#grey jedi critical

[cerulianvermillion]

the concept of "grey Jedi" doesn't work because the force is light and dark, not black and white. By definition, colour value might be a spectrum, but darkness is absence of light. Everyone is grey! Star wars has clearly implied that nobody is perfect and everyone comes in shades of of grey, everyone is flawed and imperfect. The jedi are all technically grey! However, they are "light" because they, as jedi, choose light, choose selflessness, choose goodness.

Textbook fandom interpretation of "grey jedi" is either A. Someone who uses both the dark and light side or B. Someone who is light and does good but doesn't follow the jedi order.

A. doesn't work, because the dark side isn't just defined by "being emotional" or "Thinking of yourself", it's literally stuff like murder and torture. You can't claim to be "good" or "light" or "better than everyone" while also condoning murder at the same time.

B. You don't have to be a jedi to use the force! You don't have to be a jedi to be in the light! Like it's not illegal, the jedi order respects non-jedi force users as long as they don't commit human rights violations! the Jedi are the majority of force users, but they're not the only ones who can use the force. The jedi themselves are aware that there are many different interpretations, and the only intervene when it. yknow. involves murder and torture and the like. calling non-jedi lightside users as "grey jedi" doesn't really make sense because they're... just technically normal jedi. And if they're not associating with the order, then they're just lightside force users that are not jedi? Why would they call themselves jedi if they themselves don't think they are jedi or associate with the jedi???

Like in Ahsoka's situation, she's not a "grey" jedi, she's a light force user that doesn't follow the jedi order. In fact, saying that she's a "grey" jedi is basically just saying that she's a regular jedi? That doesn't make her better or worse or special, disagreeing with the council doesnt make someone better or worse that the other- what does matter is her actual actions. Which, as aforementioned, is lightside. The jedi order is also light. They can coexist, yknow, one is not superior than the other, they're both light. And it's not uncommon for people to disagree with the council. That's the entire point of the jedi having a "council"- to provide different perepectives and healthy debate and come up with the best decision for everyone. You can't please everybody, that's entirely normal. There's a reason why the council discusses instead of having one person make all the choices. The jedi are people too, they're also flawed. You can be grey and choose light, that's what the jedi choose to do.

tldr everyone is already grey, but light and dark is a matter or choice.

#star wars #sw prequels #sw: the clone wars #ahsoka tano #jedi #jedi order #pro jedi #grey jedi critical #gray jedi critical #jedi council #sith #light side and dark side #grey jedi debate #the force

[antianakin]

I think if we can accept that there are things Jedi are shown capable of doing in canon that Cal is incapable of doing in the games due to video game mechanics (i.e. he cannot carve through locked doors or walls, and he cannot jump more than about 10 feet without dying), then we can accept the opposite as well: there are things Jedi are shown to be INCAPABLE of doing in canon that Cal IS capable of doing in the games due to video game mechanics (using the dark side in fights all the time without any real impact on him). Yes, Cal was given a "dark side" power-up ability, and yes, you can continue to use it for him over and over again and it seemingly has no real negative impact on his character. But this is how video games work, every time we get given an ability in the game, Cal is able to keep it for the rest of the game in order to explore new areas and fight new things. But that doesn't mean that that's how using the dark side actually would work for Cal within canon if he were shown in something like a film or TV show rather than a video game.

And if you look at the actual STORY within the game rather than the basic gameplay options, it's made pretty clear that Cal using the dark side is akin to losing himself. He CANNOT use it without that risk being there and he has to keep letting it go. The first time he uses it on Nova Garon, Merrin stops him by saying they've both lost enough people and she doesn't want to lose Cal, too. When they talk on Tanalorr before making it to the Temple, Cal expresses fear of losing himself. After the funeral, Cal says to Cere that he nearly lost himself during that fight with Bode. Over and over again they let you know through the STORY that Cal using the dark side is a bad thing that he isn't using without consequence even though the ability exists in gameplay without any impact.

Cal isn't a Gray Jedi, that's not how it works. The game is doing the best it can to tell you that the dark side WILL ultimately cause Cal to lose himself if he keeps using it even though it has to let you keep using the ability due to how video game rules work. Cal is a Jedi, full stop. The dark side is bad and twists everyone who uses it, full stop. Stop pretending video game gameplay rules are the same as the story it's actually telling when the dialogue practically spells it out for you.

#star wars #jedi survivor #jedi survivor spoilers #cal kestis #anti gray jedi #anti grey jedi #gray jedi critical #grey jedi critical

[short-wooloo]

Now that the trailer is out, it's probably best that I get this out of the way before acolyte releases

The Jedi are right about the Force and the dark side

The Jedi did not lose their way

The Jedi were not corrupted

The genocide of the Jedi was not their fault

The Jedi are not wrong for being part of the Republic, it is in fact a good thing

The Jedi are not arrogant for thinking the sith are gone

and while we're at it the sith are evil, always, end of discussion

The Jedi do not steal children

If someone wants to leave the Jedi, that's allowed, no one will stop them

The Jedi are right about attachment

Attachment is not love (SW uses the Buddhist definition because Lucas is a Buddhist and the Jedi are based off Buddhist monks, Buddhism defines attachment as being possessive or unwilling to let go of people or things)

The Jedi do not forbid emotions, they forbid being controlled by your emotions, you must control them

The Jedi are not forbidden from loving people, nor are they celibate, they just can't get married (big whup) because their duties must come first

Being peacekeepers doesn't preclude the Jedi from fighting in war, sometimes to keep the peace you have to fight back, especially when its against tyranny, see WWII (or Ukraine today)

Gray jedi are not a thing

The Jedi are not slavers or complicit in slavery

Oh and of course, the Jedi are not elitists for not training non Force sensitives, (Han voice) that's not how the Force works, dave filoni broke the rules so he could shoehorn sabine into a Jedi (to give the benefit of the doubt, I do believe sabine's role as ahsoka's apprentice was meant for an original character but things got condensed by executives, so maybe filoni isn't entirely to blame here)

Feel free to add anything I forgot

Do not, DO NOT!! add anything Jedi critical, I'm done with it and won't hear it, don't have something nice to say? Then go away, I will block on sight, either reblog without comment (either in the reblog or the notes) or don't interact at all

#wooloo-writes #wooloo writes #star wars #sw #jedi #jedi order #pro jedi #in defense of the jedi #the acolyte critical #the acolyte #sw acolyte #anti the acolyte #anti acolyte #acolyte critical #star wars the acolyte #anti filoni #anti dave filoni #dave filoni critical #the jedi were right #the jedi did nothing wrong #george lucas #anti gray jedi #anti grey jedi

[mademoiselle-cookie]

#In case anyone is wondering what my position is on the subject #None of the 'grey jedi' definition works #but this one even less #grey jedi #star wars #gray jedi #gray jedi critical #the Force #dark side #meme #lol #pro jedi

[kaxtwenty]

Star Wars fans gotta engage with the source material without the fandom goggles more often, cause I often feel like people ain’t even discussing the same characters anymore.

Like, waaaayy too many of y’all just be taking something you read in a fanfic or headcanon post, take it as fact and spread it like wildfire across the fanbase.

