#anidala analysis

[skywalkr-nberrie]

I think it’s so weird how Padmé is blamed for keeping her relationship with Anakin a secret when he wanted to tell the whole galaxy as if Padmé didn’t only want to keep it a secret because she wanted to safeguard Anakin’s position in the Jedi.

Of course, Padmé knows and never doubts Anakin’s love and loyalty to her, she knows he’d happily drop the Jedi for her without even her asking him to do it, but she doesn’t want him to give up his life all for her. She loves him too much to watch him give up on his dreams and way of life. You don’t think Padmé wanted to tell the whole galaxy that Anakin Skywalker was hers, too? Of course she did, but this secret wouldn’t affect her as much, and the reason she keeps it is out of pure love and care for Anakin, not for herself.

Also, it should be noted that Anakin was the one who initiated the idea to keep their love a secret first and Padmé quite literally denies it because she knows she wouldn’t be able to live in a lie and she also knows Anakin wouldn’t either to which he concedes as well, evident to both their truthful and honest natures. It’s only afterwards when they discover they can’t live without one another that they ended up going with this decision in the end, but only because they didn’t plan on forever keeping it a secret. They were going to come out when the war was over and run away together.

They BOTH mutually decided it was best if they stayed on duty for the time being as the galaxy and the republic desperately needed them both, so them being the heroic forces they are, remained in their respective positions. But the more emotional side to them also didn’t want to be without one another and that’s why they went with Anakin’s idea to have a secret relationship/marriage. This choice of their’s is often looked at as a flaw in their relationship and characters in the eyes of the viewers, but that’s just a false assumption and I can’t agree.

Sure, I understand that keeping a secret of your love from your family and friends isn’t right nor easy but it was an act that Anakin & Padmé took out of deep love for each other, and it doesn’t at all make them deceitful nor does it make them lying or manipulative people. They simply took a step they both decided on together for the benefit of their love because they’d rather be together than without and at the time it was the only viable solution to their problem.

It was also a choice that they didn’t agree with fully and struggled a lot with because they hate having to lie about their love to everyone and everything they hold dear.

They’re not referred to as ‘Star Crossed and Forbidden Lovers’ for nothing.

[darthkruge]

heyy Megan!! , I read a few anidala relationship analysis posts on my timeline and it really got my wheels turning. The more I read about them the more I feel as if they really rushed into establishing their relationship & from their character/personality stand point I feel as if they weren't compatible from the get go. I may be wrong but don't really think they loved each other, i think Anakin just idolized her and she saw something more in Anakin that there was idk if this is making any sense

hello!! and yes that all makes sense!! i’m gonna add my thoughts and i am going to preface this by saying that i don’t want people to yell at me because it seems like i might have an unpopular opinion lmao

i personally really like anidala and i think that a lot of their flaws isn’t to the fault of their characters. i shall explain :)

in my opinion, the prequels, which i absolutely adore if that’s not painfully obvious, could have been improved timing wise. espeically the first two movies. so i think that a lot of the rushing felt in AOTC is due to this. 

i know a lot of people are confused when it comes to their compatibility and honestly i get that. here’s padme, this amazing, intelligent, well-regarded, former queen and current senate member. and then there’s anakin, reckless, occassionally immature, young jedi. on paper, it feels out of left field.

and anakin did idolize her, espeically in the beginning. i’m not going to deny that. but i don’t hold that against them, either. listen, it’s normal for people to romanticize the person they’ve fallen for. especially when anakin fell so young. speaking from experience, especially when i was younger (i mean i’m still young but-), i had a tendency to latch on when i felt romantic feelings for someone. 

but anakin grew throughout the prequels! he had a lot of development and i think this was mirrored in his relationship. you can see in ROTS how he acts when he finds out padme is pregnant. instead of freaking out or wanting to run (as escapist tendencies are major signs of immaturity), he reassures her. he stays and he says that he’s happy and they’ll figure it out, together. so, yes, while the idolization happened at first, i think he outgrew it, at least outgrew it to the point where it would be like toxic and weird. because when you love someone, they’re gonna seem perfect, at least to some extent. it’s just how that shit works. 

and in AOTC, their romance felt juvenile at times. it was flirty, awkward, young. but padme was reckless at times, too. remember, she was the one who wanted to go to geonosis. it’s in moments like these that i remind myself that, yes, she was a bit older than anakin and definitely more mature, but she wasn’t this poised, perfect woman that people try to paint her as. further, she, herself, was also young! this was her first major love and she was trying to navigate those emotions, too. and while senators are allowed to be in relationships, they’re not allowed to do so with jedi. as much as anakin struggled with the secret relationship and not being able to talk to anyone for advice in it, padme did, too. i think she and anakin were more alike than people assume.

