#qui-gon is not alive in this instance and Obi-Wan does not think he's alive this is just how bad his paranoia is

[agoddamn]

Since you need to concentrate to use the Force in Star Wars, a startlingly effective Force suppressant would just be weed

#star wars #sorry but Obi-Wan is the dude who gets super paranoid on weed. he told me himself #qui-gon is not alive in this instance and Obi-Wan does not think he's alive this is just how bad his paranoia is #this post brought to you by that time i got high and curled up in bed terrified that my mom across the country somehow knew

[artsy0wl]

Maul: A Broken Evil Retrospective

On a Star Wars Amino I’m in, I had made an introspective on why I feel that Maul, while he is a villain is not whole heartedly evil, but broken.  I took from said Amino post, with a few needed edit tweaks.

Chaotic Evil

Of course given the fact he was a Sith and some of the decisions he’s made, I don’t completely want to negate that in this discussion. If we were to use the alignment chart (lawful good, true neutral, chaotic evil, etc), he would probably fit best in Neutral Evil. From my understanding, Maul would fit Neutral Evil as a lot if what he does has to do with benefiting himself. Even if that means using allies (i.e. Ezra initially) and potentially betraying them (i.e. blinding Kanan once the Inquisitors were dealt with). He’ll follow things as he needs and can be calculating when he needs (like his take over of Mandalore). He’s not spontaneous enough or lacks enough restraint to be Chaotic Evil (like the Joker for instance), nor is he as calculating and “lawful” to be Lawful Evil (like say Thrawn and/or Palpatine). With that said, I’d agree that Maul has a darkness/evil in him considering all of the things he’s done. Obviously, he’s not winning any hero points by killing people like Qui Gon and Satine or blinding and attempting to kill Kanan. 

Onto why I feel he’s broken.

Palpatine: Taken From a Young Age and Molded into what Sidious Wanted

Whether it be Talzin offering Maul as a child in Canon or his mother giving Palpatine Maul as a baby in Legends (Darth Plagueis), Maul was caught in a situation that he really didn’t have much control over. Granted, his life may not have been much better on Dathomir, given how the Nightsisters used their male counterparts, but there’s no telling what kind of life he could have had, had he not been handed over to Palpatine. Maul was molded into a weapon as Darth Sidious’ apprentice. And Maul spent most of his younger years being molded into what Sidious wants. Only to be “cast aside” when he is presumed dead. With Sidious being his only form of human contact/interaction, it’s fair to say that Maul feels a level of rejection/abandonment by the only person he had a bond with.

However, rather than having a level of depression because of it, he’s angry about it. For him that seems to be a common response, along with hatred and arrogance (the latter of which was used to explain how he survived the Phantom Menace). Sidious created a weapon out of Maul. And with that, a character with no real coping mechanism or knowing how to let things go.

A lot of, if not all of, Maul’s issues can be linked back to Sidious in some way. Sidious isn’t exactly Mentor of the Year material. Especially with Maul.  Though that could be chopped up to him being a Sith and very manipulative.  He wasn’t the kindest person to the Zabrak pre or post Phantom Menace (both in canon and Legends). Either way, a lot of Maul’s issues are a direct result of Palpatine’s involvement in his life.

If it weren’t for Sidious, Maul would have a normal life (or whatever that would equate to on Dathomir). He would have had his family, would have been more level headed and maybe less cocky, and he wouldn’t have enraged abandonment issues. The amount of grief, trauma, and hatred would be vastly different

Family: He Lost a Brother and a Mother

Let’s be real, thanks to Sidious, Maul’s lost a brother and a mother (two brothers when you count Feral, though he never got to meet him). By the time Savage came around in Clone Wars, we got to see Maul sort of build his character more than say the Phantom Menace (the novels did too, but I can’t say that everyone’s read them). We also get to see Maul exhibit more emotion where, again, the movie lacks as well as the introduction of his family, Mother Talzin, Feral, and Savage. And while Maul may not have been what you’d call an “affectionate” brother, he does care for Savage to the best of his ability.

Their deaths still haunted him years after the events of the Prequel Trilogy and Clone Wars. These deaths stuck with him psychologically to the point that he is still effected by it in Rebels. Which in turn, may have contributed some to him wanting Ezra as an apprentice (among other factors).

Torture After Loss

In Son of Dathomir after Maul tries to get back at Sidious, he is captured after his last battle with Sidious in Clone Wars (season 5). It starts off with Maul being interrogated and tortured by Sidious. He makes it through without faltering and escapes with the help of the Shadow Collective. That being said, we never really get to see where his mindset is. During Son of Dathomir, he gets a lot done, capturing Dooku and Grievous (taunting Sidious and working with Dooku to fight Obi Wan and a few other Jedi before escaping). However, we don’t get to see the mental toll Savage’s death here. Though with everything going on, I guess there wasn’t time.

Now the reason I bring this up, is because part of me felt like I should and the timing. Prior to Son of Dathomir, Maul had recently lost Savage. At the end, he loses his mother. The torture and the scheming in between shows how he didn’t catch a break. And while he was able to stay strong when he had to, they never really explored how the torture effected him, which one would think he would have been.

Obsession, Insanity, Arrogance: Maul’s Faults

I do feel like I address this point. I’ve already kind of touched on his anger and arrogance (synonymously with cockiness). While training Maul, Sidious didn’t consider how arrogant he had let the Zabrak become (according to Darth Plagueis, the novel). This has Maul’s Achilles Heel since the Phantom Menace. While having a healthy dose of pride never hurt anyone, a healthy dose, Maul dose not possess.

His obsession with getting Obi Wan and Sidious is another issue. This really only pops up after his apparent death in Phantom Menace. Because after that point, Maul finds out that he was replaced by Sidious (with Dooku) and that he was bested by a mere Padawan (Obi Wan). I feel like this obsessive tendency is a combination of his feelings of abandonment and having his ego damaged.

And of course, I feel like Maul’s roughly decade long battle with insanity really didn’t help his psyche. While his sanity was restored thanks to Mother Talzin and Savage, I do feel like that’s caused more harm than good. Something like that had to feel draining after getting his sanity restored. He was sitting on a trash planet and on his own. Along with not having anything from the waist down and forced to manage with what he had. Hatred may have helped keep him alive, but his psyche during those ten years didn’t.

He has a lot of internal conflict in an emotional and mental sense. Unfortunately, these negative emotions, obsession and pride especially, cause him more harm than good.

The Ezra Bond: Feeling a Need to Replicate a Connection, Even if He Approaches it Incorrectly

By the time Rebels rolls around, Maul is older and calmer (though still proud). Obviously, he still wants to get back at the Empire for what they (more specifically Sidious) did to him. And at first, Ezra seemed like someone that he could use. This is an element that is prevalent, however, not the only aspect of their relationship.

According to Sam Witwer, Maul’s VA, Maul did have a (platonic) fondness for Ezra. And on top of wanting to make Ezra his apprentice, Maul wanted to emulate a sense of brotherhood between him and Ezra. For example, his phrase in Visions and Voices when Maul says “...We can walk that path together. As friends. As brothers.” How he said it shows how he does miss Savage and wants that family back.

That being said, how he approached this connection could be seen as manipulative and more than likely one sided.  Sure, over the course of Twilight of the Apprentice, Ezra grows on Maul, to the point where Maul wants to make him his apprentice and has an appreciation for Ezra. However, his pride and lack of planning cause a rift between them and there was a lot of mistrust on Ezra’s part, not that one could blame him.

Subsequent episodes show that Maul is hellbent on making Ezra his apprentice through any means possible. 

Maul lost Savage and Talzin, and Ezra was one of the first few people to trust him in years.  I think it’s safe to say that, in Maul’s mind, Ezra gave him a sense of belonging or connection.

Maul’s need for a connection could be interpreted as him trying to find something good in life. However, manipulative tendencies and how he was brought up, hinder him doing that in a healthy and positive way. With Savage, he didn’t need to do anything as they both had a similar plan when they met (Savage being indoctrinated into the ways of the Sith). But subsequent relationships (i.e. Ezra), Maul is at a bit of a disadvantage emotionally and morally. 

Sure, he could relate to Ezra since they both lost people they care for because of the Empire (and by extent Sidious), but manipulation and harming Ezra’s allies hinder a smoother connection. Even if a force bond was eventually made. Ezra, arguably, could have been what he needed for what he wanted and a possible change/redemption/blank slate only for things not to entirely go as plan.

Could Maul Have Something Along the Lines of PTSD?

Now, I could do a mini theory about this as I’ve speculated that with another character before. It’d be an interesting way to look at Maul’s psychology. It’s one last little avenue I thought I’d address before closing this post out. Of course, it’s worth noting that I am not a Psychology major (as interesting as psychology is). I have, however, done some research.

