I can stand beside you with that
Was Luke’s ROTJ Saber INTENDED To Be A GRAFLEX?
- Thread starter Captain Dunsel
- Start date
Tom has spoken
Don't you mean the bladed stunt? Or did I miss something?
I'm of the same page. Some are transcribed from audio recordings but, if I recall, they aren't really discerned in text. So it all gets lumped under "anecdotal"...again.
In any case, I love this blurb:
This is what new Star Wars completely misses. The fact the Graflex shows up again as nostalgia bait and all the superficial elements placed on a pedestal and repeated---Completely misses the point. That last line in that quote is why Luke is such an important character, not just to Star Wars but, I think, in the canon of film protagonists.
Before he died, Rinzler admitted to some revisionism, such as LFL insisting that a midichlorians reference be inserted into what were supposed to be Lucas' post-release, 1977 backstory notes (as seen in the deluxe edition of the original film's MAKING OF book).
I'd take the books with a pinch of salt.
The Graflex is a perfect analogy for those disastrous films. It returns for nostalgia-bait (TFA), gets ripped in half (TLJ), and is clumsily put back together (TROS).
Duskraven
New Member
I think Mark Hamill himself had said they had the Graflex on set for the first filmed scenes of RotJ, and he had to remind them that saber was lost and it might confuse people if it suddenly reappeared...so they pivoted to an altered Kenobi stunt saber. I don't remember where I read this (but it certainly contradicts the book cited above!)
ggriffaw
Sr Member
I'm not as familiar with the sequence of when things were shot, but it makes sense to me that using the V2 was done because it was the best alternative they had when they realized using the Graflex was a bad idea. Luke's new saber shouldn't be that old and beat up. They added the hero to certain closeups and the poster hoping that people would think that is what the new saber looks like even though it isn't what is in most of the film.
Here is my simple theory: the propmaster had the Graflex on set for the sandstorm scene and gave it to Hamill, because he simply wasn’t fully informed about what happened to the Graflex in ESB. Hamill told him that he lost it in the duel with Vader in ESB, which was confirmed by GL, who was on set fortunately. So the propmaster rushed to find another saber quickly - the Obi stunt, which became Lukes new saber. New stunts and the Isyhcanl „hero“ were then modeled after the Obi stunt (now known as the V2).
ggriffaw
Sr Member
This would also indicate lack of planning to create a new lightsaber prop for Luke before starting filming. I would think the plan was to use the Graflex and no one realized the problem with that until they got to set. Wouldn't that mean numerous people overlooked the problem, not just the propmaster? Unless they were thinking Luke made a new one that looked the same as the old one, or possibly reacquired the old one.
That’s back to my original theory that started this thread—it was not an error on the part of all these people that resulted in a GRAFLEX showing up on day one of filming; it was purposeful.
This is “my truth” that I am sharing with the world.
ggriffaw
Sr Member
It's possible using the Graflex was intentional, then they changed their mind, but I think it is more likely it was just an oversight during planning.That’s back to my original theory that started this thread—it was not an error on the part of all these people that resulted in a GRAFLEX showing up on day one of filming; it was purposeful.
This is “my truth” that I am sharing with the world.
There's no reason to believe that Luke couldn't have built another Graflex style saber, either.
Exactly!
AnubisGuard
Master Member
It would make the Emperor's line "Much like your father's..." make a little more sense, too.
Of course, the old Marvel Comics series just ignored the whole thing by having Luke use a lightsaber (occasionally drawn as Graflex-like) during the period in-between ESB and ROTJ, but without ever addressing its origin. And then the ROTJ adaptation simply had him building and using the green one, as in the film.
scarf man
Master Member
I took the meaning of this line differently.
Vader: “His lightsaber.” (Hands hilt to the Emperor)
Emperor: “Ah yes. A Jedi’s weapon, much like your father’s.”
The subtext would be the Emperor boasting to Luke of turning Anakin, a Jedi, to the dark side. He points out that Vader has a lightsaber as well, casting an ominous shade on Vaders similarity to Luke. Simultaneously gloating over Vader’s submission to the dark side of the Force, while threatening Luke with his own impending turn to the dark side.
A powerfully menacing line if you read between the lines.
This line was pointing out the choice of weapon, not the idiosyncratic similarities. The line seeks to further confirm to Luke that Vader, his father, is a turned Jedi. The Emperor is pointing out the weapon Vader carries in so far as it’s a lightsaber.
That‘s just my take on it.
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