#but also putting Obi-Wan mentions in there could be even more Evil and Painful so. i guess we will just have to wait and see!!!!!!!!

[legobenkenobi]

if Obi-Wan isn’t at least hinted at im going to go HAYWIRE

because this look? this isn’t the look of a man who simply disagrees with the Jedi being traitors

this is the face of a man who lost someone to the statement of the Jedi being traitors. that is the face of a man mourning someone close to him. that is a look of remorse. the guilt there is intimate and personal, not just because of the Jedi in general.

At this point, I don’t know which is worse. Obi Wan being mentioned in Cody’s episodes in TBB S2 or Obi Wan not being mentioned in Cody’s episodes in TBB S2.

Both are upsetting but for very very different reasons.

[jedi-enthusiast]

Debunking the "The Jedi Are Evil" Theory Made by The Film Theorists PT 2

Point 2 - That Luke was Right in the Sequels

In the Sequels, Luke says this:

"Now that they're extinct, the Jedi are romanticized, deified...but if you strip away the myth and look at their deeds, the legacy of the Jedi is failure, hypocrisy, hubris."

And, after bringing this quote up, Matthew says this:

"While this kind of tea spill coming from Luke was considered pretty sacrilegious, both by other characters as well as the audience, I think that Luke has a point if you examine the movies with a little more scrutiny. His criticisms aren't exactly unfounded."

Now, first of all, what Luke is saying here cannot be trusted as "fact" or anything to go off of, mainly because of two reasons.

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1. He's trying to convince Rey not to be a Jedi or, at the very least, to not make him train her (which is pretty much the same thing), and at this point in time he pretty clearly hates himself and blames himself for the state of the galaxy. He's been stewing in his rocky hideaway for who knows how long, with nothing but the ocean and his own self-loathing to keep him company.

He's saying this here so that Rey will give up and not make him train her, because he's scared of making the same mistakes he did with Kylo Ren and fucking up the galaxy even more (we see a similar thing with Obi-Wan in the Kenobi show, where he refuses to save Leia at first because he's scared of not being able to save her--like he wasn't able to "save" Anakin).

And the traits, the "legacy," he's assigning the Jedi...isn't actually the legacy of the Jedi. It's him assigning what he believes to be his own legacy to the Jedi as a whole, because it's easier for him to deal with his own failure that way.

and 2. Luke is framed as being wrong for saying this. None of the other characters agree with him, eventually he does end up training Rey, and eventually he lets go of his pain and fair and grief and "becomes a Jedi again" and faces his "legacy of failure"--Kylo Ren.

It's obvious that the movies are clearly making him out to be wrong when he says those things, you don't need to have a neon sign posted above his head that says "WRONG" in order to see it. So taking his words at face-value is just trying to take a bad-faith reading of the Jedi--rather than the "objective scrutiny" that Matthew is purportedly putting the Jedi up to in this theory.

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I would also like to argue that Luke's only real knowledge of the Prequel Era Jedi and their actions/beliefs/traditions/etc. is...lacking, to say the least.

The Empire literally destroyed and desecrated every Jedi Temple that they could find, they wiped out all the information they could about the Jedi, and then spread anti-Jedi propaganda through the galaxy for years. Not to mention that, by this point, pretty much every Prequel Era Jedi is dead.

There's no one around to really tell Luke about the Jedi's actions or culture and what little information he might've been able to dig up probably wouldn't have amounted to much. So, when Luke says this, it can only really be taken as a commentary on the Post-Prequel Era Jedi, because he doesn't know enough about the Prequel Era Jedi to make any criticisms.

---

Matthew then says:

"There are certainly examples of the Jedi doing some pretty unsportsmanlike things to innocent victims throughout the old movies, like manipulating-" [plays a video cut of Obi-Wan in ANH, mind-tricking the stormtroopers into thinking that R2 and 3PO "aren't the droids they're looking for"]

This example is pretty easy to debunk, because Matthew leaves out the context.

Obi-Wan has to do this.

Because let's look at what would probably happen if he didn't:

1. He and Luke would be arrested and turned in to the Empire, probably Vader, and Vader would immediately recognize Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan would get murdered.

2. Vader would realize Luke was his son and probably try to indoctrinate him into an Imperial way of thinking, and Palpatine/Vader would probably have Luke "trained" (read: tortured) into becoming an Inquisitor.

and 3. The droids would probably either be memory wiped or destroyed, therefore destroying the plans for the Death Star that the Rebellion needed to destroy it--and the Death Star wouldn't be able to be destroyed, more planets and people would probably be killed.

Aside from the thing with the Death Star plans, Obi-Wan probably knows that that's what's gonna happen--and, if the Empire is looking for the droids, then it's pretty obvious that the droids are important to the Rebellion. So it wouldn't be a stretch to say that Obi-Wan probably understands that the Rebellion would be hurt by their loss.

Not to mention that stormtroopers aren't "innocent victims."

They actively sign up to work for the Empire and take part in the oppression of countless peoples and worlds. And It's not like Obi-Wan pulled aside a random stormtrooper just so he could mind-fuck him, they were approached by the troopers first and he reacted defensively. He didn't even make them do anything bad, he just told them "these aren't the droids you're looking for" and had them go on their way.

---

Matthew's quote, continued:

"-stealing spaceships and crashing them-" [cut to a video clip of Obi-Wan and Anakin in RotS, crashing the Separatist vessel they escaped on after rescuing the Chancellor]

Once again, this is pretty easy to debunk because, again, Matthew leaves out the context.

The Separatists literally kidnapped the Chancellor of the Republic and the Jedi had to rescue him. They had to steal the ship to escape or be captured, and likely executed, by the Separatists--therefore allowing the Separatists (who are literally enslaving and oppressing countless other systems and run by a fucking fascist dictator) to win the war and take over the rest of the galaxy.

Once again, the Jedi were acting defensively.

And I feel like, all things considered, the Jedi stealing that Separatist ship, to escape from a situation the Separatists caused, in order to keep the galaxy from falling into the hands of an oppressive dictatorship and attempt to stay alive...is a pretty damn reasonable decision, don't you think?

And, just for added context, the ship was literally falling apart when they crashed it. They didn't crash it on purpose, it was an emergency landing. If you're gonna say the Jedi are bad for "crashing" the ship, you may as well get mad at every pilot who ever initiated an emergency landing because it's literally the same thing--and if we're putting the Jedi up to "objective scrutiny" then there shouldn't be any double standards.

---

Matthew's quote, continued:

"-or just outright lying about their own powers-" [cut to a video clip of Mace and Yoda talking, where Mace says they should tell the Senate their ability to use the Force is diminished and Yoda saying they shouldn't because it will only multiply their adversaries]

Here the Jedi weren't lying, like...at all.

No one was asking them about their ability to use the Force, so they couldn't be lying. They were withholding information, information that the Senate--as non-Jedi--had no right to know about unless it would actively affect the Republic. Which, again, at this point in time it wouldn't.

But, fine, let's just pretend that the Jedi were lying...

...they were lying for good reason.

Yoda is right here. Even if we ignore the fact that Yoda is a stand-in for GL and what he says is quite literally the canon truth (since he's the creator), the Senate is already pretty at odds with the Jedi, which we see later in AotC when Palpatine and the Senate pretty much strong-arm the Jedi into accepting the role of Generals in the war, despite being told point blank by Mace Windu that they're peace keepers and not soldiers. Do you really think the Senate (read: Palpatine) wouldn't have used this information against the Jedi?

And, are you completely ignoring the fact that Mace is literally saying that they should tell the Senate and Yoda is disagreeing with him?

Obviously Yoda's take on what they should or shouldn't tell the Senate isn't something that the entire Order believes--it's just his opinion on what they should do.

You can't say that "the Jedi are liars" and then play a clip that literally debunks that by having two Jedi disagreeing with each other about whether or not to tell the truth.

[bookish-enneagram]

Anakin Skywalker | Sexual Type Nine | Full Profile

Basic Fear: Of loss and separation; of annihilation

Basic Desire: To maintain their inner stability and peace of mind

Superego Message: "You are good or okay as long as those around you are good or okay."

Focus of Attention: on others, on what is going on in the environment, and on avoiding conflict and achieving harmony.

Passion: Sloth

Anakin lived a life that was entirely for other people. Specifically those close to him; his mother, Obi-Wan, Padme, Chancellor Palpatine, Ashoka, and eventually Luke. Anakin was known for how much he loved and cared for these individuals, and in reality he merged with them and their needs. All Nines need to merge with something on account of their passion, which I will explain. Unlike a Self-Preservation Nine, who merges with physical comforts and routines, or a Social Nine who merges with the group, Anakin merges with specific individuals, like a classic Sexual, or One-to-One Nine.

We will start by acknowledging his greatest fear, and what drove him to the Dark Side; his fear of loss. Anakin had this fear going back to when he was a child. His mother was his whole life and, like any child, it pained him to leave her, telling her he’d come back for her. This sense of loss extended to Obi-Wan, Palpatine, Ashoka, and Padme. We see in the Revenge of the Sith novelization, which I highly recommend, how much he worries about Obi-Wan and Palpatine. With Padme, it’s much more obvious. He was willing to do anything, even monstrous things, to avoid losing her. This was a product of his disintegration to Six.

To start this section out, not all Nines disintegrating to Six will commit mass genocide and kill children. Rather this is a fictional event. However, the causes behind the action are definitely from his disintegration. At the beginning of Revenge of the Sith, he is at Level 4 of type Nine’s Levels of Development. He is accommodating to his friends and the Jedi council and somewhat lacks a will of his own, which we will discuss more later.

When he has the dream about Padme, he starts freaking out and goes into frantic action. The only way he��s okay is if she’s okay. It is unbelievably accurately stated in this excerpt by Don Richard Riso:

“At Level 4, Nines are busy accommodating themselves to the wishes and expectations of others. They put their own agendas on the “back burner” and comply with other people’s demands in order to reduce the possibility of conflicts. When circumstances cause their anxieties to increase, they may well go to Six and engage in lots of “organizational activity.” Like average Sixes, they attempt to stabilize their environment and their relationships in order to make them safer. They may get into intensive periods of work, investing their time and energy in activities they believe will enhance their security, and thus their peace of mind. These actions are guided not by positive intention, however, but by anxiety. They also begin to identify more strongly with protectors, supporters, groups, or ideas that increase their self-confidence and give them a feeling of purpose and direction.”

He works so hard to prevent Padme’s death, so far as joining the Sith, to enhance his security and peace of mind by having the power to keep her alive. It’s all guided by a sense of anxiety fueled by a fear of loss. Now, regarding his self-confidence. I believe what looked like arrogance near the end of the movie was part of his move to Six. He began to identify more with Palpatine and his beliefs and less with the Jedi. This gave him purpose and direction by giving him a sense of justification for all that was being done. As if he was doing the right thing. “The Jedi are evil”, “I’ve brought peace, freedom, justice, and security to my new empire”, and “if you’re not with me, you’re my enemy” are some examples of this self-confidence. You could say he even merged with Darth Vader.

Another extremely important thing to mention which I vaguely mentioned earlier is the Passion of the Nine. The Passion is one of the most important things in finding a person or character’s Enneagram type. For Anakin, the Passion is Sloth. This may seem odd, considering he is a human. But Sloth in this regard is an inattention to self, not the animal. Now, this plays out in various ways depending on the subtype, whether Sexual, Social, or Self-Preservation. For Anakin, a Sexual type, his attention is focused on close relationships, as I said earlier. He completely merges with those close to him and they become his focus of attention, not his own wants or needs. He does seem more willful and assertive than a classic Sexual Nine, but that is due to his Eight wing, which conflicts with the Nine in that it gives Nines with an Eight wing more of an instinctual drive, as stated below:

“Nines with an Eight-wing are more sensual and instinctive than the Nines with a One-wing, and tend to operate more on feelings and hunches. They tend to embody more the easygoing demeanor associated with Nines, but also give the impression of being more “physical,” more grounded. This is one of the most difficult subtypes to understand because the component types are in such diametrical opposition to each other.”

Darth Vader. The typing is exactly the same and I will tell you why. Nothing has changed about him. He just has no one, no purpose. He deteriorates to an extremely unhealthy Nine, specifically Level 9, and it takes him finding out about Luke to bring him back. Some lines from Riso about Level 9 Nines below:

“They disintegrate as persons into the most extreme state of dissociation from who they are. As we have seen, their receptive orientation to life has facilitated their flight from self-awareness. Now, they completely flee from themselves. In most cases, neurotic Nines unconsciously abandon themselves as whole persons, reinvesting consciousness into various fragments of themselves, each of which may represent an aspect of the self which has been repressed and denied and undeveloped. Memories, dreamlike trances, and emotional reactions seem to come and go at random. It is as though the very structure of the personality has come “unglued” or broken apart, and only its constituents remain to interact with the environment. To abandon themselves as persons, retreating into complete dissociation and fragmenting their personalities, is a “solution” of sorts, because then it is not really they who live but someone else through whom they can live. We have seen that average Nines tend to live through the other; now we see that they live through the other-self, the fragments of the self which are little more than the disconnected identifications and relationships with significant others from the Nine’s past. The core self has been so traumatized that it is as though in a dream without a dreamer. This can hardly be called living. Furthermore, because one of the subpersonalities can do harm to other people or to itself, this is neither a safe nor truly adaptive way to live. Moreover, Nines who so feared losing or separating from others have not only psychologically done so, they have also separated from and lost themselves.”

As well as:

“Unhealthy Nines with an Eight-wing are capable of violence with little concern about the consequences of their actions. Aggressions and id impulses are strong in people of this subtype, and when they are emotionally unstable, there is little ego strength left to regulate these forces.”

Basically, Vader lost who he was. It isn’t him, he’s broken and dissociated from his true self; the helpful, caring friend, mentor, and husband. His whole outlook changes when he finds out about Luke. He is given purpose again. He tries to have him join him and have them rule the galaxy as father and son. His last act is saving the son that brought him back to the light, and all of this makes him a pretty damn good character all around.

[reallybadfeeling]

My Obikin Playlist Masterpost

I'm gonna try to explain my reasoning, but you can give each song whatever interpretation you want. Also, use them however you want if any of them inspire you to make something creative.

(PS: Sorry for my ranting on the first song. I'm very passionate about it in particular.) (Tagging @imtryingsstuff because she asked for it. Even though I was already working on this post before she asked. I have way too much free time.)

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❧ Heart + Bones - Roisin O

I've tried to sit down and write this song out Feels like a thousand times But I was always too scare of what I might find But if I keep on blocking this pain out It might be too late To heal my heart somehow Don't wanna open that wound Don't wanna replay that night Don't wanna think about you You are no longer mine Don't wanna write you a love song When I know that love is gone 'Cause if I let myself think of you I might lose my mind It's the heart and bones It's an empty soul The dreams at night that shake me to my core And I can't get up off this floor It's in the bones of me An empty soul in me The dreams at night that shake me to my core I can't get off this floor [...] Don't wanna think about you When you're no longer mine Don't wanna write you a love song When I know this love is gone [...] The dreams at night that shake me to my core I just can't take this hurting anymore [...] Don't wanna think about you You are no longer mine Don't wanna write you a love song When I know this love is gone 'Cause if I let my mind think of you I might lose it all I've tries to sit down and write this song out Feels like a thousand times

A fair warning: each and every break-up song in this playlist is basically me crying at the idea of a very heart broken Obi-Wan post RotS alone on Tatooine. But for this song in particolar I mention the repetitions with the slight differences because in my eyes they are actually HUGE! The more the song goes on, the more Obi-Wan is spiraling! The way it specifically tells that the empty soul is his the second time, like he accepts that despite what Anakin did he still thinks there's a soul there to save, and the idea of not doing so makes his soul feel empty. And the switch from "get up off this floor" to "get off this floor", literally him being so desperate he stops thinking that he wants to get up (and the last time it literally becomes "i just can't take this hurting anymore", because Obi-Wan had to see so many people he loves die, he literally can't take any more breaking of his heart). The first "you are no longer mine" is the realization hitting him, but then it becomes "when you are no longer mine" and that feels like acceptance of that realization (but then later in the song it turns back to "you are no longer mine" like he's so desperate he wants to deny it once again, distance himself from it)! The switch from "that love" from "this love", like the first time he's thinking about how Anakin no longer loves him, but then realizes that no matter how much he still loves Anakin, there is actually nothing he can do about how everything is broken. But most of all the first time it's "if I let myself think of you I might lose my mind", which is Obi-Wan still being rational about things, or at least trying not to let his mind linger on the thought of Anakin; but then at the end it becomes "if I let my mind think of you I might lose it all", because he's already thinking about Anakin and he can't let his mind linger on it, otherwise he would realize how much he lost when he lost Anakin, which is everything. And the ending too, by repeating the start, but now it has a feeling of resignation to it, like at first he was literally scared to let himself linger on his feelings because he knew he would find heart break, but now he's just empty and at the same times he knows he'll feel like that a thousand times more, because he just can't let that hurt go, he can't let his love for Anakin be forgotten. ... I love this song and it shows. I mean, the playlist is literally named after it for a good reason. I swear I'll be less wordy for every other explanation.

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❧ Black Hole - Griff

It seems like things are going really well for you I wish that I could say the same about me too I wish that I could say the same [...] Without a trace You disappeared and took some of me with you, babe Like the way I used to laugh untile my belly ached Well, that's all gone away now And boy, you know I've tried to pray, I've bruised my knees I've tried to bring you back to me I've tried my best to find some kind of peace Don't you see? There's a big black hole where my heart used to be And I've tried my best to fill it up with things I don't need It don't work like that, no, it's not easy To fill this gap that you left in me

So, I see this as a song for an AU, maybe a Modern Au. Something basic like the two of them maybe being neighbors and Obi-Wan maybe being a tutor for Anakin when he was a teen, and Anakin having a huge crush on him. But then Obi-Wan marries and Anakin is heart broken. (Don't worry the idea is also that Obi-Wan gets a divorce and comes back to Anakin, but still, the song fits for the first part of this idea). But feel free to see whatever else you want in it.

