Full Series Force lightning overload?

This is something that has been bothering me since the Nightsisters trilogy. Force lightning used to be seen rarely, and when it was used it was really special and dramatic. However, I first realized how much it was being overused in TCW when I watched Witches of the Mist and Dooku was constantly spraying lightning at Savage and Ventress. Honestly, it felt like a Force Unleashed-style video game where the player is running through hallways blasting everything he/she sees, and it really took me out of the moment.

Then there was Altar of Mortis, where the default weapon for the Son to use against Daughter was red lightning. Again, he used it so much that it got extremely old and the scene felt forced. After seeing it used yet again in Shadow Warrior I can't help but feel generally tired of it, to the point where the epic ending to ROTJ looks like any other use of lightning in TCW. It used to be an extremely cool move for dark siders to use once in a while but now I feel like we're going to get a scene of Dooku using it to heat up a space burrito in the near future.

Does anyone else feel this way?

 

EDIT: Sorry about that.

 

If you check out the Witches of the Mist thread, Dooku spamming lightning like in a video game was a running joke.

It looks like lightning is Dooku's signature move, even though it seems every Sith uses it.

Force lightning was really overdone for me after playing KOTOR.

 

It's because lightning and choke are the only real dark side powers recognisable to casual fans.

 

As a casual fan I'd be cool with it if they showed me something else or new (to me) that the sith can do.

 

I think if you're a regular on a Star Wars forum, even if it's just in the one area, then you're more than just a casual fan.

 

You may be right. I've been in this discussion before on where the line between casual and fanboy/girl lies. On one end of the argument was that being on a forum alone was enough to qualify someone as an active fanboy no matter their level of interest. I was arguing that your not over the line until your seeking out and thinking about writing fanfiction which has not happened to me yet with TCW or Star Wars.

I consider myself casual because I'm not into the EU other than a couple video games (I know just enough from other fans to be slightly dangerous) and because I know my knowledge overall is going to be inferior to most members. I've only got a couple of small guidebooks and the power of google. I've always sought out forums for things I'm interested in so in my mind a forum doesn't make me any measure of hardcore fan it just makes me an active fan.

 

I get fistofan1 sentiment, but it's all about the amount of material we are given. If we are seeing more of a character, it's natural that we see more of that character abilities too. I don't think the problem is with Dooku, but with other characters (except Palpatine) using it too. It's just not necessary.

 

Lightning is awesome. You could never have too much lightning.

 

Yeah, I have to agree with you... I also felt this way about lightsabers in the prequels -overused!

 

Not comparable. When you are watching movies during the Jedi prime, where your main characters are Jedi, what kind of weapon did you expect to see?

 

I really don't think we get too much "force useage" in TCW. It's rather the opposite way. Lightsabers everywhere. Yawn. Every problem gets solved by lightsabers. The overuse of sabers startet in the PT and it continues here.

 

Read above.

 

I think Mike Stocklasa from Redlettermedia (Mr. Plinkett) had a great argument against force lightning. He said how in Jedi, he always assumed the lightning was just Palpatine's way of toying/torturing Luke in that context, since he could've just snapped his neck or stopped his heart from beating with the force. But then the prequels came and force lightning is like some sort of a superpower that they use in combat, which kind of ruins it.

 

I agree that the banalization of the lightsaber is a much greater problem than that of the force lightning. Before the prequels I used to think the Jedi were much more than "lightsaber knights", but now we have that "this weapon is your life" and any Jedi who loses his lightsaber is immediately out of contention and will run away or surrender. Consider Luke going to rescue Han in Ep6, he doesn't even TAKE his lightsaber with him! He stows it away on R2 as "Plan B". The lightsaber should just be another resource in the Jedi's arsenal. "For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is"... Yoda should never have drawn that saber on Geonosis...

 

That's not a great argument, it's a fallacious one (like most of his reviews). Correlation does not imply causation. Just because he assumed so, doesn't mean what's shown in the prequels is faulty or "wrong".

For example, I always assumed that Force lightning was, like you said, a super Force power and it was used in the movie to show how powerful Palpatine really is with the Force. But it was just my assumption. If the prequels had proven me wrong, it was my fault for assuming so, not the movies or Lucas. Fortunately, they didn't.

 

Sure, he was proven "wrong", but that doesn't mean they didn't get lazy with the handling of lightsabers and force lightning. They could've made the dark side of the force deeper then "I'm gonna use my level 5 force lightning on you!"

What Gry said about lightsabers was also mentioned in the Plinkett reviews. In the original trilogy, Luke, Vader, and Obi-Wan only used their lightsabers when they really needed to. Vader never used his lightsaber except when dueling another lightsaber wielder, he relied on the force for everything else. Hell, there were only four times Luke used his lightsaber throughout the entire trilogy, outside the lightsaber duels:

1) To cut himself out of the Wampa cave
2) To cut a hole into the walker
3) The sarlaac, as "plan B" when everything else failed.
4) At the end of the speeder bike chase.

Now we have Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon pretty much activating their lightsabers as a reflex after hearing an explosion, and camera shots following dropped lightsabers as if it were such a big deal. Palpatine calls Luke's lightsaber a "Jedi weapon", and then proceeds to use one in the prequels. Vader could've had the lightsaber... because he was a fallen Jedi. They could've invented a new kind of weapon for the Sith... hell, George could've thought up that "darksaber" that Pre Vizla uses back when The Phantom Menace was being written, given a double bladed darksaber to Darth Maul, and kept Maul alive throughout the trilogy as a consistent force against the protagonists instead of shoehorning Dooku into Attack of the Clones (which was pretty much pointless given his "role" in III)

In regards to the lightning, I personally always thought of Palpatine's lightning as symbolic of his pure hatred for Skywalker... but now its summoned relatively easily by every single darksider.

