^ Huh?! Neither of them seemed to have ships of any kind. Obi-Wan said Vader and the Emperor hunted down and killed the Jedi. They were living as recluses. Of course they were hiding.
That's a tough one. Definitely by the end of the fight, when Anakin was there, I do think Palpatine was putting on a show to push Anakin over to his side. But while the fight was on, I don't know if Palpatine was completely toying with Mace. Mace was one of the best Jedi swordsmen of his time, perhaps all time.
I don't disagree with your points. I mean Anakin's emotional state was jacked up on Mustafar and that might have affected his abilities to seal the deal on Obi-Wan. As for Grievous (are you really going to be nitpicky about spelling? Sheesh), I don't like listing him really, but I got to, because he was set up as this bad ass Jedi killer who went out like a punk to Obi-Wan, after a really cool build up too with the multiple swirling lightsabers. And Dooku trained Grievous, so you would think that some of that training would've helped him fight Obi-Wan. In the Clone Wars, Asajj-another Dooku trainee-fared better against Obi-Wan (though her having the Force might have played a role in that). I don't know if Maul would've adjusted on Naboo to avoid being cut in half. His arrogance got the better of him. I would've been more okay with his fate if he had been in the film more than he was.
Well, as I said, neither gave any indication that they were being hunted or that they feared leaving their seclusion. Obi-Wan left his home without hesitation, and when Vader encountered him there was no indication that the Empire had been looking for him, or that anybody even really cared he was still alive, other than Vader. I guess it could be argued that he needed to go into hiding initially, but by the time of Ep IV, he was no longer thought of as a threat. As for Yoda, he does refer to Dagobah as his home.
When Vader mentioned his belief Obi-Wan was aboard the Death Star, Tarkin dismisses it believing Obi-Wan to have been long dead.
Vader was probably the only person left in the Empire that harbored any hope that Obi-wan Kenobi was still alive....if only so he could kill him himself.
Fear of discovery wasn't the only thing keeping Obi Wan on Tatooine. He was there to watch over Luke and he knew that was a temporary affair. Eventually the time would come that they'd both have to leave and Bail sending Leia specifically to summon Obi Wan was the signal that the time had come. One assumes the intention was to rally at Alderaan with the plans before launching a coordinated assault with what Rebel cells they could muster. As things turned out, all they had was the Yavin cell and an all or nothing attack with only two squadrons. Same idea for Yoda really. He wasn't afraid of capture for his own sake, he was careful to make sure someone was still around to train one or both of the Skywalker twins and put the next generation of Jedi on the right path. The best way to do that was to stay hidden. Though as we're seeing on Rebels, he wasn't inactive in that time. We already know he was watching over Luke from afar and was guiding Kanan, Ezra, Ahsoka and possibly other lost Jedi that may still be out there.
@bold That's the thing though. The Jedi conscript and begin training when people are still babies and toddlers. We even saw Yoda training a bunch of Pre-K kids in AOTC. Obi and Yoda should've been training and preparing Luke and Leia by the time they could walk. Remember, the Jedi's duty is to destroy the Sith. The fact that Vader was Luke's father was something that neither Obi or Yoda felt compelled to tell Luke until Vader told Luke himself. This as Yoda lay dying and Obi had already died. So Obi and Yoda potentially training Luke and Leia as weapons to be used against their father, wouldn't be an issue. Just more plot holes that Lucas really didn't think out when crafting and reverse-engineering his story.
The Jedi's duty is most certainly NOT to destroy the Sith. This is what Yoda was trying to get through to Ezra in 'Shroud of Darkness', but he wasn't listening. Removing them from the galaxy is certainly in the best interest of said galaxy, but it matters how and indeed *why* this is done. Otherwise the next generation of Jedi would just be Sith by another name. As for the rest: the way I see it he wanted to make sure the Jedi survived but also avoid the mistakes of the past. Doing as you suggest would only produce a pair of trained assassins, not true Jedi. In part, the cloistered life it part of what led to the Jedi's downfall. They were mostly cut-off from those they were meant to serve. Jedi must be compassionate, they must actually care about the galaxy they're saving and not just in the abstract. For that to happen they'd need to grow up in the galaxy. They needed family, not just a master and guardian.
I wonder if Yoda, as we see him in Empire and Jedi, turn out to be a result of what happened to Ezra, Kanan, and Ahsoka. Yoda seemed to really not want to train Luke and really didn't want him to go out to face Vader. Then seeming with a bit of reluctance at his own death gives Luke the all clear, you are basically a Jedi now, except you have to confront (confront, not fight) Vader.
Actually, I would state that Yoda's arrogance really got the best of him, when he confronted Palpatine. Even more so than Mace. Like the latter, he didn't bother to alert the Senate of his intent or Palpatine's role as a Sith Lord. Worse, he didn't bother to arrest the latter.
Yoda is in his late 800's. Surely he has learned to be patient and take the long view on things. Plus - teaching Obi how to become an immortal Force ghost was pretty important, as apparently whoever gets to be immortal Force ghosts wins.
For someone that was supposed to be keeping a low profile as a former Jedi, using a lightsaber against Black Krrsantan probably wasn't the best idea.
Does he actually do that in the actual story? Comic book covers are notorious for depicting things that don't actually happen in a literal sense. They're just meant to look exciting.
From what I recall he's feared and despised in equal measure by the fleet and army officers (particularly the flag officers) but the Stormtrooper corps practically worship him. The former most likely from his lack of any formal place within the rank structure, despite an ill defined position of privilege and authority in the Empire combined with his habit of executing subordinates. The latter is of course because they've actually seen him in action and unlike most Imperial higher ups, he will lead the charge into battle. According to the recent comic book series, the apparent change in his station between ANH & tESB is partly down to the fact that the Emperor's confidence in his apprentice had waned over the years, but when Vader heard the name "Luke Skywalker", he suddenly had a newfound sense of purpose. Indeed, a lot of people miss it, but for the first half of tESB Vader is essentially running a rogue operation, hence that weird call from the Emperor where they tell each other things you'd think they already knew. If you read between the lines they're basically calling each other out on their bullshit. Palpatine had only just found out about Luke, while Vader has known for years and has been on a mission to recruit him under the guise of hunting rebels. Indeed the true purpose of the Battle of Hoth was to extract Luke, but Ozzel botched the approach and they had to resort to using walkers to take down the shields before they could land. Had things gone according to plan, he would have led a commando raid on echo base and gone straight for Luke. Vader's bit about turning Luke as an ally was a desperate bit of improvising because he knew the gig was up and he'd been caught trying to train an apprentice to usurp Palpatine.
If the films have taught viewers anything, its that force powers are not used in an across the board manner by all, so in the case of Dooku vs. Kenobi, the count's one advantage was a force choke, but. we cannot say Palpatine would have used the same tactic. Additionally, if facing the unpredictable moves of two Jedi--he might've been forced (no pun intended) to resort to other powers in the heat of the fight. It's analogous to TPM final duel; Maul killing Jinn--or whatever advantages he had over him did not mean he would--or could--use the same against Kenobi with any success.