Sword Expert Reacts To The Original Star Wars Trilogy | Lightsaber Fight Scenes 

We hope you enjoyed the video! Massive thank you to Matt Easton, our HEMA & fencing expert, for lending his expertise to this video as well. Want to watch more of Matt on his own channel? Here's a link! ru-vid.com/show-UCt14YOvYhd5FCGCwcjhrOdA

throwing a lightsaber makes also much more sense than throwing a normal sword (of any kind), as you're probably a force user and you can use the force to draw the saber back to your hand.

You know he's a real star wars fan when he mentions bacta tank.

17:19 he learnt well to respect the power of the high ground, that's why he threw the lightsaber

In "Empire" Luke's first swing is a strong, two-handed overhead Kendo cut, but Vader uses a simple, one-handed parry as if to say "Pfft, you got nothing, kid."

Another viewing of the lightsaber throw part makes a bit more sense with context from Episode 3. Vader sees Luke has the high ground and thinks, “oh no not this again,” and throws the lightsaber at him instead of trying to take the fight there like last time.

Nicely done Matt, IGN is a great place to get seen and you did a great job.

So refreshing to hear someone actually talk about the context of the fight and how that relates to the story/motivations at the time. Wish more people understood this when they criticize the OT. Matt never disappoints.

Always nice to see Captain context anywhere

Matt Easton calling Vader and Luke "very naughty boys" like a gently chiding father was a treat.

love seeing Scholagladiatoria getting more exposure, criminally underrated channel.

Finally they get an actual expert for these, he's a swordsman, sword expert, and a nerd

Contextualising the fight within the text of the movie is great

As far as Vader's motivation goes in the Empire fight, in hindsight, we know that Vader was always planning to turn Luke, but against the Emperor, and not with/for him. So the first, 'assessment' phase is Vader finding out if that plan is workable, or if he's just going to have to go to plan B (or figure one out). Once Luke has proven he's not as green as he is cabbage looking, and could be useful if turned, vader turns up the intimidation - first with the display of Force jiggery-pokery, and then turning much more aggressive in the fight, to put Luke in the "join me or die" situation. Of course, before that, Luke actually lands a hit, and Vader goes straight to *ahem* disarm him.

I've been a subscriber of Matt's since the early days, and while he's always been very knowledgeable and engaging, this video highlights just how far he's come as an entertainer. Wishing you even more success, sir. It's well deserved.

Very cool to see Mr Easton analyze these fights. Couldn't have picked a better expert.

20:10 most people who view this scene interpret this as Luke using at least a part of the dark side to overpower Vader. But when he realizes that Vader also is losing an arm, he realizes that the same thing will happen to him. He might follow his fathers footsteps. So he stands down and rejects the dark side unlike anakin or anyone else up to that point

Darth Vader knew that throwing a pommel at Luke was the way to end him rightly. Since the pommel wasn't detachable from his lightsaber, Vader's only option was to throw the whole thing.

Perfect Star Wars quote that sums up my response to this video: "More!"

It's about time Matt is getting broader note and being called for this kind of thing 100%.

I've been saying that Count Doku is the only character whose fighting style makes sense in Star Wars because it is similar to rapier and short sword, it is interesting to see that I'm not the only one.

The Empire fight isn’t even just the best due to the actual fight itself. But also the emotion and storytelling behind it make it just incredible.

So glad IGN brought in Matt Easton! Fantastic swordsman, fantastic researcher and archaeologist, and a guy who knows a decent bit about Star Wars. The perfect choice!

Ironic that the Princess Bride cliff fight was briefly shown. Bob Anderson who choreographed the fight did Vader's sword work in V & VI, Dave Prowse was fighting Alec Guinness in IV.

Always a treat to see Captain Context!

Im glad that channels have finally started to use real HEMA instructors to give commentaries. Matt is excellent and his channel is worth a follow if anyone here is interested in historical swordsmanship

One thing to note about Vader hitting his sword into walls and railings in the Episode V fight is that it might have been intentional. If you watch closely, you'll notice that every time he strikes one of these obstacles, there's a bright flash and a rain of sparks and a small cloud of smoke - things that Vader, being a seasoned veteran of many battles and duels has probably gotten quite used to so he can just keep on going, but Luke is still very much a rookie who has hardly gotten to use his lightsaber so far. Vader might be trying to distract Luke with these things to maybe trip up, flinch or get blinded for a second.

