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From Ewoks to the 'real' Chosen One, these are Star Wars' most controversial aspects.
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00:00The Star Wars fandom is one of the largest communities built around a fictional universe,
00:04and while those Trekkies certainly come close, I mean I hear they've even got some pretty good
00:09YouTube channels up and running these days, plug plug plug plug plug, nobody beats Star Wars when
00:13it comes to controversies that divide the fandom. Speaking of which, I'm Josh from WhatCulture.com
00:19and these are 10 Star Wars controversies that divided fans.
00:23Number 10, did Luke use the dark side on the Gamorrean Guard?
00:27Return of the Jedi marked the end of the first trilogy in the Star Wars franchise.
00:32Here, our central protagonist was in the final stages of his hero's journey. He was no longer
00:36the naive idealist who sought adventure and kind of fancied his sister. Instead, he had become a
00:42battle season starfighter and a confident Jedi knight. Episode 6 saw Luke entering Jabba's palace
00:48before using a most un-Jedi-like technique on a pair of Gamorrean guards, that being of course
00:54force choking. This triggered a long-running debate about whether or not Luke channeled the dark side
01:00in this scene. And this is a debate that has been fueled by all the contradictory materials
01:05surrounding it. See, in Empire Strikes Back, Yoda specifically told Luke that the Jedi used the
01:11force only in defense and never to attack. So throttling a few helpless pig guards seemed a little
01:17bit out of character. In later Star Wars Legends novels though, Luke's actions were somewhat redacted.
01:23In The Heir to the Empire for instance, one line reads, quote,
01:27Walking into Jabba's palace on Tatooine five years ago, using the force to befuddle the Gamorrean
01:32guards, end quote. Indicating that Luke's actions were some kind of mind trick rather than an act
01:38of violence. On the other side of the argument, this action is indicative of Luke's entire struggle.
01:43I mean, after all, he was dabbling in the dark side throughout Return of the Jedi,
01:47even channeling hatred to cut off Vader's hand in their final duel.
01:53Number 9, Midichlorians. Throughout the first trilogy, the force was presented as a mystical
01:58energy not dissimilar to magic. Indeed, those who believed in the force were considered to be
02:03superstitious. Vader was described as having a, quote, sad devotion to that ancient religion,
02:08and even Han Solo dismissed it as hawky. Although it becomes clear that the force is very real in
02:14this universe, it was never quite clear what it was. It was just one of the features that blurred
02:19George Luke's epic sci-fi tale into the realms of fantasy. With the prequels, however, Qui-Gon
02:25Jinn explained that the force was largely to do with microscopic intelligent lifeforms called
02:30midichlorians. They attached themselves to force-sensitive beings, forming a symbiotic
02:35relationship which gave Jedi their power. One could even measure someone's midichlorian count
02:40through scientific testing. For many fans, though, this explanation seemed to ruin the magic of
02:45the force entirely, demystifying it with a load of scientific-sounding jargon. It also begs the
02:51question, why was everyone in the original trilogy so sceptical about the force's existence when there
02:57were established scientific ways of measuring it just years before?
03:008. Jar Jar Binks Each Star Wars trilogy has had their own controversial alien species. The original
03:09movies had the Ewoks, the sequels contained the Pogs, and the prequels contained Jar Jar Binks. When the
03:15prequels dropped in the early 2000s, they were bombarded with criticism, and Jar Jar became a
03:21central target of this ridicule. He was described as clown-like, silly, and even accused of playing
03:27into racial stereotypes. For those who were old enough to see the original trilogy when it came
03:32out, the childish aspects of Jar Jar simply trivialized the Star Wars universe. For those
03:37who were children during the prequels, though, Jar Jar was a favorite. He was the comic relief in a
03:42story that became very dark. So this divide in opinion kinda comes down to just being an age thing.
