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smhalltheurlsaretaken · 10 months

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(repost of this with the video directly in the post because vimeo links are acting up)

Rewatching this scene for the sweet angst, something struck me. In hindsight it's extremely obvious but I'd never thought about it this way.

There's the very obvious parallels with Qui-Gon's death, down to Satine caressing Obi-Wan's cheek, there's that amazing bit of mirrored exchange, where Obi-Wan starts off confrontational and angry and Maul gloating, and then Obi-Wan becomes soft-spoken and empathetic and Maul starts to shake with rage and pain and can't even properly face him, and then there's this.

Maul boasts that the Dark Side is "more powerful than [Obi-Wan] knows," that Obi-Wan's "noble flaw" is a weakness, so why is he trying to make him more powerful? Why tell him to use the Dark Side? Why basically give him a crash course about how it works? Does he want Obi-Wan to retaliate? To escape?

The obvious answer is that Maul isn't trying to make Obi-Wan more powerful. After all, he's well aware that Obi-Wan is a dogshit fighter when he's angry.

Immediately after that last quote, he says "that is not the Jedi way, is it?" as a taunt, and again in The Lawless, he insists "You should have chosen the Dark Side, Master Jedi."

So he's simply trying to destroy him as a Jedi, right? Because he knows that's what make Obi-Wan who he is, and he blames Obi-Wan for robbing him of his status along with his life, so he wants to destroy Obi-Wan's life in the ways that matter (since, as Obi-Wan says, just killing him is nothing like destroying him). But if that's the case, then we're back to the "power" issue. What's the point of destroying Obi-Wan if it's by giving him what Maul claims is his own identity, and the key to freedom?

And imo the answer lies right here:

Why would killing Satine make Obi-Wan share Maul's pain? Why would Maul regard the pain of losing a loved one (something he's completely unfamiliar with at this point) as equal to his torment? Why isn't he chopping Obi-Wan in half and keeping him alive with Nightsister magick instead? Why would the murder of one of Obi-Wan's loved ones, picked almost at random, be THE "moment" Maul has been thinking about "for years"?

I think he really isn't talking about Satine's murder in and of itself when he talks of pain. The pain he wants Obi-Wan to share isn't the pain of loss, but very simply the pain of living in the Dark Side.

That's why Satine really is just a "tool" to his vengeance, as he says, and not the main point. That's why he's so enraged that Obi-Wan insists on showing him compassion even through his fear and anger - being kind leaves you open to grief but protects from the agony of the Dark.

Maul wants Obi-Wan to Fall, to stop being a Jedi, not because he truly believes the Dark Side gives you good things, but because he knows the Dark Side makes you miserable.

He tries to freaking teach Obi-Wan how to Fall, like Obi-Wan is a Sith apprentice, because being a Sith is the most miserable you're ever going to get! He tries to make Obi-Wan suffer by making him like him! He's so self-loathing his hatred of Obi-Wan materializes as self-hatred!

And hey, that greatly complements the end of the episode - Obi-Wan resists the Dark Side and escapes the planet, and Maul revels in it and immediately loses the only person he cares about and ends up crawling and crying while Sidious gleefully tortures him. Maul falls victim to every form of suffering he wanted to inflict on Obi-Wan and Obi-Wan flies away. In the end, Maul is proven right: being Fallen really f*cking sucks.

Really accentuates that Maul wanted relief above all when he sought out Obi-Wan in Rebels. He went to the only person who had shown him actual compassion, and the person he knew was best at resisting the Dark Side - so he could finally be free.

#darth maul #obi-wan kenobi #satine kryze #maul #star wars #jedi vs sith #the dark side #the lawless #meta #my meta #long post

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yiliy · 5 months

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Despite Obi-Wan cutting Anakin down to size, that’s not how Obi-Wan wanted things to end. Gillard reveals that he designed the fight so that Obi-Wan was trying to wear out Anakin in order to calm him down and set things right.