Immediately noticed kendo. Through out Episodes 1-6 kendo was a major base to the lightsaber combat. Mark Hamill mentioned learning it for Empire. The fight choreographer for the prequels said he used kendo as the primary technique.

I'm disappointed by the lack of references to shafts and penetration

Matt Easton! Let's go Captain Context!

First Jackson Crawford and now Matt Easton? My RU-vid worlds are weirdly colliding.

Great to see someone who actually knows his stuff speaking about these things!

I've heard that the lightsaber props from the first film were quite fragile, and the actors were having to be very careful because they kept breaking them.

The kendo stance is due to Lucas drawing inspiration from Japanese cinema

In all my years of watching and studying Star Wars it never occurred to me Luke’s fighting style was in anyway influenced by outside events. This guy is a genius.

Throwing your weapon is no problem when you can just use the force to get it right back.

Never really thought much about the fight scenes in these old movies, but this guy has really made them seem like the best out of any of the Star Wars fight scenes.

It may not have the flash of the prequel duels, but Luke/Vader in ESB is about the most beautiful thing to watch when it comes to lightsaber combat in my opinion. The setting, the atmosphere, the blue on red... Just glorious to watch.

"Did Obi Wan JUST TAKE THE HIGH GROUND?!?!" "Hello there"

Cools fact, the man who wore the Vader suit during lightsaber fights was Olympic fencer Bob Anderson, and he also trained with the actors who he was fighting with.

The very first lightsaber battle was filmed where neither blade actually touched the other. The props on set were made of glass, and sometimes shattered from being swung too aggressively, so full contact was absolutely out of the question. In subsequent movies, more durable materials were used, though even filming the prequels, the blades still broke during extended duels.

IGN thank you for bringing Matt on, everyone in the sword community have been asking to get Shadiversity, Matt, Metatron or Skallagrim for Hollywood fights! You actually listened to people who love the films and swords!

May the context be with you!

Hell yeah Matt! Introduced me to the wonderful world of HEMA and sword collecting. You rule, dude 🤘

I've followed Matt's channel for years now, but this was legit one of the best analyses of Star Wars story beats I've seen, for these scenes at least, let alone a great breakdown of the swordfights. Great stuff 10/10 IGN

It's really refreshing to see someone analyze the fights while keeping in mind the storytelling and lore of the movies and not just strictly the techniques and movements, it's important to keep in mind these are movies and stories, this will affect how fights play out and whether or not certain tropes like the sword bind appear in the fight.

Matt Easton and Star wars? You've finally gotten my attention, IGN.

The best Hema reacter out there, always giving proper context

Matt's channel is really fascinating. Cool video.

Its Matt Easton from Scholagladiatoria! What a nice surprise.

So cool! Love how he analyzes the potential intent behind the fights.

Would love to see a breakdown on the Black Panther waterfall fights from Captain Context!

There are jedi temple guards that specializes in throwing lightsabers like a sniper. There are a bit different hen a jedi sniper which is the temple's first line of defense against riots, thugs, etc.

thought about the end of the fight in return of the jedi, where luke starts flailing wildly and it works somehow: maybe vader realized luke *was* starting to turn toward the dark side, and the thought of that unexpectedly broke him. he lost, as you say, morally.

More Matt Eaton please.

Matt Easton makes great Content 👍😁

Glad you brought in Matt from SchaolaGladiatoria, of all the swords experts on youtube he's the one who feels like he knows what he's on about.

Loved it! Gives a new perspective of the epic fights. The prequel and sequel videos are also great. Well done 👍🏾

Always love some Matt Easton analyzing fights!

Cortosis is the material that can withstand a lightsaber blow, along with Beskar which is a mandalorian metal ore that they used in their armor

Nice job bringing in Matt Easton, he’s definitely the man for a job like this.

Matt’s channel/content is top notch. Genuinely a gem.

Smart guy. So nice how he places everything in context, and understands the needs of the story in how the fights are choreographed.

To be fair to the Obi-Wan/Vader fight, the props they were using for the lightsabers were made of fragile fibreglass and shattered easily, so the actors had to be very careful with them. They tried finding a more sturdy material for the prop, but nothing worked as well with the special effects, so they weren't able to do more rigorous choreography until the sequel.

Love Matt's stuff. Cool to see him on a bigger channel.

Holy crap it's Matt!!!!! Great job getting him on your show IGN!!!

In the original trilogy there was an issue with using fast moves because they were using glass props instead of plastic. Later you get see faster moves as not only props get better but the choreography as well.

Return of the Jedi is my favorite Star Wars movie.

