Speculation Anakin/Luke's Lightsaber

Right. But it must remain allegory and not become too literal in the actual film.

 

I don't get why we would need to know how the LS came to be in the possession of character X in TFA.

Specially if character X is a dealer of artifacts of sorts. Like Watto. Do we need to know how Watto came to have a Nubian hyperdrive or why they cost so much?, we only needed this to insert Anakin into the storyline of TPM. The story was not of the hyperdrive but that is important as it propelled the whole story arc of the pod races and Anakin and the betting and Anakin going with Quigon.

I think the LS can used in the same way. All we know is that Luke lost it and never bothered to come back for it (ignoring the EU). So anyone could've found it and sold it. It may have passed hands many times or stayed with the same one and this gives it to the character X in TFA.

I don't want a whole exposition scene or a collage showing what happened in the 30+ years since Bespin to TFA to the LS. To me it's a waste of screen time.

UNLESS...

The saga becomes about the LS (Excalibur/Holy Grail), and that's what motivates the story. But I agree that this may not be the best for the saga. And so far nothing has been shown to make this LS any more important than other LS. After all, the first LS that Anakin used he destroyed in AOTC. I don't think the movies show who he stole this second LS from in the battle of Geonosis and if the saber that OB1 takes from him in ROTS is the same one or another one he made in-between AOTC and ROTS. Then Luke only used it to train and then to battle once with Darth Vader. The saber he ultimately used to defeat Vader is the one he made after ESB.

 

Except the Nubian hyperdrive isn't a previously seen possession that held meaning to a main character. So, by its very existence it's going to warrant more curiosity than a hyperdrive. When Qui-Gon buys a new hyperdrive, he doesn't get a scene dedicated to it along with an explanation on the methodology of hyperspace and faster than light travel. Nor is the Nubian hyperdrive presented to the main character in any special way to speak of.

 

Right. You can replace the Nubian hyperdrive with any other Nubian hyperdrive and it wouldn't have changed anything. But if you replace Anakin/Luke's lightsaber with a generic lightsaber salvaged fromt the Jedi Temple, or Grievous's lair, or some other place where Jedi lightsabers may be found, we suddenly aren't intrigued by it. It would simply be someone who found a lightsaber. But when you make it the Skywalker lightsaber, suddenly I have a lot of questions. I'd be surprised to not see answers provided in the movie.

 

Fair enough, bad example.

What about R2?, we do get to see how C3PO came about but we never saw R2 origins or how he came into being in the possession of Amidala or aboard that ship... They didn't even know it's number until after running the blockade and R2's luck at surviving it.

Luke didn't really care that much about "that" LS. He didn't use it in ANH. He used his blaster. He used it for training only but then when it was lost with his hand he just built a new one. The whole scene in ANH with OB1 "lying" about "your father wanted you to have this when you were old enough", blah blah. Which was due to some unused story lines that GL later changed. Luke even has his blaster pistol when he first arrives at Bespin. It's not until he meets with Vader that he switches to the LS. Vader didn't even acknowledges his former weapon. It's not a big deal. It's not unitl ROTJ that Vader acknowledges that it's a different LS than the one Luke used in Bespin.

BTW did Luke ever pick up his discarded LS in ROTJ, I don't think he did.... I wonder what he will be wielding in TFA?

 

Yeah, but that's R2's chronological introduction into the story. This lightsaber appears chronologically in Episode III, and no one questions that. But it is natural to question how it got to Episode VII.

 

And R2 was in the possession of the Royal House of Naboo. We don't need to see his journey from factory to in the service of the Royal House, because most of that can be inferred. We know he was made in an astromech factory, and we know that he was bought by the Naboo to serve the Queen aboard her ship. We don't really need to know more than that because as StoryWorthTelling said, his introduction to the story is at the beginning. We don't need to know every time he had to replace a screw or oil the engine because that doesn't add interest to the story. How the old Skywalker lightsaber resurfaced adds interest to the story.

 

Yeah, if I don't get to see him light up old green again, I may lose it. I think Abrams knows that.

 

me too.

Honestly, I would be shocked if he didn't. I mean-who of us has not been waiting for that for YEARS?!

 

I have some mixed feelings. On the one hand it sounds really cool to see him again swinging a LS. On the other hand he's the old sage now.

Maybe have him in more of a Force duel?

I just don't know...

 

I get that...

Although I (and I bet others) have always wanted to see Luke at his full power. This of course includes lightsaber dueling. We didn't really get to see that in ROTJ.

Looking back, I guess I kind of already said that - sorry..

 

It's difficult to get to your 'full power" when you don't have anyone to spar with.

And as much as I think Mark did get in shape for the movie and trust he will be good. I think Luke's better years as a warrior are behind him. i.e. his full power was in ROTJ. He managed to hold his own in a straight duel with Vader, more machine than man, Vader but that's as much as he had to do.

