A big part of what makes the Mandos interesting is we don't know what is going to happen to them or their worlds. Which just emphasizes yet again how great this show could be if it were set after Return of the Jedi and given free rein to tell whatever stories it wanted.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars 2x14 Duchess of Mandalore
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I thought this was an intelligent, mature story which made excellent use of its characters. The Satine-Kenobi relationship is quite interesting and complex. And putting Satine and Padme together -- great subtle parallel between those two women, and how the choices of Anakin and Obi-Wan are so radically different. Alongside the very insightful discussions about power -- and when to use it in the name of "protecting" people -- make this one of the best written episodes so far (incompetent assassins notwithstanding).
And I agree with those who said that this was a very cinematic-looking episode. I loved the establishing shots of the Separatist fleet, the Senate, Coruscant. And the soundtrack was enjoyable, too.
And I agree with those who said that this was a very cinematic-looking episode. I loved the establishing shots of the Separatist fleet, the Senate, Coruscant. And the soundtrack was enjoyable, too.
Adding to yours, why didn't the flying security camera post an alert when Satine was being shot at? The Mando starting firing right after it spotted her...It could NOT have not noticed the ruckus.
Droids aren't that bright.
I really enjoyed it on second viewing. Great tension during Satine's transport crash, and I really enjoyed the fight between the Mandalorian and Obi-Wan. This guy seemed to better hold his own than those few in the first episode of the story arc. I liked all the foreshadowing this episode seemed to offer. Those clone troops running along police forces and all the "Things are changing" themed anxieties will help make the overall Clone Wars/Imperial-rise-to-power a much more solid storyline.
Of course I just loved the shot of the night time public gathering place based on Ralph McQuarrie's paintings. It seemed to be a pretty amazing and faithful rendition of one of his best Coruscant night scenes. I realize now, after checking my books, that the bare rock/mountain peak was actually in a different but equally amazing painting. So, they managed to blend two of my favorite McQuarrie paintings into one scene!
I also noticed that they seemed to reduce the size of the landing port outcropping in relation to the exterior of that Mandalorian domed city (or maybe that's just another angle, but it looked far more reasonably scaled this time).
Of course I just loved the shot of the night time public gathering place based on Ralph McQuarrie's paintings. It seemed to be a pretty amazing and faithful rendition of one of his best Coruscant night scenes. I realize now, after checking my books, that the bare rock/mountain peak was actually in a different but equally amazing painting. So, they managed to blend two of my favorite McQuarrie paintings into one scene!
I also noticed that they seemed to reduce the size of the landing port outcropping in relation to the exterior of that Mandalorian domed city (or maybe that's just another angle, but it looked far more reasonably scaled this time).
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I think it's sad that the only exposed bit of nature left on the entire planet is a lifeless piece of rock. Unless there are huge nature preserves in vast underground greenhouses or something. (Where does Coruscant get its oxygen, anyway? And how does it dissipate the huge amounts of heat that would be generated by a planetwide city and its populace?)
Yeah. My own theory is that "Old Ben" is a mangling of "Obi" by the Lars and it was the only name that a young Luke knew Kenobi as...
I admit to being somewhat neutral towards this series in the first season, but now I'm luvin' it.
Luke does refer to Ben as Kenobi a few times before finally meeting him and learning the truth. But I think Old Ben was primarily what Obi-Wan was known as and that does make sense.
Agreed.
The Mandalorian people here are presented in a complex way. The leader is a pacifist and the population is attempting to turn away from its violent past. They don't want to be involved in The Clone Wars (smart when you think about it) and resent Republic intervention. But they are prepared to take up arms and fight Death Watch (the remnants of the old ways) by themselves.
Agreed.
The Mandalorian people here are presented in a complex way. The leader is a pacifist and the population is attempting to turn away from its violent past. They don't want to be involved in The Clone Wars (smart when you think about it) and resent Republic intervention. But they are prepared to take up arms and fight Death Watch (the remnants of the old ways) by themselves.
It would be sad if someone just up and did that to a world as beautiful as ours, but I've always figured they've had millennia to get used to the idea.
The notion that the rock sprout was a rare bit of mountain top comes from a picture book titled The Illustrated Star Wars Universe published by Bantam Books back in 1995. It is rich with the McQuarrie paintings and concept sketches (as well as other artists) and takes a fictional in-universe travel guide approach to the artwork inside. I'm sure, given the age of the book, that it's probably stepped on some canon toes by now. The exposed mountain top I remember was actually hemmed into the center of an area known as Monument Plaza; An enormous open area filled with statues and surrounded by stepped and sloping towers, ever increasing in height as they radiated outward from the central rock peak. It's a beautiful sunrise/sunset like image and invokes a feel of ancient Rome in its appearance. I suppose more than a few mountain tops could still be poking out in various locales on Coruscant's surface though.
