Jedi's Hubris Part 1

Watching the latest episode of Star Wars: The Acolyte and reading the various reactions to the storyline & Jedi has been interesting. One thing I love about The Acolyte is how they are dissecting the Jedi & their mythos. This isn’t a new thing, looking back Star Wars has made a point more than a few times that the Jedi are a force (pun intended) for good. They are morally upright people, warriors that put peace before everything. And it’s true they are as flawed as anyone else and those flaws can lead to issues. I’ll pick a few situations from the films as examples of when the Jedi steered off the path.

“Unlearn what you have learned…” Master Yoda, Empire Strikes Back.

To say that I am a Star Wars fan is an understatement. Since I could remember, I have quoted the films, read the books, listened to the scores, played the games, and enjoyed the various elements of the property. Like most people, the Jedi were a source of awe and wonder to me. My Uncle Gary used Yoda’s teachings as stepping stones when he talked to me about Karma and Universal Laws. The mix of monk and warrior appealed to me, they weren’t looking for conflict, but they were perfectly able and ready to defend themselves. 

And they had LASER SWORDS!!!

For all things awesome the Jedi are, as I grew older I began to look at them in a different light. Starting when I played the West End Games Star Wars roleplaying game, I found their lifestyle was rigid and playing a Jedi or a Force Sensitive (a character that has a strong connection to the Force) difficult. There were rules on not just how to act, but going as far as what you thought. You could easily be swayed to the Dark Side with the right GM’s hand. It wasn’t unfair or unreasonable. You just had to be ready to end up with a couple of Dark Side points attached to your character’s.

“He’s the Chosen One. He will bring balance.” Qui-Gon Jinn, The Phantom Menace

With 1999’s Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, we are introduced to the Jedi as a group of individuals and not just a small handful as we saw in the first film. One of my favorite characters from that film was Qui-Gon Jinn. The Jedi Master of Obi-Wan Kenobi, he felt totally in control in every scene, had a wit that wasn’t overbearing, and would see the “bigger picture” in each scenario he found himself in. Qui-Gon did not want his Padawan to simply go with what is the Dogma of the Jedi, each moment was a teachable moment with one of the biggest lessons being “What Would a Jedi Do” may not always be the best thing.

And that is where we get into the biggest problem with the Jedi.

Qui-Gon runs into a young fella named Anakin Skywalker while on a remote sand pit of a planet called Tatooine. Instead his sole focus being the protection of Queen Padme Amidala,Qui-Gon gets sidetracked in not using the boy to get off the planet (in an EXTREMELY dangerous race that humans rarely survive), Qui-Gon is stuck on the idea that Anakin is the “Chosen One who will bring balance to the Force.” Even his Padawan Obi-Wan questions the wisdom of his actions and is brushed off.

That’s a lot of pressure to put on a child as it is. Now let’s add that Qui-Gon’s master plan also involves separating Anakin from the only person he knows and loves, his Momma. His Momma. Let’s take Anakin away from his Mom, leave her in slavery, and start training him to be a Jedi (that will bring balance to the Force, don’t forget that) when other youth start their training earlier. And people wondered why Anakin was a ball of confusion and anger….

“Train yourself to let go of everything you fear to lose.” Yoda, Revenge of the Sith

“Hey Kofi, you know so much about the Jedi, when do the parents drop the kids off at the Jedi Kiddy College?”

Thanks for the question, check this out! The Jedi Order finds young people at a very early age to start their training. The path of a Jedi is very strict and using the Force takes discipline and time. Therefore when children are accepted into the Jedi order as Padawan Learners, they leave their family. Leave them for good. You see, attachment is a big no-no for the Jedi. That “leads” to the Darkside of the Force*. In order to be the best Jedi you can be, you have to totally delicate yourself to master yourself and the Force.

*Allegedly

So let’s recap: Jedi Master Qui-Gon“finds” Anakin Skywalker and because he has a hunch & Anakin’s midichlorian levels are higher than anyone’s save Yoda, decides he will do whatever it takes to bring him to Coruscant to the Jedi Council, and demand that he (and he alone, as he apparently is the person who can train him) take Anakin has his Padawan. And his current Padawan Obi-Wan can go do the trials to be a Jedi Knight.

If this was Earth I’d say Qui-Gon is full of white privilege for his take on Anakin….

Sadly, Qui-Gon would not live long enough to train Anakin. After his death by the hands of Darth Maul, Qui-Gon tells his Padawan Obi-Wan to train the boy. Before Obi-Wan can be properly tested to be a Jedi Knight, much less Master, Qui-Gon in his infinite wisdom puts the pressure of training the “Chosen One” on Kenobi’s shoulders. Wow.

