Count Dooku
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- "He was one of the most brilliant Jedi I've ever had the privilege of knowing." — Jocasta Nu
Dooku is a Sith Lord whose war crimes during the Clone Wars indirectly brought about the Great Jedi Purge and the fall of the Galactic Republic. His Sith name is Darth Tyranus, a name obviously derived from "tyrant" but particularly more at "tyrannous". The name Dooku is said to derive from the Japanese word "doku" (毒), which means poison. However, "Count Dooku" could simply be a joking reference to "Count Dracula", whom Lee has depicted in many Hammer movies. His full birth name is unknown, but it is believed he has no other name beyond Dooku (similar to his old master, Yoda, and his second master, Darth Sidious).
Biography
Dooku was once an esteemed Jedi Master, apprentice to Yoda and Padawan to Thame Cerulian. As soon as Dooku became a Jedi Knight, he immediately wanted an apprentice, in part to prove himself as the Order's greatest star. He considered Qui-Gon Jinn to be his best choice after seeing Qui-Gon, then only 10 years old, in lightsaber training.
Dooku was such a skilled warrior among the Jedi that, in 44 BBY, he led the Jedi in combat against the Mandalorians. Almost all of the Mandalorians were slaughtered, except for Jango Fett and several others spread throughout the galaxy. Over half of the attacking Jedi fell to the Mandalorian guns, with Fett killing many himself. After this battle, Dooku lost faith in the Republic, sensing corruption within it.
An accomplished philosopher, orator, warrior Force-adept and lightsaber duelist, he was regarded as one of the greatest Jedi in the Order's 20,000-year history, as much for his strength of character as his strength in the Force. With a deep voice and seductive charisma, this political idealist and wealthy aristocrat displayed elegance, class, and intelligence.
Dooku had been a practitioner of the Force for nearly eight decades, and he and his student Qui-Gon would surely have sat on the Jedi Council if it were not for their maverick views. Dooku was also a master swordsman, specializing in the ancient, seldom-used Form II Makashi art, which made use of his special curved saber hilt. Form II is known for its efficiency in lightsaber-versus-lightsaber combat, as well as its emphasis on elegance and gallantry. This fighting style made him an able match for most of the Jedi.
Dooku left the Jedi Order after the Battle of Naboo and reclaimed his family title as Count of Serenno. He was frustrated by the bureaucracy of the Galactic Senate, as well as the unwillingness of the Jedi Council to aid oppressed Galactic systems. The disastrous Battle of Galidraan soured him towards continued service to the Republic; the death of Jinn, his favorite Padawan, proved to be the final straw. As a result of his resignation, his bronzium bust is displayed in the Jedi Archives, along with the rest of the Lost Twenty, the only Jedi Masters ever to resign their commissions from the Jedi Order.
Unhappy with the power of the Senate and the new Chancellor, Palpatine, he began to think of ways to return the Jedi to their former glory. Rumors suggest that at this time he secretly studied the dark side via the Sith Holocrons in the Jedi Archives. Dooku believed that one could draw from both sides of the Force — light and dark — equally in order to achieve perfect balance. He believed that as long as he was not tempted to either side he would be able to harness the power needed to change the galaxy for the better. Unfortunately for Dooku, his own pride swayed him closer and closer towards the dark side when attempting to study both sides of the Force.
Dooku first came into contact with Darth Sidious (Palpatine's Sith alias), the mysterious Dark Lord of the Sith (and the Master of the late Darth Maul, who slew Qui-Gon) just before he left the Order. Initially wanting to find and kill him, Dooku was instead seduced into the Dark Lord's service after Sidious manipulated him into believing they both wanted a just, egalitarian society. Dooku eventually fell to the dark side and became Darth Sidious' apprentice, taking the Sith name Darth Tyranus after he murdered Master Sifo Dyas. His last act before leaving the Jedi Order was to erase the planet Kamino from the archive memory. The two Sith Lords orchestrated the Clone Wars as part of a larger scheme to turn the Republic into the Galactic Empire. Their plan was to destroy the Jedi Order and use its remnants as the basis for a new Sith Army.
Ten years later, the Machiavellian Dooku came out of hiding, appearing on Raxus Prime and heavily criticizing the Republic and the Jedi Order for hypocrisy and corruption. Dooku, acting on Sidious' orders, publicly called for entire systems to secede from the Republic and join him, culminating in the formation of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The first meeting of the CIS was hosted on the planet Geonosis, where Obi-Wan Kenobi was captured by the Geonosians and accused of espionage. Dooku claimed that he had no power over the decision. Cunningly, Dooku deflected suspicions of Palpatine's involvement in the plot by simply telling Obi-Wan the truth about the conspiracy, adding that the Jedi would never believe such an allegation coming from him. Dooku may in fact have been trying to acquire Obi-Wan as his own apprentice, intending to wrest power from Palpatine; the Sith Rule of Two mandated that there be only two Sith Lords at any given time, and that the apprentice ultimately desired the master's power for himself.
