Luke Skywalker

Early years - Revenge of the Sith

Baby Luke being put in the care of Owen Lars and Beru Whitesun.

In Revenge of the Sith, Padmé Amidala gives birth to the Skywalker twins, Luke and Leia, on Polis Massa before she dies in childbirth. Bail Organa, the viceroy of Alderaan, adopts Leia, and Obi-Wan Kenobi provides sanctuary for Luke on Tatooine, so as to protect both of them from their corrupted biological father, Anakin, and the newly-formed Galactic Empire he serves. Luke was put in the care of Owen Lars, Anakin's stepbrother, and his wife Beru.

Despite being in hiding from his father and Emperor Palpatine, Luke is brought up as the son of Anakin Skywalker. Obi-Wan chose Tatooine and the Lars homestead deliberately, believing (correctly) that Anakin, in his new identity as the Sith Lord Darth Vader, would be loath to set foot on the planet as a reminder of his former Jedi self.

A few years later, Kenobi returns to the Lars farm carrying Anakin's lightsaber, as he now felt Luke was old enough and should be allowed to have a keepsake of his father's Jedi legacy. Owen, refusing to allow it, confronted and berated Kenobi; he didn't want Luke to make the same mistakes Anakin did, as he felt Anakin should have never left his mother and gotten involved with the "foolish idealistic Jedi crusaders" in the first place. He vehemently told Kenobi to leave and to stay away.

Kenobi watched Luke from a distance. During this time, Luke distinguished himself as a T-16 Skyhopper pilot, along side Biggs Darklighter and Laze "Fixer" Loneozner. Luke also spent much time in Anchor Head with Loneozer at the Toschi Station, along with other friends, such as Camie (a possible love interest), Deak and Windy.

Luke is raised on Tatooine for the first 19 years of his life, where his uncle tries, unsuccessfully, to discourage all tendencies towards the Jedi Order from him. He is told that his father was "a navigator on a spice freighter." For all Owen's efforts, however, Luke is still an adventure-seeking youth with talents in droid repair, piloting, and, unbeknownst to him, the Force; he is very much his father's son. He dreamed of leaving Tatooine, and attending the Imperial Academy. He longed to fly among the stars in a starfighter to distant exotic alien worlds, and wondered if other worlds were not all desert worlds like Tatooine.

Fighting for the Alliance

Luke and his friend Biggs Darklighter preparing to fly in A New Hope.

When Vader intercepts Leia's spaceship carrying plans for the Death Star, a planet-sized battle station/superweapon, she sends droids R2-D2 and C-3PO to meet Obi-Wan. However, on their journey they end up in the service of Luke himself, who follows the droids to meet Obi-Wan. After the deaths of his aunt and uncle at the hands of Imperial stormtroopers, Luke realizes there is nothing left to keep him on Tatooine, so he decides to follow Obi-Wan to help Princess Leia. At about this time, Obi-Wan tells Luke that Anakin was a Jedi who fought in the Clone Wars, and that "a young Jedi named Darth Vader... betrayed and murdered your father."

They depart from Tatooine on Han Solo's ship, the Millennium Falcon. They travel towards Alderaan, and Obi-Wan takes the time to allow Luke to begin the first stages of training as a Jedi, even giving him Anakin's old lightsaber. They arrive at Alderaan, only to find that the planet has been obliterated by the Death Star. The Death Star's tractor beam captures their ship, and they are forced to land. They rescue the Princess and escape the Death Star, but in the process Vader cuts Obi-Wan down in a lightsaber duel. (Obi-Wan does not exactly die, but rather ascends to a higher plane of existence and becomes one with the Force.)

They travel back to the Rebel Alliance's base on Yavin 4, but are tracked by an Imperial tracking beacon. The Death Star follows, and the Empire prepares to destroy the moon with its superweapon. The Alliance uses the stolen plans of the station to lead a final attack on the Death Star, known as the Battle of Yavin. Luke pilots an X-wing starfighter in Red Squadron, and under the guidance of Obi-Wan's spiritual voice, uses the Force to send a proton torpedo into the narrow reactor shaft, destroying the Death Star. During the battle, he loses one of his closest friends, Biggs Darklighter.

Following the Rebel victory at Yavin, Luke is promoted to the rank of Commander and co-founds the elite Rogue Squadron starfighter unit with Wedge Antilles, another young Rebel pilot.

