Sith Lords vs Obi-Wan

Started by truejedi8 pages

Originally posted by Advent

By“semantics” I mean the absolute nonsense about what “curb stomp” means. For example, your retort here is nothing more than semantics because I explained what happened in the fight and what the context of the words I mean meant, as seen here:

IC, if you merely meant to say that Maul was the stronger combatant, I have no problem with that. My only contention was that the fight was not entirely one-sided. It is the second longest duel on-film in the mythos. A one sided fight, IMO, one that would show an utter domination of one's opponent happens in less than a minute.

In the movies, there is sidious beating 3 masters, there is Dooku beating AOTC obi-wan, there is Yoda defeating dooku. The others are fights that have ebbs and flows, and TPM is one of those. Yes, Maul was the stronger, but to say that he made a joke (my words, not yours, not misquoting you. 🙂 ) of the two in TPM is absolutely false. They fought a fierce duel.


Irrelevant misdirection - I wasn’t countering that in my rebuttal. I was supporting the obvious fact that Maul was dominating the fight.

Dominating? A strong word. He dominated QGJ in a one-on-one setting at the very end, with QG first taking the offensive, then being forced back, and then killed.

The rest of the fight, he wasn't dominant. He controlled the fight, but he wasn't on a whole different, untouchable level. He did the same thing that Kenobi did vs. ANakin, in that he retreated until he could seperate the combatants(like Kenobi retreated till he took Anakin out of a comfort zone), by using the environment. (this is interesting, i just realized the parallel we have here, Maul did to these two what Kenobi did to Anakin. I think Kenobi controlled the his fight with Anakin, you think Maul controlled his fight with the 2 jedi.
Interesting.

Maul certainly didn't dominate TPM kenobi blade to blade after QGJ died. He was better, he regained the upper hand, but the word domination certainly couldn't be used in that portion of the fight.


^ See above; zOMG, your examples of ‘curb stomp’ don’t fit the literal act of “placing someone’s head on a curb and stomping it with your foot”! I can play that game, too. Red herrings will be dismissed for the irrelevancy that they are.

So are you inserting the word dominate in place of curbstomp? That's okay.
To me, the words mean roughly the same thing. I reiterate all my reasons that he didn't "curbstomp" by giving you those reasons why he didn't "dominate"

Can you please show me where the word “curb stomp” is defined in Webster’s or any respectable dictionary? Oh? What’s that? You can’t, because it isn’t. Your personal interpretation doesn’t trump mine, especially when I’ve stated precisely what I meant by it. That is why any arguments over the semantics are simply stupid and a poor excuse at addressing the actual point.


This is acceptable. by your own quote above, we are using the word dominate now in the same context. Moving forward.


And really, you say ‘moments of possible death’? Hardly, considering Maul didn’t die and regained the upper hand by countering the attempts to capitalize on those ‘moments’.

I said moments of possible death if Maul had been a split second slower. Especially the moment against Kenobi when he gets knocked off his feet, and leaps out of the way of Kenobi's slash. (already posted video above) This was used to prove the point that Maul wasn't completely in utter (dominant, anyone) control of that part of the duel. I think the point was made nicely.


“They should have won this battle long ago. Against any other opponent, they would have.” - Red elaborated on this more than adequately.

All this says is that Maul is better than most other opponents. As I said to Red, this hardly goes anywhere to proving that Maul >>>> than duo.

It only proves that Maul>>>> other opponents of the duo, which are <<<<then duo, since they "would have (won long ago)" against those opponents.


Yes, it was. It is obvious from the duel and from the novel that they were never going to beat him without divine intervention (which ended up occurring).

By the very nature(unpredictable) of a melee fight, and the two places i already showed above where it was possible that Maul COULD HAVE died, this can definitly not be proven true. The life of any combatant in an extended melee battle is at risk when the battle is as extended as the one in TPM was. To say there was a 0 percent chance of Maul losing is to dwell in absolutes, and melee combat doesn't allow those.


