Post #556799

piestrider said:

<span style="color: #ffffff; font-family: verdana, geneva, arial, helvetica, 'sans serif'; line-height: 17px; text-align: left; background-color: #484e5e; ">Please enlighten us as to what personality Padme had beyond "Important Senator", what personality Maul had beyond "Silent Assassin", and what personality Windu had beyond "Stoic Jedi".</span>

A very good question. The short answer was famously indicated in RedLetterMedia's review of the prequel trilogy in which fans of the series gushed over Darth Vader and Han Solo but were at a loss to explain any significant details about prequel characters. My longer answer is to rewrite these characters. 

A very good place to start would be the nature of the Jedi Order. If they really did have a temple system with a rigid hierarchy whose members were sworn protectors of the realm, I suppose that it makes sense for them to follow a very strict moral and ascetic code. As such, I have always pictured Mace Windu as a Paladin, a lawful good paragon whose main goal is to root out evil at any cost, regardless of the consequences. Regarding the portrayal of the character by Samuel L Jackson, Mace Windu and he are one in the same in my mind and to separate them would violate the image many fans have in their head of what he looks and sounds like.

I do believe that Star Wars and the Jedi in particular were inspired by eastern mysticism and so the idea that all the masters of the Jedi Order have to agree is a bit ridiculous. As such, I would portray Yoda as exemplifying an ancient, more passive version of what it means to be a Jedi, whereas Windu would embody a more aggressive, activist approach. And with great power comes great responsibility, as Jorus C'Baoth learned aboard Outbound flight. The real tension of the prequel trilogy should revolve around not just the tension within the Jedi Order and its downfall bu also the tension between force users and non force users in the galaxy. Are the Jedi obsolete without the republic?

As for Amidala, I was intrigued by the idea of forbidden romance between her an Anakin. Ways to make this work better would be 1) if they were the same age and 2) if they were both Jedi in training. I have always believed that the Jedi were forbidden to marry for fear of the powerful offspring that such a union would produce. Given that the slide to the dark side is fraught with peril, Jedi dynasties could easily take control of non-force users. Amidala could still be from Naboo and highborn but it would be a lot more interesting to write scenes where she and Anakin are sparring and training in the force and get very close to intimacy but must constantly back away and deny their emotions and feelings for each other. The denial of self required by all Jedi would be a constant source of tension for young acolytes. 

Finally, I believe that Darth Maul would better serve as the source of Anakin's obsessive crusade to destroy the Sith as inspired by Mace Windu. To do this, I would throw out the rule of two. I picture an old Sith Master (Darth Plagueis) who trained Maul, Dooku, and his final pupil Palpatine, killed him in his sleep. As per the thrawn trilogy canon, I would make Darth Maul the master of the clones who are held in check by his dark force powers. Dooku would seek to sow the seeds of civil war and split the outer rim from the core worlds. Palpatine would seek to consolidate his political power over the core worlds, institute human high culture, subjugate the outer rim, and exterminate the Jedi. If Darth maul becomes the great white whale, then Anakin becomes his Ahab and thus the slide to the dark side occurs as a result of obsession with vanquishing evil.