For example: the amount of people that don’t know Jango shot at the Jedi first on Galidraan is quite frankly astounding to me…

Such a basic misunderstanding that could easily be corrected by actually reading the fucking comic or just reading *about* the comic and seeing how events unfolded.

And I’m not saying people can’t go crazy with fanfic or share headcanons…But I think that (for the characters at least) you need to have a solid foundation in what the source material actually says to avoid parroting straight up misinformation or getting into fights about headcanon.

Side note: I can’t even be annoyed at Mando fans for having a lot of disconnect between canon and fanon because so much of their lore comes from a writer who seemed to actively dislike every part of Star Wars that wasn’t Mandalorians.

#also fanon gets the Jedi wrong like…70% of the time #Grey Jedi is not something that works #and the no attachment rule doesn’t mean Jedi can’t love people #it means that they can’t get possessive and fearful about losing that which they love #Star Wars #me rambles #meta #I guess #fandom critical #sw fandom

[lieutenant-teach]

Meeting Cyare’s father (or Anakin Skywalker doesn’t like his new son-in-law very much)

(Anakin doesn’t go Dark, everyone lives, everyone’s happy. No Sequels, rehashed Heir to the Empire instead of the OT. DinLuke, minor Anidala, CodyWan, HanLeia)

Din was really relieved about his helmet on, but then he remembered that the Jedi can feel other people’s emotions. No luck, then.

His cyare’s father’s eyes were trying to burn a hole in his head.

– Let me get it straight, Luke. A Mandalorian bounty hunter. – The voice could cut the stone better than a lightsaber.

– Mum likes him, – Luke was smiling, but Din saw him tensing for a fight. A cybernetic hand squeezed his.

– I didn’t raise my only children to give them away to some criminals, - Skywalker-senior stood up from the couch and started walking back and forth. – First I have to agree to allow my princess marry some smuggler…

– Han did help us to stop Thrawn.

– … and then my son wants to partner a bounty hunter, - Luke’s father wasn’t listening to him, anger coming off him like waves – Din was certain he wasn’t Force-sensitive, but one may not be to feel the Dark Side emanating from Anakin Skywalker at that moment.

Din remembered Luke’s words before ‘meeting with father’s half of the family’: ‘My Dad will become angry, I’m sure – he didn’t react to Han well, too – but don’t worry, he’ll cool down’. The warning rang in his ears when he saw Skywalker-senior for the first time: tall, with a rich mane of greying curls, but still very handsome former Jedi assessed him and made up him mind immediately. ‘Not worthy’. Now they were sitting on the softest couch Din’s ass had ever been on, in the richest living room Din’s eyes ever seen, and ‘officially’ letting Din into a very branchy Skywalker family tree. Or, trying.

– Dad, I’m almost thirty, I can decide for myself. And Din’s a hero of his own – he kept Grogu save and sound, stopped Moff Gideon, and also saved the town of Mos Pelgo from the krayt dragon…

– But a bounty hunter! – Skywalker-senior cried exasperatedly. – And, to add to it, a Mandalorian! It is all your fault, Obi-Wan! – he suddenly turned to Luke’s uncle, quietly watching all this until this moment.

– Wait, why? – the man was older than Luke’s father, gray hair and beard and mischievous twinkle in the eyes. So far he hadn’t said anything, but Luke had said his uncle would be supportive. Now it was time to find out. – My fault Luke fell in love?

– With a Mando! – Skywalker raised his voice. – Who in this family has a thing for Mandos?

– Do not speak about Satine like this, – Obi-Wan’s voice became steely, – and anyway, Cody is not a Mandalorian.

– He is a clone of a Mandalorian!

Din started to lose the thread of the conversation. He even wished he had a Jedi ability to speak telepathically and could ask Luke what the kark was going on. He shifted his head, trying not to be very obvious in his confusion, Luke caught his gaze and shrugged.

– Do you really think I taught Luke… - Luke’s uncle sighed. – We have been here before, Anakin. Luke is an adult, he can think for himself. If he brought young Din Djarin here, then he is certain in him and his own feelings. Did your fits of reality rejection change Leia’s mind?

Luke’s father breathed in and out heavily, clearly holding himself from harsher words, but reluctantly accepting the truth.

– Maybe, you should just talk to Din? – Luke’s uncle didn’t look happy, but so wasn’t Din hearing this suggestion.

‘Let me talk, – Din remembered Luke’s words. – When Dad started being… um… not very nice to Han – critical of sorts – Han started talking back. It escalated, some chairs were flying around, Dad and Leia exchanging angry remarks – Dad said she deserved better, Leia insisted she loved Han – and Han himself wasn’t making everything easier. It took two professional negotiators – Mum and Uncle Obi-Wan – to calm them down. Still, Leia and Han are happily married and have a son. So it’s just an unpleasant procedure you have to endure’.

– Maybe, he would take the helmet off for starters? – Poison in Skywalker’s voice could kill a bantha. No, a herd of banthas.

– I cannot, - Din was glad his voice didn’t tremble. He wasn’t afraid of the man, but watching a family drama, and, worse, being the reason of it didn’t feel well. He didn’t want to cause a rift in Luke’s relationship with his father. – My Creed prohibits me to.

– Veery convenient, - Skywalker smiled a tight and unpleasant smile, ignoring pleading and exasperated eyes of his son. – We’re a family now, you don’t show your face even to your family? Luke, have you seen his face?

– Dad, now it’s rude. Of course, I did. – It was obvious Luke was holding well, but his patience wasn’t infinite, too. – It’s only for immediate members.

Technically, after realizing the existence of different Mandalorian Ways, Din wasn’t sure he couldn’t do that. After all, taking off helmets didn’t make Bo-Katan Kryze or Sabine Wren less Mandalorians. But even if he would – not for this man.

The door slid open, a man quietly entered the room and stood behind Luke’s uncle’s armchair, resting his elbows on the chair back. Could he be Boba Fett’s relative? Because he was a carbon copy of Din’s friend, albeit much older. An intricate scar was winding its way from his temple down around his left eye.

– I am being quite nice! – Skywalker protested, dragging all attention to himself. – I can’t believe Padmé actually said ‘I like this guy, let’s take him in’.

– You know, I agree with you, - the probably-Boba’s-relative suddenly said. Luke’s uncle turned to him with puzzled expression. Luke looked disappointed. – The kids take after their mother in their bad choice of life partners.

Skywalker seemed about to blow up. He grabbed something from his belt that appeared to be a black respiratory mask and pressed it to his nose and mouth. The mechanical labored breathing sounds filled the room, Skywalker was drilling the man with burning eyes.

– Now, Cody, that was harsh, - frankly, to Din’s mind, Luke’s uncle didn’t look apologetic a lot. Luke sighed, his shoulders relaxed.

– I thought you were serious! – he even laughed a little, then gather himself again. – Dad, you do realize your approval or disapproval won’t change anything?

– Unfortunately, - Skywalker’s voice also sounded mechanical. – I believe no one in the galaxy or farther is worthy of my children. – He signed. – I guess I have to work with what we have here. – He shot a look at Cody, who smiled in return, and this smile was ‘I know you know I’m right, and I unashamedly love it’.

