#i feel like anything i say about star wars canon/legends should come with the disclaimer that i am totally talking about of my ass

[wombatttttt]

Hello!

First of all, I'm living for your Rep Com musings. 😍 As a relatively new fan to the series, I've been wondering how the Skirata gang would handle some of the "official" canon stuff like the inhibitor chips. If you ever have time or inclination, I'd love to know your thoughts. 🥰

K'oyacyi! 😊

Thank you, vod!! I have DO have a lot of thoughts. I've only just bEGUN with my Repcomm BS

So new canon and Republic Commando/Legends canon...

I think a lot of what’s in current SW canon is just incompatible with Repcomm/Legends. Like even entertaining the idea of inhibitor chips in Repcomm, I think the Nulls would have found out when they hacked the systems on Kamino. That derails like a looot of the book plot. Even if they didn't know what the chips would be used for, the idea that there's a way to control all of the clones against their will would make it impossible to continue supporting the war.

I also don't like the inhibitor chips. I think it's a lazy plot device. It also ignores the very easy totally applicable reality that by the third year of the war, there could have been widespread discontent with how the war's been conducted and talk of clones being a 'slave army' to the Jedi.

I think Repcomm did a really good job laying out how Order 66 was totally possible just based on the conduct of the Jedi during the war. And I'm not a Jedi hater! The Jedi Order had its motivations and loyalty the Republic for many reasons. And the moral high ground of thinking they're 'doing the right thing' by keeping the Republic intact.

TCW was a kids show that didn't dig into the morality of the situation and slapped inhibitor chips in the clones.

I have thoughts about the Jedi pertaining to Zey's storyline/motivations, but another time!

The only current SW canon stuff that could have been interesting to see written into the Repcomm series if it was written now is if we had the New Mandalorians/Kryze government and also the diaspora of surviving exiled True Mandalorians with Jango Fett as Manda'lor calling upon the Cuy'val Dar to train the clone army for the Republic. There would be a loooot of explaining to do, I think it would be really hard to argue Jango would do something like that for the Republic when they instilled a 'pacifist' government on Mandalore, even if it was for revenge on the Jedi. But with the right motivations/set pieces it could have been a way to tell the story of the true Mandalorian's cultural genocide and the after effects.

All right, that's enough, getting off my soapbox now~

Idk, I am very happy writing my silly little fics, OCs, and headcanons in the Repcomm/legends canon.

[atelier-dayz]

Hello, Anon! (I put this as a separate text post because I needed the “read more” which doesn’t work for asks.)

So I’m not exactly the best person to ask for meta because my knowledge of Star Wars is relatively small compared to some people’s, but I can give it a shot?? Or at least a starting point of discussion coming from my opinion. (If you’re interested, jedi-order-apologist posted two good meta related to Qui-gon a while back here and here for better reads LOL)

I try very, very hard to not have a critical view of him. I really really do. I want to love Qui-gon. I do. When I first saw TPM, I thought he was cool. I’m still sad he died. But then one thing or another comes up and just *sigh* So here are the points about him that do make me critical about him? (There’s a TL;DR at the end if you find it too long.)

***Disclaimer: these are solely my opinions here. I am not the most knowledgeable in Star Wars by far. I base these solely off my experience and understanding of the movies, books, etc. Your mileage may vary***

First off, I should point out we don’t have much canon material of him to work off of. There’s The Phantom Menace and the book Master & Apprentice -- as well as some appearances in The Clone Wars I believe? I haven’t watched TCW yet. 

There’s also the Star Wars - Age of Republic: Heroes - Qui-gon comic, but it doesn’t reveal too much about his character, at least to me, other than showing him questioning the role and path of the Jedi and finding that balance is the key. *shrugs*

Anyways, from The Phantom Menace, we are made to understand that he’s the type of person to push the envelope, who apparently goes against the Council enough for Obi-wan to bring it up. We don’t get details on how he does it those times, only Obi-wan saying “[The Council] will not go along with you this time.” Which implies he has successfully argued his way before (or possibly gone his own way and asked for permission after?).

Being a rebel is not a bad thing. A lot of our media is all about being the rebel, going against the grain, and etc. However, some people in the fandom take that to mean it’s the only correct answer, and use that as an argument that the Jedi were awful people, who needed reform and didn’t deserve to live otherwise, and etc. But clearly, Qui-gon doesn’t disagree with the Jedi to the extent that he would leave them. He’s clearly still a Jedi and believes in the Jedi philosophy.

Qui-gon is a big follower of the Living Force, of focusing on the “here and now,” as he tells Obi-wan in the beginning of the movie. He’s squarely about the present and taking things as they come. -- And yet, he’s also remarkably fixated on the prophecy, which is very much not a matter of the present in my opinion. He is very insistent on Anakin being the Chosen One and therefore should be trained as a Jedi -- to the point where he say “I will do what I must.” So basically, it’s his way or the highway. He will take no other interpretation, even if there’s no concrete evidence that Anakin is the Chosen One.

