On one side of Excalibur, it is written: "Take Me Up." On the other side, it is written: "Cast Me Away."
Excalibur is a symbol of the responsibility of power, and Luke's lightsaber across his journey represents this.
Excalibur is a symbol of the responsibility of power, and Luke's lightsaber across his journey represents this.
Set shortly after Return of the Jedi (some time between 3 and 5 years), the Luke Skywalker we see on The Mandalorian is still in the "Take Me Up" phase of his use of the laser sword.
He's building upon what he knew of his training.
He's building upon what he knew of his training.
"You think what? I’m gonna walk out with a laser sword and face down the whole First Order?”
Luke says this to Rey because he's evolved past this, though when he says it, he's not been able to synthesize all of the lessons of his past.
Luke says this to Rey because he's evolved past this, though when he says it, he's not been able to synthesize all of the lessons of his past.
During the era of The Mandalorian, that's exactly what he'd do.
Of course he'd have to...
Of course he'd have to...
He felt #Grogu's presence in the force and with the amplification of the temple it was enough to send him tearing across the galaxy to find this powerful Force user who might be in trouble.
In The Empire Strikes Back, Luke's entire story arc is that he ignores the wisdom of his masters to save his friends and this brushes him against the dark side, exactly as it did his father in Attack of the Clones.
With #Grogu and #TheMandalorian in trouble, facing off against the droids, of COURSE Luke has to protect and defend them with his laser sword. It is the Jedi way. At least at this point.
The entire scene in #TheMandalorian hearkens back to the Jedi of old.
"Now that they're extinct, the Jedi are romanticized, deified. But if you strip away the myth and look at their deeds, the legacy of the Jedi is failure. Hypocrisy, hubris."
Luke here is living up to that. This is him becoming the Legend he tells Rey he became before he succumbed to that same hubris.
Ahsoka not taking Grogu as an apprentice is showing a different path of wisdom. She's learned lessons Luke hasn't yet. Luke says of Ben, and we'll see if it's true of #Grogu, too: "In my hubris, I thought I could train him; I could pass on my strengths."
Luke's entire arc is that he can sense the future and change it. Where Anakin tried and fell, Luke was successful and saved his friends and turned his father back to the good side. But, as Yoda says:
Luke wasn't always going to win these. And that's why there was such a struggle when he saw so much darkness in his nephew. His MO to this point was to fix the future before the bad happened, no big deal. And it backfired.
And he had a lesson to learn.
And he had a lesson to learn.
That's why he went into exile. And that's why he cut himself off from the Force, convinced he'd do more harm than good with his visions. That's why the central question of The Force Awakens was never "Who is Rey?" and ALWAYS "Why didn't Luke come to save Han?"
Luke believes that he's learned how to cast Excalibur away at the beginning of The Last Jedi.
But he's wrong.
But he's wrong.
He learns that he can still save the galaxy, but can come up with ways to do it that don't end in the violence and hubris of his past.
Which is why Luke's Force projection on Crait was the perfect synthesis of all of his teachings.
Which is why Luke's Force projection on Crait was the perfect synthesis of all of his teachings.
Luke can save his loved ones and give his nephew, Ben, a choice without having to resort to killing him this way.
"A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense. NEVER for attack."
"A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense. NEVER for attack."
Truly, at the end, he becomes a Jedi Master here. Taking the path of least force to save his friends. He's taken the lessons of his youth taking up the sword and the lessons of his age in casting it away, and finding "Peace. And Purpose."
So, yeah, the Luke of #TheMandalorian is in no way a repudiation of #TheLastJedi. It supports it. Wholly.
And this is why I love Star Wars.
And this is why I love Star Wars.
Yes, the Luke in #TheMandalorian is the Luke some wanted to see in #TheLastJedi, but that would've shown zero character growth on Luke's part for a period of more than 30 years.
It would have been the worst disservice to his character.
But we now have both and we're all happy.
It would have been the worst disservice to his character.
But we now have both and we're all happy.
It also makes me think that Ahsoka could very well be the one who gives Luke a piece of his views about the Jedi.
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I expanded this thread into a piece for @slashfilm! I hope you enjoy! slashfilm.com/mandalorian-an…
Since I posted this, it has been pointed out to me that @AD_Strider had a thread that covers some of the same ground. Check his out, too! It's good stuff.
https://twitter.com/AD_Strider/status/1341109512841912320
FTR: I talked about the content of this thread last week on the @slashfilm podcast. Over the weekend, I was pounced upon by TFM sorts, and I turned the comments off on this because the harassment was out in full force. I waited till Tuesday to post to avoid spoilers.
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