Star Wars Questions & Answers
A couple of my friends (thanks Nirupa, Mike, and Mashard) have sent me this article on MSNBC. It's "10 questions to be answered in the next Star Wars movie".
First of all, the guy who wrote this is an idiot. He tries to pose as a Star Wars expert when he obviously has not read any of the books, comics, or played any of the video games, which give you lots of keys to the stories. I'm not saying you're an idiot if you haven't read those--I've only read a few--but don't pretend to be an expert if you haven't done that.
He does ask some good questions that your typical, non nerd (a title I wear proudly--you are what you are) fans will have no idea what the answers are. So I'll go through and answer, give hints/predictions, and tell you when I don't know the answer to all of his questions.
Please feel free to ask any questions you have about Star Wars in the comments--I'll keep checking and answer all of those that I can. If I make a mistake, please feel free to point it out to me.
1. Why does Leia not play a more prominent role in the Original Trilogy? One thing to remember as we go through this is that George Lucas is a horrible writer. There are definitely holes in his story. I was surprised when I heard that Anakin knew that Padme was pregnant in ROTS (Revenge of the Sith). It was implied in the Orignial Trilogy that he doesn't know at all. He obviously doesn't know that he had twins--we know that for a fact when he searches Luke's feelings in Return of the Jedi and discovers that Luke has a sister. Obi Wan separated the twins in case Vader or the Emperor discovered of their existence--you don't keep all your eggs in one basket. And as for why does Leia not play a more prominent role, for whatever reason she was the backup plan for the Jedi. They decided to role the dice with Luke at first, but had he failed, Leia would have been trained as a Jedi. And consequently, in the books afterwards, Leia plays a HUGE role. She becomes leader of the Republic, and has three children who are strong in The Force. I think the author of the article is just trying to go snotty PC on us here.
2. Why does Vader not realize earlier that Luke is his son? Simple question, simple answer. He believes that any child he had died. He's not looking for his son, so he doesn't find him.
3. Why is the political structure so poorly explained? Look, dude, this is Star Wars, not Star Trek. Star Trek is the intellectual SciFi series--Star Trek goes out of it's way to make sure it's universe is in order. All of the races and political leanings are clearly explained, and the "science" of how that universe works is defined. There are books that explain the "science" of Star Trek (no, I haven't read any); even though it's made up, there are "laws" that every episode follows.
Star Wars isn't like that. George Lucas isn't that smart, and he doesn't pay that much attention to detail. You're never going to see that much time devoted to the political structure of Star Wars. It's the action SciFi series, not the intellectual.
4. Who are the Sith? Finally dude, you ask some decent questions. (Sorry, but the overly anal fan gets on my nerves.) There are some GREAT comics that deal with the History of the Sith. I highly recommend:
Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith by Tom Veitch and Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: The Fall of the Sith Empire by Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: Golden Age of the Sith by Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: Knights of the Republic by Tom Veitch
Tales of the Jedi: Redemption by Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: The Freedon Nadd Uprising by Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: The Sith War by Kevin J. Anderson
These are all comics (so they're short) dealing with the history of the Sith. They're really good, and yes I've read all of those.
I found a decent web site that gives you some good details on the Sith's history
here. One thing that doesn't go into too much detail is the Master/Apprentice law of the Sith. "Only two there are: a Master, and a Apprentice." This was laid down by Darth Bane "a thousand" (again, times are vague in the Star Wars universe--attention to detail) years before the Fall of the Republic. It was your typical story of too much back stabbing amongst the bad guys. There were too many Lord's fighting each other to be Dark Lord of the Sith (the supreme ruler), and not fighting the Jedi. So, after Darth Bane took over, he killed off most of the Lords and solved the problem of backstabbing by saying only two could exist. It's really as simple as that.
5. What are Vader's Ambitions? WARNING: BIG SPOILERS HERE. Vader wants to rule the galaxy. Anakin Skywalker is supremely arrogant, and believes that he is the greatest thing that ever happened to the galaxy. He also wants to change the world, in his mind for the better. He believes the best way to do that is for him to be in charge. He hints at that in his discussions with Padme in Attack of the Clones, he flat out states in The Empire Strikes Back, AND, if you play the Revenge of the Sith video game and beat it, there is an alternate ending to the movie. In it, Anakin beats Obi Wan, and thus his body is not destroyed. He goes to see his Master, Darth Sidious, who hands him a new lightsabre. Vader takes it and strikes him down, and he rules the galaxy with an iron fist.
6. What exactly do the Jedi have to do to be trained? Does it really matter that much? You're reaching, reaching...and not grabbing. The OUTSTANDING Clone Wars cartoon that was created and shown on Cartoon Network shows Anakin becoming a Jedi Knight. I highly recommend you watch that (Volume 1 is out now, Volume 2 coming who knows when).
7. Why aren't the Jedi perfect? Because they're not. They have grown arrogant, and lackadaisical, and sloppy, and a bit careless. They have ruled with relative peace and ease for 1000 years. They got sloppy. It happens.
