The Most Iconic Scenes From C-3PO & R2-D2
"Sir, the possibility of successfully navigating an asteroid field is approximately 3720 to 1."
-C-3PO (The Empire Strikes Back) always trying to tell people the odds
Today, I have the honor and privilege of writing about the two most famous droids in all of Star Wars history and their most iconic scenes in the franchise. If there are two characters above all others who embody the heart and spirit of the Star Wars universe, it is, of course, the fussy but good-hearted protocol droid C-3PO and his brave and always helpful astromech counterpart R2-D2. Their existence spans the entire course of the Skywalker Saga, and they play a pivotal role in a large swath of galactic history, as well as have many memorable scenes throughout the course of nearly all of the Star Wars movies. (Solo is currently the only canonical film where they don't make any appearance whatsoever.) And much of other Star Wars content that has ever been produced utilizes the characters, including series such as Droids, The Clone Wars, Rebels, and, most recently, The Mandalorian (R2-D2 only). Although their first appearance was in A New Hope, this article will cover their appearances in chronological order, starting with The Phantom Menace.
Although C-3PO and R2-D2 were already established characters by the time that the prequel trilogy was created, The Phantom Menace reveals some quite interesting and unexpected origins for both of them. R2-D2's origin is established early on in the movie as one of several random maintenance droids serving aboard Queen Amidala's Royal Naboo Starship. As Queen Amidala and her Jedi protectors attempt to flee the Trade Federation blockade of Naboo, several maintenance droids, including Artoo, are dispatched to the hull of the ship in order to repair damage to the shields. R2-D2 is the last droid standing by the time the repairs to the ship are successfully completed. He is later brought before Queen Amidala, who praises him for his heroic efforts.
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Later in the film, we learn that C-3PO's "great maker" turns out to be none other than 9-year old Anakin Skywalker, who has built him out of spare parts. However, when we first see him, he has no outer covering yet (which C-3PO is hilariously shocked to discover when he first meets R2-D2), and Anakin is forced to abandon him with his mother on Tatooine when he leaves to go with the Jedi and the Queen to Coruscant. Although we don't see C-3PO for the remainder of the film, R2-D2 later helps Anakin fly a Naboo Starfighter right into the hangar of a Trade Federation battleship, ultimately resulting in its destruction and the defeat of the Trade Federation's blockade of the planet.
Both droids appear and share more screen time together in Attack of the Clones. R2-D2 is first seen serving now-Senator Amidala and travels back to Naboo to help protect her. We are reintroduced to C-3PO when Anakin and Padme and R2-D2 return to Tatooine midway through the film. A fully finished C-3PO is seen serving the Lars family, which Anakin's mother married into during his absence. He later joins Anakin, Padme, and R2-D2, when they leave Tatooine for Geonosis. Once they reach Geonosis, C-3PO and R2-D2 hilariously bumble through a Geonosian droid factory, with C-3PO having his head replaced with that a B1 battle droid, and his own head winds up fastened onto one. Luckily, Artoo shows up during the arena battle and helps repair C-3PO.
The roles of the droids are somewhat lessened in Revenge of the Sith, although R2-D2 accompanies Anakin and Obi-Wan and helps them as they battle their way through a Separatist fleet and into the flagship to save Chancellor Palpatine. R2-D2 helps them with the elevators aboard the flagship and bravely confronts and defeats some bigger and more powerful Separatist battle droids on the flagship. He also helps Anakin and Obi-Wan break free from their restraints after being captured by General Grievous on the bridge of the flagship. C-3PO is mostly seen attending to Senator Amidala throughout the course of the movie, although he also has a brief and cryptic exchange with R2-D2, before Anakin and R2-D2 leave to confront the Separatist leadership on Mustafar. C-3PO and R2-D2 are reunited as Obi-Wan flees Mustafar with them in tow, and both witness the births of Luke and Leia. They are both later handed over to Senator Bail Organa, who, much to C-3PO's chagrin, orders him mind-wiped when handed over to Captain Antilles, presumably so that C-3PO can't reveal the existence of Luke and Leia.