Desperate to find Luke, whom he recently learned is his son, Vader sends probe droids to thousands of planets across the galaxy in search of the Jedi hopeful. When a droid discovers the Rebels' new base on Hoth, Vader brings the hammer of the Empire down on the ice planet. Luke demonstrates his burgeoning power as a potential Jedi when he plays a key role in the defense, leading Rogue Squadron in battle using Snowspeeders, and especially when he single-handedly downs an AT-AT using his father's lightsaber, the tow-cable assembly from his Snowspeeder, and an explosive charge, before escaping in his X-wing, flown to him by R2-D2.

Learning the ways of the Jedi

Luke trains with Yoda on Dagobah.

Following advice from the spirit of Obi-Wan, he travels to Dagobah to learn the Jedi arts under Jedi Master Yoda. While he trains for only a few weeks, his power in the Force grows rapidly, and he is soon a formidable warrior. His training in interrupted, however, by a vision of his friends being captured by Vader. Against Obi-Wan and Yoda's advice, he travels to Bespin to save them, only to be trapped into a confrontation with Darth Vader. In the intense lightsaber duel that follows, Luke loses his right hand to Vader's saber, and is also told by the Dark Lord of the Sith that he (Vader) is, in fact, his (Luke's) father. Faced with this horrifying claim and the even more fearsome temptation to join Vader, Luke finds the moral courage to choose apparent death over evil, throwing himself down a deep shaft. However, using his new found Force powers, he avoids immediate death by hurling himself into a vent leading to the very bottom of the floating city. There, he calls out through the Force to Leia, who senses his call as well as his location helplessly hanging under Cloud City. Exhausted and barely able to hang on any longer, Leia and Han's copilot Chewbacca come to his rescue and he escapes aboard the Millennium Falcon, nearly costing them their own escape. Thus, Luke himself ends up being rescued by the friends he had intended to save, while R2-D2 proves his usefulness by repairing the Falcon's hyperdrive just in time to escape. After he rejoins the Rebels, Luke's missing hand is replaced with a prosthetic hand.

After Luke is defeated at Bespin, his affinity with the Force grows more serious. One of the significant events between the end of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi is that Luke returns to Obi-Wan's hut on Tatooine and constructs his very own lightsaber, exactly in the tradition of Jedi training (this is chronicled in Shadows of The Empire.) His new lightsaber was of a design that, while unique, closely resembled that of the final lightsaber owned by the old Jedi.

On Tatooine, Luke - with Leia, the droids, and Lando Calrissian - also hatch up a plan to save Han Solo from the gangster Jabba the Hutt, who had acquired the carbonite-encased Solo from the bounty hunter Boba Fett after the events of The Empire Strikes Back. With solemn confidence, an unarmed Luke confronts Hutt in his palace while exhibiting his newly acquired Jedi abilities. Jabba, however, would not be bargained with nor intimidated. Vastly outnumbered, Luke is made Jabba's prisoner and sentenced to die along with Solo and Chewbacca by means of the Sarlacc. Leia meanwhile is made Jabba's slave. However at the execution, using his lightsaber which was smuggled to the site by the aid of R2, Luke overpowers Hutt's minions and frees his friends. During the struggle, Jabba is killed when Leia garrottes him with the chain binding her to his throne, just before escaping with Luke and the others.

During his return trip to Dagobah, Luke learns from the dying Yoda and Obi-Wan that Vader is indeed his father, and that Leia is his twin sister. Yoda also makes it clear that Luke still will not truly be a Jedi until he confronts Vader again. Obi-Wan grimly informs Luke that he must kill his own father in order to save the galaxy. Luke insists that there is still good left in Vader, but remains deeply torn.

Luke and Vader

During the Battle of Endor, Luke confronts Vader in an attempt to bring him back from the dark side.

Arriving on Endor as part of a Rebel commando squad, Luke surrenders to Vader in an attempt to bring the Dark Lord back to the light side of the Force. He ultimately becomes a prisoner of the Emperor on the half-completed second Death Star, in orbit around Endor.

Once there, the Emperor and Vader attempt to corrupt Luke with promises to save his friends from certain death if he joins the dark side. When that fails, the Emperor goads Luke to strike him down to save the Rebels, who were losing the Battle of Endor. Luke, in a moment of weakness, momentarily lashes out, but Vader stops his strike, and father and son duel each other one final time. Luke manages to keep emotional control — until Vader telepathically senses the existence of Luke's sister and threatens to corrupt her instead. Enraged, Luke attacks with full fury. Vader is not able to hold his ground as Luke lands blow after blow and tears through the Sith Lord's defenses, and after a swift fight, Luke forces Vader on his back and severs his father's mechanical right hand. Just as he is about to commit patricide, however, Luke glances at his own bionic hand, and realizes with a visceral horror that he is right on the verge of suffering his father's fate. Luke regains control, deactivates his lightsaber and emphatically throws it away, proudly declaring his allegiance to the Jedi.