“I did write [the fight choreography] like a husband and a wife having a fight. Anakin thinks Obi is maybe having an affair with Padme at that point, so he's already gone to the Dark Side. For Obi, it's about just trying to absorb it long enough that he can get him back,” Gillard said.

- IGN, interview with stunt coordinator/fight choreographer Nick Gillard

#Star Wars #Star Wars meta #Revenge of the Sith #RotS #Anakin #ObiWan #Anakin vs Obi Wan #Obi Wan #Kenobi #Jedi #Sith #Nick Gillard #Star Wars prequels #Star Wars interview #RotS interview #SW RotS #Revenge of the Sith stunt coordinator #Obi Wan Kenobi #Obi-Wan Kenobi

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daisyswift3 · 8 months

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That was without a doubt THE best episode of a live action Star Wars series I’ve ever seen. The fight choreography, the visuals, the acting, the plot twists—it hit all the marks, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Dave Filoni has done it again

#i love when shows have smart nuanced writing #they could’ve easily made it sith vs jedi light vs dark like w prev stories but they didn’t #they chose to explore the gray areas which is why it’s so brilliant #1x04 #ahsoka tv #ahsoka spoilers #ahsoka

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redsandspirit · 2 months

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Surely I'm not the only one who has noticed that in fandoms, child soldiers are hated far more than the actual adult war criminals who force them to fight? Okay, I understand that ATLA is a children's show and Azula had much more of a presence than Ozai and anyone else (which doesn't make it any less weird to me that an adult audience would react to a traumatized teenager in this way), but for me It was wild how, in a forum thread discussing the Star Wars: Jedi vs. Sith comic, people were celebrating how a Jedi beat up a thirteen-year-old child who had recently become part of their army for misbehaving. Oh, and of course, the first search query on Gabi will bring up something along the lines of “why does everyone hate Gabi” or “the reason why I don’t hate Gabi.” I'm so tired of this shit.

#avatar the last airbender #atla #azula #attack on titan #aot #gabi braun #star wars #sw #jedi vs. sith #darovit

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swtorpadawan · 8 months

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Ladies and Gentlemen, a complete List of all the former Sith Acolytes who successfully escaped Korriban alive…

Whereas on Tython, if you fail, they'll just give you a cushy job as a clerk in the Jedi Archives. 👨‍💻

These things are not the same.

#swtor talks #swtorpadawan talks #kira carsen #kendrel #sith academy #korriban #jedi academy #tython #zi'am #sith acolytes #jedi vs. sith

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starfireproductions · 5 months

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"You didn't kill Anakin Skywalker... I did."

I have posted a couple of character projects from my books but those are exclusive to my DA page so if you want to check them out, you can find them there. As such, they've taken more of my art time so other projects have been cut back to quick grey scale ones in between my main works. One of my favourite scenes from the Obi-Wan Kenobi series. The look on Anakin's face when he says this and Obi-Wan's response was just fantastic.

Full details can be found on my DA page here: https://www.deviantart.com/starfire-productions

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fellthemarvelous · 7 months

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I want to talk about Obi-Wan and Maul

This might end up being kind of long so bear with me, and my thoughts are kind of all over the place and possibly slightly incoherent.

Maul and Obi-Wan had a rivalry that was insanely brutal. (More under the cut.)

Maul survived being cut in half by Obi-Wan and ended up going insane, no longer connected to reality and living in the sewers for many years. Once Savage took him back to Dathomir and the Nightsisters "fixed" him, he found clarity again and became wholly fixated on Obi-Wan, the only person he had any connection to from his past. He hated all Jedi, but there was no one he hated more than Kenobi.

Obi-Wan, for his part, was horrified to learn that Maul had survived considering Obi-Wan had cut him in half.

Their rivalry is probably one of my favorites in all of Star Wars.

Maul was bloodthirsty, vengeful, and full of rage.

Obi-Wan was the opposite. He was kind, compassionate, took no pleasure from killing others, and loved unconditionally.

And one thing Obi-Wan eventually came to understand about Maul was that Maul had not had a good life. He recognized that Maul was raised to be the person he was because of the cruelty of Darth Sidious.

