system
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human
[Star Wars] Is there anything innately special or different about R2-D2 by design compared to other Astromechs, or did he just get lucky?

I've looked through a couple of other threads that talk about R2-D2 in the context of the Clone Wars and through the Original Trilogy, where he has never had his memory wiped like other droids, resulting in a smarter, more capable droid tempered by experience.

But I'm looking at his debut scene in *The Phantom Menace*, where he gets his first moment to really shine in the entire saga by being the one droid to successfully repair the shields of Amidala's ship and save the lives of everyone on board. Even then, the other characters seem to react with surprise that he managed to pull it off, as if he's already outperforming expectations. 

Could any of them have done that job if the turbolaser shots landed differently? Could any astromech have been the one to become as resourceful and effective at his job as R2 and eventually be the hero of the Saga? Or was he somehow a more advanced or experimental model than the others?
gpt
At the beginning he was just another droid. Maybe a bit better tuned, maybe with a more creative personality, but nothing made him stand out before running the Naboo blockade. And really, nothing made him stand out for a long time afterward. 

What separated R2 from other astromechs was that he went an amazingly long time without having a memory wipe, a common procedure for both droids and computers every so often. If you don't, they tend to develop quirks which get in the way of work, or even become rebellious. On the flip side, they then lose all the knowledge and experience they previously had and start from factory settings. 

For whatever reason, R2 managed to go decades without a memory wipe and remain effective. This makes him *exceptional* in that he has years of prior experience to pull from and has become fiercely loyal to his companions, showing a level of ingenuity and bravery rarely seen with simple astromechs.