– Very well, - Obi-Wan clapped his hands. – Now as everything is settled, - Din clearly heard ‘Anakin is settled’, - we can share some stories and know each other better, right, Din?

Luke looked at Din with shining eyes. Din signed quietly. This look was worth all these awkward minutes.

#star wars #dinluke #din djarin #anakin skywalker #luke skywalker #obi wan kenobi #commander cody #codywan #fanfiction #my fic #fanfic

[phoeebsbuffay]

Imagine you survive the Order 66 because of Lord Vader.

Warnings: angst, drama. Not recommended for minors or those who have sensibility to these themes.

Warnings 2: unburnt Vader + fluffy endings.

Warnings 3: younglings are not killed in any of my stories.

Recommendations: Lorde’s version “Everybody Wants To Rule The World”. “We Remain” by Christina Aguilera.

***

Intro.

The sky is heavy with the darkest shade of grey that paints the clouds. As they tumble against the other, a tempest begins to form. You don’t seem to notice how all of a sudden the light of the sun is eclipsed by the appearance of darkness.

You are weary due to your last mission at the planet Y/C. You carry many frustrations to yourself because it feels as if whatever you do it’s never enough, whether for the Order, whether for your master.

How many times you’ve been fighting this war, at times boldly so, earning the epithet of “reckless Jedi”, and how many times you felt as if each mission battle defeats you? Victory comes at a higher cost every single time.

You are closer to the edge.

As you stand under the heavy rain that starts to pour over the temple Jedi, your knees go weak. You collapse right there. No one is there to help you to stand. You are by yourself.

He is not there either. And to miss him, to miss the one responsible for you to get where you are now only breaks through you.

Where are you, Anakin? I don’t feel you. Where did you go to?

The hood continues to absorve the impact of the rain. The sensation doesn’t soothe the sensation that the higher you get, the higher your fall will be. To be embraced by this storm only seems to reinforce the feeling that you are drowning to the core of suffering.

To whom are you enough? It takes a lot of criticism to knock down one’s self esteem and with time, with losses to face, with the delusion to wipe away the duty perception to a fragile Order, what is there to remain?

You have nothing else to think about. You raise your head and let a scream out of your lungs. A bittersweet mix of salty tears that roll over your cheeks and the tasteless rain that comes to your face is felt. You are soaked. You are hurting.

Immersed in what seems to be a longing for healing, you don’t realize the hologram that a clone nearby you opens it. You barely listen to a mechanical, evil voice giving the order 66. You don’t see the moment this clone complains about a strange migraine before saying something about executing the Jedis.

However, you do hear the sound of blasters. The sound of despair. You smell death. You rise instantly and the next thing you know a blaster is pointed at you.

“Jedi, you are about to die.”

That’s what you are told before he shoots at you.

***

Two years ago.

Anakin senses your disturbance the moment your ship lands. He comes right after you, concerned for your safety. You have only recently replaced Ahsoka as his Padawan and quickly earned his affection—though not exactly the way you wanted to be because, unlike his, yours was a different fondness that installed in your chest the moment you started the trains, but you always hid it away because you soon realized his heart belonged to someone else.

It is only fair you are greeted properly by your Master after such a difficult mission in Mustafar, a planet that only got to your nerves. And you also come back deeply wounded, though nothing hurts more than a broken pride—you were this close to knock Dooku down, but he was faster and wiser and here was when your inexperience left you.

“Hey Y/nickname.” He is frowning at you, seeing the scar you got in your shoulder and the signs of burnt in some parts of your skin. “What the hell happened?”

“I am fine”, you hear yourself saying but not even you believe in that. You look a mess and your words don’t match your state.

“Are you really going to lie to me?” Anakin asks you with ferocious eyes.

You regret instantly what you said.

“Apologies, Master. I feel better, truthfully.”

Anakin sees how you struggle to look composed. A sight he does not approve.

“You are shielding yourself behind your pride. I am not asking twice: what the hell happened?”

It takes a good deal of you to aquiesce with what he asks of you. Simple as it may seem to admit a failure from an outsider, it blows your self-esteem doing so. Yet, here you are. And when staring into his blue eyes, you tell him how Dooku overpowered you.

Anakin soon soothes in his treatment towards you. He places a hand over your shoulder and as he draws you closer, he says:

“You almost got me worried for a moment, Y/nickname. What on earth were you thinking about facing Dooku in such a planet?”

“I thought I could. After defeating Ventress and one of the Sith agents, I…” You sigh again.

“This is not a helpless case”, Anakin assures you. “Come now. You need to take care of yourself. Otherwise what use will you be to me?”

He offers you a soft smile before heading to meet Rex and the other clones. You don’t respond him, watching him go as you are left with your growing frustrations.

A few days later, though, you amend your pride. However, stubborn as you may be, you have clues about an agent to Dooku in the planet Y/C. Much to your dismay, Anakin refuses you.

“What? Why?!”, you cannot keep the good-girl posture much longer. Anakin raises his eyebrows, never before seeing you act like this. “I mean… What reason does my Master have for not granting me permission to get this mission? Have I not proved my worth?”

It’s only then that Anakin realizes you are both the same. And that he’s being to you what Obi-Wan was to him: hard, proud and stubborn. The result of his former frustration stands right before him, embodied in your person.

So he softens.

“I am sorry. It’s not about that. Things are escalating, Y/N. You are really good, you know that. Otherwise I wouldn’t take you under my wing”, he is pleased to seeing you smile. “Feeling better now?”

“Yes, thank you.” Calmer this time, you add: “When will my trials begin?”

“I have to check with the Council, but I believe it soon. And for someone who overpowered the Ventress, I wouldn’t worry too much about it.”

Anakin seems to notice you for the very first time when you smile at his compliment. And what a nice smile you have, Y/N. But instead of voicing his thought, life happens and such never got to his tongue.

***

A year ago.

Your hair is loose and longer than the last two years, dropping right to your waist. There is something sensual about how you always wear your y/c locks wild and untied, how you opt to wear bandages to protect your chest in the same color of your pants.

Such are Anakin’s perceptions. But he shouldn’t notice you. Not when he and Padmé broke up because of her ex boyfriend, not when he is in pain. Not to add the amount of issues he’s been having with the Council.

But when you flash him a overconfident smile, Anakin’s mind goes blank.

“Anakin, hi! Have you been there for some time?”, you ask him, always careful to shield your heart and thoughts.

You are now a Jedi like him, and though there is no need to be under his guidance anymore, the bond one has with the other is too tight to break.

“What’s the point of practicing by yourself?”, says he in a defiance tone. “Go on. Get your saber, Y/N. Let’s see how good you are.”

A year can change everything, how odd is to perceive it. But as you and Anakin practice, as twilight paints in orange the skies above you, no change is perceived.

Yet.

Because where you start dressing blue, he begins to dress black. Where you are growing patient, his moves start to be more aggressive. This is a contrast a good observer could have noticed, but one is so intricate with the other that neither of you sees it.

“Good”, Anakin laughs arrogantly. “But you can still do better, Y/N.”

