Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith

Question: Was the possibility of putting Asajj Ventress into the movie ever considered?

Answer: No, but before the character of Count Dooku was developed, the Art Department for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones developed a female Sith as the film's villain, as seen in concept art by Dermot Power in The Art of Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones. Since Dooku replaced her as Sidious' apprentice, she was put in to the animated series.

POKER

Question: After Palpatine orders the clone troopers to execute order 66, they are shown killing the Jedi. When Palpatine gave the order to the clones, several of them were in the midst of a raging battle. After they killed the Jedi, what happened to the clones? Did the battles continue uninterrupted? Were they killed also?

SeekerOfAnswers

Chosen answer: The battles continued. Some clones would undoubtedly have been killed, many survived to fight on until the cease-fire order came in after Vader slew the Separatist leadership on Mustafar.

Tailkinker

Question: If Sidious was trained by Plagueis, how/when was he able to get involved in a political career? Was he already an adult when Plagueis met him?

Answer: Very few details have been released regarding Palpatine's early life, how he apparently escaped the notice of the Jedi Order and came to the attention of Plagueis instead. His apprenticeship apparently took "many decades", suggesting that he was recruited as a child. However, under Naboo law, public service is mandatory between the ages of 12 and 20, so it is possible that Palpatine was already in service when recruited, and chose to continue his political career in order to further the goals of the Sith. Even if recruited at a younger age, Palpatine was reportedly of noble birth, making it relatively difficult for him to simply drop out of sight to train as a Sith full time, so he may simply have decided (or been instructed by his master) to continue with his life in an outwardly normal fashion, while being trained covertly in the Sith arts.

Tailkinker

Question: I don't see how killing Grievous could've ended the entire war. He was commander of the droid armies, yes, but what about the leaders of the Trade Federation, the Banking Clan, and the Commerce Guild? They could create more droids and simply promote someone else to Grievous' position. Don't you think the Jedi would've made destroying the Sepratists their highest priority?

Brad

Chosen answer: Grievous is a highly dangerous individual. Through his leadership, the droid armies are scoring a lot of victories they wouldn't have otherwise had. Added to that the fact that Grievous is hunting down and killing Jedi, and he becomes a high priority target for the republic. Get rid of him and the seperatists have lost their greatest general and a highly dangerous combatant.

Gary O'Reilly

Question: Does the scene where Anakin arrives late to the meeting (when Obi-Wan tells him he has to spy on Chancellor Palpatine) take place right after Anakin talked to Yoda about his dreams? I'm wondering if there was a small time span because it seems like Yoda should have been there if the Jedi Council was discussing the assignment. However, if Anakin arrived right after talking to Yoda, Yoda should have also been late getting there.

Answer: You're assuming that Yoda was meant to be at the meeting. Not all meetings involve all members of the Council. Had Yoda been intended to be present, in all likelihood the meeting would have been delayed until the Grand Master arrived, whereas Anakin's absence would be less of a big deal.

Tailkinker

Question: When Obi-wan says that Anakin saved him for the ninth time instead of the tenth, because the business on some planet doesn't count, what is he referring to?

Answer: He is referring to an incident on Cato Nemoidia, the home planet of the Nemoidians. It's not shown in the film, but, if I remember correctly, it is told in the novel Labyrinth of Evil.

Cubs Fan

Question: When Yoda tells Darth Sidious that his faith in Vader may be misplaced, is it because he thinks, at the time, that Obi-wan can bring Anakin back?

Answer: It's a possibility, but, to be honest, it's considerably more likely that Yoda's referring to the fact that he thinks that Obi-wan will be able to kill Anakin.

Tailkinker

Question: What are the different levels of Jedi, in order? I know that in this movie, Anakin is a Knight but not a Master.

Answer: Right at the very bottom, you have the younglings, who appear to have no particularly official title, but who have been variously referred to as Jedi Initiates, Jedi Students and occasionally Jedi Hopefuls. As they age and are apprenticed to a Jedi Master or Jedi Knight, they become a Padawan, travelling with their mentor. Once a Padawan is deemed ready by his or her mentor, they will enter a series of trials, at the end of which they will have the rank of Jedi Knight conferred upon them (in certain cases, where a Padawan has performed some act of extraordinary heroism, this may be taken in lieu of the trials, an example being Obi-wan Kenobi, who was promoted to Jedi Knight after his defeat of Darth Maul). The remaining official rank is that of Jedi Master, which is most commonly conferred on a Jedi after they successfully train their first Padawan to Knight rank, but may also be awarded by their peers after some particularly grand act or major advancement in the Force. While not technically possessing a higher rank, the twelve Jedi who sit on the council can be considered to possess higher authority within the Order. Finally, an unofficial but acknowledged position within the Order is that of Grand Master, considered "first among equals" in the council, held by Yoda at the time of the fall of the Old Republic.

