#tales of the jedi Dooku

[writingforfun0714]

So I talked about TotJ and shared what I liked/thought could be improved/what I hope to see here

Warnings: Spoilers for Tales of the Jedi, headcanons, beginner video editor

App used: VLLO video editing app and Adobe Lightroom (I used Lightroom once to fix a photo 6yrs ago in a college course of mine)

COPYWRIGHT!—ALL CHARACTERS BELONG TO DISNEY/LUCAS/THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS.

One of the things I mentioned was Dooku’s lightsaber color change during ep4 The Sith Lord. I said that I would’ve loved to have seen the blue fade to purple then to red as he struck down Master Yaddle. I’m sure that goes against how Dooku actually got his lightsaber red, I just thought it would be cool if his saber changed during that fight. So I made a video about it. If that were to happen/I was in charge, I would have the saber change from blue to purple when Dooku collapses the door on Yaddle and then from purple to red when he strikes the already defeated Master down. I only included the important parts (not the whole fight).

*I DON’T KNOW HOW TO EDIT VIDEOS!* What does that mean?

—The audio is 95% fine (it works it’s just the edit/timing is a bit weird)

—I don’t know how to color change specific objects in videos so the whole picture gets color changed

—I don’t know how to make the colors fade into each other so the color changes are kind of abrupt (I used a transition for the blue/purple change and cut 2 vids together for the purple/red change).

[gffa]

Here's why I don't think Qui-Gon could be the magical answer to "How do you solve a problem like Anakin Skywalker?" because of this right here. Qui-Gon directly witnesses Dooku's anger at the Senator who is oppressing the people of his planet, that he uses the Force in anger, he's literally Force-choking people right in front of Qui-Gon's eyes, and that's the same kind of thing Anakin does, the big red warning flag. So what does Qui-Gon do about it? He gets the Senator's son to help calm this specific situation down, puts a hand on Dooku's shoulder and gently says, "It's over now." But beyond that he doesn't really step in to make Dooku do anything, which is especially understandable here, but even as a Jedi Master we see that he never really stepped in to do anything with Dooku. Which isn't Qui-Gon's fault, this is not a castigation of him or saying he was wrong. Because it's Dooku's choice to not deal with his darker feelings. Because we see that Yaddle does try to reach out to him but it still has to be Dooku's choice, she couldn't make it for him, Qui-Gon couldn't make it for him, all they can do is handle what's in front of them in the moment and be there if the person reaches out. They have to trust and believe in the person that they care about. Which Qui-Gon very obviously does! You can hear it in his voice and see it on his face in these scenes! And what I'm getting at is--that's exactly what Obi-Wan does with Anakin as well. He reaches out to talk to him, he makes himself available, we see that in AOTC, in TCW, in ROTS. We see on his face that he cares so much about Anakin! We see others make themselves available for Anakin to talk to, but that it has to be his choice still. Qui-Gon cared about Dooku, who was falling to the dark, just as Obi-Wan and Padme and Yoda cared about Anakin who was falling to the dark. Qui-Gon could not have magically solved Anakin's fall to the dark side because we already see he couldn't magically solve Dooku's, because it has to be that the person wants to make a different choice, they have to want to open up and be vulnerable. There's so much sympathy to be had for why Dooku or Anakin made the choices they did, that's why these characters love and care about them so much, because their motivations are sympathy-inspiring. But no one could save them from themselves if they didn't want to make the choice themselves, and Qui-Gon would not have been that magic save for Anakin, any more than Obi-Wan could have been a magic save for Dooku, if they'd been introduced sooner, not with the way Star Wars' narrative intentions work. I do believe that, in different circumstances (ones that mix-and-match Qui-Gon and Yoda and Obi-Wan's influences in their lives) people might have been inspired to make different choices, but it wouldn't have been a magic save. It would still be down to that the characters are responsible for their own choices and that Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan and Yoda are all generally equally able to/not able to save others. Qui-Gon wouldn't magically save Anakin from falling to the dark and couldn't save Dooku from falling to the dark, because he doesn't magically strip them of their own agency. That doesn't mean Qui-Gon cares about them any less, just like I honestly believe that Obi-Wan would have cared deeply about Dooku if places had been swapped, but he couldn't have magically saved him, either. Obi-Wan loved Anakin and did his best. Qui-Gon loved Dooku and did his best. And both of those beloved people still made their own choices, because all you can do is make yourself available and believe in them, whether they come through or not.

[stealingpotatoes]

*looks at cal.* I mean, if I were in yaddle's shoes, I would have sent a message to let the council know dooku was doing some shady shit in the industrial sector. So that way, if I never came back, they would know why. Or you know, run when your friend whips out his Saber and the hooded man you think is a sith is telling him to kill you. But hey, I guess I'm just built differently. Such as having common sense.

oh true I'll give you that... alternatively she could've brought her 8ft tall padawan along with her

[renif]

"qui-gon jinn has become one with the force"

finally watched the tales of the jedi and "dooku's fall" theme absolutely blew me away along with the overall vibes of the show, it was so... mournful.

[smhalltheurlsaretaken]

obviously dooku sadly reminiscing about qui-gon in front of obi-wan is an attempt at manipulating him, but there is some truth behind his calculated display (he is genuinely missing qui-gon and hoping that qui-gon might see his side of things if he were here), and you gotta love how utterly delusional that makes dooku look.

like. sure. SURE. qui-gon would TOTALLY join your fight against the corruption of the republic. he totally wouldn't object to you making that corruption a billion times worse when you colluded with a corrupt senator to engineer a diplomatic crisis to force a no-confidence vote to rig an election to get a fcking sith lord in power - the same sith lord that ordered his death, by the way. SUUUURE.

he ABSOLUTELY wouldn't mind that your "freedom movement" designed to "fight corruption" is headed by plutocrats directly benefiting from the conflict because they're either weapons manufacturers or slave drivers lusting after deregulated markets. he wouldn't mind that your great cause is an avowed front for a sham war with the utter annihilation of the "corrupt" republic to the profit of absolute dictatorship as its ultimate goal. SUUUUUURE. like, dooku, you let him get KILLED in the name of this shitshow and then you have the AUDACITY to go 'oh i miss him i'm sure he'd have been totally down for my flawless fakeass Glorious Revolution plans.' the absurdity.

[mcgregor]

TALES OF THE JEDI | Episode 4 ‘The Sith Lord’ STAR WARS; EPISODE 2 - ATTACK OF THE CLONES

[xxviolet]

… and I will not be there to protect you, my old Padawan.

[hayden-christensen]

STAR WARS: TALES OF THE JEDI (October 26, 2022)

[orion-kenobi]

Count Dooku’s philosophy is so funny. “I think the Jedi Order is doing things wrong. The only way to remedy this is to do worse things.”

[rmstitanics]

COUNT DOOKU AND ANAKIN SKYWALKER

“ Perhaps he reminds me too much of myself at the same age. Arrogant. Impulsive. Proud. ” — COUNT DOOKU on ANAKIN SKYWALKER in Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

╰► INSPIRED BY POSTS FROM @david-talks-sw AND @smhalltheurlsaretaken AND @gffa

[ventresses]

Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi (1/?)

Star Wars + Text Posts & Headlines

[starwarsfilms]

TALES OF THE JEDI (2022) // ATTACK OF THE CLONES (2002)

[gffa]

#LINEAGE #I’M CRYING ABOUT HOW EACH GENERATION OF JEDI SEES THE NEXT AS WISER THAN THEMSELVES #EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE JEDI MASTERS GENUINELY ADORED THEIR PADAWAN #EACH ONE OF THEM SAW THEIR STUDENT AS A JOY TO TEACH #AND EACH ONE OF THEM TOLD THEIR APPRENTICE SO #YEAH THEY MAY BE THE DISASTER LINEAGE #BUT THEY WERE SO GOOD TO EACH OTHER

[mandhos]

[smhalltheurlsaretaken]

One thing I do like about TOTJ's take on Dooku's fall is that it really highlights that the Dark Side makes you absolutely masochistic. (Mega long post ahead).

One thing TOTJ establishes is that Qui-Gon's death is absolutely on Dooku (no matter if the show itself doesn't seem to be aware of it).

His tone is concerned and his attitude sympathetic and supportive, but he knows. He knows it's a Sith Lord (he even knows Maul's name). He knows Qui-Gon almost died and is marching right into another trap, but he asks questions anyway and affects ignorance.

"I've been warning them about the coming darkness for years," he says, "never to be taken seriously." Using the Council's skepticism as an occasion to complain about how they didn't believe him while lying by omission is a great case of that hypocrisy Dooku loves denouncing in others. Dooku would rather Qui-Gon share his disillusionment with the Jedi than actually do anything to help Qui-Gon. The Council don't believe him? Okay, Dooku, but YOU DO. You can just tell him what's going on.