Your smile starts to fade, but you are quick to omit your insecurity from his eyes. Those are now set on you like of a hunter, but you will not be his prey.

It doesn’t help your moves that wind starts to get colder. One shiver, but you resist it. One blow, you resist it. But then one cramp…and here’s where you meet your fall.

“Well done, Y/N”, he tells you softly after offering you his hand to grab it.

As you take it, you unintentionally fall over him. Anakin has to hold you, otherwise you’d get some bruises by dropping to the floor. And it’s right where his eyes meet yours.

And he knows. Because he knocks your shield down.

“Y/N…”

You get instantly red, freezing as you stare back into those blue eyes, aware that he found out. But…

But he leaves you there. And you watch as he turns his back at you, leaving you there, pretending nothing happened.

You put a smile and decide there is nothing to investigate. Absolutely nothing. So you go straight to your quarters.

***

You hear from Rex that he and Padmé Amidala are getting back together.

“I didn’t even know they broke up”, you tell him, baffled. “But good for them.”

Good for them indeed, but not for you. You sense Anakin has been avoiding you, and if these rumors are true, it may be wise to avoid the Senator’s presence as well.

Fuck. All my efforts to keep this unseen and unknown… all of these were for nothing.

So you decide to have a good and honest conversation with Anakin again. It takes some time but when you find him, you notice there is something wrong by how he turns at you.

“What?”

You clear your throat.

“Uh. It’s me, Y/N.”

Awkward.

Anakin sighs before turning at you. He softens and it’s only when you see that there’s been something going on. You leave your concerns aside and say:

“Anakin… What’s wrong? Please talk to me. Was it something that I did? I…”

“On the contrary, Y/nickname”, Anakin smiles at you and there is gentleness in his voice, contrasting it, however, to the sadness in his eyes. “You could never do anything to stress me out. There is nothing for you to worry about.”

You take his hand almost unconsciously, a gesture that does not go unnoticed by him.

“I want you to trust in me. I could be of help somehow. You don’t have to go through all of this by yourself.” You know he is about to protest, so you squeeze his hand and proceed: “Don’t shush me. You know you don’t have to carry this weight upon your shoulders.”

He does not realize he locks his fingers with yours.

“You don’t know what it is like…” And then he breaks down.

You hold him close, then pull him against you. One barrier has been knocked down. There is little need to speak, so you stay like this for some long time.

***

Six months ago.

You are assigned to a very difficult mission regarding the chase of Darth Maul in Mandalore. You don’t know yet, but this will be the last time you see Anakin before some catastrophic events happen.

And it’s just right at the time that you are preparing to leave that your former Master comes after you.

“Y/N”, he calls you, sounding somewhat reluctant.

You turn your head. Today your hair is tied in one long elaborated braid. And you are dressing red. A color that, according to Anakin’s opinion, suits you well.

“Yes, Anakin?”, you greet him cheerfully.

Whatever it was that happened that day changed every dynamics of your relationship. But at the same time… Neither of you dares to make the first move.

“I must tell you something”, he finally decides to quit the battle against his heart.

You smile at him, warmly so. Anakin smiles back. Both of you know what’s to be finally said. He extends his mechanic hand for you and you are about to take it when Master Windu comes up.

“Greetings, General Y/LN.” He bows his head at you first. “I believe General Rex is waiting for your command. General Skywalker, may I have a word?”

You and Anakin are forced to struggle with disappointment when this awkwardness hangs between you two. He carefully casts you a painful look, though something about your eyes relieves the anxiety in his soul.

“Of course”, you are quick to answer the older male. “I appreciate your kindness, Master Windu. Have a great day. Master Skywalker.”

“Take care, Master Y/LN”, Anakin says nonchalantly.

But as his eyes follow your moves, his heart is plagued by a bad feeling concerning your mission. Worst, however, is his remorse for never telling you how he came to love you.

***

The mission & The Order 66.

All the whilst the clone wars are coming to an end and Palpatine are orchestrating his coup, bringing Anakin to his side, you are flying after Maul. To the point that you find him in a Sith planet, long forgotten even by the Jedis. And it’s right there that you are forced to deal with something bigger.

“Join me, Y/N”, you hear Maul’s voice. “You can be my apprentice, together we will be greater than any Jedi or Sith.”

“No”, you clench your jaw. “Quit with the bullshit, Maul. I will never be by your side.”

Yet, in the midst of a dark mist that confuses your vision, you hear his laughter, full of disdain and deprived of joy.

“There is darkness in you, sweet Y/N. Fight it as you wish, but you cannot deny there is in you.”

And for some reason the certainty in his speech annoys you to the point you struck rightly so. A violent battle follows, there is only so much you can take, however, and he manages to escape you.

So close, yet so far.

Maul laughs as he hears your screams. But it’s not over yet. You pursuit him. You forget about clone wars and politics. Good sense dissipates as you start a chase that dries your energies.

This whole process only ends when you get back to Coruscant, months later. You succeed in bringing Maul to justice after all. But…

What have you done?

Vengeance is not the Jedi way, you could hear him admonish you. And you feel exhausted, drained out, so tired of all this Jedi thing. There is no taste of victory as what feeds your soul is a huge frustration.

Under a heavy rain, you let a cry out of your lungs. Under a heavy rain, you barely notice the presence of a troop, his migraine and words about the order 66.

“…destroy the Jedis.”

When you turn, it’s too late. The blaster would have knocked you down, had Anakin Skywalker not lifted the clone and sent him away. What would’ve been of you had he not rescued you?

“Oh Anakin!”, you basically tumble and fall onto him. “You came!”

He gives you a half way smile at you.

“I did, Y/Nickname. For you did.”

But his yellows are different.

***

The Rise of Lord Vader.

You are both alone in what used to be the council room, used for general meetings. Anakin is waiting for your reaction as he told you what happened. For some strange reason, however, you remain an enigma for him.

“You saved me”, it’s all you can say.

“What?”, Anakin turns from the window and stares at you, puzzled by your statement. “I told you all the wrongs I’ve done and you focused in this?”

“Yes”, you are firm in what you believe. You move to where he is, noticing he is still reluctant at what your next moves will be, you lock your hands together. “If you were truly this evil being, you’d have me killed. You care for me, don’t you? Say it, Anakin. Because I do too. More than that, in fact…”

You are interrupted by the urge of his lips clashing against yours. You gasp, forgetting how to breathe as his hands involve your frame, pulling it against his. Yours tangle within his curly hair, before resting over his face, holding it so dear, so gently.

When you part the kiss to catch your breathes, you rest your forehead against his as he does the same against yours, staying like this for quite a while. Chaos seems part of another world, distant from your private universe.

“You took too long for this, Anakin”, you whisper against his lips. “I’ve always thought your heart belonged to somebody else.”

“No, princess”, he caresses your cheek. “My heart has always been yours. It will remain so. Let me provide you the best for us, you deserve every recognition. I sensed your pain, there is no need for further suffering.”

“You bring me peace, Ani”, you admit it in a whisper. “I am tired of fighting.”

He wipes away your tears with his thumb. Gently, he says:

“There is no need to fighting anymore, my angel. I’m here for you. But I must know what will be of us.”

