Over the years, Star Wars fans have found new ways to appreciate Hayden Christensen’s portrayal of Anakin Skywalker in the Prequel Trilogy, so much so that Disney is reportedly thinking of bringing him back for the Obi-Wan Kenobi series on Disney Plus.
But while the fandom has mostly forgiven the prequels for their flaws, the fact remains that they contain some of the most cringe-inducing moments in the history of that galaxy far, far away. Christensen, who garnered a negative reception for his performance as Anakin, is one such victim of bad writing. Attack of the Clones, in particular, featured a lot of these weird scenes between the Chosen One and Senator Amidala. And by that, of course, we’re referring to one instance when Anakin revealed he doesn’t like sand because “it’s coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere.”
The line turned into a running gag among Star Wars fans for many years. In fact, some still take great pleasure in reciting it every now and again in relation to Anakin. But who would have thought that his own biological son would grow up to appreciate sand? Luke Skywalker’s journey in Marvel’s ongoing comic series recently took him to the planet Serelia where he barely escaped drowning after chasing the woman he saw in his visions on Cloud City.
After making it back to the shore, he says to R2: “Whoa. Good old sand. I ever tell you how much I love sand.”
In all fairness, Anakin had a tough childhood as a slave on Tatooine, whereas his son lived a relatively conventional life in the Lars homestead. So, it makes sense that he likes his homeworld this much. The nod, nevertheless, is amusing when you consider his father’s disdain.
Of course, Luke eventually finds the person he’s looking for in the new Star Wars comic, where he learns about Order 66 and the tragic slaughter of the Jedi Order at the hands of the Emperor and his minions.