#Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

[charmwasjess]

just thinking about Christopher Lee's "loneliness of evil" thing again and how Sean Stewart gave Dooku the mantra "What are we, Dooku? Alone, alone, alone" throughout Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

[jewishcissiekj]

[bluntblade]

Dark Rendezvous has a few passages just turning over and over in my head right now. That beautiful moment when you see a writer cut right to the core of who a character is:

"But another way to solve the war there is. If you will not join with me, perhaps join with you I should. Tell me more," Yoda said testily. "If power over beings need I not, what else can your dark side do for me?"

"What do you want?" Dooku snapped. "Tell me what you want and I will show you how the dark side can help you achieve it. Do you want friends? The dark side can compel them for you. Lovers? The dark side understands passion in a way you never have. Do you ant riches--endless life--deep wisdom...?"

"I want..." Yoda held up the flower in his hand and took another sniff. "I want a rose."

"Be serious," Dooku said impatiently.

"Serious am I!" Yoda cried. He bounced to his feet. Standing on the desktop, he was almost as tall as Dooku. He held the flower imperiously toward his former pupil. "Another rose, make for me!"

"The dark side springs from the heart," Dooku said. "It isn't a handbook for cheap conjuror's tricks."

"But like this trick, do I!" Yoda said. "The trick that brings the flower from the ground. The trick that sets the sun on fire."

"The force is not magic. It can't create a flower out of thin air. Nobody can - not you, not the lord of the Sith."

Yoda blinked. "My Force does. Binds every living thing, the Force I understand."

"Master, these are games of words. The Force is as it has always been. The dark side is not a different energy.To use it is only to open yourself to new ways to command that energy, that have to do with the hearts of beings. Want something else. Want power."

[jedi-order-apologist]

The Buried Truth is Your Favorite Lie

Dooku tries and fails to leave the past behind. Written for Fandom Empire Powerball 2023. Prompt: Candle

Dooku kept a selection of particular documents in hardcopy in one of his private studies, far beyond the reach of even an accomplished slicer. These documents were best kept out of sight until an ally began to waver, and required a bit more...persuasion, preferably of the kind they were unaware Dooku had access to.

Ventress called it blackmail. Dooku found the term crude, and preferred to think of it as insurance. Nevertheless, he found himself in need of it from time to time, when a subtler touch than the usual threats were required.

It was with this in mind that he entered one evening. He had sensed the wavering loyalties of a particular Separatist senator recently – a coward, who had been more and more anxious about Republic victories as of late, and no doubt thought he still had a chance to get on the “winning” side. But the fact that he was a coward was useful, especially when Dooku possessed evidence of some of the Senator’s rather unsavory indiscretions – embezzlement, mostly, and some infidelity. Petty things, really, but such petty things could hold great sway over small minded beings. Dooku was certain they could reach an understanding.

There were, of course, many documents there, on datapads and flimsi alike, but with a slight gesture, he pressed the Force into bringing the file he needed directly into his grasp. But as the file flew from the depths of those shelves, it knocked into something that rolled off the shelf and fell to the ground. Dooku glanced at it as he grasped the needed documents.

He did not flinch. He was stronger than that. There was no reason to flinch over a mere candle.

CONTINUED ON AO3

[lotusblue234]

It's been weeks, and I'm still genuinely tweaking about that quote from Yoda: Dark Rendezvous, where Yoda tells Dooku that

"Yoda teaches like drunkards drink. Like killers kill."

Or something very like that, I didn't get the book to make it verbatim. But like. Damn. Like. DAMN!!! Not only is that so informative about Yoda's character, that's so fucking REAL.

I'm obsessed with this idea that people do things- good things, bad things, weird or neutral things- for the same reasons drunkards drink. Because they feel like they have to stay alive. Because they're addicted. Because the world is too much to face if they don't. Because it makes all the pain seem bearable.

Yoda teaches because he feels like he has to in order to continue facing the universe. He's addicted to being the teacher...