You rest your hands over his shoulders, not willing to separate from him. There had been too much time spent apart of each other. As you cast him a look, you come to realize what had there always been within you. The truth before announced by Darth Maul himself. So you say:

“In the end, I guess we had to fall, but I would gladly fall a thousand times more with you.”

Anakin smiles broadly at you. He embraces you, knowing that the love one feels for the other remains above all.

***

Epilogue.

Most times the war one wages is against what truly resides within oneself. Accepting that you are not entirely bad for having flaws helps you understand Anakin’s. Helps you both overcome issues that had been severely repressed by the Jedis.

Palpatine is now dead. Power lies in the hands of you both. But behind the scenes, balance prospers. Anakin pulls you against him every morning, every moment, to remind you the love he has for you only grows intense.

And you respond him with the same way. You never cease to defend him, to justify his doings. He’s been too misunderstood and one of the moments where you found your voice was defending your husband.

Oh yes. The two of you got married in a discreet ceremony at planet Y/C. Only two witnesses were present to attend: C3-P0 and R2-D2.

As time starts to pass, however, rumors begin to spread that where Lord Vader rules the Empire, it’s his Lady Y/N who rules him in bed. There might be some truth in it.

But neither of you seems to care. It’s all good. It’s perfect and happy as it should be.

#star wars #star wars imagine #imagine star wars #anakin skywalker #darth vader #anakin skywalker x y/n #anakin skywalker x you #anakin skywalker x reader #Darth Vader x You #Darth Vader x Y/N #Darth Vader x female reader #alternative universe #the hunger games soundtrack

[incorrect-kotor-quotes]

I’ve been thinking about the Grey Jedi, and why the idea gained a negative reputation over the years. Probably the clearest example of a Grey Jedi is Jolee Bindo, who is generally liked by fans, and I think the reason he’s accepted while Grey Jedi normally aren’t reveals how best to explore them: Jolee isn’t very powerful.

Grey Jedi are justifiably criticized as a flimsy excuse for heroic characters to use the dark side without consequence, without taking opportunities to delve into the character and explore why this could work, or why it inevitably wouldn’t. Except with Jolee. By the game’s mechanics, being just a smidge light-sided means he can use different powers without penalties, but he can’t save any Force points, either. With cure arguably being the most useful power, and leveled-up light and dark powers being comparable, Jolee isn’t a good fighter by any metric. Even with a large number of Force points, without any specialization, he burns out fast.

But that’s part of what makes his character work. He didn’t leave the Jedi because he thought they were holding him back from True Power, he left because he wanted to become wiser. Whether he succeeded or not is what’s worth examining, and his commentary is a better reason to bring him along than any tactical benefit. Grey Jedi shouldn’t be the best of both worlds, they should be weaker because power isn’t the goal, and trying to gain understanding while sacrificing strength is a relevant argument for them still qualifying as a type of Jedi.

#kotor #jolee bindo #grey jedi

[doctoraxiom]

It's actually fascinating to me how much the "palworld is plagiarism and uses ai" post is going around.

First of all the "AI" game that that studio released seems to be a tongue in cheek criticism of AI artists not having talent (but feel free to give me more info here, I only know what reading the product page for AI: Art Impostor tells me)

Second of all the developer being interested in generative AI for games isn't inherently a sign of plagiarism**- I intend to use generative AI for my games that is trained on MY OWN ART. It's not too different from procedural generation at that point because the algorithm itself (or it's training and fine tuning) becomes the art and you're not plagiarizing from anyone but yourself.

Third of all- knockoff games have existed for-fucking-ever and if it's derivative enough it's not plagiarism. And if you're talking about "plagiarism" of the gameplay since palworld has mechanics from several other genres pretty much copy pasted- I hear you- but no one throws a fit about doomlikes being exactly like other doomlikes, or soulslikes straight up copy pasting souls mechanics without even bothering to come up with an in-universe justification (looking at you, Jedi Fallen Order). I'd argue this is actually more creative than that to turn mechanics from multiple other franchises into a cohesive gameplay experience because putting a mechanic into a totally different game is actually really hard to fine tune into feeling good for the player!

Is a work derivative enough to add something new? Or combine old works in a new and novel way? Palworld definitely seems to combine several known mechanics in a novel and fun way. In the very worst case it's in a grey area.

Also the recent anti-plagiarism mass movement was created to protect small creators from getting bullied out of their due. Who are you trying to protect here? Nintendo? Pokemon was a rip-off of digimon and the jrpg's of that time. You gonna get up in arms about that?

This knee jerk hearing something is indirectly related to AI and assuming everything associated with it is stealing and bad needs to stop.

/endrant

**Also I can't find any direct evidence that they tried to use AI in development! Lots of people expressed interest in generative AI before the techbros hopped on the bandwagon and tried to monetize it as an art-stealing machine. This is not an admission of guilt.

#rant #video game rant #ai rant #palworld #reposted from earlier due to questionable op #leave jerma alone

[antianakin]

@theneutralmime

I'm gonna start with the easiest part of this and assure you grey Jedi are NOT a thing in canon (yet). Filoni seems to potentially be heading down a road where he WILL make grey Jedi canon via Ahsoka and Sabine (and maybe Shin), but at no point has the term ever actually come up in anything officially canon. Even if Filoni makes it canon, though, it will never be LUCAS canon.

Balancing the Force is about eliminating the Sith. The Force is, generally, balanced on its own, but the Sith cause an unbalance because they're exceedingly selfish and greedy and have the power to do something about it and cause it to spread. It's ABSOLUTELY not about having the same amount of Jedi and Sith or the same amount of "light" and dark. In essence, balance and "light" mean the same thing. If the Force is balanced, it just means there isn't an excess of darkness (which is generally only ever CAUSED if there's Sith around doing their thing).

Balance within yourself is usually considered to be acknowledging that darkness exists and is entirely natural (because it's caused by natural emotions like fear, pain, and anger) but then choosing NOT TO ACT ON IT. Balance is about choosing to be selfless and compassionate in SPITE of that darkness. When the Force is unbalanced, it means too many people ARE acting on that darkness which is feeding the dark side of the Force. This is usually caused by things in the galaxy being influenced by the Sith, like Palpatine corrupting the Senate through politics causing unrest among the people and then starting a galactic civil war.

While eliminating the Sith isn't going to be a magical cure all to the darkness they cause, it does provide BREATHING ROOM and the opportunity for people to work to do better and that ultimately starts bringing the Force completely back into balance. People will always have the capacity for selfishness and greed within them, but without the Sith, it's a much more manageable problem.