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❧ Gone, Gone, Gone - Phillip Phillips

I'll lie, cheat, I'll beg and bride To make you well, to make you well When enemies are at your door I'll carry you away from war [...] Give me reasons to believe That you would do the same for me And I will do it for you, for you Baby, I'm not moving on I'll love you long after you're gone

This is honestly a classic. It would fit with any ship, but that line about lying, cheating, etc... That screams Anakin. Like, literally canon that he would do anything to keep the person he loves with him.

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❧ What You Talking About? - Peter Bjorn and John

You used to be my hero Now you're just another boss [...] Five years as your understudy When I can't understand what you talking about [...] Tell me lies and I will listen Tell the truth and I'll be gone Tell me why I need permission [...] Shining in your shadow How could I sink this low? Our acquaintance has been so-so And I can't understand where my patience's gone

These lyrics just give me very frustrated Anakin as a Padawan trying to navigate his relationship with Obi-Wan. Not very romantic or shippy, but still relevant in my opinion.

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❧ Bruci la città - Irene Grandi

(Let) The city burn down or live in fear (that) within two hours everything will disappear anything else will disappear [...] I can't stop (myself) from screaming That I hold you to my heart To protect you from evil That I wish I could soothe Your pain, your pain [...] (Let) The stars explode (Let) The whole thing explode (Let) Everything other than the two of us die At least for a little bit At least as a mistake [...] I want to get my act together Maybe be better And shield you with my heart From catastrophe and fear

Don't really know why, but this makes me think of a quiet moment in the middle of the Clone Wars, just Anakin and Obi-Wan alone in a tent, hoping to have a moment of peace in each other's arms. (If you want the full lyrics translated let me know, I just picked my favorite parts)

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❧ Atlantis - Seafret

We got here the hard way All those words that we exchange Is it any wonder things get dark? 'Cause it's in my heart, it's in my head I never take back the things I said [...] I can't save us My Atlantis, we fall We've built this town on shaky ground [...] Now all the birds have fled The hurt just leaves me scared Losing everything I've ever known It's all become too much Maybe I'm not built for love If I knew that I could reach you, I would go

SO MUCH OBI-WAN ANGST POST-ROTS! Like, the birds that have fled are the Jedi that survived Order 66, the things impossible to take back a reference to the entire conversation between Anakin and Obi-Wan during their duel... And the one thing that always breaks me: "maybe I'm not built for love", which makes me think about that "infinte sadness" thing that comes from one of the novels. *chef kiss*

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❧ No Time To Die - Billie Eilish

I should have known I'd leave alone Just goes to show That the blood you bleed is just the blood you owe We were a pair [...] You were my life, but like is far away from fair Was I stupid to love you? Was I reckless to help? Was it obvious to everybody else? That I'd fallen for a lie You were never on my side [...] I let it burn You're no longer my concern Faces from my past return Another lesson yet to learn

Don't know about you, but this always makes me think of a lonely and bitter Obi-Wan after RotS. There's also another way of reading this honestly. This could absolutely be Anakin spiraling at the end of RotS, convinced that Padmé doesn't love him anymore; and then Vader facing Luke (the face from the past returning) and realizing the one who always lied to him was Palpatine.

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❧ White Flag - Dido

I know I left too much mess and Destruction to come back again And I caused nothing but trouble I understand if you can't talk to me again And if you live by the rules of "it's over" Then I'm sure that that makes sense But I will go down with this ship And I won't put my hands up and surrender There will be no white flag above my door I'm in love and always will be And when we meet Which I'm sure we will All that was there Will be there still I'll let it pass And hold my tongue And you will think That I've moved on

There's no doubt that this song has been overused. And it is a very classic meme, so sometimes it's hard to take it seriously. But I still love it. And I can't help but relate this to something with Vader trying to redeem himself but failing at that too, and his and Obi-Wan's relationship still being broken as fuck.

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❧ Fight the End - The playground

When it's all falling apart I'll be the one who can hold you Console you When everything's getting dark And you can't find the spark To get through I'll fight for you till the end Whatever's broken I'll mend For you If you think it's all gone Just breathe in and hold on Till the end of time

Once again, just some H/C during the Clone Wars kind vibes, but also good for an apocalypse AU of some kind.

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❧ Hanging On A Lie - Striking Matches

I'm not mentioning a specific part of this song, because the entire thing in my head is just the whole journey of Anakin turning to the Dark Side and then turning back to the Light right before he died. Seriously, up until the first chorus, it's just Anakin talking about what he feels like about Padmé's supposed betrayal. ("Baby you've been up to something / don't you tell me it's not what it looks like" but also "I might have been naive but I'm not blind" and "Don't you know you should know better than this / Than to cover up the truth with your poisonous lips/I'm not falling for it this time"). The second half of the song is Vader facing Luke. ("I'll be the one who got away from you when you / finally figure it out / you won't find me"). And the last part is Vader realizing all the lies Palpatine told him all alon. ("I'm not fallin' for it this time/try and try too little too late" and again the "you should know better than this/than to cover up the truth with you poisonous lips") A bit of a weird interpretation, that's for sure. But look at me making a song about cheating all about Anakin's journey!

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❧ Bloodsport '15 - Raleigh Ritchie

Your love is worth it and for that I will wait And though you hate me when you have a turn I drive you crazy, but you always return [...] Although you love me, sometimes we're mean Things can get ugly, but we're still a team We are an army that breaks from withing but That's why we're stronger and that's how we'll win [...] I've got your back, and though it's stacked against us I've got your hand, it's us against consensus And I will burn the people who hurt you the worst and I will no learn Cause I am too young and too dumb to consider the terms of breaking the law And I'll curse the day that they return With a smile on my face as their heads hit the floor And they're done, now it's curtains, the bloodlust's a clusterfuck, it hurts but it's working And even if you ask me to stop, it's too late because I've already decided their fate It's not a distaste, it's pure hate and it pulsates and it works its way around my brain Anyway, what I'm trying to say is I'll protect you till the day I meet my maker So don't fight me now cause you might need me later Loving you is a bloodsport Fighting in a love war It's not what I'm in love for, I'm yours I don't know if you can help it, maybe I'm just being selfish

Soooo, basically Anakin doing to Obi-Wan what he did to Padmé: loving him so much he thinks he has to turn to the Dark Side to save him. The first part I can almost imagine said by Obi-Wan, actually. Like, he's aware that sometimes Anakin hates their dynamics, but also that they are both in love... Which just ends with total madness.

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❧ Sweet Love of Mine - Joy Williams

I was broken, I was blind Lost in a moment I thought I left behind Then you woke up this dark soul of mine Carrying a light I thought I'd never find When you found me, I was all alone The whole world around me, but nowhere to call home I heard your voice sing like heaven's choir Gathered up my fears and threw them in the fire

I'm well aware this song is about pregnancy and how the singer found herself in the experience of becoming a mother. BUT, hear me out: what about an AU with either one of them being a Sith and the other one is still a Jedi. Instead of fighting each other, the Jedi tries to save the Sith, because they realize that the Sith actually never had a chance to be anything else since they grew up with a Sith as their "parent" and Master. But if we still want to keep the pregnancy element, fuck it! It's perfect for an Omegaverse AU, with Anakin maybe about to fall when he finds out he's pregnant and that is how Obi-Wan and their unborn child save Anakin. (Is this very specific? Yes. Do I care? Nope, and that's why this song made it into the playlist.)

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❧ Senza fare sul serio - Malika Ayane

There's a post on my blog already about why this song makes me think about the Jedi Order in general. I know I should probably keep it in a different playlist. Alas, it's still here. Have a link to my previous post if you are interested on reading a complete translation and the explanation of my reasoning. HERE!

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❧ Conversations in the Dark - John Legend

I will never try to change you, change you I will always want the same you, same you Swear on everything I pray to That I won't break your heart I'll be there when you get lonely, lonely Keep the secrets that you told me, told me And your love is all you owe me And I won't break your heart [...] And we, we got places we both gotta be But there ain't nothing I would rather do Then blow off all my plans for you

It's just such a lovely love song, I couldn't help myself. This seriously gives me sappy Obi-Wan vibes in any way, shape or form.

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❧ If You Ever Leave, I'm Coming With You - The Wombats

You know I'll do Whatever you want me to [...] Take you out of this You reluctant optimist And if you ever leave, I'm coming with you Stuck to the gum that's stuck on your shoe If you ever leave, I'm coming with you [...] Am I losing you in the dark baby? No more breaking stuff No more acting up Filling your head with doubt

A song about the obsessive kind of love that hints of a way too dependent relationship? Something that mentions losing themselves in the dark? Of fucking course I relate this to Anakin and the way he loves people!

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❧ Transplant - Sea Girls

You're breaking all the promises tonight I'm always dancing by myself as the music plays I'm always one step behind, off-beat, out of place Now I'm looking for you, you're looking away [...] Your heart changed Mine stayed the same I don't recognize your voice when you're saying my name Your heart changed And mine beats the same way [...] Wish I could be back in the moment We were shining, we were making mistakes 'Til your heart changed Mine stayed the same

Have I mentioned that I have a lot of RotS feels? Yeah, so, in my head the "dancing" works like an analogy to fighting and the "music" is literally the sound of battle. Which is why this fits perfectly as far as I'm concerned. An even the "always one step behind" part is just Obi-Wan not realizing Anakin was slowly turning to the Dark Side. But it can be related also to how Anakin basically felt like he didn't truly belong with the Jedi.

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❧ Read my Mind - JONES

Can't control my thoughts But I'm trying every day [...] But sometimes I want impossible things When you hear my voice, what does it say? Need a language, we're lost in translation From impossible thoughts and feelings Why don't you know before I know? What I need to say, before I can How come you don't have the answer Before I asked you the question? Wish you could read my mind [...] It's been a long time since we've been together In the same world, just want you to look at me Like I was everything you ever wanted again [...] Just hold me like I'm everything you wanted again

A good song of the two people pining will always make me think of those two dorks. And their feeling are definitely lost in translation even in canon, with Anakin never realizing how much Obi-Wan actually cares for him because of Palpatine's manipulations.

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❧ So Much It Hurts - Niki & The Dove

Oh, I ask you where you've been 'Cause you always come home late nowadays What a fool was I to think we were safe From the thieves in the temple [...] Oh, won't you bring it back? After all that we've been through together Is it now you gonna throw it all away? Oh, a love like ours Tell me, was it worth it? Oh, the thieves in the temple Oh, but you said that For better for worse You would always be there for me Always be there for me Always be there for me like I'll always be there for you Good times and bad times

So this screams Padmé being cheated on. Like, Anakin still married to her, yet he is always sneaking away after they spend time together to be in the Temple with Obi-Wan. Like, Obi-Wan is literally the thief in the Temple that steals Anakin away from her. (Which I'm sure is actually a metaphor for how the couples' marriage is the temple and someone is disrespecting it by taking away the other's lover. But look at me making this literal, 'cause why not!).

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❧ Power & Control - Marina

Give a little, get a lot That's just how you are with love [...] Think you're funny, think you're smart Think you're gonna break my heart Think you're funny, think you're smart Yeah, you may be good looking But you're not a piece of art [...] Power and control I'm gonna make you fall I'm gonna make you fall We give and take a little more 'Cause all my life I've been controlled You can't have peace without a war

Another song for an AU, this time one with both of them being Sith, most likely being enemies too at first. Before they decide to work together against Anakin's Master.

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❧ No Hero - Elisa

Don't you shut your eyes And hide you heart behind a shadow 'Cause you can count on me As long as I can breathe [...] I've fallen from grace Yeah, I'm much less a saint than a sinner Oh, no I ain't no superhuman 'Cause that's just in the movies, I know But I'll carry you throught the night Through the storm Give you love, always love in return I can't jump over buildings I'm no hero But love can do miracles I can't outrun a bullet 'Cause I'm no hero But I would take one for you [...] 'Cause I'm no hero But I'd spill my blood for you If you need me to I'll be there

Another song from an Italian artist, but this one is in English! And I totally see this song for a scenario where one of the two isn't a Jedi or even for a Modern AU. But it can totally work for Canon compliant too because Anakin is the one every calls hero with no fear. It fits then if Obi-Wan tells Anakin that he doesn't feel like a hero, but he would do anything for Anakin.

☙ ✤ ❧ ☙ ✤ ❧ ☙ ✤ ❧ ☙ ✤ ❧ ☙ ✤ ❧ ☙ ✤ ❧

SOOOO, this post is getting way to long (like, it was way too long even just with the first song). And I made it to an even 20 songs. I feel like this a nice place to stop for now. Don't worry, these are just the first 20. I have more in my private playlist, but I want to make another post like this when I add them to the public one. Because I can. And that's what I'm gonna do.

[jasontoddiefor]

What are the councils reaction to medical trauma time travel au anakin. Bcs like holy shit. The prophecy kid is fine one moment and then there's silence for three months, and then turns out the prophecy kid lived through a future where the sith won and he got tortured for two decades. Sure, vader completed the prophecy by killing sidious and then dying, but at what cost? Also the sith lord is the goddamn chancellor.

In the wise words of this new chapter from Mace’s POV: Read on AO3!

Mace’s day had gone from bad to worse with an hour of Kenobi-Skywalker-Tano being in vicinity. The trio truly managed to always bring chaos and destruction with them, no matter how polite Obi-Wan smiled or Skywalker managed to distract from it by pointing towards the bigger evil. They had been granted shore leave – and wasn’t it bitter to think of such when they were not supposed to be warriors? – for a week to sort out whatever terrifying discovery they had made, but Mace was beginning to think that it would take longer than that.

Skywalker’s breakdown this morning had been painful. Mace was especially sensitive to emotions running rampant. It was one of the reasons why standing next to the supernova that was Skywalker could be distracting at times. He still had a headache and didn’t want to know what the aftermath would have looked like if Obi-Wan hadn’t been there, pulling risky mind healing techniques he had not been educated in, to keep Skywalker’s shock from putting half the temple to their knees.

It had certainly left its marks on Obi-Wan. While Skywalker was sleeping soundly in the presence of his Padawan, his clone medic and Vokara, Obi-Wan stood in front of the Council, exhaustion running deep.

“Obi-Wan,” Mace started, foregoing all formalities. “What happened to Skywalker? Your reports stated he wasn’t fit for actually standing on the battlefield and providing any kind of back up that isn’t handing out orders, but not this.”

Obi-Wan was struggling to keep his expression neutral, but in the end, his tiredness won out as he sank back into his chair. “I am aware. We miscalculated and didn’t expect him to have such an adverse reaction to being back.”

“You are not making a lot of sense,” Plo Koon spoke up.

“I know, I apologize. We were not planning to start our briefing by talking about Anakin’s condition. He didn’t want to mention it at all, but his medic, Kix, persuaded him. It was not supposed to overshadow other details and I don’t actually know all the details as it falls under doctor-patient-confidentiality.”

Obi-Wan paused and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t think Anakin wants me to know anything beyond what I need to keep him in check.”

He sounded as if he were quoting, taking words Skywalker had bestowed upon him.

Mace could feel coldness rest upon his bones, fear attempt to take a hold of him. Whatever discovery they had made, it must be gruesome that it could break Skywalker so and still have him consider his own tattered mind an afterthought to be dealt with at a later date. He couldn’t even imagine anything that would require keeping Skywalker in-check. He was reckless at times, brash, and his control could be better, but he was an excellent Jedi. Anakin wanted to protect people and his trust, while hard-earned, was easily given.

So what had caused a Knight of his caliber to be in such pain?

“Obi-Wan, what can you tell us?” Shaak Ti asked, her tone reminiscent more of a Master’s talking to their worried Padawan.

“We know the identity of the Sith Lord.”

Obi-Wan’s words cut through the air like a sharp blade. For a moment Mace thought he had misheard him, that they couldn’t have just stumbled upon such critical information.

“Sure you are?” Yoda asked, the kind of seriousness you gained only after centuries lingering in his voice.

In moments like these, it was easy to see the strength that upheld the grandmaster of the Order, the fierce protectiveness that guarded them even in times like these and grieved deeply for every life lost when they couldn’t afford to stop on the battlefield.

Obi-Wan let out a bitter laugh, the trembling of his shoulders much closer to the body language of a grieving man on the verge of tears.

“Anakin remembers close to twenty years of torture under Darth Sidious and all his claims make sense. It’s all so clear to me now, we were so blind to all his schemes, waking into a trap.”

“Twenty-years?”

“A vision,” Obi-Wan elaborated, then hesitantly. “Or something similar enough to it. He seems to think of it as time travel.”

“Impossible.”

“That’s what I thought as well, but do you know what else could explain it? He just collapsed in the aftermath of a clean-up and when he woke, he didn’t feel like Anakin anymore. Not the way I knew him to, there was just so much suffering.”

What Mace would remember, even years down the line, was the haunted look on Obi-Wan’s face. For a man who had lost his Master to the first Sith in centuries, slew it and then continued on raising a Padawan and leading a war to show such open horror was downright frightening.

“We need to talk to him right now,” Oppo Rancisis voiced what they all thought. If Skywalker had such critical information, they needed it. They had to end this war as quickly as possible and yet-

“No,” Mace said. All eyes turned to him. None of them were displeased by it, most looked thankful. The war had made it so that they needed to hold back as to avoid giving the Senate, or the Chancellor as it were, even more reason to put the Jedi under direct control. They had to compromise their values, raise an entire generation during wartime all while fighting endless battles without being able to protest against it. Here, in their home at least, they could still execute some measure of control. “Skywalker is hurting and we have not yet fallen so far that we unconditionally sacrifice the wellbeing of our own. Obi-Wan, how much has Skywalker revealed to you?”

From the way Obi-Wan sighed in frustration, Mace suspected that it wasn’t much.

“Only a fraction of what he knows I suspect. He told me of a few critical battles and Separatist strongholds. Mostly, his thoughts have been occupied attempting to figure how quickly he can kill Sidious without the Republic descending into chaos as a result.”