My impression of him is that he will follow the way that he believes is correct or believes that the Force tells him is correct, and will leave no room for anything else. The casualty of this in TPM: Obi-wan. When Obi-wan warns him the Council won’t agree with him, Qui-gon tells him, “You still have much to learn, my young apprentice.” Fast-forward to later that SAME DAY, when he discovers the Council will not take on Anakin (based reasonably enough on the results of their testing and long-standing rules), he tries to claim Anakin as his padawan when Obi-wan, his actual padawan, is standing right there next to him. When the Council reminds him he has a padawan already, he pushes for Obi-wan’s Trials, and says, “He’s headstrong, and he has much to learn about the living Force, but he is capable. There is little more he will learn from me.” Obi-wan’s Trials was never something brought up before, from what I understand. He basically said hours before that Obi-wan wasn’t ready, and now he’s saying he is. I’m sure he doesn’t mean to hurt Obi-wan in this situation. He’s doing what he thinks he has to in order to have Anakin part of the Order. But it’s NOT COOL to throw away your existing apprentice at the expense of it. 

This whole fiasco of a scene is what has me very mad at Qui-gon a lot of times. Overall, it’s not a flattering view of him. As I like to say, his intentions are good, his execution is very very poor.

(He and Obi-wan later make up, but I for one am still upset at him on Obi’s behalf. Especially when Qui-gon’s final words later on is to train Anakin. That’s it. Doing what he must to make sure Anakin is trained. And Obi-wan will of course honor that request, which is a giant undertaking I personally believe he shouldn’t have been burdened with, having just lost his master and just become a new knight through combat. No one in his position would have been ready for that.)

(Addition: he also never mentions to the Council or even Obi-wan from the looks of it that Anakin was a slave. This, I honestly think, is critical information that should have been expressed. For whatever reasons, he did not mention it.)   

I can’t speak about his characterization in Master & Apprentice, because I haven’t read that book yet. (It’s on my shelf, I’ll get to it eventually!) I have been warned and heard that he is quite a frustrating character in it that makes you want to throw the book and go “DAMMIT QUI-GON.” So take that as you will.

All of this is just taking account of canon. If you take into account EU/Legends content, oh boy, is that even less flattering. Get ready Anon. I present to you, Jedi Apprentice. Otherwise known as “The reasons why Obi-wan has needed a nap and hugs since he was twelve.”)

So in Legends, there’s an age-cut off for becoming a padawan at 13. Obi-wan’s last chance at becoming a padawan was with Qui-gon as his master. Due to the trauma of his second padawan Falling, Qui-gon renounced his first padawan, who was already a Knight at this point, and had since refused any other padawans. (It is implied that he has crushed the dreams of many children, yes.) So Qui-gon summarily said no to Obi-wan. And due to a fight and wrongful accusations by a rival/bully, Obi-wan gets sent off early to Agricorps on Bandomeer (a whole mess of thing in itself, but I digress). Anyways, coincidentally, Qui-gon is also on the same ship to Bandomeer on a mission. After...a wild ride (and Qui-gon taking the time to shoot down Obi-wan’s hopes of becoming a Knight a second time) and multiple events (including Obi-wan ending up as a mining slave), Qui-gon waffles a bit about possibly taking Obi-wan as his padawan, and then there’s a whole confrontation involving Qui-gon’s Fallen former padawan that ends with Qui-gon officially taking Obi-wan as his apprentice after Obi-wan offers to blow himself up to help Qui-gon escape and save the miners. --- This naturally makes the Council scene in TPM even worse.

Fast-forward to Obi-wan’s second official mission with Qui-gon, they end up in the wartorn Melida/Daan, where they were to retrieve the injured Master Tahl (Qui-gon’s love interest). (Yes, his second mission. I’m not counting Phindar because that was a very unfortunate detour that turned into a mission. They went Bandomeer --> Phindar --> Gala --> Melida/Daan. No time skips that I picked up. Their ship to Melida/Daan was offered to them by Gala’s Queen.) Obi-wan felt that they needed to do more, that they needed to help the youth on the planet stop the fighting and achieve peace. Qui-gon wants to bring Tahl back to the Temple at once, and basically gives him an ultimatum...and then leaves his 13 year old barely new apprentice WITHOUT A LIGHTSABER in an ACTIVE WARZONE where the combatants have shown NO qualms in killing children OR Jedi. Qui-gon goes back -- eventually -- after Obi-wan messages for help, and after several events, takes Obi-wan back as his padawan. 

The other big strike against Qui-gon would again involve Master Tahl, in which after she is killed, he mourns her to the point of absolutely neglecting Obi-wan. I haven’t re-read that part yet, but yeah, that happened in the EU. 

So basically, in Jedi Apprentice, you get a good number of scenes where Qui-gon clearly cares for Obi-wan, is fond of him, etc. There are ways in which they connect with each other very well, and their thoughts reflect each other’s, which points to how they are in fact a good match as master and apprentice and is lovely to see. But he is also at times very uncommunicative and neglectful and...not a very good Master or someone that should be responsible for children by the looks of it. (All of which is probably rooted back to the trauma of his Fallen padawan.)

The whole caveat of all this is that these are all not canon now. These were also obviously books meant for kids, so when reading them as an adult, things become very very unflattering and there’s some hand-waving and logic that just makes you go UMM? 

The short of it: my main issues with Qui-gon are 1) in canon, throwing Obi-wan under the bus in that Council scene, 2) in EU, being at times a neglectful Master who shouldn’t have been responsible for children, and 3) unrelated to canon or EU but becoming more and more a big part of my negative feelings towards Qui-gon, the way certain parts of fandom choose to prop Qui-gon up on a pedestal as the One Good Jedi who knew better than the rest of the Jedi, and they build him up by wrongfully tearing down other characters.