03:49The backlash received by the character, though, actually did lead to George Lucas discarding a
03:53plot point that gave the Darth Jar Jar theory some credence. Ahmed Best as well, who played Jar Jar,
03:59admitted that the character was actually supposed to have a much more sinister story arc. There was
04:03even a scrapped scene in which Palpatine confided in Jar Jar about his plans for the Empire, but
04:09Lucas rightly didn't push his luck with this character anymore.
04:137. Does the Hold-On Maneuver Make Space Battles Redundant?
04:17No matter how you felt about the sequel trilogy, it must be admitted that those movies were visually
04:22stunning. And no scene was as awe-inspiring as the moment when Vice Admiral Holdo committed the
04:27ultimate sacrifice. Piloting her ship into the oncoming First Order fleet, she engaged the
04:33hyperdrive and utterly destroyed her foes. It was a kinda take your breath away moment,
04:38but this also had huge implications for not only the future of Star Wars, but all the previous movies
04:43to date, and the fandom jumped right on it. And that's because if using a hyperdrive in this way was
04:49possible, then why was it the first time anybody had done it? With just a simple push of a button,
04:55the Rebel Alliance could have avoided losing dozens of ships during both attacks on the Death Star.
05:00Of course, the Reddit community is filled with counter-arguments about why this was. Namely,
05:05that although it is possible, the logistics of such a maneuver are so complex that it simply would be
05:11too difficult to replicate on a regular basis.
05:13The retrospective changes George Lucas made to his original trilogy have long been a topic of
05:23contention among fans. The theatrical cuts of A New Hope, Empire and Return of the Jedi were all
05:28considerably different to the 1997 special editions. Previously, cutscenes were added in,
05:34including Han's confrontation with Jabba in A New Hope, and other editions included digitized
05:39backgrounds and characters. Just prior to the release of Revenge of the Sith, Luke has made
05:45further changes for the 2004 DVD release of the original trilogy. As you might remember,
05:50the climax of Return of the Jedi saw Luke share a touching moment with the forced ghosts of his
05:55former teachers and father. It was heartwarming stuff, and originally, Sebastian Shaw, who played
06:01Darth Vader, appeared as the redeemed Jedi Anakin Skywalker, but after the DVD release, Hayden Christensen was
06:08spliced in. On the one hand, this seemed like a clever way to tie the prequels and the originals
06:13together. On the other hand, it felt like a slight to the actor who portrayed Vader in his moment
06:17of redemption. Not only that, but if Anakin really did bring balance to the force, surely his force
06:23ghost should represent him at the age at which it happened.
06:28Number 5, Luke's regressive story arc. Reducing Luke Skywalker to a bitter old hermit who drinks alien
06:34sea cow milk and has no interest in battling the Sith was one hell of a thing to do to the former
06:39saviour of the galaxy. On the one hand, this subversion of expectations reminded audiences that
06:45even legendary heroes were susceptible to falling into despair. It also offered Reia a serious character
06:51development moment as well, as through Reia's steadfast tenacity and her willingness to resist the
06:56dark side and save Ben, Luke was encouraged to renew the fight against the Sith. Well, that's what the
07:01filmmakers were going for and that's how some interpreted this plot point, but others didn't
07:06take kindly to it at all. Instead, they were perhaps rightly annoyed that Luke essentially
07:11just sulked on his island refuge until the ever-predictable force ghost of Yoda showed up
07:16to give him a pep talk. Huge numbers of fans, including Mark Hamill, thought Luke's character
07:21was at best pitifully underused and at worst had his legacy dragged through Bantha crap.
07:27Number four, the Ewoks. Just like Jar Jar Binks, your perception of the Ewoks likely comes down to
07:34the age you were when you first saw them. If you were a kid, the cute little fuzzy things made for
07:39a great cuddly toy, but if you were older, you likely saw them for what they ultimately became,
07:44a merchandising opportunity. It wouldn't be the last time George Lucas was accused of introducing
07:49characters that could later be used as a money grab either. With this one then, it all kind of depends on
07:54on a matter of perspective. Sure, they look kinda dumb and they get totally manipulated by the
07:59Rebellion, and there is the small detail of them wanting to cook and eat our heroes,
08:04but their miraculous victory over the Stormtroopers also represents a central theme of Star Wars,
08:09that being the triumph of the underdog over the oppressor.