For the months Skywalker had been at least partially out of commission, though Mace wondered how he had been planning any battles at all given this morning’s episode, the 501st and 212th, when not demanded elsewhere, had chosen their destinations rather liberally. Mace had suspected that they had an informant, a man on the inside, as more and more of their campaigns had been successful. The possibility of Skywalker having had a vision of such a magnitude was still unbelievable, but it was entering the realm of possible.

“Why would it descend into chaos?” Shaak asked.

“Because Darth Sidious currently holds all the power,” Obi-Wan spat out, control receding completely and the fiery anger he had been known for as an Initiate showing itself. “He’s the Chancellor. Sheev Palpatine is the Sith Lord and if we don’t take him out soon, he will burn the Republic to the ground to build his Empire.”

And the world cracked, revealing shatterpoints of stunning clarity.

[likeholymary]

— one with the force

the phantom menace ii: 4.6k words

AU: What if the Clone Wars never happened, but instead Darth Sidious cast aside the Rule of Two, forging a new way for the Sith and began amassing an army of Sith warriors to overthrow the Jedi and the Republic?

A/N: (not my gif) (excerpt below is from The Clone Wars: Wild Space by Karen Miller, slightly altered to fit the story). hello beautiful friends! the beautiful gif credit goes to @pixelahsoka. this chapter has a LOT of content so just keep that in mind! also, kind of cheesy ending but whatever, hehe. also, yes, to confirm, obi-wan and rhea are a force dyad. however, it will (hopefully) be better than the sequels, bc i felt like it just came out of nowhere. their romance will be a slow-burn to them actually accepting it, with them still being at least semi-romantical along the way, so look forward to that! this chapter is filled with a lot of fluff, and a very angsty ending. this is the last chapter set during the phantom menace, so the next chapter will be set during attack of the clones, where most of the AU aspect will begin to pick up! comment below or send me an ask if you would like to join the taglist and be notified about the upcoming chapters! again, i am so grateful that you are even reading this, and if you feel compelled to do so, please reblog this post so your mutuals can read it as well! i love you all:) masterlist

mentions: death, blood, fighting, MAJOR angst, force connection, sadness.

The Master and Apprentice began their departure from the Jedi Temple on their Naboo, and Obi-Wan did not think it wise. 

Not after the Dathomirian man had appeared on that Maker-forsaken dustball with a red lightsaber, which only meant one thing – the Sith had returned.

He breathed in the pale glow of the planet’s moon, not taking time to look up and watch the stars glitter above, instead making short strides behind Qui-Gon, the shadow of the Naboo ship creeping its way across to cover them in more darkness, further darkening Obi-Wan’s mood and attitude towards the continuation of this ill-fated mission. 

Having just left the council’s chambers, he felt immense frustration, not only at the council, but at his Master as well. Not only was he ready to face the Jedi Trials which the council seemed to be denying him the right to, now his Master was all too eager to take on the latest lifeform they had picked up on their Naboo adventures, a boy believed to be the Chosen One by his Master.  

Not only was the boy too old, but Obi-Wan could sense it just as the council had – a great fear was buried deep within this Anakin Skywalker. A fear that was all consuming, and was growing slowly within him since they had left Tatooine and the boy’s mother behind.

Why could his master not sense it as he and the council did? Did he just assume ignorance for the possibilities to witness the forthcoming of a prophecy? He never understood his Master’s obsession with the old Jedi prophecies. It was an area of interest he sorely lacked, something that he felt put a strain on his relationship with Qui-Gon, something he realized that Qui-Gon probably wished Obi-Wan was intrigued by, but both of them knew that their Master-Apprentice relationship would never be like that of Dooku and Qui-Gon. 

Rhea, however, had been Dooku’s apprentice and shared a similar, if not less, affinity for the supernatural and old ways of the Jedi. Perhaps he could pay her a visit once his mission was completed, or even send her a message over their datapads like they used to before they got increasingly more busy as padawans. 

Surprise began to grow in him when he saw Rhea standing on the platform beside the ship. She had been waiting on him. As Qui-Gon began to speak to Anakin privately, Obi-Wan ran over to her with a small grin on his face. He should have known she would be here, for every time he simply thought of her, it seemed she was always nearby, as if she were watching over him.

“What are you doing here?” He beamed.

Obi-Wan couldn’t help but notice the blush dusting her cheeks, even in the shadow of the ship. 

“I couldn’t just let you leave without saying goodbye, now could I?”

“You said goodbye to me before the council meeting.”

Rhea rolled her eyes, groaning in annoyance before she began to simper quietly, punching him in the shoulder. “Well, yes, but I couldn’t give you this in front of the council, now could I?”  She held out her arms, opening them in anticipation for one of their rare hugs. When they were younglings, it was of course more sociably acceptable for them to embrace, however as the years began to pass and after many scoldings from each of their masters, they hid it away for special occasions or the few moments they would ever share alone, which were few and far between.

Obi-Wan buried his face in her shoulder, breathing in the sort of meadowy scent she always seemed to carry, as if she were the greatest meadow within the galaxy, filled with thousands of flowers constantly doused by the warm air and golden sunshine, only to be damped by a cool spring rain. She was a wonder, in his eyes.

Rhea’s arms wrapped around his neck as he lifted his head so he could carefully place his chin on top of her head, ever so sweetly. She equally breathed him in, sighing as she inhaled the overwhelming musk of rain, leather and perhaps even some old oak and a few of his dusty books. He always did become overly invested in his new findings, nose deep in his studies, but she wouldn’t have it any other way.

The two stood there for but a moment, taking every part of each other in as if it were the last time they would see each other, and to Rhea, she felt like it was.

“Promise.. promise you’ll come back?” Obi-Wan pulled away, simpering down at her with a twinkle in his eyes.

“When have I ever not?”

Rhea scowled for a second, her face quickly softening once more. “Just promise me, you idiot.”

“Fine, I promise you, dearest.”

She rolled her eyes at the nickname, breathing out a short laugh, before launching herself further into his arms, her fingers lacing through his shortly buzzed hair. Now for this, well, she wasn’t sure what Master Windu would have to say if he saw her like this, but she knew that it would be a deep scolding. It seemed so stupidly forbidden for her to just be lacing her fingers through his hair, but she paid no mind to the Jedi Code in the moment. 

Rhea was his dearest, and he her Ben, and yet, the pain of the loss of her Master still fresh on her mind, reminded her why she could not become attached to this overly-complex relationship the two padawans shared. 

It’s time to let go. 

And yet, she couldn’t. And neither could he.

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Obi-Wan Kenobi sat on the Queen’s ship while they flew through hyperspace back to Naboo. It seemed such a foolish idea to be returning to the invaded planet, but he did as he was told just as he always did, and followed the willful lead of his master. They were but a small force, two Jedi, a Queen and a handful of her people. What could they really do? If the Sith really had returned, could they really defeat them as well as an entire army?

The Queen had suggested they call upon the aid of the Gungans, but Obi-Wan questioned if that would work as well. The Gungans seemed to have a deeply seeded hatred for the people of Naboo, as it was obvious that in the past the former had treated the other like insolent fools. He wasn’t sure that he could disagree after spending so much time around Jar Jar Binks.

A light bit of laughter echoed in his mind, and it sounded like Rhea. He must have just imagined talking to her, Rhea giggling at his comments and avidly agreeing while coming up with her own quippy comment.

Obi-Wan could not help but miss the girl.

Alone in his small room aboard the ship, he tried closing his eyes so as to meditate, folding his hands together as he crossed his legs, breathe in, breathe out.

But she was still there.

Get out of my head.

He thought almost mockingly, knowing that she surely couldn’t be listening to his thoughts from such far a distance.

Why don’t you get out of mine, Ben?

Obi-Wan was shaken. There was absolutely no way-

I’m still here. Could you help me get out? You’re thinking about me too much, and I’m a little offended that you’re annoyed of my presence.

Obi-Wan then snapped his eyes open, and there sitting in front of him was none other than his dearest, greatest life companion, Rhea Illyria, with a smile of a thousand stars.

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Rhea Illyria sat on her bed in her quarters inside the Jedi Temple, breathing in, breathing out, as she performed her daily morning meditation. She knew many other padawans and younglings who hated the act of meditation, but she found it rather peaceful, a time to focus on the energy of the Force, to feel it moving around her and all other life forms.

She, however, became momentarily distracted by the thought of Obi-Wan Kenobi and his departure back to Naboo. She sighed, wishing she could have gone with him. There was something in the Force, something that felt like a warning about the planet of Naboo, and those who invaded. No, not the invaders... The ones controlling the invaders, pulling the strings. Who were they? The Sith? Or was it something... something much greater and evil in all forms and aspects?

Rhea worried for Obi-Wan and his mission, and she couldn’t help the thoughts consuming her not only of the danger of his mission, but of the padawan and their untold and unseen embrace. 

However, there was a nagging feeling in her gut. The Force pulling her towards something... No, someone.

She could just reach out, and suddenly her eyes were meet with the galaxy, planets dancing by as the stars glimmered all around her. She was walking among them, slowly, as if moving through the tides of the deepest oceans.

Breathe in, breathe out. What is the Force pushing you towards?

Rhea could see something ahead, a silver shape slowly getting closer as she continued to wade her way through stars and the black dusts of the galaxy.

Someone was thinking intensely. Someone was annoyed.

She couldn’t help but giggle at the notion of the Gungans being quite unintelligent creatures, or at least Jar Jar Binks, the creature someone was thinking about.

The closer Rhea got to the shape, she noticed it took the form of the ship from Naboo, the ship that carried its queen, the ship that carried him.

Someone was Obi-Wan.

This had to be some dream, she thought. She must have drifted into some sleep while she was meditating. But at the same moment she drifted through space, she breathed in, and could feel the sheets of her bed curl around her fingers, sense the starflower in the corner of her window, could smell the caf she so desperately needed each day after her meditations.

Despite trying to refocus on her true surroundings, Rhea became lost in the stars once more when something pushed back against her.

Get out of my head.

Rhea huffed, and began to more faster, willing the stars around her to move, to allow her closer access to the ship. She continued to wade and move through slowly, yet determined.

Why don’t you get out of mine, Ben?

She could feel his confusion, and despite her own, she couldn’t help but find some joy in this strange place. How she was able to drift through the stars to the other padawan was certainly not a normal occurrence among the Jedi, nor within the Force.

He couldn’t believe she was there either. He was thinking about her, thinking about how he missed her, which tugged at something within her she had never noticed before.

Her fingers finally grace the cool metal of the ship, however, they moved through its surface, and she was able to pass through, allowing the Force to guide her to her dear friend.

At the same time, he became frustrated by her presence distracting him from his own meditation.

I’m still here. Could you help me get out? You’re thinking about me too much, and I’m a little offended that you’re annoyed of my presence.

She was no longer floating within the ship, and instead now found herself grounded, sitting cross legged across Obi-Wan.

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“Ho-how are you even here? I must be dreaming, there is no way that this could possibly be real. I mean, have you ever read about Jedi being able to communicate with each other over vast distances such as this? This is simply impossible!”  Obi-Wan rambled, tugging at his chin, brow furrowed as his mouth gaped slightly at the sight of Rhea.

She however, rolled her eyes, unamused this time by his consistent desire for the knowledge of just about everything. This had to be under the category he loved the least, and she treasured the most – the supernatural ongoings of the Force.

“Ben!” She finally shouted, smacking him on his forehead to get his attention.

This brought Obi-Wan to attention, but also caused both padawans to touch their forehead and hand respectively.

“How did you do that!” “How did I do that?”

Rhea and Obi-Wan were, to say the least, perplexed and befuddled by the situation before them. Obi-Wan, deciding the best course of action was to hypothesize how this anomaly could have occurred in the Force, decided they should each ask one another questions regarding just how this had happened.

“What were you doing when this,” he motioned between them, “happened?” Rhea bit her bottom lip, furrowing her brow just as he had. “I was meditating. It’s morning back at the Temple, so I was doing my morning meditations...” Obi-Wan’s hand remained on his chin, his forefinger rubbing incessantly across his upper lip. 

“As was I. Continue, please,” he spoke so softly, she almost wondered if he was trying to be quiet so no one would hear them and come looking.

“Well, my meditations were interrupted by thoughts of you.” Obi-Wan paused his menstruations, his eyes darting to meet hers.

“You were thinking about me?” 

“Well, yes–” “Why?” She grew flustered, a growing pain pounding in her chest, sharp and yet harsh. Her hands began to sweat as she started to wring them out like some old tunic on washing day, her eyes swooping to avoid his ever piercing-blue gaze.

“I don’t know, why were you thinking about me!” She retorted.

It was one of the few times Obi-Wan got speechless and she could not help but gleam with pride at catching his tongue. She knew this trait would probably die with age, the older her got the further he became closer to the title of a silver tongued master, however she knew she would look back on this moment and know she had trumped him at his own game.

“I–” However, he never got a singular thought out, as Qui-Gon began to shout Obi-Wan’s name like he were some incessant father trying to find his son after a long game of hide-and-go-seek.

Obi-Wan cursed under his breath, a moment of panic coursing through him, but when he looked back from the door to Rhea, she was gone, and he once again was alone, feeling a strange and overwhelming sense of sadness.

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Rhea tried to continue her day as usual, but her gut instinct inside of her told her that there was something more to her apparent Force projection than it just being that. No... she knew there was something more to this event that had just occurred in not only her life, but Obi-Wan’s. Everything felt like it was going to change.

Unfocused in her training with Mace Windu, he scolded her throughout the day, noting her lack of focus and charging her with consistent complaints about her lack of balance. 

How could she feel balanced? How was she supposed to feel balance after she lacked control over her own capabilities through the Force? How could she feel balance when it had alluded her since the day her Master abandoned her for a life without her as his apprentice? 

How could she feel balance without anyone there to guide her? “The Force, guide you, it will.” 

Rhea nearly ran over Master Yoda who now stood in the Temple’s halls in front of her, smiling just as knowingly as he had every day she could remember. 

“Master Yoda, I didn’t see you there.” “Loud your thoughts are. Many things on your mind, are there not?” 

Rhea could not help but feel guilty and caught. Surely though, Master Yoda could be the one to help her. She had so many questions weighing her down, aching to be asked, and yet she felt ashamed to even think them to herself. Now, it seemed that there were those who were listening. 

“Master, I just feel so lost.”

Yoda hummed, chuckling to himself as if he held all the secrets of the world to himself and would just become amused by the ongoings of the beings around him.

“Come with me, you will.” Yoda motioned for her to follow him, as he guided her toward the meditation room. He sat down on a small chair meant for younglings, and she sat adjacent from him, not really knowing if a meditation session was going to help. After all, it’s what got her into this conundrum.

“Close you eyes. Focus not on your surroundings, but the Force.”

Rhea breathed in, breathed out, closing her eyes as she began to let go of her surroundings, allowing them to fade away. 

“See what is in the Force that troubles you, and tell me what it is.” 

She wasn’t sure if she should reach out again. What if she connected with another Jedi like she had with Obi-Wan? But surely, that would not happen. She had been thinking of him, just as she was now.

Images then began to flow through her mind. A beautiful green planet under siege by the droid armies of the Separatists, a cloaked man with a red lightsaber watching over her as she slept, Dooku the day he left her without even looking behind, her connection with Obi-Wan earlier that morning, him falling...

“I see the droid armies invading Naboo.. A Sith watching over me. Dooku leaving the Jedi Order.... and..”

“More there is?”

“Yes..” Rhea whispered, but she couldn’t focus on the grainy voice of Yoda. She kept reaching out, as if pulling the Force towards her like a rope, trying to yank it so it would release all of its secrets it was holding from her.

And into the Force she fell.

Everything around her was blurry, she couldn’t focus on anything except the strength of the Dark Side coursing before her. It was Obi-Wan. And he had given into all of his anger and hatred, an overwhelming tsunami of darkness coating every inch of him and not it began to creep upon her, splashing her with the emotions flowing out of him.

No, he cannot give into this. She thought, watching as he fell into the pool of darkness waiting to swallow him whole.

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His master was dead. 

Obi-Wan watched as Qui-Gon crumpled to the floor, and he screamed in agony as he was trapped behind the laser shield, hopelessly witnessing the death of his Master.  And he could not help the growing rage and hatred that began to engulf his entire being, becoming greater with each second as he practically jumped, ready for the laser shield to move so he could slaughter this hunter before him, this Sith, this darkness.

His face twitched, his mouth curling downward into a snarl, complete loathe shining in his eyes which now darkened as he turned his gaze upon the Dathomirian. 

The Sith trailed before him like some wild beast waiting for its prey, stalking like some dark creature.

A moment before the laser shields even began to move once again, Obi-Wan ignited his lightsaber, seconds before a red bladed lightsaber was ignited as well. The shields moved, and Obi-Wan raised his saber, going to strike the beast of red and darkness down, going to strike for the kill out of the rage and hatred in his heart.

The darkness was consuming him, but Obi-Wan did not care. How could he care now? His master was dead, and this creature seemed a powerful foe within the Force, something that should be put down for the sake of the Republic and the safety of its citizens.... something that should pay for its crimes against the Jedi, it’s crimes against him.

He blocked every twist and twirl it made with its lightsaber, blocking its attacks by pushing back against it with more fervent and less coordinated attacks. If he could only strike it down... 

Obi-Wan lifted his lightsaber, slashing through the center of its double-bladed saber, cutting the pieces in half as one went out. He flipped over the creature, slashing at his center and sorrowfully missing him by an inch. 

This creature was quick, but he had to be quicker, he had to be. What would his Master say if he failed him? What would Rhea say if he were to fall, just as Qui-Gon had moments ago? He would not dare break a promise to her.

