CT Am I the ONLY one who sees this in Return of the Jedi...

Ok I've been all over the internet looking and looking for an answer. In Return of the Jedi when the emperor and Darth Vader talk about turning Luke on the Death Star (just before Vader goes to Endor) is that the Trade Federation guys right next to both of them in the background??? And if so why didn't George Lucas edit in the CGI versions of them. The man changed other stuff for the worse but this would make sense... I took a picture of it with my phone to show what I was talking about and not to sound crazy



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It is the Emperor's advisors. I'm glad they play such a minor role in that movie because, IMHO, they just didn't work. They look like something better suited for the Wizard of Oz than for Palpatine's Imperial Council.

 

I believe one of those guys is supposed to be Sate Pestage. Not sure if EU guys came up with the name, or if George did, though.

 

I've seen this scene so many times and never linked them with the Trade Federation before but I can definitely see where you could get them confused......I always thought these characters should have had a bigger role in 'Jedi' just because I got the figure as a kid and thought it was fantastic (still do actually)

 

When I was younger these advisors always bothered me --I'd catch them for a split second, and then that was it. Was always a hassle for my brothers and I trying to get the VCR to pause at the right moment that we wanted, lol. Like so many of the fantastic SW background characters, as I kid I was left wondering who they were, what they did, and so forth. That's one of many reasons why I do enjoy the EU --tons of stories and backstories to explore in that awesome galaxy, far, far away...

Sate Pestage is the guy on the right, in Beezer's photo; he was created by Lucas. He originally was supposed to appear in The Empire Strikes Back, and did in various draft versions of the film. During one of the scenes when Vader attempts to contact The Emperor, Palpatine is busy or something, and instead Vader is greeted by Sate Pestage via hologram.

I remember reading some stuff awhile a back that there was some discrepancy around the character. Obviously, Pestage did not make it into the final draft of the film, but apparently his scene made it to the final shooting schedule of ESB, so it's possible someone was cast in the role and the scene was shot, although as far as I know, Lucasfilm has never addressed this issue. Pestage did make into some Kenner ESB toys, though.

In the EU, Pestage is pretty much the one running the day to day operations of the Empire, as Palpatine was more concerned with Sith stuff and exploring the Dark Side, not to mention probably playing golf, eating good food, and the usual activities that dictators keep themselves occupied with. Pestage briefly succeeded Palpatine as Emperor after the catastrophic defeat at Endor, but his rule didn't last that long as the Empire was tossed into turmoil and began to crumble as the Rebel Alliance/New Republic continued their assault through the Core Worlds and elsewhere.

 

Good info about Sate Pestage, but that's not him in the photo. We've never seen a live action rendition of him as of yet. The guy to the far right in the picture is actually Sim Aloo.

According to the 'wook, the members in Beezer's picture are, "Clockwise from left: Unidentified tall-hatted Imperial advisor, Janus Greejatus, Unidentified red-and-black-robed Imperial Advisor, Sim Aloo and Kren Blista-Vanee."

Of the guys pictured, Janus Greejatus is the most interesting to me, but Sate Pestage really does take the cake. Per the novel Darth Plagueis, this guy is instrumental in helping secure Palpatine's rise to power, beginning all the way back in his early days in the Naboo political scene. He performed (or arranged) the kind of necessary functions that Palpatine could not afford to risk being associated with. The kind of things that get one's hands dirty. Good stuff if you're into the EU.

 

Anyway, long story short, they were just meant to be Palpatine's cabinet like the US President has. Lucas didn't change them for ROTJ, because there was nothing to change about them. Now, if there was any change, it should have been to add Mas Amedda and Sly Moore in 2003, for the 04 DVD release.

 

It's funny to think of them as the Emperor's parents.

 

Hey Dad, mind if I destroy the Rebellion today??

 

How are these guys related to the Trade Federation?

 

Thanks for clarifying that out for everyone; it's been a while since I've dwelt on the Imperial Advisors; and I totally forgot about Sim Aloo. And I agree Trebor Sabreon, it's a fascinating subject and I encourage those who haven't explored it much in the EU to give it a chance.

Both Mas Amedda and Sly Moore are also very interesting characters, and they are fleshed out somewhat in the EU. If the EU is not your cup of tea, then there presence is rather unsatisfactory. They were grossly underutilized in TCW, especially Moore, who didn't even make an appearance. Both were instrumental in Palpatine's life, and I for one was disappointed they weren't featured more in TCW.

Of course, being an EU fan, that's probably a good thing

 

Wow thank you guys for all the info and the history of who these two characters were... I never knew in all my years of watching the movies who they actually were... my basis of my question was that these council men seemed to wear the same type of outfits that the leadership of the Trade Federation characters wore in TPM and the rest of that trilogy. So logically I thought that George Lucas changed his mind on what they looked like and where they came from.

All in all AWESOME info guys! You rock!

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Wait, I thought that was Gunray's illegitimate child with Padme?!?!?!?

 

I've always wondered about them myself. Did they replace Moore and Amedda? Is Vader above them? Are they darksiders (look at their faces)?

 

Moore and Amedda haven't popped up in the OT era fiction that I am aware of. As to the advisers, they're just part of his political cabinet. They aren't Force users. They just look old and evil. They might have been meant to be Force users at some point, but not now it seems.

 

The EU at least chose to interpret a few of them that way (Greejatus and Aloo, in particular) and that hasn't yet been retconned away.

 

"The Making of Return of the Jedi" says that Palpatine's appearance was supposed to be a result of using the dark side to live longer and that Palpatine was supposed to be ancient. Perhaps Palpatine and his advisors were all supposed to be ancient darksiders who aren't Sith?

 

That's what I meant by at one point they probably were.

 

Makes you wonder whether or not "Sith" were intended to be the ultimate evil in the galaxy that we now know them as.

 

A New Hope novel:

Two meters tall. Bipedal. Flowing black robes trailing from the figure and a face forever masked by a functional if bizarre black metal breath screen — a Dark Lord of the Sith was an awesome, threatening shape as it strode through the corridors of the rebel ship.

Fear followed the footsteps of all the Dark Lords. The cloud of evil which clung tight about this particular one was intense enough to cause hardened Imperial troops to back away, menacing enough to set them muttering nervously among themselves. Once-resolute rebel crew members ceased resisting, broke and ran in panic at the sight of the black armour — armour which, though black as it was, was not nearly as dark as the thoughts drifting through the mind within.

 

Never thought of the Trade Federation connection before, but I think they might have actually influenced them (just look at the miters).

I will always stand by the fact that the Star Wars series has the coolest extras; these guys looked especially creepy in the excellent lighting of the Death Star.

 

I can't imagine Palpatine looking to the Trade Federation for inspiration.

 

Perhaps robes and preposterously large hats are simply standard upper-class fashion in the GFFA.

 

I doubt Palpatine would have had the need to listen to advisors. In my opinion they were probably installed for convenience sake to make Palpatine's reign seem like a proper government.