The 10 Best Characters Introduced During The Prequels
The Star Wars prequels introduced viewers to a fair amount of new characters while bringing back familiar ones. Everyone is bound to have different favorites. For this top ten list, I am staying within the bounds of characters introduced within the prequel trilogy films themselves. (It makes things easier for me.) That being said, how the characters are utilized in other materials will also be a contributing factor to their inclusion and ranking. Without further delay, here are my top ten best characters introduced during the prequels.
10. Boga
Some people might find it silly to care so much about this giant lizard, but this female varactyl is so well-designed and, simply put, cute. She is a loyal steed to Obi-Wan, who talks to her a bit more in Matthew Stover's novelization for Revenge of the Sith. Whenever I see the clones shoot at her, it hurts me to see her fall probably to her death. In the novelization, Kenobi believes her to be dead and reflects upon what a great creature she was.
9. Shmi Skywalker
The kind mother of Anakin Skywalker, Shmi hopes for a better life for her son. She puts him before herself first and foremost. While the idea of him entering a podrace does not enthuse her, she can tell that he is meant for great things, and allows Qui-Gon Jinn to take him to the Jedi Order. During their heartbreaking goodbye, Shmi encourages Anakin to move forward and not look back. Ten years later, after marrying Cliegg Lars, she is abducted by Tusken Raiders. Anakin, plagued by nightmare about his mother, tracks her down. She sees her son's face one last time, telling him she loves him before she dies. Unfortunately, this results in Anakin comitting dark deeds, slaying Tusken people: the men, the women, and even the children. During the Clone Wars, Anakin has a vision of his mother on Mortis (with Pernilla August reprising the role). One can only speculate how much better Anakin's life would have been if he had been able to see his mother more after being freed from slavery.
8. Count Dooku
The former master apprentice of Jedi Master Yoda and the former master of Qui-Gon Jinn, Count Dooku proves to be a formidable foe against the likes of Kenobi and Skywalker. The audio drama Dooku: Jedi Lost fleshes out Dooku's backstory, revealing more about his sister Jenza, and how her fate plays in his descent to the dark side. His motives are not completely clear in the films, as he proposes to Kenobi that they can team up against the Sith, but it is hard not to like any performance by Christopher Lee, and Corey Burton does a good job emulating him. Dooku is an efficient leader of the Separatists, all while serving as Sith Lord Darth Tyranus under his master Darth Sidious. For a time, he even trains Asajj Ventress and Savage Oppress as potential Sith apprentices. And of course, he teaches General Grievous about lightsaber combat. The Legends novel Yoda: Dark Rendezvous has his master hoping his former apprentice can come back to the light. The Yoda arc of The Clone Wars season 6 also shows this desire, but it is, unfortunately, a foregone conclusion.
7. Jango Fett
Known as one of the fiercest bounty hunters, Jango Fett (Temuera Morrison) is the reason that we have the clone army to begin with. He is the template for many beloved clones such as Rex, Fives, and Echo, to name a few. He also acts as a father to unaltered clone Boba Fett, who witnesses the decapitation of his father by the blade of Mace Windu and tries to carry on his father's bounty hunter legacy. The Legends comic Jango Fett: Open Seasons depicts Jango Fett as a foundling, with Jaster Mereel acting as his mentor. His reason for wanting Boba to be created is to carry on Jaster Mereel's legacy. In The Mandalorian season 2, the chain code in Boba Fett's armor includes Mereel's name, suggesting that some of this backstory might still be in-continuity. While he is a deadly bounty hunter, Jango Fett still tries to be a good father to Boba, teaching him lessons and keeping him out of harm's way whenever he deems the situation too dangerous.
6. Sabé
Portrayed by Keira Knightley, Sabé often does not get enough credit for the pivotal role she plays in The Phantom Menace, bravely acting as Queen Amidala's decoy. Her characterization is fleshed out more in the E.K. Johnston novels Queen's Shadow and Queen's Peril. Listening to the audiobooks of these, I was really hit by the emotion of the epilogue in the former when Sabé is sad about Padme's death and upset about how the circumstances are shrouded in mystery. Greg Pak's current Darth Vader comic series as seen the return of Sabé in the time shortly after The Empire Strikes Back, as the founder of a resistance group called the Amidalans. What a touching tribute to the late queen.