What the hell does that even mean? That's vague; elaborate. Are you suggesting that Anoon Bondara was weak in the Force? Combined with his lightsaber skills, he’s “one of the best fighters in the Order”. Beating Anoon Bondara does mean that Maul beat the best saber duelist the Order had to offer. His combat prowess was “unmatched” so clearly his ability to amplify his attributes with the Force is considerable.

one of the best fighters in the Order: wait a minute though: How do you go from your own quote as "One of the best fighters in the Order" To "Maul beat the best saber duelist the Order had to offer?" Curious thats, all, i don't have the direct quote in front of me, so i'm wondering about the contradiction.

Using the Anoon Bondara quote about being the best duelist in the order from the 3rd person source, that is more or less the thoughts of Anoon's Padawan, is the same as using the Darth Sidious is the most powerful quote from RODV, when that quote, even though from the narrator, is clearly meant to be a parody of Vader's thoughts. I would need something else, other than that one quote, to put Bondara above Masters Yoda and Windu, at the very least.

His combat feats are non-existent. His one quote of power is questionably from the perspective of his own student, and him being the most powerful in the order isn't reinforced anywhere else in the mythos. It is iffy at the least. Making him the best duelist, who isn't strong in the force is actually doing Bondara a favor, rather than attacking the quote's credibility directly.


That doesn’t make a lick of sense. Anakin wasn’t the most powerful or skilled Force user. Obi-Wan was best suited according to Mace Windu because Anakin was his apprentice and he taught Anakin everything he knew, but not necessarily everything that Obi-Wan knew. Your A > B feat wars logic at the end is horribly skewed.

Except... That quote was about Grievous, not anakin. Just redo this rebuttal to fit that situation. All this, "Taught anakin everything he knew" stuff doesn't apply at all.


You seem to be under the impression that I was claiming Maul beat Anoon, therefore he’s better than Obi-Wan. I wasn’t. I was countering the logic that Obi-Wan should be better than Maul because he’s beaten Grievous and Anakin (which you called “more impressive). You continually brought up how Anakin beat Dooku but completely ignore how Anakin owned Dooku in a direct fashion. Obi-Wan didn’t do that against Anakin. If Grievous were in the Jedi Order, he clearly wouldn’t have been the best with a blade.

I understand what you are claiming. I would counter that ROTS Anakin is more powerful, stronger, more dangerous, whatever you want to call it, than Bondara in Shadow Hunter. Our main disagreement here seems to be whether Obi-wan's victory over Anakin is legitimate and repeatable or not, So i will continue to that part of the debate.


Strawman argument, logical fallacy.

I cannot tell you how much I disagree with that. It was neither.


Key phrase: 'If Kenobi doesn't have the same environment to manipulate'. Key word: 'same'. Reading comprehension is important.

Then simply put, I disagree. Any environment a duel would be fought in would have some sort of environment that could be manipulated.


What were his other options then? Are you suggesting that Kenobi could have stopped Anakin head-on? He didn't have much of any choice, the only choice he had was to either give ground or take Anakin on directly. The latter choice likely resulting in Kenobi being beheaded.

I disagree again. Kenobi was capable of blocking 16 blows a second from grievous. I don't see anything that suggest Anakin would have beheaded Kenobi in this situation.

I reiterate: Kenobi gave ground because he wanted to. You interpret the same quote differently. We may have to let this one go.


You aren't George Lucas, therefore you don't dictate canon. This is begging the question. If it isn't shown in the movie, we have no idea what happens in the movie; the highest form of canon.

Actually... No. Think of it like a computer program. A=movie, B=novel.

Everything from A is true. Everything from B is true IF there is not a direct contradiction from A. This is true of everything in the novel that isn't shown on-screen. If the fight was continuous, and we saw all of it, the book would be wrong, but that gap means the novel is still canon.

I'm not defining canon, I'm quoting it. You are defining canon when you discount the novel without a direct portion from the movie that contradicts it. Pg. 397-398 stand.


Just because there isn't a contradiction doesn't mean it's canon.

Yes it does.


That's utterly fallacious reasoning. If we aren't shown what happened, we have no idea what Lucas intended. Your argument collapses because of such.

You just discounted the entire EU Advent. That is just silly.


"In every exchange, Obi-Wan gave ground. It was his way" - this doesn't mean that Obi-Wan wasn't being pushed back. It clearly isn't his way of fighting since he's shown to attack Grievous head-on and even chase him down. Against Dooku in the duel on the Invisible Hand, Obi-Wan is pressing the offensive.