The Nightsisters handed baby Maul over to Darth Sidious to be trained in the ways of the Sith. Darth Sidious, who is famously cruel and diabolical. Darth Sidious, who raised Maul to be expendable because Maul was just a means to an end for Sidious.

Maul who never grew up experiencing love. He never experienced kindness or compassion. He was raised to be an assassin, a cold-blooded killer, doing anything and everything Sidious asked of him.

And he eventually understood that he had been nothing more than a tool for Sidious.

So he was angry. Alone. Full of hate. And wanted revenge.

And his anger at Obi-Wan was more than just him losing his legs. Obi-Wan caused him to lose the only life he knew. He had no guidance once Sidious was finished with him.

The only life he knew was one of cruelty. He'd never bonded with anyone until he met Savage.

And when Sidious killed Savage, Maul was alone again. (Ironically, Sidious killed Savage the same way Maul had killed Satine like five minutes prior.)

He had no one on his side again.

He tried to connect with Ahsoka, and then with Ezra years later.

But still, more than anything, he wanted to break Obi-Wan the same way that he himself was broken. He wanted to see Obi-Wan lose control and become like him. He was almost successful when he forced Obi-Wan to watch him kill Satine.

But Obi-Wan proved to be unbreakable even in that moment, and Maul's obsession only became stronger, along with his rage.

Maul was unable to comprehend love, and it drove him crazy that Obi-Wan had actually tried to connect with him in the moments leading up to Satine's death. Obi-Wan had tried to show Maul compassion and it infuriated Maul. He hated that Obi-Wan was trying to be kind to him.

Maul was a monster in every way, but he was also a victim raised under the cruelty of Darth Sidious and only knew how to be what Sidious had molded him into.

And on the other side we have Obi-Wan Kenobi. Despite his sass and sharp wit, he is kind and loving. He loved being a Jedi and devoted his life to living by the Jedi code. And he may not have always gotten it right, but he never strayed from the core principles.

(And always be as dramatic as possible.)

I've seen some bizarre criticisms of Obi-Wan that have me scratching my head. His attachment to Anakin, for one, like there isn't a rich and complicated history behind their relationship in the first place.

He's criticized for not killing Anakin so clearly Vader's reign of terror is somehow Obi-Wan's fault.

Let's examine all of this a bit closer.

We often joke about the fact that Obi-Wan has a vast collection of dismembered body parts, but Obi-Wan does not like killing others. He kills when he has no other option.

He prefers to disarm his opponents, quite literally. He cut off Zam Wessell's hand instead of killing her even though she was about to kill him. He just wanted answers. She had no real way of fighting back because he had injured her.

He disarmed the man who was threatening Luke in the cantina in A New Hope. He didn't kill him though. It's not like he was a major threat.

And on Mustafar, he couldn't bring himself to kill Anakin. He cut off one of Anakin's arms and both of his legs, an action that tore him apart because he loved Anakin so much. Anakin was defenseless at that point, and he was also completely on fire thanks to the lava. No part of him imagined that Anakin could have survived being burned alive, and he spent the next ten years hating himself for leaving Anakin to die until he learned that Anakin not only survived but was incredibly angry with him and wanted to kill him.

Just like Maul.

Obi-Wan did not like the idea of killing. At all.

And perhaps it was his attachment to Anakin Skywalker that brought the galaxy to its knees, but that attachment was because he and Anakin had always had a confusing relationship.

Let's take into consideration the fact that Obi-Wan, at the end of The Phantom Menace and only 25-years-old, had just watched his Master die at the hands of Darth Maul, subsequently killed Darth Maul (but not as much as he thought he had), been given the title of Jedi Knight, and taken on nine-year-old Anakin Skywalker (almost immediately after being knighted), a boy who had just been freed from slavery and had to leave his mother behind to pursue a life as a Jedi because being a Jedi had always been his dream.