[shadowsong26x]

EPIX/Rise of Skywalker Reaction Post

So, I got back from seeing EPIX this morning, and I figured I should get all my thoughts down!

Everything spoilery is behind a cut, and this post is also tagged with the spoiler tags I’ve listed here. If you want me to add any additional tags, let me know and I will to this and any future EPIX posts.

Okay, so, before I really get into this, I should mention two relevant contextual things that probably strongly impacted my feelings on this movie.

I’m not super-invested in the sequel trilogy. I love (most of) the characters, I’m not really into the story that’s being told with them.

Given where TLJ left us, I went into the theatre expecting something between A Trainwreck with Some Delightful Moments and A Delightful Trainwreck. Basically, it was going to be a Hot Mess and I knew it, but I was pretty sure there was going to be something to love, even if the film as a whole didn’t delight me (which, honestly, is even where I stand with TLJ, which remains my least favorite film of the series). And, you know what? I got exactly that. A Sometimes-Delightful Trainwreck. I’d say it’s even towards the upper end of that Delightfulness scale.

All right, moving on to actual thoughts. I’m trying to focus on the positive here, mostly because I did overall enjoy this movie, but I also had some Problems with it.

I’m gonna talk about Kylo Ren first, mostly because I want to get this out of the way. I will say that--when I first saw TFA, I thought I could be interested in this character. I thought they were gonna maybe go the burnt-out gifted kid route with him, which would be hella interesting to explore for the child of Heroes like Han and Leia, and the Legacy he had to live up to. Obviously, they didn’t, and while the direction they went is certainly topical, it’s not super engaging, at least to me. I know it is to some people, and far be it from me to harsh anyone’s squee, but he basically doesn’t do anything for me. I personally don’t find him particularly interesting or intimidating.

Basically, I don’t particularly care about Kylo Ren. (I don’t know if I’m quite at the point where, as my roommate puts it, I aggressively Do Not Care, but the Not Caring is definitely a thing.)

Anyway, that disclaimer aside--his arc was okay, I guess? I mean...I think my general feelings on the subject are not that it felt phoned-in, exactly, but that it was mostly there because the writers thought it should be there, rather than it flowing organically from the character(s) involved. It also felt rushed, but that goes back to a problem with the movie as a whole that I will get into later in this post. But, given that, the actual beats that were involved in said arc I thought were effectively done. The bit with Han in the wreckage, in particular, was nice.

As for that Kiss though.

...I mean. I’m actually kind of pleased that the end of the film left the romantic threads dangling? It gave me plenty of OT3 feels (though I felt like, especially in the first third or so, the film was leaning more towards Rey/Poe and Finn/Rose, but there was some later stuff that seemed to hint at the full OT3 with a question mark on where Rose stands.)

But I do have a problem with the fact that the only on-screen kiss between Major Characters was between Rey and Kylo Ren/Ben Solo. That being said, I can backfill/justify it in that...you know how some people headcanon that Luke’s initial crush on Leia was some sort of “There is a Connection Here that I Cannot Name and it’s probably supposed to be Romantic given our ages and genders and presumed lack of other relationship so let’s go with that?” Between something like that and the fact that he just gave up his life for her in a very literal way (side note: the Force has always been New Powers as the Plot Demands; but the healing thing was a) if not actually in a canon novel at least strongly implied and b) ALL OVER fanon so even if I had a problem with Random Force Powers suddenly occurring I wouldn’t have an issue with this one; the Force Diad thing was ~handwave plot device~ sure fine whatever). ...anyway, given all of that, I can backfill it to a way where I don’t hate it (i.e., if he’d lived, I don’t think it would’ve been followed up on very much/they would’ve settled into a non-romantic relationship of some kind, whatever that might’ve been). Except that it’s the only one, which kind of leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

Then again, he did immediately die, so...yeah, I can live with this. I don’t like it, and I don’t think I ever will like it, but I don’t hate it either and it’s not a dealbreaker for me.

Most of the other problems I have with this film come down to structure and pacing. In that, thanks to where TLJ left us, this move had to do so much to bring the story to any kind of cohesive end, and not enough time to do it in. Trying to squeeze too much plot into too small a space.

(I actually had the same problem with ROTS initially--although that was more due to the PT having pacing issues as its Primary Narrative Flaw; TPM was way too slow; AOTC actually had good internal pacing but couldn’t quite make up for it; and then ROTS was as a consequence of that really rushed. Meanwhile, with the ST, I feel like the writers are relying on “it’s all there in the manual” a little too much, so not really...trying as hard, if that makes sense? To make it all connect within the film, I mean, as opposed to depending on people going into other/outside/supplemental material to connect the dots (still not as bad as the Prisoner of Azkaban movie on that front, but it’s still Bad; and, like, all film versions of novels leave some stuff out, just look at the LOTR films; but POA left out a key plot point and that--is a rant for another post. Back to EPIX). It’ll be interesting to see what kind of deleted scenes come out, or if it’ll grow on me in future watchings. Not that it’ll ever become a favorite, I don’t think, but it might improve in my eyes.)