The creature kicked him in the face, but he did not let it affect him, instead holding out his lightsaber in front of him, looking for the best place to strike him down.  As their blades locked, Obi-Wan gritted his teeth as he pushed against the creature, his eyes glaring deeply into those sickly-yellow ones, now pushing down against his blade. Anger filled him, and rage too, however, the Sith lifted its hand, using the Force and propelling him across the room, and into the shaft. Obi-Wan grabbed ahold of a light as he began to fall, holding on for dear life as the Sith once again began to trail above him, stalking like a creature in the night. He watched helplessly as it kicked his lightsaber down into the shaft, the weapon, his life, now falling down just as hopelessly as he felt. 

Obi-Wan had to keep on holding on. He had to get back up there, he had to avenge his Master’s death. 

No.

As the Sith caused sparks to rain down from above onto him, attempting to get him to lose grip and fall, Obi-Wan could hear her speaking to him.

Do not give into the darkness. Do not give into the anger or hate. Rise above.

A second voice this time came.

Trust only in the Force.

Qui-Gon.

Rise above. 

And for a moment, Obi-Wan closed his eyes. Rhea was there, almost floating before him, but he couldn’t see anything around her, only she was in his mind. 

I will stand together with you. Rise above. 

“It occurred to Obi-Wan then, with a clarity that was startling, given the dark side hurricane howling through him, that Yoda was wrong about the dangers of attachment. Or at least that he wasn’t altogether right. It was true that attachment could weaken a Jedi’s resolve. But it could also strengthen it … as he was strengthened now by his love for Qui-Gon, and Rhea. Without them he would have failed long before this moment. And so, leaning on them, he continued to fight.”

And so, Obi-Wan opened his eyes, using the Force to propel him upwards as he jumped, landing behind the Sith and now focusing his energy, not through the Dark Side, but now back through the Force, allowing it to guide him now. Qui-Gon’s fallen lightsaber now flew into his hand as he landed, and with a swift movement of his wrist, Obi-Wan cut through the Dathomirian man, ending the terrors he had caused, as he fell down the shaft, thus causing yet another fall in the rise of the Sith.

For a moment he stood and just breathed, thanking the Force for his strength found in his love for his Master and friend.

Obi-Wan, sensing his Master’s lifeforce still flickering within him, ran to his side, cradling his head as gently as he could, holding onto some form of hope that his Master could still live. 

“It’s... it’s too late.”

“No, no!” 

“Obi-Wan..” Qui-Gon croaked, as best he could, the color draining from his face slowly, marking him with death as his lifeforce continued to flicker, dimming with each passing second. “Promise... promise me you will train the boy.”

“Yes, master..” Obi-Wan wept in response. Qui-Gon raise his hand to wipe his tears, and Obi-Wan rested his cheek lightly against his finger, wishing that this wasn’t the end.

“He is... the Chosen One. He will bring balance. Train him. Help him. You and Rhea must help him....”

Obi-Wan now momentarily forgot his grief, filled with confusion at the mention of his friend. 

“Rhea and I? Master, what do you–”

“There is more to the prophecy than what you know..”

“What, Master, I–”

Qui-Gon hushed him, before uttering his final words. “Train him.” He uttered his final breath, and Obi-Wan, cradling him, felt as if he were destined for some infinite sadness.

╔═━────━▒ ۞ ▒━────━═╗

Rhea supposed Naboo was a truly beautiful planet, one to behold amongst the galaxy, but it seemed so bleak and somber now with the death of Master Qui-Gon Jinn. 

She watched the pyre his body laid upon gather with flames that rose to meet the stars in the sky, the smoke dancing among the small lights glittering above.

Standing beside the young boy from Tatooine who introduced himself as Anakin Skywalker, she listened silently to the loss of sound in the Force that was Qui-Gon’s lifeforce. They all felt it, the small darkness that passed over them at the loss of such a wise Jedi.

Obi-Wan stood on the other side of Anakin, who looking up to him, asked, “What will happen to me now?”

“The council has granted me permission to train you. You will be a Jedi, I promise.”

Rhea still could not believe that Obi-Wan had not only become a Jedi Knight, but had also defeated and killed a Sith lord. How they had come to rise again, was still a mystery, but it caused a shroud of confusion and chaos to flow through the Force.

It was hard for Rhea to muddle through, her mind now more clouded and confused than ever, the events having transpired seeming to all be connected — Dooku leaving the Order, the Chosen One supposedly being found, the Sith returning, her bond with Obi-Wan...

It all seemed too obvious in her mind to not be connected, but Mace Windu continued to tell her to be mindful of her thoughts, even if he didn’t know of her bond with Obi-Wan, he still saw her point of view as a quick jump to conclusions.

As the procession ended and people began to filter out from the area of the funeral pyre, she stayed even as little Anakin left along with the other Jedi, staying by Obi-Wan’s side, just as she had promised.

“You’re still here.”

He said, nonchalantly, not even bothering to turn to face her.

Rhea looked up, turning her gaze to fixate on his face. He looked... tired, almost old, held down not only by exhaustion but by the overwhelming sense of loss and sadness which was now being carried by the duty he felt to honor his masters final wish.

“Just as I said I would always be. Right by your side.”

He sighed, turning to look down upon her, his blue eyes meeting with her darker ones.

“So, you really were there, speaking to me.”

“I suppose I was.”

The two were silent for a moment, simply staring into each other’s eyes as if understanding everything they wished to say. Rhea reached up, cupping his cheek softly as tears began to fall down his face.

She then got up on her tippy toes, being much shorter than him, and placed a slow kiss on his forehead, soft and lovingly and holding every hope she had within her.

Obi-Wan sighed softly, “We can’t tell anyone about this bond. Not until I have figured out what exactly it is.”

“We.”

“What?”

“Not until we have figured out what exactly it is. We’re in this together. I told you this already, but you don’t seem to be getting it through your thick skull. I stand by you. Always.”

[houndin-around]

Volition | Darth Maul

warnings: angst, minor abuse from previous master, minor drug mention, a small tidbit of arousal | Padawan is of age !

author notes: so today turned into a really bad day and so I took my anger out on writing I guess. Hope ya’ll enjoy it! We all need a maul to rescue us from some shit. This is my first time writing for maul so please be nice 🥺 I’m still second-guessing myself on posting this...😅

“(Y/n) go back to your quarters. I’m done dealing with your subpar technique.” your master ordered, whipping your lightsaber toward you.

Falling to your knees, lips quivering you didn’t even dare to look at your master. “I’m sorry master...please. Please forgive me. One more chance?” you begged.

“Absolutely not! You don’t even deserve the rank as my padawan (y/n), and yet here you are before me. Look how pathetic you are, is this how you’ll be on the battlefield when you lose? Get out of my sight.”

Burning hot with shame as you failed his assessment on formation, though it was something you studied to no end, you still managed to screw it up. Tears streamed down your face as you sat in the dirt, his words cutting into you like a vibroblade. You couldn’t fathom how out of all the Jedi in the temple you ended up with Master Feles. As you were growing up, you had hoped to begin your training with Master Plo Koon, Mace Windu, Obi-Wan Kenobi, or even Master Yoda. At least they were kind to you, but it never worked like that no. Feles sensed much strength within you and thus convinced the council to let him train you. But why? He acted as he cared for you but as soon as you slipped up, harsh words were thrown at you and sometimes even his fists. Master Feles was so full of rage, hate, his aura throwing off uncertain vibes within your instincts.

Alas, there wasn’t anything you could do, you’ve been his padawan for many years and put up with his barbarous treatment. It’s not like the other Jedi masters would believe it though, Feles had them wrapped around his finger. The only time they ended up being skeptical of his teachings was when he ended up losing a battle against the separatist droids, blaming it on you for slowing him down. The result was a quick strike from his lightsaber against your back when you turned to check on one of your downed troopers.

Taking a deep breath, you grab your lightsaber that was thrown into the dirt and wipe it off with your robes. Clipping it to your belt, you scan the area quickly before heading toward the corridor leading to the back entrance of the Jedi temple. It would be hard to dodge any Knights or Masters walking the hallways but it was worth it. You needed to leave and clear your mind, to pretend you weren’t even a padawan for just a night. As you approach a long staircase, two knights head in your direction walking in unison. Swiftly you tuck yourself behind a statue attempting to silence your mind so your presence isn’t detected.

Several excruciating moments later, they pass too absorbed in their own discussion about who was to become a Master before the other. Hesitantly you make you way down the stairs scanning the lower level to see if anyone was lingering. It was well past curfew so luckily you didn’t run into anyone else on your journey to the back entrance. Stepping foot outside of the temple without having to carry out a mission or an errand felt so liberating. Heading down the vast staircase that led toward the city of Coruscant, you couldn’t help but launch into a sprint. The freedom lured you out encouraging you to detach from the order you once followed so closely. Pulling your hood over your head to mask your identity somewhat, you saunter the lively streets of Galactic City. No one even bothers to pay you any mind which eased the anxiety that whirled around in your gut.

The only unfortunate part about this planet was there weren’t many places to just sit down and rest. Everyone was always in such a hurry that sitting down to take in the sights around never came to mind to these citizens. Nearing a dark alley, you round the corner finding it empty, where it was less likely for anyone to want to bother you. Sitting on the duracrete sent a shiver up your spine, it was nothing like the plush pillows you knelt on in the temple but it would have to do. Head against the building made of durasteel, you glance up barely able to make out the stars as the lights of Coruscant hid them.

Out of the corner of your eye, were two gentlemen also hooded part taking in some dubious acts. At first, they hadn’t realized you, though once they did they strutted over, grins flustered on their face.

“What’s a pretty face doing out here all by her lonesome?” the one snickered.

“Seems like she needs some protecting, whaddya think Ander?” the second snickered.

“Well, seems like you just witnessed something you weren’t supposed to. Only way out of it is either pay up and buy some death sticks off me, or you come with us. I much rather the second option. We’re both a good amount of fun.” Ander elbowed his friend playfully, eyes narrowing at you as they both erupted into a fit of laughter.

“I didn’t see anything...I-I promise. Please just leave me alone.” you pleaded. Of course, you didn’t want to make a scene and it was against the code to use your power in any type of personal gain. As much as you wanted to detach from the ways of the Jedi you simply couldn’t abandon the belief system that taught you so much.

“See, we can’t take your word for it sweetheart, so you’re going to have to come with us.” the second unnamed counterpart was a Trandoshan, a species you’re familiar with for being quite aggressive.

The Trandoshan had his digits gripped onto your jaw, staring into your eyes as Ander prattled on probably due to the effects of the death sticks.

“Get your kriffing hands off me!” rage engulfed you, causing you to use the force against the two.

Shocked by the sudden revelation, the men couldn’t scurry out fast enough, fearing for their lives. A sigh of relief escaped your lips only to be sucked back in at the sound of another voice.

“It seems like you’re very strong with the force hmm?” his voice was honeyed, though it sent a shudder down your back at the deep sound.

“I guess..not really though,” you mumbled. “I shouldn’t have done what I just did.” guilt beginning to consume you as you just let anger take over.

“And why do you say that? Because you used your gift simply to protect yourself?”

“It’s not the Jedi way…” trailing off you kneel down before the stranger, assuming he was a Master as it was hard to make out his robes due to the lighting but he spoke in a way that suggested so. “You know that…”

A deep chuckle was released, “I am no Jedi. I was trained in the ways of the force yes, but was never a Jedi.”

The rush of fear soon rested inside you as you realized before you was a sith. Was it the one the Jedi have been looking for? The sith lord? “You’re a sith! You’re the one everyone has been looking for!” you hissed.

Walking closer, the faint light showed bits of his face which was red intertwined with black ink, his eyes a honey-like color that was surrounded by a crimson ring. “My darling, you may think I am evil. I am not. I am efficient. I was apprentice to the most powerful being in the galaxy once. I was destined to become so much more. But I was robbed of that destiny by the Jedi, by Obi-Wan Kenobi.” Moving even closer to you, he too knelt down in front of you, inches away from your face eyes locked. “My name is Maul. I no longer have any attachment to the sith. I’m purely on my own.”

Blinking, you try to figure out how Master Kenobi played in this though that wasn’t something that concerned you too much. What did was the fact this stranger and force wielder is mere inches away from your face, intrigued with you. “So what do you want with me…? It’s clear you want something.” you faltered.

“Passing by, I heard your thoughts. The white noise they emitted that distracted me and lured me in out of pure curiosity. Then,” he paused, licking his lips “Then I saw the power you possess deep inside of you. A power only I am able to help you achieve. But I also feel your strong hatred toward something. Perhaps..someone?” a smirk emerged as he noticed you beginning to go wide-eyed

Putting your head down, you realized you needed to silence your thoughts and feelings as they were clearly becoming very loud for any force user to sense them. Suddenly your jaw was grabbed but the touch was oh so tender, so light as he brought your eyes back to his. As horrifying as this experience was, there was something about him that made you question his true intentions. His eyes seemed to be telling the truth even if his words seemed off, but you can see the pain within them.  

At the sight of you, his hearts began to thud, something about you was driving this zabrak insane. Could it be the power? The drive? Or was it something else so unfamiliar to the zabrak that made him almost feral with just the scent of you lingering in his nostrils. Callused fingertips still touching your soft skin, he closed his eyes trying to read you even further and to give you a chance to consider his words.

“I may have some doubts, but that doesn’t mean I want to leave nor join someone like you!” fear creeping into your voice. As much as you hated your master, how could you leave the only home you know, especially with Maul? A stranger you have no knowledge of, except that Master Kenobi had dealt with him at one point.

Pulling away, he turned his head and rose to his feet. “Very well. I won’t force you to make this decision. If you cannot see your true potential and want to continue enduring the mistreatment from your Master, so be it.” his once smooth voice, now harsh, full of rage.

Him knowing what your master has done was enough to make you fall back in surprise. The sincerity in his voice was convincing, but ultimately there wasn’t much to lose. At this point, it felt great to be away from the temple, and the thought of never seeing Feles again was a bonus. Quickly you leap to your feet, reaching out to grab his forearm. Even though you couldn’t see it a grin enveloped his features. Turning around, this time he leaned in closer, forehead brushing against yours, eyes searching yours.

“I-I’ll take your offer. Let me join you..and get me far away from here as possible. Help me discover my inner power you see.” you urged desperately. You were almost breathless with how close he was, but not out of fear this time, no it was something else. Something about him was drawing you in, the way he touched you, the way he looked into your eyes, it all just sent a new sensation into your depths. Even if your body never experienced this before it wanted more, it craved it, judging by Maul’s facial expressions he sensed it too, and he liked it.

“Good…” he trailed off, his grin still present on his face. “I will help you. Help you discover it all and so much more. You will never regret this encounter and joining me by my side. I promise you that.” His pupils were dilated and his breathing was ragged. A gentle hand moving a stray hair off your face, gaze still fixated like a predator stalking its prey.

Whether or not this was a good idea didn’t matter anymore. The Jedi didn’t matter anymore, nor did your attachment to the code itself, what you wanted now was him. The infatuation was too strong to ignore and swallowed you whole, making you it’s victim though you weren’t the only one falling for its trap.

[politicalmamaduck]

Mother of the Rebellion

Padme Amidala survives  Mustafar, and goes on the run with her babies.  With the help of her  four dearest friends, they sow the seeds of rebellion across the galaxy.  Read it on AO3 here.

Chapter: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Padmé felt relief when they arrived at their destination several hours later.

Stewjon’s climate was colder than Naboo, and there were fewer trees and water features, though it did possess wide, flat grassy plains through which creatures that reminded Padmé of the shaak roamed. It was inhabited mostly by humans, in small cities spread across the planet.

It was a peaceful place, far from Coruscant or the Ring of Kafrene’s hustle and bustle. 

It was also Obi-Wan’s homeworld, and thus, the perfect place for them to hide, for Anakin or the Emperor’s other enforcers would never look there. His family was long gone, but memories slowly returned to Obi-Wan like shadows in the corner of his eye. Unlike Anakin, he’d been taken from his family as a little one, and thus had little to regret.

They settled into a quiet, small house on the edge of a town by one of the planet’s few lakes. Obi-Wan was thoughtful in choosing a home near water, both for Padmé’s sake and his own, for he sorely missed easily accessible water while hiding on Tatooine. The calm waters would also serve him well for meditation.

The twins would learn how to swim at a young age, a valuable skill, one valued by both Padmé and Obi-Wan. 

It seemed an ideal place to raise two precocious, Force sensitive children, far from prying eyes, and whatever the Empire planned to do with Force sensitive children across the galaxy. 

Both Padmé and Obi-Wan put that out of mind for the time being, yet kept bags packed under their beds and performed maintenance on the ship nearly every day, just to be certain they could flee at a moment’s notice.

If Padmé awakened in the middle of the night crying nearly as often as her children, Obi-Wan did not mention it. Grief was multi-layered and complex, as he learned from a young age, holding his dead Master in his arms. It was indeed possible to grieve someone who still lived, though twisted and evil beyond recognition, as he had learned recently. As much as he had always been quiet, stoic, a dutiful Jedi pupil, he appreciated and understood the value of emotion, of putting a name and a voice to one’s feelings. Grief was an old friend, one whose appearance in his life he would rather not have occurred so often or so young. 

He grieved Qui-Gon, Satine, and Anakin in very different ways befitting their statuses as Master, lover, Padawan, and learned different lessons from each.

He grieved his many fallen Clone comrades, and the many Jedi, some of whom he had never even met, who fell in one cruel stroke that horrible day some months prior, thanks to the Emperor and his machinations. 

Their deaths impacted him in many different ways, from unexplained chest pains and headaches to tears whose presence he did not mind in Tatooine’s parched atmosphere. 

He thought himself mostly healed in solitude on Tatooine, until presented with a woman to whom grief and melancholy were a stranger, one with a hole in her heart that would never be filled. 

Together they mourned, nodding at each other over their morning tea before the children cried out once more to be fed. 

When their mourning and exile were over, they would rebuild not just their own lives, but an organization devoted to representative democracy and fighting for what remained of the Galactic Republic. As long as a single ray of hope lived on in the galaxy, and Obi-Wan was certain that it did, he would fight to keep that light alive. 