I do believe that Maul, to some degree, may have PTSD. But instead of exhibiting panic/anxiety, depression or easily startled, Maul has more aggressive tendencies and is easy to anger. He still lives with the trauma of the death of his brother (and mother) and flashbacks of that and other events in his life, I’m sure he’d be effected by.

Conclusion

In conclusion, while I certainly think that Maul is no hero, his life experiences certainly effected what kind of person he became. Being raised as a weapon, abandoned, and tortured would bring any normal person way down. And because that was all Maul knew, I don’t think that entirely means he’s evil. Rather, he’s a character who’s been used and abused to the point that he’s mentally and psychologically broken. Unfortunately, that effects his life in ways that make him arrogant, hateful and obsessive. And when he tries to build bonds later in life, he doesn’t know how to in a way that, while laced in trauma, has manipulative and one sided undertones.

That being said, I feel like I should round out this introspective with a little positive. While he’s definitely been through a lot, Maul is pretty resilient all things considered. He’s cheated death and managed to live through a lot of abuse. The fact that he could keep bouncing back shows just hoe resilient and determined the character is.

#Darth Maul #Star Wars #Rebels #Clone Wars #Movies #Retrospective #Theory #Speculation #Discussion #PTSD? #Chaotic Evil #Maul #Star Wars Rebels #Star Wars Clone Wars #Zabrak #Prequel Trilogy

[gffa]

Master and Apprentice | by Claudia Gray THIS BOOK IS FASCINATING because I’m leaving out a lot of context (because quoting all of it would literally take up about 20 pages of scrolling) but this is one of about four things winding together to build us a picture of who Qui-Gon Jinn is.  There’s repeated emphasis on how calm he is--and the author has spoken about how that’s one of the things that intrigued her most about the character, this person who could be in the middle of this incredible intense fight on Theed, to kneel and meditate in the middle of battle, what must that kind of person be like?--and there are several instances in the story like this, where Qui-Gon is pretty unflappable.  He’s not emotionless by any means, he’s not detached from the world around him, but he is calm and measured--to the point that it irritates the people around him sometimes! This is a Qui-Gon that also interested me, the first half of the book had him really appealing to me, this person who could be compassionate about how much he annoyed people, who really seemed like he had his shit together, he’d mastered himself. But then the book keeps rolling along.  And there are multiple threads/undercurrents going on--including a growing obsession with ancient prophecies when he was younger, one that is absolutely written with threads of starting to cross a line with how much he’s getting hooked on them.  The flashbacks are largely about this, how both he and Dooku become obsessed with these things and eventually, Qui-Gon has to set them aside, not because he makes peace with them/himself, but because it’s the only way to keep Dooku from going off the deep end.  He never really does the soul-searching to figure himself out, so when the prophecies pop back up again during the events of this book, well, it sure is interesting how he reacts. At first, he questions himself and them, he does genuinely try to look inside himself and to trust in the Force, to find the balance and fine line between all the things that are thrown at him.  But here’s why I bring up the prophecy thing on a post about how calm Qui-Gon is--because, once Qui-Gon has decided the prophecies must be true, his thoughts are, “His conscience twinged him slightly; it was important for Jedi not to become arrogant, not to impose their wishes and values on all others around them. But this situation was different. It had to be, because the only thing Qui-Gon knew to be absolutely true was that his vision was real.“ It’s why I wrote this post about Qui-Gon’s own arrogance in this matter and growing re-obsession with the prophecies, and quoting the above shows something I really did not expect--that it’s contrasted against how he starts behaving once he’s 100% Absolutely Totally Sure The Visions He Has Are Correct.  There’s no longer any room for doubt, he’s the only one who understands the prophecies, they’re no longer dangerous to him, he repeatedly shows an unwillingness to trust anyone around him, he repeatedly misreads them and never stops to consider that maybe he should stop assuming so many things (Obi-Wan doesn’t explode on him, like Qui-Gon expects, the Council actually wants him for his different opinions, he expects his visions to be treated with no seriousness, but they’re given due consideration), he literally says that, when he misinterpreted something, he was meant to misinterpret it. I mean, even if Qui-Gon is right about these things (and, frankly, he’s not wholly right about all of this), he does exactly what a Jedi shouldn’t do--he stops questioning his assumptions, he bends the facts around him rather than his assumptions, he isolates himself by believing that he’s the only one who understands, he stops trying to see things from someone else’s perspective. With most things, even the things that he finds abhorrent in this book, he manages to keep himself calm.  But when Obi-Wan questions him--entirely reasonable, mild questions, even!--suddenly he’s losing enough of his composure to start snapping back?  This is the place where Qui-Gon starts to lose his cool a little bit and, hey, losing your cool for a moment isn’t a bad thing, Jedi do that all the time, it’s a lifetime’s work to master yourself and it’s never done.  He’s not going to turn into a Sith Lord overnight. But it’s a strong contrast against his usual calm, that this thing he’s never really put to rest within himself, these prophecies that he was growing genuinely obsessed with, that he never really did that much soul searching on, just realized one day that He Was Right, then suddenly started snapping at people when questioned, started thinking he was immune to their danger now, behaves in increasingly hypocritical ways, and it paints a really fascinating picture of someone who had good intentions, who had a caring soul, but got lost in his own head about it. All in a book that’s centered on three out of four characters (Qui-Gon, Dooku, and Rael) having issues with inner balance.  Dooku steadily turns to the dark side, Rael is absolutely consumed by attachment and cannot see clearly and nearly lets millions of people on Pijal get fucked over because of it, and *waves hand* all of this with Qui-Gon. It doesn’t matter how much Qui-Gon is right or wrong about the prophecies being true (again, he’s not wholly right about them, as well as he’s something of a hypocrite about them--if they’re meant to happen, that’s why he had to bend over backwards to ensure that they did during TPM?), it’s the way he goes about it, the way he starts to get lost within his own head about them, that’s the way he starts inching towards the dark side.  Which isn’t the same as saying Qui-Gon was about to go full Sith Lord, because I don’t believe that for a second. But, you know, maybe Dooku wasn’t entirely wrong about him.

Dooku:  It's a great pity that our paths have never crossed before, Obi-Wan. Qui-Gon always spoke very highly of you. I wish he were still alive. I could use his help right now. Obi-Wan:  Qui-Gon Jinn would never join you. Dooku:   Don't be so sure, my young Jedi. I always chalked it up to Dooku’s unreliable narrator voice (which, interestingly enough, is on full display in Dooku: Jedi Lost, an audiodrama where Cavan Scott collaborated a lot with Claudia Gray about some of this stuff, it’s certainly painting a fuller picture) but after this book, well, I still don’t think Qui-Gon would have, but it certainly wouldn’t be as easy a decision for him as I once thought.  The Qui-Gon of Master and Apprentice was closer to that than I realized.

#obi wan kenobi #qui gon jinn #count dooku #meta #novels #as an eta: i'm being way harsh on qui-gon #and if it were just this ONE thread i wouldn't be making a big deal about it #but it's like four separate themes in this book winding together #that make me notice it more prominently

[miss-musings]

In Defense of TLJ’s Finn/Rose Subplot (SPOILERS)

I’ve seen a lot of criticism about the film as a whole, but of the Finn/Rose subplot specifically.

Now, I have some legitimate problems with the subplot; I’m not saying it was 100% flawless and amazing and completely necessary. There are definitely parts of it that should’ve been deleted, extended or changed.

For instance, I thought the whole “animal abuse” angle was a little heavy-handed; and the sequence where they trashed the whole town could’ve been about a minute or two shorter; and some of the dialogue and shots of BB-8 could’ve been cut down; and how the casino felt a little to “Earth” or “real-to-life” and not alien or foreign or fantastical enough to feel like a Star Wars planet; and how the culmination of the subplot -- ie, Rose (presumably) falling in love with Finn -- was a shot where Rose saves Finn from sacrificing himself for the Resistance, and then when their friends are endangered because she stopped him... as the First Order is literally blowing up their hideout... she takes that opportunity to kiss him. And then collapses. Like, I got the point, and I liked her line about “saving what we love,” but it just felt a little disjointed tone-wise.

HOWEVER.

I felt like this subplot had a lot of positives and gave us a look at some topics/themes/perspectives that I felt like we needed at this point in the trilogy/franchise.

An example: so, in the first movie, the First Order are evil. They raid the village on Jakku, killing everyone. They raid Maz’s place on Takodana, killing a lot of people and causing massive destruction. They blow up several planets. Etc.

But, in this movie, we see the wider ranging impact’s of the First Order’s regime on the galaxy’s population at large. Rose tells us about how her home planet was exploited by the First Order for its resources, and then the regime tested the weapons on its people. On Canto Bight, we see how wealthy some have become because they sell supplies to the First Order (and the Resistance), and the grim and abusive reality that exists behind this facade of extravagance and wealth (ie, the animals and kids who work with them are both maltreated).