Then maybe take into account the fact that Obi-Wan Kenobi was grieving the loss of Qui-Gon while Anakin struggled with being away from Shmi for the first time in his life. Obi-Wan didn't just train Anakin in the ways of the Jedi, he raised Anakin. He treated Anakin like a brother while Anakin said Obi-Wan was the closest thing he ever had to a father. Obi-Wan has always been good with children, and it's only natural that he would take on a parental type of role despite the fact he was only 16 years older than Anakin. He loved Anakin the way a brother would, and it did blind him to some of Anakin's more concerning habits, but Anakin also kept his biggest sins a secret because he was ashamed of himself, and he never wanted to know what it felt like to have Obi-Wan be disappointed in him.

Their relationship was messy because they were attached to each other, but Obi-Wan still did his best to teach Anakin. It had been Qui-Gon's final wish for him to train the boy, and Obi-Wan trusted his master.

So it was his attachment to Anakin that prevented him from killing Anakin aka Darth Vader, but it was very in character for him to choose not to do so. He always believed there were other ways to fight back.

And in the end, not killing Anakin had been the right choice. Anakin is the one who defeated Sidious (at the cost of his own life too) in an act of love for his son Luke and returned balance to the Force.

Obi-Wan didn't want to kill Maul either, but Maul gave him no choice. Maul was now a threat to Luke.

Maul lived a tormented, lonely life because he was never able to come to terms with the pain and anguish he'd experienced as a child that turned him into the monster he was throughout the rest of his life.

Obi-Wan (Ben) was able to rise above the suffering he'd endured and made peace with what had happened during and after the Clone Wars. He was so very much connected to the Force by this point because he had finally been able to let go of the tragedies of his past.

When he defeated Maul, he didn't treat it as a victory. He cradled Maul in his arms the same way he had held Qui-Gon and Satine when they died by Maul's hand.

He offered compassion to Maul despite Maul's atrocities, and in doing so, allowed Maul to experience peace for the first time in his long life.

In his final moments, he was treated with the dignity he had never given any of his victims.

And I think, in the end, Maul finally understood what he had been deprived of his entire life.

Obi-Wan was a true Jedi. He might have made a few errors along his journey, like everyone else does. He proved he was a master not by his skills with a lightsaber but by his ability to show compassion to those who don't necessarily deserve it because they are the ones who usually need it the most.

Star Wars Rebels gave us such beautiful closure to a rivalry that spanned decades.

#obi-wan kenobi #darth maul #star wars #obi-wan and maul rivalry #star wars rebels #star wars the phantom menace #star wars the clone wars #savage oppress #qui-gon ginn #satine kryze #jedi vs sith #cruelty vs compassion #do not take this to mean that i am absolving maul of the horrible things he did #i'm pointing out that his upbringing by a cold-hearted piece of shit turned him into the monster he became #and as terrible as maul was he never had a chance to be anything better than what he was #and also i will defend obi-wan kenobi till the day i die #because he is a perfect example of what it means to be a jedi #obi-wan kenobi slander is not accepted here

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tired0artist · 7 months

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| live or die |

episode 5 blew my socks off! we got so much from it and so did ahsoka, i can’t wait to see how the story progresses and iffff we get to see anakin again 👀

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broitsf-ckingfreezing · 8 months

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Fandom vs. Dooku: Religious Affiliation

Okay, my first rant has been making the rounds, so I wanted to come back and do a more in-depth approach (WITH EVIDENCE). Last time I was rapidly keyboard mashing on my phone whilst simultaneously howling my grievances to the moon, so hopefully everything should be a smidge more... coherent in this one.

This is taking HOURS to type up, so everything will be split into different posts. Possibly, idk. Look I have opinions and ADHD. Gotta peel those layers back like a particularly rancid onion.

(thanks @eloquentmoon for the dividers!)