The spirits of Yoda, Obi-Wan, and the redeemed Anakin Skywalker watch as Luke and company celebrate the Galactic Empire's defeat.

The Emperor, realizing that Luke cannot be turned, unleashes Force lightning against Luke in retaliation, nearly killing him (in the novelization of Return of the Jedi, Luke was able to deflect the bolts at first with his bare hands, which is something that only Yoda had been seen to do before.) Seeing his son in pain, and perhaps remembering the mercy shown him, compassion finally breaks Vader's stony heart. In an act of self-sacrifice, Anakin Skywalker re-emerges, seizes the Emperor and throws him to his death down a reactor shaft. In the process, he is mortally wounded by the Emperor's Force lightning, which short circuits his mechanical lungs and life support equipment. On the deteriorating Death Star, at the foot of Vader's shuttle, Luke removes the breath mask that had caged Anakin Skywalker's face for more than two decades, and looks upon his father's eyes for the first and only time, before Anakin dies and becomes one with the Force. The prophecy of the Chosen One is finally fulfilled, as Anakin has brought balance to the Force and destroyed the Sith. Luke escapes the Death Star's destruction with the remnants of his father. Back on Endor, in the manner of a Jedi's funeral, Luke burns the last vestiges of his father that had been Darth Vader, and joins in the celebration of the defeat of the Empire. Luke sees the spirits of his Masters Yoda and Obi-Wan and his father Anakin. With this final victory, Luke comes full circle as a Jedi and as a person.

After the Battle of Endor

Luke Skywalker, with Mara Jade and his trusty green lightsaber

In the Expanded Universe, Luke meets his father before the Battle of Hoth (according to the novel/comic Splinter of the Mind's Eye). Years later, Luke meets Vader's protegé, Mara Jade, and they fight against his clone, Luuke Skywalker, the apprentice of Joruus C'Baoth. During the combat, Mara Jade destroys the clone and, with Leia's help, destroys C'Baoth.

Dark Empire and the Jedi Knight falls into the Dark Side

Luke suffers a brief lapse to the dark side when he goes undercover as the apprentice of the resurrected Palpatine, who now rules an army of chaotic agents on the planet of Byss. The Jedi Knight fights nobly, but is bested by the clone Emperor, who forces his former adversary to bow and to call him "Master." Leia, who has let herself be caught, confronts both the Sith Lord and her fallen brother. She finds a Jedi Holocron where a prophecy affirmed that a sister would redeem her fallen brother before defeating the evil sovereign. With little training, the princess disrupts the dark side within her brother. Luke Skywalker turns against the dark side and vows to only serve the Light forever. He later fights the Emperor in a lightsaber duel and reaffirms his commitment to rebuilding the Jedi Order, plus his enhanced powers allow him to become the first new Jedi Master of the New Jedi Order. He allows his sister to break the darkness within Palpatine, defeating him.

Jedi Academy

Luke resigns his commission in the New Republic's starfighter corps to pursue his Jedi studies and rebuild the Jedi Order in the Massassi Temple on Yavin 4, a decision some anti-Jedi politicians use against him. Luke becomes the Order's de facto leader.His students in the ways of the Force include: Gantoris, Dorsk 81, Kam Solusar, Tionne, Streen, Cilghal, Kirana Ti and others.

An older and wiser Luke Skywalker also appears in the Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast and Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy video games at the rank of Jedi Master. In Jedi Knight: Jedi Outcast Luke helps Kyle Katarn in his fight against Desann and Empire Reborn by driving off Desann and his Reborn forces from Valley of the Jedi.

New threats

Years later, the former Rebel hero works again with his mercenary ally Mara Jade, who has learned to better her Force knowledge since her training at Luke's Jedi Academy. He falls in love with her, and they eventually marry. They have a son, whom they name Ben (after Obi-Wan Kenobi, who used Ben as a pseudonym).

