Monday, January 24, 2011

Clone Wars Force Philosophy: The Planet Mortis as a Force Nexus


"Unlike any other, a conduit through which the entire force of the universe flows." 
"This planet is both an amplifier and a magnet"  ~Qui-Gon Jinn on the planet Mortis. 

In the upcoming 3 episode (Overlord, Altar of Mortis, Ghosts of Mortis) story arc for the Clone Wars, known as the "Mortis" arc after the planet upon which much of the story takes place.  We get a glimpse not only about the origins of the Force, the Prophecy of The Chosen One, and a glimpse at the possible fate of Ahsoka Tano. 

In the preview for this series of episodes we have been given a clip of Obi-Wan Kenobi on the planet Mortis speaking to what appears to be a Force Ghost of his deceased Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn.  Now we don't know yet if this is actually Qui-Gon, a hallucination from Obi-Wan or some other manifestation of the Force taking Qui-Gon's appearance.  But, Qui-Gon does tell Obi-Wan some very interesting and provocative things about the planet Mortis. 

As seen in the above quote, Qui-Gon calls Mortis a "conduit," an "amplifier," and a "magnet."  These words along with the plethora of crystals in the background of the preview scene made me think of a Jedi mantra known as the Crystal Code, the text of which is below as I found it on Wookieepedia:

The crystal is the heart of the blade.
The heart is the crystal of the Jedi.
The Jedi is the crystal of the Force.
The Force is the blade of the heart.
All are intertwined.
The crystal, the blade, the Jedi.
We are one.
Source: Jedi Crystal Code Wookieepedia

The Jedi, the lightsaber crystal, and the planet Mortis all seem to function in a similar way.  The connection of the Jedi to their lightsabers is deeper then between a combatant and his weapon.  There is a spiritual connection between the Jedi and the lightsaber through the Force.  Not only is the Force used directly in construction of the blade, but the lightsaber helps the Jedi focus and connect to the force. 

In the lightsaber the crystal focuses the power and creates the blade.  Within the Jedi the heart focuses the Jedi's intentions and allows him to act out of a sense of peace and compassion.  Within the Force the Jedi serves to focus the will of the Force and exert this will into the universe. 

The planet Mortis appears to be similar to the Force as the focusing crystal is to the lightsaber.  This planet acts as a conduit, an amplifier and a magnet.  Because it is a conduit through which the Force flows, it allows Force users the ability to create a deeper/stronger connection to the force, but because of this more powerful connection to the Force it also acts as a magnet drawing Force users to it like moths to a light. 

Whether the conduit of the Force through Mortis is a negative or a positive has yet to be revealed, but the idea that a place can have a particularly strong connection to the Force is hardly new, as we have seen the idea of places acting as a Force Nexus in the Expanded Universe.  One of the more notable ones was the Force Nexus that existed under the Old Jedi Temple which we saw Luke use during the New Jedi Order in the battle against Lord Nyax (Irek Ismaren).

I can hardly wait to see how the Clone Wars crew and particularly writer Christian Taylor does with the Mortis trilogy, the Force, the Chosen One, and the idea of a Force Nexus.

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