Monday, January 26, 2009

Ranking the Great Jedi and Sith Fighters

Now that all six movies have finally been completed, here is my list (after many, many viewings with my sons) of the greatest of all with the light saber:


Top Ten Jedi and Sith Fighters from the Star Wars Movies:

1. Darth Sidious–I am still not sure how Sidious was defeated by Vader in Return of the Jedi. It really doesn’t make much sense.

2. Yoda–Much more powerful than we ever expected, he still seems a scosh behind Sidious.

3. Obi-won Kenobi–Kenobi was the Derek Jeter of the Star Wars movies, and defeated the seemingly invincible Darth Maul and Anakin Skywalker.

4. Anakin Skywalker–Perhaps the greatest talent of all, he never learned to control his impetuosity and master his passions.

5. Darth Tyrannis–At one point, seemingly poised to become most powerful of all, Tyrannis seemed to become old in an instant.

6. Darth Maul–Hard to assess, given his predilection for the most difficult to master double lightsaber and his almost foolhardy and overconfident confrontation with Qui-gon and Obi-won.

7. Mace Windu–Much more was expected of him in his final battle.

8. Qui-gon Jinn–Was upstaged by his Padawan, Obi-won.

9. Darth Vader–Sort of the Grant Hill of the galaxy. Vader had extensive knowledge and experience but was never the same fighter after his battle with Obi-won. His leaden artificial appendages restricted his mobility and he could never engage in the types of moves and leaps that Anakin Skywalker was known for.

10. Luke Skywalker–Another in a long line of sons who can’t match up to their fathers, Luke was a better pilot than figher and never beat anyone of consequence with a light saber. Yes, he defeated Darth Vader but Vader was not close to his former self by that point and Vader seemingly let Luke escape once and then appeared to allow Luke to win in their second battle. Luke’s confrontation with the Emperor showed just how weak he was compared to the battles that Yoda and Windu gave the Emperor.