Absolutely correct. There's a lot going on in Episode One that was lost on those expecting a remake of Episodes Four through Six. Failure to meet expectations is the only serious "fault" of Episode One - the problem is too many fanboys were expecting to feel just like they felt when they first watched a Star Wars movie. No dice.
I couldn't agree more. SW-TPM is one of those rare movies where either you "get it" -- or you don't. And if I recall correctly, you are not even given, within the movie itself, sufficient information to "get it"
based on Star Wars: The Phantom Menace alone. You
have to rely on your (prior) knowledge of what will come later. The writers made an assumption that you would, and that you would thereby figure out the unspoken.
My guess is that a large number of viewers simply just didn't pick up on exactly what was going on.
