The tree test at Dagobah??

[Tomcat]

I hv watched ESB countless times but i'm still puzzled by the tree scene at Dagobah where Luke went down the underground pit & fought a Dark Vader figure & later found his own face behind the mask. I know the tree is strong with dark sides as Yoda said. Its some of kind of test for Luke but what's the reason & logic behind it? Why Yoda says he dun need to bring along his weapon? Why does his face appear in the mask? Why does Yoda looks so gloomy after that. Does it mean that Luke wl turn over to dark sides?

[danchia]

Hi Tomcat ....

Interesting questions you have asked here. Does anyone know ?

[adamteo]

maybe it was becuase in a way, luke was destined to follow in his father's steps...it was until when he strike down vader, looked at his own hand and decided not to be led to the dark side..

as to why yoda was sad, perharps he felt that luke's training was too short for him to fight the dark side...

[Tomcat]

Tks guys for the replies. I feel that Luke protrayed more convincely that he is going to turn to dark sides than Anakin did in Ep3. Mark Hamil's intense expression/actings almost led us to believe so. Do u guys think so?

[danchia]

I absolutely agree , Tomcat . I have always felt that Luke managed to portray that emotion better than Hadyn. Then again, Luke had 3 films to tell his story ..... and his transition from restless young farmboy to Jedi Master to his brush with the darkside was much more convincing than anything Hadyn managed .

[Tomcat]

I absolutely agree , Tomcat . I have always felt that Luke managed to portray that emotion better than Hadyn. Then again, Luke had 3 films to tell his story ..... and his transition from restless young farmboy to Jedi Master to his brush with the darkside was much more convincing than anything Hadyn managed .

I guess it hv to do with the good directing in Ep 5&6. Rembr old George is not involved after Ep4.

[Gandalf Fett]

I absolutely agree , Tomcat . I have always felt that Luke managed to portray that emotion better than Hadyn. Then again, Luke had 3 films to tell his story ..... and his transition from restless young farmboy to Jedi Master to his brush with the darkside was much more convincing than anything Hadyn managed .

I respectfully disagree, GL had 3 movies to tell the story for Anakin as well and he even had 2 actors to help convey that story (snicker snicker) but was not able to principally because he was not that interested in that particular aspect of film-making, i.e. acting. Thus, Mark had the benefit of 2 other directors who were interested in getting the actors to do the best job possible vs Hayden who had a director who simply wanted "faster more intense" would certainly not be able to convey his descent into the dark side.

On the tree on Dagobath, I think that the face behind the mask was actually a foretelling of a possible and at that point in time, a very likely, future for Luke. Which was possibly why Yoda was sad. "There goes our last hope..."

"No, there is another..."

But at that time, Luke appeared to be the real hope that they were all placing their bets on.

Did any of the above make any sense?

[Tomcat]

Gandalf Fett,

I absolutely agree with u. After watching original trilogy for countless times, i also came to same conclusion as u too.

[Paul K]

I reckon it was a way for Yoda to give Luke a sense of forewarning that in Vader, there is something of Luke (aka the father-son link). Perhaps it was also a way to warn Luke that he was at a critical point in his training, that his anger can turn him to the dark side, that even though he could defeat Vader via battle, he would become Vader's replacement.

[Gandalf Fett]

Do I remember reading somewhere that the tree test is something that the Jedi training require them to go through before they become a Jedi Knight or something?

The tree test was most certainly about the foreshadowing of a future.

But don't you think it was interesting that Yoda went "Your weapons you will not need them"? Hmmmmmm???

[Paul K]

I wonder if Luke had not brought his waepons, whether he would have faced Vader or would the encounter have been different? Vader: "hello luke, some tea or a butter scone perhaps. The marmalade is ever so tart..." haha.

[e3lipse]

I wonder if Luke had not brought his waepons, whether he would have faced Vader or would the encounter have been different? Vader: "hello luke, some tea or a butter scone perhaps. The marmalade is ever so tart..." haha.

i think its not the weapon ba
its what luke was feeling and thinking

[Gandalf Fett]

Either that or we'll have a knock down kung fu style confrontation ending with Luke in torn clothes ripping the head off Darth Vader..

[freefly]

Do I remember reading somewhere that the tree test is something that the Jedi training require them to go through before they become a Jedi Knight or something?

The tree test was most certainly about the foreshadowing of a future.

But don't you think it was interesting that Yoda went "Your weapons you will not need them"? Hmmmmmm???

"Testing the spirit..." - Shaak Ti

"...facing the mirror" - Even Piell

Anakin faced a similar test in the CW cartoons in a cave. There he had a vision of his own future, him becoming the very evil he sought to destroy. Both Anakin & Luke absolutely did not need their weapons. It was only a trial. To quote Obi-Wan:

"Though you've never had the official trials, this war has tested you more than the trials could, save one. Master Yoda forsaw this. The force has guided us here for your final trial, the one you've never truly faced"

"The most difficult trial a Jedi must face is, to look inside oneself. Often we see things we don't like, but these aspects are not set in stone. It is our decisions that shape our destinies"

This then is the purpose of the Dagobah scene

[Dr EMH]

question remains: is there a physical object (vader) in which luke has strike off, or is all this just an imagination screwing his mind?