Star Wars: Parallels Extra

STAR WARS

Parallels

Welcome to the final post of Star Wars: Parallels. The previous three have been by episode, beginning with those in the first position of each trilogy, then the middle, and finally the third and final. I feel it appropriate to once again quote George Lucas regarding his approach to the prequel trilogy. "It's like poetry, it rhymes." Like it or not, that is a near perfect way to analyze moments that may seem repetitive but are in fact derivative of each other. Sometimes these moments align differently by position in each trilogy, and some may even occur within the same trilogy from time to time. This is the type that is today's subject. As always, some parallel and yet may contrast. [Legend: OT: Original Trilogy, PT: Prequel Trilogy, ST: Sequel Trilogy, ANH: A New Hope, TESB: The Empire Strikes Back, ROTJ: Return of the Jedi, TPM: The Phantom Menace, AOTC: Attack of the Clones, ROTS: Revenge of the Sith, TFA: The Force Awakens, TLJ: The Last Jedi, TROS: The Rise of Skywalker]

Extra-Positional Parallels

Daddy Issues: In TESB, Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader have their moment of revelation while on an industrial catwalk over a chasm in Cloud City on Bespin. In ROTJ, Luke turns himself in and they have a similar verbal confrontation in Endor while on a platform over the forest floor. When Han Solo confronts Kylo Ren in TFA, it is also on a catwalk over a large chasm inside Starkiller Base.

Duels, Duels, Duels: While there are some parallels among all the lightsaber duels throughout the Star Wars saga, there are more between some than others, and I will elaborate on two of them. Many are one-on-one, but Qui-Gon Jinn & Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi master & padawan, together engage Darth Maul, Sith apprentice, in TPM and then Obi-Wan & Anakin Skywalker, Jedi master & padawan, duel with Count Dooku, Sith apprentice, in AOTC. Beyond the participant dynamics, the Sith immobilizes the Jedi master, and the winner inflicts major lightsaber damage to the remaining opponent to end the duel during each. I would be remiss not to mention the rematch of Obi-Wan, Anakin and Dooku in ROTS. The duel follows that same pattern, but to a different outcome that is in line with Jinn & Kenobi versus Maul. The second parallel is also within the PT: Yoda versus Count Dooku in AOTC with Yoda versus Darth Sidious in ROTS. Both begin with a test of the opponents' knowledge of the Force before turning into a duel of lightsabers. The latter is part of the "Battle of the Heroes" sequence, and it is worth noting both victors, Obi-Wan and Sidious, have the high ground.

Force ghosts: In ANH, as Luke Skywalker makes his final approach to the two-meter wide, the voice of Obi-Wan "Ben" Kenobi speaks to him, seemingly from beyond the grave. As an audience, we get a taste of what he meant by, "...I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine." Yoda and Obi-Wan discuss whether or not Luke will be trained on Dagobah in TESB, the latter as the same disembodied voice and very much in favor. In AOTC, Yoda hears Qui-Gon Jinn cry out as Anakin Skywalker attacks the Sand People. Obi-Wan and Yoda call out to Rey on Takodana in TFA, and multiple past Jedi encourage Rey as she takes her final stand against Palpatine in TROS. In full form, Obi-Wan appears to Luke on Hoth in TESB, and then later to both Yoda and Luke as the latter prepares to depart Dagobah for Bespin. After Yoda becomes one with the Force in ROTJ, Obi-Wan offers some final words to Luke as he leaves to rejoin the Rebel Alliance, culminating in the final confrontation with Darth Vader and the Emperor. Later, Luke sees the ghosts of Anakin, Yoda and Obi-Wan observing the celebration on Endor. Yoda appears to Luke in TLJ after Rey leaves Ahch-To to teach Luke once again. Luke appears to Rey after she returns to Ahch-To with intentions to exile herself due to fear of her vision of a Dark Side version of herself in TROS. Finally, Luke and Leia appear to Rey on Tatooine to give their approval to her carrying on in the spirit of a Skywalker. I have endeavored to list every instance (and I hope I didn't miss any) to illustrate that a Force ghost appears at a time to prepare someone for something difficult or to affect a major turning point for an individual and/or the galaxy.

The Funeral Pyre: The body, or rather presumably the empty mechanical shell, of Darth Vader, which the redeemed Anakin Skywalker used to save his son Luke from the Emperor, is burned on a funeral pyre at the end of ROTJ. At the conclusion of TPM, Qui-Gon Jinn's body is similarly burnt on a pyre. In AOTC, the Jedi killed in the Battle of Geonosis are abandoned. Each and every one of them presumably should have had these same funeral rites. But logistics from the sheer number that fell and the danger to those who would recover the bodies or perform the ceremonies on site were preventative to this occurring in perhaps the most understated bit of sadness to compound that which is more obvious. I would be remiss to not mention those shown being murdered during the Order 66 montage in ROTS and the same accompanying additional sadness to lack of the deserved honor, perhaps more so in light of the fact that their Code was corrupted with three or so years of war service.

Binary Sunset: There is the iconic scene in ANH after Luke Skywalker has had an argument with his Uncle Owen. Shot from behind, he views the twin setting suns of the Tatooine sky, frustrated and yet on the cusp of his grander place in the galaxy. On the very same dune at the Lars homestead, ROTS ends with Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru, holding the recently adopted infant Luke, looking at those same suns setting, only in different celestial position. Near the conclusion of TLJ, Luke becomes one with the Force after saving his sister and her Resistance forces from Kylo Ren and his First Order via a Force projection. From behind his meditative posture, he fades away as he looks on at the binary sunset of Ahch-To. The suns are in opposite position from Tatooine's. Finally, Rey journeys to the Lars homestead to bury the Skywalker lightsaber and Leia's, an out of the way place so as not to be disturbed. The final scene is a behind shot of Rey and BB-8, observing the same setting suns from the same dune, but again in different celestial position. Aside from the imagery, the choice of sunset appears to be deliberate, as it marks an end that may be welcome, wistful, or a mix of the two. For ANH, Luke is at an end of the mundane farm life that Tatooine represents to him, but that comes at the cost of his aunt and uncle's lives. For ROTS, Owen Lars and Beru Whitesun are at the close of their time as merely a couple, their family now complete with Luke. But in the larger sense, the suns set on the days under the relative freedom of the Republic, ironically on a planet seemingly little affected either way. For TLJ, the stretch of imagination is not terribly great that the suns set while Luke passes away. However, its power lies with the accompaniment of the previous two, a poetic conclusion to two beginnings. Lastly, for TROS, it represents an end to Palpatine and at least his evil. But even more so, with the last bloodline Skywalker gone, Rey has adopted the name and represents them after the final physical reminders have been put to rest. This is fitting since Tatooine is where it all began, both cinematically with Luke and chronologically with Anakin.

Next up...Star Wars: The Watch Order Debate!