Monday, March 31, 2008
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
THE THIN LINE BEFORE THE DARK SIDE
There's a line between the good side and the Dark Side of the Force, but is it always clear? Does every Jedi know where the line is? Does every Jedi have a moment when he finds himself on the verge of crossing over?
Mace Windu channels his darkness into his fighting style and draws strength from it, and he was ready to kill Palpatine in the heat of battle. Was he about to cross the line himself? I don't think so. Destroying evil doesn't make one evil.
"It's not the Jedi way," Anakin pleads with him, but we all know Anakin's motivation is selfish. Isn't the purpose of the Jedi to guard peace and justice? To ensure freedom throughout the galaxy.
"He's too dangerous to be kept alive!" Mace replies, and indeed, how would imprison a Sith of Palpatine's power? What shackles or prison cell could hold him?
Yoda tells Luke he'll know the difference between the good side and the darkness when he's calm and at peace. Luke's moment is on the second Death Star, after attacking Vader in anger he has him down and helpless, but he refuses to kill him. "I am a Jedi," he says, "Like my father before me." He seems so sure at that moment that he's doing the right thing.
Side note: Not killing Vader was a good thing, throwing away his lightsaber was definitely NOT the "Jedi Way."
Obi-Wan's moment is on the black sands of Mustafar. He will not kill a helpless Anakin, and instead leaves his fate to the will of the Force. Was he as sure at that moment that it was the right thing, or could he not bring him self to kill the young man he loved like a brother?
That would not have been the Jedi way, to put his personal feelilngs get in the way of his duty? I wonder did he torture himself for the next 20 years every time he heard of some new atrocity committed by Darth Vader...
It's interesting to note, however, that earlier in the fight he has Anakin down and without a weapon and he raises his lightsaber to deliver a fatal blow, but Anakin calls his lightsaber to his hand and blocks Obi-Wan's blade at the last second. Obi-Wan was certainly ready to kill him at that moment, though possibly he would have regretted it afterwards?
Was that a line before the Dark Side? Or was he so deep into the Force that his actions would have been guided by it without concisous thought?
Anakin's moment comes in Palpatine's office, when he kills Mace, but he knows it was wrong. "What have I done?" And after attacking the Temple and killing the younglings he evades Padme's questions about what he's going to do. He knows he's crossed the line so far he can never go back.
Only Yoda seems sure of himself, "Destroy the Sith, we must," he tells Obi-Wan. He isn't leaving any room for doubt there, he wants them dead and knows it's the only way.
I just watched ROTS for the zillionth time... That movie is so sad, when Obi-Wan says "You were the chosen one..." I get tears in my eyes...
I was speed-watching it... which means I watch the first 25 minutes or so and then jump through the rest so I get less talk and more action... less Palpatine and more Obi-Wan...
It occurred to me that Yoda and Obi-Wan should have gone to fight Sidious together... Yoda knows Obi-Wan can't take Sidious alone, but wouldn't the two of them have had a better chance? Was he so sure he could win? Or was he afraid they'd both die and leave no one to confront Anakin?
Either way, he should have known that as long as Sidious lived it wouldn't matter if Anakin did or not, the "Oppression of the Sith" had returned, with or without Darth Vader.
All throughout the saga I'm certain Palpatine has backup plans, and no matter what happens he manipulates things to go his way. Until he meets a certain young Jedi named Luke Skywalker, but Palpatine underestimated the wisdom Luke carried, that of both Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda. Wisdom gained from experience, and from 20 years of regrets.
How could a Sith so powerful make such a devastating error in judgment? Because he was evil from within. He never faced the crossing of the line before the Dark Side.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
THE LURE OF JEDIISM - CAN THAT REALLY BE A WORD?
#78 --- Jediism -- George Lucas is a nice guy. Let's not have him elroned.
- The Stooge, Top Hundred Time, 3-3-08
I've been thinking about this for a week... and I agree, let's not have George elroned, or celebrate the Sacred Month of May, or have his birthday made into a national holiday (although it should be)...
But I was thinking about the lure of the Jedi. They had the Force, and the Force gave them their powers, but it also gave them something more. The Force gave them inner peace, self-confidence, a purpose for living, and everlasting life.
Sound like a religion? Sure it does, but in the GFFA the Force was a proven fact, not just a happy idea taken on faith. It was only years of Palpatine's propaganda that turned it into a "hokey religion". They were not "mystics" or "magicians" they were just beings exercising a special talent.
Some people were given the gift of Force sensitivity, and others were not. Why? And how? Was it by chance? We see it is hereditary, so perhaps it skipped generations and popped up every now and then in a child, who then became a Jedi Knight. Perhaps it was at random. Perhaps it was "the will of the Force."
In the book form of ROTS, Obi-Wan describes the "will of the Force" as the explanation for that which could not be explained, comparing it to the will of a river to flow downhill. Beautiful words! Just as it is our will to be good or evil, the only two things we can really control.
It seems in our world, that some people are given the gift of faith, and others or not. I was not, and there's no changing that. And the old saying is true... if you don't have it, you can't understand the explanation, and if you do have it, you don't need an explanation.
