PT Darth Plagueis the Wise

The implication of the possibility is arguably still there, however. In fact, if you listen to the commentary Rick McCallum seems to be convinced.

Most of it did, anyway.

I'm looking at you, Brian Daley.

 

I've always liked the idea behind Plagueis. Anything that builds on Sith history and their possible motivations is a plus in the PT.

 

A new Jaster Mereel character- the "real" Jaster Mereel - was created shortly after AOTC - in the comic Jango Fettpen Seasons. He died long before AOTC - but Boba used his name as an alias (retcon to explain why Boba, in flashbacks, in pre-AOTC stories, is called Jaster Mereel.

Going by Wookieepedia:

In July 2001, Lucas gave his opinion on the matter of what is canon in Star Wars during an interview with Cinescapemagazine:

"There are two worlds here," explained Lucas. "There's my world, which is the movies, and there's this other world that has been created, which I say is the parallel universe—the licensing world of the books, games and comic books. They don't intrude on my world, which is a select period of time, [but] they do intrude in between the movies. I don't get too involved in the parallel universe."

Further, in an August 2005 interview in Starlog magazine:

STARLOG: "The Star Wars Universe is so large and diverse. Do you ever find yourself confused by the subsidiary material that's in the novels, comics, and other offshoots?"
LUCAS: "I don't read that stuff. I haven't read any of the novels. I don't know anything about that world. That's a different world than my world. But I do try to keep it consistent. The way I do it now is they have a Star Wars Encyclopedia. So if I come up with a name or something else, I look it up and see if it has already been used. When I said [other people] could make their own Star Wars stories, we decided that, like Star Trek, we would have two universes: My universe and then this other one. They try to make their universe as consistent with mine as possible, but obviously they get enthusiastic and want to go off in other directions."

 

No, but Palpatine said that Plagueis could create life. So a Sith Lord creating Anakin did make it into the film. Just not Palpatine taking credit for it. So there is still proof. If one happened, so could the other.

That's the point. He is the proof. That's enough to start with.

Uh, Palpatine said that Plagueis could manipulate the Midichlorians to create life. That is in the film. Anakin is proof of that.

Except for Palpatine telling him about what Darth Plagueis did to the Midichlorians to create life. As Lucas said, he left it open for the audience to decide.

"There is a hint in the movie that there was a Sith Lord who had the power to create life. But it's left unsaid: Is Anakin a product of a super-Sith who influenced the Midichlorians to create him, or is he simply created by the Midichlorians to bring forth a prophecy, or was he created by the Force through the Midichlorians? It's left up to the audience to decide. How he was born ultimately has no relationship to how he dies, because in the end, the prophecy is true: Balance comes back to the Force."

--George Lucas, Rolling Stone Magazine, 2005.

If he was created by the Force alone, he was the Chosen One. If he was created by Plagueis, then he is still the Chosen One. That's why Lucas said how it happened was not as important that he did exist and he was there at the right moment to do what he did.

 

If you go by the EU, it was mad pretty clear in the Plagueis novel that the Force created Anakin. If you go by the films alone it's quite possible that Plagueis never even existed. So, trying to find a definite answer to Anakin's existence is quite futile.

 

Palpatine never said that he could do it, though. Not once. All he said was that the Force could do it and that was enough for Anakin, because he wanted to believe that the Force could do that. After hearing tale of a Sith Lord, that was enough for him.

That's what faith is.

It's not about assigning a definitive answer. It's about establishing for Anakin that the dark side of the Force was superior to the light and that if he wanted to save Padme, he had to switch sides.

"The key part of this scene ultimately is Anakin saying "I'm not going to let this happen again." We're cementing his determination to become the most powerful Jedi. The only way you can really do that is to go to the dark side because the dark side is more powerful. If you want the ultimate power you really have to go to the stronger side which is the dark side, but ultimately it would be your undoing. But it's that need for power and the need for power in order to satisfy your greed to keep things and to not let go of things and to allow the natural course of life to go on, which is that things come and go, and to be able to accept the changes that happen around you and not want to keep moments forever frozen in time."

--George Lucas, AOTC DVD Commentary.

"When you get down to where we are right now in the story, you basically get somebody who’s going to make a pact with the Devil, and it’s going to be a pact with the Devil that says, 'I want the power to save somebody from death. I want to be able to stop them from going to the river Styx, and I need to go to a god for that, but the gods won’t do it, so I’m going to go down to Hades and get the Dark Lord to allow me to have this power that will allow me to save the very person I want to hang on to.' You know, it’s Faust. So Anakin wants that power, and that is basically a bad thing. If you’re going to sell your soul to save somebody you love, that’s not a good thing. That’s as we say in the film, unnatural. You have to accept that natural course of life. Of all things. Death is obviously the biggest of them all. Not only death for yourself but death for the things you care about."

--George Lucas, quoted in J. Windolf, “Star Wars: The Last Battle,” Vanity Fair, 2005

 

And again, Luke had faith in Obi-wan without really knowing for certain. That's what the message of the Force was in the Saga. Have faith that it can work.

 

The evidence one can point to that Palpatine actually possesses this power and therefore could influence Anakin to join him is nonexistent in the films.