Dooku almost let go of Separatist leader Denaria Kee, but Senator Passel Argente, her superior and secret lover, threatened to resign if she was dismissed. Shu Mai, President of the Commerce Guild, convinced Dooku that letting go of the Corporate Alliance leaders would cost the Separatists a considerable amount of power, so Dooku let Kee stay on the CIS.
Later, when Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala arrived to rescue Obi-Wan, they were captured and sentenced to be eaten alive by large beasts in a Colosseum-style arena. However, the executions were interrupted by the sudden arrival of Jedi reinforcements, led by Jedi Master Mace Windu. Though the Jedi were overwhelmed by the new droid army of the CIS, they were soon rescued by Yoda, who led the very Clone Army Dooku helped create, forcing the Separatists to retreat.
Dooku fled to his secret hangar, but he was followed by Obi-Wan and Anakin. Anakin rushed at Dooku, but was rendered unconscious when the Sith Lord blasted him with Force lightning. Obi-Wan was left to duel the Count alone. Though he managed to block Dooku's Force Lightning with his lightsaber, Obi-Wan eventually lost to Dooku after a short duel when Dooku sliced him at shoulder and thigh length. As he was about to deliver the killing strike, Anakin once again charged forward, barely stopping Dooku's blade from severing Obi-Wan's head from his shoulders. Dooku was momentarily caught off guard by the strength of Anakin's counter attack and sensed an unusual amount of power in the dual lightsaber wielding padawan, but Anakin could not overcome his opponent's sheer skill with the lightsaber, and the fight ended with Dooku defeating him and cutting off Anakin's swordarm at the elbow. Tyranus was again thwarted from escaping by the arrival of Yoda, his former master. He at first attempted to use the Force to overpower Yoda, hurling stones, machinery, and even Force lightning at the master, but Yoda skillfully deflected all of these assaults. When Dooku saw it was futile to try and defeat Yoda in this manner, he drew his lightsaber and they began to duel. As skilled as he was in the art of combat, Dooku did not have Yoda's speed, and he was quickly reduced to using defensive measures. Realizing he should make his escape, Dooku hurled a large metallic column to crush the unconscious Obi-Wan and Anakin, and Yoda was forced to release him to save his comrades' lives. Dooku soon arrived on Coruscant, where he met with Sidious and informed him that the Republic and the Separatists were officially at war.
In the video game The Clone Wars, Count Dooku leads the Separatist Army, as in the films. He hires Cydon Prax to replace the deceased Jango as his bodyguard. He finds the Force Harvester, an ancient Sith artifact, on Raxus Prime. He later finds the pieces, scattered by the ancient Sith, and revives an antique Sith weapon known as the Dark Reaper. The Dark Reaper was first defeated by a Jedi Knight named Ulic Qel-Droma 4,000 years before The Phantom Menace, during the Great Sith War. At the Sith Temple on Thule, it is defeated again by Anakin Skywalker.
In the video game , a Count Dooku Clone raids the Jedi Temple Library ten months after the Battle of Geonosis. This clone oversees the Cortosis Droid project, and is killed by Anakin Skywalker on Metalorn.
-->During the Clone Wars, Dooku took up a few apprentices of his own, though of the non-Sith variety: Sev'rance Tann, Asajj Ventress, Durge, Tol Skorr, Kadrian Sey, and General Grievous. He also acted as the political figurehead of the CIS. Of course, even though Dooku's co-conspirators were aware that he was a Sith and a student of Darth Sidious, they were unaware of their being mere puppets in a larger scheme. Near the end of the Clone Wars, Dooku had General Grievous capture and imprison Palpatine to trick the Senate into believing he had been kidnapped, thus creating the sympathy necessary to give the Chancellor even greater emergency powers.
During the opening of the Revenge of the Sith, Anakin and Obi-Wan battle Dooku while trying to save Palpatine. Dooku had orders to kill Obi-Wan, defeat and capture Anakin, and then turn Anakin to the dark side. Palpatine had convinced Dooku that Obi-Wan's death would make Anakin vulnerable to the dark side. Once turned, Dooku believed, Anakin would be the perfect commanding general of his new Sith Army, built from the remnants of the Jedi Order.
Dooku arrived as Obi-Wan and Anakin were about to free Palpatine, and began to duel the two of them once again. Though able to block against the saber strikes of the two Jedi, he was forced onto the defensive. He Force-pushed Obi-Wan out of the way, but was pursued by Anakin, who brutally hammered at the Sith. As Obi-Wan rejoined the fight, Dooku realized that his opponents were more dangerous than he could have thought possible. Tyranus kicked Anakin against a wall and locked Obi-Wan in a Force grip before hurling him across the room, leaving him unconscious. Anakin charged at the Sith and the two began to duel alone. For a short time Dooku may have had the advantage, but the Sith provoked Anakin with his words and the young Jedi gave into his anger. Anakin now had the advantage and overpowered Dooku. In the end Anakin repaid the Count for his defeat on Geonosis by cutting off both of Dooku's hands. Sidious had promised Dooku that he would intervene in the unlikely event that Anakin won the duel, but unfortunately for Dooku, he only realized Palpatine's betrayal in the moment before his death. In reality, Palpatine never intended Dooku to be the true apprentice; Dooku was merely a placeholder for Anakin and a tool for engineering the Clone Wars. At Palpatine's insistence, Anakin decapitated the helpless Sith Lord.