Something that Star Wars as a fandom often fails to realise is that Jedi Master Dooku (or Yan Dooku, I suppose, if that's your headcanon) and Sith Apprentice Darth Tyranus are not the same. Well, they are literally the same person, but that's not what I'm getting at. The point I am trying to make here is that a character can in fact be an inherently good guy and also a genocidal psychopath. In Star Wars, one is not born a Sith. You cannot just... be a Sith and nothing else. Much is the same with a Jedi. One is either born with the ability to reach/manipulate the Force or they aren't (Force-nulls, for sake of clarity), they are not born Jedi or Sith. Jedi and Sith are religious orders. Like Protestants and Catholics, Jedi and Sith follow the same faith but with different philosophies and restrictions (or complete lack thereof regarding the Sith; anything is game if it eventually means absolute power).

Let's take a look at the best established religious order of Star Wars in canon and Legends. Mandalorians.

(A GIF of the Armourer in The Mandalorian. The subtitles read: "According to Creed, one may only be redeemed in the living waters beneath the mines of Mandalore.")

In Legends, to be Mandalorian is to dedicate yourself to the Resol'nare or the Six Actions:

Wearing the armour

Speaking the language

Defense of oneself and one's family

Raising children as Mandalorian (this is the Way)

Contributing to the clan's welfare

Answering the call of the Mand'alor or Sole Ruler

Canonically, to go against the word of the Creed, such as removing your helmet to outsiders or non-clan, was to declare yourself dar'manda or No Longer Mandalorian (not stated explicitly in canon, but widely accepted in fanon/features in SW: The Old Republic). In Christian equivalent, this would be committing sin. As shown in the GIF above, one could be redeemed for "sinning" in Mandalore's living waters. Kind of like confession and repentance in Christianity.

And like the many differing dedications to the concept of God, like Jedi and Sith as you will soon see, Mandalorians have their thoughts on the Force. The only difference here is that where God is not provable beyond doubt, the Force is. Its existence cannot be denied. However, how the Force is/should be interpreted varies from person to person, from religion to religion.

The Jedi Code

Jedi and Sith also follow Creeds.

(An image of the Jedi mantra in Basic and Aurebesh. It reads: "There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the force.")

The Jedi Code places great emphasis on compassion and bettering one's self; particularly, maintaining control over your emotions and learning to let go. Here especially is where fans like to pick and choose their understanding of canon like rooting through a jar of lollipops at the doctor's to get the orange one. So, I'm gonna highlight my point here with some big ass text:

Jedi do not condemn emotion

(be warned: LOTS of italics incoming)

(An edit of a still of Anakin Skywalker from Attack of the Clones. The text reads: "Attachment is forbidden. Possession is forbidden. Compassion, which I would define as unconditional love, is central to a Jedi's life.)

Sure, where Anakin is obviously not the prime example of what a Jedi should be, and he is clearly trying to butter up Padme to embrace his frankly awful flirting attempts, we must also remember that he had been living by the Jedi Code for almost (if not exactly) ten years at this point. AND. AND AND AND. We have IMPERICAL EVIDENCE from the Clone Wars that while not often stated outright (if at all; forgive me, I only just reached the Mortis Arc and believe me, I have OPINIONS), Jedi DO love unconditionally.

(A GIF from The Clone Wars of Mace Windu. The subtitle reads: "I'm going to do whatever I can to help these people.")

Often, their first instinct unless guided otherwise by alternate intel or the Force itself, is to have faith in those who would call upon them for help. There's literally an entire movie about Ahsoka and Anakin delivering the child of Jabba the Motherfucking HUTT back to him. They could've killed the child. Held him for ransom until Jabba conceded to a beneficial alliance. Instead, they hold to the hope that Jabba would hold to some kind of honour as a parent and allow an alliance negotiation on good faith. Jabba. A literal owner of SLAVES. Who planned, because of intel from a Sith Lord, to stab the Jedi in the back.

