[Jamie89]

I took this from the What Culture website, if you want to see the article:

http://whatculture.com/film/5-crazy-...ave-to-try.php


Alternating order
The Order: I – IV – II – V – III – VI

Spoiler:

Immortalised in RedLetterMedia’s Prequel Reviews, one of George Lucas’ major goals with the newer trilogy was to mirror the events of the classics (“it’s like poetry, they rhyme”). Things like the hero blowing up the spaceship at the end of the first part are all pretty obvious, but the only way to really see it is to watch them side by side (or more accurately, one after each other).
Any overt focus on either Anakin or Luke is negated here and both heroes get pretty equal screen time throughout the series; a problem that rarely get’s raised is that Star Wars flippantly changes who it’s about. What’s most interesting is that even though we’re showing the prequels at the same time, the Vader twist is still done in Empire.
Compared to other orders this one is certainly one for existing fans wanting to get the most from their Star Wars. It’s not the best telling of the story, but expands on some of the subtler elements of the saga.
There’s obviously another way to alternate the films, going original then prequel, but that ends up with the incredibly downbeat Episode III, which works much better as a lead in to redemption.

Story order
The Order: I – II – III – IV – V – IV

Spoiler:

Ask Lucasfilm what order the films should be watched in and this is what they’ll say. Seeing the saga unfold chronologically is traditional and allows you to see Vader’s rise and fall in all its glory and avoids the confusion of Obi-Wan’s lies in Episode IV; this is the only order on this list that makes it clear he’s making it all up, rather than going senile. It’s serviceable and fine for people just wanting some action, but there’s some pretty obvious weaknesses here that stop it being the optimum Star Wars experience.
Some of the original trilogy’s most revered moments – the reveal of Darth Vader as Anakin Skywalker and the mysticism of the Jedi Knights – are completely ruined. Tonal differences are going to be felt worse here too. A New Hope (my personal favourite), coming straight after the bombastic Episode III, will look incredibly disappointing; a slower and less whizbang version of the universe.
Not to mention we’re starting off with the weaker entries in the saga, first time viewers would probably have lost interest when the classics roll around.This is the favoured way of watching the films, but in my opinion isn’t really a good one.

Release order
The Order: IV – V – VI – I – II – III

Spoiler:

While Story Order may be the official way to watch the films, traditionalist fans are always going to plump for this option; it’s how the films were released and how audiences originally saw that galaxy far, far away.
This way you get to experience the Original Trilogy in all its glory before heading back and seeing where it all began. As with Story Order, the stylistic differences between the two trilogies are highlighted, but at least here all the wonderment of the originals is maintained through their run time.
While this is my go to order (it’s what I use when showing people the films) and therefore accept it has some problems that make it feel incomplete. Aside from having the stronger episodes first, we end on Revenge Of The Sith, which has to double whammy of being incredibly depressing and leaving you hungry for more. Aside from watching the originals again, all the advantages of this method are nullified by an unsatisfying end.
Now there’s another trilogy fleshing out the Star Wars saga, this order has an added benefit; it’ll still work in ten years time. The prequels will become a flashback and we get a final three movies that no matter how you watch them the series will end with an unpredictable finale.

Flashback order
The Order: IV – V – I – II – III – VI

Spoiler:

Speaking of flashbacks, here is a legitimate viewing order that manages to deal with the problems of the two conventional orders. We don’t have to start or end with the lesser films and the big reveal of Luke’s parentage is kept in its original form.
You start of watching the Original Trilogy as normal, but after the depressingly shocking ending of Empire, instead of continuing forwards you go back and watch the prequels. The immediate advantage of this is obvious; we get the Vader reveal as originally intended. But unlike kids in 1980, we can immediately go back and see just how this happened.
There’s some unexpected benefits too. The cliffhanger of what happened to Han is left for a tension building six hours and the ending gets a bit more depth; the appearance of Naboo and Hayden in the Special Editions feels a bit more relevant as were there just a short while before. The only really downside is a flipside to one of the positives; we are dragged away from the characters we really like suddenly and maybe don’t see them again for a little too long.
There’s an interesting variation on this called Machete Order. From the blog Absolutely No Machete Jumping, it removes Episode I completely. While that’s good for Jar-Jar haters, there are a couple of key plot threads (particularly through the prequels) that feel confusingly absent. Cutting out an episode is, let’s not forget, cheating, so it joins this list only as a footnote.

What Culture order
The Order: IV – I – II – III – V – VI

Spoiler:

To my knowledge this viewing order hasn’t been properly put forward before, so I thought we’d name it after this very site.
A variation of the Flashback Order, this way has you watching the prequels much earlier and in fact ruins the twist I was so quick to champion as a key thing to preserve earlier, but for a seasoned viewer this is the way to try.
You kick off with A New Hope, which tells its own enclosed story and gets you involved in the world. Once you’re already hooked, instead of continuing Luke’s story we go back and expand upon Obi-Wan’s words with the prequels. As we’re invested in the world, but not the ins and outs of the story, the prequels’ quality is less of an issue here and, only one film in, the tonal differences are less of an issue. Once that’s over and we’re up to speed, we return to Luke’s story and enjoy all the dramatic irony that comes with it. Knowing the twist is less of an issue here as we’ve had the shock of it naturally through the narrative.
There’s no real downsides here, beyond it not being too conventional. You start and end where the Original Trilogy did and get the prequels out of the way quickly. If you try only one order from this list, I’d suggest this one.

Machete order
The Order: IV – V – II – III –VI

Spoiler:

They didn't list this one but it's one of the most popular. It's basically the same as the Flashback order but without Episode 1