[vaguely-concerned]

new dream star wars project: a tom stoppard-esque play about Solis and Fidelis playing space chess together for ten years. just a two hour long absurdist dialogue between two old droids. nothing else happens. you leave the play with a deep indefinable grief, unable to say which of them is the tragedy -- the one who still has their reason for functioning, or the one who lost it. is it better to be devoid of inherent meaning and free, or to belong to something and be trapped by it. maybe love is a little like that too. literally no one else in the galaxy cares tho just the two of you to everyone else you're scrap metal waiting to happen. goodnight

(they're from yoda: dark rendezvous and they are my favorite depiction of droids in star wars. there's such an air of melancholy and existential dread around them and it's so fucking GOOD. they're both footman droids, another absolute winner concept -- they're basically the galaxy's most lethal butlers and all-round caretakers, and the ethical ramifications around sentience and hardcoded loyalty they bring up... delicious. do you like magneto and professor x having meaningful chess matches against each other. well solis and fidelis are basically doing the low-key droid freedom and sentience philosophy version of that. solis I stan you to a galaxy far far away and back)

[chocmarss]

Star Wars Legends really said the padawans get hard-ons when sparring

[legends-expo]

Buy tickets now on Eventbrite!

The Legends Consortium (aka LegendsCon) is a fan-run convention celebrating the original Expanded Universe books, comics, games, and other media that are now known as Legends.

We seek to create an event that brings together fans in an environment that fosters positivity and inclusivity while we celebrate our love of Legends material. We are an unofficial community organized event, which is not sponsored, run by, or affiliated with Lucasfilm Ltd. All event proceeds will go to a charitable cause.

Our guest list includes Sean Stewart, Corinna Bechko, and Randy Stradley, with more announcements to come!

When you purchase your LegendsCon pass, you will also receive a link to our hotel block for rooms at the Marriott! These rooms are available at a discounted rate for September 8th-10th, 2023.

Join us in celebrating the Expanded Universe at LegendsCon on September 9th & 10th 2023, at the Marriott Convention Center in sunny Burbank, California!

[amarcia]

Morning Tea

@jedijune 01 Fun / Joy / Comfort

✨🌙 ART LOG -> @404ama

[lotusblue234]

There's definitely a story of generational trauma to be told about the Disaster Lineage, and I agree that a lot of it can be traced back to Yoda. The worst part is that I really think he was trying his best and doing what he thought his Padawans + students needed.

People pay a ton of attention to the things they teach on purpose, and ignore the things they teach by accident.

I've been on a Dooku kick lately, and one thing I've noticed in the extended universe stuff about him is that Yoda consistently pushed him too hard as a kid.

If you'll indulge me: Picture kid Dooku, who is by all accounts very gifted, excels for his age, and by one means or another has come to understand that he was abandoned (read: discarded) by his parents. Any savvy adult with eyeballs and half an ounce of empathy would look at this kid and see that "Oh. Shit. He must be really compensating hard for some deep seated lack of self worth." Healthy, balanced, secure kids don't throw themselves into their studies like their life depends on it, to the detriment of their social life and own mental health.

I read the young Dooku we're presented with in the EU as someone who believes that others only value him for his achievements. Between the bullying of kids his age and the positive reinforcement from adults, he's convinced that if it weren't for his exceptional talents, nobody would want him around. If he can't perform up to their standards, nobody will love him.

Now, enter Yoda, who is by all accounts a fantastic Jedi and a practiced teacher. But. He fails to see facade Dooku's facade. He doesn't realize it's an act. That the pomp and pride are covering for deep feelings of inadequacy (perhaps because the kid is by no means inadequate, and from the outside that's obvious) But Yoda takes one look at this prideful rising star of an initiate and says "This kid needs to get brought down a peg. Stat." (MILD SPOILERS FOR JEDI LOST AND DARK RENDEZVOUS AHEAD)

To be fair to Yoda, he's doing it out of concern for kid. Pride is an easy route to the dark side (as are fucking, most things in Yoda's eyes, but that aside) and if Dooku's gonna become a good Jedi one day then he needs to cut that boastful shit out. So what does the Grand Master of the Order do? Does he sit down and have a serious talk with the initiate? Tell him a parable over tea maybe, as he is wont to do?

