Swords in Mythology

Recently (August 27th to be exact), the folks over at Lucasfilm surprised us all by releasing a 15 second clip from The Force Awaknes on Instagram. This clip featured two new scenes. The first new scene showed Rey looking to the sky in fear with BB-8 behind her. The other scene, and the one that had the Internet buzzing, shows Finn wielding a lightsaber in opposition to Kylo Ren.

There has been an awakening... #StarWars #TheForceAwakens

A video posted by Star Wars (@starwars) on Aug 27, 2015 at 10:00am PDT

It is obvious to us all now that the light saber Finn has is indeed the same one used by Anakin in ROTS and by Luke in ANH and ESB. All this got me thinking about the role of swords in mythology and how these themes might be carried into The Force Awakens.

What got me really thinking for this blog post is the question of what happened to the famous swords in myth. Are there examples where a sword is passed down through the generations? What happened to them?

This blog post will cover some of the famous swords of mythology and also give a brief summary of where the prominent lightsabers of the first six Star Wars films are located, as far as we know.

Mythic Swords

Excalibur

If you ask someone to name a sword from historical myth, it would be a safe bet that person would name King Arthur's sword, Excalibur, first! I won't take time to recount the stories of King Arthur here since you can find that anywhere. I do want to jump to the end of Arthur's like where he lies dying. He tells his knight, Sir Bedivere, to return the sword to the Lady of the Lake. Bedivere is too enamored with the sword to actually do it, so the first two times he returns to Arthur and lies to him, saying the sword sank into the lake. Arthur, very angry, demands that Bedivere do what he says. On this third attempt, Bedivere does indeed throw the sword into the lake. But the sword does not splash into the water. It is caught in the air by a feminine hands and then disappears under water.

In this case, the sword was meant for one person alone - King Arthur. Once his time was done, it was returned to the being who provided it.

Hrunting

This sword, translated to English as 'thrusting', was the weapon of Beowulf. It was given to him by Unferth, who was a servant to the Danish lord Hrothgar. The sword was known to have great power and claimed to have never failed anyone. However, when Beowulf descended to the bottom of the lake to fight Grendel's mother, the sword's powers failed him and he had to discard it. Why the sword failed has been a topic of scholarly debate for a long time.

Durendal

This is the sword of Charlemagne's paladin Roland. According to the legend, Song of Roland, Charlemagne receives the sword directly from an angel. The hilt is said to contain holy relics such as a tooth of Saint Peter and a piece of rainment from the Virgin Mary. The sword is said to be the sharpest of its kind in the world. Roland uses the weapon to hold off a one hundred thousand strong Muslim army long enough to ensure the safe retreat of Charlemagne's army.

In order to prevent it being captured by the enemy, Roland attempts to destroy it, which created the  breach in the Pyrenees mountains you see today. However, the sword proved to be indestructible so he hid it under his body along with the oliphant (the horn used to alert Charlemagne).

Dyrnwyn

This weapon, also known as the sword of Rhydderch Hael, is listed among the Thirteen Treasures of the British Isles that appears in Welsh texts of the 15th and 16th centuries. Dyrnwyn, which is Welsh for "White Hilt" was owned by Rhydderch, who was one of the Three Generous Men of Britain. When the sword is wielded by a worthy or noble-born man, it burns with fire. Rhydderch rarely hesitated in giving the sword to someone (his nickname Hael means "the Generous") but the recipients would always reject it once they learned of its powers.

Fragarach

The sword comes from Irish mythology. It was forged by the gods and was said that no one could tell a lie when Fragarach was held to that person's throat. Hence, it was also known as 'The Answerer'. The sword could summon the power of the wind, could cut through any shield or wall, and produce a piercing wound from which no man could recover.

Here is a case where this magical weapon is handed down to others. It was first wielded by Manannan mac Lir and then it was passed on to his foster son, Lugh. From Lugh, it was given to Cuchulainn and later it passed to Conn of the Hundred Battles.

Jedi Lightsabers: Where Are They Now?

Obi-Wan's 1st Lightsaber

This was last seen plummeting down the shaft at Theed on Naboo. We know, according to the canonical Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series, that Darth Maul survived the drop and reappeared. So who's to say that lightsaber is lost forever?

Obi-Wan's 3rd Lightsaber

I am a little fuzzy about the replacement lightsaber Obi-Wan used after TPM. But, we know that his last lightsaber was left at the feet of Darth Vader in ANH. Would he have destroyed it?

