For the Star Wars "geeks" out there....

[DizBelle]

What is the accepted explanation for why Uncle Owen, Aunt Beru, and Obi-Wan don't recognize C3P0 or R2D2 when they show up in episode 4?

 

[stevea20]

I don't know about "accepted explanation", but logically, since Episode 4 was the first movie, no one knew it would turn out like it did where the droids could have been recognized.

Actually, I suppose you could argue that the look Obi-Wan gave R2 indicated he DID recognize him but kept it to himself like he did Vader's real identity. As Qui-Gon said in E1, "Nothing happens by accident".

 

[sam_gordon]

Why would Owen and Beru recognize the droids? Maybe my memory is slipping, but after Luke and Leia were born, Organa took Luke to Tatooine, right? Do we know the droids made the trip?

Maybe Obi-Wan did recognize R2, but was still trying to stay "in hiding" until he got Leia's message?

 

[BrianL]

Honestly, the answer is that droids are treated by most sentient beings as property. It'd be no different to us than if a visitor showed up with an iPhone, and then a couple of years later sold that iPhone to somebody else you knew. You now see this person with the exact same phone, but you'd never know or care that it was the same one. To them it was just some astromech and a protocol droid. There are millions of them. They wouldn't give it a second thought.

Anakin was an exception in that he actually felt for his droids. Obi-Wan certainly didn't care about them at all and couldn't tell one R2 unit from another.

Now, R2 actually would remember the Lars family and Obi-Wan, but he can't really communicate this to anyone. C-3PO had his memory blanked many times, so it was all new to him.

 

[DizBelle]

Why would Owen and Beru recognize the droids? Maybe my memory is slipping, but after Luke and Leia were born, Organa took Luke to Tatooine, right? Do we know the droids made the trip?

Maybe Obi-Wan did recognize R2, but was still trying to stay "in hiding" until he got Leia's message?

Organa took Leia home to Alderaan where he and his wife raised her. Obi-Wan took Luke to Tatooine to Owen and Beru to raise him.

In Episode 1, young Anakin was building C3P0 and left him on Tatooine when he left so he was there the whole time with Lars, Owen, and Beru until 10 years later in Episode 2 when Anakin comes back for his mother. When he leaves, he takes C3P0 with him.

In Episode 2, when Anakin and Padme come to Tatooine to save Anakin's mother, they bring R2D2 with them.

 

[kimblebee]

You asked for geeks, you get geeks LOL


I hope no one is offended by that. My husband is a certified geek and probably could add to the conversation too..

 

[wilkeliza]

Organa took Leia home to Alderaan where he and his wife raised her. Obi-Wan took Luke to Tatooine to Owen and Beru to raise him.

In Episode 1, young Anakin was building C3P0 and left him on Tatooine when he left so he was there the whole time with Lars, Owen, and Beru until 10 years later in Episode 2 when Anakin comes back for his mother. When he leaves, he takes C3P0 with him.

In Episode 2, when Anakin and Padme come to Tatooine to save Anakin's mother, they bring R2D2 with them.

As PP said I think it is because driods were property and many looked exactly the same. So Owen and Beru may have known that Anakin had an R2 unit and C3P0 unit but don't realize the ones they just bought are the same exact ones.

I think it is a big deal that Princess Leia gave that specific R2 unit the message for Obi-Wan. I think Obi-Wan knew the driods were Anakins but didn't say anything because how do you explain that in a movie with out being a waste of time.

 

[DizBelle]

You asked for geeks, you get geeks LOL


I hope no one is offended by that. My husband is a certified geek and probably could add to the conversation too..

Not offended. Geeks rock.

Heck, go ask your husband what he thinks about this.

 

[DizBelle]

As PP said I think it is because driods were property and many looked exactly the same. So Owen and Beru may have known that Anakin had an R2 unit and C3P0 unit but don't realize the ones they just bought are the same exact ones.

I think it is a big deal that Princess Leia gave that specific R2 unit the message for Obi-Wan. I think Obi-Wan knew the driods were Anakins but didn't say anything because how do you explain that in a movie with out being a waste of time.

I'm mostly bothered that C3P0 lived with Owen and Beru for TEN YEARS, then he was taken away by Anakin, and 20 years later he's back again and Owen doesn't realize it's the same protocol droid that lived with him for a decade???

