MovieChat Forums > Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) Discussion > "Too Old"?

"Too Old"?

posted 3 years ago by CoriSCapnSkip (2255)
11 replies | jump to latest

I can't believe no one has brought this up (at least on the surviving pages here)! When Qui-Gon brings Anakin Skywalker before the Jedi, he is dismissed as "too old" to train as a Jedi Knight! Yet in Star Wars Episodes IV and V, no such objection is made to Luke Skywalker. Say Anakin was nine in Phantom Menace and Luke was eighteen in Star Wars, that would make Luke twice as old, also Luke was never brought before a council, only Yoda. Had things gone downhill by then or what? Has this issue ever been addressed, anywhere in the series?

[–] acidraindrop (3055) 3 years ago

Had things gone downhill by then or what?

Yeah...I think it's fair to say that that things had gone pretty downhill by then for the Jedi.

[–] CoriSCapnSkip (2255) 3 years ago

You're right, things had gone downhill by then as Obi-Wan was pretty much in hiding by the time of Star Wars. Young Obi-Wan also told Qui-Gon that Anakin was too old, before the council saw him. Anyone know how old Obi-Wan was when he commenced training and did he leave home to do so?

Here is an article. The not forming attachments implies the Jedi did remove children from the home. https://www.cbr.com/star-wars-jedi-training-too-old-anakin-luke-ezra/

[–] Sandman81 (1509) 3 years ago

Yoda did say Luke was too old.

Though I always wondered if it wasn't Anakin's age that really concerned the council as much his fear. They might have just figured it would be an easier excuse for Qui-Gon to accept.

[–] [deleted] 3 years ago

"Yoda did say Luke was too old."

Yes, he did. That line is burned in my memory.

[–] brux (14736) 3 years ago

Saying too old might have been an excuse to let him down easy because they foresaw disaster.

[–] sati_84 (467) 3 years ago

Let's entertain this idea. If Yoda doesn't want to have Anakin trained because he sees the danger in that, he should be aware that it would be even more dangerous to let Anakin go, and have the sith find him and train him! Besides, we know that later on he agrees to Obi-Wan training Anakin, so this play wouldn't make sense either way.

[–] ADBruno1985 (3507) 3 years ago

I feel like it's because they had their ways of finding and collecting the Jedi very young, like toddler age. I think the fact that they missed Anakin is meant to show that their methods were flawed. Or, you could argue that their methods were good and trying to avoid having Anakin trained.

[–] sati_84 (467) 3 years ago

Yoda brings up Luke's age, still he successfully trains him to defeat Vader.

So we are led to believe that in almost 1000 years of Jedi training, there was never a case, not even once where an older kid could be successfully trained.

Now we could say that Yoda doesn't want to have Anakin trained because he sees the danger in that, but I'd argue it would be even more dangerous to let Anakin go, and have the sith find him and train him - and Yoda must be aware of that. So his play doesn't make any sense - besides, we know that later on he agrees to Obi-Wan training Anakin, so what would even be his point?

[–] kuatorises (7467) 3 years ago

Um... buddy?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPavMhfNHjI

[–] Otter (24464) 3 years ago

I think it's a case of "Give me your children before they are six, and they're mine for life", which BTW is a quote supposedly from a religious leader.

I don't like the Jedi, they really did take tiny kids away from their families and hack away at normal human attachment bonds. The difference between Anakin Skywalker and someone who was taken away from their family at preschool age, is that he'd be old enough to know his mind had been fucked with, and they wouldn't.

[–] CoriSCapnSkip (2255) 3 years ago

"Give me a child until he is seven and I will show you the man." That famous saying is attributed to St. Ignatius Loyola of the Jesuit Order.