Anyway, basically, a lot of this felt rushed or like...introduced but not really addressed/wrapped up in any kind of satisfactory fashion? Kylo Ren’s arc in particular, as I’ve mentioned before, plus the Threepio stuff felt rushed and non-consequential, and also with Rey’s arc to an extent (it...again, all the beats worked for me/I thought it was fairly effective, but it really needed two movies to pay off as well as it could have). ...I mean, there are more plot threads I could probably mention here, but those are the three that stuck out the most.

Also, this movie needed More Rose :( I LOVE HER and she was barely here!!!!!

Another thing I would’ve liked to see is...okay, I really liked the Overlapping Voices bit, but it would’ve been nice to have more Presence from the ghosts? Like...there’s a bit at the end of season 1 of Sailor Moon where she’s in the Final Battle, the other four have died (or just been left behind, if you’re watching the English dub), and their ghosts show up and place their hands on hers and lend her their strength? A visual cue like that would’ve been great and helped the arc feel more complete. Especially since Palpatine had all of his predecessors/Sith ghosts backing him in a more visible fashion. But, then again, that’s a Personal Taste thing and while it would’ve, IMO, made that moment better, not having it doesn’t make it worse, if that makes sense?

(Also, the credits moved too fast for me to track, but I definitely saw Qui-Gon Jinn listed, though I don’t recall hearing him, and I definitely recognized Anakin/Hayden Christensen and Mace/Samuel L. Jackson and Obi-Wan/Ewan McGreggor (and Alec Guinness I’m pretty sure?) and obvs. Yoda/Frank Oz when actually listening, but I couldn’t identify the other voices--anyone have the full list? Was Ahsoka and/or Kanan and/or Ezra involved, or was it restricted to movie-only Jedi?)

But...yeah. Apart from the Kiss being very ....:/ for me, most of my identifiable problems with the film is stuff like this.

I think the other thing I want to talk about in detail is the Rey Palpatine reveal.

So, up until this movie, I was actually in my corner flying my tiny but determined Rey Kenobi flag, and the more I think about it, the more I like Rey Palpatine for some of the same reasons? Like...I don’t remember everything I’d thought through about Rey Kenobi, but it had to do with the cyclical nature of Star Wars, and bringing it back where it started--and we get that with Rey Palpatine, in a nice arc, healing some of the damage her grandfather did, both to this family and to the galaxy as a whole.

That being said--those of you who know me and my fic projects know I’ve been writing a child (daughter) for Palpatine for quite some time now, and I have no intention of stopping, lol. Am I going to take this/Lavinia’s (presumably) half-brother into account in future projects? ...probably not. But I am looking forward to/hoping we get a novel or something about him and Rey’s mother. Because that is actually a story I’m interested in--why canon!Palpatine chose to have a kid, and how said kid managed to break away and got to this point. [...y’know, I actually think Rey Kenobi’s background/thread of descent would be less interesting to me? Since I subscribe to the idea that a) Korkie Kryze is Obi-Wan’s biological son; and b) Obi-Wan had many Friends With Benefits throughout the galaxy and figuring out exactly which one Rey descends from carries less weight for me.]

...okay, I think that’s all the Detaily Bits I want to get into, so here are some bullet points of things that really stuck out to me, in no particular order:

Bawled like a baby re: everything involving Carrie Fisher. Just...yeah. Miss you Space Mommy.

LANDO! I loved his entrance, I loved him adopting Jannah at the end, I loved all of it.

Chewie’s fake-out death was also actually pretty good/well-handled. I mean. First Boom happens and I’m like DDDDDDD: but then I remember how people reacted to his death in Legends and I’m like would they really do it and then DELIGHT.

HUX. Okay. I never really cared about this dude before, and honestly I still don’t really care about this dude but at the same time, those of you who know me know I have a Thing for double-agents and defectors and I LOVE THIS WHOLE ENTIRE PLOT THREAD. I LOVE THIS SHITHEAD TURNING TRAITOR FOR THE MOST VENAL REASONS AND STILL BEING A BAD GUY/EVIL/AN UNREPENTANT JACKASS. THIS WAS PERFECT.

(Also Finn shooting him in the leg instead of the arm as requested was DELIGHTFUL)

SPEAKING OF DELIGHTFUL gotta love Zombie Skeev Palpatine Unliving His Best Afterlife. Was he as Delightful as he is in ROTS or ROTJ? No. Did I still enjoy every minute of his scenery-chewing nonsense? You bet your ass. So happy, Ian McDiarmid looked like he was having tons of fun and honestly what more could I have asked for?

The whole scene on Ahch-To was just *chef’s kiss.* Use of Yoda’s theme with the rising X-Wing, Luke being snarky and kind and beautiful, him emerging from the fire with the saber...just loved it.

LEIA HAD JEDI TRAINING AND HER OWN LIGHTSABER. BB!MARK HAMILL AND BB!CARRIE FISHER’S FACES.

LEIA TRAINING REY. REY CALLING HER ‘MASTER.’

USING THE BOND TO ARM KYLO REN okay like I said I have Mixed Feelings about the arc as a whole but that moment was SO COOL.

Poe’s ex-girlfriend was pretty great, ngl.

JANNAH AND EX-STORMTROOPERS YESSSSSSSS

HINTS OF/SHREDS OF EVIDENCE FOR FORCE-SENSITIVE FINN GIVE THEM TO ME NOW.

D-0 was pretty cute!

