Another "Star Wars" question...

[JDFP]

In Star Wars ("A New Hope" for those people who consider it to be part 4, argh, don't get me started on that...) when Vader and Obi-Wan are fighting there's a ton of storm troopers that rush all around the place. Couldn't one of the storm troopers have just shot Obi-Wan while he was fighting Vader? You would think one of them would have thought: "Hey, there's some old guy wearing hippie clothing fighting against our dark lord! I should shoot him and be a hero!". Or, if nothing else, one of them could have approached and said: "Hey, dark lord, what's up here? Need some help?" Of course, this would beg the question, I wouldn't want to be that storm trooper a few hours later when Vader confronted him regarding the interference of his saber fight with Obi-Wan. Of course, you know the regular-joe storm troopers who witnessed this had to have been thinking: "The hell?" I wonder if there's a law in the Imperial Handbook that says: "Thou shalt not interfere with two Jedi's fighting?" It also makes me think -- why does Grand Moff Tarkin have the ability to boss Vader around as if Vader is his bitch? Isn't Vader the right-hand of the emperor? I don't know imperial rankings all that well, but you would think (or at least I would) the right-hand Dark Lord of the Sith that Vader is would be higher ranking than Grand Moff Tarkin. Vader kills an admiral at whim in "Empire...", yet, Grand Moff Tarkin seems to boss Vader around as if he's his little dog and Vader obliges. What's up with that? My only valid answer is that Vader was just intimidated by the excellence of being in the same room as Peter Cushing and had a man-crush on him. Someone explain this to me as it has always confused me. I asked another question here about 11 months ago regarding why Yoda just walked away from fighting Palpatine and didn't really get a satisfactory answer other than: "Well, it's because that film sux!" -- so I don't really expect any erudite moments of epiphanies here, but it is definitely something to consider, me thinks. Any thoughtful answers are certainly appreciated. j.p.

[AcesandEights]

In Star Wars ("A New Hope" for those people who consider it to be part 4, argh, don't get me started on that...) when Vader and Obi-Wan are fighting there's a ton of storm troopers that rush all around the place. Couldn't one of the storm troopers have just shot Obi-Wan while he was fighting Vader? You would think one of them would have thought: "Hey, there's some old guy wearing hippie clothing fighting against our dark lord! I should shoot him and be a hero!". Or, if nothing else, one of them could have approached and said: "Hey, dark lord, what's up here? Need some help?" Memory's hazy, but I'd say: 1) Plot armor 2) Vader killed subordinates for making mistakes and I'd assume most stormtroopers wouldn't rush into taking pot shots at someone he was meleeing with, just too close for comfort, especially since those were clearly 2nd string troopers.

[bassman]

It's been a long time since I've watched it, but I thought the troopers and Luke were watching them fight through a large window?

[AcesandEights]

It's been a long time since I've watched it, but I thought the troopers and Luke were watching them fight through a large window? Getting your movies mixed up, Bass:

[bassman]

seriously though.....I thought it looked like a window. I suppose it could be a door, though... Strange to have that ledge at the bottom if it is a door...

[AcesandEights]

seriously though.....I thought it looked like a window. I suppose it could be a door, though... Strange to have that ledge at the bottom if it is a door... I agree that it does look like a window, but weren't the 'blast doors' and 'bay doors' like that on the Death Star though? I never got the sense that it was a window, just a dramatic film contrivance that led to no one interefering with the 'duel'. I never thought we'd need more nerds here to help straighten out something movie trivia related!

[Mitchified]

Tarkin was the Grand Moff of the entirety of the Outer Rims, and he was the one that originally conceived of the construction of the Death Star in the Maw (assuming that George Lucas hasn't pissed on every single inch of the books at this point). Technically Tarkin and Vader were equals in terms of rank, but because Vader was acting in an emissary role on the original Death Star he deferred to Tarkin. It was political more than anything else. As for the stormtroopers not assisting Vader, I certainly wouldn't want to be the one to piss off Darth Vader if he didn't want any assistance, and I certainly wouldn't want to be the one to ask if he needs any while he's in the middle of a fight. The other mystery in A New Hope is the mystery of Princess Leia's incredible disappearing accent.

[Publius]

seriously though.....I thought it looked like a window. I suppose it could be a door, though... Well, it's definitely a window in the Lego Star Wars rendition. My son and I just finished playing through the video game.

[axlish]

The other mystery in A New Hope is the mystery of Princess Leia's incredible disappearing accent. This was a political accent, used for debate and political meetings. The idea is actually re-enforced in the prequels with Amidala, however Jar Jar doesn't follow suit. It is kind of like when the redneck receptionist drops the accent when she answers the phone.

[blind2d]

Well, I think the reason they don't interfere with the fight is because they realize it's a f*cking duel, and have some sense of honor about them... this is probably too much to hope for, I realize, but there you are. It's a door. Not a window. Don't you remember it closing when Kenobi's all like "run Luke, run." I think you're right. Vader was just intimidated by THE Peter Cushing. Also... maybe he reminds him of the Emperor? They're both old and wrinkly... I don't know. Jar Jar tried...