It just keeps getting better...

Rating: Null/10 (20 May 1999)

At 7pm tonight I will watch The Phantom Menace for the third time. (The first was, of course, at 12:01am on the 19th!) Last night I watched it for the second time and I was surprised to find that IT GETS BETTER upon review.
The first go-round, I think I was too busy critiquing and creature-watching to get the full effect. This fascination began with me when I was 7 years old (1977!) and I've had 22 years to build up expectations, not to mention all the hype leading up to the release of TPM! By the end of the first viewing I had three main thoughts:
1. Jedi are just too cool for words.
2. Darth Maul is B-A-D (in the best possible way)
3. Jar-Jar Binks must DIE.
Upon first view, it immediately surpassed (in my own personal ranking system) "RotJ" -- hands-down.
The second time around, much to my surprise, Jar Jar didn't bother me *nearly* as much (I actually smiled at some of his goofiness - he didn't seem to take up as much of the feature as I thought he did the first time) and the final duel between Darth Maul and the two Jedi was (if possible) even *more* awesome.
My second review of the movie has put it in competition for the #2 slot (along-side "A New Hope") and that may simply be because sentimentality refuses to demote "ANH" any further down than #2!
What a wonderful story!
I can't wait to see it again (and again, and again!) because this is one that I know will only get better each time.