Lightsaber training
As a Padawan, Dooku's favorite training was lightsaber combat. His swordsmanship was uncanny even to the most revered Jedi Masters. Though styles like Form III, Form IV and Form V were more practical in the Age of Blasters, his competitive spirit drove him curiously towards mastery of Form II Makashi lightsaber combat. Resentful of the needlessly rambunctious acrobatics of Form IV (which better suit a specimen like Yoda, not a human), Dooku saw the elegant, precise Form II as the perfect rebuttal. His mastery of Form II indeed made him one of the greatest swordsmen of the Jedi Order. His superior swordsmanship earned him assignment as the Order's leading instructor and principal for advanced lightsaber combat. Although highly respected for his abilities, his pride was a cause for alarm among his peers, as he had an aggressive and competitive nature not normally seen in Jedi. His Form II mastery, paired with his deep connection with the Force, made Dooku a nearly impossible adversary to overcome. Dooku was so well versed in lightsaber combat that he could defeat opponents without the use of the Force, and was even able to hold his own against three or four opponents by himself despite the fact that Makashi was less efficient and less effective with multiple opponents.His Padawan would show the same rebelliousness that Dooku himself had shown Yoda. It would be Qui-Gon's devotion to Form IV that would, as Dooku saw it, lead to his death at the hands of the Sith Lord Darth Maul.
Dooku's grasp on Form II only grew during his descent into the dark side of the Force. Although reaching 80 standard years of his life, Dooku managed to stay in good physical condition, enabling himself to use acrobatic skills and speed which most Jedi Masters his age could not have accomplished. Using aggression more freely, Dooku would arrogantly assume that he could finally defeat Yoda in combat. His victory over Obi-Wan and Anakin at the Battle of Geonosis was a given, as neither Obi-Wan or Anakin were trained in Form II. When he fought Yoda, however, he was still unable to overcome his former master's overwhelming speed, and had to concede. He escaped the duel and spent the next three years honing his craft.
By the time of his final duel with Anakin, old age and arrogance had caught up with him. Anakin had abandoned the passive aggression of defensive combat that had been taught by his elders, and mastered the more offensive Form V Shien/Djem So.
Along with Dooku went the lightsaber combat of Form II. No other Jedi, even in Luke Skywalker’s time, is known to have still used it or even known of it. If Luke had known and learned the skills and techniques of Form II, then his fight with Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back would have given Luke an advantage over him and future Dark Jedi.
Influences
There is a parallel between Count Dooku and the wizard Saruman in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy (both of whom Lee portrayed). In both s, the character is a fallen hero who is seduced by power and uses deception to hide his true intentions. Both Saruman and Dooku imprison a heroic character (Gandalf the Grey and Obi-Wan Kenobi, respectively) and offer him a chance to join them. In both situations, the hero refuses and escapes. The two possess excellent oratory skills, as Saruman can use his voice to control others and is described as "honey-tongued," while Dooku leads the propaganda campaign for the Separatists. Both are servants to a greater evil (Sauron and Darth Sidious, respectively) and both are masters of their particular art. Dooku and Saruman both studied the dark arts in secret for years before falling to them completely. In the end, both are betrayed by their masters; Palpatine sacrifices Dooku to ensnare Anakin, while Sauron declined to use his limitless armies to aid Saruman. (It is also worth noting that both Dooku and Saruman had very little screen time and were killed rather ingloriously in the third films of their respective trilogies.)There is also an intentional parallel between Dooku and Anakin, as both are former Jedi who become apprentices to Darth Sidious. Dooku's death at Anakin's hands is also a deliberate parallel to the climax of Return of the Jedi, in which Anakin, as Darth Vader, fights a lightsaber duel with his son Luke Skywalker, after which Luke is told, also by Palpatine, to kill his father. In addition, aside from his name, Dooku does have many similarities to Dracula (other than having been portrayed by Lee); both are villainous, erudite and sophisticated counts who wear a cape and dress in black.
The design of Count Dooku's lightsaber is inspired by Filipino native weaponry, like the barong.
References
- ↑ - Novelization, 1st edition hardcover, 2005. Matthew Woodring Stover, George Lucas, ISBN 0-7126-8427-1
- The New Essential Guide to Characters, 1st edition, 2002. Daniel Wallace, Michael Sutfin, ISBN 0-345-44900-2
- Star Wars: Attack of the Clones: The Visual Dictionary, hardcover, 2002. David West Reynolds, ISBN 0-789-48588-5
- Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: The Visual Dictionary, hardcover, 2005. James Luceno, ISBN 0-756-61128-8
- Star Wars Roleplaying Game: Revised Core Rulebook, hardcover, 2002. Bill Slavicsek, Andy Collins, J.D. Wiker, ISBN 0-786-92876-X
External links
- [Count Dooku] entry in the Star Wars Databank
- on Wookieepedia: The Star Wars Wiki
- [Dooku.net] -(fan site)
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