When someone wants to mimic being a “master” at something, or is giving wise counsel to a friend, they often adopt the habit of talking like they don’t know whether a verb or a noun goes first in a sentence (ex. “Speak like an idiot, I will.”) You have, no doubt, imitated this great Jedi’s voice once in your lifetime. This week, I’m going to discuss the pinnacle of the Jedi Temple, the greatest master of them all. Even for those who haven’t seen Star Wars, they probably recognize the awesome little green guy from the movie.
Master Yoda, he is.
Yoda is one of the great movie-mentors, up there with Mr. Miyagi and Morpheus. He is wise in his old age (which, by the way, is approximately 900 years old during the Star Wars movies)and has great nuggets of wisdom that he can’t wait to dish out (“Do or do not, there is no try”).
Luke Skywalker, the main hero of the earlier Star Wars trilogy, started his Jedi training with Obi-Wan Kenobi when he was a mere farm boy from Tatooine. But after Obi-Wan died (sorry if I spoiled that, but you really should’ve seen Star Wars by now), Luke was left alone, his training incomplete. Obi-Wan’s spirit sent him to the Dagobah System, an entire planet that is one big swamp. There, Luke meets Yoda, but doesn’t realize that it is the diminutive green creature is the Jedi Master he is looking for. Yoda finally reveals himself and Luke begins the completion of his Jedi training, so he can face Darth Vader once and for all.
In Episodes 1-3, Yoda is the head of the Jedi Council. Every single Jedi Master looks up to him, and they have reason to. Yoda never makes mistakes and is a cornucopia of fortune cookie sayings. The only mistake he made was allowing young Anakin Skywalker to begin training as a Jedi at the ripe old age of 9 (training usually begins when the child is a toddler), even though he had reservations, due to the boy's anger issues. This ultimately cost the Jedi their entire way of life, their lineage burned to the ground, thanks to Skywalker, Sr.
In Episodes 5-6, Yoda is reduced to living in hiding on the planet Dagobah. If you watch the movies in the order they were made, we first see Yoda through Luke's eyes and write him off as a crazy little green elf who steals Luke's flashlight and dinner. Yoda's disposition changes entirely once he tests Luke's patience, however, and suddenly, he's not just a crazy little green elf, but a Jedi Knight who is far more intelligent than he lets on.
I always thought that Yoda was the one of the best characters on Star Wars (Han Solo is right up there, too. Come on, it's Harrison Ford), for these reasons:
1) He's green.
2) He can lift small aircrafts out of mucky swamps with nary an effort
3)He can take on a Sith Lord even though he is 1/4 his enemy's size.
But the main reason I have a soft spot in my heart for Yoda is for this reason: He has shown us that "size matters not". You don't have to be ripped like Rambo or Arnold Schwarzenegger to kick some bad guy butt. All you need is a little faith; in yourself, in others, and in the Force.
Hate Star Wars, I do, but, I think yoda is somewhat cool. It is amazing how big of a following there is behind Star Wars. I have seen many pictures of Star Wars tattoos on the internet. There was a group on facebook that was titled "If This Group Reaches 10,000 People I Will Get Storm Troopers at My Wedding." Yes, Star Wars has lasted the test of time and has some of the most successful sequels.....but I still don't like it. Good post though.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that you are looking up Star Wars tattoos on the internet, Zack.
ReplyDeleteYoda is the bees knees!!! I love him! He's not the coolest Jedi (in my opinion) but he's definetly in my top three! He definetly shows people that great things come in small packages.
ReplyDeleteHe's even cooler because he is top dog above all the guys who are atleast three feet taller than him! He's so powerful and yet he's not boastful which is really admirable.
Good work Yoda! Keep working your powerful little green magic!