8. Same question as 7.
9. What is Yoda's background? I don't know. I've never really read anything about who he is, where he comes from, his race, etc. Are there any books or comics about this? Does anyone know?
10. Where does the Force come from? Count me as one of the fans who said, "Are you fucking kidding me?" when I heard the midichlorian description in The Phantom Menace. But like it or not, that was Lucas' description. This is where we go back to "Lucas is a bad writer." To quote Kevin Bacon in A Few Good Men, "These are the facts, and they are incontrovertible." We just have to live with him sometimes.
So there you go. Like I said, please feel free to post any questions you have. May The Force be with you.
First of all, the guy who wrote this is an idiot. He tries to pose as a Star Wars expert when he obviously has not read any of the books, comics, or played any of the video games, which give you lots of keys to the stories. I'm not saying you're an idiot if you haven't read those--I've only read a few--but don't pretend to be an expert if you haven't done that.
He does ask some good questions that your typical, non nerd (a title I wear proudly--you are what you are) fans will have no idea what the answers are. So I'll go through and answer, give hints/predictions, and tell you when I don't know the answer to all of his questions.
Please feel free to ask any questions you have about Star Wars in the comments--I'll keep checking and answer all of those that I can. If I make a mistake, please feel free to point it out to me.
1. Why does Leia not play a more prominent role in the Original Trilogy? One thing to remember as we go through this is that George Lucas is a horrible writer. There are definitely holes in his story. I was surprised when I heard that Anakin knew that Padme was pregnant in ROTS (Revenge of the Sith). It was implied in the Orignial Trilogy that he doesn't know at all. He obviously doesn't know that he had twins--we know that for a fact when he searches Luke's feelings in Return of the Jedi and discovers that Luke has a sister. Obi Wan separated the twins in case Vader or the Emperor discovered of their existence--you don't keep all your eggs in one basket. And as for why does Leia not play a more prominent role, for whatever reason she was the backup plan for the Jedi. They decided to role the dice with Luke at first, but had he failed, Leia would have been trained as a Jedi. And consequently, in the books afterwards, Leia plays a HUGE role. She becomes leader of the Republic, and has three children who are strong in The Force. I think the author of the article is just trying to go snotty PC on us here.
2. Why does Vader not realize earlier that Luke is his son? Simple question, simple answer. He believes that any child he had died. He's not looking for his son, so he doesn't find him.
3. Why is the political structure so poorly explained? Look, dude, this is Star Wars, not Star Trek. Star Trek is the intellectual SciFi series--Star Trek goes out of it's way to make sure it's universe is in order. All of the races and political leanings are clearly explained, and the "science" of how that universe works is defined. There are books that explain the "science" of Star Trek (no, I haven't read any); even though it's made up, there are "laws" that every episode follows.
Star Wars isn't like that. George Lucas isn't that smart, and he doesn't pay that much attention to detail. You're never going to see that much time devoted to the political structure of Star Wars. It's the action SciFi series, not the intellectual.
4. Who are the Sith? Finally dude, you ask some decent questions. (Sorry, but the overly anal fan gets on my nerves.) There are some GREAT comics that deal with the History of the Sith. I highly recommend:
Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith by Tom Veitch and Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: The Fall of the Sith Empire by Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: Golden Age of the Sith by Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: Knights of the Republic by Tom Veitch
Tales of the Jedi: Redemption by Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: The Freedon Nadd Uprising by Kevin J. Anderson
Tales of the Jedi: The Sith War by Kevin J. Anderson
These are all comics (so they're short) dealing with the history of the Sith. They're really good, and yes I've read all of those.
I found a decent web site that gives you some good details on the Sith's history
here. One thing that doesn't go into too much detail is the Master/Apprentice law of the Sith. "Only two there are: a Master, and a Apprentice." This was laid down by Darth Bane "a thousand" (again, times are vague in the Star Wars universe--attention to detail) years before the Fall of the Republic. It was your typical story of too much back stabbing amongst the bad guys. There were too many Lord's fighting each other to be Dark Lord of the Sith (the supreme ruler), and not fighting the Jedi. So, after Darth Bane took over, he killed off most of the Lords and solved the problem of backstabbing by saying only two could exist. It's really as simple as that.
5. What are Vader's Ambitions? WARNING: BIG SPOILERS HERE. Vader wants to rule the galaxy. Anakin Skywalker is supremely arrogant, and believes that he is the greatest thing that ever happened to the galaxy. He also wants to change the world, in his mind for the better. He believes the best way to do that is for him to be in charge. He hints at that in his discussions with Padme in Attack of the Clones, he flat out states in The Empire Strikes Back, AND, if you play the Revenge of the Sith video game and beat it, there is an alternate ending to the movie. In it, Anakin beats Obi Wan, and thus his body is not destroyed. He goes to see his Master, Darth Sidious, who hands him a new lightsabre. Vader takes it and strikes him down, and he rules the galaxy with an iron fist.
