A Thousand Stars: Episode II, Part 11
Feb. 2nd, 2023 09:25 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
matrilWith Dex's tip about Kamino, Obi-Wan returns to the Jedi temple to draw on the archive's vast collection of galactic knowledge. Surely he'll find something about this mysterious planet in a library with this kind of scope:
....but no, Kamino is still missing, still an enigma. I've heard real-life librarians point out that Jocasta Nu is extremely unhelpful and lacking in true librarian-ness in that she makes no effort to investigate further, but alas, it's just another symbol of Jedi close-mindedness and myopia. In all this enormous, grand archive, Obi-Wan can't find any useful information for his investigation. The contrast between this location and his previous one, the humble diner, provides quite the visual irony.
Incidentally, some have cited a famous library in Ireland as the inspiration for the Jedi archives, a reasonable assumption if you compare the two side by side. It's just as likely, though, that the archives were patterned after that grand architectural style often found in historic public buildings and libraries in particular. Which gives me a chance to brag about my local library, originally built in 1879:
Yes, it really is that gorgeous. Aren't you jealous? I get to volunteer there every week, shelving books beneath those glorious arches and breathing in history. There's also a new wing built just a few years ago, a modern addition that doesn't detract from the beauty of the original building. And I can attest that the librarians are much more helpful and eager to answer any questions, solve any mysteries. If Kamino wasn't showing up in their records, they'd keep looking and digging until the answer showed up.
Anyway! In the film, we continue in the theme that looks can be deceiving. Next time, faces tell us a whole lot more than words....
....but no, Kamino is still missing, still an enigma. I've heard real-life librarians point out that Jocasta Nu is extremely unhelpful and lacking in true librarian-ness in that she makes no effort to investigate further, but alas, it's just another symbol of Jedi close-mindedness and myopia. In all this enormous, grand archive, Obi-Wan can't find any useful information for his investigation. The contrast between this location and his previous one, the humble diner, provides quite the visual irony.
Incidentally, some have cited a famous library in Ireland as the inspiration for the Jedi archives, a reasonable assumption if you compare the two side by side. It's just as likely, though, that the archives were patterned after that grand architectural style often found in historic public buildings and libraries in particular. Which gives me a chance to brag about my local library, originally built in 1879:
Yes, it really is that gorgeous. Aren't you jealous? I get to volunteer there every week, shelving books beneath those glorious arches and breathing in history. There's also a new wing built just a few years ago, a modern addition that doesn't detract from the beauty of the original building. And I can attest that the librarians are much more helpful and eager to answer any questions, solve any mysteries. If Kamino wasn't showing up in their records, they'd keep looking and digging until the answer showed up.
Anyway! In the film, we continue in the theme that looks can be deceiving. Next time, faces tell us a whole lot more than words....
no subject
Date: 2023-02-04 01:45 am (UTC)When it comes to Jocasta Nu "letting down librarians everywhere" even as a symbol of "Jedi twilight," I do have to face recalling a certain number of commentators who seem ready to insist "the Jedi way is presented as basically correct, and it's all Anakin's fault for not facing up to its requirements." At the same time, I can get to thinking of E.E. "Doc" Smith's Lensman series, which science fiction fans seemed quite ready to identify as a major inspiration for Star Wars back in 1977. There's a scene in one of those six novels with much more helpful librarians... (Still, for all that George Lucas put a copy of one of the Lensman novels where the camera would notice it for a "making of Episode I" video, I would argue the Lensman series basically does not interrogate its assumptions of heroism.)
no subject
Date: 2023-02-04 03:06 am (UTC)I'm really quite baffled by viewers who don't seem to recognize that the Jedi and the Republic in the prequels are not presented as idyllic. They're on the verge of collapsing from within; of course they're full of flaws. Does it have to be stated explicitly for them to realize it? It really doesn't feel that subtle to me. Also, the notion that it's possible for Anakin to be culpable for his choices and for the system he's dealing with to be less than ideal, because seldom are things easily divided into a simple binary good guy/bad guy. Why is this hard to grasp?