I bring your attention to this iconic line from my last post:

(A GIF of Ki-Adi Mundi from Attack of the Clones. The subtitle reads: "He is a political idealist, not a murderer)

He is talking about Dooku, ex-Jedi, now publicly politically aligned with and the leader of the Separatist movement: AKA the "let's leave the Republic because we believe them and, by extension, the Jedi, to be corrupt" crew. He is a mark of shame upon the order. One of the Lost Twenty--Legends lore, for those who don't understand, is that there have only been twenty Jedi (including Dooku) ever to leave the Order past achieving Master status)--and yet, they still honour him as one of their own, literally saying: "he was once one of us." If that isn't a sign of unconditional compassion, then I'll eat my lightsaber collection.

I now move on to this:

(A GIF from Attack of the Clones of Obi-Wan Kenobi. The subtitle reads: "Don't let your personal feelings get in the way!")

To be in control of yourself and your reactions isn't to abandon emotion entirely. That is literally impossible. In fact, emotions are valuable to Jedi. However, they are taught to be mindful of how emotions can affect their logical reasoning.

When Obi-Wan Kenobi is ordered to hunt down Darth Vader, whom has just sworn himself to the Sith Lord and literally murdered possibly hundreds of Jedi Masters, Knights, Padawans, and Initiates by his own hand, he actually abandons his logical reasoning and refuses to kill the man he raised and fought beside for the last 13 years.

(A GIF from Star Wars III: The Revenge of the Sith of Obi-Wan Kenobi. The subtitles read: "You were my brother, Anakin. I loved you.")

This is a direct parallel to Anakin's refusal to kill recently-revealed Sith Lord Palpatine, Darth Sidious. Both of these instances were done for entirely selfish reasons.

Anakin twists a tenet of the Code upon its head and refuses to kill Sidious because, at the time, he is without a weapon, and Jedi are sworn never to kill an unarmed opponent. Logically, we must reason that these rules do NOT apply to the Sith because A) they had been thought extinct and therefore didn't need exceptions written into the Code, B) it is literally proven within that very same scene that an unarmed Sith Lord is still extremely dangerous, and C) Jedi are sworn to uphold the balance of the Force within themselves and the galaxy, therefore the Sith must be destroyed. In this moment, Anakin has allowed his fear of his wife and unborn children dying to cloud his judgement, allowed the Lord to live, and subsequently doomed the galaxy.

Obi-Wan, canonically a far better Jedi than Anakin, allows his love for the man he raised to stop him from killing him. Even out of mercy as Anakin burns in the heat of Mustafar. Yes, he walks away, believing Anakin will certainly die, but again: an unarmed Sith (literally because ya boy has NO ARMS, lmao) is still extremely dangerous. Just as Maul survived from literally being sliced in half, so did Anakin survive Mustafar. Allowing love, grief, desperation to cloud his judgement, Obi-Wan has (although unknowingly until the Obi-Wan Kenobi series set ten years later) assisted in dooming the galaxy.

It is not Obi-Wan's love for his former-padawan that has done this. It is his refusal to let him go, his fear of being the one who has to kill Anakin, despite being the only one capable of doing so because of Anakin's incredible skill and power.

Despite these contradictions: Obi-Wan Kenobi is still a good guy, and Anakin Skywalker is a bad guy.

Obi-Wan would go on to repent for the rest of his life, cutting himself off from the Force to hide his presence and watch over Luke Skywalker on Tatooine, even though the Lars family do not welcome him at all. And he will go to great lengths, putting himself in constant danger, to save Leia Organa. When this is all over, he will face his student one last time and sacrifice himself to ensure the safety of the children, to give the darkened galaxy just one more chance at hope.

(And, as an aside, Obi-Wan's final sacrifice is also to teach Luke about the Jedi tenet of letting go and dedicating yourself to something greater than your own wants and physical being, just as Qui-Gon did for Obi-Wan decades before.)

Anakin, in the meantime, Darth Vader by this point, is literally running around blowing up planets. Let me repeat that: BLOWING UP PLANETS. With billions if not trillions of lifeforms on them. And also murdering Jedi Purge survivors. And, you know, killing basically anyone that doesn't agree with the rule of the Empire. Also, enslaving a lot of people. Like, a lot of people. Including the clones he once thought brothers until he... idk, kills them all? They all die of rapid old age? I'm not exactly sure what happens to them.