No. He starts pushing all of Dooku's buttons. In Dark Rendezvous, we're regained with the story of how initiates were taught to play "push feather," which is a game where two people try to knock each other over using only the force. Dooku is really fucking good at it. Yoda plays with the initiates often, and is happy to sandbag so they can beat him, at least once in a while. But not Dooku. No, Dooku he roundly puts on his ass, every single time, usually instantly.

Now, honestly? Is that a big deal? With most kids maybe not. With a kid who's secure in their self worth, the message would probably get across quickly. "You're not always the best, so maybe you should chill out. There are more important things than winning." But Dooku is NOT secure in himself AT ALL and he is also HELLA STUBBORN. So he doesn't quit. He keeps trying desperately to beat Yoda, even though he knows it won't work, and as he gets stronger and more determined his defeats just keep getting more and more spectacular. Eventually he's so fed up with the fact that NO ONE IS ACKNOWLEDGING how Yoda has singled him out that he decides to sort of, throw a match. He's gonna make sure when he loses he gets hurt, bad- breaks his arm even. Everybody will have to acknowledge the situation then.

Yoda picks up on the kids intentions, and refuses to play, claiming he's already won. Which is when it finally hits Dooku what the Grand Master has been getting at all this time. He stutters a thank you, and then they have the cute little "When you fall, catch you I will" hug that everyone loves.

I love that moment too, don't get me wrong. I think it's super informative for their relationship. But I have some c o n c e r n s.

Namely that Yoda A) didn't make any attempts to verbalize his intentions and B) didn't stop, or even just TALK to the kid when it became apparent his plan wasn't really working. I feel like Yoda would be like "Work in the end it did! Better than platitudes, experience is!" To which I'd say, "Yea, as long as the harm the experience inflicts doesn't outweigh the lesson!" Yoda seems to think that the lesson of humility is more important than whatever reasons Dooku has for his behavior, or whatever feelings may be driving his actions. When it took WEEKS for Dooku to even start to catch on to the lesson, that should have been a sign that this kid isn't just a little cocky- something is WRONG here. People don't throw themselves against brick walls incessantly when everything is hunky dory in their heads. Yoda isn't just intent on teaching people lessons. He's intent on teaching that lesson his way, even when his way is obviously not working well for the person learning.

Now, my interpretation probably seems harsh. And for that example, it is. But there's context.

I've held off talking about Jedi Lost because the example from that book (play?) Is honestly so extreme it's kinda preposterous. And that book, in my opinion... Is not good. Not because of it's take on Dooku, I just don't think it's very well written. But hey, I'm a Dooku fan, we out here looking for scraps. So here I am.

In Jedi Lost, we're shown the beginning of Dooku and Yoda's apprenticeship. They're made Master and Padawan, and Dooku eagerly arrives at their first training session, ready to learn and do his best.

But... Yoda is just meditating under that one tree we see in TotJ and TCW. And he won't respond to a thing Dooku says.

And he CONTINUES meditating and COMPLETWLY IGNORING HIS PADAWAN FOR AN ENTIRE MONTH.

I can't write about this calmly. It gets me so riled up. Yoda gave his fucking apprentice THE SILENT TREATMENT FOR A WHOLE FUCKING MONTH!!! ?!?!?!

And Dooku is making it very clear that he's not cool with this and he's not handling it well emotionally. He's asking advice from other masters, openly asking Yoda what it is he's doing wrong, and at one point he even lifts like four stone pillars at the same time just to try and prove to Yoda that he's worthy of this apprenticeship. (Which is a neat parallel to him and Savage later but anyway)

And Yoda takes none of this as a red flag that, "Hmmm. Undue emotional distress, I may be subjecting my Padawan to." He just sits/floats there, cool as a cucumber, while Dooku is pulling his hair out wondering if all his worst nightmares have finally come true because he can't perform well enough and he really isn't worthy of praise or affection unless he's being The_Best.jpg.