All of the Badass Finn.

Also that MOMENT where Finn runs up to Poe like “I NEED TO TELL YOU A THING” and Poe is all “I NEED YOU TO FIGHT WITH ME” and Finn just interrupts himself to thank Poe and they have that “General” “General” moment and it’s SO CUTE I’m love it.

The entire thing at the Lars farm at the end. Just. Burying the lightsabers, seeing the twins’ ghosts, claiming the Skywalker name, Rey having her own saber now. This movie was a Hot Mess but it definitely ended on a high note.

...that’s pretty much what I have for right now. I will probably have more thoughts after discussing it with other people/seeing it again (because I will be seeing it again). But overall...do I like it? Well, it’s Star Wars, which I love and which frankly always has some Super Dumb and/or Frustrating Stuff, and the things I disliked weren’t bad enough to Ruin It for me, so yes, I liked it. Is it my favorite Star Wars/good for a Star Wars movie? ...not really, no. It did have some gorgeous moments, but it doesn’t really hang together. Like the rest of the ST, it relies way too much on It’s All There In The Manual and, between that and the fact that TLJ didn’t do the work necessary to set it up, the movie felt rushed and a little bit...I don’t want to say hollow, maybe shallow is a better word? I mean, I know this is Star Wars and It’s Not That Deep (but the ground is soft and I’m ready to dig or however the quote goes), but this felt particularly shallow even for Star Wars. Like...cotton candy, fairly good/tasty but a little bit prone to melting away and with very little substance holding it together. On that level, I’d actually probably rank it around Solo (which, let me say, I really like)--so, better than TLJ, but still A Hot Mess of a movie. But I enjoyed myself, and I think overall my feelings are middling-to-positive on it. Even if...honestly, even like less than four hours after the movie ending, I’m already forgetting like half the plot points...? Like I said. Cotton Candy.

What did/do you guys think?

[staringatthetwinsuns]

On writing Luke Skywalker as a character with a disability (meta thoughts)

Inspired by this post and the immensely thoughtful reblogs that go with it, I am going to try to consolidate my thoughts, advice, pet peeves, and feels about writing Luke Skywalker as a character with a disability (and perhaps touch a bit on Anakin/Vader). This is something I've actually spent a lot of time thinking about, and I don’t see it talked about very often, but now that I know I’m not the only one who thinks about it, I thought I'd try to share my perspective at least and start a conversation. Please feel free to add to, question, or outright argue with anything here.

First, a disclaimer: I am not an amputee, a doctor, an occupational therapist, or anyone else with relevant personal experience. I have personal reasons for caring deeply about this, but the most important ones are probably just wanting to see my favorite character written well and wanting to see diverse characters represented in fiction in general, so. Take this as you will.

Also, I will say in advance that I mix person-first language ("person with a disability") and identity-first language ("disabled person") here, because I know there are people who prefer both.... apologies/warnings in advance if you strongly dislike or are triggered by either.

So, first things first, and this is really just general writing advice that could apply to any disability or ANY aspect of a character's appearance… to what extent is is even necessary to address Luke's prosthetic hand in fic? The post I linked to above was really talking about art, and in that case, I suppose you do have to make some sort of choice—to draw Luke with a natural-looking hand like he had in ESB, a black glove as in ROTJ, or a metal hand like in the sequel trilogy. In fic, however, it doesn’t always need to really be addressed at all. Again, this goes for ANY aspect of a character’s appearance, and the golden rule is: Would the POV character (the character whose point of view we are in at the moment) notice or care at this particular moment in the story? You know how it feels weird when you read a bad YA fantasy novel and the narrator says something like "I looked at him with my brilliant purple eyes, which perfectly accented my flawless ivory skin"? That’s unnatural because actual people (even teenagers, shock! horror!) don’t really go around thinking about their own eye color or how flawless their skin is (unless they're incredibly unlikable, and then why would we want to read about them?). They’d be slightly more likely to be thinking about it if their skin WASN'T flawless and that zit they found this morning was bothering them, etc. Cardinal rule: don’t mention anything the narrator or POV character wouldn’t logically be thinking about at the time.

So, whether you even need to mention Luke's hand at all probably depends on a number of factors: Whose POV are we in? When does the fic take place? (Luke's going to be more aware of his new hand between ESB and ROTJ, for example, than decades in the future.) Does anything specifically happen that reminds the POV character of the fact that his hand's a prosthetic?

Which brings me, I suppose, to the next thing: Whether it even counts as a disability at all and the fact that, EVEN IF IT DOESN'T, you still can't really ignore it as if his hand just magically regenerated.

So, first. Is having an amazing cybernetic limb in the Star Wars universe a disability? I say a cautious yes… or at the very least, it's a medical condition on the same level with say, wearing glasses or contacts or having a hip replacement or something in the real world?

I do think it depends on a lot of factors though, and movie canon, at least, doesn’t give us a lot of answers. We don’t really know how much feeling Luke has in his hand… pressure/pain is established, but what about heat or cold? Does it hurt at all (aside from pain sensors)? Is it stronger, weaker, less flexible (more flexible? That's a bit hard to imagine?) etc, than his other hand? I think it PROBABLY counts as a disability and at least counts as something that would affect his daily life in AT THE VERY LEAST small ways. More on that later.