The novel says it is his way. Are you seriously trying to say that your opinion of Obi-Wan's fighting style > novel? For that matter, he backed away from Grievous until his defenses were overloaded. He chased him down for the same reason he went to Mustafar. To get in a fight. Clearly obi-wan putting himself in a position to fight has nothing to do with the fight itself.

Obi-Wan was fighting in Tandem with Anakin on the Invinsible hand. It wasn't kenobi dueling.


"To strike Anakin down would burn his own heart to ash" - in no way whatsoever does this support anything you're saying. It only means that killing Anakin would cause him emotional turmoil, that doesn't mean he isn't willing to kill him. Clearly, he is since he tries to when the chance arises. [/B]

It is given as another reason why Kenobi gave ground Advent. He was giving ground, not being forced back. We may have to just agree to disagree on this one, simply because we both have read the same sources and interpret it differently.

It'll be a few minutes before i get the other half of your post answered, but i'm not skipping it.

Originally posted by Lightsnake
Is this your MO lately? "I'll believe what I want, screw all evidence to the contrary."
And given Stover is the AUTHOR of the book reporting that Lucas wanted that scene to be in there, it seems pretty clear what he 'intended.' Get over it.

It appears to be your modus operandi because you are blatantly ignoring common sense and rationality on the basis that "cuz Stover say-so". You haven't addressed the logic at all.

Since Lucas reviewed the novel line-by-line, I guess he left those inconsistencies of his own movie in there. That means that things that aren't shown on-screen are also open to same fallibility. We don't know what Lucas would have shown on-screen, so we can't automatically assume that it would be consistent. Ultimately, it doesn't really matter if Lucas reviewed it or not, because he also reviewed and left in materials that are blatant contradictions of his own work. My point stands.

Originally posted by Advent
Begging the question, logical fallacy.

The evidence you're using to support that is not shown in the movie. Anakin didn't acknowledge a damned thing and Obi-Wan didn't show an ounce of compassion. When he had the chance to kill Anakin, he tried to capitalize on it. That is shown in the movie and trumps your assumptions.

It happened in the novel, uncontradicted by the Movie, its canon.
Considering its fiction, I have no problem with you deciding you don't want to believe it, but please don't try to pass it off as fact.


If we go by the novel, Obi-Wan 'lets go of everything' after he's put into a choke hold. The choke hold occurs one minute into the fight. Ergo, Obi-Wan didn't hold any attachment to Anakin one minute into the fight. There's still no indication that Obi-Wan was holding back especially when we consider that the first opportunity he had to kill Anakin, he tried to.

He lets go of attachement on the conduit. pg. 403. Its interesting you are pushing a quote from the same scene you are claiming never happened.


The difference between that and the quote I've provided is that the quote tells us what Obi-Wan was thinking about his opponent, not doing. His hesitation was never there because we're shown on-screen that he doesn't hesitate in attempting to strike Anakin down. There's a stark contrast, and asserting that if I use this quote, I must accept all quotes (that aren't shown or supported) is downright illogical.

This is just a double-standard. If you can claim something never happened in a scene, how can you claim the thoughts in that scene were thought? This doesn't make a lick of sense.


I hope you realize Kenobi giving ground and "striking Anakin down would burn his heart to ash" are both compatible with what I've been saying. Giving ground doesn't mean that he wasn't being pushed back. His feelings about striking Anakin down don't mean that he wasn't going to. Indeed, it only means that if he killed Anakin, it would hurt him emotionally, which is obvious.

Are you really arguing a negative? Doesn't meant that he wasn't being pushed back? If that's what you want to believe, fine, but the novel supports that it was Kenobi's choice. Of course I can't prove that Kenobi WASN'T being pushed back. That is teh beauty of a negative.
I can however prove that Kenobi was giving ground because it was his way, A much stronger argument than you saying I can't prove something DIDN'T happen.


Personally, I don't care if you're not convinced. I don't expect you to be. Interpreting what happened in the movie is just that: interpretation. You have yours and I have mine.