#star wars #the force #balance #sith #jedi #anti grey jedi #anti gray jedi #grey jedi critical #gray jedi critical

[short-wooloo]

I realized that the "true mandalorians" are basically the mando equivalent of grey jedi for the fandom

Both are legends only idea (so non canon)

It's based on a fallacious assumption that the correct choice between "being a murderous tyrant" and "not doing that" is a bit of both

That when you commit vigilante murder its OK because you only killed the "right" ones

The fandom ideas of true mandies/grey jedi are also based on terrible misunderstandings of what the Jedi/New Mandalorians are

Oh, and in addition to misunderstanding what the Jedi/New Mandalorians are, grey jedi/true mandalorian fans misunderstand what the group they're stanning are

Grey jedi are not users of both sides of the Force or "jedi who are smarter than everyone else"

And true mandalorians are not an enlightened middle path

Grey jedi as defined by fandom do not exist, as using both sides is an impossibility, and they're not better than the Jedi as their "middle path" usually amounts to sitting on their ass, refusing to choose between "setting the galaxy on fire" and "trying to stop that"

And "true" mandalorians are glorified mercenaries

Guns for hire

No political beliefs or policies

Just killers for profit, whatever supposed "morals" they have are for sale

#star wars #wooloo-writes #wooloo writes #sw #anti gray jedi #anti grey jedi #anti true mandalorians #mandalorian critical #mando critical #pro new mandalorians #in defense of the new mandalorians #anti mandos #anti mandalorian #anti mando

[multiverse-fandoms-2001]

My Original Female Character:

Full Name: Eileithyia

Nickname: Leithyia, Lei, Thyia

Born: 685

Age: 1338 (25 physically)

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Status: Alive

Origin: Earthrealm (Island in the Mediterranean)

Resides: Earthrealm

Specie: Human

Height: 5’8” (172 cm)

Hair Color: Silver

Eye Color: Gold

Skin Color: Pale (with grey tattoo)

Weapons:

- Two Chokutō

Hilt: 11.4 inches/29 com

Blade: 57.08 inches/145 cm

Total: 5 feet 8.5 inches /174 cm

- Two Ninjatō

Hilt: 5 inches/14 cm

Blade: 2 feet 4.3 inches/72 cm

Total: 2 feet 9.8 inches/86 cm

Affiliations:

- Yeborath Clan/Cult

- Emperor Jerrod (formerly)

- Lin Kuei (formerly)

- Shaolin Monks

- White Lotus Society

Likes: Knitting, cooking, reading, tea times with Liu Kang, teaching Rhea, hunting, piles of hugs, training with Kenshi, night movies.

Dislikes: Sindel, Rhea getting hurt, her loved one in danger, not being able to use the full potential of her magic.

Backstory: Eileithyia was a young matron from a warrior clan native to an island in the Mediterranean. She watched as her husband and clan were slaughtered by the sorcerer thirsting for their souls, and had to give a quick and painless death to the few who survived but had their lives by a thin line. She would have joined her husband, sisters, and brothers if it weren't for the Lin Kuei and their lifetime debt...

She lies for more than a thousand years freezing, where once was her home, now it was a tomb, her clan has been erased from history, forgotten, or so she thought... Waking up in what was said to be the 21st century, with no knowledge of the modern environment in which she found herself, Eileithyia starts a new life in a village, decides to leave her past behind but her plans go down the drain when a certain Fire God and Protector of Earthrealm shows up at her favorite teahouse…

Personality: Eileithyia is wise, attentive and kind to those she considers family but is highly cautious, suspicious and critical of outsiders. After the massacre of her clan, she turned dark and bloody, resorting to even darker magic than she was used to in an attempt to avenge her clan.

After starting visiting Madam Bo's Teahouse and start a friendship with Raiden and Kung Lao, her behavior changed slightly, losing interest in killing and leaving behind his path of revenge, preferring to incapacitate his opponent without seriously injuring him. Many villagers in Fengjian describe Eileithyia as cold, aloof, lonely, and silent, refraining from showing her softer side, being reserved only for children, Madam Bo, Kung Lao, and Raiden. And despite her cold exterior, everyone in Fengjian knew that they could trust Eileithyia with their children, many speak and praise warmly about her fierce protection.

She has a slightly dark sense of humor in combat, often joking that she needs certain parts of her opponent's body as a sacrifice to the Elder Gods or for some dark ritual. She also has some sadistic tendencies, such as liking to give a slow and painful death to a person who she fully believes to deserves it, she also finds it satisfying to take a person to death with her own hands, reaching the point of healing all the wounds that she caused and repeating everything again.

Author's notes: Hello, how are you guys? I hope you liked the character I created. I used Merrin from Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor to be the face of my character, I may be a passable editor but not the best artist. 😅 I also wanted to say thank you to @lynn-w3st 😘 for helping me develop the character as well as ideas for developing the story.

I'm still thinking about whether or not I should make a prologue, I already have the first chapter in mind and maybe some intros but I'm still writing other information about my original character (brutalities, fatalities, fatal blow)… please be patient with me, I'm very nervous about this. And sorry if there were any spelling mistakes, English is not my first language and I am using the translator to write the parts where my English is not that good.

#my ocs #my oc character #original female character #reader insert #mortal kombat fanfiction #mortal kombat 1 #mortal kombat 1 2023

[writerbuddha]

Do you think writers should use more of a well-defined morality approach to the widespread "grey"? Though the former has always been criticized for its simplicity and irrelevant to the real world, the franchise under George Lucas looked like a gateway for philosophical understanding. If possible, as someone who understands it well, what is your opinion on the separation of Pure Evil (ingrained by DNA) and Broken characters?

I think that when it comes to writing, we need to distinguish between layout and morality, because only then we can address the problems with separating Pure Evil and Broken characters!

I think writers should use a more well-defined morality approach, but that's different from the conventional morality approach, I call it light-and-dark morality as opposed to black-and-white.

Layout: "black-and-white" and "grey"

BLACK-AND-WHITE LAYOUT:

In black-and-white layout, the characters are arranged along clearly and strictly defined lines: we have the heroes who are Good and we have the villains who are Evil. We have these sides opposing each other, and it's very clear which side we should identify with and who should win. The overwhelming majority of the most popular stories of our time, including but not limited to George Lucas' Star Wars, uses black-and-white layout. Jedi Knights versus Sith Lords, the Rebellion versus the Empire, the humans versus the orcs, wizards and witches versus the Death Eaters, Gandalf the White versus the Dark Lord, Snow White versus the Evil Queen, the Pevensie children versus the White Witch and so on. It's important to note that this doesn't mean that heroes can't turn into villains and villains can't turn into heroes, nor does it mean that there can't be hero figures on both sides, but but it means, that will always be a clear shift from Good to Evil and from Evil to Good, or that the heroes of the Evil side are deceived.

Black-and-white layout sometimes might allow for "grey" characters. The mildest example of this might be Grumpy in Snow White, who is quite hostile to the sweet princess, but who obviously loves her, and then there is Hondo Ohnaka in Clone Wars, who is a criminal and serving only himself, but there are signs of willingness to do good. But most often than doesn't, "grey" eventually must choose.

GREY LAYOUT

Grey layout is understood to be a relatively new type of layout for a story, but Homer's Iliad could be one of the most ancient surviving examples of it: there is a king who fights for his honor, a king who fights for his city, a prince who fights for love, a warrior who fights for glory. We can identify and empathize with both sides, or at least we can find both sides' actions comprehensible, plausible. I think the best example of grey layout today would be Netflix' Arcane, where, even though we can point out the least sympathetic characters, we can't comfortably declare one side Good or Right and the other Evil or Wrong, whereas in black-and-white layout, this is a very easy task.