I think it’s also important to remind the audience, that while we follow the main plot of the Resistance vs. the First Order, Jedi vs. Sith, etc., like 95% of the people in this galaxy are just carrying on with their daily lives. They’re not pilots or Stormtroopers or Force-wielders or whatever. They’re just everyday people.

Well, somewhat.

This was something that made the Clone Wars series so strong, was that we got to see how people outside of the War itself were living. How it impacted their lives. And it’s another thing that I think makes this sideplot somewhat successful.

It also showed us that the desire to rebel against the corrupt and abusive establishment/status quo is alive and well in the hearts of young children; that like our heroes of all three trilogies, they have the desire to change their lives/destinies... that they have hopes of better lives. Of adventure. Of heroism. Of peace. Of happiness. Just as Luke did when he looked at the Twin Suns in “A New Hope.” That sequence showed us that Holdo was right. Even if their allies didn’t come to save them today (in TLJ), the hopes of the Resistance are alive and well in the hearts of the downtrodden, like the little kids on Canto Bight.

NOW.

The biggest criticism I’ve seen of the subplot is that it was pointless. That it didn’t accomplish anything. That Finn and Rose went all that way, got captured, and then lucked their way into an escape. That they didn’t do what they set out to do, which was turn off the tracking device so the Resistance could escape the First Order. That their plan failed.

But, the defense I have for that is:

Since when did anything in Star Wars go according to plan?

Especially in the original trilogy.

Episode 4: Luke and Obi-Wan try to get the droids to Alderaan, but it’s destroyed and they get captured. And then, while they DO rescue Princess Leia and get away from the Death Star, Luke loses Obi-Wan in the process and then they lead the Empire right to the base on Yavin 4. Great job, you guys. I guess the trench run and blowing up the Death Star went according to plan, but that seems to be more of an exception than the rule. And, plus, you know, had to end the movie on a happy note.

Episode 5: The evacuation of Hoth is somewhat successful. But, Han & Co.’s attempts to escape the Imperial Fleet don’t go so well. They get tracked by Boba Fett to Cloud City, Han’s “friend” Lando betrays them, and then when they try to save Han from Boba Fett, they fail. That whole side plot was nothing but failure. The heroes got captured. Han got tortured, frozen in carbonite and taken. Vader was successful in luring Luke into a trap. Luke got his hand cut off, and his friends had to come back and save him. And Vader would’ve caught them if R2 hadn’t reactivated the hyperdrive.

Episode 6: The infamous “It’s a Trap” line exists for a reason. The Empire essentially lures the Rebels into attacking the Death Star / Endor. When Han & Co. try to take down the shield generator, they’re caught. Lando & Co. get drawn into a gigantic space battle they weren’t anticipating. Yes, it all works out in the end, but that’s because this is the ending and the good guys HAVE to win, because that’s how Star Wars works.

A quick look at the prequel trilogy:

Episode 1: The Jedi’s plan to negotiate fails when the Trade Federation tries to kill them; their plan to escape Naboo partially fails because they have to stop off at Tattooine for parts where they get attacked by Darth Maul. The re-taking of Naboo is mostly successful: the Trade Federation is defeated; the droids stopped; and Darth Maul killed. However, Qui-Gon dies in the fight.

Episode 2: Obi-Wan was somewhat successful in finding out about Jango Fett and Count Dooku, but then ultimately got captured. And then when his rescuers, Padme and Anakin, came to save him they got captured too! And then, while our heroes were ultimately rescued, a they did ultimately kick off A WAR THAT ENCOMPASSED THE ENTIRE FUCKING GALAXY!!! Let’s not forget that.

Episode 3: Obi-Wan and Anakin’s plan to rescue the Chancellor was like a 95% success. There were some minor hiccups, and General Grievous got away, but the Chancellor was saved and Count Dooku was defeated. Then Obi-Wan’s plan to defeat General Grievous is a success. But then his and Yoda’s plans to defeat Anakin and the Emperor, respectively, don’t go as they’d hoped. Obi-Wan DOES defeat Anakin, but leaves him alive; and Padme dies giving birth; meanwhile Yoda fails to defeat the Emperor and the Republic is lost amid the First Galactic Empire.

And then in our new trilogy:

Episode 7: Poe’s plan to get the map from Lor San Tekka goes awry when they’re attacked, everyone’s killed, except Poe who’s captured and has to hide the plans with BB-8. Finn’s plan to escape with Poe is also a partial failure, as they get stranded on Jakku and he’s separated from Poe and believes him to be dead. They successfully get BB-8 off planet and away from the First Order, but then get “captured” by Han and Chewie. Han’s plan to convince the gangs to leave doesn’t work, and they barely escape on the Falcon. The plan to get BB-8 on a “clean ship” at Maz’s also goes badly when the First Order attacks and Rey is kidnapped and the others almost captured. The overall plan to blow up Starkiller and rescue Rey is successful, because this is a Star Wars movie and we need a happy-ish ending in our first part of the trilogy to get people invested in the heroes, but we do lose Han.

Then, with our one spinoff movie:

Rogue One: Jyn and Cassian are successful in finding Bodhi and Galen’s message on how to destroy the Death Star, but there are hiccups in HOW they do it. They get caught in a street battle. They get spotted and almost captured by the Stormtroopers. Then they actually get captured by Saw’s people. Their plan to kill/rescue Galen pretty much fails, as Galen is killed by Rebel bombs when Jyn was hoping to save him, but then Cassian fails to shoot him when he has the chance. And, of course, the big finale is ultimately a success, but at a large price and with several hiccups. Rather than getting in and out by stealth (which I assume was the plan for at least Jyn, Cassian and K2SO) the whole Rogue One team is spotted and a large battle ensues on all sides. EVERYONE ON THE TEAM DIES! Major Rebel leaders are captured/killed. While the goal of the mission was accomplished, it didn’t go ACCORDING TO PLAN.

As I said: plans in Star Wars, especially those concocted by the heroes against a larger force, rarely go as planned.

I don’t see why people are shocked that Finn and Rose were unsuccessful in their mission considering:

1) They failed to find the right the Master Codebreaker considering that they made ZERO effort to be inconspicuous or stealthy while on Canto Bight. They parked right on the beach, despite being told not to, which should’ve told them that the police were going to be called to sic them eventually. And, as we see during their ride later there were plenty of out-of-the-way places where their shuttle wouldn’t have been spotted. They also made no effort to blend in with either their attitudes or their clothes and looked like a bunch of weirdos that I’m surprised weren’t thrown out of the casino for breaking dress code. Like, it should’ve been clear to the audience that these two -- while they might’ve “known” what they were doing -- did not have the capabilities to execute their plans successfully. They were set up for failure. They weren’t necessarily the right people for the job. Or should’ve had other, more or equally capable people on their team, like someone who is good at infiltration / smooth-talking people into helping them.

2) Finn’s knowledge of the First Order’s protocol was enough to be legit, but should’ve thrown up some red flags for us, the audience. It’s been at least a few days, possibly a week or two, since the Starkiller Base was destroyed. I mean, we have no idea how long it was from when Rey brought Finn back to the Resistance Base to when Rey left to find Luke. I’m guessing not more than like a day, considering she’d never even fucking met Poe. And considering that the Rey/Luke stuff if about simultaneous to the Resistance evacuation thing, it can’t have been more than two weeks from when Starkiller Base was destroyed, IMO. So, in those two weeks, or probably less, the First Order has to know (from Phasma, if no one else), that Finn helped the Resistance infiltrate the Starkiller Base. They know that a traitor is working for their enemy and their systems are vulnerable. Surely, they would’ve changed some protocols, security procedures, code clearances, or whatever between Finn’s defection and the Resistance’s evacuation. If not on purpose, then at least by chance. How does Finn know the First Order hasn’t upgraded its coding system since he was with them? Especially given that it’s Snoke’s ship, so you know it’d be upgraded first and/or have a higher security setting than your regular ship.

3) It was clear from the offset that DJ (Benicio del Toro’s character) was interested in helping them only because it suited him at the time. He was very much out for himself, had a questionable moral compass (like stealing the ship on Canto Bight), and was ultimately only interested in the money. Why some people were so shocked or felt so let down when he betrayed them is baffling to me. Maybe if you’re like a 5 year-old. Also, if you rewatch the movie, you’ll notice there’s a little look that DJ gives whenever he hears Poe talking about Holdo’s plan to use the transports to escape. Like a little “Huh, that might come in handy later” look.