08:14Number three, the ambiguous moral compass of the Jedi. The Jedi have long been considered the most
08:20noble and honorable people in the Star Wars universe. They wield extreme power, but only use
08:25it for good, or at least supposedly. They are the keepers of peace and the last and only real defense
08:31against the ever rising dark side. Having said all of that though, the Jedi did do some pretty
08:36reprehensible things, leading many in the fan community to reconsider their thoughts about these
08:41light side force users. For starters, young force sensitive children were torn away from their
08:46parents at an extremely young age by the Jedi Order. This was purely so the individual could be
08:52indoctrinated, having the notions of love and attachment driven out of them, which does sound
08:57a little cult-like to me. The Jedi also became extremely dogmatic and rigid. The idea of individuality
09:04or autonomous thought was so rejected that it led them to shun extremely wise Jedi like Qui-Gon Jinn.
09:10Their ways even forced individuals like Count Dooku and Anakin Skywalker to join the dark side.
09:16Number 2. Was Anakin the actual chosen one?
09:20The chosen one prophecy is the catalyst that triggers the entire Skywalker saga.
09:25The central conflict of the story is all about bringing balance to the force.
09:28In the original trilogy, Luke is presented as the one who will overthrow the Sith and restore balance,
09:33but as it turns out, Darth Vader actually does this when he kills the Emperor.
09:38For all of their issues, the prequels did a wonderful job of giving background to these events.
09:42Although Qui-Gon Jinn did not see the horror that Anakin would bring to the galaxy,
09:46he was correct in believing that he would ultimately destroy the Sith and fulfill the prophecy.
09:51That was, until the sequel trilogy anyway.
09:54With the return of Darth Sidious and the Rise of Skywalker, all of that kinda went out the window.
09:59Now this film skips over exactly how he came back, merely offering a line from poor Dameron that says,
10:05somehow, Palpatine returned.
10:07No matter the intricacies of how this happened, Palpatine did come back and Rey eventually destroyed
10:13him once again, bringing balance to the force.
10:16But if Palpatine wasn't really dead at the end of Return of the Jedi,
10:19then were the Sith ever really destroyed by Anakin?
10:23You can see why this one divided people.
10:25I mean, the Chosen One prophecy is the plot point that underpins the entire conflict of the first
10:30two trilogies, and Anakin's redemption arc is what made this story so loved,
10:34and the sequels kinda undermined that.
10:38Number one, who shot first?
10:40We've already discussed how George Lucas went about altering his original movies over the years,
10:45and for the most part, these changes were kinda inconsequential.
10:48But one change that will forever keep fans talking is the infamous face-off between Han Solo and the
10:53bounty hunter Greedo.
10:55In the most readily available versions of A New Hope, Han is forced to shoot Greedo after he pulls
11:01a blaster on him.
11:02Dodging the bounty hunter's shot, Solo returned fire with deadly accuracy.
11:07In the theatrical release of course, Solo just blasted Greedo while he was flapping his mouth.
11:12This all boils down to Lucas' concern that he'd originally depicted Solo as a brutal killer.
11:18Thus, he altered the scene to make Han more sympathetic, and over the years,
11:21this has been altered numerous times further, with the firing rate being sped up and slowed
11:26down to make the scene that bit more ambiguous.
11:31So, that's our list. I want to know what you guys think down in the comments below.
11:34Please give me your take on these controversies, and are there any divisive moments I missed off here?
11:39While you're down there as well, can you please give us a like, share, subscribe,
11:42and head over to WhatCultureStarWars for more lists and news like this on the regular.
11:46Even if you don't know, I've been Josh, thanks so much for watching, and I'll see you soon.
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