Why didn't Ben recognize threepio?

Well yes and no... R2 and 3PO serve the same purpose as the two peasants from Hidden Fortress, but tehy only do that in the OT. In the PT that role is completely gone. The story is NO WAY told from the perspective of the two droids, as the OT clearly was. 3PO getting built by Anakin sucks big balls, and R2 has no vital role either. In the OT he saves the day quite a few times, in the PT he kinda hangs around and tries to do funny stuff...
If George couldn't come up with a decent role for these droids, I'd say: lose them!

i thought R2 saved the day after escaping Naboo??
although having Anakin build C3PO and have R2 as his personal droid is stretching it

the SW movies are all about R2 incidently
if he hadnt have saved the day in the PT there would be no OT
if he hadnt took the escape pod they wouldnt have met Luke or Ben
if he hadnt fixed the hyperdrive after leaving Bespin Luke would have been in the hands of Vader
similarly if R2 hadnt stashed Lukes lightsabre the Emperor and Vader would have won as Luke would have been killed by Jabbas guards most likely therefore leaving Yoda and Ben up slack alley

its not about Anakin its the story of R2D2!!!!!
does he whine or screw up??
no
hes just R2
the true hero of the SW saga

R2D2 i salute you!

I don't think luke would have been killed by guard, he could've taken his lightsabre into Jabba's palace but didn't cause it was stashed in Artoo, and if Artoo hadn't stashed Lukes lightsabre I'm Luke could've used the force to grab a gun or something like he had originally done in Jabba's Palace.

i dont know why he didnt just keep his lightsabre when he went to Jabbas palace
its a bit dumb
he wasnt searched as the Gammoreans were force choked
if he thought he may be captured why take the chance stashing it with R2??
and when trouble started first thing he did was reach for a blaster so it makes stashing his weapon pointless

it also would have saved a trip to the Sarlaac where he was vastly outnumbered by Jabbas guards whom whilst mostly incompetent did get one shot at his hand and therefore would probably have taken Luke out even if he was armed with a blaster.
as much as i love ROTJ the rescue of Han whilst VERY enjoyable is a bit silly
they should have just sent in a bunch of covert Rebels to rescue General Solo or whatever rank he had

Originally posted by vintageSW77
i thought R2 saved the day after escaping Naboo??

Oh yeah, he was lucky not to be shot to bits like the other droids. If he'd taken another position he'd be blasted to smithereens. Tehre's no particular R2 effort there. And that is just about the only one in three movies.
As you make clear from your list: those are all OT examples, where her serves his part excellentle.
I love R2 but he didn't deserve the obsolete role he got in the PT.

theres an easy explanation....ben got old timers diseasewheelchair from drinkin to much in the desert...🍺 drunk

Originally posted by queeq
Oh yeah, he was lucky not to be shot to bits like the other droids. If he'd taken another position he'd be blasted to smithereens. Tehre's no particular R2 effort there. And that is just about the only one in three movies.

long time since i watched so my memories are vague of how it played out
my mistake

but as i think Ben Kenobi put it
"in my experiance theres no such thing as luck"

R2 is not a force user. Point is: it was in no way an R2 effort. He was just doing his job like the others less fortunate.

Originally posted by queeq
R2 is not a force user

what a profound revelation...can i profile this quote?

PLease do. It's the height of wisom most people can endure. so use it wisely.

you are correct...in fact many might not be able to handle the truth...it might be dangerous to profile that quote...in fact i suggest you edit out the original statement or else mass chaos might ensue

No, I don't think that is necessary. It is right ON the edge, dangerously balancing, but stable. And you know me, I live on the edge.

well i think he saved the day!!

plus he was the straight man to 3pos lame comedy exploits on Geonosis
actually come to think of it R2 did as much in the PT than he prob did in any of the OT flicks
not in the way i would have liked but he did quite a bit

Not in the same way. Apart from the fairly accidental saving of the ship leaving Naboo, all he did was save 3PO here and there. And himself. But he wasn never vital to the exploits of our heroes. He was in the OT.

I don't know if you've ever seen Hidden Fortress. It's very clear where Lucas got his idea from, to peasants (low class folk) allow us to enter the world of high class samurai, princesses and kings. R2 and 3PO served the same purpose in the OT. In all fairness, they did NOT have that role in the PT. So why are they there other than brand awareness? They are only there to say to us: see, it is SW!

agreed

i havent seen Hidden Fortress but i am aware of its influence on SW and the two low class characters
ill check it out sooner or later

It's B&W and Japanese, that may put some people off, but it's well worth watching.

The galaxy keeps getting smaller and smaller.

Everybody there seem to know each other and share some history.

I don't know anyone.

Oh please, the droids don't save anybody in the PT? C'mon, R2 saves the day in the PT how:

- Fixes the queen's starship shields
- Keeps Anakin alive and helps destroy the Tray-Fed ship
- (subtract one save by not spotting the wormie things on Padme's bed)
- Saves Padme from being boiled in lead
- Saves Threepio in the arena
- Best Droid at the wedding
- Saves Anakin by blasting the buzzdroids
- Helps rescue Obi-Wan & Anakin w/ the elevator, (I don't get the loose wire joke)
- Rescues Padme & unborn twins from falling lava at Mustafar with Threepio, (off screen)

Originally posted by chinabing
Oh please, the droids don't save anybody in the PT? C'mon, R2 saves the day in the PT how:

- Fixes the queen's starship shields
- Keeps Anakin alive and helps destroy the Tray-Fed ship
- (subtract one save by not spotting the wormie things on Padme's bed)
- Saves Padme from being boiled in lead
- Saves Threepio in the arena
- Best Droid at the wedding
- Saves Anakin by blasting the buzzdroids
- Helps rescue Obi-Wan & Anakin w/ the elevator, (I don't get the loose wire joke)
- Rescues Padme & unborn twins from falling lava at Mustafar with Threepio, (off screen)

1. No particular effort, he was just the one left. Any R2 unit could have done that.
2. Well, he takes out the automatic pilot, some effort. The point was to show Anakin's excellence as a pilot (and ignore the oopses)
3. Okay, that's one... a bloody repetition of several OT saves, but I'll give ya that.
4. He alwasy saves 3PO, hardly vital to anything
5. Errr... yep
6. helps yes.... helps... a bit
7. Some pulling... ah well... not a great save

Your list kinda confirms my point: R2's PT actions are too lame for such a great droid.