4) The entire point of the sequence was to show that the reality behind the war is a lot more “gray” than it is “black” and “white.” As DJ shows Finn and us, there are people who don’t have any allegiance and have no problem selling arms to both sides. There are people whose lives have been negatively impacted by the First Order, or the Resistance, or both. That’s a point that Game of Thrones/ASOIAF series does very well of hitting: that the grander wars tear apart the lives of the “small folk,” who ultimately don’t care who wins or loses so long as their lives are peaceful and secure. Remember that Palpitine rose to power as Emperor on the idea that he could bring PEACE AND SECURITY to the Republic as an Empire, because the Republic had failed and the Jedi had failed, and he was the only one who could help the “small folk” attain the lives they wanted. Or whatever. Sorry, for the digression.

5) There were clear hints throughout the infiltration sequence that Finn and Rose were going to get caught. Like DJ’s “betrayal,” I don’t get why people were so shocked by this.

NOW.

All that being said, I do agree that the overall effect on the story was missing. Finn and Rose, at the end of the day, accomplished nothing either as people or as a story element. Yes, narratively, it helped world-build and gave us some good thematic material (grayness in a world built on “black” and “white,” light and dark, etc.). But, they didn’t DO anything, even as they were escaping. I guess Finn killed Phasma, but that’s about it. Holdo tearing through the Supremacy could’ve killed Phasma and it wouldn’t have made much difference. We didn’t see Finn maybe planting seeds of rebellion/resistance in the minds of his fellow Stormtroopers. We didn’t see them steal any like piece of equipment like a Master Key or some kind of important file that might’ve come in handy later in this movie or in the next one. So, in that sense, yes, the sideplot was weak and pointless.

At the end of the movie, all it did was bring Finn and Rose closer together.

But, then again, you could say the same thing about the Han and Leia sideplot in Episode 5. What difference would there have been plot-wise if Han and Leia had been captured right after leaving Hoth than later on Cloud City? Han probably still would’ve been tortured and then taken by Boba Fett. Luke still would’ve been lured into a trap. Leia & Co. probably would’ve still failed to save Han, etc. In a way, you could argue that THAT whole sideplot was filler only to:

buy time for Luke to train with Yoda so he could stand something of a chance against Vader in the Cloud City duel

do some world-building (asteroid field, giant worm thing, Cloud City, bounty hunters, Lando, etc.)

bring Han and Leia closer together as part of a romance subplot

show us their desperate flight to escape the Empire, only to seemingly succeed and then ultimately fail by getting captured.

Hey, wait a minute.... isn’t that exactly what this subplot did, too?

It was filler (as was the Resistance’s arbitrary 18-hours of fuel limitations or whatever) to buy time while Rey was off training with Luke / having Force-bond sessions with Kylo Ren.

It did some world-building (Canto Bight, master code breakers, kids who are Rebels at heart, animals and humans who can’t live in peace because of the war, etc.).

It brought Finn and Rose closer together as part of a possible romance subplot.

It showed us their desperate plight to save their friends only to almost succeed and then ultimately fail by getting captured.

Congratulations, everyone, you just watched Rian Johnson subtly rewrite The Empire Strikes Back and give it to you in the guise of a new storyline.

THIS is probably the REAL reason everyone hates the subplot, even if they don’t consciously realize it. In the same way everyone seemingly hates on TFA for being too much like A New Hope, this movie was tonally and sometimes plotwise too much like The Empire Strikes Back.

And while some of that is appropriate and expected, we the audience have a right to be angry when movie franchises repeat themselves too much to the point of being uncreative.

Anyway, I’ve rambled about this enough. I just wanted to defend the subplot because, while it has problems, I think it has merit to the overall darker and more desperate tone of the movie, the world-building both on a physical and a thematic level (the grayness), and allowed for some nice (but cheesy) character moments.

SO.

TL;DR : Does it have problems? Yes. Is it too similar to The Empire Strikes Back’s subplot when you really thing about it? Yes.

But does that mean it’s total garbage? No. Or even if it is:

(Side note: after writing all of this out, I stumbled onto this article that touches on the same topic, and one of the same things that I brought up, but in a little more detail. Read if you want. I don’t care.)

#the last jedi #finn and rose #rose and finn #finn x rose #rose x finn #tlj #the last jedi spoilers #star wars #star wars spoilers #tlj spoilers #canto bight #star wars episode 8

[ramajmedia]

Star Wars: 10 Movie Plot Holes Filled In By The Marvel Comics

The Star Wars saga has been going strong for over 40 years now, so it’s hardly surprising that several plot holes have cropped up during the time. While these gaffes are occasionally addressed on-screen – like when Attack of the Clones indirectly clarified that Yoda trained Obi-Wan before Qui-Gon took over – typically, it falls to other tie-in media to plug any storytelling gaps that arise.

So if there’s a particular continuity error that’s really bugging you about everyone’s favorite galaxy far, far away, chances are there’s a novel, TV show or comic book that’s already fixed it. Indeed, Marvel’s Star Wars comics in particular have built a well-earned reputation for crafting satisfying answers to many of the saga’s biggest unexplained questions – including those we’ve rounded-up below.

RELATED: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker: 10 Showdowns We Want To See

10 Why Does Vader Take Orders From Tarkin?

The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi firmly position Darth Vader as the second most feared guy in the galaxy, with only Emperor Palpatine surpassing him in power and authority. So how come the Sith Lord plays second fiddle to Grand Moff Tarkin when we first meet him in A New Hope? It’s one of the biggest discontinuities in the original trilogy – but fortunately, Marvel’s Darth Vader comics have it covered.

Early issues in the series establish that the Emperor initially played Vader off against the Empire’s top brass, which meant occasionally taking orders from the likes of high-ranking officers like Tarkin. What’s more, we later witness a violent encounter between Vader and Tarkin that seemingly engenders a lasting mutual respect between the pair, and explains the collaborative relationship they subsequently adopt on-screen.

9 How Does Princess Leia Remember Her Mother?

 Revenge of the Sith’s protracted denouement ticks off a laundry list of major Star Wars moments fans had been waiting to witness for over two decades. Arguably the most important of these is the birth of Luke and Leia Skywalker, which fittingly coincides with their father’s rebirth as Darth Vader. It’s a suitably emotional scene, and it’s made all the more emotional when the twins’ mother, Padmé Amidala, passes away shortly after.

But this also causes a problem for the saga’s official canon – after all, in Return of the Jedi, Leia tells Luke that she remembers their mother (albeit in fairly abstract fashion), which seems…unlikely. Enter: the Princess Leia mini-series, which subtly suggests that our heroine’s latent Force potential is the source of her otherwise impossible childhood memories.

8 When Did Luke Learn To Use A Lightsaber?

The original Star Wars trilogy features several memorable scenes of Luke Skywalker learning to become a fully-fledged Jedi Knight, but his lightsaber lessons are almost totally glossed over. Seriously: Obi-Wan Kenobi only taught Luke the absolute basics – deflecting incoming blaster fire – while the days, weeks or (if you want to be really generous) months he spent training with Master Yoda didn’t include a single saber technique tutorial (on screen, at least).

That leaves continuity-conscious fans in a bit of a pickle: how do they justify the formidable swordplay Luke displays when duelling Darth Vader or tearing through Jabba the Hutt’s cronies? It’s simple – they catch up on Marvel’s main Star Wars title. Set between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, this ongoing series elaborates on the lightsaber combat coaching Luke underwent with the Gamemaster, as well as additional theory on the subject he gleaned from Obi-Wan’s journals.

RELATED: Star Wars: The Highest-Grossing Films (According To Box Office Mojo)

7 What Happened To All The Prequel-Era Technology?

While the technology seen in the Star Wars prequels is (generally) less advanced than the hardware of later generations, it’s nevertheless hard to swallow that none of this gear crops up in subsequent episodes. You’re telling us that nobody has any use for mobile weapons platforms like the droidekas, or could see the appeal in zipping around in a Jedi starfighter?

Fortunately, Marvel’s Star Wars comic books have this covered across the board, and prequel-era tech appears prominently in several stories. From Darth Vader heading up a squad of battle droids to Thrawn collecting buzz droids, and right on through to Luke Skywalker squaring off against MagnaGuards, the comics continue the proud tradition of recycling the saga is famous for.

6 Why Didn’t Chewbacca Receive A Medal?

 OK, we’ll admit it: as plot holes go, Chewbacca not being awarded a medal during the closing moments of A New Hope is hardly galaxy-shattering stuff. But dang it, the flagrant disregard the Rebel Alliance shows for Chewie’s pivotal role in the destruction of the Death Star has always bothered us – to the point that we’re worried the Rebellion might have xenophobic tendencies!