6. What exactly do the Jedi have to do to be trained? Does it really matter that much? You're reaching, reaching...and not grabbing. The OUTSTANDING Clone Wars cartoon that was created and shown on Cartoon Network shows Anakin becoming a Jedi Knight. I highly recommend you watch that (Volume 1 is out now, Volume 2 coming who knows when).
7. Why aren't the Jedi perfect? Because they're not. They have grown arrogant, and lackadaisical, and sloppy, and a bit careless. They have ruled with relative peace and ease for 1000 years. They got sloppy. It happens.
8. Same question as 7.
9. What is Yoda's background? I don't know. I've never really read anything about who he is, where he comes from, his race, etc. Are there any books or comics about this? Does anyone know?
10. Where does the Force come from? Count me as one of the fans who said, "Are you fucking kidding me?" when I heard the midichlorian description in The Phantom Menace. But like it or not, that was Lucas' description. This is where we go back to "Lucas is a bad writer." To quote Kevin Bacon in A Few Good Men, "These are the facts, and they are incontrovertible." We just have to live with him sometimes.
So there you go. Like I said, please feel free to post any questions you have. May The Force be with you.
posted by Michael Pondrom at 8:47 PM
11 Comments:
I have never read any of the Star Wars books or comics and will freely admit to some ignorance. Please keep that in mind. Here's my question.
In Phantom Menace, a "prophecy" is mentioned that tells about someone coming who will complete or fulfill unity and peace in the Force or something like that. At the time, it is hinted that Anakim may be this person. I have heard others hint that it is in fact Luke. Can you explain this better and what's your take on it. Also, I still think its Anakim that brings the peace to the Force...it is him that actually throws the Emperor off. Luke just watches, like Luke always does.
Excellent question Bo. The prophecy that Qui Gon speaks of in Phantom Menace says that someday a Jedi comes along and brings balance to the Force. I hadn't read or heard of anything about that in the past, and I haven't heard that that prophecy is mentioned in any books/comics.
Like you mentioned Bo, there are several theorys: is Luke the chosen one? Is Anakin? Does the prophecy get fulfilled? If so, when?
Here's what I think: I think Anakin is The Chosen One. And I think he does bring balance to The Force--by killing all the Jedi. There are hundreds, if not thousands of Jedi running around the galaxy. There are two Sith. I think the Jedi misinterpreted the prophecy to mean that some sort of accord would be reached. I think The Chosen One was really just meant to even the playing field.
Totally my thoughts on this one...no one really knows.
Michael
Ironically, a simple steerage assignment landed them in the heart of the Rebel Alliance. Desperate for cash, Chewie and Han took on a charter of two passengers and their droids from Tatooine to Alderaan. Little did the two smugglers realize that their cargo consisted of a legendary Jedi Knight, the son of the prophesied Chosen One in Jedi mythology, and a pair of droids containing information vital to both the Empire and the Alliance. This trip inextricably drew Chewbacca and Solo into the Rebel fold, and they continued flying missions for the Rebellion for years after that.
From http://www.starwars.com/databank/character/chewbacca/index.html So it looks like The Chosen One is Anakin. Though I like your theory Barry; anger isn't necessarily an evil thing.
Michael
Okay - so you refer to the Star Wars comics to answer questions in another post. What counts as an official Star Wars publication and part of the story? Does George Lucas control all of these things?
=mjm
Read something interesting on StarWars.com yesterday...Padme was 14 years old when she became Queen, so she is only 4 years older than Ani. Of course, she was elected ruler of a planet at 14. The lesson, as always: George Lucas is an absolutely horrible writer.
And Mike, anything book or comic that has a Star Wars character, logo, etc. goes through Lucas first.
Barry's right, you can't 100% believe anything until Lucas actually films it. But they do stick to it at least somewhat.
Michael
This is great. Check it out.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/2005/05/18/gallery.starwars/content.1.html?cnn=yes
I am overwhelmed. I imagine that these ridiculously intense conversations about non-existent worlds will end when the undoubtedly crappy third prequel is finally out in theatres. When that happens, Mike, promise me you will once again attempt to not completely alienate, if not annihilate, your female (sane) readership.
Think of it more as a debate on modern literature.
Bo,
THAT WAS FUCKING AWESOME! Wow. Good for Sports Illustrated! Guys definitely check out Bo's site.
Nirupa...shut your piehole. How many times have we listened to women wax poetic about Friends/Gilmore Girls/Sex & The City/etc. Let us have our fun. There are times I cover more pro female topics (and we both know some females who love Star Wars) that some of the guys here give less than a poop about.
Much love for everyone, and there will be something for you next week, Nirupa.
Michael
While I do enjoy Stargate very much, and he does a great job with the character, Tony is right. Richard Dean Anderson is, and shall always be, MacGyver. I think he does a good job playing Jack, and I don't have a problem with him in this role, but he IS MacGyver, without question.
Michael
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