 

[wilkeliza]

I'm mostly bothered that C3P0 lived with Owen and Beru for TEN YEARS, then he was taken away by Anakin, and 20 years later he's back again and Owen doesn't realize it's the same protocol droid that lived with him for a decade???

Well it isn't like C3P0 realized either. I'm trying to think at that point if there is anything specific about C3P0 that would have made it very clear it was him.

Imagine you had a car for 10 years and then sold it. 20 years later after many owners and a few changes you buy it from a used car dealer. Do you think you would instantly be able to tell that was your car with out checking vin numbers?

 

[sam_gordon]

Organa took Leia home to Alderaan where he and his wife raised her. Obi-Wan took Luke to Tatooine to Owen and Beru to raise him.

In Episode 1, young Anakin was building C3P0 and left him on Tatooine when he left so he was there the whole time with Lars, Owen, and Beru until 10 years later in Episode 2 when Anakin comes back for his mother. When he leaves, he takes C3P0 with him.

In Episode 2, when Anakin and Padme come to Tatooine to save Anakin's mother, they bring R2D2 with them.

Thank you

Well it isn't like C3P0 realized either.

Didn't they wipe 3P0's memory?

 

[DizBelle]

You asked for geeks, you get geeks LOL


I hope no one is offended by that. My husband is a certified geek and probably could add to the conversation too..

Thank you

Didn't they wipe 3P0's memory?

Yes, they did wipe his memory at the end of Episode 3.

 

[DizBelle]

Well it isn't like C3P0 realized either. I'm trying to think at that point if there is anything specific about C3P0 that would have made it very clear it was him.

Imagine you had a car for 10 years and then sold it. 20 years later after many owners and a few changes you buy it from a used car dealer. Do you think you would instantly be able to tell that was your car with out checking vin numbers?

If I had daily conversations with it, I think I might.

 

[Erzengel]

Along with the mind wipe:

In Attack of the Clones, C3-P0 looked like this:

By A New Hope, he looked like this:

 

[PollyannaMom]

I'm mostly bothered that C3P0 lived with Owen and Beru for TEN YEARS, then he was taken away by Anakin, and 20 years later he's back again and Owen doesn't realize it's the same protocol droid that lived with him for a decade???

I agree about the finish-change in the above pictures. He looks like a completely different droid.

 

[BrianL]

Remember, there are MILLIONS of these things, these Protocol Droids running around. Yes, Anakin built him, but he probably used a lot of "off the shelf" parts that came through Watto's shop. We see other droids that look exactly like C-3PO, maybe a different color, but certainly tons that aren't. As for having conversations with it, most sentients didn't even do that. Droids are an afterthought. They don't treat them as if they are anything more than equipment. It's endemic to their society. Anakin was weird because he cared so much about his droids, and was even poked fun at for doing it. Add to that the C-3PO did not remember Owen Lars either and there is just no connection to be made.

I do not think Obi-Wan recognized R2 either. He was kind of an elitist, and one of the primary people who made fun of Anakin for caring about a droid. Certainly he had experiences with astromech droids before, but this was yet another one. Now, R2 knew exactly what he was doing. In fact, I postulate that he insinuated himself into these events on purpose. HE remembers everything, but he can't tell anybody.

 

[Erzengel]

You can say that Obi-Wan did recognize R2-D2 but didn't say anything. Maybe there was something more when he mused "Very interesting" after saying he doesn't remember owning a droid.

 

[BrianL]

You can say that Obi-Wan did recognize R2-D2 but didn't say anything. Maybe there was something more when he mused "Very interesting" after saying he doesn't remember owning a droid.

That is possible. I know a lot of people harp on that, but Obi-Wan was the master of semantics ("a certain point of view"). He probably never did "own" a droid, R4 and all the others were property of the Jedi Order, not his personally. He was a cagey guy, ol' Kenobi.

 

[Erzengel]

What was he going to tell Luke. Hey this little R2 unit belonged to your father. Let's see what he remembers.

 

[MrJT]

What was he going to tell Luke. Hey this little R2 unit belonged to your father. Let's see what he remembers.

Technically, the droid belonged to his mother.