Thank goodness for the Chewbacca mini-series Marvel published back in 2015, then. Here, we see the kind-hearted Wookiee bestow a medal identical to those seen in A New Hope upon a brave young girl named Zarro. The clear implication here is that Chewbacca did indeed receive a medal for his services, presumably at a separate ceremony not depicted on the big screen.

5 How Was General Grievous A Match For Jedi Knights?

Jedi Knights are legendary for their Force-powered prowess on the battlefield, however that doesn’t mean that non-Force sensitive opponents can’t defeat them on occasion. But even if the Republic’s sworn protectors aren’t unbeatable, it’s a bit hard to swallow that General Grievous supposedly cut down enough of them to line his cloak with their lightsabers, as shown in Revenge of the Sith.

We think we’ve found the answer to this conundrum though, in the pages of Star Wars: Age Of Republic – General Grievous. In this mini-series from Marvel, it’s revealed that the cyborg General – who is basically just a brain and a few organs inside a droid body – has inadvertently severed his connection to the Force, a horrific condition so unique it’s likely to blame for throwing his Jedi assailants off their game.

RELATED: Star Wars: Rey's 10 Best Moments (So Far)

4 Why Is The Jedi Temple Still Part Of Coruscant’s Skyline?

Before Star Wars was sold to Disney, the saga’s creator George Lucas was notorious for tinkering with the original trilogy each time it was re-released on home media. One of the less controversial changes Lucas made was the addition of two familiar landmarks to the Coruscant skyline during Return of the Jedi’s montage sequence: the Senate and the Jedi Temple.

At first, this seemed like a rare instance of Lucas inserting elements from the prequels without causing any damage…but did he? After all, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense that Emperor Palpatine would preserve a gigantic monument to the Jedi Order. Luckily, Marvel’s Thrawn mini-series saves the day here, clarifying that Palpatine converted the Temple into his Imperial Palace – which is exactly the kind of perverse gesture we’d expect from the Dark Lord of the Sith!

3 Why Is Vader’s Fortress On Mustafar?

Darth Vader’s castle being located on Mustafar in Rogue One left more than a few fans scratching their heads. Sure, Sith Lords are all about maintaining their rage – and living in the same place where you were dismembered and burnt to a crisp is enough make anyone cranky – but it still seemed like an odd place for Vader to set up shop, given his options.

Why not his homeworld, Tatooine, instead? Dude has a whole bunch of terrible memories to draw on from his time spent on that desert planet, not just a lone (admittedly horrific) experience. But as it turns out, the very nature of Mustafar itself is the reason it plays host to Fortress Vader, not Tatooine. As recounted in Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith, a locus for Dark Side energies resides beneath the volcanic world’s crust, which Vader can tap into via his Fortress’s tuning fork-like properties.

2 Why Did The Death Star Take So Long To Build?

Moon-sized battle station the Death Star took a long time to build: while construction commenced during the finale of Revenge of the Sith, it’s not finished until Rogue One nearly 20 years later. At first glance, this stacks up – we’re talking about a humongous feat of engineering here. However, the second, even bigger Death Star’s much shorter assembly period – although not quite complete, it was famously fully armed and operational in four years, tops – turns this logic on its head!

Happily, the Thrawn mini-series came up with a solution to this dilemma that is both a stroke of genius and painfully obvious, and it all boils down to secrecy. Prior to A New Hope, the Empire still had to tiptoe around the Senate, which meant resources needed to be sourced covertly. Once the Senate was abolished, keeping things hush-hush was no longer a concern, so construction on Death Star II could be fast tracked.

1 When Did Vader Find Out That Luke Was Alive?

Another instance of George Lucas altering existing Star Wars lore, new dialogue added to The Empire Strikes Back – coupled with the baby bump on Padme’s lifeless body in Revenge of the Sith – indicates that Darth Vader only recently became aware his son Luke was still alive. This is problematic, as the Sith Lord is shown to be aware of Luke’s existence already, in scenes that appear prior to the inserted exchange – so when exactly did Vader discover his kid had survived? And is this a glaring goof?

Not according to the Darth Vader comic book series, which confirms that the iconic baddie received the news about his Luke shortly after the events of A New Hope. The intel came from none other than famed bounty hunter Boba Fett and Vader kept it to himself – which means that he was only playing dumb when Palpatine later presents him with the same information in Empire (which is sorta implied, anyway).

NEXT: Star Wars: 10 Things The Comics Added To The Canon

source https://screenrant.com/star-wars-plot-holes-comics-fixed/

#screenrant

[strawberryinoue]