All Anakin is going by is Palpatine's word. The word of someone who he found out earlier was a Sith lord and had been deceiving Anakin himself.

It just doesn't work.

 

Which is more than he's going to get from the Jedi.

 

Which is still not enough to be credible.

 

It's the only option to get him what he wants. He knows Palpatine is a Sith and he knows dark side powers exist. If one dark side power exists, another can exist. None of this is too much of a stretch.

 

Luke had act on faith that the Death Star could be destroyed and had to act on faith that he could pick up his ship. He didn't have faith in the other and was told that is why he failed.

But Luke trusted Obi-wan, who was a Jedi and deemed an outlaw for trying to overthrow the legal government.

The Jedi are trained to trust the Force and have faith in it. The message is to have faith in ideals, in a divinity and in others as well as yourself. Quite a positive message.

Palpatine possesses the power of the dark side, which is all he ever says that he has. He never says that he himself has the power to cheat death. Only the knowledge of the Force that no Jedi will ever teach one that they don't trust. Much less utilize because they deem it dangerous and forbidden.

Again, Anakin is proof that Palpatine's story is true, thus making him credible.

 

How does faith in ideals fail? And faith in divinity, people look for things that are bigger and greater than themselves. They can look to it and have faith that it will work out. Maybe it will, maybe it won't. Luke had put faith in the Force in order to do what he did. Qui-gon put faith in the Force that another solution to their predicament and found it in Anakin.

And Luke had a plan. As do other characters.

And Luke believed in his father when the Jedi didn't. Anakin had faith in Palpatine's story.

That's because he trusts Palpatine and doesn't trust the Jedi anymore. That's why.

 

The smiley system is getting really annoying these days.

 

That's why one must strive to change the world to make it a better place. Freedom as the right of everyone is an ideal to hold on to.

Well, we're not asking you for your advice. In the Saga, the Jedi are encouraged to look within themselves and see what the Force wants of them.

QUI-GON: "Life forms living together for mutual advantage. Without the Midichlorians, life could not exist, and we would have no knowledge of the Force. They continually speak to you, telling you the will of the Force."

ANAKIN: "They do??"

QUI-GON: "When you learn to quiet your mind, you will hear them speaking to you."


LUKE: "But how am I to know the good side from the bad?"

YODA: "You will know. When you are calm, at peace. Passive. A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack."


In the OT, Han does not believe in the Force. Obi-wan simply smiles at Han's ignorance, but does nothing more than that. It is Luke who takes issue with Han. But in time, Han starts to believe that there is something to it. He may not believe that the Force can control his destiny, but he believes that it is a power that made Luke into a formidable warrior.

In Luke's case, that was all that he had to go on. He was going to try to save his father as he had faith in him. Barring that, he could at least stall for time. In Anakin's case, he has faith that the Force can do what Palpatine claims and that is why he saves his life and then sides with him.

There is no such thing as luck in the Saga. There is only the Force. Luke wasn't lucky, he was right. He just had to keep reaching out to him until Anakin responded. As to Anakin, you do not understand the dark side of the Force. Every Sith Lord encourages killing in cold blood because it turns them evil.



YODA: "Run! Yes. A Jedi's strength flows from the Force. But beware of the dark side. Anger...fear...aggression. The dark side of the Force are they. Easily they flow, quick to join you in a fight."


VADER: "Obi-Wan has taught you well. You have controlled your fear...now release your anger. Only your hatred can destroy me."



PALPATINE: "You want this, don't you? The hate is swelling in you now. Take your Jedi weapon. Use it. I am unarmed. Strike me down with it. Give in to your anger. With each passing moment, you make yourself more my servant."



PALPATINE: "Good. I can feel your anger. I am defenseless. Take your weapon! Strike me down with all your hatred, and your journey towards the dark side will be complete.


PALPATINE: "Good! Your hate has made you powerful."


Only by killing the Jedi in the Temple and the Confederacy leadership will Anakin become strong with the dark side of the Force. Freed from the bounds imposed on him by the Jedi Code. That's why he says that he feels more powerful having killed everyone in the Temple, than he did before then. Using the dark side is like using steroids to gain muscle mass, as opposed to just working out the old fashioned way without using any enhancements. Using steroids will help give definition and mass, but it can come with a price. Not using it will take longer to build up said mass and chances are you won't be as sculpted.

Well, of course not. That's the point. That is Anakin's folly. But he believed that there would be good from siding with Palpatine, only to find out that he was wrong.

 

In fact, if you listen to the commentary Rick McCallum seems to be convinced.
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"In Revenge Of The Sith we learn exactly why Boba hates the Skywalkers" -RM

Just Sayin

 

The great thing about the Force in the OT is it was ambiguous enough, yet applied just enough specifics to what it is, that all people could feel included. Buddhists, Christians, agnostics, etc.

Lucas really clouded things when he introduced so many new concepts to the Force(Balance of it, Will of it, Chosen One, Living Force, etc) and connections to it: midis, and then failed to fully elaborate on how that fit into the Force paradigm we had come to accept.

It is unfortunate.