"Oh hey whats up? Alright I'm gonna force lightning you"

 

I wouldn't call it lazy, but more like a consequence of who the characters are.

Deeper like what?

I believe the Jedi in the prequels only use their lightsabers when they need to, too. Just because in the OT the characters are not in as many action heavy scenes, doesn't mean they wouldn't use their lightsabers in a similar situation.

So?

I think it was as a reflex of danger. Either way, why wouldn't it be justified there? What's the real problem?

But they are a big deal.

Palpatine was not a Sith Lord in the OT, and then proceeds to be on in the prequels too.

"The movies were not what I expected of them, therefore it's their fault, not mine." Are you really using that as an argument?

They could have invented a new weapon, but they didn't probably because there was no need to. Or probably because it was always intended that way. Who knows?

No, it isn't. Specially if you take only the movies into account.

 

Still, in the OT the characters were much more reluctant to whip out the ol' laser sword.

- Obi-Wan has it on him all the time, and yet he doesn't use it against the Tuskens attacking Luke, he doesn't use it against the stormtroopers patrollig Mos Eisley, nor those that attack the Millenium Falcon, nor those standing on his way aboard the Death Star.... He sticks to the Force and subterfuge.
- Luke gets a lightsaber at the beginning of Ep4, and learns from Obi-Wan how to wield it. However he never uses it aboard the Death Star, I don't think he even took it with him. He doesn't use it in the battle of Hoth (other than quickly as a tool). He never trains to use it with Yoda on Dagobah, it's simply not relevant to his Jedi training. The only time he wips it out, it's his biggest failure. On Bespin he only stops using his blaster when he senses he's about to duel Vader.

But in the prequels and TCW, there's no obstacle that the Jedi don't face with their trusty lightsabers ignited in hand.

 

It's not the jedi way to slice everyone.... well except in Jedi Knight -games of course But why to use saber if you can solve everything by cunning tricks and no violence- after all stormtroopers or tuskens don't need to die they are dumb enough to be fooled- I respect this way Obi-Wan uses his brain instead of weapons- "There are alternatives to fighting!"....

Luke hardly was able to use saber aboard Death Star (he just won little remote that is nothing really- jedi do that when they are 3 or something- and stormtroopers are after all elite troops of the Empire ) and it is risky against living opponents since he is not really capable duelist before Rotj and still gets hit by laser.....

in PT and TCW there is fully trained jedi who have used saber all their life- of course they ignite it when being threatened.... I see no problem. Luke trusts his blaster more because that is what he used on Tatooine- saber is new and more dangerous thing- something special his father left to him, something to be used only in special occasions.....

 

Yes, I agree. But the problem is that in the prequels and TCW the Jedi have sort of forgotten that there are alternatives to chopping their opponents with a lightsaber. In Ep2 Anakin slices and dices geonosians with wild abandon.

And it's not just the Jedi. The same goes for the Sith. When someone displeased Darth Vader, he would Force choke them to death. If the same thing happened in TCW, I have no doubt that Vader would just stab them with his lightsaber, alternating between stabbing them on the chest and on the back.

 

I still disagree about this- Qui-Gon handled Nass and Watto without saber... okay Watto was unaffected but still- Yoda uses the Force before his saber in AOTC..... Anakin quickly takes his saber but I think it suits to situation and his character- he don't use a choke yet and he is an aggressive jedi... Mace is also rather aggressive jedi..... in OT we have Ben and Yoda who don't need saber so much and Luke who has not enough skill yet...

Dooku stabbing Rish Loo was lame though- i rather see "force crush" or something....whatever is that cool skill in KOTOR2 - Force Grip in ROTS was great move from Dooku-

Stabbing in TCW (always stabbing) is really stupid- about that I agree- they could sometimes censor the death scene itself but have voices or something- so we wouldn't see what happens to body.... only know it's something nasty...... like they had that clone being cut in half in Counterattack and that decapitation of clone in Cloak of Darkness (which is still one of my favorite Ventress-moments btw )

Dooku could choke someone to death for once...... force lightning is bit overused as well but Dooku could sometimes use both hands like Palpatine, even though 'one hand -lightning' is his signature move really....

 

I guess they could be more inventive when it comes to the force. I even have a few ideas myself.

Conjure tiny energy spheres and throw them at the opponent.
Drain a body of all its blood.
"Stretch" the time.
Freeze body parts.
And so on.

 

Well... he didn't use a lightsaber against Watto or Boss Nass because they weren't really enemies, their resources were just convenient to his cause.

I guess you could justify the use of lightsabers in the prequels because of the enemies being, for the most part, droids. But still...

 

I wouldn't have this problem if it weren't for the darksiders always saying something like "You will now experience the full power of the dark side" before shooting force lightning.

They're acting like the dark side is just loving power and being able to shoot electricity out of your hands.

See, it really isn't that hard. Or how about in the Force Unleashed II, where you can use a sort of a Jedi mind trick to turn people against each other, or attempt to take their own lives? The draining blood thing sounds like a good idea, may be too graphic for Star Wars, but you get the picture.