Anakin Skywalker + Darth Vader | Character analysis

Anakin Skywalker was born into slavery on a desert planet. He has no father, only a mother. While this isn't explained throughly within the films it's widely believed in the more hardcore fandom that Anakin's father is the force itself. In Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine aka Darth Sidious tells Anakin his master Darth Plagueis could influence the Midichlorians to create life. I've never dug too deep into expanded universe content but I'm aware that his experiments failed. The living force rebelled against the Sith and thus the chosen one was born. It's Anakin's destiny to destroy the Sith and bring balance back to the force. He's discovered by Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn as a by product of Palpatine's plan to promote himself to Chancellor. In The Phantom Menace he's characterized as a gifted child like hero. He's competent with technology enough to build his own pod racer and multi-language protocol droid; more importantly being much more gifted with the force than any Jedi or Sith alive. Qui-Gon senses the hidden potential within him and his mother confirms that he's always had special powers. Had he not won the pod race tournament then Qui-Gon and company would have been stranded on Tatooine longer than they could afford. If Anakin didn't fly up to space and take out the droid control center then the Gungan army would have fallen. Many complain about the fact he flew up into space on accident and accomplished what older more experienced pilots couldn't. That's the point. In the original trilogy Obi-Wan said he was the best Star Fighter pilot of his time. Another piece of characterization he gets in this film revolves around his fear of loss being a weakness. The Jedi don't want to train him because they can sense the fear within him. Which stems from separation with his mother. Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering. This is the philosophy of the Jedi. His future can't be predicted and the Jedi council doesn't like that. Without Qui-Gon's insistence on the training of the chosen one being mandatory then Anakin wouldn't have became a Jedi. Anakin also meets Padme during all of this, developing interest as a young boy. These two things are important for the sparks that will lead to an immense fire.  Moving on to Attack of the Clones. Many argue the prequels should have just started here and that TPM had no point. In addition to what I've explained already I'll add that without TPM his overall character development is weakened by not seeing his child behavior in comparison to his adult behavior. Though I will admit that I think TPM and AOTC could have been 1 film. In AOTC he's classified as whiny and a failure. All of this is a huge misunderstanding. As the chosen one Anakin's skills develop significantly faster than other Jedi or Sith. Obi-Wan comments that Anakin's senses aren't attuned enough to keep track of Padme. This is proven wrong when Anakin senses the threat to her just as fast, if not faster than Obi-Wan. Then we have the Dooku duel. Anakin may have held the L here but he really did better than Obi-Wan against Dooku. Mind you Dooku was keeping up with Yoda for a period of time. What's my excuse for allowing himself and Padme to get captured like Obi-Wan? I've somewhat answered already. The Jedi aren't invincible, Anakin and Padme didn't plan on getting into a fight when entering that factory. They got separated and thrown into an unorthodox situation. My point here is that the reason Anakin has become arrogant and hasty is because he actually IS fairly powerful. He's ready to move on from being beneath Obi-Wan. Not just in name, a Padawan literally has to go where or do whatever is requested of their master. During this film he loses his mother in which case he breaks the Jedi code by viciously striking down her murders. Including women and children of said species. Believing he should have been able to recuse her increases his fear of loss. As well as his lust for power. All of these aspects compliment someone who's meant to end up on a dark path. That's furthered when he tells Padme he thinks a dictatorship would be fine if someone suitable was in power.  Now we're at Revenge of the Sith. It's been a few years and Anakin has been promoted to a Jedi Knight. Noticeably on better terms with Obi-Wan and is more humble. Anakin was the one who bested Dooku while Obi-Wan was rag dolled by his force abilities. Anakin expresses it's because of his master's training. This seems to fly over most people's heads since the majority of the film is Anakin's transformation to Darth Vader. Immediately after this is when Anakin starts dreaming of his wife Padme's death. After that is when suspicions about Palpatine arise. Palpatine proceeds to request Anakin becomes his personal representative on the Jedi council. The council is taken aback by this and only approves Anakin's promotion in hopes of using him to spy on Palpatine. Though they make the error of not also promoting Anakin to a Jedi Master. Something that hasn't been done in the history of the Jedi. This is another instance of Anakin being labeled as whiny but if you ask me it's a legit reaction. That's pretty much the highest form of insult possible. You might say Anakin's reaction is exactly why they didn't want to make him a master. Yes by their standards Anakin couldn't qualify as a master and I don't think he ever would. But that's not a bad thing, quite the opposite. The council is not the end all be all. Even Qui-Gon was known to have issues with the council and he followed the living force to the core. Allowing him to maintain his consciousness after death. Later teaching Yoda and Obi-Wan. Quite frankly the council have a questionable way of thinking. Anakin often conflicts with this because his humanity is stronger for better or worse. Look at what happened when Anakin came to Yoda for advice about his visions.  Yoda: "Rejoice for those around us who transform into the Force. Mourn them, do not. Miss them, do not. Attachment leads to jealousy, the shadow of greed, that is." Anakin: "What must I do, Master Yoda?" Yoda: "Train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose."  That answer does not fit the context of the situation; a completely robotic response. If you can prevent the death of someone you love then that's what you should do. The Jedi think running away from your emotions is the answer. Everything Anakin did was the will of the force. This is supported by the 2008 Clone Wars animated series. When a prisoner of war is within their grasp they insist on not resorting to brutality. Anakin and Ahsoka being the exceptions which has turned the tide of battle multiple times. The Jedi could capture Dooku who was one of the most dangerous men alive but they'd never execute or torture him. Providing the chance for him to be recused which would result in damage they could have easily prevented. Furthermore the Jedi are suppose to be keepers of the peace. But how much can they live up to that when they're restricted by being guardians of the Republic. An example would be when Alderaan had a resistance group but the council refused to aid those soldiers in fear of making it look like the Republic was allied with them. If Anakin didn't give them illegal assistance than the Separatists would have taken over that system. On a planet called Mortis Anakin encountered living embodiments of light (The Daughter), dark (The Son), and balance (The Father). The Son showed him the future where he became Darth Vader. Wanting to stop this tragedy he teamed up with The Son to hunt down Sidious. The Father erased his memory and told Anakin he shouldn't have seen what he did. That Anakin needn't lose faith in who he was and he'd surely bring balance just as he had by coming to Mortis. That's the closest thing in the lure to flat out telling you Anakin must destroy the Sith AND the Jedi. The force had a plan to reset the usage of the force. That reset starts with Luke Skywalker. The man who defeated his father via a balance of light and dark. In the final episodes of the Clone Wars Yoda is called on by Qui-Gon and spirits of the force to ensure he trains the unborn Skywalker who they foresaw.  What really adds stirs up the pot is when Anakin learns of his assignment. Anakin respects Palpatine because he befriended him all these years. Being disrespected and asked to spy on someone like that feeds into skepticism towards the Jedi Order. This is furthered when the council and Obi-Wan refuse Anakin's assistance to take down General Grievous which would end the war. Throughout all this he's been completely excluded from the council and used only as a means to an end. It wouldn't be strange at all if he was removed the council when this business was over. Including events of the Clone Wars such as Obi-Wan faking his death without telling Anakin the truth. As well as his Padawan Ahsoka's exile being unjustified. His anger boils over and he's unbalanced. Ahsoka was meant to help him get over his fear of loss and mature. If he could raise someone and let them move on then he could let other people go. It was working until the council betrayed him. His judgment begins to swift when Palpatine reveals that he's the Sith Lord they've been looking for. Instead of giving in to his anger and fighting someone he probably can't defeat he decides the best course of action is to turn Palpatine over to the council. But here's where Mace Windu fucks everything up. Windu tells Anakin to stay behind instead of allowing him to aid Sidious's capture. The excuse being he senses confusion within Anakin. Anakin later arrives to find every Jedi dead except Windu who has Sidious on the ropes seemingly. Protocol is that Sidious must stand trial. The Jedi way is not to kill, which Anakin reflects on after he killed Dooku. But Windu tries to kill Sidious anyway which technically IS betraying the Republic and confirms all of Anakin's suspicions from his point of view. Sidious told Anakin not too long ago that all those who gain power are afraid to lose it, including the Jedi. So Windu trying to kill Sidious who is the Chancellor of the Republic without putting him on trial makes it seem exactly so. That they wanted to overthrow the Republic.  But why couldn't Anakin see that the Jedi just wanted to protect the Republic from the oppression of the Sith? The answer is that he was blinded by love. The visions of Padme's death clouded his judgment until it transformed him into Darth Vader. Earlier in the film there's some dialogue between Padme and Anakin that indirectly tells you what I just said. Anakin's fate is an example of what the Jedi fear BUT they were the ones who pushed him down that path. If they tried to get him through his fears with more realistic means then his faith in them wouldn't have faltered. Sidious had been telling Anakin that if he joined him then he'd have the power to save his wife from certain death. Sidious was giving him something the Jedi wouldn't. The council was afraid of Anakin wielding too much power. Anakin could see this and Sidious hyped up the concept even more. With usage of the dark side the power of the chosen one began to grow even more. George Lucas stated that had he not suffered any injuries he could have beaten Sidious at this point. Anakin has exactly what he wants now. Unrivaled power and a way to stop people from dying supposedly. There's just no going back. Then why was he unable to kill Obi-Wan with ease? Because his mind wasn't stable. Before Padme arrived on Mustafar we could see Anakin shedding tears. He then immediately jumps to conclusion about why Obi-Wan was on Padme's ship. Common sense should have told him Obi-Wan just snuck onboard. His rage led him to making the last memory with the one he sacrificed everything for an unthinkable occurrence. On top of going against someone he looked at as a brother even if he doesn't admit it. He couldn't immediately recover from psychological damage like that. Admittedly the film doesn't make this so easy to deduce but the novelization spells it out and it can be applied to the film. With the death of Padme his transformation into Darth Vader is complete. It was own fault and he owns it. He has to live with this guilt for the rest of his life and therefore chooses to discard his old self entirely. This has nothing to do with Anakin himself but I feel the need to point out why exactly Padme died. She died because she was broken from how Sidious transformed what was most important to her within days. Anakin Skywalker into Darth Vader. The Republic of democracy into an empire of dictatorship. Depression during pregnancy can be fatal.  I find it very powerful when you flashback to the kid version of Anakin and compare him to the infamous robotic looking Sith Lord. His character is unique in the sense you rarely see the evolution of the hero into the villain. Along with the intentional character regression in the end. His son opens up old wounds and leads him to fulfilling the prophecy of the chosen one right before his death.

#darth vader #Anakin Skywalker #padme amidala #Ashoka Tank #obi wan kenobi #star wars #george lucas #cartoon network #lucasarts #lucasfilm #star wars the clone wars #star wars prequels #sw prequels #Prequels #the prequel trilogy #phantom menace #attack of the clones #revenge of the sith #Yoda #Palpatine #emperor #emperor palpatine

[mesdea]

The Philosophy of Lost Chances Chapter 7

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that’s sent private messages, sent notes or has reblogged my stories. I haven’t felt like these things are that good lately and I have to admit when you see something with 2 notes it can get discouraging. So I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that does encourage me. It means the world to me. 

Qui-Gon had spent the morning in meeting after meeting with both the Naboo and the Gungans, trying to sort out their complicated future.  There were so many logistics that needed to be covered before the healing could begin, but it seemed that the Queen would ensure that all Naboo would be OK. It was exciting to watch the young woman weave in and out of the reports, she would be a strong leader, Qui-Gon could see why Anakin had spoken so highly of her.

Letting his feet wander around the palace, Qui-Gon’s thoughts started to drift to Mace and Obi-Wan. He had inquired about the two before the meetings had started. They were very hopeful about the prognosis since the master had woken the evening before, but had voiced their alarm where the padawan was concerned. He refused to leave Mace’s bedside for food or sleep, they were considering their own means of subterfuge if the young man didn’t start listening to medical advice.

Qui-Gon had happened on one of the numerous gardens in the Queen’s considerable home. It astonished him how much nurturing went into the palace grounds. It almost felt like the temple, like home. The living force was alive around each and every color; it helped to calm him as he renewed his thoughts of the red-haired imp that seemed to consume his thoughts as of late. He couldn’t fault the young man for his devotion to Mace, his master. He remembered how inconsolable he had been when Xanatos had been ill or hurt.  “Xanatos…” The word was wrenched from his lips as memories overwhelmed his thoughts. He remembered waiting for his apprentice to awake after a bad concussion that left him in a lifeless coma. The time he was just a young boy and contracted a deadly alien flu from a distant planet they had visited. Time and time again his thoughts were sitting by his bedside, the cold lifeless hand in his as he prayed to the force to return him.

Qui-Gon had seen that same silent plea when he entered the healing halls the night before. The utter look of despair of a person trying to bargain with their gods as they tried to justify a solution that would allow the person they loved most to come back to life.  The feelings started to pummel him from each and every direction sending the master crashing down heavily on his knees. The dirt and stone digging into older flesh that no longer could take such punishment, as the memories started to extend harder and faster at the master.

