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Star Words: Episode V, Part 36
Aug. 27th, 2020 01:56 pmAh, there's so many good lines here too. I don't want to lose you to the Emperor the way I lost Vader and Mind what you have learned; save you it can! and oh well, I'd better just hurry to the last line before I spend another month on a single scene. ;)
As Luke's ship takes off, Yoda offers Obi-Wan a sad I-told-you-so. Luke was reckless, now everything is worse. Ben doesn't dispute this, even going so far as to claim that boy is our last hope. Not so, according to Yoda.
"No. There is another."
This must have encouraged quite a bit of speculation among audiences back in 1980. I've heard that some assumed it referred to Han, which seems quite curious to me. Did anyone guess correctly? My understanding is that even Lucas was still working out some of the details before the sibling reveal in Episode VI, but then it's also clear from a scene near the end of this film that Leia has some kind of sensitivity.
Anyway, that was 1980. Knowing Leia's identity brings on a different set of speculations. Why does Yoda see hope in Leia while Obi-Wan doesn't? It would be a bit absurd to accuse Ben of sexism when he was well-acquainted with many powerful female Jedi in their heyday (even if, ahem, none of them had any speaking parts in the films, but whatever). It seems more specific to Leia herself. But doubtful too, that he would consider her less capable than Luke. Maybe he believes that he introduced Luke to Force training just in the nick of time, and now that a few years have passed it's too late for Leia? Or he supposes that her strengths lie more in the direction of their mother's gifts rather than their father's? That carries its own sort of sexism, though.
Last hope. Only hope. These phrases lend the films an air of high urgency, of desperate stakes and only the slimmest of chances. Is Yoda more optimistic in holding out hope for Leia? Is he more sensitive to the whisperings of the Force than Ben? There are so many questions, and I find it all the more interesting that we aren't given definite answers. More room for imagination.
I am, however, eternally disgusted with the cop-out the Disney Space Movies offered for why Leia never became a Jedi. They could have chosen differently, and it wouldn't have required Carrie Fisher to be as fit as a 20-year-old. There are other ways to show Jedi strength. And I have no doubt that Leia would have become a fantastically mighty Jedi. The daughter of Anakin and Padmé? Are you kidding me? She wouldn't have wasted time sitting around as a passive "general;" she would have been unstoppable. Tough but compassionate, brilliant and empathetic, fearless and bold. She and Luke would create a new Jedi Order that would surpass the old one in every detail, including its longevity. What a waste to miss out on that!
Welp, next time we return to Cloud City and a few pointed words from Leia herself...
As Luke's ship takes off, Yoda offers Obi-Wan a sad I-told-you-so. Luke was reckless, now everything is worse. Ben doesn't dispute this, even going so far as to claim that boy is our last hope. Not so, according to Yoda.
"No. There is another."
This must have encouraged quite a bit of speculation among audiences back in 1980. I've heard that some assumed it referred to Han, which seems quite curious to me. Did anyone guess correctly? My understanding is that even Lucas was still working out some of the details before the sibling reveal in Episode VI, but then it's also clear from a scene near the end of this film that Leia has some kind of sensitivity.
Anyway, that was 1980. Knowing Leia's identity brings on a different set of speculations. Why does Yoda see hope in Leia while Obi-Wan doesn't? It would be a bit absurd to accuse Ben of sexism when he was well-acquainted with many powerful female Jedi in their heyday (even if, ahem, none of them had any speaking parts in the films, but whatever). It seems more specific to Leia herself. But doubtful too, that he would consider her less capable than Luke. Maybe he believes that he introduced Luke to Force training just in the nick of time, and now that a few years have passed it's too late for Leia? Or he supposes that her strengths lie more in the direction of their mother's gifts rather than their father's? That carries its own sort of sexism, though.
Last hope. Only hope. These phrases lend the films an air of high urgency, of desperate stakes and only the slimmest of chances. Is Yoda more optimistic in holding out hope for Leia? Is he more sensitive to the whisperings of the Force than Ben? There are so many questions, and I find it all the more interesting that we aren't given definite answers. More room for imagination.
I am, however, eternally disgusted with the cop-out the Disney Space Movies offered for why Leia never became a Jedi. They could have chosen differently, and it wouldn't have required Carrie Fisher to be as fit as a 20-year-old. There are other ways to show Jedi strength. And I have no doubt that Leia would have become a fantastically mighty Jedi. The daughter of Anakin and Padmé? Are you kidding me? She wouldn't have wasted time sitting around as a passive "general;" she would have been unstoppable. Tough but compassionate, brilliant and empathetic, fearless and bold. She and Luke would create a new Jedi Order that would surpass the old one in every detail, including its longevity. What a waste to miss out on that!
Welp, next time we return to Cloud City and a few pointed words from Leia herself...
