I liked Qui Gon; Obi-Wan (McGregor's portrayal is really good IMHO; really defines the character at this point); loved Darth Maul, just wish he had a bigger part; Count Dooku was dope... I felt like these characters all died too soon and too abruptly... I'm still disappointed at how they were killed off in the films.
Not a fan of General Grievous in that they made him far too cartoonish... He was a character that could have worked, IMHO. I also found it interesting that he was studying under Count Dooku.
I thought Mace Windu was under utilized. I would have much preferred casting Laurence Fishburne rather than Sam L. as Fishburne would have been
insanely perfect for the part. Basically just Morpheus as a Jedi Master... And oddly enough, the Matrix was released just two months prior to The Phantom Menace. I wonder if they reached out to him for the part and he just had filming obligations with The Matrix? Hmm..
Honestly the only characters I didn't like were Padme and Anakin... which.. kinda fucks up the entire prequels, doesn't it?
I mean, they really were the worst parts of each movie. Both were stiff, and their lines felt recited almost like a high school drama. It was terrible. If you cut both Anakin and Padme out of the movies, all of their scenes, I think you'd end up with a better and more cohesive overall story than what we got.