Until then, he helped Padmé find pleasure in the small things, from a beautiful blossom in their garden, to the weekly calls with Sabé that they now shared. It was reassuring to see Padmé smile at her best friend, the sister of her soul. In turn, Sabé’s smiles too brought great joy to his soul, one he could not entirely explain or put a name to, but he appreciated the feeling nonetheless. There was so little in the greater galaxy to give them joy. He would savor what he could, and he hoped Padme would continue to heal and do the same as well.

Despite their perilous situation, it was incredible to watch two small babies grow and develop each day. The ancient Jedi philosophers started debates across the centuries and wrote treatises about the many different types of love, but Obi-Wan found nothing to compare to raising children as if they were one’s own. He knew that his early influence in their lives would make his relationship with them drastically different from that of a typical Master and Padawan. It was a challenge both thrilling and terrifying. He vowed that he would not fail these precious children the way he had their father. 

He knew that Padmé would not be able to handle yet another heartbreak. And so he waited and watched, learning how each liked to be held and soothed to sleep. Leia kept her eyes open more often than Luke, but Luke did not kick as often as his sister. They often fell asleep at opposite ends of their cribs, but drifted towards each other during the night. The twins clearly had a unique bond, one developed in the womb and unlikely to be easily broken. Their feelings would do them credit, as long as one would never be turned against the other.

Padmé and Obi-Wan were both grateful that the twins seemed not to be affected by their grief. Slowly, their downturned faces began to rise like the sun each morning, and they began to smile more often than merely once a week on Sabé’s comms. An ancient proverb stated that time would heal all wounds, and perhaps, for a former Senator and Jedi, it would.         

In addition to mental and emotional healing, they continued to train their bodies physically. Both always boasted toned physiques; lifting small children and their paraphernalia each day lent itself easily to developing a strong upper body, but could also easily cause back and neck strains. Obi Wan taught Padme a variety of stretches and poses akin to a Jedi’s forms, and she gratefully joined him for laps in the lake when the children were sleeping. Though Padme was well trained during her days in public service on Naboo, they also practiced a variety of self-defense techniques and close combat skills. 

It was a simple life, and one they would not take for granted, for it would be time to emerge from their hiding soon enough.

[krawalito]

Reylo and my meta/predictions

So i was watching almost every video i could find on youtube and read almost every meta i could find online regarding reylo, kylo/ben or rey since i joined this fandom.

So first of all this fandom rocks.

And now i make my own meta and predictions for the last episode. While i don’t like to to adore myself with borrowed plumes i like to thank all of the people inspiring me on tumblr and youtube.

So first of all what is SW about? its about family, love, hope, friendship dozed with a little action. SW is not a pure action movie. SW is not a pure drama and its neither a pure comedy. So what to expect when a movie is about family, love, hope and friendship paired with some war and action? Well, there will be loads of love in it. i am not even sure if the so called Antis just refuse to accept that or if they are indeed not able to see it. but enough of them and lets start with my results of the investigation. I call it investigation because the last month really felt like it haha.

So what do i think happens in ep 9?

Definately Relyo. I have absolutely no doubt it will happen which was different when i came here because i was afraid of another jonerys tragedy (no i am not comparing GOT with SW but a ship is a ship and it broke my heart)

I am convinced that the force brought these two together and we all know that the force is strong. Why did the force do it in the first place? Because its out of balance and the chosen one which was assumed to be Anakin failed. Why did Anakin fail? It was his possesive love for Padme and a few other reasons i am not going to mention here though. Love made him weak. We could now argue love makes kylo/ben weak too but its the opossite. And why do i think that? First of all Ben is not Kylo. Ben is Ben he just chose to give himself a different name but deep down its still the same person. Its like in real life when people try to be someone else because the pain is too much to cope with. With Ben though its much more complex which deserves its own meta.

So who makes love stronger and not weaker? Ben Solo.

Who is Ben Solo? First of all he IS the last male skywalker. Thats a fact which has also been confirmed multiple times. No idea why people still questioning that. He is a troubled young men who is strong with the force and falls in love with Rey. Sounds familiar? Look around happens all the time in real life too. And we learned that SW is about Love. People who watched and i mean who really watched all the previous movies will agree with me on that. I mean Anakin and Padme? Han and Leia? Lukes love for his father? Obi Wans love for Anakin? I could go on and on and on...

Coming back to the force and why it brought Rey and Ben together. When the force chose Anakin it failed. why? Because the force did not know that it needs two. The Ying and yang if you will. This is simple physics actually. Put one on a scale and it gets out of balance. Why Ben? Because he has this Skywalker blood which seems to have a certain importance in the Galaxy. Why Rey? Oh i can already hear people screaming because she is a skywalker, too. NOPE. She is not. Why isn’t she? Does it make sense to have two Skywalkers bringing back the balance to the force? NOPEbecause Luke and Darth Vader/Anakin couldnt either. They both failed. but they did not fail REDEMPTION!

Yes, there will be redemption. There has to. You cannot have an inbalanced person bringing balance back to the force. How will he be redeemed? First of all its Ben who needs redemption not Kylo. There is no Kylo. He needs to truly want it. but what will initiate it? LOVE. Love from his family and Rey. I do not really know how this will happen but i expect that Luke and Anakin will play a role in it too. The Skywalker saga would not come to an end if not all of them ending it. so i really really hope we will see them in whatever way possible. Maybe in the world between worlds, who knows.

Who is Rey?

I truly have no idea but what makes the most sense from my perspective is she was created by the force in some way. Ben did not lie to her when he said they were filthy junk traders selling her but i highly doubt they were her real parents. i also think that someone bought her and was trying to hide her for her own protection. From what? from the dark side of course. She would have made a good new apprentice. Who was the person who brought her there? i have no idea. I dont think it was Luke or Han, they would have remembered and since both are dead i would have expected it to be mentioned. Maybe it isnt important enough and we will never learn the truth or it will be a big surprise and it was leia or someone else we do not expect it to be.

I dont think she will ever go dark and i also believe that dark rey is either a vision or it wont even make it to the film. Rey can have dark moments here and there but not to a large extend. She is light, she believes in people, she fights for love and she fights for what is right. that is also the reason why i do not believe she is palpatines granddaughter. There was no indication so far so that would be a total gamechanger and i doubt we have enough time for that plot. What i do believe though is he knows about her and is trying to win her for his side. The novel indicates she heard a voice saying „kill him“ but she refused. I could be wrong though and this is exaclty what happens. i wont like it i am totally honest here but i trust J.J.to make it make sense.

Palpatine alias Darth Sidious. He is pure evil. The latest poster and trailer indicates he is coming back.

but how? I dont think he will be an incarnation or himself but spiritual. His mind is alive but not his body. So what does he want? What he always wanted evil power. He thought Anakin will bring him all this power but we all know how that ended. He sees another chance, another skywalker and another person strong with the force. If he could win the both of them he will gain even more power than expected. I have no idea how this will all playout but i could imagine he promises both something they are longing for. How can he be deveated? With Ben and Rey.

Yes, Ben and Rey will team up.

first of all because they have to. Sencond of all because its their fate and third of all because they love each other. How? He needs redemption first and the rest happens naturally.

I believe his redemption arc will start at the end or middle of the second quarter. Or maybe even later in the movie. In the beginning of the film he will remain dark and he will fight against rey. Not because he truly wants to kill her. He loves her he would never do such thing but because they will fight on opposite sides. I also believe they both try to avoid the force bonding/galaxy skype. They might have dreams or visions or i dont know but they will try to avoid it. Which makes them DESPERATE!Because that is not what the force wants and neither is it really what they want cause they are CONNECTEDand that is why their relationship is VERY VERY COMPLICATED. What would be awesome is if Leia senses it somehow and rey and herself have a great chat about it. i would loooove that. I really hope that happens. She has to tell her that she wants someone to wear her mothers dresses. Gosh if that happens i will die in my seat.

So when will we see a kiss? Or their commitment to each other? When do they finally say it?

i really struggle with this one but i think it wont be so obvious and it wont happen in the last 5 mins either. I was thinking about the „i’ll come back to you i promise sweetheart“ quote a lot recently. I am convinced that Ben will say those words to Rey. I think he will do something dangerous and she will be upset. They wont kiss when he says it but i could imagine he will touch her face while he says those words. It will be breathtaking. and that is the moment when i say „i told you so and so did my 9 year old kid (i dont have one but a child can figure Reylo out). I dont even know if there will be a kiss. I would prefer it but if they make it Pride and Prejedice 2005 like its fine. As long as it is 10000000% clear where this leads to. I also think there will be a child or more. But i also think we will not see them. It will be mentioned i guess. Or it will be a vision. Could be anything. But there will be future Solos/Skywalkers. The reason is simple. Disney did not buy LF to end the Skywalker saga for once and for all. They have to leave this door open to have a chance to make new movies related to it. i am fine with that as long as it wont have anything to do with D&D.

So why do i believe reylo is a thing, canon, endgame and one of the best love stories in years (at least for me)

Because it makes sense and its obvious. Its obvious since the TFA. Why? That!

and that!

„it is you“... yes, she is from your visions/dreams Ben

yes rey, its the voice which sounds so familiar and yes thats your prince right there.

and dont get me started with TLJ

yeah we all know what you guys wanted to do in that elevator

this is pure.. so pure

this is not the end for the two of them...

[lessattitudemorealtitude]

Rules: List ten of your favourite characters in ten diffrent fandoms and then tag ten other victims to do the same!

Why the hell not? I need to procrastinate. I was tagged by @rebelsfromstars. This list actually took me a bit because I don’t actually consume a wide variety of fandoms. I usually chose one then obsess over it for years. I cheated a bit by splitting out the various Star Wars fandoms.

1) Buffy: The Vampire Slayer - Angel/Spike

Angel is my favorite while he’s around, then Spike became my favorite. I love my emotionally conflicted brooding men. Angel continues to be my favorite in his spin-off show. And of course, his and Spike’s relationship in season 5 is to die for.

2) Firefly - Simon Tam

Simon is a beautiful human being who would do anything for his little sister and it warms my heart every time. 

3) Star Trek - Spock

No character in any of the Star Trek series/movies has ever overcome my love for Spock. When I watched Wrath of Khan, I cried for like an hour afterward. Thank goodness this was years after the movies came out so I was able to watch the next movie almost immediately. 

4) Supernatural - Sam Winchester

I like my tall, dark, brooding, emotionally conflicted men. Even if he is an idiot/asshole/bitch on a regular basis. 

5) Avatar: The Last Airbender - Prince Zuko

Um... have I mentioned I have a thing for conflicted characters? Zuko 100% fits that bill. And of course, his entire story arc is probably one of the best ever written. 

6) Star Wars: The Original Trilogy - Luke Skywalker

Honestly, I think this is just spillover from my childhood. I watched this trilogy a million times as a small child, and I desperately wanted to be a Jedi. I don’t know if he’d still be my favorite if I didn’t watch the trilogy until I was an adult. Luke is pretty whiny for the first two movies. I would have probably preferred Leia just for her sheer level of competence and the fact that she takes crap from no one.

7) Star Wars: The Current Trilogy - Kylo Ren

Again, dark and conflicted (though I think less conflicted since the end of TLJ). I know he’s basically evil and twisted, and at this point, I’m not looking for a redemption arc. I just find him to be by far the most interesting character in the new trilogy. 

8) Star Wars: The Prequels - Obi Wan Kenobi

This is probably because he’s one of the best actors (of the main characters) on the screen and has the best story line overall, but the snark definitely helps. 

9) Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Anakin Skywalker

This was a hard one, and I almost picked Ahsoka. But as much as she’s a badass and I love her, I just don’t quite have the same level of affection for her as I do Anakin, despite his flaws. TCW really fleshed him out in all the right ways and made me love him. His pain and struggles when dealing with his past, when Obi Wan ‘died’, when Ahsoka leaves... it gave him context that made Prequel-Anakin not only more understandable but more enjoyable to watch.

10) Star Wars: Rebels - Caleb Dume AKA Kanan Jarrus 

It’s funny because I usually latch on to characters who are emotionally conflicted (obviously), so I initially thought I was going to love Ezra. I do, but not as much as I do Kanan.

Frankly, he’s probably one of my favorite fictional characters ever. Definitely in the entire Star Wars universe. He is the self-made Jedi, and in a way, one of the best examples of a Jedi we have. He has been tempted by the dark side once in his entire life. When he was fourteen at the Third Battle of Mygeeto, he watched a dear friend die and let the dark side take over as he tried to avenge him. But even though he wasn’t able to put a name to what he was feeling, he realized that it was wrong and it would only be a pyrrhic victory. He is able to have a family and attachments without ever letting them consume him. He takes a traumatized child off the streets and helps guide him to becoming a true Jedi in just a few years. 

Also, never have I cried so hard for a character. I cried over Spock for an hour? Try every day for almost two weeks for Kanan... (Probably because he never comes back... T^T)

I could honestly go on for pages and pages, but I think I’ve made my opinions on Kanan very clear on this blog :P

I really don’t feel like tagging ten people... just do it if you want! It’s fun :D

[thornsickle]

Let’s talk about the word ‘destroy’ in the Star Wars. I was jumping in my seat with joy when Kylo uttered: “I’ll destroy her. And you. And all of it.” Here’s why (hint, it’s never literal).

First, here are three coupled examples, so far, of this word being used in a non-literal manner (”DESTROY THAT BOMBER!!!!” ahem, does not count).

A New Hope (Episode IV)

Luke: How did my father die?

Obi-Wan: A young Jedi named Darth Vader, who was a pupil of mine until he turned to evil, helped the Empire hunt down and destroy the Jedi knights. He betrayed and murdered your father. Now the Jedi are all but extinct. Vader was seduced by the dark side of the Force.

Return of the Jedi (Episode VI)

Luke: Ben! Why didn’t you tell me? You told me that Darth Vader betrayed and murdered my father.

Obi-Wan: Your father… was seduced by the Dark Side of the Force. He ceased to be the Jedi Anakin Skywalker and ‘became’ Darth Vader. When that happened, the good man who was your father was destroyed. So, what I told you was true… from a certain point of view.

……………………….

The Force Awakens (Episode VII)

Han: He was training a new generation of Jedi. One boy, an apprentice, turned against him and destroyed it all. Luke felt responsible. He just walked away from everything.

The Last Jedi (Episode VIII)

Luke: I saw darkness. I’d sensed it building in him. I’d seen it in moments during his training. But then I looked inside, and it was beyond what I ever imagined. Snoke had already turned his heart. He would bring destruction, and pain, and death, and the end of everything I love because of what he will become. And for the briefest moment of pure instinct, I thought I could stop it. It passed like a fleeting shadow. And I was left with shame, and with consequence. And the last thing I saw were the eyes of a frightened boy whose master had failed him.

…………………………………..

Attack of the Clones (Episode II)

Anakin: It doesn’t have to be that way. We could keep it a secret.

Padme: We’d be living a lie. One we couldn’t keep, even if we wanted to. I couldn’t do that. Could you, Anakin? Could you live like that?

Anakin: No, you’re right, it would destroy us.

Attack of the Clones (Episode II)

Anakin: Don’t be afraid.

Padme: I’m not afraid to die. I’ve been dying a little bit each day since you came back into my life.

Anakin: What are you talking about?

Padme: I love you.

Anakin: You love me? I thought we had decided not to fall in love. That we’d be forced to live a lie and that it would destroy our lives.

Padme: I think our lives are about to be destroyed anyway. I truly… deeply… love you and before we die I want you to know.

……………………………….

The Last Jedi (Episode VIII)

Kylo Ren: I’ll destroy her. And you. And all of it.

Luke: No. Strike me down in anger and I’ll always be with you. Just like your father.

The dialogue, I think, speaks for itself. This specific word NEVER means what it first appears to mean in Star Wars and it has been purposefully used throughout the saga to demonstrate when a character is either an unreliable narrator, unconvinced in what they are saying or outright lying. It is actually a pretty nebulous word since it suggests one thing but could very well mean something else. The crux of the matter is, Rian Johnson chose to use this word DELIBERATELY.

Why would he decide to use this specific word, other than to imply that Kylo’s statement would come back to mean something different other than the obvious, either subverted, misunderstood or revealed to be a lie.

Luke, you’re going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.

In ‘The Last Jedi’, Luke finally comes to understand what Obi Wan meant, which is why we are given different versions of what happened between the Jedi Master and his nephew. It is to prove both Obi Wan’s point and also how Luke has evolved as a person and become a wiser man than before. He understands Kylo’s pain, understands that, for him, the truth will always be that Luke betrayed him and left him no choice. Luke acknowledges this truth, which is why he is finally able to accept his failures and also Kylo’s choice to be on the dark side. However, having understood Obi Wan’s words, he also knows that Kylo’s words will not ring entirely true when he states he will destroy Rey.

Let’s look at what ‘destroy’ actually means, within the context of Star Wars.

The instance (release date-wise) where we see the first use of this nebulous word is in RotJ, with Obi-Wan’s famous words revealing his misdirection. In this instance, the word ‘destroy’ is revealed to not directly mean ‘betrayal’ and ‘murder’. It DOES mean these words, but not literally, more figuratively. This understandably frustrates Luke, but it shows how Obi Wan was not lying. The point of this example is to show ‘self-destruction’ and how destroy does not directly mean murder.

So if we compare that to Kylo’s line, it becomes clear, especially to Luke, that though Kylo believes this to mean murder, it will likely result in something quite different, even if Kylo succeeds (which he won’t because Rey is our heroine haha, but he might come close, more on that later).

The example in The Force Awakens always felt fishy to me. Han’s use of that cursed word ‘destroy’ sent alarm bells through my mind. Check out this short post about my thoughts then.

http://sakurau121.tumblr.com/post/153877814060/one-apprentice-a-boy-turned-against-him

As we saw in TLJ, my doubts were well founded for. Kylo literally destroyed Luke’s academy, but Luke was the reason it finally happened. Luke played a part in that destruction and while Han does not lie, his words are now viewed in a very different light. His words suggest Kylo decided to turn against Luke when in reality he was given no choice but to turn against his master. Even as Luke describes how Kylo Ren would bring ‘destruction’ to the galaxy, it is not clear what ‘type’ of destruction that is and later in the film when Kylo kills Snoke, we realize the true scope of what Luke foresaw, which again subverts our expectations. I have a feeling Episode IX will continue to do this. It should be noted as well that Kylo does not ‘destroy it all’ as he took some of Luke’s students with him (we have still to find out why, whether this will be developed in Episode IX or not, I’m not sure).