If any movie could be said to almost be C-3PO and R2-D2's movie, it would be none other than A New Hope, where they have the most scenes and both play the biggest role in helping save the galaxy from the evil Empire. They are, in fact, some of the first characters introduced in the film, as well. Although they have a brief appearance on the Rebel base on Yavin 4 in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, which chronologically precedes the events of A New Hope, they are first seen in this film serving aboard the Rebels' Tantive IV, which had previously escaped from a space battle with the Empire in Rogue One, and is now being captured by an Imperial Star Destroyer. Princess Leia clandestinely makes R2-D2 the custodian of the Death Star plans before she is captured. R2-D2 and C-3PO escape the doomed ship to the surface of the planet Tatooine, where they split up, mostly due to R2-D2's determined pursuit of exiled Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi, much to the annoyance of C-3PO.
C-3P0 stubbornly refuses to follow him, winding up captured by Jawas, who take him aboard their transport, where the two droids are reunited. They are both eventually sold to Luke Skywalker's uncle and aunt to be put to work on their moisture farm. There are perhaps no more iconic scenes in the film other than R2-D2's sudden partial playback of Princess Leia's message to Obi-Wan Kenobi while Luke is trying to clean him up. This leads to Luke falling for what is, in retrospect, a rather crafty ploy by R2-D2 to get him to remove his restraining bolt, which enables him to leave the farm. Luke and C-3PO set off to find him the next morning, which leads them to be assaulted by Tusken Raiders, only to be saved by the sudden appearance of Obi-Wan Kenobi. C-3PO, in a moment of high drama afterward, acts like he is dying and asks to be left behind, which Luke refuses to do. R2-D2 finally gets to deliver Leia's full message to Obi-Wan, who ultimately resolves to help her.
While they are later aboard the Death Star, the pair help assist Luke, Han, and Obi-Wan with figuring out how to escape the station, and unexpectedly discover the whereabouts of Princess Leia, who is also aboard. C-3PO and R2-D2, while hiding from stormtroopers, help save the heroes from being crushed by a trash compactor, with C-3PO momentarily becoming despondent, because he thinks that they didn't save them in time.
For the last part of the movie, R2-D2 takes center stage, flying with Luke during the Rebel attack on the Death Star and being shot and badly damaged by Darth Vader right before Luke's one-in-a-million shot that destroys the station. R2-D2 is later returned to the base, with C-3PO dramatically begging the Rebels to use some of his parts if needed, demonstrating his true affection and concern for his counterpart.
In The Empire Strikes Back, C-3P0Oand R2-D2 are mostly separated by the events of the movie, with R2-D2 traveling to Dagobah with Luke and C-3PO escaping Hoth on the Falcon with Han, Leia, and Chewbacca. Both droids are mostly played for comedy relief during the movie, with R2-D2 being seemingly frustrated with Yoda's crazy antics when he and Luke first meet him, as well as struggling to safely navigate the swampy planet. One of his most memorable moments is him almost being eaten by a swamp creature. Thankfully, the creature spits him out onto the shore.
Meanwhile, C-3PO spends most of his time on the Falcon annoying Han and Leia with his fussiness about Han's reckless heroics as he evades TIE Fighters, Star Destroyers, asteroids, and space monsters. In fact, he finally gets so annoying that Han and Leia literally shut him down at one point. Once they reach what they think is a safe harbor on Bespin, C-3PO wanders off and gets blasted into pieces by stormtroopers, who have secretly infiltrated Bespin. He is later found by Chewbacca but spends most of the rest of the movie with his head and torso being hauled around by the Wookiee. R2-D2 is later reunited with the group and helps them escape Bespin and later fixes the Falcon's hyperdrive just in the nick of time to save them all from being captured by the Empire.
Although the scene was later deleted (although seemingly alluded to in a Forces of Destiny short), there was a darkly amusing moment set earlier in the film on Hoth when, during the Rebel evacuation of their base, C-3PO tears off a warning label from a door, which a stormtrooper later opens, causing him to fall prey to a Wampa that was apparently trapped inside the room.