Tailkinker

Question: Why do some think that Darth Plagueis or Darth Sidious created Anakin? I don't see why Plagueis would bother training Sidious, or why Sidious would train Maul, if either of them could use the midi-chlorians make a very strong apprentice. Also, Shmi is a poor slave living in a small town in Tattooine, so why would either Plagueis or Sidious have any reason to be interested in her?

Answer: Because while they could use the midi-chlorians to create a powerful apprentice, they can't use them to grow that apprentice to adulthood in the blink of an eye. Sidious needs an apprentice to do his bidding and advance his agenda in the meantime; he's not going to sit there twiddling his thumbs while he waits for Anakin to grow up. As far as choosing Shmi Skywalker, they need to choose a host mother who's not going to come to the attention of the Jedi. If the Jedi pick up on Anakin shortly after his birth, then they will simply take him away and raise him from scratch, which would ruin him for Sidious' purposes. They need Anakin to grow up a bit, develop attachments that can be manipulated to turn him to the Dark Side, so picking a humble slave on an out-of-the-way world is a perfect choice.

Tailkinker

Question: This continuity error is mentioned on the Star Wars Wikipedia, but I was wondering if anyone might have an answer. Anakin is 22 or 23 years old in this movie, and Obi-Wan says that no one has ever been on the Jedi Council at that age. However, Depa Billaba is seen on the council in Episode I. If Depa's master, Mace Windu, is 40 then and considers Depa to be like a daughter to him (according to http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Depa_Billaba and the novel "Shatterpoint"), he is probably at least 17 or 18 years older than her. That would mean that she is in her early 20's in Episode I. Wouldn't Obi-Wan know that someone else before Anakin had already been on the Council at that age?

Answer: It's simply an error. While efforts are made to keep the expanded universe materials such as the books and comics consistent with the films, there is inevitably the possibility of inconsistencies creeping in. By Lucasfilm rules, the only inviolate canon are the movies themselves - information gleaned from other sources that contradicts the movies is automatically considered to be incorrect, even if it appeared prior to the film in question. The movies say that Anakin is the youngest ever to sit on the Council, so that's what's considered to be the canon. Billaba may appear on the council in Episode 1, but whatever information suggests that she is, in fact, younger than Anakin is to be considered incorrect.

Tailkinker

Question: Is it known whether Darth Plagueous' power to "create life" worked on people that were already dead (other than himself)? I'm asking because Vader believes that he and Palpatine can figure out how to use the power, so it seems like he wouldn't be worried when he hears that Padme is dead.

Answer: The strong implication is that it doesn't. He's described as being able to "prevent those he loved from dying", which is a little different from actually bringing them back from the dead. There are also references to manipulating the midi-chlorians in order to create life, which appears to refer to the ability to create a new organism (as may possibly have been done with Anakin himself), rather than any form of resurrection.

Tailkinker

Answer: There's no definitive answer to this one, however, the key to the bodily disappearance appears to be the training that Yoda refers to at the end of the film, when he makes reference to Qui-Gon having found his way back via the Force. There's no indication that anyone other than Yoda and Obi-Wan have ever studied this, so, in all likelihood, no, Windu's body didn't disappear.

Tailkinker

Answer: It's a question of appearance. Sidious needs to discredit the Jedi, make it appear as if they've turned against the Republic so that he can use their clone troops to eliminate them without major public outcry. He can't let the Seperatists take them out; it would have the potential effect of making them martyrs, plus it would effectively mean letting the Seperatists win the war, which would jeopardise his political position. Tyranus's public persona is the leader of the Seperatist movement, so he could hardly be used to lead the clone troops; the public would never accept a supposed change of heart of that nature. Nor could Tyranus simply eliminate the Jedi himself - he's powerful, but not powerful enough to single-handedly take them all out. Sidious ultimately needs an apprentice who can be seen to be loyal and who can lead the clone troops to eliminate the Jedi without awkward questions about said loyalty. Either way, Tyranus is out of the question; with Sidious' plan coming to fruition, Tyranus is no longer useful to him, except in that his death can be used to bring his successor closer to the Dark Side. Anakin, who fits the required role perfectly, is the one that Sidious has really been waiting for to help him finish the job.