I don’t actually remember what Legends had to say about any of this but again, movie canon doesn’t give us a lot. Here are some of the things I appreciate fanfic writers thinking about, though. (For the record, I am GUILTY AS HELL of overlooking some of this stuff myself in certain fics though, so don't feel bad if you have too… just suggestions for things we probably SHOULD be considering!)

1. How different is the sense of touch or the range of movement in Luke's prosthetic right hand, compared to his left hand? Does it affect the way he does things? Does he favor one hand over the other in certain situations because of this? Does this change as time goes by and any differences become his norm? (I'd personally think there'd be some difference… not necessarily better or worse, but different, and that over time it would definitely start to feel normal.)

2. How different does it look or feel to other people? 1980s-era special effects aside, look at the rest of the technology in the universe. Look at your own hand for goodness' sake. I can’t imagine it’s a perfect replica. Like, I can see the bones and veins in my hand. My fingernails get too long and split and have ragged cuticles. There's no WAY that anyone would even WANT a prosthetic hand that realistic, so. There's got to be some difference. Especially in a romantic or sexual situation, especially fairly soon after ESB, it seems weird not to mention this. I HAVE seen fics that addressed the body temperature issue, either by having the other character be surprised that his hand WAS warm or stating that it wasn't? I guess I personally don't think that heating would be a priority and that it might therefore be cooler than his other hand? Again, definitely not always necessary but, in certain scenes might be important and gets sometimes ignored.

3. There is no f-ing way that Luke’s hand actually ages, so… while I agree that the "Oh all the skin just fell off" idea is stupid, what DOES he do as he ages? Go for the metal model because it doesn’t look the same anyway so it doesn't MATTER if he ages? Get the skin updated to look more like whatever age he is now? Just… have a random 22-year-old-looking hand even though the rest of him is 50?

4. Regardless of whatever you go with for #3, either the entire hand or some of its parts must need replacing over time. Anyone who thinks people use the same prostheses for 30 years doesn’t know anyone who actually uses one (or hasn’t known them for very long, anyway), and even if you play the "advanced technology" card.. want to show me a 30-year-old car, airplane, or space shuttle that has NEVER HAD A PART REPLACED EVER? Can he do the maintenance himself (one-handed? Well, at least he has the Force?) or does a medical droid need to do it, etc?

5. What does the REST of the galaxy think about this? The only canon instances of ableism I can think of are Obi-Wan’s "more machine now than man" in ROTJ, and Dooku's not-so-nice thoughts about Anakin's arm in the ROTS novelization (although Palpatine obviously feels differently in the same scene), but… on the whole is there any stigma attached, or not? If so, is Luke more like "screw it," or is he somewhat self-conscious? What do Leia, Han, Chewie, Wedge... whoever else is in the fic, think? I mean, seriously... imagine a loved one losing a limb. You might not CARE (you shouldn't CARE, in the sense of loving them less or differently, and I don't think any of the above characters would either) but it would still be a thing to get used to?

6. Back to technical stuff, just how much of his arm IS mechanical anyway? Definitely seems to be more than he actually lost to Vader. (This Quora post is fascinating.) Again, usually not relevant since Luke never wears anything but long sleeves after ESB (which is a travesty; look at those ARMS on Dagobah), but… might be relevant if he’s naked in your fic? ;)

7. Related to #6, how obvious is the point where the synthskin meets his natural skin? This could probably be barely noticeable (theatrical makeup experience FTW?) but, might not be? Is this the reason he always wears long sleeves? XD I can't imagine synthskin can tan or grow hair or anything, right???

Okay, so assuming you've put the thought into your headcanon for the above (I… really hadn’t either until recently though, and my fics are all inconsistent so… no judgment either way), let me come back to this "minor thing that affects your life in small ways" thing.

I don’t really get the impression that, with Luke anyway, this particular fandom pays TOO MUCH attention to his prosthetic hand to the point where it feels like a fetish. I have read a COUPLE of fics that felt icky that way, but many more involving Anakin/Vader. If anything, it gets kind of over-ignored as a perfect replacement that is exactly like his biological hand in every way.

That's just not possible. It's not. And even if it WERE scientifically possible (in a very cyberpunk-ish world, no less) would anyone BOTHER to make a cybernetic hand with ugly veins, scraggly cuticles, and age spots?

So. Even if you don’t consider it a disability, it’s a THING. I don’t think my wearing contacts is a disability, but I still can't open my eyes underwater, and if I nap in the afternoon my eyes get dry and gunky, and if I drive somewhere and lose a contact I legally and literally CANNOT drive home (never happened but, anxiety FTW?), and don't forget that one time I lived through a major earthquake and all the supermarkets ran out of food because the roads were closed, you better bet I was worried about what would happen if I ran out of One Day Acuvue before the courier services opened back up (actually go to an eye doctor and get that awful glaucoma test? *shudder*). Similarly, someone who can walk normally on an artificial hip or knee isn’t disabled in the same sense that someone who uses a wheelchair is, but they still set off metal detectors and can’t sit comfortably in certain positions. It may or may not be a major thing, but it is a thing… and it does seem weird to me that a lot of writers seem to treat Luke’s hand as a perfect replacement when it CAN'T BE. For example:

1. It's metal in his body. I’ve translated enough medical documents to know that THAT IS A THING. Metal detectors, MRIs, whatever… there are times when metal vs. organic material is a thing.