This is perfect with me. This is my personal MO on these forums.
I just enjoy discussing it. 🙂


X is being forcefully pushed back to an area that Y wants (say the edge of a cliff).
X is giving ground.
Therefore, X is controlling where the fight goes since he's giving ground.

But your first statement does not exist in the novel. You are using your interpretation of the second statment(which does exist) To create this:


The conclusion is not true just because X is giving ground. Therefore, 'giving ground' does not automatically translate into leading. Your evidence doesn't justify your conclusion.

You would need to prove sentence 1 above in order for me to need to justify anything.


Glad to hear it.

I have no problem admitting error when I see it. I could have just dropped that part of the argument when I saw I was wrong, and tried to act like it didn't happen. I don't roll that way.


Letting him drive him back doesn't mean he wasn't being forced. I'm not sure how many times I need to stress the point. Letting himself be driven back doesn't mean that he could have stopped Anakin's onslaught head-on. Which would have to be true for your assumption to hold any water.

This is your interpretation meeting mine again. So i won't repeat myself on it again.


I hope you understand that my quote doesn't need to be shown in the movie. Though part of the phrase contradicts the movie (following my logic that if it isn’t demonstrated, it isn’t valid), that doesn't make that certain aspect invalid. Exactly the same concept as despite the fact parts of the novel contradict the movie, the entire novel is not invalid. It's not an action and we're not shown otherwise (Kenobi's hesitation is not supported at all from what we do see).

Sorry, I disagree with your logic. Novel is canon until actually contradicted by what we see, not just when we don't see it happen.

Originally posted by Advent
It appears to be your modus operandi because you are blatantly ignoring common sense and rationality on the basis that "cuz Stover say-so". You haven't addressed the logic at all.

Your argument: You can't prove this is what Lucas intended
Faunus posts an [B]Exact quote] from the author saying what's in the novel is what Lucas intended to be in. If there was a fight scene inconsistency, then that's one. This is NOT contradictory, was line edited by the highest source and left in.

Since Lucas reviewed the novel line-by-line, I guess he left those inconsistencies of his own movie in there.

Scenes that directly contradict aren't canon. Character thoughts and scenes that do NOT conflict? Leland Chee says those are fine

That means that things that aren't shown on-screen are also open to same fallibility. We don't know what Lucas would have shown on-screen, so we can't automatically assume that it would be consistent. Ultimately, it doesn't really matter if Lucas reviewed it or not, because he also reviewed and left in materials that are blatant contradictions of his own work. My point stands.

Lucas read it, edited it and left it in. He's fine with it, it contradicts nothing. Ergo, it's usable and canonical

You have suddenly bizarre standards on what is and isn't valid.

I'll address the rest of your argument later, True Jedi (it's FRIDAY!), but let me just respond to that last post. I should also say that I'm fine with dropping the arguments that are based on interpretation (which appears to be pretty much the majority).

Originally posted by truejedi
It happened in the novel, uncontradicted by the Movie, its canon.
Considering its fiction, I have no problem with you deciding you don't want to believe it, but please don't try to pass it off as fact.

Originally posted by Advent
Let me make the point clearly.

The passage I've provided is contradicted by the movie.

Therefore, the novel can be inaccurate when describing fights.

The quotes truejedi has provided are not shown on-screen.

Therefore, we can't assume that because it's written in the novel it's true. If the novel can be inaccurate when describing fights on-screen, why should we automatically trust descriptions that aren't on-screen?

The passage I've provided was just to make the larger argument hold water; it wasn't a comparison.

He lets go of attachement on the conduit. pg. 403. Its interesting you are pushing a quote from the same scene you are claiming never happened.

If he let go of his attachment on the conduit, then why was he trying to kill Anakin before then? QED.

This is just a double-standard. If you can claim something never happened in a scene, how can you claim the thoughts in that scene were thought? This doesn't make a lick of sense.

Obi-Wan's thoughts on the his opponent's force extend through the entire fight. It doesn't matter if the scene is contradicted; it was his overall impression, which goes much further than that single passage.

Are you really arguing a negative? Doesn't meant that he wasn't being pushed back? If that's what you want to believe, fine, but the novel supports that it was Kenobi's choice. Of course I can't prove that Kenobi WASN'T being pushed back. That is teh beauty of a negative.
I can however prove that Kenobi was giving ground because it was his way, A much stronger argument than you saying I can't prove something DIDN'T happen.

