Jar Jar Binks- Why is he so hated?

Jar Jar never bothered me. Granted, I was 9 years old when I saw TPM for the first time, but now I'm an adult and he still doesn't bother me.

 

One of the saddest things about Star Wars in the modern era is the complete dismissal of Jar jar Binks as a character. What could (and in my opinion should) have been the prequel’s equivalent of C3PO or Chewie became the face of hate for many fans. When joining the forum 5 or 6 years ago, I was seriously going to call myself something Jar Jar-related instead of the “Ghost Of Obi Wan Kenobi” because that gungan is ONE OF MY FAVORITE STAR WARS CHARACTERS OF ALL TIMES, there I said it. I decided against it because of the backlash that would come along with this character.
I have even friended Ahmed Best on Instagram and we speak to each and say hi occasionally!
Nothing would make me happier and more satisfied in this new Disney era than seeing Jar Jar (or any gungan) appear in the flesh in Mandalorian and/or a film. So far, the closest we’ve gotten is 1) Jar Jar’s mention in Aftermath 2) the mention of gungans by Bill Burr in Mando season 1 and 3) Jedi Temple Challenge, starring Ahmed Best. My hope is that Disney will eventually include Jar Jar in the future, because the three things I mentioned happened in the last 2 years or so. Maybe we can start a fan petition.

 

To me, Jar Jar is nowhere near as annoying as Rey, Rose, Holdo or L3....or even C3PO in some films. His title as most annoying Star Wars character has long passed methinks.

Edit: I forgot the Martez sisters from TCW S7, they were so irritating.

 

For me basically the character was just a bit too over the top, and was placed in as just plot convenience, I think that's why he ends up coming off as annoying.

I think if they were able to give him a bit of an arc so his changes through the first film he would have worked a lot better. R2 and 3po in the OT work because they aren't just there for plot convenience, 3po has an arc where he goes from being selfish to selfless in ANH, which mirrors Luke's arc in that movie. Jar Jar doesn't really have an arc like that in PT, in TPM he starts off as a goofy oddball, and ends more or less the same goofy oddball. They could have given him a little bit of an arc, even him being on the back of that trailer with the Boomas, if he saw them and realized he could release them to take out some of the battle droids, rather then having a goofy panic and falling, opening it by mistake. That would have given him a little growth, becoming more mindful about the world around him and thinking before acting.
Instead it's just another silly mistake which keeps him as a bit of a weak character.

I certainly don't think he's the worst character in the franchise, and don't think he deserved the hate he got, Ahmed Best certainly didn't deserve what he went through. TBH i'm not really sure who I would say is the worst at this point.

 

YungSkywalkah, I don't like Jar Jar because he was specifically aimed at young children, and at the point of the prequels George Lucas knew that his fanbase was made up of much more than children, yet still decided to add him knowing he wouldn't be interesting for adults, or even teenagers. I also think he is a wasted character, because George could have made an interesting character that still would be enjoyable for the younger audience, while still not being "cringy" for the older viewers.

 

I've heard people say that it's a double standard to dismiss Jar Jar since, as Lucas has said himself, he's to the PT what C-3P0 was to the OT.

That claim falls short immediately as 3P0 is the first speaking character in the OT and is the only one for large passages of the first act. It was hilarious watching him try to cope with being jettisoned with his little wordless friend and seeing them bicker, separate, have little adventures of their own and then reunite.

Jar Jar is just a nuisance persona that's suddenly pushed on the two Jedi whose story we've been watching. It doesn't help either that these supposedly conscientious knights decide to exploit Jar Jar's apparent primitiveness by using fear and intimidation to get him to lead them to some form of civilization on Naboo.

And that's it. Jar Jar is simply a nuisance persona which everyone tolerates or just ignores to varying degrees. 3-PO got far more respect from the main characters in A New Hope. The joke was that he would complain, usually to R2, about how poorly treated he is. While Jar Jar gets mistakenly made a general purely for the audience's sake. "ha".

He just wasn't made likable enough to anyone except kids who were stimulated by the heightened pitch of the performance. I imagine Lucas thought it would come off a bit like Roger Rabbit. But it simply did not work that way, mainly because Roger is supposed to be a cartoon and Jar Jar is supposed to be a specimen of an alien society/civilization. He's not representative of the Gungans. But he's not shown to be exceptional in a positive sense either so, why? What was the point?

 

What a bout this???

Second picture I meant.

 

That's Ahmed's character form the the kid's TV challenge show... that I can't remember the name of.

Edit: The Jedi Temple Challenge. Ahmed is the host and playes a Jedi "referee" to the children's padawan roles.

 

He’s hated because he is a safe Lord!

No but seriously people just didn’t want someone so goofy in the film. I think without him the PT would be much better received

 

I assume you meant Sith Lord.

Spoiler: Is it Sith?

 

Lucas thought he was adding a Harold Lloyd to Star Wars, but what most people saw was a Scrappy Doo. And nobody wants a Scrappy Doo adding to the their beloved franchise. Including fans of Scooby Doo.

 

Dang it. Lol

 

Lol. Yeah thats a point. I think a lot of people are forgetting that Lucas was trying to appeal to younger audiences at the time of this film too. So Jar Jar was a way of doing this. The comedy and his actions appealed to some of the younger people, but not to the majority of the audience. I don’t like the comedy per say, but I don’t mind it ya know.

 

I don't think he aged well. When I watched the film back in 1999, I didn't have a problem with him. I enjoyed him. As I got older, however, I enjoyed him less and less. I don't really hate the character, I just don't really care for him.

I think the negative disposition towards his character is rooted in the fact that a lot of the folks who watched the franchise as children are grown up. What's rampant right now throughout social media is this desire to repaint the Prequels as being of some kind of deep substance and Jar Jar kinda ruins that entire train of thought. I think the secret Sith Lord theory was invented to subvert this--the idea that Lucas somehow always intended the character to be dark and more "adult." But that's a cope. He's a cartoon rabbit who steps in poop because Lucas wants kids to point and laugh at him.

This isn't to say Star Wars has more or less value because it's "for kids." However, the fact doesn't make one any less self-aware. Think about this: grown adults are dressing up like characters of the franchise and going to conventions and waving around plastic weapons. Yet Jar Jar has a stigma attached to him. Ironic.

 

he's very memeable though, if he wasn't I would hate him

 

Thats exactly how I feel. It is funny for most at first, but Jar Jar became less funny with time and aging. Could not agree more.