another reason i like anidala was because they had to put a lot of effort into their relationship. because it was secret and because they don’t initally seem like soulmate material, it wasn’t laid out for them. they had to fight, and they did. so i like them for that reason and i think it shows their committment to each other. they chose each other, repeatedly. that relationship wasn’t one they could have just stayed in because it was easier than breaking up. splitting apart would have been the path of least resistance but they fought for it because they loved each other. or, at least, that feels like love to me. 

perhaps they were both a bit blinded. but i think they were happy. and i’m a bit biased, i’ll admit; i love anakin with my entire heart and you can tell that he was happy with padme. because of this, i always rooted for them. i didn’t want to watch his heart break.

and i saw a bit of myself in padme. she was strong, she was kind, she was good. and she couldn’t control who she fell for, just like anakin couldn’t control his emotions. she might have seen someone who allowed her to let go, to be a bit reckless, herself, and who wouldn’t judge her if she wasn’t a perfect, mature senator all the time. maybe their inbalance allowed them to balance each other. 

again, these are just my thoughts. i just personally do like anidala and i tend to give them some slack. but maybe im just projecting because im a romantic at heart and cry when i listen to “across the stars”. or because i watch the prequels and, everytime, hope beyond hope that things work out differently and they get their happy ending. because they did want that happy ending. and they wanted it together, as a family. 

yeah <3

also i’ve been in school all day so i haven’t seen all the discourse but i scrolled through a bit and yeah i am aware that i’m probably the one with the unpopular opinion. and this is an opinion. if y’all don’t like anidala, that is 100% cool and okay with me, you are fully entitled to your opinion! if you don’t really care, also totally valid, you don’t need to have a strong viewpoint on everything! if you love them, awesome! as long as people don’t invalidate me or act like assholes, i reiterate that i am open to any and all perspectives. 

ok i wrote this on my break in 15 min so if it makes no sense, whoops! also ik they have flaws, i just saw a lot of people pointing those out so i decided to say why i liked them, bc, personally, i do! on that note i gotta go back to class!! see y’all later today <3

[skywalkr-nberrie]

Anidala analysis short I saw on instagram discussing their character (feminine and masculine) archetypes. Cred: @CaitlinMahina on Instagram

OP’s note: I agree with everything she’s saying minus the part of where she mentions how Anakin’s idea of justice and what’s right or wrong isn’t the conventional idea of what others might claim is morally correct or incorrect. I think in the story it’s more than clear that people mistake Anakin’s valiant vision of justice as rageful vengeance that could lead to the dark side, only Padmé was ever able to grasp Anakin’s strong sense of justice because she’s also the same way as him. Anakin may have different methods that seem questionable but ultimately those ideals come from his experiences as a Jedi and his need for immediate solutions to problems. All stemming from a genuine desire for peace and stability, not malice. The other part she makes that is like to argue is how she mentions that Anakin’s ability to live so intensely comes from only his fear of loss and death. I think reducing Anakin’s starlit fiery love for those he cherishes is a bit of a disservice. Yes, everyone knows Anakin suffers from severe fear of loss but that’s not the definitive end case to his feelings. Anakin from the beginning even before his trauma and fear of loss took shape was already a kind, passionate, empathetic, and very loving person. He loves from the genuine depths of his soul, once you give him your love and loyalty, he’ll never abandon you. That’s just part of who he is, and his fear of loss only enhanced that in some ways. Anakin chooses people over rules, love over detachment. His deep love isn’t just a result of his fear, his love can ignite stars cause of how eternal it is. 💫

[skywalkr-nberrie]

What's your favorite things about anidala?

-aniskyw

Omg!! Where do I even start??

I absolutely love everything about them but to break it down, I love the fairytale theme to their story, the inspo GL took from Shakespearean plays, Greek tales, Roman Tragedies, Arthurian legends, and all kinds of mythology to help craft his story and their love is what enamours me towards them. They reflect something that’s ideal, and intangible in reality, that helps set the vibe and tone of the saga with it taking place in a galaxy far far away. Their story urges you to look at them from beyond the realms of reality and fall in love with their stardust and magical attributes. They’re a breath of fresh air from the usual modern day romances that focuses too much on what’s toxic and stuff like that (not to undermine those themes, but it’s certainly repetitive and gets boring after a while, at least for me.)