In Return of the Jedi, C-3PO and R2-D2 return to Tatooine as part of a plan to rescue Han from Jabba the Hutt. However, things seem to quickly go awry when, to C-3PO's utter horror and disbelief, they are offered to Jabba by Luke, who immediately puts them to work in his palace and sail barge. In one of my favorite moments of the movie, R2-D2, who is working aboard Jabba's sail barge, delivers Luke's new lightsaber to him, which enables the gang, who are facing imminent execution, to destroy the vile gangster and his minions and escape. R2-D2 also shows up to help free Leia, who has been enslaved by Jabba. He also chases away Jabba's annoying pet Kowakian monkey-lizard, who is attacking C-3PO.
The droids both later join Han's Rebel strike force to infiltrate one of the moons of Endor in order to bring down the new Death Star's shield. In what is another great movie moment, the native Ewoks come to believe that C-3PO is some kind of god. Although he adamantly refuses to impersonate a deity, Luke scares the Ewoks into believing that C-3PO actually has magical powers, through his use of the Force. C-3PO, through some amusing storytelling with words and sounds, later convinces the Ewoks to aid the Rebels against the Empire. When the Rebels later run into a snafu in their attempts to destroy the shield generator, C-3PO, not known for being particularly brave, notices that the Rebels are walking into a trap, and helps lead the Imperial troops on the planet into an Ewok ambush by pretending to surrender to them. R2-D2 also bravely steps into the ensuing firefight to attempt to help the Rebels regain entrance to the shield generator compound. However, asStormtrooper gets a lucky shot off, short-circuiting him, although he survives.
In The Force Awakens, set decades after Return of the Jedi, we are first re-introduced to C-3PO when he and Leia show up on Takodana after a battle with the First Order. We also discover that he now has one red arm. He is particularly delighted to see Han and Chewbacca again, and they all leave to return to the Resistance base on another planet. We also learn from C-3PO that R2-D2 has been basically in shutdown mode at the Resistance base ever since Luke disappeared and left him behind a few years earlier. R2-D2, however, dramatically re-activates at the end of the movie, and he and BB-8 finally put together the map to find Luke Skywalker. R2-D2 later leaves the Resistance base to travel with Rey and Chewbacca to find Luke.
In The Last Jedi, C-3PO is mostly seen serving aboard the Resistance's main cruiser with Leia. Meanwhile, R2-D2 travels to Ach-To with Rey and Chewbacca, where they find Luke and attempt to encourage him to come back to aid the Resistance against the First Order, which Luke initially refuses to do. However, in a cute moment aboard the Falcon together, R2-D2 replays Leia's message from A New Hope, which a bemused Luke jokingly derides as a "cheap move," but it does help him realize that he must help the Resistance. When the projection of Luke appears to everybody on Crait toward the end of the movie, Luke spares a moment to give his old friend C-3PO a friendly wink and a nod before leaving to confront the First Order.
C-3PO plays perhaps his biggest role since A New Hope in the saga in The Rise of Skywalker, leaving the Resistance base and accompanying Rey, Finn, Poe, Chewbacca, and BB-8 on a quest to find an artifact that will lead the Resistance to the resurgent Emperor's lair on Exegol and prevent him from unleashing a wave of devastation upon the galaxy. C-3PO becomes a pivotal player in their quest, as he is ultimately called upon to translate a crucial Sith dagger that the group finds along the way. C-3PO has to risk having his memory permanently erased in order to complete the translation. In a heroic and highly emotional moment, he ultimately consents to the procedure in order to help his friends save the galaxy, correctly opining that, if he doesn't, that everything they've been fighting for could be lost. Upon seeing the trailer for this movie for the first time, in which part of this scene was featured, I considered the very real possibility that we might lose him in this movie, which made me sad.
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Written By Mara Butler
Syndicated From Culture Slate