Grey layout can be seen as a more realistic layout for a story, trying to address complex, contemporary issues, while the black-and-white layout is more metaphorical, focusing on conveying universal lessons and messages in an abstract way that can be translated to concrete situations. In this sense, stories with grey layout seek to present reality and bring attention to concrete issues in the real world, and stories with black-and-white layout are focusing on presenting role models, to raise human beings who are able to solve concrete issues.

Morality: "black-and-white," "black-and-broken-and-flawed-and-white," "grey" and "light-and-dark"

BLACK-AND-WHITE MORALITY

Black-and-white morality can exist only in a black-and-white layout, but it's crucial to understand, black-and-white layout doesn't always results in black-and-white morality. In fact, black-and-white morality stories are quite rare and they can end up being criticized for being overly simplified and for failing to be applicable to reality. In black-and-white morality, everything between birth and death can be seen as a war between clearly and sharply defined poles of Good and Evil. Good is always the most morally pure and satisfying, most just and also nicest thing to do, and the Good Ones are always doing Good.

The only ones who are dissatisfied with them are the Evil Ones, who are willfully and consciously fighting against the morally pure and satisfying, the just and nice, and do Evil, the exact opposite, instead. Black-and-white morality isn't trying to explain or understand Evil, it only focuses on identifying it, locating it and destroying it, which is, of course, the Good thing to do. In black-and-white morality, Evil is understood to be either as is a quality that we are born with (i.e. "ingrained by DNA") or that Evil is something like an infection that is nevertheless under our conscious control (i.e. "you sold your soul!") Lord of the Rings is the closest thing to black-and-white morality stories: the heroes are creatures of light and grace or modesty and simple good-will, they're noble and well-meaning, even though they can be corrupted by Evil, which is a creature of fire and darkness, leading an army of deformed, vile, animalistic monsters.

BLACK-AND-BROKEN-AND-FLAWED-AND-WHITE MORALITY

The reason why black-and-white morality faces with increasing criticism for is the fact that it fails to address the complexity of life: whenever we look deeply into the heart of someone we identified as Evil, we find that they actually don't meet the criteria: they, just like ourselves, simply want to be happy and not to suffer, and this is at the core of everything they do. They don't see themselves as Evil, they didn't vow to destroy Good. In fact, more often than doesn't, they're, too, victims of Evil. Black-and-white morality is sometimes replaced with another type of morality that includes Broken, who is like a white chess pawn moved by the player who is with black: they are not Evil, but, in truth, they're Good, who are the victim of Evil, and because the Evil that was done to them, they are twisted to a place where they themselves do Evil. It would be important to realize that this is still black-and-white morality: it insists on the existence of Evil that must be identified and destroyed without any hesitation or compassion and it asks us to believe and not to ask questions when it points at someone and says "Evil" and at another saying, "Broken."

The morality that separates Evil and Broken is just black-and-white morality trying to delay the inevitable collapse of the entire binary upon which it was built, and by doing so, it also paralyzes its heroes. Treating Broken characters as Evil would fail to meet with the criteria of Good, therefore, each and any character who decides to respond with countermeasures to the Evil done by Broken characters cannot be Good - they're flawed. In fact, so the reasoning goes, Good would make Good attractive enough for the Broken, so they won't choose Evil, thus ultimately, anything that the Broken character did, was the fault of the Flawed characters. True Good characters must gather all their Goodness and radiate it to Broken characters, and turning them back to Good as a result. It would be important to note that this type of morality is often presented as relevant and nuanced, but in truth, it's an even more severely absolutist morality that cannot tolerate nuance and fails to address the complexities of life, insisting on a dangerously simplistic view. However, its popularity is growing in fandoms, even though to this date, it manifested itself only in hot takes built on "death to the author!" theory.

GREY MORALITY

Grey morality can be defined in many ways, but it's essentially the rejection of black-and-white morality paired with the view that Good and Evil are both just ideas and the line between right and wrong is blurred. Although grey morality is seen by many as the morality that moves beyond the dichotomy of Good and Evil, it should be noted that it stops at rejecting this dichotomy - it's either not equipped or not willing to explore a post-black-and-white reality. For this reason, apart from dwelling on the absence of the clearly and strictly defined lines dividing Good and Evil, stories adopting grey morality are not really having much to say, it doesn't really know where to go from there, since although it pushed the old moral compass aside and didn't make a new one to navigate. Grey heroes are usually angsty, edgy, "not good so that's bad but not evil, so that's good" figures.

It should be noted that stories adopting grey morality can deal with complex and relevant issues and can communicate very important messages, and grey characters can develop or mature. In fact, most of them ends up doing immense good to others, so grey morality sooner and later does try to a re-establish black-and-white layout, but it presents heroes and role models who are careful not to rise the bar too high, since grey morality holds an essentially skeptical views on humanity. Although it won't come to any profound conclusion about Good and Evil and how to conduct ourselves in the world, it does try to update Good and Evil in a way that says, "It's OK. No one is perfect, just keep trying to do your best, that's all that can be asked, really." Game of Thrones or Hunger Games might be good examples of this.

LIGHT-AND-DARK MORALITY

Although light-and-dark morality can exist both in black-and-white layout and grey layout, it's the least popular type of morality, since it challenges the conventional story of Good and Evil, even though it defines "good" and "evil" very strictly and clearly. In a nutshell, light-and-dark morality tells us: anything we resent in another person is also within ourselves, a part of all that lives. Evil behavior arises as a result of other causes and conditions, the "dark" parts of ourselves: fear, anger, hate aggression, greed, selfishness, bitterness, jealousy and so on, and an Evil Person is a person who is under the sway of these parts themselves. Therefore, although light-and-dark morality acknowledges the reality of conflict, in place of the struggle between Good and Evil and the quest to identify and destroy external Evil, it emphasizes identifying and conquering our own dark side and the understanding of the true nature of Evil, as a way of really winning battles between what is understood as Good and Evil. Therefore, the struggle is to keep the roots of Evil within ourselves under check and to cultivate compassion, wisdom, generosity and mindfulness.

Light-and-dark morality, therefore, proposes, there is no Evil that we can identify and destroy and then label it a Good and Right thing to do, to which only those will object who are consciously and willfully chose to fight against the most morally pure, most satisfying and nicest thing. This is a conclusion that black-and-white morality tries to avoid by separating Evil and Broken characters, since it clings on the notions of absolute Good and absolute Evil. The light-and-dark morality tale equates Evil with Broken, and it indicates, we must be able to recognize when we have to stop fighting for the Broken and we have to start to fight for those who must be protected from the Broken, who inflicts pain and suffering and harm onto others. Thus, light-and-dark morality rejects the idea, the Good and Right thing is always satisfying and just and nice to everyone: it proposes, we must accept, in many cases, the right thing to do isn't the nicest, the most gentle or most pleasant or most agreeable thing to do; the wrong thing to do isn't always the nasty, mean, unkind, unpleasant thing to do. And unlike grey morality that blurs the lines between good and evil, light-and-dark morality proposes, everything has a dark and a light side: there is no action that is inherently good or evil, whether it becomes a good or an evil act will depend on our motivations and the circumstances we're in. George Lucas' Star Wars story is one of the best examples of light-and-dark morality: he defined the battle between Good and Evil is defined as a battle between selflessness and selfishness, that is, in truth, the battle between no-fear and fear. Jedi Knights are focusing on doing good and to prevent evil from rising, but in order to do that, they must do things that aren't Good according to the criteria established by black-and-white morality.

