Satine: Woman Of Peace Or Pain In The Butt?

[lazypadawan]

Now that the Mandalore arc of CW episodes introducing Duchess Satine Kryze (a.k.a. Obi's ex) have aired, we have a fairly good idea of who she is as a character. She's certainly large and in-charge, one of the most self-possessed cartoon characters I have ever seen. She is principled and feels very strongly about her ideals. But are those ideals unrealistic and is she way too hard on those who don't share them?

The writers are smart enough to give Satine's pacifism-at-any-cost cover when Obi-Wan explains that some kind of civil war on Mandalore nearly killed off her people. You can understand why someone who believes her planet's violent culture nearly destroyed it (of course we have to take everyone's word for what happened) would be very, very adverse to violence of any kind. I can definitely understand why anyone, pacifist or not, would not want to be part of the Republic's tiff with the Separatists; I always say that Sidious's plans would have gone up in smoke had everyone just shrugged and told the Separatists to DLTDHYOTWO.

But as far as Satine is concerned, she is so determined to stick to her principles, I have to wonder if she would do anything at all to defend her planet. The Death Watch guys keep setting off bombs and trying to kill her, but what is she going to do about it? I can understand not wanting outsiders to interfere, but if I were a Mandalore citizen, she'd get a zero approval rating from me for homeland security. At one point during "Voyage of Temptation," she says that even extremists can be reasoned with. No, they can't. That's why they're extremists. In any case, I saw no attempt on her part to reason with Death Watch and they only want her deposed with extreme prejudice.

Now, Satine's occasionally self-righteous tone and speechifying on violence isn't so much motivated by ideology as it is motivated by her feelings about Obi-Wan. Why do I think so? I've noticed she only directs it at Obi-Wan. She never lectures Anakin about his violent ways, not even after he shish-kebabs that bad guy in "Voyage." I think she's mad at him for leaving her but still has some soft fuzzy feelings for him, which makes her even angrier.

In any case, Satine has additional cover from the fact we all know the Clone Wars are a means to an evil end. This is the second or third time pacifism has come up on the show (the only non-pacifist who seems suspicious of the Republic is that Twi'lek guy from Season One's Ryloth arc) but I've noticed that pacifism isn't brought up as a virtue in anything set during Episodes IV-VI. At least not that I can remember. What would have Satine done during the time of the Empire, or the Rebellion? I imagine she would have fought to keep Mandalore out of the Empire and failing that, out of the war with the Rebels. But Eps IV-VI make it clear that evil had to be stopped, even through violence if necessary. Not because the Alliance was full of crazy bloodthirsty Huns but because it was the only way to stop an aggressive enemy. If Mandalore's back was up against the wall, where the only alternative was slavery and oppression, what would she have done?

Comments

[lazypadawan.livejournal.com]

Well, I find Mandalorians are a lot less smelly and have better manners than Klingons. Plus they have jet packs. But I agree that Lucas doesn't glamorize these guys to the degree many in fandom do ;).

Could you really see the padawan-Obi-Wan in TPM throw his life as a Jedi away for her?

Maybe she was really easy. We can already see she likes to drink.