5. Bail Organa
The adoptive father of Leia Organa, Bail Organa shows what a great role model he is as a parent and a leader. During the Clone Wars, he and other senators try pushing for a peaceful end to the war. When he sees the Jedi Temple on fire during Order 66, he does not steer away from it, but rather fly toward the fire to investigate what's going on. Threatened by armed stormtroopers, he has to leave, but unfortunately witnesses the killing of a youngling named Zett Jukassa. Others would have turned a blind eye, but Bail went out searching for surviving Jedi, teaming up with Yoda and Obi-Wan and helping them with their efforts against the Sith before they go into exile.
He and his wife adopt Leia, the daughter of his good friend, the late Senator Padme Amidala. It does not take very long for Bail to recruit the likes of Sabé and Ahsoka Tano when the seeds of the eventual Rebellion are planted. The novel Leia: Princess of Alderaan does a great job showing Leia's relationship with her loving parents. Even though she knows that she is adopted, she loves Bail and Breha all the same, as they raised her to become the leader and fighter she is. Jimmy Smits reprised his role as Bail in Rogue One, and his and Breha's end is depicted in the short story "Eclipse" in From a Certain Point of View, during the tragic destruction of Alderaan. But he trusts Leia to lead the charge of the Rebellion.
4. Plo Koon
A non-speaking Jedi Master on the Jedi Council in the prequel films, Plo Koon is brought to life via the voice acting talents of James Arnold Taylor in The Clone Wars. Filoni asked him to use Ian McKellen's Gandalf as inspiration, and the voices are somewhat comparable. In his first appearance on the series, he and a few clone troopers are stranded in space. One of the clones says that clones are meant to be expendable. Koon replies, "Not to me." This line always gives me chills. It shows that Plo Koon sees these troopers as people worthy of recognition.
He also acts as a bit of a mentor to Ahsoka Tano, and is the Jedi who found her when she was a toddler. When she sneaks her way onto a mission to rescue Even Piell, he looks the other way, not getting her in trouble, as Ahsoka seems like she was meant to go on the mission. Unfortunately, Plo Koon's starfighter is shot down during Order 66. The depth that the TV series gave him makes his death much sadder. He believes in preserving the lives of clones, but he gets shot down by one at the end.
3. Qui-Gon Jinn
Qui-Gon Jinn is meant to represent what the Jedi of the Republic should be. He sometimes bends to rules, but it is because he understands the Force a bit better. He learns from the Shaman of the Whills about preserving his consciousness after death. In his life, he sees the value of Jar Jar Binks and Anakin Skywalker. He could have been a positive father figure to the latter, but that possibility is cut short by Darth Maul. Some of his teachings live on through Obi-Wan Kenobi, who takes it upon himself to train Anakin in Qui-Gon's stead. In the Obi-Wan & Anakin comic miniseries, Obi-Wan almost makes a Qui-Gon decision; when 12-year-old Anakin considers leaving the Jedi Order, Obi-Wan tells Yoda that he will also leave if Anakin leaves, so that he may still honor Qui-Gon's promise to train the boy.
During the Clone Wars, a vision of Qui-Gon appears on Mortis, and it is unclear whether or not it is really him. Later in the war, Yoda goes on a spiritual journey, following the voice of Qui-Gon to Force priestesses who start teaching Yoda how to preserve his consciousness after death to teach Jedi. This is something that pays off in The Last Jedi, when he teaches Luke Skywalker a lesson about failure. Even when he's not visible or around, Qui-Gon's influence in the saga is strong.
2. Padmé Amidala
At the young age, Padmé Amidala Naberrie becomes Queen of Naboo. She grows restless as she thinks about the struggles of her people at the hands of the Trade Federation. While Senator Sheev Palpatine does manipulate her in his rise to power, she gets tired of waiting and leads the charge to help her people, forming an alliance with the Gungans by being honest with them, which is something that some leaders have trouble doing.
A few years later, she becomes a senator, and even tries to see if there is anything that can be done about the slavery on Tatooine. She tries looking for Shmi Skywalker, but is unable to find her. Just before the Clone Wars start, she and Anakin are told to stay put, but she wants to help rescue Obi-Wan Kenobi right away. Even when captive in the Geonosis arena, she manages to stay "on top of things," as Kenobi puts it.