LMAO! Please don't tell me you succumb to the "you can't prove a negative" logic. I hope you realize that statement in itself is a negative.

I'm arguing that Obi-Wan was being pushed back and as such, was giving ground. How is your argument stronger? Your argument is that he was giving ground intentionally. That assumes that he could have matched or defeated Anakin head on. If that's the case, why resort to a much more dangerous and difficult strategy like his lava skating, tight rope walking, platform jumping tactics?

But your first statement does not exist in the novel. You are using your interpretation of the second statment(which does exist) To create this:

You would need to prove sentence 1 above in order for me to need to justify anything.

It was an example that demonstrates how just "giving ground" does not automatically translate into "leading".

You're suggestion that "giving ground" automatically translates into "leading" is therefore false. In that respect, your evidence does not justify your conclusion.

I have no problem admitting error when I see it. I could have just dropped that part of the argument when I saw I was wrong, and tried to act like it didn't happen. I don't roll that way.

Like I said, I'm glad to hear it.

Sorry, I disagree with your logic. Novel is canon until actually contradicted by what we see, not just when we don't see it happen.

See above posts.

@ Lightsnake:

You're hopeless.

Advent
Let me make the point clearly.

The passage I've provided is contradicted by the movie.

Therefore, the novel can be inaccurate when describing fights.

The quotes truejedi has provided are not shown on-screen.

Therefore, we can't assume that because it's written in the novel it's true. If the novel can be inaccurate when describing fights on-screen, why should we automatically trust descriptions that aren't on-screen?

The passage I've provided was just to make the larger argument hold water; it wasn't a comparison.

🤨

The novelization is a C-canon source. As Faunus has already addressed, the passage you provided -- the one where Dooku is throwing tables and chairs and shit -- is contradicted by what we see on screen. There are no breaks or interruptions during the duel; no way to write it off. Ergo that particular passage was removed from the final cut. But when there are no contradictions provided by subsequent or higher canon, what rationale do you have for cherrypicking what is and what is not canon?

The audience simply can't pick and choose what stays and what goes.

Advent
That said, I don't really give a damn what Stover says.

😐

We don't really give a damn that you don't give a damn what Stover says. It's valid. And it stays.

Originally posted by Advent

@ Lightsnake:

You're hopeless. [/B]


Not a good rebuttal. I'm sorry, this is so far from your usual standard it isn't even amusing. Usually you have a habit of admitting when you're wrong and being able to pretty evenly analyze and use quotes. Now? Somehow, me pointing out that not only did Lucas leave the line in, but Leland Chee commented that things in the novels don't contradict are pretty much considered valid and the scene, in an official novelization contradicts NOTHING...and I'm the one who's hopeless? Come on. Grab the reins, Advent

The passage I've provided was largely irrelevant; it was only used to show that the novel contradicts on-screen scenes (George Lucas' own movie) when it comes down to describing how fights play out. If the novelization can be wrong about on-screen portions of fights, then why should we automatically believe they are right about off-screen portions of fights?

Because one is DIRECTLY contradictory to the movie. The other is not. According to Chee at his Holocron thread at SW.com, what doesn't contradict-IE: off screen scenes, character thoughts, narration, etc. is considered valid.

There is no reason not to consider Palpatine chatting with Dooku on board the Invisible Hand prior to the battle canon, no reason not to consider the narration commenting on Grievous's victories to be invalid....This isn't different. It contradicts nothing, Lucas approved it.

Advent
The passage I've provided was largely irrelevant; it was only used to show that the novel contradicts on-screen scenes (George Lucas' own movie) when it comes down to describing how fights play out. If the novelization can be wrong about on-screen portions of fights, then why should we automatically believe they are right about off-screen portions of fights?

🤨

Because... they're canon... and you're not?

Advent
The passage I've provided was largely irrelevant; it was only used to show that the novel contradicts on-screen scenes (George Lucas' own movie) when it comes down to describing how fights play out. If the novelization can be wrong about on-screen portions of fights, then why should we automatically believe they are right about off-screen portions of fights?
Because... that's... canon... policy?