But he doesn't.

On some level, Dooku has to be aware of what's about to happen. Qui-Gon is walking into grave danger, and Dooku's response to that - before it happens, when there is still time to stop it - is to put the blame on the people who don't know shit while not doing shit himself. (Why can't Dooku be there to protect Qui-Gon, other than because he's already slavishly loyal to Sidious' plans?)

And this moment puts every subsequent action of Dooku's throughout the Prequels in perspective - particularly his relationships with Obi-Wan, Ventress and Yoda.

Dooku is a glutton for punishment.

I've written here about why I think the 'Box' from TCW 4x17 is meant to parallel Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon's mission on Naboo. The dioxis, ventilation shafts, the catwalks and lightsabers, the ray shields, the fire pit... Dooku's idea of a test to find the best mercenaries around is to have them survive what killed Qui-Gon (what he allowed to happen).

During the challenge, it's pretty obvious he starts to suspect Hardeen is Obi-Wan.

Or at the very least, he's taking an interest in the man who supposedly killed Qui-Gon's own apprentice - Dooku's spiritual grandson (see RotS novelization), whom he's been trying very hard to either recruit or kill himself. And what does he do with that interest? Tries to push "Hardeen" to kill Eval in anger.

Dooku, who still mourns the Padawan he knowingly let walk away to his death, watches a pantomime of his Padawan's death, while putting in mortal danger all he has left of said apprentice. If he knows Hardeen is Obi-Wan (and it's pretty obvious that he does), he tries to get Obi-Wan to Fall (or potentially die) in a scenario reenacting Qui-Gon's death. If he doesn't know for sure, then he's encouraging his all but grandson's killer to win the tournament because he admires him (for killing someone Dooku wanted by his side).

Whatever the outcome, Dooku chooses to relive his guilt and chooses to make the same choice to kill his loved one all over again, even though we know he hates that he made this choice:

He misses Qui-Gon and needs him but tries to kill or destroy Obi-Wan, whom he needs and wants by his side. (I haven't counted just how many time he does try killing Obi-Wan in TCW while still expressing his indefectible admiration for him - it's frequent, the Box just stands out to me as one of the most noteworthy occasions.)

And he keeps doing stuff like that!! He keeps choosing the path that causes him the most pain. He does it with Sifo-Dyas, he does it with Yaddle, he does it with Yoda and he does it with Ventress.

Just look at him confronting Sidious about Qui-Gon's death:

He KNOWS following Sidious got Qui-Gon murdered and he KNOWS Sidious will continue to kill or order him to kill people close to him. And yet he's quick to reassure Sidious that this doesn't change anything. Securing his position with Sidious matters more than his rage and grief. The ONLY WAY this behavior makes sense is if Dooku is fully aware that he had a choice about Qui-Gon's fate, and decides that this is the path he's on now: Sidious might make him kill everyone he cares about, but he's going to do it. Every time, things will play out the same.

Sidious tells him to kill Ventress, his new apprentice? Sure, why not!

(And it's not even out of true loyalty for Sidious, because he constantly tries to double-cross him later on. It's pure self-destruction:)

He hates it, Sidious promises him more of it, and he goes along with it!

This is why Yaddle's attempts at bringing him back don't work, in my opinion:

"Whatever lies he's told you, whatever you have done, you can make up for it now by bringing him to justice." This might convince a man who is looking for atonement, except Dooku isn't. He is looking for punishment.

Killing or harming those close to him leaves him broken, furious or in pain? He'll just keep doing it.

Sidious offers him nothing more than agonizing slavery? He'll keep on kneeling.

That's when Yaddle literally offers him the Light - the light that is so much more powerful than the Dark that it has Sidious cowering, the light that can save him if he wants - Dooku just strikes her down, even though he was heartbroken over thinking he had killed her just a moment ago.

He chooses to kill her, regrets it and hates himself for it, and chooses to kill her again. HE KEEPS MAKING THE CHOICE THAT HE KNOWS WILL HURT.

His remedy to guilt is to pick a shovel, because by God if he hasn't hit rock bottom yet he's going to dig!

[mcgregor]

A Sith Lord is not to be trifled with. TALES OF THE JEDI | Episode 4 : The Sith Lord