During the Clone Wars, she and other senators push for a peaceful end to the war. She does what she can to find diplomatic solutions but is able to fight her way out of things whenever need be. While she and Anakin have some problems in their relationship, there are times when she is able to calm him and make him see things in a better light. She tries to see the best in him toward the end, but is unfortunately in denial about Anakin turning to the dark side, until she meets with him on Mustafar and sees what he has become. As she is dying, she gives birth to Luke and Leia. Despite all that has happened, she still believes that there is still good in Anakin, and this belief is passed on to her son, who is eventually able to redeem his father before his death.
1. Darth Maul
Darth Maul is my favorite canon Star Wars villain. Various media have depicted what his life was like before The Phantom Menace. In the canonical Darth Maul miniseries from Marvel, he feels restless and wants to go out to kill a Jedi. When he does so, however, he does not feel stronger. This is comparable to how Kylo Ren would later feel after killing his own father. Darth Maul does evil deeds, but there are moments when one wonders what he could have been had his life turned out differently. Since he was taken by Sidious as a child, he never really had a chance to fall; he was raised at the bottom of the darkness.
Within just the context of The Phantom Menace, Darth Maul seems like a flat character who is simply there to look cool. However, The Clone Wars gives him so much more depth. Broken when his brother Savage Oppress finds him, Maul feels like he has been tossed aside and missed out on the major events of the galaxy he was supposed to be part of. Revived by Mother Talzin, he and his brother seek revenge against Obi-Wan Kenobi. In the Dark Horse comic Darth Maul: Death Sentence, Savage gets frozen in carbonite, and Maul leads an army in order to rescue his own brother. It turns out that he really does care about his family.
Further into the TV show, they form alliances with criminals and manipulate the people of Mandalore. Maul bests Pre Viszla in a duel, beheading him with the Darksaber and becoming leader of Mandalore. He even gets revenge against Kenobi by killing the woman he loves, Duchess Satine Kryze. Rather than put Kenobi out of his misery, he wants the Jedi to rot in a cell, filled with despair. Kenobi escapes, and the arrival of Darth Sidious bring's Maul's world crashing down, as he witnesses the death of his brother, whom he will miss for many years to come. Maul is captured by Sidious to lure Mother Talzin, who turns out to be Maul's actual mother. While Maul has his forces at his side, he witnesses her death at the hands of General Grievous. Now without any family whatsoever, Maul continues to lead what's left of his criminal empire.
Things come to a head when he's confronted by Ahsoka Tano during the Siege of Mandalore. Thanks to a vision, he knows that Anakin Skywalker has been groomed by Darth Sidious. Ahsoka refuses to believe that he is trying to help. She bests him in a duel but keeps him from falling to his death. Hauntingly, he says, "Let me go! Let me die! You are all going to burn! We're all going to die!" He's captured, but Ahsoka frees him during Order 66 as a distraction, and he shows just how much chaos he can cause, destroying a Star Destroyer as he flees.
For a time, Maul leads Crimson Dawn, using Dryden Vos as the public figurehead until he is replaced by Qi'ra. Sometime later, Maul is stranded on the Sith world of Malachor, where he is hunted by Inquisitors. Jedi Padawan Ezra Bridger meets him and believes that he can help the Ghost crew. While the Inquisitors are defeated, Maul blinds Kanan Jarrus, and continues to make attempts at training Ezra as an apprentice, hoping to have a brother. In seeking answers via holocrons about how to destroy the Sith, they find out that Obi-Wan Kenobi is on Tatooine. There, Maul has a final confrontation with Old Ben. While Maul believes that Kenobi has nothing now, the Jedi assures him that he has risen above his struggles and still has a purpose. Maul surmises that he is hiding someone. Not wanting Luke Skywalker to come to harm, Obi-Wan puts Maul out of his misery. Rather than bask in glory of defeating a Sith, Kenobi holds Maul in his arms, assuring him that he is guarding the Chosen One. (Kenobi believes it to be Luke, but it's actually Anakin.) Maul dies believing that the Sith will finally be destroyed. Kenobi could have just left Maul there, but filled with pity, Kenobi closes Maul's eyes and buries him.