The New Jedi Order, The Yuuzhan Vong Invasion and the Legacy of a Master

During the conflict with the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, the Jedi Master reconstructs a new Jedi Council some months after the destruction of the Jedi Academy. He idealises a new conclave, made up of Jedi, politicians and military officers. Included in this new Jedi Order are Tresina Lobi, Kenth Hammer, Kyle Katarn, Kyp Durron, Cilghal, Saba Sebatyne and himself. From the politicians and military came new Chief of State Cal Omas, Admiral Sienn Sovv (Sullustan male) and four others.

He later spearheads the mission into the Unknown Regions during the Yuuzhan Vong invasion to find the mysterious planet of Zonama Sekot, a planet that creates living starships. After the invasion is defeated with the help of the new Mandalorian Warriors, a Sekotian fleet and a Galactic Alliance-Imperial Remnant fleet, Luke leads the New Jedi Order on Denon, the temporary capital of the Galactic Alliance and the site of the newly rebuilt Jedi Temple on Coruscant.

The New Jedi Order is eventually moved to Ossus, the site of former famous Jedi temples and libraries that was mostly destroyed 4,000 years prior, where, along with the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, serves as a base for the Order. Upon the Killik's invasion of Chiss space and the transformation of most of the Myrkr mission survivors into Killik Joiners, Luke determines that the Killik's collective mind is being unconsciously controlled by one of their nests called the Dark Nest. The Dark Nest is controlled by a former Nightsister named Lomi Plo, who became their Unseen Queen with her ability to become invisible by exploiting the doubts of inferiors. One of the Myrkr mission survivors, Alema Rar, attempted to plant seeds of doubt in Luke's mind by suggesting that his wife, Mara, may be somehow responsible for the death of his mother, Padmé Amidala, which he slightly believes because of Mara's previous involvement as the Emperor's Hand. This allows Lomi to escape from Luke as she is barely seen. Luke discovers recordings of Anakin Force-choking Padmé on Mustafar, his own birth, and his mother's death. Because of this, he is able to overcome his doubts about Mara and defeat Lomi Plo in the final battle of the Swarm War, cutting her into four pieces. Luke also withdraws the Jedi from Cal Omas' Advisory Council as he plans to create a Jedi Council that will give aid to the Galactic Alliance when needed. He also becomes the Grand Master of the Jedi Order to give the Jedi a clear sense of direction. He has told the Jedi to either follow his leadership and make the order their priority, or leave. Jedi Danni Quee and Tenel Ka have resigned because of their duties to Zonoma Sekot and Hapes, respectively, while Corran Horn has tried to resign, but Luke talked him out of it. Luke was also forced to exile Tahiri, Lowbacca, and Tesar Sebatayne to Dagobah for divulging secret information to people outside the Jedi Order. So far, this radical reorganization seems to have kept the Order together, but the consequences of such actions remain to be seen.

Although he and Mara have agreed not to have any more children, a Force-sensitive prophet did tell him that he would have children in his future before he even met Mara.

Talents

Despite receiving little training, Luke's skill with both the Force and lightsaber are remarkable. In the New Jedi Order novel series, Luke uses a powerful and unique ability of the Force known as "Emerald Lightning" in the final battle against the Yuuzhan Vong. This technique has been described to look like "green sparks," which can instantly kill its victim. No other character can generate such powerful lightning. Throughout the Expanded Universe, he displays an amazing mastery of the Force, by manipulating black holes, gravity, and planets.

Even in Luke's earlier years as a Jedi, he is a powerful figure. During the Dark Empire crisis, he disrupted the clone Emperor's Force Storm, which had the ability to destroy massive ships. He confronted in a vicious lightsaber duel and helped Leia defeating Palpatine. His niece, Jaina Solo, describes him in the final Yuuzhan Vong battle as a maelstrom of Force energy, so calm and focused that he was unstoppable. She also says his lightsaber looked to be like "10 or 20 blades all moving at once." Luke's abilities with a lightsaber and the Force allow him to prevail over thousands of Yuuzhan Vong warriors, along with other enemies. Luke defeated the Supreme Overlord Shimmra, who on his own could destroy many Jedi.