In Episode II, Anakin’s words are ominous. When he states that their love for each other would ‘destroy’ them, he is right. In this instance, George Lucas uses this word because it ties into Obi Wan’s description of what happened to Anakin (this is the wonderful thing that happens when you have one dude writing the whole thing but whatever, I digress). In both cases, we know Anakin won’t ‘die’ but he will self-destruct. For Padme, the word ‘destroy’ does literally mean she will die.

Which makes it all the more tragic, because it shows that they were aware their love would bring about destruction but they decided love was more important than death. Yes, their own death.

So now we return to Kylo Ren and his final statement. I will lay out all the possibilities, based on what has come before. I don’t believe all of them, but I’m just putting them out there for the purposes of this post. ‘I will kill her and you and all of it’ is the literal translation, but I am 100% sure this is not what is foreshadowed.

1. Kylo’s words will show how he does not end up killing Rey, but rather destroying her light, turning her to the dark side, like what happened with Vader. He will merge the Resistance with the First Order once they are defeated. 

This won’t happen, at least not permanently, but I still think she could dally in it. Luke does during his final battle with Vader, so to keep up the tension, I think this is a possibility. But Rey won’t turn into Darth Vader 2.0 obviously. The grey still has to be analyzed but I’ll do a separate post on that.

2. Kylo’s words reveal he will destroy ‘all of it’. As in, he will end the First Order and the Resistance. This is hinted at because it is clear he has no real affinity with any group (revealed during his final speech to Rey), strangely rather like his father. He is in fact a rogue at heart, so it’s possible he will bring about the First Order’s destruction. Either by causing it to fall, abandoning it, purposefully betraying it or causing it to surrender. This ties back with the ‘destruction’ Luke foresaw when Ben was his student. It won’t mean what Luke thought it meant. This is why he says ‘no’ in response because he realizes the possibilities are endless. Perhaps he only foresaw Ben’s future in one way but in fact did not see the other side to what his fate could be.

3. The third one is a bit tragic and for me, sad but here it is. Anakin and Padme’s love for each other ‘destroyed’ them. George Lucas tied these two words together ‘destruction’ and ‘love’, so it is possible to see the link here too. Kylo reveals through his words that he loves Rey because it will bring about her destruction, as it was with Anakin and Padme. But note again, that Luke replies with ‘no’. So perhaps this is foreshadowing that Kylo’s love for Rey will not bring about her destruction at all.

‘I thought we had decided that love would destroy our lives.’

‘I will destroy her.’

In this context, Kylo’s words take on a very different meaning. At the end of their confrontation, Rey rejects Kylo’s hands because she knows he does not see her side. Rey is crying because she sees she cannot accept Kylo’s promise of unity because it would mean the end of who she is. The ‘self-destruction’ which Obi Wan talks about when speaking of Vader. The love which resulted in Padme’s death.

What is beautiful is that Luke knows Rey will not be destroyed. That Kylo won’t destroy her. Unlike every other exchange I have mentioned in this post, the one between Kylo and Luke is actually foreshadowing something positive that is to come in Episode IX. It means the fate of Kylo and Rey’s connection is not that of ‘destruction’.

If you need anymore confirmation, just think. Kylo has already been proven wrong. He didn’t destroy Luke at all, in fact he helped Luke become one with the Force.

[tornhoodie]

TLJ spoilers, don’t read this bit if you ain’t seen it

Italics is the thing I’m responding to. Bold is me.

Expectations in film can be strange. Most audiences love to know what to expect when coming into a film, familiarity is comforting and helps us escape. Subverting expectations can help surprise us and transcend the movie experience into something more substantial than an escape, maybe into something great. Unfortunately, The Last Jedi fails in this regard. It does subvert audience expectations, but the price the film pays is not worth it’s price. The things set up in The Force awakens are thrown aside for something surprising, and it succeeds in this, but the story and film are not stronger for it.

*** I can't agree that the mysteries set up were "thrown aside" for something surprising. All reports indicate (including direct from Johnson) that this WAS what was planned, in concert with Abrams and the Story Group. They just weren't resolved in the usual Star Wars fashion. ***

Luke Skywalker’s character is turned on his head. The film starts with Luke throwing his beloved lightsaber off a cliff, which shocked everyone in the theatre. He is an eternal optimist in return of the jedi, even succeeding in turning his father from the dark to the light. Where others gave up on Vader, Luke remained hopeful. Luke remained true. Given all of this, we are supposed to believe that he almost kills one of his own students because he sees the dark has overtaken him? Surely not more than Darth Vader, surely not more than the absolute darkest version of a human being (seriously, the imagery of darth vader is just brilliant). Luke’s failure and reason for his exile does not align with his character at all, making his behavior shocking and surprising, but not interesting. Now that Luke is dead, we won’t get to see him return to the Luke we once knew. There is an argument here that this film is about failure, about coming to grips with and tackling failure to see the good failure brings. Luke should be allowed to fail, but not in a way that contradicts his every thought and move from other films. His greatest failure could have been many things, but almost killing a student doesn’t work.

*** BUT YOOOOOOOOOOO. Let's break this down.

-That Luke would fail Ben and retreat into seclusion is SO CHOICE AND ALSO COMPLETELY EXPECTED. Look at his mentors! Obi-Wan failed Anakin, and went into hiding on Tatooine. Yoda escaped Coruscant and hid on Dagobah. Luke had BARELY any training, only a few books, and a sister strong in the Force. And he was just supposed to train a dozen Force-sensitives including the grandson of Darth Fucken Vader and have it turn out okay? Hell no! He was terrified! Consider everything on his plate, and then consider the three versions of events we get. They all converge to one thing: Ben was becoming tainted, Luke knew it, and Luke was scared. Here's the extra wrinkle to this story though, that takes it away from being just like Luke and Vader: Luke was the old man now, the teacher. And he had historical precedent for how these things went. He knew what would happen if he failed, and his apprentice fell to the dark side. It would be Vader all over again. His fear took control of him, and he acted, and Ben saw this fear take control, and he reacted. Luke was afraid of becoming Obi-Wan, and he let the dark side guide his actions, and he BECAME OBI-WAN. It absolutely totally makes sense within the context of who Luke's mentors were.

-This movie is aaaaaaaaaabsolutely about failure and what we do in the face of it. This was Luke's failure. It is possibly the biggest failure he could have had, and boy howdy he brought it about.

-I mean if there's one last thing that'll cement this its that this old hermit gets a swift kick in the junk by R2-D2 playing Leia pleading for his help. The same message that got Obi-Wan back in the fight.

-and then and then that fear hasn't gone away! He continues to resist training Rey, and eventually tries to burn the Jedi books and end it all, because he's still terrified of failing another student and creating another Vader/Ren. It is only through Yoda coming back and blasting apart the tree that he wakes up and realizes "hey, you know what, maybe its time to clean up my mess." Failure, and what we do in the face of it. ***

Snoke is now dead, and we know nothing about him. His death had an impact on me. I involuntarily put my hand in front of my mouth at his death, shocked at what had just happened. However, his serves no purpose other than to subvert expectations, not to serve a better story. We know nothing about Snoke, we know nothing about how he came to lead the first order, we know nothing about his haggard appearance, and so many great possibilities died with that character. How was he trained as a sith with all of them dead? Where are the knights of Ren and his connection to Snoke? How did he come to lead the First Order (as the SUPREME COMMANDER, not just a high ranking member of the empire like Vader). Snoke’s death surprised everyone, but that’s it. A moment of subversion that does nothing to serve the story.

*** -Snoke ultimately wasn't important to the story of Rey and Kylo. For Kylo, he was a means to an end, and that end was power. Kylo cut him down when he thought he was done with Snoke, when Snoke threatened the one thing Kylo thought he'd made a real connection with: Rey. Snoke held no other true importance.

-It's not the failure of THIS MOVIE (or, even, the entire trilogy) that you thought he was going to be explained, but rather your expectations for what this movie was going to be. Let's get into that:

-Think real hard back to the Emperor. We had one scene in ESB of Palpatine talking to Vader, and that was it. In ROTJ, we have more, but he's still just a scenery-chewing evil wrinkle without explanation. We dont know where he came from, how he got his powers, or how he came to lead the Empire beyond assumptions: dude was strong and people were into it. I mean we didn't even know the dude's name without the novelization. In fact, that's where a lot of the info about his rise to power came from. It was only later, through movies and series and MORE novels that we got his life and backstory fleshed out.

-If you went into TLJ expecting to get the deets on Snoke, or that he was going to be the big bad and last until the end, that was you projecting your own expectations onto something that definitely wasn't promising answers. I mean, the trailers did everything they could to get you to throw those expectations away, with them specifically playing Luke's line: "This isn't going to go the way that you think." That theme, expectations and how our own are dashed constantly because we rely on them too much, IS SO IMPORTANT. It is the keystone to everything, especially the whole bit about Failure we talked about up top. Luke fails because he expects to be able to train all those Jedi. Rey fails because she expects that she's gonna be the next Luke Skywalker. Kylo fails because he expects Rey, whose past is filled with pain just like him, will throw aside her new family, just like him.

-We aren't done with these themes but I've GOTTA move on here ***

Also, The First Order has to be one of the laziest enemy factions in film. We know nothing of their origin. Say what you want of the prequels, we get a very good overview of how the mighty evil empire came to be, an origin story that makes sense in the universe. Even though TFA didn’t give any explanation as to the rise of the First Order, I had held out hope that once we learned about Snoke (the SUPREME LEADER, insinuating he is not only the figure head but the reason for the existence of the order a la Hitler), we would learn about the First Order. But, of course, because the director was so eager to subvert our expectations, we get nothing from either. This leaves The First Order as a lazy, uninteresting antagonist for the rest of the series. “The First Order Reigns” indeed.

*** -I mean, we knew nothing about the Empire in ANH and ESB either, beyond "welp the Emperor dissolved the Senate." As you said there, it was only through prequels and books and games and comics that we got more information, an origin story. Nothing about the run-up to this film indicated that we'd learn about where they came from. Again, the expectations. If you went into the movie expecting clarification, something that wasn't promised, that can't be laid at the feet of TLJ. If it were crucial to the narrative for us to understand exactly where Snoke and the First Order came from, we'd have heard about that stuff in TFA. That was the first movie in the trilogy, that was the one to take the time to tell us all about the bad guys. But it's not! It's not important. It's just not at all important to the story being told here. Here's what was important: the new main characters, their histories, their dreams, their hopes. these are the bad guys, these are the good guys. it doesn't matter what fringe conflict lit the spark of the first order, right now. it doesn't matter where snoke was born or how he got his powers. what matters is that the first order grew in power, created a super weapon, and destroyed the republic. what matters is that snoke was immensely strong and reveled in the dark side, twisted ben solo into becoming kylo ren, and leads the first order. that is PRETTY MUCH the exact amount of information we had in ESB.

***

Leia being a superman in space is one of the worse things I’ve seen in the movies. This doesn’t have much impact with my overall thesis but I have to mention this. Leia is out in space for a long time, we know she is strong with the force, but there could’ve been so many other ways to show this other than this scene. Also, Ackbar dies without fanfare before that scene, which is dumb.

*** -No, this was great if only for the experience of Jessica seeing Leia, floating in space and presumed dead, and her whispering "OH FUCK YOU" in between sobs. I will always remember this scene because it was so raw emotionally for everyone in that theater. THUNDEROUS APPLAUSE when she reached out with the force and pulled herself to the blast door.

-I absolutely get if the scene didn't hit for you; not all scenes do for everyone. I have my problems with some of the more humorous bits in TLJ. But "one of the worst things I've seen in movies" is really strong? Stronger than I think that deserves? I dunno, man. You feel what you feel and I can't tell you otherwise, but I'm certain I could point to like INFINITE scenes and have them be worse than this one.

-but hey. If it didn’t work for you, I can’t argue that.

-Ackbar is a fun character for easter egg purposes but the dude is not nearly as important as the internet wants to make him. The movie was two and a half hours long, and spending more time than they did mourning Ackbar would have been a waste. For all the thinkpieces saying "thank you for mourning ackbar" you'd see just as many thinkpieces saing "TLJ is too long and it's because of ackbar." ***

That leads me to this next part. Admiral whats-her-name that takes over the resistance capital ship is a terrible character all around. When she sacrificed herself at the end for the fleet, there was no emotional impact at all (even given how great the cinematography is during the suicide scene). The director should’ve let Ackbar go out this way, why try to make us attach to some random admiral we know nothing about? Ackbar has history as a character, has a weight to character. Having him go out the way the admiral did would have made a great impact, and seen a great character go out in a very satisfying way. Instead, he is thrown out without fanfare and replaced. The only distinguishing feature of Ackbar’s replacement is that she had purple hair and argued with Poe. Which brings me to another not only throw away character but throw away plot section.

*** -Vice Admiral Holdo

-WHAT

-ARE YOU KIDDING ME MY DUDE

-MY DUDE I CANT WITH THIS

-im putting a placeholder here because i feel A MIGHTY NEED to come back to this and straighten you out but also i just need to move on because how DARE you i dont have time for this section right now

-i came back to this one just to say that you weren't paying attention to Holda and Poe's interactions. You were too excited for an old hero of the rebellion to get his due (ackbar) that you missed the tactic brilliant tactics and heroic sacrifice of of the hero in front of you (holda) which is exactly why it is so important that poe thinks holda should look different. She's not the person he expected, and that colors his opinion of her.

-"argued with poe" my dude, she didn't argue with poe. poe mutinied because she didn't tell him the plan, because he's a fuckin scrub that got their entire bomber fleet decimated in one attack that didn't even do much, because he's too concerned with being a hero of the resistance that he didn't stop to think about the actual tactical necessity of such an attack. which holda and leia did.

-BECAUSE HES A FUCKIN SCRUBLORD AND SHES A GODDAMN VICE ADMIRAL im real angry about this and the Rose paragraphs my man ***

Finn’s entire story was unnecessary and should have been cut. Why are we, as an audience, supposed to care about this story? It does nothing, doesn’t expand anything about the characters, other than being able to see Finn fight his old boss, but the whole story turns out to be a red herring. Rose (Finn’s companion throughout this story) was introduced without fanfare, and we are supposed to feel connected to her at the end when she saves finn, but I have trouble remembering her name. She had a sister that died, and she was sad. That’s all I got. I feel that you shouldn’t introduce a new character into an ongoing series if you won’t do anything significant with development. Finn’s partner and the admiral were both throw away characters. Compare this to someone like Lando, who is introduced in Empire Strikes Back but steals the show in his direction. We get a full fledged character, interesting and flawed, and all in one movie. It can be done, it was just done poorly in The Last Jedi.

*** -Dude you're straight up losin' me now. I have my problems with the casino world of Canto Bight and the things that happen through it, but you're kinda throwing a completely-fleshed-out character into space, and I can't really figure out why? Rose absolutely has motivations and character development. Shit, we know more about her than Poe:

---Sister was on the bomber that destroyed the first dreadnought, but she's not just SAD about her sister, she's PROUD of her sister (she talks about her sister, we know she shares the other half of the necklace, this is all clear stuff)

---She's steadfast in her duty and believes in the resistance, going so far as to protect the escape pods they have from being used by deserters, even when they're all running for their lives (she talks about shocking 3 or 4 people before finn shows up, which is honestly a big deal considering the stress everyone is under?)

---She absolutely believes in doing the right thing for the right reasons, and for standing up for the "little guy," even against the people you thought were your heroes. (again, shocks finn, a hero of the resistance who she ACTIVELY admires and fan-girls over, because he disappointed her, and also tells it like it is to finn re: the war profiteers and who the casino people are)

-She is the fucking emotional core of the movie, man. Her entire thing is hope. She carries the spark of hope within her, like literally she says this and they talk about the spark of hope over and over and over (she delivers that spark to the children of Canto Bight's goat-horse racetrack, and one of them turns out to be force-sensitive yo!)

-We get more about Rose and see more about why she's important than we ever get with Lando. Again, think REAL HARD about Lando's character development. Dude turns on Han, then turns back around and lets the resistance go. We know he originally owned the Falcon but that's basically it. The rest of his character (WHICH HEY, AGAIN, AINT THAT MUCH) comes in ROTJ. ***

There are some good things about this movie. Luke’s final shot with the two suns is a great piece of cinematography, and the cinematography overall is really incredible. The sets were great, and we of course get a cool lightsaber brawl that had some great choreography. Adam Driver and Daisy Ridley are really good in their moments alone, both of them steal the show in this film. Kylo Ren is by far the most interesting character in this series, and I hope he gets a good send off in the last film of the new trilogy. Mark Hamill was not given much to work with, but he did what he could. Even given that, I was enamored with his performance. I am a bit of a fan boy of his voice work, so I am definitely biased in this regard.

*** -Look I know this is the paragraph where you said there are good things but man, I really need you to go see this thing again. Look at all the bullshit Hamill is throwing down. The scene where Yoda comes back, Luke is instantly 30 years younger and complaining to that old puppet about how he tried but it's all too hard. And yeah, that's because Hamill is great, but also its because Rian Johnson fuckin knew exactly what he was doing, and the script gave Hamill so much damn screen time it's ridiculous. He had more time than Ford did in TFA, and knocked every scene he had out of the park. Damn, he was great. ***

I am not upset with the things you would expect, porgs didn’t matter, I thought they were cute, I didn’t care for the animals that were there clearly to only sell merchandise. I didn’t even mind the constant humor, which I think there is an argument that the constant humor weakens the film over all. The film tries to tackle dark themes which the humor brings levity.

