Yahoo News Picking the best lines of Star Wars dialogue ever
A few weeks back, we made some highly controversial selections while examining what we here at EW consider to be the worst lines of dialogue to come out of the Star Wars franchise. There was talk of Palpatine returning, people being haunted by forbidden kisses, and a report of some really lazy word repetition.
But that's not to say every line has been a clunker. After all, this is the franchise that gave us arguably the most famous utterance in all of pop culture with "I am your father." With that in mind, this week's episode of the Dagobah Dispatch podcast flips the script as the hosts pick out their favorite bites of dialogue from the 11 films.
You can listen to the entire discussion and debate (as well as an exclusive audio excerpt from the new Star Wars Jedi: Battle Scars book that features a battle between Cal Kestis, Cere, and the Fifth Brother Imperial Inquisitor) on the latest episode of Dagobah Dispatch. Or you can peruse our picks below. Or… do both! See if you agree with our selections, or if they make you ready to shoot lightning from your fingertips in anger over the omission of anything uttered by Dexter Jettster.
"That is why you fail." —Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back
Lucasfilm Yoda in 'Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back'
A lot gets made about why whiny Luke is in A New Hope, complaining about power converters and what have you. But let's not underestimate how whiny the future Jedi Knight can be in The Empire Strikes Back as well. And it is this sullen teen attitude that leads to a verbal beatdown of a rebuke that scores as one of the best lines in Star Wars history.
The entire exchange occurs as Luke is being trained on Dagobah by Master Yoda, only the young spitfire gets distracted and sends Yoda tumbling down to the ground because he's more concerned with his precious X-Wing, which has just sunken down farther into the swamp. "Oh now, we'll never get it out now!" complains Luke instead of… you know… apologizing or checking on the health of his 900-year-old teacher that he just sent plummeting back to earth. This is followed by several more complaints after Yoda tells him to raise up the ship with the force — complaints like "Master, moving stones around is one thing, this is totally different," and "I can't, it's too big," and "You want the impossible."
Luke punctuates that last one by then walking off in a huff and plopping down dramatically like a toddler on a temper tantrum. Of course, Yoda then raises the ship, leading Luke to rush back, inspect his trusty vessel to make sure it is in fact real, and then proclaim, "I don't … I don't believe it." To which Yoda responds in the best Star Wars comeback ever: "That is why you fail."
I get it. The whole "Do or do not — there is no try" line that precedes it may be more famous, but that's just some weird backward-talking mumbo-jumbo. But "that is why you fail" is simultaneously instructive and badass, and the perfect punctuation mark to complete what ends up being Luke's most important lesson of all. —Dalton Ross
"You stuck-up, half-witted, scruffy-looking nerf herder." —Princess Leia in The Empire Strikes Back
Lucasfilm Ltd. Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) in 'Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back'
It's no secret that Empire Strikes Back is packed with quotable lines. But there's a particular musicality to this absurd insult, which Carrie Fisher delivers with equal parts venom and exasperation. Why does Han only take offense to "scruffy-looking"? What's a nerf herder? Who cares. All we know is that it's the perfect insult, no matter what galaxy you're in. —Devan Coggan
"I am one with the Force and the Force is with me." —Chirrut Îmwe in Rogue One
Jonathan Olley/Lucasfilm Ltd. Chirrut Imwe (Donnie Yen) in 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story'
As a Guardian of the Whills, Chirrut Îmwe says two different versions of the Guardian's Mantra during Rogue One, but it's his steady repetition of "I am one with the Force and the Force is with me" during his suicide mission on the bullet-strewn Scarif beach that made the line instantly iconic. Though Chirrut is no Jedi, his faith in the Force is absolute, a power he invokes not only to shield himself from harm but to perform tasks that look impossible to skeptics, such as his compatriot Baze Malbus.
