bad batch appreciation blog

Can definitely imagine him picking some Gothic romance books up from Pabu's local library or HELL reading some on a datapad in cause the empire would 100% censor media like that

And they're reluctantly like, "You know, that time that Anakin, your student, came back to Tatooine after his poor mother had been taken by the Sand People? He singlehandedly killed that big group of them down to the last child, dozens of them, and then took off right afterwards. Big mess. It was about four years ago now. Just before the Clone Wars started. Is that, uh, is that normal for you Jedi people, by the way?" And Obi-Wan has to say, "No. No, it is fucking not."

So the Larses are, at least, incredibly relieved. They didn't want that kind of thing to happen around here again and were a little worried about this Kenobi guy starting that up again. Big mess, don't you know? Everyone in their corner of Tatooine heard about it. People a few towns over heard about it. Anakin and that Padmé woman really never said anything?

"Do you have any idea how much suffering would fail to take root if more people were just good parents?" -Helen Parr/Elastigirl, The Incredibles deleted scene

I know it's a joke but I feel like people who (unfairly) compare the Skywalker twins at the beginning of ANH are missing the point. Luke playing with his model ship is a bit ridiculous, but the reason he still has the luxury of enjoying some semblance of innocence is because Owen and Beru did everything in their power to protect him and give him as normal of an upbringing as possible. Yes, it's admirable that Leia becomes so involved in the rebel effort so young, but that aspect of her story is just as tragic as it is heroic. The same goes for characters like Ezra and Sabine, who are also pulled into the conflict before they hit adulthood. Nothing can or should diminish their heroism, but that heroism comes at the cost of their childhoods and their adolescence. None of them have the luxury of growing up shielded from the impact of the Empire, and they will forever be traumatized by it.

That's not to say Luke isn't traumatized af by the end of the OT because it's clear from from his internal conflict in ROTJ that he is. But I think he's better able to grapple with that trauma as an adult in part because his aunt and uncle stepped up and made sure that he could have as normal of a childhood as is possible on Tatooine. They're the reason he isn't thrust into the war too early, and they're the reason he grows up to be far more well-adjusted than he would have been had he left home to train as a Jedi earlier. That influence goes a LONG way when it comes to how maturely he handles his final confrontation with Palpatine.

you're owen lars. the woman you call mom had another child once. it doesn't make her love you less, but she talks about him in a way that makes it clear that she loved him, too. he's off to be a jedi now and she's very proud.

you're owen lars. your mother's been kidnapped and you have to assume the worst. a man and a woman step into your home and the man announces himself to be that kid who went off to become a jedi. he knows you less than you know him and before anything else can happen, he takes off to bring back his mother, a feat you think is impossible.

you're owen lars. anakin skywalker brings your mom's corpse to your doorstep. her funeral is interrupted by a message of utmost galactic importance.

you're owen lars. your brother is dead. you never saw him again after that first time. there is another jedi on your doorstep, with a baby in his arm and you know what it means and you can't bring yourself to face him as he hands your nephew off to your wife.

you're owen lars. obi-wan ben kenobi is a pain in the ass. he was more your brother's brother than you ever were and he doesn't understand your particular kind of grief, is drowning in his own. you don't even know the full story and kenobi will never tell you all of it. but you have a child to care for so you tell him off and get back to work.

you're owen lars. you didn't know your brother, but you know your nephew and your nephew wants out of this place as soon as possible. you know he won't be safe out there but in the end you're helpless to stop him. and you know the stories, you remember the one time you met him, the days your mother died. and you do this for her and you do this for your father and you do this for your brother and you do this for your nephew.