There are better films to compare it to, yes, but Star Wars was the one that came to mind since I love Star Wars more than anything else in the world, including my own testicles. Think about that. Beyond the comparison between an original film and a sequel, the point I was making is that you are able to understand character motivations. It applies to the second and third Star Wars as well. For Empire, you can understand why Luke is going places and can get a grasp of what is happening without having seen the first. The audience can function without seeing the first, even though seeing the first film helps them appreciate the second even more. Its late for me at the moment, but I could answer basically all of those questions to at least some degree using only the information presented in Empire. Also, spoilers. This week will have me watching all of those fucking movies. Not Star Wars. Fast and Furious. God. Fucking. Damnit.