A Quick and Easy Guide to the Chronology of George Lucas' Star Wars Saga

Oh, my. It's 2006 and now you've decided to watch the Star Wars series but can't understand why the 1977-1983 movies are numbered IV-VI and those that make up the current trilogy are numbered I-III.

Yes, it is a bit backwards, to be sure. But I'll explain this as clearly as I can, okay?

When George Lucas was writing the outline for Star Wars, he ended up with enough rough material to make six movies, but the more developed part was actually the second half of the saga: the original Star Wars Trilogy. This is the Classic Trilogy that started out with Star Wars - Episode IV: A New Hope - possibly the only Star Wars film that can stand alone (despite that pesky Roman IV on the title). This film introduced the various characters and set up the conflict between the evil Empire and the heroic Rebel Alliance. The protagonist, Luke Skywalker, is a farmboy who lives on a remote planet way out in the boonies, not suspecting that he is destined to be a hero in the great struggle between good and evil. He is compelled to join the Rebellion when he joins the legendary Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi on a crucial mission. On the way he will rescue a Princess (Leia Organa) and befriend a pair of smugglers with hearts of gold (Han Solo and Chewbacca), then challenge both the evil lord Darth Vader and the Death Star, the Empire's most powerful weapon.

Most Star Wars fans will tell you that Star Wars - Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back is the best entry in the saga. It deals with the Empire's hardest blow against the Rebels as Imperial forces led by the evil Darth Vader drive Alliance forces out of their latest hidden base and scatters the heroes from Episode IV in different directions. Luke is sent off to train as the last of the Jedi Knights under the tutelage of Yoda; Princess Leia, Han Solo, and Chewbacca seek refuge from imperial forces and bounty hunters; and overshadowing everything, Vader's quest to capture Luke influences all the plot strings.