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R2-D2 with a Real Voice in STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE is Brilliant and Hilarious

Nobody in the history of cinema has ever done more with only beeps and boops, some shaking and head twisting, and a comic foil to react with incredulity, than the resourceful little R2-D2. The most important droid in Star Wars history has always managed to convey so much with so little, that with nary an intelligible word we’ve always known exactly what he meant to say.

But maybe the galaxy far, far away would have been even better if, instead of communicating via bleeps and blorps, he actually spoke with a delightful British accent so we knew what he was actually thinking at all times. At least that’s what this new video posits.

r2-d2-c-3po

This video, from the YouTube channel Auralnauts, is arguably the best thing you’ll see this week, having taken all of Artoo’s scenes from A New Hope and dubbed his technical-sounding robot jargon with an intelligent, but vulnerable, human voice, and the results are way better than you would think.

At first it sounds like they are doing a living parody of Family Guy‘s own parody of the franchise, and that alone is hilarious, but instead of just making this something absurd they gave Artoo a whole personality, one that isn’t nearly as difficult or annoying as C-3PO makes him out to be when he translates his beeps for us in the film. Instead of seeming like a funny jerk, R2-D2 keeps all of his independence because of his commitment to his task, but with more confusion than sarcasm for his traveling partner’s actions.

r2-d2-luke

R2-D2 isn’t a pain in the ass, he’s just trying to do his best and be helpful, and at times he’s just naively hoping to get by, like when he tries to deliver Leia’s message without alerting Luke to what is really going on.

There’s so much to like here, especially when he fills painful silences with inappropriate remarks. They also didn’t overdo the prequel jokes, but when they did they were great (like when Artoo talks about missing his rocket boosters that he inexplicably doesn’t have anymore. Also, his listing of all of the ways in which Obi-Wan should remember him is exactly what we think about now when we re-watch all the movies.)

r2-d2

But despite all of the great, funny, smart dialogue given to him here, our favorite moment is when he fakes a stomach ailment in the Death Star to get to the (continuously) stupid stormtroopers to let him go to “maintenance.” It makes that scene even less believable, but boy is it much funnier.

We always knew R2-D2 was smart and brave, but it’s nice to know he was just as aware as us of some of the silliness of the people around him.

What was your favorite line here? Beep and boop and use your rocket boosters to tell us in the comments below.

Images: Lucasfilm


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