The Phantom Menace was visually impressive but rather flat storytelling. Also I get what Lucas was going for with Jar Jar, but he made better movies when he didn't have complete control.

The Attack of the Clones was excellent when it focused on Obi-Wan and Jango Fett and painful when it focused on Anakin and Padme. It was neat to see the calvary arrive.

Revenge of the Sith has some unerwhelming villains (what happaned to Dooku and Greivous in this film?), but it had great pacing and drama. I really accepted Obi-Wan and Anakin as the characters that would continue into the rest of the series. There's one ending scene that I do not want.

A New Hope is rooted firmly in Flash Gordon and other movie serials, so it's best approached in that spirit. It's notable that Dark Vader and Governor Tarkin and are nearly equal in power, while in the later movies, Vader seems to outrank everyone else in the Empire.

I feel that the Empire Strikes Back is the best of bunch, mainly because since it can't resolve much of the plot threads, it focuses on character interaction. You should remember this is the first movie that Yoda appeared in chronologically. Frankly he worked better as a puppet.

The Return of the Jedi is a satisfying conclusion to the series. The Emperor is a great villain and the resolution between Vader and Luke is heartbreaking. The Ewoks are silly and cute.