Star Wars Fan Cites Empire Strikes Back Goof in Response to The Last Jedi Haters

Up until 2017, arguably the most divisive facet of the Star Wars saga was the prequel films, as not all fans of the original trilogy connected with them as strongly as those initial installments. The debut of Star Wars: The Last Jedi changed all that, as writer/director Rian Johnson’s ambitious attempt to break the mold of predictable Star Wars storytelling denied some fans the moments they had hoped to see. Ever since the film’s release, detractors have attempted to find any angle they could in hopes of supporting the notion that the film was objectively bad, with one fan pointing out a goof in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back which mirrors a visual error in The Last Jedi to illustrate even the best movies aren’t immune to human error.

In the above GIF, we can see a moment from Empire Strikes Back when Luke appears to have sliced Darth Vader’s head clean off, only for pyrotechnics on the Sith Lord’s shoulder to ignite, indicating that the weapon was meant to lightly injure the villain. With this film being considered by many to be the high point of the franchise, clearly such an obvious error didn’t prevent audiences from suspending their disbelief enough to overlook such goofs.

Once The Last Jedi hit home video and fans were able to enjoy repeated viewings, one fan noted that a visual effects error resulted in one of Snoke’s guards losing their ignited blade, which theoretically would have easily vanquished Rey, yet the burgeoning Jedi emerged victoriously. Most viewers hadn’t noticed the moment during theatrical screenings, though the subset of viewers who tried to exploit any element about the movie they could to support their perspective of the film being poorly made just offered them more ammunition.

Despite how beloved the saga might be, errors have appeared in virtually every installment, with even the first film featuring moments where Stormtroopers bump their heads on doorways and Mark Hamill famously exclaiming, “Carrie!” after the Battle of Yavin instead of “Leia.”

Do you have a favorite goof in the Star Wars franchise? Let us know in the comments below or hit up @TheWolfman on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

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