While "May the Force be with you" might be the most well-known Star Wars Force-centered line, it's essentially the galactic version of wishing someone good luck. Chirrut's mantra, on the other hand, conveys that not only is the Force something profound, but it is deeply personal, a religious way of life that even non-Jedis like Chirrut find sacred. Though the line originated in Rogue One, it's popped up multiple times since then, such as when invoked by Ahsoka Tano during Order 66 and by Jedis in multiple Star Wars novels and comics. The saying now symbolizes that when a believer is in dire need, the Force will be there to help guide and protect them. —Lauren Morgan
"Oh, I'm afraid the deflector shield will be quite operational when your friends arrive." —Emperor Palpatine in Return of the Jedi
Lucasfilm, Ltd. Ian McDiarmid as Palpatine in 'Star Wars: Return of the Jedi'
It's not the line itself so much as the delivery — dripping with mock sincerity and faux concern. We know he's the Emperor and all, but who knew Sheev Palpatine could also be such a drama queen?! That was the big takeaway from a Return of the Jedi scene when Luke finally comes face to face with the man who turned his father to the Dark Side. "Luke enters the room sooooo confident, telling the Emperor how he is both "gravely mistaken" and "wrong" and will soon be dead. Which his captor merely shrugs off with a carefree NBD attitude, telling the younger Skywalker, "Perhaps you refer to the imminent attack by your rebel fleet."
Palpatine continues to explain how he set the whole damn thing up himself. "Your friends up there on the sanctuary moon are walking into a trap, as is your rebel fleet. It was I who allowed the alliance to know the location of the shield generator. It is quite safe from your pitiful little band. An entire legion of my best troops await them."
That's all diabolical enough. But apparently not satisfied with merely crushing his possible new apprentice's spirit, the Emperor then decides to put a little mustard on it. "Oh, I'm afraid the deflector shield will be quite operational when your friends arrive," has to be the sassiest line ever uttered in any Star Wars film, and that includes any and all color commentary by either Fode or Beed while announcing the Boonta Eve Classic. Watching Palpatine delight in mocking the son of a dude he already doomed to a life of misery and regret proves once and for all that bad guys do have more fun. —DR
"You like me because I'm a scoundrel. There aren't enough scoundrels in your life." "I happen to like nice men." "I'm nice men." —Han Solo and Princess Leia in The Empire Strikes Back
Everett Collection Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford) in 'Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back'
Let's get this out of the way: We picked romantic Han-Leia dialogue from Empire Strikes Back, and it's not the iconic "I love you"/ "I know" moment? We know. But we have a soft spot for this earlier exchange, where Han and Leia trade barbs in the Millennium Falcon before sharing a passionate kiss. It's the perfect example of their fire-and-ice flirtation, a back-and-forth banter that jealous screenwriters have been trying to copy for decades. Compare it to some of Anakin and Padme's cringeworthy romantic lines in the later films. The prequels wish they had this kind of heat. —DC
"Pass on what you have learned. Strength. Mastery. But weakness, folly, failure also. Yes, failure most of all. The greatest teacher, failure is. Luke, we are what they grow beyond. That is the true burden of all masters." —Yoda in The Last Jedi
Lucasfilm Ltd. Yoda in 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi'
There are many memorable Yoda lines to choose from, but I keep coming back to the conversation he had with Luke during a particularly low moment in his former apprentice's life. Stewing in his own failure after his nephew Ben Solo fell to the Dark Side, and fearing that his new apprentice Rey is heading down the same path, Luke was stuck in a mental swamp as thick and as murky as the one that trapped his X-wing on Dagobah all those years ago.
But Yoda was always great at counseling Luke when he was at his most impulsive and despondent, and his former pupil desperately needed his master's help at that moment. Just as he lifted Luke's ship out of the murk to show him everything is possible within the Force, Yoda points out that his failure is not unique. All masters fail in one way or another — Yoda certainly has, just look at what happened with Luke's father. But great masters deal with their failures and learn from them. It's only in learning from his mistakes that Luke will become the Jedi great Yoda knows he can be. Thirty-four years after Luke and Yoda last shared a scene together, it was moving to witness that even though Luke had become a master himself, he still had something to learn from his teacher. —LM
For more discussion on the best Star Wars dialogue — or to hear interviews with Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen, Rosario Dawson, Pedro Pascal and more — check out EW's Dagobah Dispatch podcast below.
Related content:
