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azuriteOkay, so it's been a week now since Episode III came out-- records have been broken, new ones made, yadda yadda... and silly ol' me "swamped" with finals and work has finally gotten the chance to get to this, my review/plot hole obsessed rant. Here goes:
Okay, so the first thing I decided to do was hunt down some major plot holes that other fans noticed. I yanked some from http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7808592/, as it has proven to be a very insightful resource. Of course, there are plenty of Star Wars , and I'll get to those next.
Those pesky droids
Why do C-3PO and R2-D2 have no memory whatsoever in Episode IV of their original master - Anakin Skywalker? If they have been around since the beginning, wouldn't they know Darth Vader, wouldn't they know that Luke is his son (or at least recognize the name Skywalker), wouldn't they know who Obi-Wan Kenobi is? Did their memory get erased at some point? By who? Why? — Matt Cornell, Dallas, Texas
They did address this at the end of Episode III... sort of. C3PO (or is it 0, as in "zero"?) When Obi-Wan gave 3PO and R2 to Senator Bail Organa, Organa ordered that the captain of the ship (the same one we see Leia on at the start of Episode IV) erase "the protocol droid's memory." However, that means if you follow script, R2 was left intact. Still R2 can communicate only in blips and whistles-- yet C3PO understands him, as does Luke (somehow). It's likely that if R2 did "remember" everything that happened, some other programming conflicted with his ability to "say" it, or... the captain of the ship simply erased R2-- as a precaution.
The story behind the Sith
First of all the Sith is an ancient offshoot of the Jedi order, which was made of young knights who felt anger, fear and other emotions were only the path to strength and power, while the Jedi council felt inner peace and compassion were the way of the Jedi, not strong emotion. Seeing that these knights and their Padawans could prove to be dangerous, and could not be persuaded from darkness, the Jedi exiled them to unknown space. So the Dark Force users traveled through the galaxy searching for some place to call home. They found a desolate planet which held a dark secret, this planet was called Korriban, whose natives where tall, dark skinned, vampiric, horned beings who were naturally cruel and wicked and they called themselves Sith. Now at this point the dark Jedi show give a vulgar display of power and are accepted by the Sith and over a few thousand years the two cultures became one and the Sith were born, but true Sith (as in the natives of Korriban) are extinct. —Alex
This is more along the lines of something that SHOULD have been covered more in the movies, but wasn't. We're never really told why the Sith have such a big grudge against the Jedi (for getting kicked out of the Order for their beliefs), where they went, when, and why (Korriban, centuries ago, to find a home of their own where they could be accepted/train), and when they finally decided to make their big comeback, why it wasn't such a big deal (blinded, the Jedi were?) and why there were pretty much extinct by episode IV (surely there had to be other Sith besides Darth Sidious-- it's chalked up to the Sith self-destructing. Whether that includes the Sith/Korriban-natives, I'm not sure).
Jedi visions
The visions of deceased Jedi are just that: visions experience by a Jedi linked to them. Leia and Han (and the Ewoks) didn't see Yoda, Anakin and Obi-Wan at the end of Jedi, Luke did. Luke was trained by Yoda, by Obi-Wan, and linked genetically to Anakin. I would assume a Jedi's powers diminish in death (contrary to Obi-Wan's pre-death warning to Vader — I never got how he became more powerful) and thus can reach only to other's in possession of The Force.
The only thing about the Jedi visions that bugs me is that Obi-Wan did "theoretically" become more powerful in death. He became "one with the Force," or some such. But then, Obi-Wan was one of the last Jedi (aside from Yoda and Vader), and he supposedly spent all that time honing particular Jedi skills-- the contact with the Force, communication with the dead (Qui-Gon Jinn), and so forth. He didn't just stay on Tatooine and go nuts from the desert heat. Likely his power grew strong enough to allow him to SEE Qui-Gonn, and perhaps even Yoda, all the way on Dagobah (not DEGOBAH, thank you very much) -- and Owen Lars saw him, decided he was nuts, and forbade him from ever going near Luke ever again... (the question is, when did Obi-Wan find out that Anakin "survived" the last battle, and fully transformed into the guy we know as Vader? That likely added stress and mental anguish, which could have pushed Owen's opinion of him even further down.)
Yoda's hideout
Regarding the reason why Yoda went to Dagobah. In one of the games created by LucasArts, Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy, the reason is given. I don't know if it is the right one, but it is a reason nonetheless. The reason given was that Yoda went to Dagobah because he hoped that the planet's strong dark side aura would be able to hide him. —Lily Lorkowski, El Paso, Texas
Makes sense-- but they don't address that at all in Episode III, even though Yoda does say "Into exile I must go" (or something along those lines). In Episode V/VI, though, it's clear that Dagobah isn't your ordinary planet-- massive life signs, but Yoda's the only humanoid... and there was that whole Darth Vader-is-Luke thing. What the heck was THAT about?
Shmi's unfortunate outcome
No, the most important question is why neither the Jedi nor Padme ever made arrangements to free Anakin’s mother. Why was she left for 10 years? Why wasn't Anakin allowed to attempt to contact her when his nightmares started. Also, when Qui-Gon was attacked on Tatooine, why wasn't the first Sith sighting in 1000 years and an attempt to run down the chosen one with a speeder seen as something to take note of? —Edward Charboneau, Marquette, Mich.
This guy phrases questions better than I ever could. All of the above are gaping plot holes that, if repaired, could unravel Anakin's transformation into Vader. Obviously his mother's death played a large part in the reason why he turned-- he became fearful of death and losing the ones he loved, and nightmares of Padmé dying in childbirth spurred him to join forces with Palpatine. Had he been the good son and gone back for her (or hell, SENT SOMEONE to go after her), all would have been fine. Sure, the running theory is that Jedi = monks, and as such don't have loads of money and the like to throw around, but with his powers/influence/friends, he likely could have convinced SOMEONE (Padme?) to free Shmi.
The mysterious Ben Kenobi
Ben Kenobi states to Luke in Ep IV that his father wanted him to have his light saber when he was older. How would Anakin know about Luke being alive? Also Ben's ghost states after Luke leaves Dagobah that "that boy was our last hope" and Yoda says, "No there is another." (Leia) Ben should have known that too. Ben also says to Luke in Empire he should go to Dagobah and seek Yoda the Jedi Master who instructed him. Yoda did not instruct Obi-Wan, Qui Gon was his master. Ben does not even seem recognize R2-D2 and C-3PO. —Michael, Mesa, Ariz.
Scott tried to explain the light saber part to me as "Ben lied." I can understand that... sort of. But Obi-Wan made it a point to never really lie, so much as construct his sentences very colorfully. Remember the bit about "Vader betrayed and murdered your father" ...? Obi-Wan later told Luke "it was true, from a certain point of view." By the way, Anakin was notorious for losing/breaking his light saber-- it was always blue, though, right? Wasn't Luke's first light saber green, or was that the one HE made in Episode VI?
Obi-Wan knew just as well as Yoda that Luke had a twin sister-- he was even the one to confirm Luke's suspicions in Episode VI. I hardly believe that he "forgot" about Leia-- but the only excuse I can come up with is that he thought Leia would be safe, without any powers of the Force developing in her-- so long as she was on Alderaan with Bail Organa. But he had to have recognized her the minute he saw her image as projected by R2-- she did, after all, present 3 crucial elements:
* "You served with my father in the Clone Wars..." (How many other fathers did Obi-Wan serve with? Bail Organa was technically the only one; none of the other Jedi/Sith with children --even the Younglings-- survived, and everyone else was a clone).
* She's got Padmé's thing for weird hairstyles
* She called him Obi-Wan, which means Bail told her about him. Bail didn't know Obi-Wan took a new name when he went into exile on Tatooine, so there's no reason she would even know to call him 'Ben.'
In short, Ben might have thought (even until he died) that Leia stood no chance of becoming as powerful as Luke, or even her father. We rarely ever see any female Jedi in the spotlight, anyway.
As for Obi-Wan's spirit instructing Luke to seek out Yoda on Dagobah (and how did Obi-Wan know Yoda was on Dagobah, anyway? I doubt Yoda would have TOLD Obi-Wan; that ruins the whole idea of exile) ... well, Yoda technically DID instruct him after Qui-Gon's death (he did in Episode III, at any rate), even though Obi-Wan became a Master at that point. A better line would have been "Seek out my Master, Yoda." Then it would have been true no matter what, because Yoda was EVERY Jedi's Master-- he was pretty much head of the Jedi Council, after all. All the Masters on the council were everyone else's Masters, even if they weren't explicitly in charge of training them.
Luke by any other name
I disagree with your point regarding Jedi training. While ideally one would go through a full training program, it seems fairly obvious that corners are cut out of necessity: 1) Yoda is old, and knows that his time is nearly up, 2) there's a war on, that isn't going well for the rebellion, so getting Luke back into the fray as quickly as possible is warranted. Yoda probably told him that he didn't need any more training as a confidence booster (since he wasn't going to be getting off of his deathbed to continue the training).
I disagree with a certain extent to a number of the points that you hope to see resolved, but primarily because my "knowledge" is augmented through reading much of the original fiction based on the movies. Lucas gave a lot of insight and guidance to these writers, who fleshed out much of the “Star Wars” universe. One thing I'd like to know, but don't expect to be revealed — what was the point of "hiding" Luke under his real last name? —Ed March, Princeton Junction, N.J.
Well, I need to read all the books, anyhow. I'd like a complete list of all the "official" and approved books, so I know just what I'm missing. But as for Luke going under his real name (and not Lars, despite the fact that he was raised by Owen and Beru for his entire life) ... well, maybe it was just the principle of the matter? At first, I doubt Owen and Beru even knew what had happened to Anakin or why Obi-Wan was bringing a baby to their doorstep... Obi-Wan likely had to explain some details later on, but who knows what he left in, modified, or took out altogether? Besides, sometimes the best place to hide things is right under your nose- what better place that the home Anakin grew to despise, Tatooine?
Who dies, who vanishes?
As I was reading this I was hoping you'd include the Jedi disappearing when dying. I'm glad you slipped in the end. I didn't notice it in the battle of Geonosis but I did notice that Vader and Qui Gon were burned when they died, however Obi Wan and Yoda disappeared. I 100 percent believe that Qui Gon recruited Anakin for the Sith. Remember in "Attack" when it was known that Qui Gon was Dooku's apprentice? And when Obi-Wan said to Dooku that Qui Gon Jinn would never join him, Dooku replied "Don't be so sure." I would also like some explanation on who has the power to throw lightning from their hand and who doesn't. We never see Vader do it in Episodes VI, V, VI but we see Dooku can do it in Episode II. I wonder if there is a chance we will hear from Emperor Palpatine in "Sith," "Anakin, I am your father". Too much of a stretch you think? —Eric Harris, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Okay, I think it's a bit of a leap to believe that Qui-Gon recruited Anakin for the Sith. He did recognize the innate powers within Anakin, but he never struck me as a bad guy. Besides, if he was recruiting for the Sith, wouldn't that make HIM a Sith as well? And then wouldn't the Sith (as in the Korriban native we saw in Episode I) have recognized him, instead of fighting him? However, it's possible that Qui-Gon knew more about the Prophecy that muddled so many other Jedi later on. It's possible he realized it could have been a two-way deal-- that it wasn't just meant that "the Chosen One" would bring balance by destroying the Jedi, that the Chosen One could also go bad and become a Sith, or that by becoming a Sith, he WOULD bring balance to the Force. As Obi-Wan said in Episode VI, "it's true, from a certain point of view." As for Dooku, he was a loony. Seriously-- he might have been Palpatine/Sidious's second choice apprentice, but he never seemed like a truly serious character. He always seemed a few bulbs short of a chandelier. It's also possible that Dooku just wanted to unnerve Obi-Wan by raising the possibility that Qui-Gon wasn't perfect... but then, by the end of Episode III, we well realize that of course they're not-- if they were, there wouldn't BE any Sith, or even if the Sith DID have to exist as a balance to the Jedi, then the Jedi still would have been aware of one of them (Palpatine) in the highest seat of power in the galaxy...
As for the lightning power thing-- it has to do with how powerful the Sith is, I suppose. No Jedi is ever shown throwing lightning, though in Episode III, Yoda manages to counter it without a lightsaber. But even the Sith that controls it can't repel it all the time-- when Palpatine fought Mace Windu in Episode III, Windu countered to the point where Palpatine was reducing himself to a sizzle-- hence the ugliness of the Emperor. The Dark Side didn't really corrupt his looks so much as a lightning bolt to the face did. Vader might not have used the lightning for a few reasons: 1) it would have shorted out his systems; 2) He was more comfortable torturing people and using the more traditional aspects of the force (telekinesis), 3) the Emperor didn't teach him how, believing it would be giving Vader too much power.
And no, Palpatine is NOT Anakin's father. The most ridiculous stretch of information (that the midochlorians were behind Anakin's birth) is canon, and trying to change that just kills the whole mystery and magic behind the Force. While it's feasible to believe that Palpatine could have somehow mastered ALTERING midochlorians, he would have had to know about Shmi, Tatooine, and everything else in advance-- and even he couldn't predict that well. His prediction powers were never perfectly on cue until Episode II or Episode III.
Explain yourself, Lord Vader
Good article in MSNBC.com regarding the 10 things that need to be resolved from Episode III, but there is one more that has bothered me since 1982. As Vader is dying, he tells Luke "Tell Obi-Wan he was right." Right about what? There is obviously some serious advice that Anakin was given that he ignored or dissed Obi-Wan about, and it has eaten at him for decades. So I really want to know "Right about what?" —Marc Webster, Binghamton, N.Y.
Er, maybe it's just me, but I heard "Tell your sister... you were right" (This could have been a DVD-release change). Not Obi-Wan. Before Luke left Endor, he told Leia that Vader was his father, and that he was going (unarmed, no less!) because he truly believed there was good left in him-- and there was! Anakin... or Vader, whichever, saved Luke from certain death, and then HE killed the Emperor himself!
The question becomes, if Vader really did say "Tell Obi-Wan he was right," 1) was he delusional? He did know Obi-Wan was dead; he killed him! 2) Do we still accept the line as canon? Lucas changed other things about Episodes IV-VI for the DVD release, and it slightly closes up some other plotholes (ex. the Emperor tells Vader that Skywalker is "Anakin Skywalker's son" as opposed to merely calling him "a great disturbance in the Force"). Does that make the original line (if that was the case) any less "canon" than the DVD release line?
Jedi strength
Several of these issues are actually answered in the various published “Star Wars” Books. For instance, Yoda picked Dagobah because at some point a powerful Sith Lord was killed there (in the cave that Luke walks into to confront his Dark Side). The presence of that much Dark Side energy masks his presence so that he remains undetected by the Sith. Also, the ability for a Jedi to stick around in spirit form after death is directly related to their strength in the force. Those that are weak won't stick around for long or at all, but those that are strong, like Yoda, Anakin, and Obi-Wan are capable of sticking around for a while. You actually can't tell is Anakin disappears in the Jedi. In “A New Hope,” Obi-Wan's clothes are left behind, so you would think that since Anakin was mostly machine at that point, the machine would be left behind. You see him unhelmeted at one point, but when Luke is dragging him the helmet is back on. Later you see Luke burning the machine.
This addresses some issues from above, and makes a very valid point. As before, Yoda picked Dagobah for a reason. If Yoda tried to restart the Jedi council, assemble a rebellion, etc. he would have been squashed quite quickly and easily. Remember, Yoda was 900 years old (give or take) at the end of Episode VI. He saw the formation of the Senate, its collapse, and the formation of the Empire. Been there, done that... Yoda's seen/done it all. That means he was probably around when the Sith were, and he even fought some of the Korriban-native Sith. He probably even fought some of the other more powerful Sith BESIDES Dooku and Sidious (we know Sidious's master, Darth Plagus, was killed in his sleep by... duh, Sidious) ... and what about that mysterious Sifo-Dyas? Was he really a Sith, or did someone kill him so they could use his name when ordering up the clone army?
As for the disappearing/ghost form thing-- I'm leaning toward the fact that if we saw them in spirit form at some point (Obi-Wan, Yoda, Anakin) then they disappeared when they died. We never would have known with Anakin because he WAS mostly machine-- the only parts of him still flesh and bone were his head and torso. He had no limbs whatsoever, and the suit was so filled with machinery that he probably wouldn't have collapsed inward if he disappeared. He was too strong with the force to just "burn." Besides, burning seems to be vaguely ritual, anyway...
We never go into Qui-Gon's backstory. Even though I say he never struck me as a bad guy, it's possible he might have had some secret knowledge (something going against the Jedi Order) that prevented him from dying a peaceful death and therefore disappearing (everyone else who disappeared accepted death before it happened). In Episode III, Yoda tells Obi-Wan that Qui-Gon has come back from "the depths of the Neverworld" (or something like that) -- sounds kind of Hellish for a Jedi Master, hm? Besides, I didn't know the Jedi believed in a Heaven or a Hell-- merely that you either became one with the Force or you didn't. By the way, Qui-Gon's BODY didn't return- just his spirit. Hence Obi-Wan's ability to communicate with him on Tatooine, and a good reason why Owen might have thought Obi-Wan was a crazy hermit.
When did Palpatine turn?
I want to know how Palpatine became a Sith in the first place? Was he a Jedi who left the order for politics and his grand scheme to take over the Galaxy, or did he just happen to have the dark side flowing through him? Big hole in the movies. —Melissa, Olathe, Ka.
No one seems to recognize Palpatine as having any power with the Force at all. It's doubtful he was ever a Jedi-- he started out as a schemer, most likely. He does mention that he was trained by a Darth Plagus, who mastered the art of controlling the midochlorians in one's body to cheat death. But Palpatine killed Plagus in his sleep, and it's not really known whether Palpatine really knew Plagus's secrets, or whether he just brought them up to screw with Anakin's head and bring HIM over to the Dark Side. It seems as though Palpatine DID know them --after all, he lived longer than anyone else throughout the whole saga. But he didn't know or want to pass on the knowledge when it counted-- before Anakin fully turned, and before Anakin went nutso on Padmé (which was supposedly her reason for lacking the will to live, hence her death after the birth of Luke and Leia). Besides, it's kind of implied that politicians aren't to be trusted anyway-- even more ironic that the number one politician is the biggest baddie of them all. Maybe all politicians besides Bail Organa and Padmé were really Sith?
Invasion of the Whill
Yoda's Species - Whill and in “A Phantom Menace,” there is another Whill named Yaddle! Yoda has had no experience with the Sith as they all were killed over 1,000 years before the “Phantom Menace.” He learned of them through Jedi Halocrons which are little spheres that hold information about the past, like little hard drives! Yoda at the end of “Revenge of the Sith” becomes an apprentice to Qui-Gon Jinn, in his ghost form! The only Sith to survive was Darth Rage who adopted the rule of two and wend into hiding over the years. Back in the early days the Sith grew in numbers comparable to the Jedi, being 10,000 strong. They ultimately destroyed themselves because the Dark Side eventually takes control of you. The Sith desire more power than any one person can handle.
Leia has a force connection with Padme after she is born and that is how she remembers her mother. Anakin has dreams about Padme dying, which the emperor knows of and promises him he can save her from dying. He learned this skill from his Sith Master, Darth Plagious who taught it to him. When Windu confronts the Chancellor and is about to kill him. The love Anakin has for Padme and not wanting her to die is what turns Anakin to the Dark Side
Ehh... it is possible that Yoda, long-lived as he was, didn't see the formation of the Sith (that is, the breaking apart of the Jedi order into two factions, one of which later became the Sith, or Dark Jedi). But what's this about Yoda becoming an apprentice to Qui-Gon's ghost? While at the end of Episode III, Yoda does say Qui-Gon returned from somewhere (Neverworld? Underworld? It seemed to have implications of being like Hell) and now Yoda could communicate with him-- and therefore, Yoda could teach Obi-Wan how to, as well... but how does that translate to a dead Jedi Master teaching THE OLDEST JEDI MASTER AROUND anything? Sorry, doesn't compute with me. Besides, just because any Jedi is dead, does that mean s/he can appear in ghost form, do things that s/he couldn't do in life, see the future, etc? Are Jedi more powerful in death than in life?
And what about this Darth Rage, the only one to survive... survive what? The self-destruction of the Sith (who couldn't handle all the power they desired)? Or the Clone Wars, when Sith might have been mistaken for Jedi by other species? What? And by Sith, does this guy mean Dark Jedi, or does he mean the Korriban natives? The latter is the only thing that would make sense, because if this Darth Rage adopted the rule of two (which Sidious later followed), that means it ended up becoming tradition as more and more joined the Sith "cause." But who did Darth Rage take in? How long do Sith (Korriban natives) normally live, anyway? How and when did Rage finally die? (And on top of all that, why do they call themselves DARTH?)
Everyone believed that Padmé would have to survive longer than the twins' birth-- after all, Leia had to remember "images" and "feelings," right? Well, Lucas either conveniently forgot this fact, or could chalk it up to the kids developing a force connection with Padmé. But if that's so, why didn't Luke remember "images" or "feelings?" Besides, as far as Anakin knew, his nightmares/prophecies about Padmé dying in childbirth were wrong-- he believed he killed Padmé himself (when he thought she betrayed him and brought Obi-Wan to Mustafar). Truth is, she DID die in childbirth, but not OF childbirth-- she was perfectly healthy, but lost the will to live because she knew Anakin had turned, and even if he lived (he wasn't on the return ship back from Mistafar), they couldn't be together. It's a flippant, lame excuse as to why she died... I'd much rather she had some undetectable disease or something.
A Sith plot
Just issues with No. 7 the reason the Jedi council is unaware of Sifo-Dyas commission of the clone army is because he didn't do it. The Kaminoins say he commissioned the army 10 years prior yet when conversing with Mace and Yoda, Obi-wan is told that he was killed 12 years before. Also Jango Fett says he was hired by a man named Tyrannous (as in Darth Tyranous aka Count Dooku) for the job as the clone blueprint. Obviously, the Sith are deceiving a backwater (no pun intended) planet that doesn't freely associate with the Republic so they wouldn't know master Sifo Dyas by sight, so either Dooku procured the job (which would mean he started as Sideous' new apprentice before the two halves of Maul hit the bottom) or (and this is actually explained in Lucasarts “Bounty Hunter”) Darth Sideous (Palpatine) ordered the job posing as a member of the council. I'm willing to bet Kamino doesn't do a reference check if you show up with the credits to raise a clone army. The assault of Naboo in Episode I did exactly what the Sith planned, put him in power, in Episode II he shored up that authority and we see he's been plotting for a loooonnngggg time. —Dan, Cincinnati, Ohio
Actually I believe the time Sifo-Dyas was killed actually coincided with the commission of the clone army-- it wasn't 2 years apart. If that's so, it makes it even more likely that someone either put him up to commissioning the clone army for purposes he wasn't aware of (to be used for the Empire, instead of the Republic) or he was a Sith to begin with, and once his purpose was served, someone killed him off to prevent him from spreading the secret. Since Sifo-Dyas commissioned the army, it's possible he could control it and become a force to be reckoned with... so if Palpatine originally had Sifo-Dyas as his apprentice (and who knows how old Palaptine is, or how many apprentices he's taken), he could have killed him off to prevent him from getting too out of control.
Jango Fett says he was hired by someone named Tyranus (not Tyrannous... he's not a dinosaur, folks)-- aka Dooku. That makes sense-- after all, Dooku was playing both sides of the court. At first, you might have thought he was a semi-good guy-- though he was working with the Trade Federation and the Separatists. But he was really Sidious's apprentice the whole time, and he knew without a shred of doubt that Palpatine was not only a Sith, but THE Sith, and that Sith went by the name of Sidious (not Sideous... yeesh). But it's true Palpatine's been planning everything out for a very long time, so anything's possible.
The trouble with Leia
In "Empire", Leia is standing right next to Darth as Han is being frozen. You would think if he can sense Luke, he would sense the Force in Leia. But then in "Jedi," before the final battle between Luke and Darth, Darth senses Luke has a sister because he feels what Luke is thinking. So you're saying he can sense there is another Skywalker through Luke's thoughts, but he can't pick up on the feeling himself just by standing next to her in "Empire"? She's offspring of Darth, so why wouldn't he sense her. Who knows? I am hoping "Sith" will explain why she is not portrayed in an equal and powerful role as Luke. Instead she is made out to be less important even though she is supposed to have the same power or potential as Luke does. Confusing. I'm also anxious to learn how Anakin wouldn't have already sensed his son Luke's potential as soon as he was born. Were Anakin's children separated before he could see them? I hope "Sith" will clear this up. —Jo, St. Louis, Mo.
Leia was never brought up under the idea that she had anything to do with the Force, Jedi, or anything. Bail Organa did a damn good job hiding the fact of who her real mother and father were. There was just no reason to tell her-- they were both "dead" to them, anyway. (I actually expected that Organa had some sort of strange relationship with Padmé that would have led to him taking Leia; instead, it seemed to be a decision Obi-Wan, Yoda, and Organa all made after Padmé died.) In any case, there was nothing for Vader to sense from Leia, even if he was standing beside her. However, Luke always possessed the innate qualities that sparked some sort of recognition for Vader-- if not the Force itself, then midochlorians, or maybe just Luke's desire to be free (the same thing Anakin wanted as a child). Luke becomes a better and better Jedi, but he does have his weakness-- family. After Owen and Beru are killed, Obi-Wan is the closest thing he's got to a father... and when he discovers he's got a twin sister, he pretty much vows to protect her with everything he's got (I wonder if he planned on telling her from the get-go or not). However, Vader senses that thought: "I have a sister." Not "I have to protect Leia" or something like that-- it's NEVER said or even implied that Vader is aware that LEIA is Luke's sister. He probably could have assumed it, judging by the fact that Luke didn't have that knowledge before, and the only female in their little band of cronies is Leia... but he never SAID it outright. As such, it's possible that's why Vader didn't sense her as being his daughter and having his potential to tap into the Force... neither of them knew!
Girls are always shafted in Star Wars, in any case. She's got "potential," but when it comes to movie canon, we never see her or any other female (even Padmé) tapping into the Force and becoming a force to be reckoned with- at least, if there are any (female Jedi, for example) they don't last too long.
Vader didn't sense Luke's potential as soon as he was born because he thought his child (he didn't know there were twins) died when Padmé did. By the time Luke's midochlorians might have set off some sort of signal, Vader wouldn't have believed they were coming from his own child anyway-- he believed wholeheartedly that he'd killed Padmé and the child(ren).
Ten open items on the docket, along with odds they'll be resolved in "Revenge of the Sith":
1) Leia. Yes, she kicked butt, but you get the sense George Lucas never quite knew what he wanted to do with her. (It's also a fair bet that when writing the original "Star Wars," he hadn't yet decided on her being Luke's sister.)
We eventually learn her backstory — raised as a princess on Alderaan by Bail Organa — but her purpose in the rebellion seems diminished after Luke appears. Perhaps Han Solo is meant to be her consolation prize, but (and no golden bikini comments here) why doesn't Anakin Skywalker's daughter get more of a role?
It's truly puzzling because Leia seems to have at least nascent Force powers. Unless there's some weird father-to-son midichlorian genetics at work, she presumably should have as much Jedi potential as Luke.
"You have a power I don't understand, and could never have," she tells Luke in "Return of the Jedi." He replies, "You're wrong, Leia, you have that power too. In time, you'll learn to use it as I have."
Yet all she gets are hints and glimmers while Luke gets the full Jedi treatment. Why?
Odds of resolution: 3 in 10. Leia's appearance in "Sith" is likely to be limited.
We only see Leia as a baby in Episode III-- same as Luke. An inbetweener episode (Episode III and a half?) would be nice, but we're not going to get it. Fanfiction or authorized novels is the best we can hope for in the respect. As I've said before, women never get much of any limelight... even Padmé was grossly overshadowed by Episode III.
2) Vader and family. When exactly does Vader figure out that Luke is his son, and why can't he sense a Force connection with Leia — especially when he tortures her in Episode Four?
One hole was tightened in Lucas' "Empire" DVD. In the theater version, the Emperor describes Luke as a "great disturbance in the Force," but doesn't really tie him to Vader.
In the new edit, the Emperor insists Luke is "the offspring of Anakin Skywalker."
"How is that possible?" asks Vader.
"Search your feelings, Lord Vader, you will know it to be true."
No, thanks. We're still wondering when Vader figures it all out.
Plus, if both Luke and Leia are spirited away soon after being born, how come Vader learns about one but not the other? In one theory, Vader believes Leia died along with her mother. Why, then, would Luke have survived?
Anakin had no idea Padmé was having twins. For that reason, he knew Luke existed as his child, but until Episode VI, he had no idea Luke had a twin sister. The only other people who knew were dead. If you follow the original theatre script, how did Vader find out that Luke was his son? I think it's entirely possible that in the original script, Palpatine figured it out and figured the best way to deal with the son was to get the father to do the dirty work. But there's an equally strong possibility that Vader figured it out on his own-- through sensing one thing or another, returning to Naboo or Coruscant (perhaps deprecated files mentioned Padmé giving birth before she died mysteriously) ... in any case, that would make sense as to why Vader offered to "rule the galaxy" with Luke. That was the same offer he made to Padmé, in the hopes that they could live forever, overthrow Palpatine... for a guy supposedly so loyal to the Supreme Chancellor/soon-to-be Emperor, he was consumed with thoughts of living forever and being in a seat of power. Padmé was absolutely horrified by this, and likely it put an even bigger wedge between them, with or without Obi-Wan. When Vader found out he had a son, the very same feelings he had that forced him to turn (fear of losing loved ones, of losing life) prompted him to lose control over the Dark Side, and threaten to kill his own Master. He even ended up going through with it, though instead of killing Palpatine out of fear, there was some subliminal "Light Side" in him that wanted him to save Luke, even though Vader knew HE was already going to die.
Which brings us to the matter of Padmé's potential demise. Luke has "no memory" of his mother. Leia says she "died when I was very young," yet remembers "images, feelings. She was very beautiful, kind, but very sad." Unlikely, then, that Padmé dies in childbirth, though she presumably passes away while the twins are still babies, before Leia is spirited off to Alderaan.
The timeline of the twins' birth, separation and concealment is essential.
Odds: 7 in 10 on the twins and Padmé, 4 in 10 on Vader.
Lucas screwed that one up, plain and simple. Padmé should have lived. I always thought that she lived, married Organa, and then died of something else-- but she was sad because she lived with the knowledge that the man she truly loved was "dead" and yet still "alive" (the Anakin she fell in love with was dead; in his place was Vader).
3) Politics. Lucas has never hidden his disdain toward politicians. It permeates "Attack of the Clones." (Witness Anakin's dictator-in-training rant while trying to woo Padmé. Bad form!) But his political metaphors are clunky as he tries to merge his lords-and-knights theme with the legislative machinations of the Republic.
You sense Lucas is fascinated by medieval royalty, but can't quite make up his mind how he wants galactic politics to function. Naboo, for instance, elects queens, yet apparently appoints senators.
Lucas seems keen to show democracy corrupted, with Darth Sidious holding the reins. Add in the Trade Federation, the Commerce Guild, banking clans and all the other loose affiliations in "Phantom Menace" and "Attack," and it should be no surprise the Republic is about to crumble.
If democracy is so cherished to the Republic, why is there so little backlash when Jar-Jar stands up in Episode II, and proposes to create an army and hand the Chancellor emergency powers? Because the Sith control so many senators?
Sounds like Lucas was torn between cheap shots at politicians and trying to praise the democratic process. I'd like at least one political-textbook moment in Episode Three.
Odds: 4 in 10.
Meeeh, I figured Sidious pretty much controlled everyone by that point. Some nice fiction novels might go into the minds of the other alien senators (did you know E.T. was one of them?) and find out whether they were really controlled, or whether they were simply so sick of all the death and bloodshed (of the Separatists) that they figured it was okay to create the army and go to war, once and for all. But it didn't seem as though anyone questioned where the clone army would come from-- and they should have. That further seals the idea that people were at least partially under Sidious's control or influence.
4) The Sith. One of Lucas' most fascinating inventions, and one of his least explained, even in the official databank, which threads the needle by introducing details not in the first five films.
Most viewers probably know the Sith represent the Force's dark side, though it isn't clear why or how. We know they come in pairs — a master and an apprentice — so we can trace the Sith lineage.
At first, Darth Sidious is the master and Darth Maul the apprentice; after Maul is killed, we can presume Count Dooku (Darth Tyranus) becomes the new apprentice. Under the two-at-a-time theory, you have to presume that Tyranus is somehow killed if Sidious takes Anakin under wing and transforms him into Darth Vader.
This finally happens at the start of Episode III. It's no surprise that Dooku's own master (Sidious, aka Palpatine) betrays him-- that's what the Sith are all about. Their unofficial motto seems to be "trust no one." But why did Dooku "take Palpatine prisoner" in the first place, unless he believed Palpatine had ANOTHER plan for when the rescue team (Obi-Wan and Anakin) came on board the ship? Surely Dooku would have just killed Palpatine and gotten it over with if he knew Palpatine planned to replace him...
The Sith are so crucial because they help explain Vader's motives. But nowhere is it clear why the Sith are so peeved at the Jedi and the Republic. (Even the databank says the Sith order "self-destructed.")
"At last we will have revenge," seethes Darth Maul. Revenge for what? That implies the Jedi subdued the Sith, but nothing in the films confirms that.
Odds: 7 in 10.
Like I said before, it's mostly from the books and games. We have very little canon information to support anything about the Sith and what happened to them.
5) Vader's ambitions. When Vader finally learns that he has an heir, he sets out to convert Luke to the dark side. What else does he want to accomplish?
"We can rule the galaxy as father and son," he offers Luke. This presumes Vader expects to supplant Emperor Palpatine. Will Vader assassinate him? Seems unlikely. Is Palpatine arranging a succession plan? Maybe, but the Emperor's role in "Jedi" was so muddled that you can't be sure.
It's plausible that once Vader discovers he has a son, he wants Luke to go the Sith way. And we see Anakin angry that Obi-Wan has held him back, and filled with rage over his mother's death. How does this translate into a thirst for galactic domination?
Odds: 8 in 10. Absolutely essential to understanding Anakin's downfall.
As I said before, Anakin originally had feelings of fear that pushed him down the Dark Side. It started with the death of his mother (anger and hate ended up "forcing" him to kill the Sand people) and continued with his secret romance and eventual marriage to Padmé. When he found out she was pregnant, that sealed the deal-- he started having nightmares about her dying in childbirth, and he feared losing her and losing his child. The only way to stop that was to somehow cheat death-- and hey, if you're going to cheat death, why not do it comfortably, in the highest ranking position of the galaxy? That would give Anakin the recognition he desires, and Padmé the opportunity to create the government she thinks has failed her. However, the very idea horrifies Padmé, and further drives her from Anakin.
6) Jedi training. We know from Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan that a Padawan learner must complete trials in order to become a full Jedi. We know Anakin bristles at Obi-Wan's schedule.
Why, then, is Luke's Jedi training so haphazard? In "Empire," he hangs with Yoda on Dagobah, learns basic Force skills and then cuts short his training to dash off to Cloud City.
Yet when "Jedi" starts, he seems to have mastered his Jedi might. Back on Dagobah, the Little Green One tells him, "No more training do you require." Then Yoda retrenches and says Luke must face Daddy Darth before he can be a real Jedi.
In the post-Republic years, does Yoda excise the Padawan bit? And why does Luke have to face his father? Seems beyond the scope of the usual trials.
Could we get a ruling on exactly when and how you become a full card-carrying Jedi?
Odds: 2 in 10. We'll be too busy watching Anakin bristle.
True, this was never really covered. But the Sith don't seem to have a policy on how long you must be someone's apprentice or any trials you must undertake before being recognized as a Sith. You might not even have to be loyal to your (or one!) master! Yoda doesn't seem to exercise the Padawan bit after the Republic, likely because he saw where "misreading" the prophecy got him. On top of that, Yoda used to train the Younglings, but they were all massacred, and he had to deal with the bodies of children. Even the great Yoda was probably intensely hurt by that, and didn't want to train children anymore, especially if they were going to end up being killed by Vader. So he scrapped the idea of a Padawan and a Master, seeing as it didn't exactly work in anyone's favor in the latter years.
7) Shortfalls of the Jedi. Yes, yes, we know the dark side clouds everything. That seems a rather facile explanation for some enormous Jedi missteps.
Mace Windu, for example, tells Padmé that Dooku "couldn't assassinate anyone. It's not in his nature." Yeah, right. The council knows Jedi can go bad (that Sith thing), so why not consider that another of their order has turned, especially given Qui-Gon's reported Sith sighting?
The Dark Side does cloud everything, apparently-- the thing the Jedi weren't willing to realize is that "balance" is a combination of the Dark Side and the Light... or the Good side, or whatever you might call it. It doesn't just mean in the universe (Sith vs. Jedi) but within each person. Luke had to face his own Dark Side, but not let it control him. Vader was almost completely Dark, but had a shred of something good in him that prompted him to kill the Master he'd been loyal to for years. Windu might not wanted to have recognized a fellow friend (Dooku) as having turned, but it happens... It's also possible that even if Windu were aware that Dooku turned, that he couldn't have turned so drastically and so quickly that he would be willing to kill at the snap of a finger. The only reason why Anakin COULD was because he was that terrified of losing Padmé.
And were they truly so blind that they didn't know Sifo-Dyas commissioned a clone army?
In Episode II, diner cook Dex not only identifies a Kaminoan saber dart but offers up this chestnut on why Obi-Wan can't find Kamino: "I should think you Jedi would have more respect for the difference between knowledge and wisdom." Let me translate: "Danger, Will Robinson!"
Even Yoda acknowledges standards are slipping. He calls arrogance "a flaw more and more common among Jedi." So his solution is to sit back and complain? Why not call the Jedi in and dress them down?
Talk about hubris. Lucas must, absolutely must, explain these shortcomings in "Revenge."
Odds: 8 in 10.
Unfortunately, Obi-Wan doesn't need to consider Dex's words in the slightest. He goes straight to Yoda and discovers the Jedi council logs (or whatever you call them) have been tampered with... but WHO did it? Probably Dooku, before he left, but when was that, and why didn't anyone catch him? If he planned to "erase Kamino" from sight, couldn't he have done a better job? Surely the Jedi don't just rely on their library star maps to find everything...
As for why Yoda and the others don't call in the other Jedi and dress them down... that's a damn good question. *yells* FANFICTION!
8) Your inner Jedi. If "Star Wars" politics are messy, the Jedi credo is a shambles.
There's nothing wrong with the stoic approach Lucas channeled into the Jedi philosophy. But the Zen approach seems to clash with the "feelings" Luke is repeatedly counseled to harness by Obi-Wan, Yoda and even Vader.
At the very moment Anakin Skywalker most needs to channel these feelings — when his own mother dies in his arms — he finds no solace in his Jedi training. How do we know? "To be angry is to be human," Padmé says to soothe him as he fills with rage.
"I'm a Jedi," he snaps. "I know I'm better than this."
Then we get the rage (and revenge on the Tusken Raiders) that opens him to the Dark Side. What use are lofty Jedi pronoucements if they lack a way to resolve a basic human emotion?
Odds: 1 in 10. We know the Jedi are all but wiped out in the Clone Wars, so their response to the Sith's growing power probably isn't a group hug.
By the time Luke is open for training, the last remaining Jedi have obviously changed their ideas about what makes a Jedi. They've probably realized the reason why the Sith duped them in the first place and got as far as they did (getting the Chosen One on their side) is because they made use of their feelings. Maybe Obi-Wan and Yoda both counsel Luke to use his feelings so long as he lets himself still remain in control-- something the Sith don't do-- which is why they self-destructed.
9) Yoda. Given that he's arguably the most revered character in the entire series, why is Yoda such a mystery?
His race? Unknown. (Though the thought of a planet full of Yodas is pretty cool, no?) His original master? Unknown. His role in shaping the Jedi council? Unknown.
We know he's almost 900 years old, which means he witnessed a good chunk of the Republic's history. He certainly should have at least some familiarity with the Sith, which makes you think he should have been savvier about the Dark Side's potential.
Who were his other Padawans? Dooku was one, and we can assume Luke was his final, if not official, learner. But who else was his Jedi offspring?
And why did he choose to go to Dagobah, of all places, after the Republic fell? Was that a strategic decision? Did he just like hanging in the galactic bayou?
Rather than that stupid Ewok TV movie, Lucas might have spent some time sharing a backstory on Yoda. I certainly would have paid to see it.
Odds: 5 in 10. Dagobah might get some time, but I'll be impressed if we get more than a few other scraps about Yoda's backstory.
All of this was covered earlier-- Yoda's supposedly a Whill, and there may have been older members of his species that witnessed the "split" before even he did. Yoda's other "offspring" varied-- at some point he stopped taking individual Padawans, and switched to teaching the Younglings. What prompted this change? Who was the Jedi Council head before Yoda?
He chose to go to Dagobah because of the dark side's ability to mask his presence there. It also probably gave Yoda something to do-- keep his Jedi skills trained, in the hopes that "a new hope" would awaken in the form of Luke or Leia.
10) The Force's source. So which is it: a "quaint old religion," as portrayed in the first three films, or is it all about biology and midi-chlorians, those microscopic life forms described in the next two?
Many fans hate the midichlorian concept; I'm not that down on it. I like Lucas' attempt to surpass the original films' mealy-mouthed animism. But it's a huge step to go from lively bacteria to Qui-Gon's theory that Anakin was conceived by midi-chlorians. That would be a Force to be reckoned with.
I'd wager most longtime fans are waiting for a good Force mechanics explanation in "Sith."
Also: Remember how Yoda, Obi-Wan and Anakin appear as phantasms at the end of "Jedi"? I'd also like to know why some Jedis — Yoda and Obi-Wan, notably — vanish when slain, while others (in the Geonosis battle, notably) just ... die. Vader doesn't at the end of "Jedi," either, though maybe that's the dark side at work.
In any case, let us know: Do Jedi actually die, or do they just go to that great cantina in the sky?
Odds: 4 in 10. A lot of Jedi are set to die in "Sith," but I doubt it will explain Luke's visions.
Things --like ideas, concepts, and religions-- do change. It's possible the concept of midochlorians (midi-chlorians?) and other biological (though somewhat unexplainable) factors are lost to time, and what people remember about Jedi (and the Sith) ways is that it involves telekinesis, the use of lightsabers, and the reliance on something similar to "gut" or "instinct," but more of a "guiding" force, certain and true. The most of an explanation we'll ever get about the mechanics of the Force is probably something in a book like Eyewitness: Star Wars. ^^;;
The disappearing thing was already covered, too. Whether or not Vader really disappeared and his SUIT was the only thing that was burned is not truly known.
I say we go storm Skywalker Ranch and bug Lucas for answers!
Okay, so the first thing I decided to do was hunt down some major plot holes that other fans noticed. I yanked some from http://msnbc.msn.com/id/7808592/, as it has proven to be a very insightful resource. Of course, there are plenty of Star Wars , and I'll get to those next.
Those pesky droids
Why do C-3PO and R2-D2 have no memory whatsoever in Episode IV of their original master - Anakin Skywalker? If they have been around since the beginning, wouldn't they know Darth Vader, wouldn't they know that Luke is his son (or at least recognize the name Skywalker), wouldn't they know who Obi-Wan Kenobi is? Did their memory get erased at some point? By who? Why? — Matt Cornell, Dallas, Texas
They did address this at the end of Episode III... sort of. C3PO (or is it 0, as in "zero"?) When Obi-Wan gave 3PO and R2 to Senator Bail Organa, Organa ordered that the captain of the ship (the same one we see Leia on at the start of Episode IV) erase "the protocol droid's memory." However, that means if you follow script, R2 was left intact. Still R2 can communicate only in blips and whistles-- yet C3PO understands him, as does Luke (somehow). It's likely that if R2 did "remember" everything that happened, some other programming conflicted with his ability to "say" it, or... the captain of the ship simply erased R2-- as a precaution.
The story behind the Sith
First of all the Sith is an ancient offshoot of the Jedi order, which was made of young knights who felt anger, fear and other emotions were only the path to strength and power, while the Jedi council felt inner peace and compassion were the way of the Jedi, not strong emotion. Seeing that these knights and their Padawans could prove to be dangerous, and could not be persuaded from darkness, the Jedi exiled them to unknown space. So the Dark Force users traveled through the galaxy searching for some place to call home. They found a desolate planet which held a dark secret, this planet was called Korriban, whose natives where tall, dark skinned, vampiric, horned beings who were naturally cruel and wicked and they called themselves Sith. Now at this point the dark Jedi show give a vulgar display of power and are accepted by the Sith and over a few thousand years the two cultures became one and the Sith were born, but true Sith (as in the natives of Korriban) are extinct. —Alex
This is more along the lines of something that SHOULD have been covered more in the movies, but wasn't. We're never really told why the Sith have such a big grudge against the Jedi (for getting kicked out of the Order for their beliefs), where they went, when, and why (Korriban, centuries ago, to find a home of their own where they could be accepted/train), and when they finally decided to make their big comeback, why it wasn't such a big deal (blinded, the Jedi were?) and why there were pretty much extinct by episode IV (surely there had to be other Sith besides Darth Sidious-- it's chalked up to the Sith self-destructing. Whether that includes the Sith/Korriban-natives, I'm not sure).
Jedi visions
The visions of deceased Jedi are just that: visions experience by a Jedi linked to them. Leia and Han (and the Ewoks) didn't see Yoda, Anakin and Obi-Wan at the end of Jedi, Luke did. Luke was trained by Yoda, by Obi-Wan, and linked genetically to Anakin. I would assume a Jedi's powers diminish in death (contrary to Obi-Wan's pre-death warning to Vader — I never got how he became more powerful) and thus can reach only to other's in possession of The Force.
The only thing about the Jedi visions that bugs me is that Obi-Wan did "theoretically" become more powerful in death. He became "one with the Force," or some such. But then, Obi-Wan was one of the last Jedi (aside from Yoda and Vader), and he supposedly spent all that time honing particular Jedi skills-- the contact with the Force, communication with the dead (Qui-Gon Jinn), and so forth. He didn't just stay on Tatooine and go nuts from the desert heat. Likely his power grew strong enough to allow him to SEE Qui-Gonn, and perhaps even Yoda, all the way on Dagobah (not DEGOBAH, thank you very much) -- and Owen Lars saw him, decided he was nuts, and forbade him from ever going near Luke ever again... (the question is, when did Obi-Wan find out that Anakin "survived" the last battle, and fully transformed into the guy we know as Vader? That likely added stress and mental anguish, which could have pushed Owen's opinion of him even further down.)
Yoda's hideout
Regarding the reason why Yoda went to Dagobah. In one of the games created by LucasArts, Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy, the reason is given. I don't know if it is the right one, but it is a reason nonetheless. The reason given was that Yoda went to Dagobah because he hoped that the planet's strong dark side aura would be able to hide him. —Lily Lorkowski, El Paso, Texas
Makes sense-- but they don't address that at all in Episode III, even though Yoda does say "Into exile I must go" (or something along those lines). In Episode V/VI, though, it's clear that Dagobah isn't your ordinary planet-- massive life signs, but Yoda's the only humanoid... and there was that whole Darth Vader-is-Luke thing. What the heck was THAT about?
Shmi's unfortunate outcome
No, the most important question is why neither the Jedi nor Padme ever made arrangements to free Anakin’s mother. Why was she left for 10 years? Why wasn't Anakin allowed to attempt to contact her when his nightmares started. Also, when Qui-Gon was attacked on Tatooine, why wasn't the first Sith sighting in 1000 years and an attempt to run down the chosen one with a speeder seen as something to take note of? —Edward Charboneau, Marquette, Mich.
This guy phrases questions better than I ever could. All of the above are gaping plot holes that, if repaired, could unravel Anakin's transformation into Vader. Obviously his mother's death played a large part in the reason why he turned-- he became fearful of death and losing the ones he loved, and nightmares of Padmé dying in childbirth spurred him to join forces with Palpatine. Had he been the good son and gone back for her (or hell, SENT SOMEONE to go after her), all would have been fine. Sure, the running theory is that Jedi = monks, and as such don't have loads of money and the like to throw around, but with his powers/influence/friends, he likely could have convinced SOMEONE (Padme?) to free Shmi.
The mysterious Ben Kenobi
Ben Kenobi states to Luke in Ep IV that his father wanted him to have his light saber when he was older. How would Anakin know about Luke being alive? Also Ben's ghost states after Luke leaves Dagobah that "that boy was our last hope" and Yoda says, "No there is another." (Leia) Ben should have known that too. Ben also says to Luke in Empire he should go to Dagobah and seek Yoda the Jedi Master who instructed him. Yoda did not instruct Obi-Wan, Qui Gon was his master. Ben does not even seem recognize R2-D2 and C-3PO. —Michael, Mesa, Ariz.
Scott tried to explain the light saber part to me as "Ben lied." I can understand that... sort of. But Obi-Wan made it a point to never really lie, so much as construct his sentences very colorfully. Remember the bit about "Vader betrayed and murdered your father" ...? Obi-Wan later told Luke "it was true, from a certain point of view." By the way, Anakin was notorious for losing/breaking his light saber-- it was always blue, though, right? Wasn't Luke's first light saber green, or was that the one HE made in Episode VI?
Obi-Wan knew just as well as Yoda that Luke had a twin sister-- he was even the one to confirm Luke's suspicions in Episode VI. I hardly believe that he "forgot" about Leia-- but the only excuse I can come up with is that he thought Leia would be safe, without any powers of the Force developing in her-- so long as she was on Alderaan with Bail Organa. But he had to have recognized her the minute he saw her image as projected by R2-- she did, after all, present 3 crucial elements:
* "You served with my father in the Clone Wars..." (How many other fathers did Obi-Wan serve with? Bail Organa was technically the only one; none of the other Jedi/Sith with children --even the Younglings-- survived, and everyone else was a clone).
* She's got Padmé's thing for weird hairstyles
* She called him Obi-Wan, which means Bail told her about him. Bail didn't know Obi-Wan took a new name when he went into exile on Tatooine, so there's no reason she would even know to call him 'Ben.'
In short, Ben might have thought (even until he died) that Leia stood no chance of becoming as powerful as Luke, or even her father. We rarely ever see any female Jedi in the spotlight, anyway.
As for Obi-Wan's spirit instructing Luke to seek out Yoda on Dagobah (and how did Obi-Wan know Yoda was on Dagobah, anyway? I doubt Yoda would have TOLD Obi-Wan; that ruins the whole idea of exile) ... well, Yoda technically DID instruct him after Qui-Gon's death (he did in Episode III, at any rate), even though Obi-Wan became a Master at that point. A better line would have been "Seek out my Master, Yoda." Then it would have been true no matter what, because Yoda was EVERY Jedi's Master-- he was pretty much head of the Jedi Council, after all. All the Masters on the council were everyone else's Masters, even if they weren't explicitly in charge of training them.
Luke by any other name
I disagree with your point regarding Jedi training. While ideally one would go through a full training program, it seems fairly obvious that corners are cut out of necessity: 1) Yoda is old, and knows that his time is nearly up, 2) there's a war on, that isn't going well for the rebellion, so getting Luke back into the fray as quickly as possible is warranted. Yoda probably told him that he didn't need any more training as a confidence booster (since he wasn't going to be getting off of his deathbed to continue the training).
I disagree with a certain extent to a number of the points that you hope to see resolved, but primarily because my "knowledge" is augmented through reading much of the original fiction based on the movies. Lucas gave a lot of insight and guidance to these writers, who fleshed out much of the “Star Wars” universe. One thing I'd like to know, but don't expect to be revealed — what was the point of "hiding" Luke under his real last name? —Ed March, Princeton Junction, N.J.
Well, I need to read all the books, anyhow. I'd like a complete list of all the "official" and approved books, so I know just what I'm missing. But as for Luke going under his real name (and not Lars, despite the fact that he was raised by Owen and Beru for his entire life) ... well, maybe it was just the principle of the matter? At first, I doubt Owen and Beru even knew what had happened to Anakin or why Obi-Wan was bringing a baby to their doorstep... Obi-Wan likely had to explain some details later on, but who knows what he left in, modified, or took out altogether? Besides, sometimes the best place to hide things is right under your nose- what better place that the home Anakin grew to despise, Tatooine?
Who dies, who vanishes?
As I was reading this I was hoping you'd include the Jedi disappearing when dying. I'm glad you slipped in the end. I didn't notice it in the battle of Geonosis but I did notice that Vader and Qui Gon were burned when they died, however Obi Wan and Yoda disappeared. I 100 percent believe that Qui Gon recruited Anakin for the Sith. Remember in "Attack" when it was known that Qui Gon was Dooku's apprentice? And when Obi-Wan said to Dooku that Qui Gon Jinn would never join him, Dooku replied "Don't be so sure." I would also like some explanation on who has the power to throw lightning from their hand and who doesn't. We never see Vader do it in Episodes VI, V, VI but we see Dooku can do it in Episode II. I wonder if there is a chance we will hear from Emperor Palpatine in "Sith," "Anakin, I am your father". Too much of a stretch you think? —Eric Harris, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Okay, I think it's a bit of a leap to believe that Qui-Gon recruited Anakin for the Sith. He did recognize the innate powers within Anakin, but he never struck me as a bad guy. Besides, if he was recruiting for the Sith, wouldn't that make HIM a Sith as well? And then wouldn't the Sith (as in the Korriban native we saw in Episode I) have recognized him, instead of fighting him? However, it's possible that Qui-Gon knew more about the Prophecy that muddled so many other Jedi later on. It's possible he realized it could have been a two-way deal-- that it wasn't just meant that "the Chosen One" would bring balance by destroying the Jedi, that the Chosen One could also go bad and become a Sith, or that by becoming a Sith, he WOULD bring balance to the Force. As Obi-Wan said in Episode VI, "it's true, from a certain point of view." As for Dooku, he was a loony. Seriously-- he might have been Palpatine/Sidious's second choice apprentice, but he never seemed like a truly serious character. He always seemed a few bulbs short of a chandelier. It's also possible that Dooku just wanted to unnerve Obi-Wan by raising the possibility that Qui-Gon wasn't perfect... but then, by the end of Episode III, we well realize that of course they're not-- if they were, there wouldn't BE any Sith, or even if the Sith DID have to exist as a balance to the Jedi, then the Jedi still would have been aware of one of them (Palpatine) in the highest seat of power in the galaxy...
As for the lightning power thing-- it has to do with how powerful the Sith is, I suppose. No Jedi is ever shown throwing lightning, though in Episode III, Yoda manages to counter it without a lightsaber. But even the Sith that controls it can't repel it all the time-- when Palpatine fought Mace Windu in Episode III, Windu countered to the point where Palpatine was reducing himself to a sizzle-- hence the ugliness of the Emperor. The Dark Side didn't really corrupt his looks so much as a lightning bolt to the face did. Vader might not have used the lightning for a few reasons: 1) it would have shorted out his systems; 2) He was more comfortable torturing people and using the more traditional aspects of the force (telekinesis), 3) the Emperor didn't teach him how, believing it would be giving Vader too much power.
And no, Palpatine is NOT Anakin's father. The most ridiculous stretch of information (that the midochlorians were behind Anakin's birth) is canon, and trying to change that just kills the whole mystery and magic behind the Force. While it's feasible to believe that Palpatine could have somehow mastered ALTERING midochlorians, he would have had to know about Shmi, Tatooine, and everything else in advance-- and even he couldn't predict that well. His prediction powers were never perfectly on cue until Episode II or Episode III.
Explain yourself, Lord Vader
Good article in MSNBC.com regarding the 10 things that need to be resolved from Episode III, but there is one more that has bothered me since 1982. As Vader is dying, he tells Luke "Tell Obi-Wan he was right." Right about what? There is obviously some serious advice that Anakin was given that he ignored or dissed Obi-Wan about, and it has eaten at him for decades. So I really want to know "Right about what?" —Marc Webster, Binghamton, N.Y.
Er, maybe it's just me, but I heard "Tell your sister... you were right" (This could have been a DVD-release change). Not Obi-Wan. Before Luke left Endor, he told Leia that Vader was his father, and that he was going (unarmed, no less!) because he truly believed there was good left in him-- and there was! Anakin... or Vader, whichever, saved Luke from certain death, and then HE killed the Emperor himself!
The question becomes, if Vader really did say "Tell Obi-Wan he was right," 1) was he delusional? He did know Obi-Wan was dead; he killed him! 2) Do we still accept the line as canon? Lucas changed other things about Episodes IV-VI for the DVD release, and it slightly closes up some other plotholes (ex. the Emperor tells Vader that Skywalker is "Anakin Skywalker's son" as opposed to merely calling him "a great disturbance in the Force"). Does that make the original line (if that was the case) any less "canon" than the DVD release line?
Jedi strength
Several of these issues are actually answered in the various published “Star Wars” Books. For instance, Yoda picked Dagobah because at some point a powerful Sith Lord was killed there (in the cave that Luke walks into to confront his Dark Side). The presence of that much Dark Side energy masks his presence so that he remains undetected by the Sith. Also, the ability for a Jedi to stick around in spirit form after death is directly related to their strength in the force. Those that are weak won't stick around for long or at all, but those that are strong, like Yoda, Anakin, and Obi-Wan are capable of sticking around for a while. You actually can't tell is Anakin disappears in the Jedi. In “A New Hope,” Obi-Wan's clothes are left behind, so you would think that since Anakin was mostly machine at that point, the machine would be left behind. You see him unhelmeted at one point, but when Luke is dragging him the helmet is back on. Later you see Luke burning the machine.
This addresses some issues from above, and makes a very valid point. As before, Yoda picked Dagobah for a reason. If Yoda tried to restart the Jedi council, assemble a rebellion, etc. he would have been squashed quite quickly and easily. Remember, Yoda was 900 years old (give or take) at the end of Episode VI. He saw the formation of the Senate, its collapse, and the formation of the Empire. Been there, done that... Yoda's seen/done it all. That means he was probably around when the Sith were, and he even fought some of the Korriban-native Sith. He probably even fought some of the other more powerful Sith BESIDES Dooku and Sidious (we know Sidious's master, Darth Plagus, was killed in his sleep by... duh, Sidious) ... and what about that mysterious Sifo-Dyas? Was he really a Sith, or did someone kill him so they could use his name when ordering up the clone army?
As for the disappearing/ghost form thing-- I'm leaning toward the fact that if we saw them in spirit form at some point (Obi-Wan, Yoda, Anakin) then they disappeared when they died. We never would have known with Anakin because he WAS mostly machine-- the only parts of him still flesh and bone were his head and torso. He had no limbs whatsoever, and the suit was so filled with machinery that he probably wouldn't have collapsed inward if he disappeared. He was too strong with the force to just "burn." Besides, burning seems to be vaguely ritual, anyway...
We never go into Qui-Gon's backstory. Even though I say he never struck me as a bad guy, it's possible he might have had some secret knowledge (something going against the Jedi Order) that prevented him from dying a peaceful death and therefore disappearing (everyone else who disappeared accepted death before it happened). In Episode III, Yoda tells Obi-Wan that Qui-Gon has come back from "the depths of the Neverworld" (or something like that) -- sounds kind of Hellish for a Jedi Master, hm? Besides, I didn't know the Jedi believed in a Heaven or a Hell-- merely that you either became one with the Force or you didn't. By the way, Qui-Gon's BODY didn't return- just his spirit. Hence Obi-Wan's ability to communicate with him on Tatooine, and a good reason why Owen might have thought Obi-Wan was a crazy hermit.
When did Palpatine turn?
I want to know how Palpatine became a Sith in the first place? Was he a Jedi who left the order for politics and his grand scheme to take over the Galaxy, or did he just happen to have the dark side flowing through him? Big hole in the movies. —Melissa, Olathe, Ka.
No one seems to recognize Palpatine as having any power with the Force at all. It's doubtful he was ever a Jedi-- he started out as a schemer, most likely. He does mention that he was trained by a Darth Plagus, who mastered the art of controlling the midochlorians in one's body to cheat death. But Palpatine killed Plagus in his sleep, and it's not really known whether Palpatine really knew Plagus's secrets, or whether he just brought them up to screw with Anakin's head and bring HIM over to the Dark Side. It seems as though Palpatine DID know them --after all, he lived longer than anyone else throughout the whole saga. But he didn't know or want to pass on the knowledge when it counted-- before Anakin fully turned, and before Anakin went nutso on Padmé (which was supposedly her reason for lacking the will to live, hence her death after the birth of Luke and Leia). Besides, it's kind of implied that politicians aren't to be trusted anyway-- even more ironic that the number one politician is the biggest baddie of them all. Maybe all politicians besides Bail Organa and Padmé were really Sith?
Invasion of the Whill
Yoda's Species - Whill and in “A Phantom Menace,” there is another Whill named Yaddle! Yoda has had no experience with the Sith as they all were killed over 1,000 years before the “Phantom Menace.” He learned of them through Jedi Halocrons which are little spheres that hold information about the past, like little hard drives! Yoda at the end of “Revenge of the Sith” becomes an apprentice to Qui-Gon Jinn, in his ghost form! The only Sith to survive was Darth Rage who adopted the rule of two and wend into hiding over the years. Back in the early days the Sith grew in numbers comparable to the Jedi, being 10,000 strong. They ultimately destroyed themselves because the Dark Side eventually takes control of you. The Sith desire more power than any one person can handle.
Leia has a force connection with Padme after she is born and that is how she remembers her mother. Anakin has dreams about Padme dying, which the emperor knows of and promises him he can save her from dying. He learned this skill from his Sith Master, Darth Plagious who taught it to him. When Windu confronts the Chancellor and is about to kill him. The love Anakin has for Padme and not wanting her to die is what turns Anakin to the Dark Side
Ehh... it is possible that Yoda, long-lived as he was, didn't see the formation of the Sith (that is, the breaking apart of the Jedi order into two factions, one of which later became the Sith, or Dark Jedi). But what's this about Yoda becoming an apprentice to Qui-Gon's ghost? While at the end of Episode III, Yoda does say Qui-Gon returned from somewhere (Neverworld? Underworld? It seemed to have implications of being like Hell) and now Yoda could communicate with him-- and therefore, Yoda could teach Obi-Wan how to, as well... but how does that translate to a dead Jedi Master teaching THE OLDEST JEDI MASTER AROUND anything? Sorry, doesn't compute with me. Besides, just because any Jedi is dead, does that mean s/he can appear in ghost form, do things that s/he couldn't do in life, see the future, etc? Are Jedi more powerful in death than in life?
And what about this Darth Rage, the only one to survive... survive what? The self-destruction of the Sith (who couldn't handle all the power they desired)? Or the Clone Wars, when Sith might have been mistaken for Jedi by other species? What? And by Sith, does this guy mean Dark Jedi, or does he mean the Korriban natives? The latter is the only thing that would make sense, because if this Darth Rage adopted the rule of two (which Sidious later followed), that means it ended up becoming tradition as more and more joined the Sith "cause." But who did Darth Rage take in? How long do Sith (Korriban natives) normally live, anyway? How and when did Rage finally die? (And on top of all that, why do they call themselves DARTH?)
Everyone believed that Padmé would have to survive longer than the twins' birth-- after all, Leia had to remember "images" and "feelings," right? Well, Lucas either conveniently forgot this fact, or could chalk it up to the kids developing a force connection with Padmé. But if that's so, why didn't Luke remember "images" or "feelings?" Besides, as far as Anakin knew, his nightmares/prophecies about Padmé dying in childbirth were wrong-- he believed he killed Padmé himself (when he thought she betrayed him and brought Obi-Wan to Mustafar). Truth is, she DID die in childbirth, but not OF childbirth-- she was perfectly healthy, but lost the will to live because she knew Anakin had turned, and even if he lived (he wasn't on the return ship back from Mistafar), they couldn't be together. It's a flippant, lame excuse as to why she died... I'd much rather she had some undetectable disease or something.
A Sith plot
Just issues with No. 7 the reason the Jedi council is unaware of Sifo-Dyas commission of the clone army is because he didn't do it. The Kaminoins say he commissioned the army 10 years prior yet when conversing with Mace and Yoda, Obi-wan is told that he was killed 12 years before. Also Jango Fett says he was hired by a man named Tyrannous (as in Darth Tyranous aka Count Dooku) for the job as the clone blueprint. Obviously, the Sith are deceiving a backwater (no pun intended) planet that doesn't freely associate with the Republic so they wouldn't know master Sifo Dyas by sight, so either Dooku procured the job (which would mean he started as Sideous' new apprentice before the two halves of Maul hit the bottom) or (and this is actually explained in Lucasarts “Bounty Hunter”) Darth Sideous (Palpatine) ordered the job posing as a member of the council. I'm willing to bet Kamino doesn't do a reference check if you show up with the credits to raise a clone army. The assault of Naboo in Episode I did exactly what the Sith planned, put him in power, in Episode II he shored up that authority and we see he's been plotting for a loooonnngggg time. —Dan, Cincinnati, Ohio
Actually I believe the time Sifo-Dyas was killed actually coincided with the commission of the clone army-- it wasn't 2 years apart. If that's so, it makes it even more likely that someone either put him up to commissioning the clone army for purposes he wasn't aware of (to be used for the Empire, instead of the Republic) or he was a Sith to begin with, and once his purpose was served, someone killed him off to prevent him from spreading the secret. Since Sifo-Dyas commissioned the army, it's possible he could control it and become a force to be reckoned with... so if Palpatine originally had Sifo-Dyas as his apprentice (and who knows how old Palaptine is, or how many apprentices he's taken), he could have killed him off to prevent him from getting too out of control.
Jango Fett says he was hired by someone named Tyranus (not Tyrannous... he's not a dinosaur, folks)-- aka Dooku. That makes sense-- after all, Dooku was playing both sides of the court. At first, you might have thought he was a semi-good guy-- though he was working with the Trade Federation and the Separatists. But he was really Sidious's apprentice the whole time, and he knew without a shred of doubt that Palpatine was not only a Sith, but THE Sith, and that Sith went by the name of Sidious (not Sideous... yeesh). But it's true Palpatine's been planning everything out for a very long time, so anything's possible.
The trouble with Leia
In "Empire", Leia is standing right next to Darth as Han is being frozen. You would think if he can sense Luke, he would sense the Force in Leia. But then in "Jedi," before the final battle between Luke and Darth, Darth senses Luke has a sister because he feels what Luke is thinking. So you're saying he can sense there is another Skywalker through Luke's thoughts, but he can't pick up on the feeling himself just by standing next to her in "Empire"? She's offspring of Darth, so why wouldn't he sense her. Who knows? I am hoping "Sith" will explain why she is not portrayed in an equal and powerful role as Luke. Instead she is made out to be less important even though she is supposed to have the same power or potential as Luke does. Confusing. I'm also anxious to learn how Anakin wouldn't have already sensed his son Luke's potential as soon as he was born. Were Anakin's children separated before he could see them? I hope "Sith" will clear this up. —Jo, St. Louis, Mo.
Leia was never brought up under the idea that she had anything to do with the Force, Jedi, or anything. Bail Organa did a damn good job hiding the fact of who her real mother and father were. There was just no reason to tell her-- they were both "dead" to them, anyway. (I actually expected that Organa had some sort of strange relationship with Padmé that would have led to him taking Leia; instead, it seemed to be a decision Obi-Wan, Yoda, and Organa all made after Padmé died.) In any case, there was nothing for Vader to sense from Leia, even if he was standing beside her. However, Luke always possessed the innate qualities that sparked some sort of recognition for Vader-- if not the Force itself, then midochlorians, or maybe just Luke's desire to be free (the same thing Anakin wanted as a child). Luke becomes a better and better Jedi, but he does have his weakness-- family. After Owen and Beru are killed, Obi-Wan is the closest thing he's got to a father... and when he discovers he's got a twin sister, he pretty much vows to protect her with everything he's got (I wonder if he planned on telling her from the get-go or not). However, Vader senses that thought: "I have a sister." Not "I have to protect Leia" or something like that-- it's NEVER said or even implied that Vader is aware that LEIA is Luke's sister. He probably could have assumed it, judging by the fact that Luke didn't have that knowledge before, and the only female in their little band of cronies is Leia... but he never SAID it outright. As such, it's possible that's why Vader didn't sense her as being his daughter and having his potential to tap into the Force... neither of them knew!
Girls are always shafted in Star Wars, in any case. She's got "potential," but when it comes to movie canon, we never see her or any other female (even Padmé) tapping into the Force and becoming a force to be reckoned with- at least, if there are any (female Jedi, for example) they don't last too long.
Vader didn't sense Luke's potential as soon as he was born because he thought his child (he didn't know there were twins) died when Padmé did. By the time Luke's midochlorians might have set off some sort of signal, Vader wouldn't have believed they were coming from his own child anyway-- he believed wholeheartedly that he'd killed Padmé and the child(ren).
Ten open items on the docket, along with odds they'll be resolved in "Revenge of the Sith":
1) Leia. Yes, she kicked butt, but you get the sense George Lucas never quite knew what he wanted to do with her. (It's also a fair bet that when writing the original "Star Wars," he hadn't yet decided on her being Luke's sister.)
We eventually learn her backstory — raised as a princess on Alderaan by Bail Organa — but her purpose in the rebellion seems diminished after Luke appears. Perhaps Han Solo is meant to be her consolation prize, but (and no golden bikini comments here) why doesn't Anakin Skywalker's daughter get more of a role?
It's truly puzzling because Leia seems to have at least nascent Force powers. Unless there's some weird father-to-son midichlorian genetics at work, she presumably should have as much Jedi potential as Luke.
"You have a power I don't understand, and could never have," she tells Luke in "Return of the Jedi." He replies, "You're wrong, Leia, you have that power too. In time, you'll learn to use it as I have."
Yet all she gets are hints and glimmers while Luke gets the full Jedi treatment. Why?
Odds of resolution: 3 in 10. Leia's appearance in "Sith" is likely to be limited.
We only see Leia as a baby in Episode III-- same as Luke. An inbetweener episode (Episode III and a half?) would be nice, but we're not going to get it. Fanfiction or authorized novels is the best we can hope for in the respect. As I've said before, women never get much of any limelight... even Padmé was grossly overshadowed by Episode III.
2) Vader and family. When exactly does Vader figure out that Luke is his son, and why can't he sense a Force connection with Leia — especially when he tortures her in Episode Four?
One hole was tightened in Lucas' "Empire" DVD. In the theater version, the Emperor describes Luke as a "great disturbance in the Force," but doesn't really tie him to Vader.
In the new edit, the Emperor insists Luke is "the offspring of Anakin Skywalker."
"How is that possible?" asks Vader.
"Search your feelings, Lord Vader, you will know it to be true."
No, thanks. We're still wondering when Vader figures it all out.
Plus, if both Luke and Leia are spirited away soon after being born, how come Vader learns about one but not the other? In one theory, Vader believes Leia died along with her mother. Why, then, would Luke have survived?
Anakin had no idea Padmé was having twins. For that reason, he knew Luke existed as his child, but until Episode VI, he had no idea Luke had a twin sister. The only other people who knew were dead. If you follow the original theatre script, how did Vader find out that Luke was his son? I think it's entirely possible that in the original script, Palpatine figured it out and figured the best way to deal with the son was to get the father to do the dirty work. But there's an equally strong possibility that Vader figured it out on his own-- through sensing one thing or another, returning to Naboo or Coruscant (perhaps deprecated files mentioned Padmé giving birth before she died mysteriously) ... in any case, that would make sense as to why Vader offered to "rule the galaxy" with Luke. That was the same offer he made to Padmé, in the hopes that they could live forever, overthrow Palpatine... for a guy supposedly so loyal to the Supreme Chancellor/soon-to-be Emperor, he was consumed with thoughts of living forever and being in a seat of power. Padmé was absolutely horrified by this, and likely it put an even bigger wedge between them, with or without Obi-Wan. When Vader found out he had a son, the very same feelings he had that forced him to turn (fear of losing loved ones, of losing life) prompted him to lose control over the Dark Side, and threaten to kill his own Master. He even ended up going through with it, though instead of killing Palpatine out of fear, there was some subliminal "Light Side" in him that wanted him to save Luke, even though Vader knew HE was already going to die.
Which brings us to the matter of Padmé's potential demise. Luke has "no memory" of his mother. Leia says she "died when I was very young," yet remembers "images, feelings. She was very beautiful, kind, but very sad." Unlikely, then, that Padmé dies in childbirth, though she presumably passes away while the twins are still babies, before Leia is spirited off to Alderaan.
The timeline of the twins' birth, separation and concealment is essential.
Odds: 7 in 10 on the twins and Padmé, 4 in 10 on Vader.
Lucas screwed that one up, plain and simple. Padmé should have lived. I always thought that she lived, married Organa, and then died of something else-- but she was sad because she lived with the knowledge that the man she truly loved was "dead" and yet still "alive" (the Anakin she fell in love with was dead; in his place was Vader).
3) Politics. Lucas has never hidden his disdain toward politicians. It permeates "Attack of the Clones." (Witness Anakin's dictator-in-training rant while trying to woo Padmé. Bad form!) But his political metaphors are clunky as he tries to merge his lords-and-knights theme with the legislative machinations of the Republic.
You sense Lucas is fascinated by medieval royalty, but can't quite make up his mind how he wants galactic politics to function. Naboo, for instance, elects queens, yet apparently appoints senators.
Lucas seems keen to show democracy corrupted, with Darth Sidious holding the reins. Add in the Trade Federation, the Commerce Guild, banking clans and all the other loose affiliations in "Phantom Menace" and "Attack," and it should be no surprise the Republic is about to crumble.
If democracy is so cherished to the Republic, why is there so little backlash when Jar-Jar stands up in Episode II, and proposes to create an army and hand the Chancellor emergency powers? Because the Sith control so many senators?
Sounds like Lucas was torn between cheap shots at politicians and trying to praise the democratic process. I'd like at least one political-textbook moment in Episode Three.
Odds: 4 in 10.
Meeeh, I figured Sidious pretty much controlled everyone by that point. Some nice fiction novels might go into the minds of the other alien senators (did you know E.T. was one of them?) and find out whether they were really controlled, or whether they were simply so sick of all the death and bloodshed (of the Separatists) that they figured it was okay to create the army and go to war, once and for all. But it didn't seem as though anyone questioned where the clone army would come from-- and they should have. That further seals the idea that people were at least partially under Sidious's control or influence.
4) The Sith. One of Lucas' most fascinating inventions, and one of his least explained, even in the official databank, which threads the needle by introducing details not in the first five films.
Most viewers probably know the Sith represent the Force's dark side, though it isn't clear why or how. We know they come in pairs — a master and an apprentice — so we can trace the Sith lineage.
At first, Darth Sidious is the master and Darth Maul the apprentice; after Maul is killed, we can presume Count Dooku (Darth Tyranus) becomes the new apprentice. Under the two-at-a-time theory, you have to presume that Tyranus is somehow killed if Sidious takes Anakin under wing and transforms him into Darth Vader.
This finally happens at the start of Episode III. It's no surprise that Dooku's own master (Sidious, aka Palpatine) betrays him-- that's what the Sith are all about. Their unofficial motto seems to be "trust no one." But why did Dooku "take Palpatine prisoner" in the first place, unless he believed Palpatine had ANOTHER plan for when the rescue team (Obi-Wan and Anakin) came on board the ship? Surely Dooku would have just killed Palpatine and gotten it over with if he knew Palpatine planned to replace him...
The Sith are so crucial because they help explain Vader's motives. But nowhere is it clear why the Sith are so peeved at the Jedi and the Republic. (Even the databank says the Sith order "self-destructed.")
"At last we will have revenge," seethes Darth Maul. Revenge for what? That implies the Jedi subdued the Sith, but nothing in the films confirms that.
Odds: 7 in 10.
Like I said before, it's mostly from the books and games. We have very little canon information to support anything about the Sith and what happened to them.
5) Vader's ambitions. When Vader finally learns that he has an heir, he sets out to convert Luke to the dark side. What else does he want to accomplish?
"We can rule the galaxy as father and son," he offers Luke. This presumes Vader expects to supplant Emperor Palpatine. Will Vader assassinate him? Seems unlikely. Is Palpatine arranging a succession plan? Maybe, but the Emperor's role in "Jedi" was so muddled that you can't be sure.
It's plausible that once Vader discovers he has a son, he wants Luke to go the Sith way. And we see Anakin angry that Obi-Wan has held him back, and filled with rage over his mother's death. How does this translate into a thirst for galactic domination?
Odds: 8 in 10. Absolutely essential to understanding Anakin's downfall.
As I said before, Anakin originally had feelings of fear that pushed him down the Dark Side. It started with the death of his mother (anger and hate ended up "forcing" him to kill the Sand people) and continued with his secret romance and eventual marriage to Padmé. When he found out she was pregnant, that sealed the deal-- he started having nightmares about her dying in childbirth, and he feared losing her and losing his child. The only way to stop that was to somehow cheat death-- and hey, if you're going to cheat death, why not do it comfortably, in the highest ranking position of the galaxy? That would give Anakin the recognition he desires, and Padmé the opportunity to create the government she thinks has failed her. However, the very idea horrifies Padmé, and further drives her from Anakin.
6) Jedi training. We know from Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan that a Padawan learner must complete trials in order to become a full Jedi. We know Anakin bristles at Obi-Wan's schedule.
Why, then, is Luke's Jedi training so haphazard? In "Empire," he hangs with Yoda on Dagobah, learns basic Force skills and then cuts short his training to dash off to Cloud City.
Yet when "Jedi" starts, he seems to have mastered his Jedi might. Back on Dagobah, the Little Green One tells him, "No more training do you require." Then Yoda retrenches and says Luke must face Daddy Darth before he can be a real Jedi.
In the post-Republic years, does Yoda excise the Padawan bit? And why does Luke have to face his father? Seems beyond the scope of the usual trials.
Could we get a ruling on exactly when and how you become a full card-carrying Jedi?
Odds: 2 in 10. We'll be too busy watching Anakin bristle.
True, this was never really covered. But the Sith don't seem to have a policy on how long you must be someone's apprentice or any trials you must undertake before being recognized as a Sith. You might not even have to be loyal to your (or one!) master! Yoda doesn't seem to exercise the Padawan bit after the Republic, likely because he saw where "misreading" the prophecy got him. On top of that, Yoda used to train the Younglings, but they were all massacred, and he had to deal with the bodies of children. Even the great Yoda was probably intensely hurt by that, and didn't want to train children anymore, especially if they were going to end up being killed by Vader. So he scrapped the idea of a Padawan and a Master, seeing as it didn't exactly work in anyone's favor in the latter years.
7) Shortfalls of the Jedi. Yes, yes, we know the dark side clouds everything. That seems a rather facile explanation for some enormous Jedi missteps.
Mace Windu, for example, tells Padmé that Dooku "couldn't assassinate anyone. It's not in his nature." Yeah, right. The council knows Jedi can go bad (that Sith thing), so why not consider that another of their order has turned, especially given Qui-Gon's reported Sith sighting?
The Dark Side does cloud everything, apparently-- the thing the Jedi weren't willing to realize is that "balance" is a combination of the Dark Side and the Light... or the Good side, or whatever you might call it. It doesn't just mean in the universe (Sith vs. Jedi) but within each person. Luke had to face his own Dark Side, but not let it control him. Vader was almost completely Dark, but had a shred of something good in him that prompted him to kill the Master he'd been loyal to for years. Windu might not wanted to have recognized a fellow friend (Dooku) as having turned, but it happens... It's also possible that even if Windu were aware that Dooku turned, that he couldn't have turned so drastically and so quickly that he would be willing to kill at the snap of a finger. The only reason why Anakin COULD was because he was that terrified of losing Padmé.
And were they truly so blind that they didn't know Sifo-Dyas commissioned a clone army?
In Episode II, diner cook Dex not only identifies a Kaminoan saber dart but offers up this chestnut on why Obi-Wan can't find Kamino: "I should think you Jedi would have more respect for the difference between knowledge and wisdom." Let me translate: "Danger, Will Robinson!"
Even Yoda acknowledges standards are slipping. He calls arrogance "a flaw more and more common among Jedi." So his solution is to sit back and complain? Why not call the Jedi in and dress them down?
Talk about hubris. Lucas must, absolutely must, explain these shortcomings in "Revenge."
Odds: 8 in 10.
Unfortunately, Obi-Wan doesn't need to consider Dex's words in the slightest. He goes straight to Yoda and discovers the Jedi council logs (or whatever you call them) have been tampered with... but WHO did it? Probably Dooku, before he left, but when was that, and why didn't anyone catch him? If he planned to "erase Kamino" from sight, couldn't he have done a better job? Surely the Jedi don't just rely on their library star maps to find everything...
As for why Yoda and the others don't call in the other Jedi and dress them down... that's a damn good question. *yells* FANFICTION!
8) Your inner Jedi. If "Star Wars" politics are messy, the Jedi credo is a shambles.
There's nothing wrong with the stoic approach Lucas channeled into the Jedi philosophy. But the Zen approach seems to clash with the "feelings" Luke is repeatedly counseled to harness by Obi-Wan, Yoda and even Vader.
At the very moment Anakin Skywalker most needs to channel these feelings — when his own mother dies in his arms — he finds no solace in his Jedi training. How do we know? "To be angry is to be human," Padmé says to soothe him as he fills with rage.
"I'm a Jedi," he snaps. "I know I'm better than this."
Then we get the rage (and revenge on the Tusken Raiders) that opens him to the Dark Side. What use are lofty Jedi pronoucements if they lack a way to resolve a basic human emotion?
Odds: 1 in 10. We know the Jedi are all but wiped out in the Clone Wars, so their response to the Sith's growing power probably isn't a group hug.
By the time Luke is open for training, the last remaining Jedi have obviously changed their ideas about what makes a Jedi. They've probably realized the reason why the Sith duped them in the first place and got as far as they did (getting the Chosen One on their side) is because they made use of their feelings. Maybe Obi-Wan and Yoda both counsel Luke to use his feelings so long as he lets himself still remain in control-- something the Sith don't do-- which is why they self-destructed.
9) Yoda. Given that he's arguably the most revered character in the entire series, why is Yoda such a mystery?
His race? Unknown. (Though the thought of a planet full of Yodas is pretty cool, no?) His original master? Unknown. His role in shaping the Jedi council? Unknown.
We know he's almost 900 years old, which means he witnessed a good chunk of the Republic's history. He certainly should have at least some familiarity with the Sith, which makes you think he should have been savvier about the Dark Side's potential.
Who were his other Padawans? Dooku was one, and we can assume Luke was his final, if not official, learner. But who else was his Jedi offspring?
And why did he choose to go to Dagobah, of all places, after the Republic fell? Was that a strategic decision? Did he just like hanging in the galactic bayou?
Rather than that stupid Ewok TV movie, Lucas might have spent some time sharing a backstory on Yoda. I certainly would have paid to see it.
Odds: 5 in 10. Dagobah might get some time, but I'll be impressed if we get more than a few other scraps about Yoda's backstory.
All of this was covered earlier-- Yoda's supposedly a Whill, and there may have been older members of his species that witnessed the "split" before even he did. Yoda's other "offspring" varied-- at some point he stopped taking individual Padawans, and switched to teaching the Younglings. What prompted this change? Who was the Jedi Council head before Yoda?
He chose to go to Dagobah because of the dark side's ability to mask his presence there. It also probably gave Yoda something to do-- keep his Jedi skills trained, in the hopes that "a new hope" would awaken in the form of Luke or Leia.
10) The Force's source. So which is it: a "quaint old religion," as portrayed in the first three films, or is it all about biology and midi-chlorians, those microscopic life forms described in the next two?
Many fans hate the midichlorian concept; I'm not that down on it. I like Lucas' attempt to surpass the original films' mealy-mouthed animism. But it's a huge step to go from lively bacteria to Qui-Gon's theory that Anakin was conceived by midi-chlorians. That would be a Force to be reckoned with.
I'd wager most longtime fans are waiting for a good Force mechanics explanation in "Sith."
Also: Remember how Yoda, Obi-Wan and Anakin appear as phantasms at the end of "Jedi"? I'd also like to know why some Jedis — Yoda and Obi-Wan, notably — vanish when slain, while others (in the Geonosis battle, notably) just ... die. Vader doesn't at the end of "Jedi," either, though maybe that's the dark side at work.
In any case, let us know: Do Jedi actually die, or do they just go to that great cantina in the sky?
Odds: 4 in 10. A lot of Jedi are set to die in "Sith," but I doubt it will explain Luke's visions.
Things --like ideas, concepts, and religions-- do change. It's possible the concept of midochlorians (midi-chlorians?) and other biological (though somewhat unexplainable) factors are lost to time, and what people remember about Jedi (and the Sith) ways is that it involves telekinesis, the use of lightsabers, and the reliance on something similar to "gut" or "instinct," but more of a "guiding" force, certain and true. The most of an explanation we'll ever get about the mechanics of the Force is probably something in a book like Eyewitness: Star Wars. ^^;;
The disappearing thing was already covered, too. Whether or not Vader really disappeared and his SUIT was the only thing that was burned is not truly known.
I say we go storm Skywalker Ranch and bug Lucas for answers!
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no subject
Date: 2005-05-26 12:45 am (UTC)It was not Darth Rage who survived the self-destruction of the Sith, but Darth Bane. Bane was the one who took the Sith order into hiding about 800 years before Episode I and he created the master/apprentice lifestyle for the Sith, because to have many Sith around would only mean that they would fight and kill each other until none existed, such as what happened in that self-destruction thing. As for the word "Darth," it's merely a title such as "Lord," hence Lord Vader.
no subject
Date: 2005-05-26 02:02 am (UTC)But Anakin was just a weak man all around. From the very beginning, emotionally, he was a wreck and all the other Jedi could see his instability.
Yeah, but...
Date: 2005-05-26 04:51 pm (UTC)All this cross-talk about Rage, Bane... I'd like to know a few things about the Sith:
(1) How does anyone know anything about them?
(2) Is there a Darth name generator? A Sith name generator?
no subject
Date: 2005-05-26 02:46 am (UTC)Eh?
Date: 2005-05-27 07:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-05-26 07:13 am (UTC):D
Date: 2005-05-26 04:52 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-05-26 08:53 am (UTC)When I'm awake I'll post explinations and where/when to find them...
Somewhat off topic, but...
Date: 2005-05-28 09:10 pm (UTC)Thank you so much!
(and BTW, that article on Star Wars makes good points. I haven't seen the new movie yet, but am hoping to get the chance soon!)
-lsl
Re: Somewhat off topic, but...
Date: 2005-05-30 04:03 am (UTC)Anyway, posting access isn't initially allowed to anyone but mods, since it's an icon challenge community, and all the responses (submitted icons) should go in comments.
If you'd like to show off your icons en masse, I suggest checking out goodygoicons and yugi_icons.