What I lament most is the missed potential. We have been given fantastic explorations of the Star Wars universe in books and video games, some great explorations of the Light and Dark side that give a more nuanced view of the Star Wars universe. Luke even starts to mention the Hubris of the jedi, which I hoped he would elaborate on more and go into why he thought the jedi were wrong. I also hoped he would go into why we avoid the dark even though the jedi are wrong, I hoped Luke would explain how he came to these conclusions other than one student that fell to the dark. I hoped so much for so much more. There was a real opportunity here to make this exploration part of the main saga, but we instead get subversion for the sake of subversion, surprise for the sake of shock. There were some great things to build on from the previous film, but those are tossed aside for the sake of surprise. The Star Wars saga is worse because of the director’s decisions, and I’m sad it happened that way.

*** -I'm gonna toss this graph back up to the top. Things that you hoped for, I absolutely understand. There's something to be said for hoping for things. But a lot of what you said sounds a great deal more like you expected one thing, and got another. Your expectations led you to believe that you knew how this was going to go, and you were surprised and disappointed that you weren't right.

-You talk about "subversion for the sake of subversion" but, is that really true? What was subverted? Your expectations for how the story would go? For how the information would get doled out? I mean, lets get into that. Star Wars has trained us to believe that everyone is connected in some grand way to the Skywalker legacy, that history is just going to repeat itself. The prequels did that (fuckin, C3PO, damn), they cemented that. But hey, can I ask you something?

-We all kinda expected this to be another ESB right? After TFA being an homage to ANH, it kinda felt inevitable. Film has taught us to expect the "dark middle chapter," the "Empire" of the trilogy. There were story beats that you/we figured would come up.

-But can you really call it "subversion for the sake of subversion" when NOTHING WAS PROMISED from the very beginning?

-Movies have taught us to expect that the hero's past is mysterious, that they are tied in some mystical way to some dynastical destiny. That the villain at the head of the table is all-powerful, awe-inspiring, and has some rich backstory about how they came to power. But TFA and TLJ don't promise that any of that is coming. Indeed, they follow in the grand tradition of the original trilogy: give as little information as needed to follow the story of a resistance fighting back against a tyrannical empire, and the key players of that resistance.

-TLJ delivered on that legacy. It answered the questions that needed answering while at the same time ensuring that we weren't simply rehashing ESB. It set fire to the sacred jedi text tree, while ensuring that those texts weren't destroyed; they're in the hands of someone else, a new generation who might be able to do some good with them. ***

“It’s time for the old ways to die”…. Maybe they should have thought about that a little bit more before Yoda called lightning down on the Jedi tree.

*** THEY DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIID THATS WHAT THE MOVIE’S ABOOOOOOOOUT, BURN IT ALL DOWN AND START ANEWWWWWWWWWWWWW, LIGHT THE SPAAAAAAAAAAARK ***

[inkognito97]

Can we get mutant Qui-Gon and mutant Tahl taking Maul down?? :D

@ithiliel-the-french-tolkiendil

Also includes the following two prompts:

When working with vader to find luke and leia in the mutant au can we have vader be surprised that satine can shapeshift into anything? With her often using it to get information out of rebellion informants and imperial databases.  - anonymous

In the mutant au can we have vader run into quigon and be shocked that he’s alive and kicking with this really scary lady who why the hell does she have claws? With quigon constantly breaking the fourth wall and surprising the shit out of vader with his language. - anonymous

“You know, I can think of so many more pleasant things to do than running through this desert,” Qui-Gon spoke up. Tahl was not sure if he was actually talking to her, because his focus seemed to be elsewhere. “I mean, what would YOU do on a nice day? Probably a walk through the part or something equally boring as that. Just let me tell you this, THIS here, is NO walk in the park, THIS is hard work.”

“We got it, dear,” Tahl rested her hand on the taller male’s arm, intending to calm him down. It worked a little bit.

The long haired male stopped walking abruptly. “Uh, look who we have here.” And truly, a couple of meters in front of them, was a figure dragging itself through the sand. it was obvious that the figure was not in best health, most likely due to the heat and the jet black things the hooded being was wearing.

“Dear children, you don’t want to know what is going to happen now,” the former Jedi Master said and in the next moment, he was running towards the dark creature that he had easily identified as Darth Maul. The Zabrak had yet to notice his quick approach, but Qui-Gon did not mind. “It makes things so much easier,” commented he.

Tahl meanwhile struggled to keep up with the taller male. Her claws were ready for action, just as her partner’s two blasters were.

“Really? Blasters? What happened to my lightsaber… oh yes, I remember. Obi-Wan took it, carry on.” Qui-Gon cleared his throat awkwardly. He was no friend of blasters, they simply were no weapon fit for a Jedi or a force user.

Maul still had yet to notice his enemies approach and he only startled in alarm, when it was already too late. The weight of Qui-Gon’s larger body crashed fully into the Zabrak, pushing him forcefully to the ground. A pained grunt escaped Maul and the long haired male took the chance and stole the double-sided lightsaber the dark side user had carried. Tahl had finally caught up to them.

Hateful yellow eyes gazed up at Qui-Gon, but then, they widened in disbelief and something that might be identified as fear.

“Remember me, bastard?” the grin on the bearded man’s features was predatory and just a little insane. “You should not believe anything you read, I am total normale,” he added, earning him a confused look from his enemy.

“May I?” asked Tahl.

“Of course, my dear.” Qui-Gon stepped back, but not without pinning the dark side user to the dusty ground. “Now children, we will skip the ugly part so that no one will feel disgusted. Let me just say this, heads will roll, or just one in this case. Oh, and I would highly recommend NOT doing that at home. You don’t get the stains cleaned away, trust me on this one.”

Anakin was growing tired of the disapproving stares that the female of their small group was sending Obi-Wan and he was growing even sicker of the distrustful glares she kept sending his way. He had understood it, since he was Darth Vader, or at least had been, he was not to be trusted. Satine did not need to remind him every five minutes of it. And on top of it all, there was sand… everywhere. Apparently it had not been enough that he had run through the whole desert once already, he had to do it a second time and on the same da nevertheless. But at least he was not alone this time.

“I’ve got one question,” he caught the attention of the ginger haired male in front of him. “Why do you look so… old,” he winced at the word, “and Satine does not?”

“I certainly do NOT look old,” Obi-Wan huffed, “and I would not look ‘old’, as you so charmingly put it, if I would focus my energy on my body and not on my shields so that no one will find us.”

“Oh,” replied Anakin. Now that the older male had mentioned it, he could feel the void that surrounded the pair. It was not like they had completely vanished, but if you did not know what to look for, you would not find them, that much was for certain. He silently wondered how much energy it cost.

“And since I am a shapeshifter,” Satine let the sentence trail off. For her, this discussion was done.

The confusion was written clearly on the blond’s features. “Shapeshifter? What is that supposed to mean?” But Obi-Wan just sent him a grin and Satine shrugged. Had he known at this point, that he would later get to know the true meaning of the word, he would not have succumbed to begging for the answer…

In truth, Anakin was still not able to believe what he had seen and he had already seen a lot during his time as a Sith Lord, on the hunt for remaining Jedi and Force users. But that his former Master’s partner had simply changed her form in front of his eyes - and out of sight of the two stormtroopers - and used her disguise to get them through the control without any problems and uproar, was unbelievable. He was still gaping at the female, even after she had turned back to her original form, if it actually WAS her original form. He wondered how often she had used her little trick already and if she had been born with the ability to change into everything and everybody she wanted, including the voice. 

“So you see,” the blonde suddenly spoke up, “I could easily kill you and nobody would know it was me.” The smile on her features scared the Sith Lord and he was thankful that Obi-Wan chose exactly this moment to step in. 

“Now, now, no need to for that now.” Satine pouted, but she listened and Anakin was able to let out a sigh of relief. One problem less to take care of. 

“Hey,” Anakin’s voice caught their attention, “do you see, what I am seeing?” He squinted against the bright light. “Is that…”

“It looks like someone if approaching us,” commented Obi-Wan calmly.

“More enemies?” suggested Satine. The shift in her presence told Anakin that she was preparing to shapeshift again. 

“I don’t think so,” retorted Obi-Wan, his eyes were still glued to the two approaching figures on the horizon. 

“How can you be sure?” Anakin wanted to know.

Blue-green eyes sent him a quick glance. “Call it a feeling.” He was beginning to move again and the closer they got to the newcomers, the easier it was to get information about them. 

One of the figures was tall and possessed long hair. The smaller of the two, had darker skin as the fist.

“Qui-Gon,” Obi-Wan breathed out. There was so much hope in that single word, so much hope and disbelief. Without any warning, he dashed forward and the taller of the two figures started running too. 

In fascination watched the former Sith Lord, how the two of them hugged each other tightly. It was truly heart warming, especially when Obi-Wan would not let go of the older male. And now that he had closed in on the hugging pair too, he could see that it was indeed Qui-Gon.

“But how,” he started to ask, but then he shook his head. There were more important things to discuss now.

“What in the name of the Force are you doing here?” the ginger haired Force user looked beyond happy.

An evil grin appeared on his former Master’s bearded features. “Oh, I ran into an old… friend. Let’s just say that this damn *beep* will never walk another step in this *beep* up galaxy ever again.”

Anakin blinked in surprise at the non too proper language. Was this truly the same Jedi Master, who had freed him from slavery all those years ago.

“Damn well it’s me,” spat the long haired male. “Just saying my *beep* mind, without those Council bastards stopping or censuring me.”

Nobody had any idea what to say to that…

[inke-ri]

Oh man, this last addition is perfect, but there's one more thing I'd like to add:

There's this... this idea in the fandom that it takes "an idealistic kid who doesn't know how evil Vader is" to save Anakin. Honestly, I think that this is a disservice to Luke as well.

See, Luke didn't have to have lived through the Prequels to understand the extent of Vader's darkness.

Vader was the person who:

• Tortured Leia

• Gave the orders to kill the family that raised Luke and were like parents to him

• Held Leia back as Tarkin exploded her whole damn planet

• Killed his childhood best friend, Biggs, in the Death Star run (and actually shot R2 down! We need to talk about this more often)

• Killed Ben Kenobi

• Engaged in multiple battles with the rebels that resulted in many casualties, such as in Hoth

• Tortured Han for the sake of torturing, just so he'd be in pain (so that Luke could feel it)

• Froze Han in carbonite and let him be taken to a slaver like a framed painting (and was going to do the same thing to Luke!)

• Cut Luke's hand off minutes before telling him he's his father

• Lemme repeat that, he knows that Luke is his son and he still permanently maims him

And those are just the things that happen directly between Luke and Vader in ths movies, or that he knows of! We havent even talked about Vader's reputation and history. Obi-Wan explicitly tells Luke that Vader was the person who betrayed the Jedi Order, the one who allowed their fall (and his own) to happen.

(In fact, and this ties in with what was mentioned above, with the idea that no one was responsible for Anakin's fall but himself, it's exactly what the Jedi believe. Yoda makes more of a point that Luke needs to defeat Vader, not the Emperor. It's almost as if they still pin his turning into the main reason why they were defeated, almost as if they don't realize the extent of the way they were manipulated, how the Galaxy Far Far Away was Palpatine's way before the Jedi Purge.)

But anyway, the point is: even before Luke and Vader ever interact, Vader is already presented to Luke as one of the worst things that ever happened to the galaxy, a plague that needs to be destroyed. He's evil and vile and Luke is 100% aware of that, even before he had actual interactions with him! Vader brought so much pain onto Luke himself but also Luke's friends, the thing Luke cares for the most just like Anakin did.

And then there's one more thing that pre-ESB's finale Luke is convinced that Vader did:

• Killed his father.

Now, that one is important (shout-out to @the-far-bright-center for opening my eyes to it). For the longest time, Luke hated Vader because Vader was responsible for killing the person Luke looked up to, and wanted to be like the most. And then he has to deal with the knowledge that that was his father all along, the person that literally drives his character forward, is the motivation for his actions, the reason why he's so good and heroic. He's Luke because he wants to be like his father.

Luke didn't have to have lived to the Empire's rise and Anakin's betrayal to feel the way everyone back then did, because he goes through it anyway. Yes, it's tied to Obi-Wan not telling him, but Luke's entire motivation has been destroyed by that knowledge. Luke was always compared to his father, and it was something he was proud of. When he learned from Obi-Wan that Anakin was this idealized perfect hero, pilot, friend and warrior, it becomes Luke's entire character motivation. In short:

He wants to be a Jedi, like his father before him.

And then he finds out that that Jedi is a Sith Lord who brought him and his friends and the entire galaxy immesurable amounts of pain. Why do you think his reaction is so raw? Why does he deny it in such a tortured way?

To put it simply: Luke does know the extent of Vader's darkness, and the entire point of the first two OT movies is to build Luke's trust in his father just to break it just like what happened to the PT characters.

And yet.

Luke is like his mother too. He has felt all the pain, the betrayal, the hurt of having the person he loved the most be a monster, and yet he still sees Anakin deep down.

Luke has every reason to hate Vader or believe he needs to be destroyed as any PT character (whether they want to do it or not). And yet he doesn't.

When everyone says that Anakin is gone, when Vader himself says he killed him, Luke stands his ground and says "No, he's still inside, I sense his - your - conflict within. There's still good inside of you." The same thing Padmé said, the thing that Anakin never heard because he wasn't there. It's the first person Vader ever hears stand by a chance of redemption for him in over 20 years.

The person above me said it better: at the time of the Prequels no one understands.

But here's the thing: Luke understands.

Luke is so much like his father: he's too attached to his friends, to his desire to help others and free them from the Empire as Anakin wished to free slaves, he's gotten cocky (it's absolutely no accident that the scene in TCW 7.09 of Anakin pretending to surrender reads so much like Luke in Jabba's Palace), and he too struggles with using the Dark Side to save the people he loves.

Everyone sees Anakin in Luke, including Anakin and Palpatine themselves.

And yet Luke is willing to die standing for the light that's still inside Vader, this monster he had every reason to hate. He comes to Vader personally, just to tell him "you think your last chance to choose the Light was gone years ago, you think there's no way out, but I know that you're still inside of this armor, these slave chains, that you still have the freedom to choose to be the person you want to be, Anakin".

And Anakin listens.

#ANAKIN AND THE PEOPLE WHO LOVED HIM #WHO COULDN’T CONCEIVE OF HIM FALLING #BECAUSE THEY BELIEVED IN HIM THAT STRONGLY #THEY LOVED HIM THAT STRONGLY #UNTIL THEY COULDN’T DENY IT ANY LONGER #ANAKIN W H Y

[ktley1986]

My husband isn’t nerdy, at all.  Which is okay because I happen to be nerdy enough for both of us-I love comics, video games, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Battlestar Galactica, etc.  I love all of it, mainly because I happen to know a lot about history and world events and the main theme of history is that people are super shitty to each other, all the time, usually without very good reason.  And once you know that, sometimes the only way to stay sane is to find solace in imaginary worlds-maybe that’s not always the healthiest thing, but at least if someone is cruel in one of those worlds they usually get a satisfying comeuppance, which sadly, rarely happens in the real world.   Now that we’re all suitably depressed, Mike and I were watching The Phantom Menace the other day and he made the grave error in judgement to remark that he “didn’t remember this movie being that bad.  People like it when it came out!” I mean, is that technically true? Yes.  I definitely enjoyed these movies when they came out as a teenager (I was also afflicted with a debilitating crush on Hayden Christensen, which has since died a death of natural causes) and I will stand by that, because I didn’t know any better.  Now with the benefit of experience and foresight I realize the serious damage done to the Star Wars universe and the overwhelmingly potential of what could have been.  Because it’s fresh in my mind after having given an impromptu mini-lecture to my husband earlier, I will explain my problems with Episodes 1-3 of the Star Wars film franchise. The whole Space Jesus thing You know what I’m talking about-the fact that Anakin Skywalker doesn’t have a dad, but is basically just the product of the Force and his long suffering, cipher of a mother figure.  That doesn’t even kind of make sense and it’s so lazy and shitty as to be actually insulting.  Let’s also remember that he’ll eventually become Darth Vader, the ultimate bad guy (and if you’re currently feeling the soft and fuzzies for him, remember he did kill a whole temple full of children.)  He’s such a special snowflake, he’s totally selfless, he’s the most amazing pod racer or whatever, he’s basically Valentina from Season 9 of Drag Race, and she turned out crazy too.  He just needs to compare himself to Selena to make the transformation complete.

Obi Wan to Anakin, honestly.

