George Lucas Explains Why The Jedi Were DOOMED

Summary

George Lucas delves into the deeper narrative behind the Jedi's near extinction in the original Star Wars trilogy. Beyond their physical extermination by the Empire, Lucas underscores the psychological defeat from within the Jedi Order itself. The Jedi, perceiving themselves as failures following the Clone Wars, succumbed to despair and self-doubt. Lucas reveals how their philosophical and existential crisis led them to abandon their mission, resulting in only a few surviving to train future generations. This introspective explanation reveals the layered tragedy of the Jedi's downfall and their ultimate philosophical defeat, serving as a lesson for future endeavors.

Highlights

• George Lucas delves into the philosophical defeat of the Jedi, revealing a deeper narrative 📚.
• The Jedi's own self-doubt and perceived failure after the Clone Wars contributed to their downfall 🤯.
• Only a few Jedi remained to mentor future generations, highlighting the depth of their crisis 🌱.
• This narrative serves as an introspective lesson on self-awareness and philosophical resilience 🤜🤛.
• Palpatine's triumph was not just physical but also existential, breaking the Jedi's spirit entirely 💣.

Key Takeaways

• The Jedi's downfall was as much a psychological defeat as it was a physical one 💥.
• George Lucas highlights how the Jedi Order's own self-doubt led to their near extinction 🤔.
• The story of the Jedi's fall is a layered narrative, emphasizing internal philosophical defeat 💔.
• Luke Skywalker played a pivotal role in redefining Jedi ideals and teaching them new perspectives 🌌.
• Palpatine managed to not just defeat the Jedi, but crush their very ideals and soul 🏴‍☠️.

Overview

In the Star Wars universe, the decline of the Jedi is attributed not only to Order 66 and the Empire's relentless pursuit but also to an internal collapse. George Lucas sheds light on how the Jedi's belief in their own failure led to their extinction. This wasn't just about being outnumbered or outmaneuvered; it was about losing faith in their own purpose and teachings.

The irony lies in the fact that the Jedi, once guardians of peace and justice, succumbed to a crisis of confidence. People like Luke Skywalker had to introduce fresh perspectives to the remaining Jedi. They had to embrace something more than the dogmatic adherence to the light side—something that made them rethink their beliefs and adapt to new challenges.

Lucas's interpretation is a sophisticated analysis of defeat. It presents a nuanced explanation of how the Jedi were undone not just by external forces but by internal philosophical collapse. It's not just a warning tale of vulnerability but a call for introspection and philosophical fortitude, urging the next generation of Jedi to stand resilient in their beliefs.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction to the Jedi's Decline The chapter 'Introduction to the Jedi's Decline' discusses the sparse presence of Jedi in the Star Wars original trilogy, attributed to the Empire's efforts in hunting them down to prevent the resurgence of the light side order. It also touches on the infamous Order 66, where the Jedi were betrayed and killed in masses by clone troopers. This sets the stage for the main theme of the original trilogy: the ultimate return of the Jedi.
• 00:30 - 01:00: Empire's Measures Post-Order 66 The chapter discusses the implications and actions taken by the Empire following Order 66. It highlights the priority placed on ensuring the Jedi do not remain a dominant presence in the galaxy. Darth Vader's top task was to locate and eliminate any remaining Jedi to prevent the possibility of them training a new generation that could oppose the Empire.
• 01:00 - 01:30: Importance of Jedi's Absence in Original Trilogy The absence of Jedi in the original trilogy is crucial for character development, including that of Luke Skywalker and his Jedi masters, Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi. The narrative suggests that the Jedi Order's downfall may have been due to its rigid adherence to the light side and its abandonment of those who fall to the dark side. This period of absence allowed for different, more bold, and beneficial perspectives to emerge, particularly those represented by Luke.
• 01:30 - 02:00: George Lucas's Perspective George Lucas provides insight into the downfall of the Jedi in the era of the original trilogy. He discusses how the Jedi failed over generations, leading to their near extinction. Lucas comments on the scarcity of Jedi mentors available to Luke Skywalker, underscoring the decline of the old Jedi Order and the pivotal role Luke plays in this changed landscape.
• 02:00 - 02:30: Story Implications of Jedi Extinction This chapter discusses George Lucas's insights into the story implications of the Jedi's extinction, specifically focusing on why he preferred the Jedi to be absent in the original trilogy rather than detailing their demise. Instead of emphasizing how the Empire hunted them or the betrayal by clone troopers, Lucas highlights how the Jedi somehow gave up on themselves after the Clone Wars.
• 02:30 - 03:00: Jedi's Self-Perceived Failure The chapter explores the theme of the Jedi's self-perceived failure, as highlighted by creator George Lucas and further discussed by Dave Filoni. It suggests that the Jedi's downfall was not solely due to external factors like being hunted and almost exterminated by clone troopers and Darth Vader, but rather their own loss of belief in themselves and their work. This introspective failure is proposed as the reason for the diminished presence of Jedi in the original trilogy, as they literally gave up on themselves after the Clone Wars.
• 03:00 - 03:30: Dave Filoni's Discussion with George Lucas Dave Filoni highlights the profound impact the Jedi's perceived failure had in protecting the Republic. This perceived failure added a layer of tragedy to the Star Wars universe beyond the Jedi being wiped out. The true damage was in how the perception of the Jedi was dismantled by Sidious and Vader, affecting the way surviving Jedi engaged with the Empire.
• 03:30 - 04:00: Jedi's Philosophical and Fundamental Flaws The chapter discusses the philosophical and fundamental flaws of the Jedi. It highlights how the Jedi, even among themselves, were fundamentally flawed, leading to their own downfall. The survivors of Order 66 were forced into self-reflection, uncovering the painful truth that their defeat came from within rather than from an external enemy. The chapter focuses on the Jedi's gradual understanding of their mistakes during the Clone Wars and how these missteps contributed to their own defeat.
• 04:00 - 04:30: Ultimate Jedi Failing The chapter titled 'Ultimate Jedi Failing' explores the fundamental failure of the Jedi order according to George Lucas. It dives into the concept of losing sight of what being a true Jedi really means, highlighting a significant downfall in their ideals and soul. This failing is portrayed as a layered and tragic aspect of the Jedi narrative, emphasizing how Emperor Palpatine's manipulation was instrumental in this collapse, ultimately affecting the state of the galaxy. The explanation provided by Lucas reveals how deeply interwoven these elements are and shines a light on the consequences of the Jedi's inability to uphold their principles.
• 04:30 - 05:00: Impact on Following Generations The chapter discusses the impact of events on subsequent generations, specifically questioning the reasons behind the failure and rapid extinction of the Jedi following Order 66. It explores why so few Jedi resisted the Empire and the Sith, encouraging viewers to reflect on these issues while expressing gratitude to the audience.
• 05:00 - 05:30: Conclusion and Viewer Engagement The chapter titled 'Conclusion and Viewer Engagement' highlights the importance of engaging with the audience in the concluding part of a video or presentation. It discusses strategies to keep the audience interested and ways to encourage interaction, ensuring that the conclusion is memorable and impactful. The chapter may also emphasize the call to action for viewers to subscribe, leave comments, or share the content on social media platforms to increase engagement and reach.