 

Fair enough on the point of him not being able to improve as much in lightsaber skill with no one to "spar with."

Regarding his skill level in ROTJ, I believe he did improve greatly since ESB, but I have a hard time accepting that's the best he will have gotten in all that time. The way I see it is, if that's how powerful he was after just about a year or so of learning, imagine how much he will have increased his power and ability in the next 30 years!! Yoda mandated him to pass on what he learned, and Luke took his mantle of being the last Jedi seriously. If that's the case, I have a hard time believing that over the next 30 years he didn't study, practice or do anything to better his abilities in all that time. Anakin didn't really train between the events of AOTC and ROTS. His power simply doubled from his constant usage of the Force, and all that the Clone Wars demanded of him. Also, it's been proven that age is not an indication of a being's level of Force using ability (Sidious, Dooku, Yoda). So I don't really think the fact that Luke is older should hold sway over that idea.

Again, maybe he wouldn't be as strong in dueling, true, but in overall usage of the Force, I'd imagine he should be potentially well more powerful by this point. I'd hate to not see Luke in a SW movie for over 30 years, and be told that he hadn't improved at all in his abilities in all that time. That's something I've always wanted to see. Something gives me the feeling I'm not the only one who feels that way, now that I think about it...

 

I agree about the excalibur significance, but I see anakinfansince1983's point. I mean I'm just fine with the lightsaber serving as the McGuffin (in its simplest and most literal definition)-in fact the idea has been growing on me, but I really hope they don't just pass it off that it just appeared. I expect (read less forcefully: hope) at least some SPECIFIC explanation of how it reappears.

And I really hope it's IN TFA. I don't want to have to read about it in a short blurb in some kind of novel or something just to find out. I think such an idea for such an iconic item in the saga deserves something properly detailing its re-emergence.

 

If I may interject.

Yes it's a good thing to know (on-screen) what happened since ESB. I'm just thinking that I didn't need to know how the Death Star plans got to be in R2 memory banks and in Leia's possession at the beginning of ANH (e.g. the mcguffin).

But sure they can do some voice over (like the start of Fellowship of the ring that tells the story of the ring up to the point that FOTR starts), or some collage or montage showing what happened to it since it fell from Luke's hand. I just don't think if this isn't shown that it will ruin the story or movie in any way.

I know it was cut off from Luke's hand. I know Luke made a new one.

Anyone could've found the LS.

A storm trooper.

A miner from Bespin.

A scavenger

It may have been swallowed by some creature that then got hunted for meat and/or fur and when they cut it open they found it and then sold it...blah blah.

Sorry I don't know how seeing this story would help the movie.

I mean, in the OT the LS may have been an Excalibur reference but in the PT Anakin destroys his first LS in Geonosis. Then he keeps losing his LS. Obiway lost his in the battle with Grievous, etc. It gave me the impression that the whole "this is your life" thing going on was more of a joke, and LS were really not a big deal. Grievous kept them was trophies and I thought that Obiwan kept Anakin's LS also as a trophy of sorts or to remind him of his own failures as a master. I mean he thought Anakin died and didn't know about Luke or Leia, yet.

Why he didn't keep Darth Maul's or Dooku?, or the Emperor's for that matter.

 

I think it's a cool way to add connection between sagas. We've only seen Fin ignite the saber in the trailer maybe he will be the next non Jedi to use one like Han did in empire. ( thats assuming he isn't a force user-- none of us will know that until December I guess though lol) just an idea not a spoiler....I like to think of all the possibilities when watching teasers... December can't get here soon enough. This reminds me of the good old days of speculating about the PT...love it!

 

My guess is that the scene in that short little blurb is him realizing he's Force sensitive. Someone is injured, tosses it to him, and he's got to take a stand. If I had to bet, I would guess that scene takes place in the first act of the movie.

 

Being force sensitive does not mean you automatically are an expert swordsman or know how to properly wield a LS, specially against someone trained on fighting with it. So I do hope it's not as simple as this...

 

I agree that without any training he couldn't just use it the way a Jedi would-force sensitive or not.

Although-maybe he DID at one time have training???????????? That would be an interesting twist!

Mainly I just figured that Finn would use it since he has nothing else to defend himself at a moment when he may be confronted with danger. Kind of like in ESB when Luke used it to escape the Wampa...

 

That was along the lines of my thinking. Maybe, dare I hope?, that Leia fights him, gets injured, tosses Finn the saber so he's not TOTALLY defenseless, Finn gets backed into a corner, just as Luke comes flying in and totally lays the holy smackdown.

 

Hmm, I was just thinking we already seen this before.

Who do we know dressed up as a stormtrooper and ended up using a LS?, It's also worth noting that the two characters that disguised themselves as stormtroopers both used the LS at some point.

I think some of the posts above should've labelled spoilers...

But judging by the few frames and the way he's holding the LS and the location. It looks like a fight.