Casting

Luke Skywalker has been portrayed by four different actors:

Aiden Barton

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (May 19, 2005)

Mark Hamill

Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (May 25, 1977)
The Star Wars Holiday Special (November 17, 1978)
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (May 21, 1980)
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi (May 25, 1983)
Star Wars: A New Hope Audio Drama (1977)
*Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Audio Drama (1980)
*He reprised his role as Luke Skywalker for a speaking role in a commercial for Vector Prime, the first of the New Jedi Order novels by famous science fiction author R.A. Salvatore, in 2000. In the commercial, he briefly recalled his past experiences as a Jedi and with the Rebel Alliance, and told of some new threat that he was unsure he could defeat. This threat would be revealed in the book as an alien species from another galaxy known as the Yuuzhan Vong. To view the commercial, click here or here.
*Hamill also played Luke in a number of comedy skits on TV over the years. In 1977, he briefly played Luke on The Donny and Marie Show Star Wars Tribute, and again on an episode of The Muppet Show in 1980. In more recent years, he's "reprised" his role by voicing both Luke and himself on shows such as Family Guy, The Simpsons, and Robot Chicken.

Joshua Fardon

*''Star Wars: Return of the Jedi Audio Drama (1996)

Bob Bergen

Shadows of the Empire (1996)
Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
Star Wars: Battlefront II

Trivia

*Luke's last name was originally "Starkiller." His last name was changed to Skywalker on the first day of shooting A New Hope, because director George Lucas felt that the surname "Starkiller" implied violence too strongly. Also Star Wars was originally known, at the time of writing the script, as The Adventures of Anakin Starkiller. The name "Starkiller" was later used in the Knights of the Old Republic game for the Taris duelist, Bendak Starkiller.
*According to an interview with Lucas, Luke was originally scripted to be female and to include the aspects of Leia. Luke was changed from a young woman to a dwarf and then to a 60-year-old general before being finally scripted to be a teenager.
*It has been claimed by some that the revelation of Darth Vader as Luke's father (and, subsequently, Leia as Luke's sister) is a blatant case of retroactive continuity that does not fit with the mythology established in the first Star Wars film.
*William Katt auditioned for Luke's role.
*Just as Lucas took the name "Anakin" from his friend and fellow film director, Ken Annakin, the name "Luke" is derived from Lucas' own name. Adam Roberts claims that '"Luke S" is a cipher for "Lucas".' in his book Science Fiction.
*Interestingly, whether deliberately or accidentally, the name "Luke Skywalker" bears an incredible similarity to the name of a Norse god of mischief named Loki, who was often called Loki Sky-Walker.
*Some fans have speculated that while his father may have been destined to bring balance to the Force, Luke's own destiny is to recreate a more humble and humane Jedi Order that makes allowances for its members' emotional needs.
*The Dakin building on the San Francisco Bay in Brisbane, California, an architecturally acclaimed headquarters building for several major corporations, is nicknamed "The Luke Skywalker building" due to its bold appearance of "good", and a nearby ominous looking building is dubbed "The Darth Vader building." The Renaissance Tower in Sacramento, California, and the Columbia Tower building in Seattle also share the distinction of sometimes being referred to as "the Darth Vader building," although the latter more typically is referred to as "The Dark Tower."
*Ben Burtt auditioned for Luke's role before he signed on as the sound designer of A New Hope.
*According to the novel Heir to the Empire, Luke's favorite drink is hot chocolate, which he was introduced to by Lando Calrissian. This preference is mentioned or alluded to in other novels.
*On April 6, 1995, Swedish rock band Broder Daniel released their second single titled "Luke Skywalker."
*On Blink 182's album, Dude Ranch, there is a song called A New Hope, which includes lyrics such as: And of course I'd do anything for her, I'd search the moons of Endor, I'd even walk naked through, the deserts of Tatooine
*Some aspects of Luke's life and personality were incorporated into the character Kira Yamato from the anime series Gundam Seed and Gundam Seed Destiny.

See also

*Luke Skyywalker, recording artist.
*Skywalker family
*Solo family

Notes

References

The Essential Chronology (Star Wars), 1st edition, 2000. Kevin J. Anderson, Daniel Wallace, Bill Hughes, ISBN 034-543439-0
The Essential guide to Characters (Star Wars), 1st edition, 1995. Andy Mangels, ISBN 0-245-39535-2
The New Essential Guide to Characters, 1st edition, 2002. Daniel Wallace, Michael Sutfin, ISBN 0-345-44900-2
Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary, hardcover, 1998. David West Reynolds, ISBN 0-789-43481-4
Revised Core Rulebook (Star Wars Roleplaying Game), 1st edition, 2002. Bill Slavicsek, Andy Collins, J.D. Wiker, Steve Sansweet, ISBN 0-786-92876-X
Rebellion Era Sourcebook, 1st edition, 2001. Bill Slavicsek, ISBN 0-786-91837-3

External links

*Luke Skywalker at the Star Wars Databank