2. He can't possibly have the same fingerprints, if he has any fingerprints at all. It MIGHT be possible for a planned amputation but… that hand was lost. Any biometric-type military clearance Luke has now has to be reset/redone. Finger vein identification etc. is probably a no-go period. (NEW THOUGHT: Unless the Alliance had his fingerprints on file... doesn't REALLY match up with the rest of the technology of the world, but... cool possibility?)

3. Maintenance. Especially considering if he’s going to live on a water planet with exposed mechanical parts with no one else to help him do maintenance if needed *side-eyes Rian Johnson*

4. Ongoing pain? This is a headcanon of mine anyway. From what I understand, phantom pain comes from the brain sending out signals to a limb that is no longer there, and getting no response. Since Luke’s hand DOES have feeling, I don’t think he’d have that kind of ongoing issue, BUT. I do think there’d be pain right after he got it (again, talk to anyone who’s had a joint replaced?) and I kind of imagine his hand aching whenever he was reminded of Vader or of losing it. Not a necessary thing to work in, I suppose, but that’s a headcanon I use a lot.

5. Identity as a disabled person? I have seen this addressed in some fics, and I agree that it might not have a place one way or the other in a story that has nothing to do with disability, but… I do sort of see Luke being especially compassionate to other veterans or victims of the war, and to people with disabilities in general, maybe especially because he now knows that’s something he shared with his father? I also like it when fics address the fact that not everyone in the galaxy has access to what I assume was the top-of-the-line model for the Alliance’s biggest hero, at that Luke might feel guilt about that, or at least a desire to help others?

6. Vanity/self-esteem? Luke doesn’t seem like a hugely vain person to me but… would he be at all self-conscious about meeting someone new and getting the awkward questions? Does he tell the truth, and if so how much of it? Or does everyone just already know? (That wouldn’t necessarily be LESS awkward though?) Like everything else, this probably depends on when the fic is set.

7. Is there anything he’s not supposed to do, like get wet (especially without the skin, oh dear sequel trilogy)???

I guess on the whole I see Luke as a not-vain person who probably wouldn’t care THAT much about appearances (except everyone does a little, right?), but I do think his hand would be a constant reminder of Vader, for better (after ROTJ) or worse (between ESB and ROTJ). I don’t think it would be as life-changing as losing a limb in the real world today, but I also don’t think he’d go months (or even a day really) without even thinking about it, with zero changes to anything whatsoever.

I think it’s really important that the technology in Star Wars is shown to be helping and healing people, rather than just blowing things up. I LOVE that people have taken that ideal version of a prosthetic limb and made strides toward actually creating it in real life. But I also think that just ignoring the fact that Luke IS a character with a disability (however rendered-minor it is by said technology) does a huge disservice to the character and to diversity in pop culture in general.

So… long story short, I’d love to see more fics that did address this, even if it’s casually and in passing. While there are certainly situations in which the best choice is "it doesn’t matter in this scene," if anything I see Star Wars fics going too far in the other direction… not really considering this as a part of the character and the world?

[kaziel]

why are chiss the way they are? aka canon is stupid and legends/the EU can kiss my ass (pt 1)

or, the chiss should not look Like That and i am pissed off about it. this began because i was mad that people kept calling chiss cold, but instead I did some research and made myself angry about character design.

disclaimer before we begin: i am not a biologist, but i know how to google shit. this post is fueled by rage and caffeine.

 Animals built for cold places should have hot blood and animals from hot climates should have cold blood. The opposite would end badly for the poor creature involved. cold blood in cold climate = hypothermia then death. Arctic animals must keep high body temperatures to remain active. Therefore, we can prove that the chiss are not coldblooded creatures (which had been settled already, they’re genetically closest to humans and humans aren’t lizards). 

Alright I’m sure we all have some basic knowledge of animal biology here, but I’m gonna jump right in. Animals that live in extreme cold all have one thing in common: insulation (S2). That’s necessary to keep them alive, or they’d end up as ice cubes floating in an ocean. This takes a few different forms, but mainly

blubber

fur

feathers

So the Chiss don’t have feathers, nor do they have fur, and apparently in legends canon, they all have trim figures (S3). Point 1 as to why legends is bullshit and kiss my ass- the chiss apparently have no kind of insulation. Either they have one hell of a body temperature and can burn enough calories to sustain it (unlikely) or it’s just bad writing. Either way, chiss as they are described could probably not be any colder than human body temperature and still expect to survive on an icy death world. Due to this, their skin probably would not feel cold to the touch (addressed more later) unless you were outside in the winter. Which, of course it’s going to be cold- anything skinlike and exposed is going to feel cold.

As chiss are an offshoot of humanity (S3), they probably wouldn’t differ too much from humanity without quite a long time to evolve. Clearly they had enough time to turn blue from glacial minerals (bullshit, but legends supported bullshit) though legends also states that didn’t develop any of the traits in typical cold weather animals. Why? Why is that? If you wanted a skinny, always in-shape species, at least choose a proper environment (like a desert). 