“Not here, not now.” The faint words were wrenched from his lips as the pounding in his chest seemed to get thunderous and brisk.  He began to picture the jet black hair of the man he raised and loved as a son, lightsaber raised to strike and kill. The words of hatred that spewed from his lips as the moments continued on, only to have the image morph into a small, compact red-haired padawan. Obi-Wan’s blue lightsaber raised above his head to strike out at Qui-Gon. The hatred that was sparked towards a man that he barely knew but still loathed, his heart was now completely out of control. He felt as if it didn’t slow down he would die here, beneath the green canopy of the living force, once again alone.

Qui-Gon recalled all the darkness that he had seen last night, directed at him, as he absorbed it all into his own mind to prevent the turn of such a valuable padawan. He felt the hatred of the moment. He knew that Obi-Wan had struck back at the Zabrak with anger and hatred, not the Jedi way. The darkness had tainted the young man and up until last night he had not purged it into the force, he had not let it go.

“Nooo….”

The word was wrenched from the master’s chapped lips as the emotions continued to swirl around him. He was in an endless loop of darkness and hopelessness.  The exercises that once let him calm down from the panic were not succeeding. As the moments lingered his heart beat out of control. His breath coming in shallow gulps, as the moment of helplessness continued.  The darkness was here and it wasn’t letting go.

Obi-Wan was clutching tightly to his master’s hand, when he awoke and looked up into smiling eyes.  His master was looking better, if not completely healed, he was on his way. “Master.”  The single word was said with such reverence and caring that it almost broke Mace’s heart to see his apprentice so out of sorts.

“My Obi-Wan, you look like hell.” Mace chuckled softly and immediately stopped as the pain ran through his body.

“Master, please don’t do anything that will do more damage to your wounds. Would you like some water?”

“Thank you, Obi. I’m OK. I’m worried more for you, it looks like you went twelve rounds with a Sith.” The dark circles under his apprentice’s eyes said it all. He knew that boy, no the young man now, probably never left his side. They had many rules as Jedi and attachments were one of those, but he knew without a doubt that they were both attached to the other. You couldn’t spend most of your young life with one person and not form a bond, one that seemed unreasonable in every other instance. They both loved each other, as a family and no one would ever stop them from caring for the other.

“Really Master, you think to joke now?” Obi-Wan looked away, trying to hide the smile that the banter invoked.

“There is no better time for levity then now. You fought and defeated a Dark Lord of the Sith, Obi-Wan. You saved my life and in that have proven without a doubt that you are ready for your knighthood.” The pride in his master’s voice only made him feel guiltier about everything that happened in the last two days. He had defeated the Sith because he gave into his emotions, he had unleashed that anger and hatred toward another Master of the order. He didn’t deserve his knighthood; he didn’t even truly deserve to call himself Jedi.

“Obi-Wan, what is wrong?” Mace started to cringe slightly as the overwhelming emotions flooded their bond.  He could feel the self-loathing and recrimination that crushed the young man before him and tried desperately to put it to rest, sending all the love and admiration he felt through their ever strengthening bond.

Obi-Wan released his death grip on the still pale and clammy hand that kept him grounded to the present. “I don’t deserve it. I don’t deserve anything but to be sent away. You made a mistake when you took me, you should have let me age out.” The cold words flowed from his lips, but they were said without feeling, as it they were being recited by a protocol droid.

Mace tried to sit up, his muscles clenching with pain as they argued that this wasn’t something they were meant to do, but he would see to his padawan in his time of need. “Obi-Wan Kenobi, you will look at me, NOW!” The words were harsh and meant to break him from the trance that seemed to keep hold.

“M…Master.” Obi-Wan looked up at Mace, a look of utter despair upon that beautiful face. The dimples that always showed his happiness no longer there, his face presented a very haunted man that was drowning in his own feelings.

“Speak to me, Obi. No matter what you tell me, I will always love you. Nothing will change that.” Mace quickly drew the boy from the chair and pulled him up on the bed in his embrace. “Darkness can’t consume you if you don’t let it. Speak to me, Padawan.”

“When I watched him pierce you, and I was helpless to do anything until the force field lifted. I felt anger. I felt despair. I wanted to go to you, but I knew I had to defeat him to do that. In that moment, I hated him, I wanted revenge for the pain he inflicted.” The young man let his head drop to his chest, tears now flowing down his cheeks as he continued. He knew that his master would let him finish, not interrupting until it was over. He remembered how he felt in the moments leading up to the confrontation between him and the Sith, it seemed like a century ago, so far away.

“Go on, Obi.” Mace ran soothing circles against his padawan‘s back, trying to be patient.

“When the force field dropped, I attacked, not to end this, but to make him hurt. I wanted him to feel the pain that was running through our bond. I wanted him to know what it was like to hurt as bad as you did! I was so overwhelmed that I lost my balance and fell into the melting pit. In that one moment, I had failed you, I had failed the Jedi. I let my emotions dictate the combat and I was going to leave you alone to die. I never felt so helpless.” Obi-Wan started to sob, his sentiments finally releasing to the force as he continued to talk.

“Obviously, you didn’t end up burnt to a crisp.” Mace tried to offer a bit of levity to the situation knowing that when it was over his padawan would be quite embarrassed.

“In that moment, I let go of the hatred and anger and centered in the force. I felt your drifting presence and knew I had to end it or you would be gone. I was able to locate your saber and call it to me as I jumped from the pit and cut the Sith in half.  I didn’t stick around to watch him; I just ran to your side and attempted to heal you. I couldn’t let you go.”

The silence fell over the room as Mace realized the boy had said all he would for now. “Tell me, young padawan. In all that you told me, what do you believe to be your greatest sin?”

Obi-Wan glanced up and wiped the tears from his eyes, feeling like a foolish child once more. “I struck out in anger. I broke the code.”

“The code. I do believe I once knew a man that told me that the code was a guideline that sometimes needed to be broken. In fact, I think the exact words were, ‘Fuck the code’.” Mace traced the tear tracks from the padawan’s face as he remembered the boy he once used to be. “You may have given into your emotions, but you forgot the most important thing in your speech. You felt your passions and centered in the force, you gave into it at the lowest point and came away clean. You did not walk the dark path for long, young one.  I do not believe that once we go down that path that it will forever alter our destiny. You will remember that moment forever, and recognize it if it happens again.” Mace pulled Obi-Wan into a tight hug and felt the boy flinch and then relent as the words and meaning started to wash over him.

“Have you been able to assist the Naboo, or have the council sent another Knight to assist?” Mace felt Obi-Wan tense once again, knowing that this was something else that was bothering him. “What happened, Obi?”

“The council sent Master Jinn.” Obi-Wan swallowed and crawled back out of the bed and into the chair before his master. “He came by last night and…”

“If he hurt you, I swear to god I will cut his precious fucking hair!” Mace growled.

“He didn’t…I hurt him. I was so upset and he came in and asked about a debriefing. He didn’t seem to even care that his friend was lying lifeless in a bed. He cared for nothing but the mission.”

Mace nodded and knew that wasn’t the case. His longtime friend just hid any emotions that might make him vulnerable. “I’m sure he cared, Obi-Wan. You just have to understand everything Qui-Gon’s been through. You once wanted to be his friend, are you giving up on him?”

Obi-Wan shook his head and tried to put his thoughts together. “Master, I lashed out at him, I let the darkness that I felt from the fight focus on Master Jinn. I know that he was letting me and taking it all into himself to protect me, but I couldn’t stop. I couldn’t…”

“Obi-Wan, I know how much you’ve been through, but you would need to know the story in order to understand just what Qui-Gon offered you by taking that darkness inside himself. I’m not the person to tell you that story, however. Today is a new day, with a promise of new beginnings, perhaps you should find him and talk to him?” Mace patted his apprentice’s hand and gave him a weak smile. “Besides, I’m tired and need to rest. I suggest once you have sorted this out that you do the same.”  

Obi-Wan stood from the chair and looked back at the drowsy master. “You’re going to be OK.” It was both a question and a statement that Mace just nodded.

“When Qui-Gon is struggling, you can certainly find him in a garden.” Mace dismissed his apprentice with a wave of a hand and the young man disappeared behind the door.

After his talk with Mace, he felt lighter. He knew that he would have to recount his anger and emotions to the council but he knew that his master was correct, he stepped away from the darkness and didn’t let it take over, however he needed to find Qui-Gon and apologize. The master had his own issues. He didn’t need to take on Obi-Wan’s. This palace had too many gardens; the young man thought to himself, this was the fourth garden and no sign of the tall troubled master. Just as he was about to give up and go back to his quarters he felt the force swirl around him. Something was off, wrong.  The compact padawan started to trace the feelings and was led to yet another garden off the beaten path, he was starting to run as the force called for urgency.

