R2-D2: Complete Star Wars Timeline

What would Star Wars be without R2?Star Warsbe withoutR2Seriously...The Phantom MenaceThe cute little astromech droid wouldn't have made it if R2 did not repair the shield generator aboard the Naboo Royal Starship. Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Queen Amidala likely would not have survived the Trade Federation blockade. SinceThe Phantom MenaceThe Phantom Menace is the first entry in the film franchise story. Those characters matter greatly to the whole plot. R2 is fundamental to all of Star Wars.Star Warsis a thing.

R2's heroic actions on the Naboo Royal Starship elevated him to Padmé's entourage. This led him to meet C-3PO, a character who helped form one of cinema's most iconic duos.

DidStar WarsStar Wars fans need to see R2-D2 and C-3PO meet on screen for the first time. That might not be heartwarming, but it is still good. Asking if Anakin Skywalker needed to create C-3PO is like asking if Jar Jar Binks needed to exist. It doesn't matter; this is our reality.

This moment is not R2's biggest moment historically. It is great fan service. However, Threepio is too exposed.

The climax ofThe Phantom MenaceThe 1999 film kicks into full gear during the climax. John Williams's "Duel of the Fates" sets the lightsaber fight. The massive droid-Gungan fight on Naboo occurs, slightly affected by Jar Jar's involvement. The Naboo pilots fight the Trade Federation fleet before that.

Anakin Skywalker and R2-D2 played a large role in liberating Naboo. A pilot named "autopilot" placed them in the space dogfight. R2 and Anakin destroyed the Droid Control Ship, winning the Battle of Naboo.

R2's life betweenThe Phantom MenaceandAttack of the Cloneswas not R2's most exciting time. The Senate meetings during the prequel trilogy are not thrilling entertainment. Worse fates exist in Star Wars lore.Star Warsbeing Padmé Amidala's assistant is not the worst. R2 is a smart droid who seeks trouble.

The events just beforeThe Phantom Menaceand immediately after involve R2's downtime. He enters low-power mode, as seen inThe Force Awakens. People need naps now and then.

R2 technically saved Padmé before the Battle of Geonosis. He deserves mention in that fight. Things got hectic again for the droid inbeforethe Battle of Geonosis.Attack of the ClonesPadmé faced assassination attempts. R2 reunited with Anakin Skywalker and ended up on Geonosis; things went sideways.

Padmé faced molten metal in a droid factory. The lovable droid saved her. R2 also fixed Threepio's head after it swapped with a battle droid's, giving the kids something to laugh at during the film's climax.

Sometimes, you do things you don't want to do for the greater good. Dealing with a crook likeJabba the Hutt.Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano led a rescue mission to save Jabba's son, Rotta, from Count Dooku and the Confederacy of Independent Systems to broker a truce between Jabba and the Republic.

The mission became more complex than first thought (whenisn't.that the case?), because Rotta's great-uncle Ziro helped set up the whole thing. R2, Anakin, and Ahsoka completed their mission, landing a truce between Jabba and the Republic and saving an innocent Huttling.

Have you wanted to watch a not-hand to not-hand fistfight between two R-series astromech droids? You have! Viewers got exactly that in "Duel of the Droids." from the first season of The Clone Wars.. In this episode, R2 fights R3-S6—a Confederate traitor—in a small droid fight. R3-S6 gets sent out and destroyed by debris whizzing past.

Anakin suspected R3-S6 lacked loyalty. Anakin trusts his instincts, especially regarding Palpatine. He figured this out.

Seeing R2 on Yoda's modified starfighter feels magical. Ignoring the little green alien inside makes R2 look like it has a cool new body with big arms and no legs. Qui-Gon Jinn used the Force to tell Yoda to go to the "Origin of Life." Yoda took the request seriously and went with R2.

This trip leads Yoda to see visions ofthe Jedi Order.'s demise at the end of Revenge of the Sith.and the Galactic Empire rising through Palpatine's plans. R2 did not know this, but he went along.

This shows how filmgoers might wish Obi-Wan, Anakin, and R2 were less skilled space heroes. The opening ofRevenge of the Sith., where the Battle of Coruscant rages, shows Palpatine's plan to turn Skywalker to thedark side of the Force.and make him his apprentice.

After three heroes find the Chancellor and fight General Grievous's forces, Anakin acts against his better judgment, following Palpatine's order to kill Count Dooku. This starts the end for the Republic and the Jedi Order. R2 was there.

R2 helps the Organa family. Five years before Leia Organa sends R2 to find Obi-Wan Kenobi, Bail Organa secretly tasks the droid to stop the Imperial Armed Forces from getting T-7 ion disruptors.

C-3PO joins R2 on this mission, surprising everyone. Threepio stays quiet because his protocols forbid him from lying.

Ah,Star Wars... or is itA New Hope? Let's split the difference and call itStar Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, shall we? The 1977 film turned an astromech droid from a galaxy far, far away into science fiction royalty. R2's slow speed, fiery attitude, and speaking with bleeps and bloops won over fans worldwide.

R2-D2 and C-3PO start the originalStar WarsR2 gets orders to find Obi-Wan Kenobi, something Threepio does not know. R2 finishes his mission against all odds; that is what the droid does.

The climax ofA New HopeA New Hope has stood the test of time as an exhilarating film sequence. Watching the end of the 1977 classic feels just as incredible now as it did then. R2 is in the middle of the Death Star chaos with Luke Skywalker.

Darth Vader hits R2-D2 with a laser, short-circuiting him and making Luke's father look even more villainous. Who would want to hurt an adorable, little droid like R2?Especiallywith the history Anakin and R2 share from his pre-Vader days. Luke defeats the Death Star, and R2 gets fixed after the fight ends.

Frank Oz's original portrayal of Yoda inThe Empire Strikes Back. This Yoda mixes serious and comical tones. Oz and his team bring this Yoda to life with masterful puppeteering. The prequel trilogy's weak CGI cannot compare.

R2 joins Luke as he seeks Jedi training from Master Yoda in the overgrown swamps of Dagobah. A swamp pulls R2 in and nearly eats him by adragonsnakefor his trouble. R2 later helps his friends escape Cloud City and assists in rescuing Luke after Darth Vader cuts his hand off in battle.

Return of the JediHeroes kick off by trying to rescue Han Solo from Jabba the Hutt. Luke and the crew let R2 know the plan to save Han, keeping Threepio out of the loop. R2 becomes a waiter droid for Jabba, but things go south. Luke, Han, and Chewie are set to be sacrificed in a Sarlacc pit.

R2 has Luke's lightsaber. The Rebels take down Jabba, free Han, and leave for the galaxy to stop the Empire. R2 has an eventful time in the Skywalker Saga.

The Battle of Endor hurt R2. During the Rebel attack on the Death Star shield generator on Endor's Forest Moon, R2 had to open the blast door. R2 opens doors many times; he could do it while asleep. That is if he wasn't shot at.

Blaster fire hits R2, causing short-circuits in the electricity. The Rebels tricked the Imperials into opening the doors anyway. The droid is out of commission for most of the fight. They repair him, but R2 did not enjoy going through that for a small door.

Post-Return of the JediR2 continued exploring the galaxy with Luke Skywalker.He met Grogu.This happened during that scene at the end of season two of The Mandalorian.The MandalorianLuke wrecked a shop to get to "Baby Yoda" to train him in the Force. R2 was there when Luke started rebuilding the Jedi Order. R2 was there when Kylo Ren fell to the dark side.

Luke went into exile struggling to train new Jedi. R2 went into low-power mode after years of constant operation. Droids need maintenance. R2 traveled the galaxy without time to rest.

"Sleep" is relative here. Is low-power mode the same as sleeping? We hope so. R2 powers up at the end ofThe Force AwakensR2 helps the Resistance find Luke Skywalker to train Rey and stop the First Order. Without R2's map data, the Resistance could not find Luke easily.

Could they search every planet on the missing map section? Maybe. But who has that time and resources? Finding a needle in a haystack. R2 saves the day again.

In one ofThe Rise of SkywalkerC-3PO's memory gets wiped so heroes can bypass his protocols, letting him translate a Sith artifact. R2 restores Threepio's memory at the film's end. This mirrors Chewie's, Rey's, and Kylo Ren's temporary survival before their deaths.

R2 joins Poe Dameron during the Assault on Exegol. This adds to the many battles R2-D2 participated in across the franchise history.Star WarsThe series in a major way.