But that’s all the outside scoop of their relationship to me. What I love about them from the inside is that Anakin & Padmé are especially devoted to one another, they’re each others first and lasts loves, they’re obsessed and madly in love, they’re supportive and deeply caring, and everything they do is out of an act of love for one another. This falls into them being the sort of couple that’s always perfect and happy, and that’s what makes their tragedy hit 10 bricks harder and I can’t resist the temptation and feeling that comes with all that 😭

To sum it up, my absolute favourite thing most of all is how inseparable they are from one another. That no matter what you do, you can’t envision Anakin without Padmé nor can you imagine Padmé without Anakin. There’s no meta, analysis, book, comic, etc. you can write without first interweaving their characters, because they’re written in a way where you have to enjoin them or else it won’t be them anymore. Their love convinces you with no room for doubt that they’re twin soul, twin flames, fated soulmates, and meant to be even if they’re star-crossed. They met when they were only kids, yet built a strong bond by only just meeting that lasted 10 years (Padmé keeping Anakin’s Japor Snippet) and still held such high affection and admiration for one another upon meeting again. What other way is there to show us that they’re destined lovers?

And that’s all just perfect for someone like me.

[skywalkr-nberrie]

In the mood to make a colorful analysis on Padmé and Anakin individually that wil naturally be an exploration of canonical text but will also include my personal headcanons, interpretations of certain AU’s, and speculation based on canon 😆

[gemmaswriting]

What do you think about the haters' argument that Anakin didn't really love Padme, just how she made him feel?

I think there’s merit to that comment, at least at first. As a little boy, Anakin developed a huge (and lasting) crush on Padme because he was just that, a little boy. And she was this beautiful girl alike nothing and no one he’d ever seen before. That’s pretty normal, especially for a nine year old. Then, after leaving his mother behind - the only family he had, he was afraid and lonely and Padme was kind to him. She made an effort to see if he was okay, to make sure he was comfortable in the ship (giving him the blanket/tucking him in). Kindness like that was a very rare thing for little Ani Skywalker, so he latched onto it, as anyone in his position would. Her kindness and beauty is what appealed to him, and he put her on a pedestal because of those features.

She’s placed on an even higher pedestal after he finds out she’s a Queen. A QUEEN. Padme is a Queen and she still looked after him and cheered him on in the podrace and never looked down at he and his mother - and their lack of luxuries despite her privileged upbringing and lifestyle. To someone like Anakin - a former slave who has witnessed God only knows what - Padme and her kindness is alike nothing he’s ever seen before.

Padme stayed on that pedestal for Anakin for the entire ten year separation, and as we saw in the beginning of the movie, he’s excited and terrified to see her, telling us the crush has held strong though the years despite them having almost nothing to do with each other. You see, at this point, Anakin has idolised Padme to the point where, she really IS an angel… She can do no wrong to him. When he thinks of her, he thinks of kindness and warmth and beauty… He no longer has a sense of the real Padme Amidala, only what he remembers her to be. That’s why I think people who say that are correct, to an extent. At this point, while I’m sure Anakin believes he loves Padme, he doesn’t.

He doesn’t love her, truly love her, not the idolisation of her that he has, until their time in Naboo… They’re alone in an extremely beautiful setting that really lends itself to isolation and romance. It’s there he sees the WOMAN, not the QUEEN or the SENATOR. He sees Padme. He gets to know her, really gets to know her… Her past, her wants, desires and way of thinking (for example, her explaining why she didn’t remain Queen, or that she’d thought she’d have a family of her own by now). They talk about their political beliefs and he sees her passion for it. Later, he sees her kindness, her forgiveness and that warmth he remembers from their adventures together as youngsters again after the trauma of his mother’s passing and the rage that follows. And more, he sees her fire and bravery in the battle arena too where she impresses him by holding her own against the Nexu without any help - or need of the Force for that matter.

All of that, that’s when he fell in love with her, that’s when he loved Padme for who she is and not who he remembered her to be. At first, yes, he had feelings for her because she was the only good thing in his life amongst so much trauma - leaving his mother, his home, losing Qui-Gonn, being passed to Obi-Wan and so forth. That’s only natural, anyone would cling to that for dear life in if in Anakin’s position. What he does at first is confuse gratitude for love. His real love for Padme comes later, when he looks past his rose tinted memories of her and sees who she really is.

I hope this made sense, it got a bit ramblely there for a second! You’re right in saying many people who hate the Prequels use this as an argument against Anidala, but they’re confusing character development with bad writing. Or they’re ignoring character development in favour of hating something that isn’t exactly how they wanted it to be.