I wouldn't begin to know how the planet gets all of its environmental necessities, but the book does claim that the planet isn't close enough to its sun and would actually be too cold if it didn't have mirrors orbiting in space to help focus extra sunlight to some extreme areas. Some water needs are met by polar ice caps being melted and carryed by pipelines to the rest of the planet. All other bodies of water have since been exhausted. The book also mentions huge greenhouses in various places, run entirely by automation, but states that the planet is by no means self sufficient.
A number of other Expanded Universe materials (games, comic books) indicate that Coruscant was once a beautiful lush world with any of a number of natural wonders, but given the nature of this universe's space faring civilization, they may view it with a grain of salt.
But that's not necessary. A city is a huge heat generator. A planetwide city populated by a trillion warm bodies, not to mention all their machines churning out waste heat, would never be too cold. As Niven and Lerner asserted in their recent Known Space novel Juggler of Worlds (or else its forerunner Fleet of Worlds, I forget which), a planet like that would need to be very far from its sun, or have no sun at all, in order to avoid overheating. It would get all the warmth it needed from its own population and their technology.
So what does that mean as far as oxygen goes? Do they have to get it shipped in from elsewhere? Is there a risk of Coruscant sending Mega-Maid to steal the atmosphere of planet Druidia?
Well, now that I look at it, the book actually touches quite a bit on the urban/ecosystem and how they move precious commodities to and fro, but it might not be the most scientifically sound explanation. Raw materials being shipped from asteroids are mentioned. There are giant, walking, automated factories that move about and destroy old condemned structures and build new ones. The planet is in a constant state of urban renewal and the necessities for this maintenance are constantly in motion. The lower levels of the city have developed their own micro-climates and are apparently (naturally) not the most desirable areas to visit. The whole thing is set in Original Trilogy times and is a bit tongue-in-cheek as if written by some loyal Imperial propagandist. He acknowledges some of the less fortunate aspects of maintaining such a metropolis but claims such things are necessary inconveniences for the greater glory of the Empire.
When it comes to oxygen, I also assumed too that what they couldn't scrub from waste gases, especially Carbon Dioxide, that they indeed ship it in from off world.
As for excess heat, I don't know what to say. Other than the planet being under-heated by its parent star and the methods they use to offset that, there isn't any other mention of heat. I wouldn't know where to begin ascertaining such factors. They may have some mundane technology in place to take care of such things. I yield to your better knowledge there.
When it comes to oxygen, I also assumed too that what they couldn't scrub from waste gases, especially Carbon Dioxide, that they indeed ship it in from off world.
As for excess heat, I don't know what to say. Other than the planet being under-heated by its parent star and the methods they use to offset that, there isn't any other mention of heat. I wouldn't know where to begin ascertaining such factors. They may have some mundane technology in place to take care of such things. I yield to your better knowledge there.
Obviously Luke knew his last name--that's what made him wonder if General Obi-Wan Kenobi and "Old Ben" Kenobi were somehow related.
Obi-Wan Kenobi. Obi Kenobi. Old Ben Kenobi. Ben Kenobi.
Kinda like how "journey cakes" eventually became known as "Johnny cakes" after years of mispronounciation...
Funny you should mention Coruscant-The EU reference material actually states that the original Mandalorians were Coruscanti exiles and aliens (In a similar fashion to how the original Sith were non-human) known as the Taung. Apparentally some of Joel Mcneely's soundtrack for Shadows of the Empire was a Taung war chant or something along those lines.
All this talk about Obi-Wan reminds me of fan speculation that Obi-Wan was a clone, a corruption of "Obi-one". Originally, Timothy Zahn actually wanted to use this idea, but it was shot down by Lucas, and we ended up with Joruss C'baoth; likewise, Archie Goodwin had already used an Obi-Wan lookalike in an old comic.
All this talk about Obi-Wan reminds me of fan speculation that Obi-Wan was a clone, a corruption of "Obi-one". Originally, Timothy Zahn actually wanted to use this idea, but it was shot down by Lucas, and we ended up with Joruss C'baoth; likewise, Archie Goodwin had already used an Obi-Wan lookalike in an old comic.
I had been wondering about that -- whether the Mandalorians (and Corellians, while we're at it) were of the same species as the apparent humans of the SW-verse, just colonists who settled different planets, rather than lookalike aliens.
And does that mean Coruscant is the birthworld of humanity in the SW-verse?
And does that mean Coruscant is the birthworld of humanity in the SW-verse?