Well Cahs, if you’re so pissed about it, what would you have chiss look like? I’m glad you asked! The answer is 100% (slightly freezer-burnt) beef. The fact that fat chiss don’t exist? Bullshit. The trim figures that legends is so fond of would have the poor chiss dependent completely upon heating technology and good thermal clothing to keep warm. According to legends canon, chiss also have a crazy fast metabolism- which actually fits with arctic animals. Arctic animals have fast metabolisms to burn the large amounts of energy needed to stay warm and keep their bodies in the typical range for mammals (95-107 °F) (S2). Once created, Arctic animals must have some way to conserve the heat, otherwise the animal would have find and eat a ridiculous number of calories. This leads us back to our earlier problem: insulation. The key to keeping warm is often muscle and fat, a lot of it. Fat is good insulation and helps keep the body warm in the cold (S1, 2, 7) and it’s a common theme for cold weather animals to have a healthy supply. Examples: Blubber on whales and seals, animals gaining weight before winter. If there’s enough food around it’s easier for mammals to be larger, because heat production is proportional to mass (S5), thus arctic animals are usually larger than their warm weather counterparts. 

So let’s assume that if the chiss had enough time to turn blue, they had enough time to adjust the cold hellscape of their planet. 

To start with, they’d be larger and stronger than typical humans. Legends supports the ‘stronger’ part, though the average heights (chiss 1.7m vs human 1.77m) are about the same. Legends can kiss my ass; let’s set a new average height of 1.9m, or around 6′2″. Now, a figure without insulation is bullshit in an arctic environment is bullshit, so let’s add some Beef™ to these guys. They’d probably have a good layer of fat, and a decent amount of muscle. Now, as having a whole species share one body type is limiting, boring, and unrealistic (@ legends), there’s a huge amount of body shapes I can think of off the top of my head that could fit the above criteria. What I’m picturing is a strongman, one without the glossy abs (like this guy). Now, looking at features of other cold weather animals like polar bears and seals, they could (and probably should) have thicker/tougher skin. Spilling blood = loosing warmth, and loosing warmth is bad in cold environments. Polar bears and seals also have dark skin; polar bears have black skin, while seals can have dark shades of brown, purple, or black (S6). This is close enough to blue, I guess I’ll let that one and “”glacial minerals”” slide. The polar bear, arctic wolf, and arctic fox are a few notable examples of cold weather animals with fur- white fur. In the case of polar bears, translucent fur that appears white because of light refraction (S6). This fur usually has a downy, thick undercoat, and then a layer of oily, water repellent hair. The thick, water repellent hair is plausible in a human related species, I believe, and would be beneficial in keeping heads warm. I’m gonna go ahead and say they’d have some body hair too, probably a good amount. You can never have too much insulation if you live on (or under the surface of) a literal ice ball. Realistically, they’d overheat pretty damn fast. It’s possibly to tone that down considering humans can withstand a wide range of temperatures and the fancy thermal gear that exists in the star wars universe, but tatooine is probably still off the menu. So in summary chiss would be/have:

stronger/larger than humans

grey/blue skin

translucent/white hair

more muscle and fat

overheat very easily

warm-blooded

For the hell of it, I’m going to throw a better immune system and sharper senses into the mix, along with an arterial heat-passing system that allows for better heat conservation (S5). Chiss would also have some damn good appetites, because they’d need a lot of food with the metabolism they have. Additionally, it’s been confirmed in the new Thrawn novel that chiss have some measure of infrared vision, which is fitting for living in a rather bleak landscape and underground in caverns.  Legends says their skin and eyes are more vivid the higher the oxygen content. Sure, whatever, the oxygen content is probably pretty damn high in caves, and glowy eyes are handy. More likely, chiss just have very reflective eyes (good for the above ground brightness) that appear to glow red in darker areas. Like cat’s eyes in the dark.

counter argument: “they’re aliens!!1!” “it’s fiction!!!11!!”

I see your points, I do. However, if chiss are on offshoot of humanity, that means they originally evolved on a human world, with familiar human creatures that followed earth-like laws. If they didn’t, legends probably wouldn’t be so damn insistent on keeping them humans, but instead blue with edgy eyes. Also you want star wars hand waving? look at the “glacial minerals.”

Now, the chiss live underground. They wouldn’t be as exposed to the cold of the planet, however the crust of a planet is pretty damn thick so it probably wouldn’t be too much warmer down there without the help of technology. The chiss are also a very technologically advanced society, and have most likely have properly climate controlled buildings (probably cold for humans tho), good insulated clothing, and probably eliminated most of the need for cold weather traits. However, they were needed at some time. and de-evolution isn’t exactly quick. 

So all in all, star wars should check their shit when it comes to biology and y’all with a thing for white hair will be happy. 

thanks for coming to my ted talk, goodnight.

(next up: what fucking chemical could turn chiss blue)

SOURCES:

S1- https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-do-arctic-animals-stay-warm/ 

S2- http://www.coolantarctica.com/Antarctica%20fact%20file/science/cold_all_animals.php

S3 - http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Chiss/Legends

S4- https://www.earthlife.net/mammals/warm.html

S5- https://biology.stackexchange.com/questions/5562/how-do-warm-blooded-animals-keep-their-temperatures-constant

S6- http://animals.mom.me/mammals-black-skin-9898.html

dubiously credible

S7- https://weather.com/health/news/do-fat-people-stay-warmer-cold-weather-thin-people-20140103

S8- https://www.reddit.com/r/NoStupidQuestions/comments/2ip5ov/do_skinny_people_have_a_lower_body_temperature/