Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker brought the entire saga full circle by completing a theme first established in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace. The Star Wars sequel trilogy ended with the Resistance defeating Palpatine's Final Order, and the way they did so perfectly reflects the idea that was important right from the start of the prequel trilogy. While each Star Wars trilogy has incorporated this theme in some way, The Rise of Skywalker did so the most effectively, offering the saga a good sense of closure. It also tied Star Wars Episodes I and IX together quite nicely and made the saga's overarching story feel more cohesive.
As the first film in Star Wars' "Skywalker saga," The Phantom Menace set up several themes that became crucial in later movies. The corruption within the Galactic Republic and the failings of the senate and the Jedi Order made clear why the galaxy willingly went along with Palpatine's actions in creating the Galactic Empire. The Jedi's legacy of failure became a central part of the sequel trilogy as well when Luke Skywalker blamed them for failing to stop Darth Sidious and the creation of Darth Vader. In fact, it was Anakin Skywalker's own words in The Phantom Menace that perfectly set up a thematic connection with The Rise of Skywalker.