(SPOILERS IN THIS PARAGRAPH) And keep in mind, in the Jedi Lost continuity Dooku has had multiple encounters with Sith artifacts at this point, and he doesn't just know that his parents called the Jedi to come take him, he's met Count Gora in person, and watched while Yoda got chewed out for etting this little "freak" ever set foot on Serenno again. He's got MAJOR daddy issues, and Yoda knows damn well how much it's gotten to the kid. He just thinks that ignoring it is the best way to fist it.

And Yoda decides it would be a good idea to fucking hit this kid with the SILENT TREATMENT for a MONTH. "Exacerbate his underlying self worth issues, I am sure this will not!" Like DAMN Yoda! Abusers do this shit on the regular SPECIFICALLY to fuck with their victims emotions. It's textbook TERRIBLE RELATIONSHIP ADVICE. If you wanna make someone resent you the silent treatment is one of THE fastest ways to do it.

So anyway, yea, I have not been okay since I read that passage, I just cannot get over it. And I haven't even touched on the way Yoda recklessly endangers Padawans in Dark Rendezvous, or any of the shit that happens later in Jedi Lost.

I also have some qualms with the way Yoda approaches his confrontation with Dooku in Dark Rendezvous. Without spoiling too much, I'll just say that I don't get the impression Yoda came into their encounter wanting to learn something about the other man. The charitable interpretation would be that he already does know his former student's mind, but the more I reread it and think on it the more I'm convinced that he just isn't interested in knowing the man Dooku has become. He showed up to save his Padawan, but that person doesn't exist anymore, and he would rather kill the man who stands before him than try to understand how the Padawan became the Sith Lord. I think that reading is supported by the text too, by some lines near the end of the book about how a mother was waiting for a baby to come home, but the baby just didn't exist anymore.

This really got away from me, but the Dooku brain rot has been strong with me lately, and it feels good to give voice to the many, many thoughts. So many thoughts.

TL;DR Yoda is very, very set on doing things Yoda's way. Even when Yoda way seems to be hurting more than it's helping. This is definitely a big factor in the generational trauma affecting the Disaster Lineage.

The fact that the disaster lineage produces multiple sith lords multiple hermits and multiple people who left the faith is kind of terrible and funny.

I think maybe we should blame Yoda. Like it was just generational fuckery so like it's Yoda's doing for reals. I mean thinking down the line there were a lot of mistakes made.

Like I love these stupid little space wizards but I think we should blame Yoda tbh

[charmwasjess]

Legends vibes continue: young Dooku and Yoda flashback in Yoda: Dark Rendezvous by Sean Stewart aka my everything

[jewishcissiekj]

love this book

[incorrectstarwarslegendsquotes]

Count Dooku: You're violent. Yoda: Yes, but so short I am that it's adorable.

[xplore-the-unknwn]

"Eight hundred years has Yoda survived, through dangers you could not dream"

"I know how to kill!"

"Yes, but Yoda knows how to live!'

"Yoda a darkness carries with him," the Master said,

"...and Dooku bears a light. After all these years! Across all these oceans of space! All these bodies you have tried to heap between us-

and yet call to me still, this little Dooku does."

"Your new Master calls. Dooku ask yourself: Which of us loves you better?"

-Yoda: Dark Rendezvous by Sean Stewart

Part 1

Review:

I just love how the book emphasizes their relationship! Yoda and Dooku mirror Obi Wan and Anakin's tragedy.

Yoda's "When you fall, catch you I will" "Dooku, which of us loves you better" is as tragic as

Obi Wan’s “You were my brother Anakin I loved you.”

Now I get how sometimes, Yoda is cautious with Anakin, because it reminds him of his mistakes and of how he lost his padawan, his little Dooku.

It’s like poetry it rhymes.

BONUS

I think I found my favorite line in the entire book. lol! 😂😂

[dapurinthos]

[vaguely-concerned]

evidence that campaign star wars will just make a home for itself deep in your neurons forever: I saw the planet of phindar come up in a book written in 2004 and my very first thought was 'aw hell yeah nice campaign star wars (2014-2018) BHIKKE arc reference! :D'