😐

Edit: Damn you Gideon.

Yes, the line I've provided about Dooku vs. Jedi is directly contradicted by the movie because it's not shown. These scenes in the novel that True Jedi posted weren't shown either. Therefore, we cannot conclude that Lucas would be putting them in his movie. He left in inconsistencies about the same damn scenes he directed; it's reasonable to assume then that he could have left in inconsistencies about what isn't shown. Since it's inconclusive, it would be hasty and faulty to use them as viable evidence.

You are assuming that because Lucas approved it, it's true. Obviously that isn't the case since passages in the novel aren't true according to the movie.

By that logic any character's thought process contradicts the movie as it's 'not shown,' despite Chee having commented on how this policy WORKS.
The scene is canon, end story.

Originally posted by Lightsnake
By that logic any character's thought process contradicts the movie as it's 'not shown,' despite Chee having commented on how this policy WORKS.
The scene is canon, end story.

Thought processes aren't physical actions; the scenes True Jedi is talking about are. So you aren't going "by that logic" as much as making a faulty comparison.

Advent
You are assuming that because Lucas approved it, it's true.

No one's disputing that Lucas is notorious for changing his mind (and his story!) at every opportunity. But until you have something concrete that gives a valid reason to question a specific scene or event, then it remains canon.

Originally posted by Advent
Thought processes aren't physical actions; the scenes True Jedi is talking about are. So you aren't going "by that logic" as much as making a faulty comparison.

By this logic, the info we've gotten on Anakin killing Cin Drallig isn't canon as we never see it onscreen.

Advent
Yes, the line I've provided about Dooku vs. Jedi is directly contradicted by the movie because it's not shown.
It's directly contradicted by the movie because it doesn't happen in the movie and there is unarguably no room for it to have happened in whatever cutaways and gaps are present in the film scenes. This is not the case with the line TJ provided.
Advent
These scenes in the novel that True Jedi posted weren't shown either.
Unlike the above example, in this case the movie does not in any way lead us to suspect that the events described could not have happened. The two scenarios are not related in the way you'd like them to be, so don't try to point out a relationship that doesn't exist.

hey um this is kinda long, and I don't have time to read it all since I have a shitload of chinese hw to do all due at like 8am 2mrw and its like almost 12 am for me.. so yeah

anyways...

I would put Obi-wan on par with lower tier council members, slightly lower than windu, lower/on par with grevious, because of his style. and luck I suppose.

He is below ROTS Anakin in skill, and defeated Maul through sheer luck.

But I think he was above dooku in swordsmanship, not overall by ROTS. In the novelization, dooku was suprised by the change in tactics, and suddenly found himself fighting for his life.

Although one might say dooku pwned Obiwan in the ROTS fight also, that was using the force... I guess dooku is above Obi-wan then.

and He surpassed Quigon by ROTS. But he isn't that great...

Mostly because of his lack in force prowess imo.

anyways i gotta run. see u guys later.

Can I please ask for reasonable discussion? Rather than Lightsnake Logic - "it's canon, end of story" and ad hominem attacks. A reasonable discussion at least should admit that you acknowledge the opposition's argument and think about where they are coming from. Gideon's (one) post is a perfect example of that. I'm willing to say that perhaps you're right, and it is canon, but I believe that conclusion is based on inconclusive evidence.

Gideon
No one's disputing that Lucas is notorious for changing his mind (and his story!) at every opportunity. But until you have something concrete that gives a valid reason to question a specific scene or event, then it remains canon.

While Lucas has approved the novel and allegedly reviewed it line by line, he still left in direct contradictions to his own movie. This is the basis for questioning its validity: fight scenes themselves are shown to directly contradict the movie, why is it unreasonable to extend the possibility to fight scenes that aren't shown?

To that extent, it's inconclusive because we have no idea how Lucas would portray those events since we're not actually seeing them in the movie. Notice that I used the word inconclusive. I'm not saying that they would or wouldn't be accurate if Lucas decided to shoot those scenes. I am saying that we just can't make the call either way because he hasn't.

Eminence
Unlike the above example, in this case the movie does not in any way lead us to suspect that the events described could not have happened.

I never denied the possibility that they could have occured, but we're not left with any reason to conclude that they did.