Anakin's turn
Posted: 2012-06-18 09:09am
I loved his turn and wouldnt change a thing.This is why I think Lucas nailed Anakin's character perfectly:
Episode 1:
Anakin is truly gifted, and more importantly, truly happy despite being a slave. He wants to help people, even strangers he just met. He views the Jedi as noble warriors and aspires to be one of them and protect the galaxy. He has a strong relationship with his mother, who in turn cares for him deeply. Qui-Gon becomes a sort of father figure to him as well. He thinks Padme is pretty and the two of them become friends(please note that this relationship isn't sexual or romantic and hence not creepy as some people say). Qui-Gon offers him the opportunity to become a Jedi, his dream. But he is still around ten years old and obviously has trouble parting with his mother. He vows to come back and free her from the life of slavery and has guilt due to leaving her behind. Padme cares for him deeply and takes care of him. Anakin cares too and gives her the carved ornament he made.
Things start to change as soon as they land, but he has Qui-Gon by his side and Padme gives him an assuring smile.
The council is cold towards him and even Yoda criticizes him for missing his mother. He starts to feel bad as he thinks he has become a problem but Qui-Gon assures him otherwise. But by the end, Qui-Gon, his father figure, is dead and also he is parted from Padme as well.
Episode 2:
In the time between episodes 1 & 2, Anakin has been having horrid nightmares of his mother dying but the council doesn't allow him to go and investigate as they think he has to let go of all emotional ties. Obi-Wan, is a by-the-book person and doesn't let him go either. Anakin tries to open up to him about his dreams but Obi-Wan waves it off by saying that they will pass in time. The council is still very cold towards him and doesn't even acknowledge that he is more gifted than the others(not to him anyway). He has been apart from Padme as well. He understands the bureaucracy and the corrupt administration and sees how democracy isn't functioning well. All of this, especially his nightmares about his mother, has altered his personality considerably.
He is finally happy at the prospect of meeting Padme after all these years, the one person he truly still cares about, but when he does meet her she is cold and distant towards him as well.
He is assigned to protect her even though Obi-Wan thinks its a bad idea.
Padme still cares about him and grows to see him in a romantic light as well but bottles up all of those feelings in a box out of fear of what it will do to them if everyone comes to know. Anakin, seeking nothing more than being with the person he loves, thinks it is a risk but backs off when Padme tells him otherwise. He also let's out how the galaxy would be better if a single person, but a good person, was in charge instead of a democracy. He truly does not want to rule mercilessly but instead wants peace and to rid the galaxy of corruption. We learn that he cares for Obi Wan and thinks of him as a father/brother but is disappointed at the fact that he doesn't understand what Anakin is feeling and even thinks that he is holding him back. Something which all of us at one point felt about our parents (teen angst, high school romances, 'I'm capable of handling myself dad" etc") .
His nightmares grow worse and is tortured by them. He goes to Tatooine but is too late. The guilt which he had earlier multiplies 1000x and so does his anger towards Obi Wan and the council as they didn't let him go. He kills the Tusken Raider in a fit of rage but feels incredibly bad about it and is deeply ashamed.Padme understands what he is growing through and comforts him.
Anakin vows to never let this happen again.
By the end, when they are about to die, Padme opens the bottle and lets all her feelings pour out.
Episode 3:
He has grown more mature and his bond with Obi-Wan has deepened. His is trying to get on the council's good side, but I'm vain. He is initially worried when he hears of Padme's pregnancy but then is really happy, as happy as he was in Episode 1.
But then history begins to repeat itself with the nightmares and Anakin is petrified at the thought of it happening again. Anakin goes to Yoda for help, but he instead tells him to rejoice if Padme dies. Padme wants to confide in Obi Wan but Anakin thinks it's a bad idea as he is a by-the-book person. Anakin is paranoid about Padme trusting Obi Wan behind his back.He is placed in a difficult position when asked to spy on the Chancellor, not knowing whom to trust. But when he does find out that the Chancellor is a sith lord, he is willing to kill him. But Mace still doesn't trust him and leaves him behind. Anakin is conflicted at what o do but decides to head to the Chancellor's office and see how things turn out. He doesn't decide anything at this point.he witnesses Mace trying to kill him and violating the Jedi Code (he is more sensitive to following this strictly ever since he killed the Tuskens) but also knows that Palpatine is his only chance of saving Padme and makes an impulse decision to cut off Mace's hand but regrets it soon afterwards. At this point , I feel that the Dark Side is clouding his judgement (notice the way Palpatine says 'gooooooood' and Anakin's sickly face). He is conflicted at killing the children but decides to do what is necessary to save his own wife and kid.
At mustafar, he is weeping and knows that what he has done has made him inhuman, he thinks his mother would disown him if she were alive, Padme would leave him and Obi Wan might kill him. Despite all that, there is his own guilt and the knowledge that he has gone against everything he ever believed in. He tries to assure himself that what he has done is for the good of the galaxy and promises himself to seek retribution by keeping peace and ending the war.