Anakin's Last Lightsaber / Luke's 1st Lightsaber

The kid didn't really take care of his lightsabers, so we will just focus on the last one he had when he became Darth Vader. This is the one famously lost in Cloud City on Bespin. This is the one almost assuredly being wielded by Finn in the clip above.

Yoda's Lightsaber

The only lightsaber we know Yoda to have used was left in the Senate Chamber on Coruscant after his duel with Darth Sidious. What did the Emperor do with that Jedi weapon?

Qui-Gon's Lightsaber

What are the death rites of a Jedi? Was the weapon burned with him on the funeral pyre?

Darth Vader's Lightsaber

It was lost down the Death Star shaft when Luke returned his dad's favor by cutting off his hand in ROTJ. I'd say it is doubtful to have survived the explosion. But, never say never. Perhaps the relic is floating in space, waiting to be claimed by a new dark side disciple.

Mace Windu's Lightsaber

More than likely, Mace's weapon went plummeting down to the surface of Coruscant as the wielder did in ROTS. Did a local Coruscanti stumble across it and make a few bucks off it? Or did the Imperial police track it down and take care of anyone who had it?

Green Leader Comic

You need to take a look at this web comic created by Daniel Warren Johnson. There are no words. There are no colors. But it is still very powerful. Someone over at Marvel needs to give this guy a Star Wars book to draw!

http://www.space-mullet.com/2015/06/05/green-leader/

Skywalker Strikes

Here are my notes and observations of the first several issues of Marvel's relaunch of the Star Wars main title. The entails Book I of the series entitled, "Skywalker Strikes".

Jason Aaron - Writer
John Cassaday - Artist
Laura Martin - Colorist

001

HIGHLIGHTS - Han, Luke, Leia, Chewie, and Artoo conduct a raid on the Imperial Weapons Factory Alpha on Cymoon I of the Corellian Industrial Cluster. The missions gets complicated when Luke discovers a group of slaves that were being used to run the factory. Luke cuts off the hand of the slave master as he was attacking him with a laser whip. It seems he was following Obi-Wan's precedent there. Chewbacca tried to take a sniper shot at Vader, but Vader reacts by destroying the platform Chewie was on. Threepio is hiding out in a junk pile with the Falcon when a bunch of alien scavengers show up. The issue ends with Luke poised to confront Vader and Obi-Wan's ghost voice telling him to run.

OPINION - I really liked this issue. It definitely felt like Star Wars and did not seem derivative. It is not surprising that this was the best selling comic book of the last twenty years!

002

HIGHLIGHTS - Vader is practically disgusted by the skill level of his opponent (Luke). Luke tells Vader that he killed Master Kenobi. Vader pulls Luke's lightsaber from his hands and demands Luke take him to the Rebel pilot that destroyed the Death Star. Luke refuses and is about to be killed by Vader until two things happen: (1) Vader recognizes Luke's lightsaber, and (2) the foot of an Imperial Walker hijacked by Han comes crashing down through the ceiling. In the ensuing battle, many slaves are killed by Vader and Stormtroopers. Luke escapes being pinned down by using a speeder bike and Vader starts to think a little more of Luke and wonders what Obi-Wan had been up to. The battle turns in the Rebels favor when Han's AT-AT unleashes a fury of laser bolts at Vader and company. It is enough to disable Vader and make him drop Luke's (Anakin's) lightsaber. Luke spins back around and picks it up. But Vader isn't finished and regroups his forces.

OPINION - A great second issue. It continues the intensity from the first issue well. I think it is a little goofy of Han hijacking an AT-AT, but I've come around to accepting it.

003

HIGHLIGHTS - Chewbacca comes to the aid of Threepio, who was blasted to bits in 002. Vader takes out the AT-AT by using his lightsaber at critical points of the AT-AT. Han, Leia, Artoo, and the surviving slaves escape the wreckage of the walker. Luke turns back to make sure the weapons station is destroyed even though Vader and the Imps are there. Vader hops into some cool single-seater gunship and is determined to kill Luke this time. Luke blasts the reactor, setting off a destructive meltdown. The explosion of the facility is all that saves Luke from being killed. Vader walks away from the destruction. Vader concludes that this boy was Obi-Wan's last great hope. But with no one left to train him but Vader himself, he decides to make the boy *his* weapon and not Obi-Wan's. Luke is filled with self-doubt knowing he is no match of Vader, that he is no Jedi, and that there is no one left to train him. But the issue ends with a silent four panel showing a box in Kenobi's hovel with the inscription "For Luke".