Tailkinker

Question: I read that Bail Organa was going to have a female aide/assistant in this movie, but George Lucas wanted her removed because the actress who played her posed for Playboy magazine. Was her name still in the credits, or are there any scenes where they forgot to or couldn't remove her image?

Answer: The character that you're thinking of wasn't an assistant to Bail Organa, but was a Senator named Bana Breemu, who was working covertly with Organa, Padme and several other Senators to persuade Palpatine to attempt a diplomatic solution to the war. While Bai Ling, the actress who played Breemu, did pose naked for Playboy, Lucas has always denied that this was the reason for the cuts, stating that the subplot involving the group of concerned Senators was cut from the film several months prior to her Playboy appearance. The deleted scenes in question were included on the DVD release - if Lucas was really that concerned about her Playboy appearance, he could easily have left them out.

Tailkinker

Question: Both David Bowers and Jerome Blake play Mas Amedda in this movie. Are there any noticeable differences in appearance between each actor playing him?

Answer: No. The make-up required for the character is extremely comprehensive, covering the entire face in prosthetics. As such, any differences would be hidden by the make-up.

Tailkinker

Question: Before the movie came out, I read about a possible scene where Anakin calls Obi-Wan "Ben". Was this in a deleted scene, or did Anakin ever call him "Ben" in any of the SW books?

Answer: Not that I've seen or read. There's no indication that Obi-Wan began to use the name until he went into exile (but was seen using it to discreetly contact the council while posing as a convict in an episode of The Clone Wars).

Tailkinker

The Clone Wars actually rectifies this, it's revealed that "Ben" was a nickname Obi-Wan picked up from Dutchess Satine in their youth.

Question: In some of the fight scenes in the Star Wars movies, and other ones, one of the people fighting will quickly twirl/spin around. Is there any reason for doing that move?

Answer: If you are talking about the light sabre fights, that is a sword fighting move that some fighters will use. Occasionally, a sword fighter will find himself in a weak position that would give the opponent an easy strike to move in a more conventional way. The spin is a way to strike while putting distance between yourself and your opponent. I have some experience in Japanese katana fighting and the spin is not a move I like because it puts your back to the opponent - but it is useful in the right conditions. And it looks exciting - which is probably why they used it in Star Wars.

Zwn Annwn

Question: What exactly happens to the bodies of the Separatist leaders during the Obi-Wan/Anakin fight on Mustafar. When they first enter the control room fighting, the floor remains littered with the corpses from earlier (Nute Gunray most prominently visible). Yet as the fight progresses the Separatists' bodies either shift position or partially/completely disappear in the scene. Is there a logical explanation for this or is this simply a digital error and thus a visual mistake?

Answer: I'd say its most likely just a lazy mistake. Unless all the vibrations on the planet surface moved them around, or one of the Jedi moved them using the force during their fight (unlikely).

Question: Knowing that every other major character from the original trilogy (IV, V, and VI) who was old enough (even Jabba) had a cameo of some sort in the new trilogy, is there anywhere in the movie that Han Solo appears? I know he's several years older than Luke (he always calls Luke 'kid'), and Luke was just being born in the end of episode III, so Han was definitely alive then.

Answer: No, he's not in there. He'd only be about 10 years old at the time and living as a thief and pickpocket on an old trading vessel plying the spacelanes near Corellia - as the storyline never goes anywhere near there, there's no way that they could have got him into the story, even if they'd wanted to.

Tailkinker

Question: Is it me, or is there a different cut between the theatrical and DVD versions regarding the birth scene? I remember more shots of the baby children. Specifically, one of Leia, who has her eyes wide open. This shot is mentioned in the Making-Of book. The shot is important series-wise, because this is how Leia is able to remember her mother (as mentioned in RotJ). However, it is absent from the DVD.

Answer: There is no difference in the two scenes.

Ryan Grubb

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith mistake picture

Continuity mistake: When Obi-Wan meets Anakin on the landing bay of the volcanic planet, Obi-Wan comes down the ramp from the ship and removes his cloak. It lays across the end of the ramp. The shot changes, then comes back, and the cloak is now bunched off to one side. (01:42:30)

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Trivia: General Grievous is permanently coughing when he talks. The cause is revealed in the last episode of the animated Emmy-winning TV series "Clone Wars" (albeit technically no longer canon). In that episode, Grievous kidnaps Palpatine and before leaving, is attacked by Mace Windu, who destroys part of his chest armour, making him cough for the first time.

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