When Padme confronts him, she is willing to look past and turn a blind eye to what he must have done, as she still sees the kid from ep1 and knows that Anakin isn't a bad person. But when Anakin starts to go on about ruling the galaxy, she realises that he truly has changed but still says that she loves him and is willing to forgive all that.Anakin already feels guilty and his paranoia and fears about Padme leaving him for what he done begin to surface when Obi Wan arrives. In a fit of rage, guilt and shame, he chokes Padme. His earlier paranoia about Padme trusting Obi Wan also surfaces.He blames Obi Wan for everything - him not trusting Anakin since ep1, not allowing him to see his mother, not vouching for him at the council, holding him back, and now turning Padme against him. Obi Wan cares for anakin too and puts up a Dam holding back his personal feelings as he knows what has to be done for the good of the galaxy. But the moment he does that and sees the little boy he once knew and cares about (his 'son'/brother) mutilated, crawling on the bank and screaming in pain, his dam breaks down and his emotions overwhelm him. He cannot kill his own kin and leaves him there.
Anakin lives with the knowledge that he killed his own wife and kid and murdered the Jedi. He cannot cope with the guilt and what he has done and puts up a mental block of everything that happened ("that name no longer has any meaning for me" in ROTJ ) . He tries to do his best to maintain peace but his anger(mostly at himself) but is vented at others and his frustrations come out making him the 'evil' guy we know.
By the end, we learn that Obi-Wan and Yoda knew about Anakin's relationship but didn't expel him as they actually cared about him, contrary to what he thought. Even Padme still does by the very end. She doesn't die willingly but the trauma, shock and depression due to what happened coupled with the birthing process was too much for her to take. The thing is that anxiety and depression can reside in the subconscious and affect the body in a very nasty way despite the person fighting against it.
She believes in Anakin and holds on to the ornament he gave her when was a kid, as she and it are buried with Anakin's last bit of humanity.....to be resurrected by his son who cares for him as much as his Padme did.
This is why I feel that Anakin's turn was perfect and is truly a beautiful love story.
I love the imagery as well. The scene where Anakin is on the swoop bike with the two suns in the background(Anakin's light and dark side) and the first shot of the first person view from the bike is amazing. This is what kicks off his eventual turn and that shot signifies him racing towards his destiny. The music makes it even more epic.
@admins/mods
I'm not spamming. Please give me a chance.
Episode 1:
Anakin is truly gifted, and more importantly, truly happy despite being a slave. He wants to help people, even strangers he just met. He views the Jedi as noble warriors and aspires to be one of them and protect the galaxy. He has a strong relationship with his mother, who in turn cares for him deeply. Qui-Gon becomes a sort of father figure to him as well. He thinks Padme is pretty and the two of them become friends(please note that this relationship isn't sexual or romantic and hence not creepy as some people say). Qui-Gon offers him the opportunity to become a Jedi, his dream. But he is still around ten years old and obviously has trouble parting with his mother. He vows to come back and free her from the life of slavery and has guilt due to leaving her behind. Padme cares for him deeply and takes care of him. Anakin cares too and gives her the carved ornament he made.
Things start to change as soon as they land, but he has Qui-Gon by his side and Padme gives him an assuring smile.
The council is cold towards him and even Yoda criticizes him for missing his mother. He starts to feel bad as he thinks he has become a problem but Qui-Gon assures him otherwise. But by the end, Qui-Gon, his father figure, is dead and also he is parted from Padme as well.
Episode 2:
In the time between episodes 1 & 2, Anakin has been having horrid nightmares of his mother dying but the council doesn't allow him to go and investigate as they think he has to let go of all emotional ties. Obi-Wan, is a by-the-book person and doesn't let him go either. Anakin tries to open up to him about his dreams but Obi-Wan waves it off by saying that they will pass in time. The council is still very cold towards him and doesn't even acknowledge that he is more gifted than the others(not to him anyway). He has been apart from Padme as well. He understands the bureaucracy and the corrupt administration and sees how democracy isn't functioning well. All of this, especially his nightmares about his mother, has altered his personality considerably.
He is finally happy at the prospect of meeting Padme after all these years, the one person he truly still cares about, but when he does meet her she is cold and distant towards him as well.
He is assigned to protect her even though Obi-Wan thinks its a bad idea.
Padme still cares about him and grows to see him in a romantic light as well but bottles up all of those feelings in a box out of fear of what it will do to them if everyone comes to know. Anakin, seeking nothing more than being with the person he loves, thinks it is a risk but backs off when Padme tells him otherwise. He also let's out how the galaxy would be better if a single person, but a good person, was in charge instead of a democracy. He truly does not want to rule mercilessly but instead wants peace and to rid the galaxy of corruption. We learn that he cares for Obi Wan and thinks of him as a father/brother but is disappointed at the fact that he doesn't understand what Anakin is feeling and even thinks that he is holding him back. Something which all of us at one point felt about our parents (teen angst, high school romances, 'I'm capable of handling myself dad" etc") .