My problem with that is this could have been a much more interesting story, in the hands of someone who gave a shit about storytelling or the emotional arc of a character.  What if he was just a regular person, who had a dad and a mother who wasn’t window dressing for made up emotional issues later, but maybe he was kind of a reckless dick, then they could have made a more interesting story about how some people aren’t fit to have power, even if they are technically proficient.  It could have been an interesting twist on the idea that all Jedi are totally perfect peace keeping good guys, but what if he was able to convince them he was, but in reality, he was actually a dick?  At least that would make more sense later when he in fact does turn out to be a dick.   The whole Jango/Boba Fett story arc Famously George Lucas had this whole series written out back in the 70’s but the studio was only interested in making episodes 4-6, since the storyline was more cohesive.  I believe that’s true, and I even believe that a lot of the nonsense he put into the first 3 episodes was present in those early drafts, but I can’t be expected to believe that the basis for the clones was Jango Fett, and that his clone son would grow up to be Boba Fett, kick ass bounty hunter extraordinaire.  I get that Boba Fett was a wildly popular character, despite having zero lines as far as I can recall, and getting knocked into the pit of Sarlacc to be digested slowly over a thousand years, he’s my brother’s favorite character, so by default one of mine too, but honestly?  This is endemic of a wider problem in the first three movies in my opinion which is shoe-horning in fan favorite characters rather than making new and interesting ones which serve the story.  Why the everloving fuck is young Anakin making his dirt farmer slave mom a protocol droid?  Does she have a lot of use for translations of over 6 million forms of communication?  Lucas just wanted to take what worked from the original movies and force it into the new ones, although to be fair his stab at original characters did give us Jar Jar Binks, so maybe it’s a good call after all.   Darth Vader’s reasoning for becoming Darth Vader This is where it really hits home for me how much cooler this story could have been-the transformation into one of the most iconic villains of all time was just so lame in these movies.  For one thing, the romance between Padme and Anakin is painful and embarrassing, and this is coming from someone with a fairly comprehensive crush on Anakin.  So much cringe though, seriously.  But making it about him thinking that his wife might potentially die, is just stupid, especially because he ends up choking the fuck out of her.  Again, this is where the story could have been served by establishing him as a bit of a dick from the beginning, instead of a heroic space Jesus type character.  I mean, I am very much in love with my husband, probably irrationally so, but it would take a lot more than the premonition that he might, maybe, potentially die to make me murder an entire Jedi Temple full of younglings. And I don’t even like kids.  And then he just hates Obi Wan for not letting him live his best life or whatever, I mean they could have gone the route of him thinking there was a relationship between him and Padme, although I find the whole turning into an evil warlord over a lady to be one of the tired-est tropes on the planet.  It could have been so much better! Midi-chlorians Just no. So much politics and talk about trade negotiations. Oy! I get that George Lucas doesn’t really get how to write strong female characters, and I guess it’s kind of flattering that he thinks women’s strength is in the political arena, but man I do not give a fuck about trade embargos in the real world, so I definitely don’t give a fuck about trade negotiations in space.  I watched these movies for the first time as a young person and I could not have told you one thing about why the Nemoidians were doing, or what exactly was going on in the space Senate.  The beauty of the original trilogy is that things were simple, motivations were clear and no one had to put anything to a vote.

I don’t think the whole thing is awful-Darth Maul is pretty sick, General Grievous is cool, Christopher Lee is always a welcome addition to any movie, now that I’m older I can definitely appreciate young Ewan McGregor

I need to resolve my feelings about bearded Ewan McGregor

Now I’ve stalled out. Huh.  I know there are probably parts of it that are redeemable, but I can’t remember any, and I can’t be bothered to actually watch it again.  My point being is that it could have been so much better, if they were interested in telling a great story instead of making millions of dollars in merch.  Does anyone else remember all the merch associated with this, you couldn’t even buy a bag of chips without Jar Jar Binks dumb face looking at you.  While this isn’t something I would normally say, but I’m glad that Disney has the reins now, and they’ve already made some great Star Wars movies, sans mention of midi-chlorians which personally leaves me excited again to visit a galaxy far, far away.

My Epic Retcon of Darth Vader’s Backstory

Okay, so he’s just a normal kid, who has a mother AND a father, both of which are fleshed out characters, and he gets selected for Jedi training in a normal, non-mystical space Jesus way.  He turns out to be super great, a special snowflake, blah blah but then (plot twist!) he falls in love with another Jedi, and they have a clandestine affair until she gets pregnant with their baby.  Now, we all know Jedi aren’t supposed to have attachments blah blah, but they never explore what happens if you did, so it could be an interesting way to explore that idea.  So, the female Jedi (which really shouldn’t we get some female Jedis by now? Seriously?) refuses to tell the council who the father is, and she gets banished, without Anakin being aware of it until it’s already over.  She dies in childbirth, totally not the Jedi’s fault, but Anakin doesn’t know that, and that’s why her children are taken away and given to other families.  Anakin either finds out that Obi Wan took his children and that’s why they have their big battle where Obi chops his legs off and roasts the rest of him once he realizes that Anakin is the father and he’s so pissed at this point that he is going to try to kill him.  See, I literally just pulled that out of nowhere and managed to shoe horn a lady Jedi (which this series badly needs, come on!) and no mention of midi-chlorians! Is it a perfect story, no, but does it contain no mention of trade negotiations and Jar Jar binks, yes!

[ievenranthisfar]

A Race With No End: The Sisyphean Nightmare of Big’s Backyard Ultra

It’s 6:13 in the morning. The sun is about to break over the Tennessee countryside. I’ve already run 98.8 miles. And now, I find myself passing the two giant piles of frozen burritos that have been sitting—inexplicably—in the middle of the road all night. This is the twenty-fourth time I’ve passed them. 

I may have to pass them another twenty-four times before this is all over. Or maybe not. I may have to run for another 100 miles. Or maybe not. I don’t know. Because, you see, I’m running in a race that has no finish line. And it’s starting to drive me insane.

This self-inflicted torture began three years earlier when, I stumbled across a race report detailing a crazy little race in the Middle of Nowhere, Tennessee. Its premise was so simple yet so evil: Last man standing wins. 

Big’s Backyard Ultra has no set time or distance. Just a 4.1667-mile loop that each runner has to complete within an hour, over and over and over, until they can’t. Contestants continue running this macabre, Sisyphean loop until ultimately, there’s only one poor soul left. He or she wins. Everyone else DNFs. Like it never even happened.

My mind began to swirl. How far could I run if I had to run forever? Would my body or my mind give up first? What would it be like to be one of the last two people left, stuck in a stumbling, mutually self-destructive duel of wills? Also, just in general, WTF? 

Like some kind of Phillip K. Dick fever dream, this insanity was cooked up by ultrarunning’s resident madman, Lazarus Lake. He’s the evil genius behind the even-more-infamous Barkley Marathons. And after being personally tortured by him for more than a day straight, I can say that he is a true artist. The Leonardo da Vinci of pain. The Rembrandt of mind games. The Lady Gaga of suffering. A master of sadomasochistic craft.

In 2014 the race went for 49 hours. The winning distance, 204.2 miles. Actually, “winning” isn’t really the correct term. Johan Steene and Jeremy Ebel started on Saturday morning. Saturday became Sunday. Sunday became Monday. The two dueled for so long that Johan was in danger of missing his flight back to Sweden. So, with no other option, he was forced to drop. In an ultimate sign of sportsmanship, Jeremy chose to drop as well. So both men ran 204.2 miles, which is an incredible feat. What’s even more incredible is that because of the Last Man Standing rule, they both actually lost. (Laz later told me this detail with a twinkle of pride in his eyes.)

Naturally, I became obsessed with the race.

Fast forward a few years to me, towing the starting line in Lazarus’s backyard. It’s a beautiful, still Saturday in October somewhere in B.F.E., Tennessee.

Three minutes before the start, Laz blows three whistles. “Oh man, you’re gonna love hearing that thang 20 hours from now,” he says with a grin. Two minutes before the start, he blows the whistle twice. “Almost time.” He’s like a seven-year-old boy about to torture a frog. One minute left, one whistle blow. “Get in here so I can draw the corral!” he hollers. Using a can of orange spray paint, he draws a box around us on his crunchy, dead lawn. At the start of every hour, we have to be standing inside this corral to begin the next loop. Unless, of course, we can’t.

The race clock ticks to 00:00:00, and Laz gives his cowbell a hearty shake. We’re off. Forty-seven human beings setting out to test the limits of our bodies and basic common sense. 

Unlucky number 85

For months, I had worried about how best to run this thing. But within one loop, I quickly realize that the most important is a single world: consistency. In a typical 100-miler, it’s a guarantee that you’ll experience rough patches. Your legs will feel like lead. You’ll get overheated. Your stomach will rebel. But you can always sit down, hit pause and sort yourself out. Hey, you have 30 hours to finish this thing. But with Big’s, there’s no forgiveness. You get in a bad place, and you still have to be standing in the corral when Laz rings the cowbell at the next hour. Razor-thin margin of error. 

After I finish each loop, I plop down in my REI chair and rustle through my bags. (Another fun challenge, no aid stations!) I refill my bottles, scarf down some food and attend to issues. But no matter where you’re sitting, you have a front-row seat for the main attraction: the race clock. It’s big and bright and just keeps tick, tick, ticking away. The seconds keep marching mercilessly towards the next hour and the next loop. Yay.

Running ultras has taught me that time is malleable; it can bend and warp. As I run from starting line to finish line, I often get the sensation I’m detached from time, floating along in my own jet stream. This race is the opposite. There’s no starting line and no finish line. No matter what you do, in one hour, you’ll end up right back where you started. It’s like a cruel mash-up of Saw and Groundhog Day. With possibly more grunting.

Pre-race meal planning: 20 pounds of gels, fried chicken, Mountain Dew and half a pie

Personal aid station or refugee camp? Really, both.

My first morning goes relatively well. I’m feeling good and running consistently. There’s a group of four of us in a front pack, choosing to run at a comfortably brisk pace. We run and chat and laugh for hours, and quickly become a weird little band of friends. It’s a solid distraction. But at the same time, somewhere in the back of my mind, I keep hearing the voice remind me, They’re the competition. A seed of Survivor-style paranoia is planted. I try to shake it for the time being.

Morning turns to afternoon. The temperature climbs into the mid-80s. People start to drop. We’re less than 50 miles in, and already more than half the field is gone. Images of WWII flash in my brain for some reason.

At the start/finish/coral, Laz and his cohorts—who are all dressed as prison inmates—crack the same joke, lap after lap. “Way to go! You’re back in first place!” or “Allllright! You were in second, but now you’re tied for first!” “There he is! First place runner right there!” The joke goes on for hours. It seems to get funnier to them each time they repeat it.

But here’s the thing. The more loops I run, the more I realize it’s not a joke. It’s the core truth of this entire race. Because everyone really is in first place until they drop. Whether you finish your loop in 44 minutes or 59 minutes, if you’re still running, you’re still winning. In fact, during the infamous 204.2-mile race, that was exactly the breakdown. Johan ran 44-minute loops consistently for 49 hours, while Jeremy ran right at the edge of cut-off each loop. There is no strategy. My brain starts to death-spiral as I realize that no matter how hard I work, I’ll always be in first place, like everyone else. Time is a flat circle.

Run, rest, repeat

In the evening, the race switches to an out-and-back stretch on 4.1667 miles of paved country road. Twelve hours and 50 miles into the race, there are only ten of us suckers left inside the corral. Surprisingly, this proves to be a nice mental break. While you run the trail, all you want to do is last until the road. Once you’re on the road, all you want to do is last until the trail. Lather, rinse, repeat. 

And while road isn’t nearly as interesting as trail, it does provide a few new novelties. Tonight, the moon is so bright we don’t even need headlamps, so we glide through the Tennessee countryside like tattered, sweaty ghosts.

During our first loop, my newfound friends and I notice two lumpy piles of something sitting in the road near what looks like an abandoned house. We wonder aloud what the piles are, and I say, “They kind of look like a bunch of frozen burritos.” Everyone laughs. It’s preposterous. And I’m sure in the back of their heads, their Survivor voice whispers, Excellent. He’s starting to hallucinate. He’s a goner for sure. On the next loop, as we near the piles I tell them, “I wanna see what those are. I really think they’re frozen burritos.” “Ha, OK,” they laugh again. We drift towards the two piles, flick on our headlamps and HOLY SHIT THEY REALLY ARE A BUNCH OF FROZEN BURRITOS. Seriously. Two huge piles of half-melted, frozen burritos. There must be 100 or so. Just sitting in the road. 

It’s by far the weirdest non-hallucination I’ve ever had during a race. (Weirdest actual hallucination: Obi Wan Kenobi in the middle of Hawaiian jungle.)

A few loops later, the burrito piles are flanked by two hound dogs sleeping in the road. Back at the start/finish, someone mentions the whole situation to Laz, and he conjectures that the owners must be out of town so they left some food out for their dogs. This makes no sense, but it also seems like the only reasonable explanation. Sort of a metaphor for Big’s as a whole.

The night marches on.

In the lull between one of the early evening laps, Laz taunts me, “You might wanna try to get some sleep. You’re gonna wish you had it when it’s this time tomorrow night.” Awesome, I think. So on top of everything else, now I have to try to sleep between each loop?? But, he did have a point. I throw a shirt over my head and try to not exist for a few minutes. It never works. Every time I’m about to doze off, I hear that “TWEEET, TWEEET, TWEEEEEET” of Laz’s three whistles.

The night creeps by, both slowly and quickly. Each loop becomes a sadistic episode of déjà vu. And each time, it becomes that much harder to get out of the chair and into the corral.

By the time dawn breaks over the Tennessee hills, there are just four of us left. Also, two piles of road burritos, mostly uneaten.

Twenty-four hour in and spirits are 👍

One hundred miles and 24 hours in, the Final Four line up for our first lap of the new day: me, Charlie Engle (famous for running across the Sahara, infamous for spending 21 months in prison for mortgage fraud), John Starpes (who’s put in a gritty performance, staying just ahead of  the cut-offs every lap) and Babak Rastgoufard (a quiet dude in glasses with a big ole mop of hair who Laz and Co have enjoyed calling “Babagnoush” all day).

With a twinkle in his eye, Laz reminds us that we’re all in first place. Then he rings that damn cowbell.

How long can this go on?

Lap 25 goes off without a hitch. Lap 26, John falters. He doesn’t make the cut-off. One down. Three still in.

Just one mile into Lap 27, I feel a pain shoot through my left heel. It’s my Achilles tendon. How cosmically ironic, I mumble. My Achilles heel. The sudden reappearance of my chronic injury means my race is over.

However, Charlie is staring to look pretty worked. Against better judgment, I decide I’ll only go back out for another loops if Charlie comes in with two minutes to spare. Pride will be the death of me.

Back at home base, Laz blows his whistle three times. No sign of Charlie. I start to get excited. He blows his whistle twice. No sign of Charlie. Thank God. And then, “There he is!” Charlie bursts out of the woods. Ugh.

I grab my bottle and trudge over to the starting corral. A minute later, the three of us set off again. This is my last loop, I promise myself.

It’s been 112 miles. As I hobble in, I tell my mom (who has been horrified for two days straight) that that is my last loop… “unless Charlie comes in with, like, 30 seconds left.” I cringe as I hear the words coming out of my mouth.

We sit there waiting. Three whistles and no Charlie. Two whistles, no Charlie. One whistle, no Charlie. Then, just like an underdog movie scene, Charlie comes barreling out of the woods. I close my eyes. “Dammit, Charlie.” I think that’s the first time I’ve cussed in front of my mom. 

Charlie crosses the line with 35 seconds left. Resigned to my fate, I shuffle into the starting corral. Now on the ground, Charlie throws up his hands. “No más. I’m done.” “Noooo!” the crowd cries. The cowbell rings. Charlie doesn’t move. It’s just me and Babak now.

As soon as we get out of earshot of the crowd, I turn to him and say, “Hey man, this is gonna be my last loop.” “What?” he’s confused. “Yeah, my leg is hurt really badly. I can’t run on it anymore. You ran a hell of a race. Congrats, man.” “Ah man, I’m sorry…” he commiserates for a second. And then, he looks me in the eyes, “You’re not fucking with me, are you?” “Ha, no. I promise.” “’Cause that’d be kinda messed up,” he double-checks. “I promise, I’m not fucking with you.” I told you, this race messes with your head.

 Even though I’m about to lose, it feels like a victory lap. I’m going to enjoy it. I say goodbye to all the little landmarks I’ve spent the last day with—the crumbly rock, Kat’s Cave, the edge of the field, the top of the hill. Forty-seven minutes later, we burst out of the woods and into the sun. The crowd cheers.

I stride across the line one last time. 116 miles in 27:48. I immediately bend down and rip the timing tracker off my ankle. “I’m tapping out,” I announce. “NOOOOO,” the crowd erupts in unison. “YOU CAN’T.”  “I have to.” I explain my injury. But they’re having none of it. They came to see a bloodbath.

I sit on the ground in front of Laz. He stares down at me with the tenderness of some sort of hillbilly Santa Claus. “You sure you wanna drop? You still got plenty of time.” He speaks with a mixture of genuine care for me and morbid interest in seeing this spectacle dragged out as long as possible. “Thanks but I’m really done.” “Alright then.”

A few minutes later, Babak is standing alone in the starting coral. We all start chanting his name “Babak! Babak! Babak!” as he takes off on the very last loop of the race, solo. I’m Second-to-Last Man Standing. 

Striding out once more

Tapping out

 Big’s Backyard Ultra asks everything of you as a runner and as a human being. It’s as fascinating and as terrible a race as will ever be dreamed up. Its genius lies in its simplicity. And the more time I spent around Lazarus—trust me, I had about 15 minutes every hour for 28 hours straight—the more I became convinced that he’s some kind of savant.

The world is a better place because of madmen like Lazarus Lake. And I’m a better person for living through his terrible genius firsthand. Because now I’ve run a race with no end.

And also someone gave me a Long Day Lager afterwards

 Epilogue 

Unbeknownst to me, throughout the race, Lazarus composed strange, little updates that he blasted out every loop. Each reads like the beautiful poetry of a sadistic Thoreau. 

if we did this to dogs, they would throw us in jail.

hour 8 just began. 25 runners are praying they can survive 5 more hours and reach the road loops...

here is what they keep saying, as they drop and drop and drop;

if only this was just a 100 miler, and i could take a break. just 5 minutes. that is all i need.

24 runners are alive, out on the trail and the whistles start again in 54 minutes...

laz

   pray for the 18

we had our clean lap. 18 finished hour 11 18 started hour 12...

this is the critical hour. the sun is setting, and it will be dark before they get back.

nobody has more than a minute or two a lap to spare. they cannot slow down. dark or not.

if they finish this hour, there are 12 hours of gravy, before we return to the trail.

pray for the 18. they need it.

laz

  nightmare under the hunters moon

tim dines and gary kaspar. refused to continue.

may god have mercy on your soul.

14 tortured souls started hour 15.

it is one thing to run a 100, and start once. it is another to run a 100, and have to start 24 times...

and you might not even be halfway through.

laz

the final chapter it was the invisible injury that won out. andy's achilles had been gradually deteriorating for many hours. after the two youngsters hammered each other during hour 28, babak pulling away, andy bowed out after the finish (to the dismay of throngs of andy pearson fans) babak is out on the deciding loop....for the first time, he is alone. in somewhere around a half hour, we will know if there is a finisher this year. we already know who it has to be. thanks for listening.

laz