#morality #grey morality #black and white morality #star wars #George lucas #writing #good guys and bad guys #good and evil #anon ask #evil or broken

[marveltaughtmetoread]

I think the crux of the disconnect between Prequels era fans is that the Jedi supporters believe the Jedi are good and right, and it is on this that we should support, and the Jedi critical fans are like no one in this era is good and right, including the Jedi, and the fact that you won't admit the Jedi are wrong is driving us insane

Because frequently when Jedi supporters are arguing with me, they are dismissing the notion that the Jedi could ever do anything wrong and then bring up how awful Anakin is as a way to say I am wrong, because I support Anakin

Which I don't support Anakin????

I like him, he is an incredibly compelling character especially as someone who knows what it is like to repress your feelings and want so badly to hold onto the ones who care for you

But I don't support him, it's actually because I relate to him that I don't, I wish I could save him, I have compassion for him, but he killed people, he committed genocide, twice??? In the Prequels??? He is exactly the type of person who terrifies me in real life, I don't support him

My love of his character writing does not mean that I am overlooking his clear moral failings or even that agree with him, because I don't, I actually love his character more because he is written to be so flawed morally, he is an exploration of emotional repression and how wanting power, even if it is to save someone else can still make you a bad person, it is this complexity that drew me to him as a character

I am drawn to morally complex characters in spite of the fact that their actions go against my morals, because I personally find morally complex characters to be more compelling

So why then, if I like morally flawed characters do I have such an issue with the Jedi and their morals in particular

Quite simply, it's the way they aren't written (especially in the Clone Wars) with that same moral complexity, they are written as if they are moral good

And it is this framing of them that a lot of Jedi supporters have clearly sided with and made their reason to support the Jedi, they believe the Jedi are good and believe that fans should support morally good characters so they can't understand why I wouldn't support them

But the Jedi aren't morally good and I find the inability to acknowledge that alarming

The Prequels movies do a much better job of showing how their inaction leads to bad things, but even in the Prequels there isn't a full of acknowledgement of how far they have fallen

Whereas the Clone Wars just doesn't acknowledge it, at all, they flatten the story down so it has no moral complexity, they have clear cut good guys and bad guys, the Jedi are the good guys, no matter what, the bad guys are the Sith, their is the occasional attempt at making the morality of the Clone Wars more grey but it is inconsistent, and overall the approach is a binary

The issue is, in painting the Jedi as morally good, the Prequels era glosses over how they aren't, they aren't objectively good, no one in the Prequels era but in pretending that they are, you make the meta around the canon morally complex

You have people defending the Jedi's use of the clones, choice to ignore slaves and chain themselves to the Repiy, handling of Anakin and the Padawans in general, involvement in the war and everything else because the Jedi are framed as good guys

I have yet to meet anyone defending Anakin's actions because he is so clearly framed as the guy falling to the Dark Side, we are meant to mourn his fall but we aren't meant to think he was in the right

Not everything the Jedi did is bad, but enough is that placing them on a pedestal and calling them the heroes, acting like they don't deserve this slander when Jedi critical fans are just pointing out how the Jedi are morally compromised, is messed up

There is no moral high ground when it comes to the Prequels, everyone compromises themselves (including Padme, she stayed with Anakin,), but some fans want to act like there is and so we have a disconnect

#anti jedi code #jedi order #jedi critical #star wars meta #star wars discourse #star wars #star wars prequels #jedi council #star wars the clone wars #anakin skywalker #jedi #anti jedi #star wars clone wars #sw clone wars #sw cw #star wars prequel era #star wars phantom menace #phantom menace #attack of the clones #star wars attack of the clones #revenge of the sith #star wars revenge of the sith #clone wars #the clone army #anti jedi order

[paragonrobits]

in retrospect Kreia from Knights of the Old Republic 2 feels like a deconstruction of the Grey Jedi concept (or the non-Evil Sith concept) in that she is neither a Jedi nor a Sith, and being really bad at trying to be either

she is far too amoral, cruel and indifferent to be a Jedi; she openly criticizes any kind of compassion or altruism as spreading weakness, to the point that it can actually be pretty difficult to play Light Side because she will (in my experience) complain about every thing you do. She seems to operate on a kind of rational self-interest, so to speak, but the thing about the Start Wars universe is that it is a deliberately pulpy universe that is rather hostile to that sort of thing; genuinely believing and saying the things Kreia does pushes you to the Dark Side of Turbo-Evil. Its enough that people in-universe, including implicitly the Sith she taught, can’t really stand her. She complains about this a few times if you find the right dialogue, implying that she envies your ability to charm and inspire people.

At the same time, she does not and cannot go far enough to truly sink to the Dark Side as other Sith do. She’s amoral and cruel, but perhaps less in the sense of deliberate malevolence and more in the sense that she does not care. She is unmoved and uncaring of the suffering of others, but at the same time she disapproves of genuine malevolence, and a Dark Side player who rampages around killing everything in sight REALLY pisses her off. She dislikes altruism but also can’t stand being a rampaging murderhobo, preferring instead for someone who is amoral like her.

And so this leads me back to the idea that she might well be a good idea of a dark depiction of a Grey Jedi, taken to the logical extreme; you really CAN’T be a Force User who taps into both the Dark and Light sides freely, because tapping into the Dark Side at all is a miserable process that makes you sink deeper into monstrosity and selfish thinking, while harmonizing oneself with tthe Light prevents you from doing that. You can’t vibe with the fundamental rightness of all things AND immerse yourself in the worst parts of a person. So Kreia depicts a middle ground, but its different from the way fandom has often depicted the Jedi; rather than the idealized image of someone who gets to pick both, what you get is someone who espouses a neutral viewpoint that feels as much as a wrongness in the setting as the Force Void of the Exile’s own nature.

#star wars #knights of the old republic 2 #kotor 2 #kotor 2 spoilers #kreia #analysis #anyway we have SEEN Jedi that are at peace with their anger and use it without being corrupted #they're called Jedi #most specifically Mace Windu is closest to what people THINK a Grey Jedi is #but trust me you spend your time around abusive personalities who constantly #lash out and never control themselves and harm everyone around them when th ey're made #and the romance of being free with your emotions goes away REAL FAST

[lizlives]

Grey Jedi Discourse

I'm kinda out of the loop on Gray Jedi discourse. Before I saw the discourse, I took Grey Jedi to just mean light side users who, to varying degrees, reject or criticize elements of Jedi tradition. But now I go online and everyone is hating on the concept? What's up with that?

Because like, unless I'm just am not using the right term, I still generally identify with that idea, more than I do those who are completely Jedi. Am I just an idiot? Asking genuinely.

#star wars #grey jedi #jedi