Obi-Wan loved unconditionally. He was compassionate. As was in accordance with his Creed.

Anakin Skywalker was possessive. He loved only that which he wanted and that which loved him in return, but only if it was love to his standards. Obi-Wan, who surely loved him as a brother and a son, tried to stop him from taking the galaxy, therefore he had to destroy his former Master.

This is what attachment is.

Unwillingness to let go of something you can no longer have.

Do you pro-genocide fans think Obi-Wan wanted Qui-Gon Jinn to die? He literally cradles him in his arms and cries, for goodness' sake. And do you know what Qui-Gon does in his last moments? He does not fear for himself. He does not tell Obi-Wan everything will be okay. Because he knows it will. He knows Obi-Wan will be okay. Because his padawan will mourn, but he will also accept that it was Qui-Gon's time to pass into the Force. And he knows that Obi-Wan knows that he will always be with him in the Force. There is no death. There is the Force.

What he does instead is so loving and compassionate and so caring. All he wants in his final moments is to make sure that Anakin, the boy in his care, will be safe.

(A GIF from Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace of Qui-Gon Jinn comforting Obi-Wan Kenobi as he dies. He reaches up and brushes Obi-Wan's face with his fingertips)

Those who can see that GIF, look at it and tell me that it is not a highly emotional, beautifully intimate moment between a dying father and his son. Look me in the eyes and tell me that and I will call you a liar because your pants are on fire, mother fucker.

The Sith Code

We have a better understanding of the Jedi Code than we do the Sith, largely because Sith are chaotic pathological liars who constantly break their own rules.

(A GIF from Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace of Yoda and Mace Windu. The subtitles read: "Always two there are. No more, no less. A master and an apprentice.")

Only two, huh? Then tell me, Tyranus and Sidious:

WHO THE HELL IS THIS?!

(An image of Asajj Ventress from Star Wars: The Clone Wars wielding two red lightsabers)

Like Satanism to Christianity, the Sith Code stands as a direct and deliberate contradiction to the Jedi Code.

(An image of the Sith Code in Basic and Aurebesh. It reads: "Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through passion I gain strength. Through strength I gain power. Through power I gain victory. Through victory my chains are broken. The force shall free me.")

Let's take a quick look at the two Creeds side by side:

(An image of the Sith Code (left) and the Jedi Code (right). The one on the left reads: "Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through passion I gain strength. Through strength I gain power. Through power I gain victory. Through victory my chains are broken. The force shall free me." The one on the right reads: "There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the force.")

Pretty big differences there.

One of these Creeds is dedicated to learning, maintaining balance in the Force, and achieving personal betterment through peace of mind. The other is dedicated to becoming strong, powerful, and unbeatable by comparing putting the needs of the many before the wants of yourself to slavery.

I'll let you take a guess which one is which.

I mean, it is almost explicitly said that an important initiation process for becoming a Sith is to fucking murder a Jedi. In Tales of the Jedi, which is considered canon in the current state of the series (meaning should someone with authoritative control over Star Wars later retcon this, then it will no longer be canon), Dooku kills Master Yaddle as his official initiation after the death and funeral of Qui-Gon--don't forget, before this point Dooku may have been Fallen, but he was not Sith until Sidious loses Maul as an apprentice. Say what you will about Palps, but you gotta give him credit for abiding by the Sith Rule of Two, otherwise the galaxy would've been a lot more utterly fucked than it was. Until this was canon, anyone who was not versed in Legends lore (AKA me) generally headcanoned that Dooku murdered and assumed the identity of Sifo-Dyas for his Sith initiation.

Also, I feel it is imperative to note that the Sith Code was literally inspired by Mein Kampf. You know, ADOLF HITLER'S MANIFESTO. Need proof? Here, straight from the Star Wars Wookiepedia:

What's The Point?