And this will not be the first time that the Jedi fail themselves and the galaxy.

More Thoughts on Star Wars: Rogue One

Hey there, I hope all is well.  Last time I talked about the parts of Star Wars: Rogue One that I enjoyed and thought highly of.  Since the last post I’ve had time to really go over what I wanted to talk about and I thought of few more points to address.  Again like my last entry, this is an asteroid field full of spoilers.  You aren’t Han Solo, I’m telling you the odds and you will get hit with a spoiler….

One thing I’ve heard more than a few times is how the film felt very dire and hopeless.  This is something I thought the folks at Lucasfilm did very well.  They treated the subject of war with some weight and also remembered this was a Space Opera.  The original trilogy and the prequels had it’s moments, mostly Empire Strikes Back and Revenge of the Sith, however they had a very lighthearted feel to them.  The Phantom Menace, Anakin jumps around and is a Padawan Learner.  In Attack of the Clones, Anakin and Padme gets married.  After the Luke and the pilots destroy the Death Star in A New Hope, they get medals.  At the end of Return of the Jedi, the Ewoks have a jam session and the Galaxy celebrates the fall of the Empire (given how the Empire controlled the HoloNet, I still give a side eye to the all the planets not only finding out about the death of the Emperor AND openly celebrating his death.  Especially on Coruscant… but let me stop being an uber nerd…).  

With Rogue One people die.  The heroes die.  The villains die.  Civilians die.  Planets die.  Career ambissions die.  Despite the heroic actions of the Rogue One team, much like in a real war, there was no happy ending for those fighting.  It would have been easy for Disney to have Jyn and Cassin to find a U-Wing and fly off or K-2SO to have survived his gunfight to save one of the heroes.  These events didn’t happen and it made Rogue One a more powerful experience.

The Thursday the movie released, many friends (shout out to them for not spoiling anything) and other people commented on how this was not a movie for young children.  There were articles on this that made some great points.  For having great behavior, being responsible, and doing well in school (He’s an A student, #humblebrag), I treat my son to “hooky days” when he and I can see movies on opening day.  A ten year-old who plays Halo, watches all Star Trek shows, and such, I figured he would be able to handle whatever the film can throw at him.  He stayed glued to the movie and even caught some Easter eggs in the movie.  After we left the theater, I did the usual asking him about the movie.  He loved the movie and was very sad when his favorite character died.  K-2SO stole many scenes and pretty hilarious, his death did take a few breaths away from the viewers.  It was dramatic and no one wants anyone to die.  

However this was a war and with pretty impossible odds, the chances of survival was small.  K-2SO knew it and still did his job.  We had a great talk about guns, war, and death on the way home.  Not that we haven’t had these conversations before, this movie helped nailed home that guns and war was not for fun and we don’t wish death on anyone.  I wonder how many parents and adults had this kind of conversation with their children and the youth in their lives as they left the theaters?  I would hope that this teachable moment wasn’t lost.  We are so use to Call of Duty and videogames with its depictions of war and “respawning,” seeing people not getting up in this film might be a way to talk about a very serious subject.

Lastly I’m pretty excited about the continued diversity and what the future holds in the Star Wars films.  The Force Awakens had it’s ups and downs for many people, however nearly everyone was able to recognize and enjoy the cast of the movie.  Rogue One continues this forward movement in the right direction.  Compared to other franchises, notably Star Trek, Star Wars doesn’t have the greatest record when it comes to it assortment in it’s cast.  Granted Star Trek has five live action shows, countless movies, and an animated series, Star Trek has a MUCH greater variety when it comes to different cultures being seen (other than humanoid aliens).  The Original Trilogy had a hand full of Black people, a small amount of Asian people in the films.  The Prequels were better, however still people of color were secondary characters.  Force Awakens and Rogue One has main characters that are people of color.  I see this as a positive as EVERYONE loves the franchise and EVERYONE sees themselves as someone who can be a hero or villain (or in-between) in the Star Wars Universe.  

Next up in the theaters we have Star Wars: Episode XIII, the continued saga of Rey, Finn, Poe, and Kylo Ren.  I’m looking forward to seeing what will happen next.  Then there is the “Young Han Solo” film (played by Alden Ehrenreich) that will have a “Young Lando” (played by Donald Glover), rumors of a Obi-Wan film, a Boba Fett film, and the amazing Star Wars Rebels show currently playing now on Disney XP.  Add the comic books and the novels that ties everything together with the “new” continuity, this is a great time to be a fan of Star Wars.  I am hoping we get a "X-Wing" or another space fighter centered movie, cross your fingers....

Keep rockin’ until next time.