George Lucas Explains Why The Jedi Were DOOMED Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 there are famously not very many jedi in the star wars original trilogy obviously due to the effects of the empire actively hunting the jedi ensuring that the lightside order not be allowed to covet power and again start a resurgence this was also in fact due to the dreaded order 66 and the jedi being mowed down and betrayed by the thousands of clone troopers they fought besides and who then actively hunted them this is the major point of the star wars original trilogy the ultimate return of the jedi
• 00:30 - 01:00 so obviously it's important that the jedi not be a dominant presence in the galaxy following order 66 the empire obviously took immediate measures just after the order was given as it became darth vader's number one priority to destroy and locate all of the remaining jedi as if even one jedi were to escape the implications that they could train a new generation to rise up and oppose the empire were huge and the potential for this was even larger having the jedi be
• 01:00 - 01:30 largely absent from the original trilogy was very important for the overall story and growth of characters like luke and even his own jedi masters like yoda and obi-wan as the lesson and reality that they all came to is that the jedi needed to chain perhaps it is the fact that the jedi holds so staunchly to the light side of the force and abandon those that fall to the dark side that the order collapsed in the first place and it took much more brash but ultimately beneficial viewpoints such as luke
• 01:30 - 02:00 skywalker's to help change the minds of these aged jedi that had failed in the generations prior to his own george lucas himself actually commented about this recently in an interview giving his viewpoint which i absolutely love hearing as george lucas revealed exactly why all of the jedi went extinct during the era of the original trilogy and how the jedi had fallen to the point where luke only seems to find two prominent teachers left of the old religion this takes it a step further as george lucas
• 02:00 - 02:30 talks about the story implications of why he did not want the jedi around in the original trilogy rather than exactly what happened to them in a sense explaining not how the jedi went extinct but why they went extinct george lucas comments about the jedi and their state in the original trilogy he doesn't actually talk about how effective the empire was at hunting them down or how tragic the betrayal of the clone troopers was rather george lucas talks about how the jedi gave upon themselves following the end of the clone wars and
• 02:30 - 03:00 perceived their entire body of work and entire order as a failure with lucas pointing this to being the main reason why the jedi are almost extinct and show very little signs in the original trilogy not the fact that they were hunted and nearly exterminated by the clone troopers and vader but the fact that they literally gave up on themselves this is what dave filoni had to say it also spoke to something that i discussed with george over the years as far as the aftermath of the clone wars the reason why we never saw too many
• 03:00 - 03:30 jedi fights against the empire is the fact that a lot of them felt that they failed their goal to protect the republic and they were all ultimately deceived the fact that the jedi failed and this addition to the star wars universe is far more tragic in a way than nearly all of the jedi being wiped out instead of just extinguishing their lives sidious and vader managed to destroy the entire perception of the jedi the reason the jedi don't fight back so staunchly against the empire is
• 03:30 - 04:00 because they were proven incorrect and philosophically and fundamentally flawed even among themselves and i'm sure a lot of the self-reflection that the jedi that did survive order 66 went through was not a good experience in the end the jedi largely gave up on themselves they were defeated but not by some unknown enemy but rather from within as the jedi slowly realized the calamity of the mistakes and missteps they took over the course of the clone wars and how they
• 04:00 - 04:30 all utterly lost sight of what a true jedi was meant to be this is the ultimate failing of the jedi and this is what george was going for i also found this viewpoint very intriguing and massively tragic and again the idea that palpatine was able to crush the very soul and ideals of a jedi this explanation from lucas is eye-opening and amazing as it shows just how layered the state of the galaxy was and how important the failure of the jedi was
• 04:30 - 05:00 for the following generations but what are your thoughts on this and what are your thoughts on why the jedi ultimately failed and why they went extinct so quickly following order 66 and why so few of them rose up against the empire and the sith as always my friends thank you guys so much for watching may the force be with you
• 05:00 - 05:30 you