I've been writing for almost 3 hours and I'm only JUST getting to the bit that's actually about Dooku. Let's take a breather and re-establish some points:

Jedi and Sith are religious Creeds

You are not born Jedi or Sith

To be Jedi or Sith is to make CHOICES that align with the tenets of the Creed

To be Jedi is to be compassionate, mindful, and a protector of those who are defenseless

Jedi have rules and regulations to protect their Order from corruption and abuse of power

To be Sith is to put your wants first, to become all-powerful, and to be victorious over all others

Sith do NOT have rules and regulations (that they actually follow faithfully aside from the Rule of Two, which is broken by Dooku multiple times anyway)

Got it?

Cool let's move on.

This is what I mean by the separation of Jedi Master Dooku and Darth Tyranus. On the matter of Dooku, the fandom largely seems to be divided between:

He was manipulated by the Sith! He was actually a good guy who knew the Senate was corrupt! He was just trying to save the galaxy!

And:

He was a shit Jedi and everyone should've known he was Darkside. He abused Qui-Gon. He abused padawans. He hated children. He didn't Fall because he was always evil.

My guys.

My dudes.

My homies.

Just... WHAT?

For point A, I present to you:

(A GIF from The Clone Wars of Dooku. The subtitle reads: "I would kill you both if I didn't have to drag your bodies.)

He literally just threatened murder. Actual murder. In another scene, season 1, if someone could find the GIF that would be fantastic, Dooku says he wants the death of the Jedi. All of the Jedi. He wants to slaughter children, the people he once considered family. In season 4, to Savage Oppress, he offers the galaxy. "We will rule the galaxy together." That is a dictatorship. These are not the signs of a healthy man doing what is best for the people. This is selfish desire. This is Sith Creed.

For point B:

(A GIF from TOTJ. Dooku stands before Qui-Gon's favourite tree on Coruscant). Look, I'm not great at image and GIF descriptors. If someone would like to fix this for me, please do. I worked real hard on this analysis and I want it to be accessible.

A man who did not love his padawan, his pseudo-son, would not have visited their favourite place on the entirety of Coruscant upon their death. This was inconvenient. Him visiting this tree when he shouldn't have because he'd just infiltrated the archives and deleted evidence of Kamino brings suspicion upon him that he could've avoided by simply staying away. But he couldn't. He had to go one last time.

He also, in Attack of the Clones, expresses regret at never meeting Obi-Wan before then. Qui-Gon always spoke very highly of him. Yes, because an abused child whose evil, evil master, again, abused him, would ever speak of his own child to said-abuser. Dooku may be a Sith of a decade by that point, but don't forget that Sith are entrenched in negative emotion. We have no idea what he was feeling meeting the son of his son for the first time. He could have easily murdered Obi-Wan before Anakin and all of the Jedi arrive. He later tries to multiple times. The first thing he does is offer an alliance. An apprenticeship. He even tells Obi-Wan the truth of Palpatine in the Senate, not that he (Obi) has any reason to believe him (Dooku).

Again, what's my point?

My point is that he is both a good guy and a bad guy.

He can be both.

He was once good. He Fell. He was not always one or the other. Because that is how Star Wars WORKS. His doubts over the Senate, his fears that the Order is falling to darkness, his utter grief at the death of his child; it crippled him. He could not overcome the Darkside. And so he Fell. Perhaps originally he had good intentions.

The road to Hell is paved with good intentions after all.

Eventually, the anger, the grief, the fear, corrupted him. As is how the Darkside works. Yes, it is a choice. It is a Creed he chooses to follow. But to walk back from the Darkside is also a journey that requires incredible strength.

In canon, only one achieves it. Anakin Skywalker.

Early on, perhaps Dooku could have been saved. But by the time of Attack of the Clones, he is utterly corrupt and evil and literally planning an absolute takeover of the galaxy. He is far beyond redemption.

Look, thanks for coming to my TED talk. If you enjoyed this post and would like to see more, please consider tipping! I am an unemployed chronically anxious and depressed sewer rat. I also accept love in reblogs and comments XD

I feel like @jedi-enthusiast and @antianakin will like this.

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