The lure of Jediism (that can't be a word! ) is obvious. We all want inner peace, self-confidence and everlasting life. "Luminous beings are we!" But we are not all blessed with faith, or the emotional strength to obtain peace of mind.
But we don't have to be blessed with anything, like faith or midi-chlorians. The Jedi had the Force, but they still had to train themselves to feel it and use it. And how not to mis-use it. If I were to theoretically attain perfect peace of mind, it would not be of any use for me to stay inside my mind and keep myself company, for example. (The attaining of perfect peace of mind was the theoretical part, not the keeping myself company...)
I think for me the big fascination for the Jedi came from their ability to do everything right. That calm acceptance of their fate, be it life or death. The sureness of themselves. The light in Obi-Wan Kenobi's eyes at the moment he decided to sacrifice himself.
Somewhere in us all is the ability to achieve inner peace, to calmly accept our fates, to learn the difference between right and wrong, to let go of our selfishness for the greater good. We don't need the Force or faith to do these things.
To be at peace with ourselves, no matter what. To know that we are making the right choices. To know that our choices effect others, so that they may achieve their own inner peace.
That, my friends, is the attraction of the Jedi.
- The Stooge, Top Hundred Time, 3-3-08
I've been thinking about this for a week... and I agree, let's not have George elroned, or celebrate the Sacred Month of May, or have his birthday made into a national holiday (although it should be)...
But I was thinking about the lure of the Jedi. They had the Force, and the Force gave them their powers, but it also gave them something more. The Force gave them inner peace, self-confidence, a purpose for living, and everlasting life.
Sound like a religion? Sure it does, but in the GFFA the Force was a proven fact, not just a happy idea taken on faith. It was only years of Palpatine's propaganda that turned it into a "hokey religion". They were not "mystics" or "magicians" they were just beings exercising a special talent.
Some people were given the gift of Force sensitivity, and others were not. Why? And how? Was it by chance? We see it is hereditary, so perhaps it skipped generations and popped up every now and then in a child, who then became a Jedi Knight. Perhaps it was at random. Perhaps it was "the will of the Force."
In the book form of ROTS, Obi-Wan describes the "will of the Force" as the explanation for that which could not be explained, comparing it to the will of a river to flow downhill. Beautiful words! Just as it is our will to be good or evil, the only two things we can really control.
It seems in our world, that some people are given the gift of faith, and others or not. I was not, and there's no changing that. And the old saying is true... if you don't have it, you can't understand the explanation, and if you do have it, you don't need an explanation.
The lure of Jediism (that can't be a word! ) is obvious. We all want inner peace, self-confidence and everlasting life. "Luminous beings are we!" But we are not all blessed with faith, or the emotional strength to obtain peace of mind.
But we don't have to be blessed with anything, like faith or midi-chlorians. The Jedi had the Force, but they still had to train themselves to feel it and use it. And how not to mis-use it. If I were to theoretically attain perfect peace of mind, it would not be of any use for me to stay inside my mind and keep myself company, for example. (The attaining of perfect peace of mind was the theoretical part, not the keeping myself company...)
I think for me the big fascination for the Jedi came from their ability to do everything right. That calm acceptance of their fate, be it life or death. The sureness of themselves. The light in Obi-Wan Kenobi's eyes at the moment he decided to sacrifice himself.
Somewhere in us all is the ability to achieve inner peace, to calmly accept our fates, to learn the difference between right and wrong, to let go of our selfishness for the greater good. We don't need the Force or faith to do these things.
To be at peace with ourselves, no matter what. To know that we are making the right choices. To know that our choices effect others, so that they may achieve their own inner peace.
That, my friends, is the attraction of the Jedi.
Saturday, March 01, 2008
TEN INCOMPLETE LINES IN THE STAR WARS SAGA
10. "No, I call it aggressive negotiations!" What do expect me to do, you little twerp, stand here and let them shoot me? - Padme Amidala, AOTC
9. "He's dangerous, they all sense it, why can't you?" And after you're dead I'll be able to say TOLD YOU SO! - Obi-Wan Kenobi, TPM
8. "We will watch your career with great interest" While I manipulate you into helping me take over the galaxy. - Palpatine, TPM
7. "Only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise." Oh wait, no they aren't. - Obi-Wan Kenobi, ANH
6. "Some day you're going to make a mistake and I just hope I'm around to see it!" If you don't kill me first with some damn fool flying maneuver! - Princess Leia, TESB
5. "I am a Jedi, like my father before me." Except that I just kicked his butt and could take you, too, if I hadn't just thrown away my lightsaber {smacks himself on the forehead} - Luke Skywalker, ROTJ
4. "I have taught you everything I know" Except how to beat me in a lightsaber duel... - Obi-Wan Kenobi, ROTS
3. "And I thought they smelled bad on the outside!" And I'll never go back to the BBQ joint back at Echo Base... - Han Solo, TESB
2. "He's headed for the small moon!" That's no moon, that's the Emperor's Butt! - Luke Skywalker, ANH
1. "I have a bad feeling about this!" And why don't I listen to myself? - Several Characters, and all six movies!