His nightmares grow worse and is tortured by them. He goes to Tatooine but is too late. The guilt which he had earlier multiplies 1000x and so does his anger towards Obi Wan and the council as they didn't let him go. He kills the Tusken Raider in a fit of rage but feels incredibly bad about it and is deeply ashamed.Padme understands what he is growing through and comforts him.
Anakin vows to never let this happen again.
By the end, when they are about to die, Padme opens the bottle and lets all her feelings pour out.
Episode 3:
He has grown more mature and his bond with Obi-Wan has deepened. His is trying to get on the council's good side, but I'm vain. He is initially worried when he hears of Padme's pregnancy but then is really happy, as happy as he was in Episode 1.
But then history begins to repeat itself with the nightmares and Anakin is petrified at the thought of it happening again. Anakin goes to Yoda for help, but he instead tells him to rejoice if Padme dies. Padme wants to confide in Obi Wan but Anakin thinks it's a bad idea as he is a by-the-book person. Anakin is paranoid about Padme trusting Obi Wan behind his back.He is placed in a difficult position when asked to spy on the Chancellor, not knowing whom to trust. But when he does find out that the Chancellor is a sith lord, he is willing to kill him. But Mace still doesn't trust him and leaves him behind. Anakin is conflicted at what o do but decides to head to the Chancellor's office and see how things turn out. He doesn't decide anything at this point.he witnesses Mace trying to kill him and violating the Jedi Code (he is more sensitive to following this strictly ever since he killed the Tuskens) but also knows that Palpatine is his only chance of saving Padme and makes an impulse decision to cut off Mace's hand but regrets it soon afterwards. At this point , I feel that the Dark Side is clouding his judgement (notice the way Palpatine says 'gooooooood' and Anakin's sickly face). He is conflicted at killing the children but decides to do what is necessary to save his own wife and kid.
At mustafar, he is weeping and knows that what he has done has made him inhuman, he thinks his mother would disown him if she were alive, Padme would leave him and Obi Wan might kill him. Despite all that, there is his own guilt and the knowledge that he has gone against everything he ever believed in. He tries to assure himself that what he has done is for the good of the galaxy and promises himself to seek retribution by keeping peace and ending the war.
When Padme confronts him, she is willing to look past and turn a blind eye to what he must have done, as she still sees the kid from ep1 and knows that Anakin isn't a bad person. But when Anakin starts to go on about ruling the galaxy, she realises that he truly has changed but still says that she loves him and is willing to forgive all that.Anakin already feels guilty and his paranoia and fears about Padme leaving him for what he done begin to surface when Obi Wan arrives. In a fit of rage, guilt and shame, he chokes Padme. His earlier paranoia about Padme trusting Obi Wan also surfaces.He blames Obi Wan for everything - him not trusting Anakin since ep1, not allowing him to see his mother, not vouching for him at the council, holding him back, and now turning Padme against him. Obi Wan cares for anakin too and puts up a Dam holding back his personal feelings as he knows what has to be done for the good of the galaxy. But the moment he does that and sees the little boy he once knew and cares about (his 'son'/brother) mutilated, crawling on the bank and screaming in pain, his dam breaks down and his emotions overwhelm him. He cannot kill his own kin and leaves him there.
Anakin lives with the knowledge that he killed his own wife and kid and murdered the Jedi. He cannot cope with the guilt and what he has done and puts up a mental block of everything that happened ("that name no longer has any meaning for me" in ROTJ ) . He tries to do his best to maintain peace but his anger(mostly at himself) but is vented at others and his frustrations come out making him the 'evil' guy we know.
By the end, we learn that Obi-Wan and Yoda knew about Anakin's relationship but didn't expel him as they actually cared about him, contrary to what he thought. Even Padme still does by the very end. She doesn't die willingly but the trauma, shock and depression due to what happened coupled with the birthing process was too much for her to take. The thing is that anxiety and depression can reside in the subconscious and affect the body in a very nasty way despite the person fighting against it.
She believes in Anakin and holds on to the ornament he gave her when was a kid, as she and it are buried with Anakin's last bit of humanity.....to be resurrected by his son who cares for him as much as his Padme did.
This is why I feel that Anakin's turn was perfect and is truly a beautiful love story.
I love the imagery as well. The scene where Anakin is on the swoop bike with the two suns in the background(Anakin's light and dark side) and the first shot of the first person view from the bike is amazing. This is what kicks off his eventual turn and that shot signifies him racing towards his destiny. The music makes it even more epic.
@admins/mods
I'm not spamming. Please give me a chance.