Qui-Gon Jinn was on his knees, his body toppled over in what looked to be agony as he gasped for air. The rocks around him were flying faster and faster as the force whipped around him. Tears were streaming down the cheeks of the older man as he projected his thoughts outward for anyone to hear. This wasn’t the control of a seasoned master; this was the plea for help from a man that was drowning in his fears. Obi-Wan closed his eyes and tried to center himself in the force before getting any closer. He could feel everything this man had felt. He felt betrayal, guilt, darkness, but the strongest emotion was loneliness. How could they have let this man flounder for so long? How could the council and the other Jedi not see just how damaged the older man had become?

“Master Jinn?” Obi-Wan let the soft word slip from his lips, but there was no recognition in it. Just a bit louder, Obi-Wan spoke more forcefully. “Qui-Gon Jinn, please listen to me…”

The rocks seemed to spin faster around the master as he approached him. The fear of failure radiated off him in sheets that made the padawan feel sick to his stomach. He then realized that some of the feelings were familiar, they were feelings from the night before. The master had taken them all into himself to help the padawan, even if he could ill afford it.

“Qui-Gon, please, listen to me. You are having a panic attack and your shields are down.” Obi-Wan shifted a bit closer and was able to deflect the rocks against a nearby tree allowing him to reach out gently to the man on his knees. He lightly took the larger than life hand and pressed it against his own chest. “Feel my breath and breath with me, Qui-Gon.” Obi-Wan started to exaggerate his breathing to assist. “That’s it, it’s just a panic attack, and we can get through it together. It’s not the end of everything. It’s just the beginning.”

Obi-Wan sensed the master start to match his breaths, his feelings starting to swirl a bit less as a tiny shield wrapped around the master’s thoughts once again. “That’s it. It’s OK. Just breathe with me Qui-Gon.”

As the shields began to establish once again and Qui-Gon seemed to come back to the moment, he felt the master pull back in embarrassment. “There is nothing to be embarrassed about. You helped me last night and I’m just returning the favor. Master Mace says that it is strength to ask for help when everything seems hopeless. Something tells me you’ve been alone in this for a long time, Qui-Gon.”

The cerulean eyes lifted and just stared back in confusion. Obi-Wan knew this was the moment that would change everything. The master would either take the help offered or retreat. He knew that the force was telling him that if he retreated then all would be lost. “Please, stay with me.” The younger man reached out and gently wiped away the tears that fell down Qui-Gon’s face. It was such a simple thing to do, but it broke through the walls that were Qui-Gon Jinn, the master collapsed into his arms, letting everything wash over him.

“It’s going to be OK. I will help you. We will help you.” The words were said over and over as Obi-Wan rocked the older man in his arms, the force stilled as one of their favored was being cared, “Finally” it seemed to whisper.

#quiobi #Qui Gon Jinn #obi wan kenobi #the philosophy of lost chances #panic attcks

[blogofthunder-blog]

A Galaxy Far Far Away.

Noir:

I love Star wars! Actually, we love Star Wars! Some might compare us to Han and Chewie, although we’re more like C3PO and R2D2. Our love for the space orchestra doesn’t mean that it is a flawless masterpiece however. Let’s talk about some plot holes and seemingly irrelevant nonsense that makes no sense whatsoever.

First of all, Jar Jar Binks. What even is the point in you? In fact the entire prequel trilogy was so disastrously put together it could potentially have been damaging to the entire Star Wars saga, and no character more so than Jar Jar. Don’t get me wrong, I am still a fan of episodes 1, 2 and 3 but they don’t quite compare to the originals and the more recent epics in the form of Force Awakens and Rogue One. Hopefully the Last Jedi will be just as spectacular.

But, back to Jar Jar. You literally serve no purpose other than to annoy us! Why couldn’t we have had more Darth Maul and less Jar Jar? And why did Qui Gon have to go so soon? Qui come back! Also, did anyone else notice that the rule of two is flawed? In the prequel films Yoda explains how there is always a Master and Apprentice Sith, no more and no less. Then why did the Emperor and Vader try and recruit Luke to their cause? Neither were likely to relinquish power any time soon.

Blanc:

While my learned friend has made some good points, I feel this needs more substance…

I defended the prequels for a long time. On nothing short of loyalty to the Wars, I tried to find any hope of good and defended them. But in my old age I’ve come to accept that they’re simply awful. Episode 1 is probably my favourite of the 3, and it had so much potential. On paper; Darth Maul and Qui Gon were perfect. But combined with Anakin and Jar Jar, it was like my eyes had eaten a sandwich filled with cat shit and I can’t get rid of the taste.

However the biggest problem with it; is that it’s totally pointless. The whole story and saga would have happened and nothing would change if it didn’t exist. Episode 1 is completely superfluous to the story. All story lines it raises are concluded within the film. Darth Maul has no baring outside of the film and is immediately replaced with Count Dooku, so Episode 1 didn’t teach us that there must be a Master and Apprentice; we get that from Episode II. I’m sorry to say that whilst Qui-Gon was awesome he doesn’t count. His actions have no bearing outside of the film and everything Anakin does as a child is irrelevant to the wider plot. All characters that pass over to Episode II are reintroduced along with their motives and story lines.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved the dual saber scene. This scene alone is why it’s the best and worst of the prequels.

The fact of the matter is that Episode I is just not needed. And when you’ve got Jar Jar Binks eating you alive from the inside it makes seeking salvation at a 24 hour Nickleback concert seem appealing.

Noir:

I hate admitting when Blanc is right. I struggle to believe that anyone would consider Episode 1 to be the best of the prequels. I think it has some of the best moments that would have done well in any Star Wars film. The light sabre battle for instance, and I actually quite enjoyed pod racing. There are those out there that will defend these moments to the hilt and find logical explanations. I just think George Lucas wanted to make money, had a vague idea and ran away with it.

Star Wars is full of historical, mythological  and religious references. I like the nod and dig at the notion of Immaculate Conception. Christians be warned, this might get your back up but I mean no offence, I merely offer truth and wisdom; much like your messiah come to think of it. Anyway, Anakin’s mother says there was no father and that he was conceived by the force, as the prophecy foretold. Much like Jesus, Mary one day woke up pregnant having never lain with a man. Joseph must have had some serious blue balls on the go. While Jesus was pure of heart and died for his children (on your knees pilgrims) Anakin was conscripted by the antithesis of all that was good in the galaxy and turned to the dark side. Does this mean that when Jesus returns he will come wielding a red light sabre and wreak havoc on the world?! 

Blanc:

Wait a minute, I’m not done! Episode I is the best of the prequels. Episode III is often regarded as, or considered the best. But when Anakin turns full Vader and has his “NOOOOO” moment; I start to pine for Jar Jar. Episode II is simply dull. Nothing exciting happens except for Mace Windu’s iconic line. At least episodes II and III progress the plot, even if they suck. I tell you another thing about Episode I that really mugs me off - Senator Palpatine. I have 2 main points; 1) Senator Palpatine isn’t very good at what he does. There must be easier ways to gain control of the republic than persuading the trade federation to invade this planet, and allowing him to fight them off and be a hero. And then there’s the way he communicates with the federation. Would it have not been easier just to send a WhatsApp, rather than via hologram; allowing them a pretty good view of what he looks and sounds like. After all this is the guy who would most benefit from the invasion of the planet. 2) Senator Palpatine really doesn’t know how to get what he wants. I was under the impression that two Jedi were sent to negotiate and to report that the trade federation was corrupt and lead to a vote of no confidence. If the people of Naboo have no army, and Palpatine wants as much coverage as possible; why would he tell Nute Gunray to kill the Jedi, only resulting in the slowing down of the investigation and the vote of no confidence?  Noir:

He and I differ on politics quite a lot so I am going to save my rebuttal and simply admit/accept that the political backdrop storyline was utter pony.

One thing that does bother me though; Padme was pregnant when she died, so Vader assumes that his wife and children are no more, yet the Skywalkers all have a kinship with the force and can sense one another’s presence. So why the hell does Vader take so long to figure out that Luke and Leia are his kids?! Also, why does Luke keep the name Skywalker? His mother died, he never knew his father and his grandmother re-married. His Uncle and Aunt adopted him, so why was he still a Skywalker? Surely that would have made finding him really easy for the empire. Didn’t think that one through did you Obi Wan… Speaking of Ben, why doesn’t he recognise R2D2 when he meets him in a New Hope?!

Also, is it ever explained how Poe survives the crash on Jakku and returns to the resistance? Also, by the time we reach Force Awakens how has it taken Han so long to use Chewie’s bow?! They’ve been mates for years.

*/�t9t~T)

#starwars episodeI phantomofthemenace darthvader darthmaul quigonjin