OPINION - I loved this issue. I enjoy how it is diving into the story of how Luke developed the skills we see in ESB without a teacher. What is in the box???

004

CONTINUITY - I believe Vader 001 takes place before this issue. The Emperor has sent Vader to negotiate supplies from Jabba the Hutt.

HIGHLIGHTS - Vader secures resources for the Empire from Jabba. Leia discusses strategy with Ackbar, Mothma, and Dodonna. The Rebels have bombed shipyards at Kuat and the supply base at Imdaar. But they have had to consume many resources by having a mobile base of operations. Leia talks about having her own team, which Mothma questions whether they are united. Luke goes off on his own to search for some way to become a Jedi. Meanwhile on Tatooine, a mysterious person is on the trail for Han Solo. Vader joins Jabba in watching the kill Banthas and asks for information about Kenobi. We get a tie-in with Vader 001 when he mentions the two bounty hunters he hired: Boba Fett to find the boy and Black Krrsantan to find the mysterious man the Emperor is working with. Luke decides to go to Tatooine and return to Obi-Wan's home to search for answers.

OPINION - I always wondered if in his transformation from Anakin to Vader if he had forgotten his former self, like Luke said. Apparently that does not mean the facts of the memories, since Vader slaughtered another village of Tusken Raiders. Perhaps his memories are filtered through the dark side, so his view will be more slanted to that way rather than thinking of Mos Espa, pod racing, or other more positive locales. Tatooine is sure getting a lot of visitors lately!

005

HIGHLIGHTS - Boba Fett mercilessly kills his way to find the location of the boy he was hired by Vader to find. Luke battles some Tusken Raiders who were going into Ben's hut, but apparently scared them away without hurting them. Han needs parts to repair the Falcon from the Cymoon I mission that happened in issues 001 - 003. But supplies are limited and Leia tells Han if he wants the parts he has to co-pilot a mission to scout locations for a new rebel base in a stolen Imperial shuttle. They meet up with two TIE-fighters and Han, in a boneheaded move, grabs the controls and makes a run for it, even though the security codes Leia fed the TIE-fighters worked. Han goes to a moon/planet he knows, the Monsua Nebula, with large electrical storms in the hope to evade the TIEs. The mysterious person has found Han and knows he likes to visit this place. Luke locates the "For Luke" box in the mess left by the Tuskens, but is suddenly blinded by a flash grenade thrown by Boba Fett.

OPINION - A good issue. I think Han acted too much like an oaf in this issue. I suppose they want to show his character growth in ROTJ when he tells Chewie to stay calm and fly casual. I also didn't like how they made Boba Fett out to be this all out killing machine. I mean we saw in 003 that people were hauling bodies out to the wild desert to avoid being questioned by Imperials or paying Jabba's murder tax. I think this issue was too much about fan service. Watch ROTJ again and tell me how you can reconcile the Boba Fett we see there versus in Star Wars 005...

006

HIGHLIGHTS - Boba Fett and Luke fight it out. Han shows Leia that the planetoid found in the Monsua Nebula is a good smuggler hide-out. We learn Chewie drinks wine...a lot of wine. Han is putting the moves of Leia, offering Corellian wine. In the battle with Boba, when Luke was about to be killed by his own lightsaber, someone (we assume Luke) Force-throws the "For Luke" box to knock out Boba. Boba reports back to Vader that the boy got away but he has a name, "Skywalker". The issue ends with Vader Force cracking the window he is looking out of.

OPINION - So Han is married?! Uh oh! What a scoundrel he is. We will have to buy the next issue to find out what happens. Nice cliff-hanger, Marvel! But for me...the best cliffhanger was seeing that inside the "For Luke" box is a book entitled "The Journals of Ben Kenobi". I can't wait to see what *that* is about!

NOTES ON FUTURE ISSUES

007 - (July 8th) This will be a one-shot on Kenobi and will feature Simone Bianchi as the artist.

008 - (July 29th) This will start a new story arc and will feature Stuart Immonen as the artist. To quote Jason Aaron's comments in Star Words at the conclusion of 006, "Who is Sana Solo? Where does Luke go next? And what is the secret of the Smuggler's Moon?"