few of those Renaissance painters were fundamental where many derived from their models.

I've seen people argue against the merits of decoupage for years, but the fact remains that it's still an art form, albeit a kitchy one. There is no such things as a greater or lesser art form.

Comparing the works of Monet to, say, the piss-Christ guy is a study in apples and oranges. Art must stand on its own and not be compared to other works.

There is no "right" answer to your question, just as there is no "wrong" answer. It's like asking someone if they're cold and then arguing with them that they're really not.


Allow me to retranslate that into something more coherent:

Of course certain works are superior to others, but in order to measure two works as superior or inferior, you have to assign a common metric of measurement, and sometimes those metrics just don't fit well with certain works. It's obvious that if you're using the metric of clarity of purpose, I can tell what Grandma Moses was trying to do much more easily than I can Jackson Pollack, but the problem is that might not be the best abject metric of comparison; after all, if overall skill is the metric, then you cannot but admit that Grandma Moses essentially painted by numbers.

So in short, yes there is a better and worse in art. The problem is that you have to define what constitutes "better" and "worse" along a consistent axis, and part of art is that you can find beauty along a variety of axes, so any one might not really offer you a robust account of "better" and "worse".

Star Wars has an enormous cult following. However, the general age group of this forum is relatively young (under 30), and big part of the Star Wars fanatical cult are older fans who grew up with the original series. There's less of a nostalgia factor at play for the younger crowd.

I beg to differ.

I am part of that older crowd that you refer to, but I voted for LOTR because I read it when I was kid. Star Wars was fun, but it lacks the quality of LOTR. I am comparing the books of JRR Tolkein to the films of Lucas. LOTR, for me anyway, is not a film (or set of films) it is a magnificent story told in mesmerising prose by a master story teller.

I beg to differ.

I am part of that older crowd that you refer to, but I voted for LOTR because I read it when I was kid. Star Wars was fun, but it lacks the quality of LOTR. I am comparing the books of JRR Tolkein to the films of Lucas. LOTR, for me anyway, is not a film (or set of films) it is a magnificent story told in mesmerising prose by a master story teller.

Oh I hear you. I'm in the 30+ crowd as well, and voted LoTR. I was making a generalization of the hardcore Star Wars fan base (although I realize there are a few very young converts with the new trilogy.)

i'm very surprised lotr is winning, I though star wars had an entire cult.

Since when does LOTR not have an entire cult? :p

Frodo Lives!