Love the review, your insights and your lighthearted approach at the commentary. 👍👍

Matt is one of the leading experts these days, imo, and he is 100% correct on the throw of the sword. You do whatever you have to do. In HEMA, yes we are dealing with practice and historical technique, but also the mindset of violence. In European Martial Arts there is some lack of ordered beauty such as that you find in Eastern Martial Arts, but there is brutal mastery of physical violence. Matt Easton understands that, and does an amazing job bridging the gap.

He is, and shall continue to be, Matt Easton....

This is technically “legends” (pre-Disney era) info, but Vader’s armor is actually functional. His pauldrons and cape are laced with cortosis which is a mineral that is resistant to lightsaber strikes, so that deflection is viable.

Love Matt’s videos!!

It’s our favorite sword boi, Bald Context Man!

Love Matt, nice to see him on this channel :)

Matt is great! We should see him on this channel more often!

Great analysis! And video

This is awesome - love your insights as always sir

Episode 6 Vader vs Luke is the best lightsaber combat in the entire universe. So much emotions in that, tension, and awsome combat.

Great job Matt!! Awesome breakdown with CONTEXT!

Love to see you Scholagladiatoria, your videos are always fun.

Came for a sword fighting analysis, got the most impressive in depth analysis of Star Wars I've ever heard!

No mention of the lead hand in the double-handed kendo grip switching from traditional right hand on top grip to the “incorrect” left hand on top in the same scene. (Both Obi wan and Luke)

My ceiling is a scarred veteran of many Many accidents ._. lol

I’d forgotten about that Braveheart sword throw, but it’s very cool!

"Fights don't happen in a vacuum." Well, Star Wars is a sci-fi movie that has may scenes in space, so... It could actually happen, technically.

2:40 IDK if this has been mentioned but having grown up with these movies and having watched them atleast twice a year I've never noticed that Obi-Wans and Vaders lightsaber blades switch colors at this point until watching this video

Episode IV - A New Hope, Obi-Wan is acting as a distraction mainly to hide who Luke is. Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, Vader starts out testing Luke, then he's desides to humble Luke and show that he is out matched by Vader. Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, one aspect of throwing the Lightsaber that few consider is the Force, being able to retreve the lightsaber quickly(within a second or two) from across the room. and yes Luke is under presure and panics. Thus he's not thinking that much in the later part of the fight, until he notice's his farthers Droid hand stump. Also Matt what do you think of Star Wars SC 38 Reimagined?

Vader fighting with one hand he's toying with you Vader fighting with two hands he's trying to kill you

Yes for Matt Easton. He’s a treasure.

Great video, loved it, and loved the rest of the reactions to the Prequels and Sequels too, thanks!

For the record, look at that last little bit of the last fight... See how the light saber bounces off the railing instead of cutting through it?... This is the effect of the internal gyroscopic effect in the hilt. As Luke falls more and more to the dark side in that moment he begins fighting against his own lightsaber to make the kind of movements he is making, and these movements make a seemingly unstoppable weapon significantly less harmful. This is the reason for the locked blades, sliding blades, twirling and spinning movements, and much more. The hilt has to be properly balanced in order to focus the vibrations of the blade, otherwise those vibrations just repel the blade. And if you swing a blade but have poor leverage then it's slower, harder to control, and exhausting... after an onslaught like this it isn't uncommon to see a pause (and this is not just for effect, the hilt was swung in a way that was needed to try to win or survive but also in a way that counterbalanced the force of the saber against the user... imagine the effect you get when you hit something and the weapon bounces back, now imagine that every moment of every movement with that object felt like you were powering through that).

"Sword fights don't happen in a vacuum..." Star Wars is one of the relatively few settings where that's actually a plausible scenario, you know... ;)

great video .im looking forward to the prequel breakdown :)

If I'm remembering correctly, lightsaber fights always include an unseen psychological aspect of the fighters probing each other's minds to predict the next move and try to throw the other off balance. So the fact you mentioned the storytelling aspect being really well done is pretty cool, cause canonically lightsaber fights are less about a clashing of blades, and more about a meeting of minds. Trying to probe into the mind of your opponent and learn their hopes, desires, and fears, turning it against them and manipulating them psychologically to achieve whatever result you want. Basically storytelling!

Wow, never thought I'd see Matt on here!

Whaaaat? Nice seeing Matt on here!

Whoa this is cool. I've been subbed to his channel for years. This was a treat!

Matt Easton! :)

Peter Diamond and Bob Anderson, the fight coordinators for the 3 movies, knew their stuff