lightsaber

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Lightsabers of different colors that can also be seen in the films .
two rather rare lightsabers. Yellow was featured in The Rise of Skywalker , orange in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order .

The lightsaber ( English lightsaber ; literal translation light saber , in the German translation also occasionally called laser sword ) is a fictional fencing weapon with a high-energy blade. The lightsaber is one of the special effects that have significantly shaped the character of the Star Wars films by director George Lucas - in addition to the western genre and its firefights , the introduction of this futuristic weapon enabled the cloak-and-epee genre to be included in the films flow in. The combination of both themes is particularly effective in the films when shots from laser firearms are repelled by the use of a lightsaber.

Internal backgrounds

The lightsaber is used as the main weapon by the Jedi and Sith , who play an important role in the plot in Star Wars . From a handle about 30 centimeters long , a high-energy blade about one meter long can be created at the push of a button, sometimes by using power . There are different statements about the type of blade in the expanded Star Wars universe. Thus, especially in older works, there is talk of "pure energy" (original pure energy ), which leads back to grips, while some newer novels report on a "plasma blade".

The color of a lightsaber is determined by an "Adeganic crystal" incorporated in the handle, which, depending on its carrying character, also emits a certain burning power. The crystals from certain caves, such as those on Ilum , have different colors, which are reflected in the color of the blade. The energy cell in the lightsaber hilt supplies the necessary energy, and the crystal bundles the energy into a beam that forms the blade. It is part of the training of every Jedi to make their own lightsaber. In addition to the handle, the Sith also produce the crystal synthetically in order to obtain a completely individual lightsaber.

Since the Jedi traditionally only used the lightsaber as a weapon, in a world largely ruled by firearms, they had to train their supernatural skills to the extent that they could deflect or repel the shots from those weapons. This led to a variety of different fighting styles, which the Jedi trained to perfection, comparable to the Shaolin monks.

External backgrounds

The earliest mention of light-swords in a science fiction story appears to be in the short story Kaldar, World of Antares by Edmond Hamilton, published in The Magic Carpet Magazine in 1933 . It says:

"Merrick leapt toward the other, jerking the long light-sword from his sheath more by instinct than by design. Jhalan, his light-gun sheathed, whipped his own sword out in time to meet him. The two blades glowed as one with white light as the deadly force of the hilts was released into them. Then Merrick felt his blade click against his enemy's as they closed. He knew that the charged blades could not harm each other but that a touch of either meant death to the person touched.

Jhalan handled his deadly weapon like a master, its shining length cleaving the air around the earth-man. But Merrick was for the moment his equal, old fencing lore coming swiftly back to him in this strange duel where a touch was death. Up and down — right and left — back and forth — the two shining light-swords wove like twin shuttles of death as the two rushed, stabbed, parried. "

- Edmond Hamilton : from "Kaldar, World of Antares"

George Lucas , who had also taken a liking to the Chambara cinema through his preoccupation with Japanese films , imitated many kamae and fighting techniques from Japanese sword fighting despite the oversized length and the straight shape of the blades of his lightsabers .

During the filming, the actors used prop lightsabers, the blade of which usually consisted of a long, thin aluminum rod. The lighting effects of the swords were subsequently added to the computer at Industrial Light and Magic ( rotoscoping ). During the production of the first films (1977–1983), various techniques were tried out to create the striking glow of the blade. So one made z. B. Sword handles with small motors that rotated a blade fitted with many reflectors. In most of the scenes, simple, brightly painted poles were used later, which were covered with a glowing blade in post-production using rotoscopy. Due to the rapidly advancing technological development, the creation of the blades in the production of the second trilogy at the end of the nineties turned out to be much easier, as existing software could now be used.

Fighting style

George Lucas justified the rather leisurely fighting style in the lightsaber duels in Episodes IV to VI from the fact that the swords are very heavy due to the massive energy that is required. In the new films (episodes I-III) Lucas reconsidered this and made the lightsaber fights faster and more exciting. This was underlined by modern computer technology. In the Star Wars galaxy, the faster battles are justified by the fact that Jedi and Sith were at the height of their power in Episodes I to III. In addition, the only fighters with a lightsaber seen in Episodes IV through VI are not fully physically trained ( Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader ) or only partially trained ( Luke Skywalker ) due to their age or wounds . In truth, the trick technology of the first films was simply not mature enough to depict such fast fights.

Blade colors

The color of the light blades differ depending on the weapon and carrier. Tellingly, Lucas uses the flag colors used in NATO maneuvers in his films : the "bad" attackers use red lightsabers, the "good guys" use blue and green to defend the heroes. Exceptions are the lightsaber Mace Windus , which has an amethyst-colored blade at the request of the actor Samuel L. Jackson , and Rey's yellow lightsaber. It was only in the numerous spin-off books and comics that other colors such as silver, white, turquoise and orange appeared. According to these books, the color of the lightsaber depends on the crystal in the hilt.

In general, the lightsaber colors say nothing about their wearer, only the computer game Knights of the Old Republic offered the interpretation that the colors say something about the chosen path of the Jedi (advisory and power-specialized Jedi wear a green lightsaber, while more combat-oriented Jedi Jedi wear blue lightsabers and those with mixed training wear yellow lightsabers). Bad guys like the Sith usually wield red lightsabers, although there doesn't seem to be any social coercion from any group. However, regardless of the chosen path, this game also gives you the choice to change the color of the lightsaber with found crystals.

The much more profane explanation for the different colors of the lightsabers is that the Jedi lightsabers (such as Luke Skywalker's and Obi-Wan Kenobi's lightsabers in episodes IV and V) were whitish-blue. However, this color was no longer clearly visible in episode VI when it was first used in Jabba's palace against the blue sky as a background - due to the poor contrast between white-blue and white-blue. Lucas and the trick technicians therefore decided to choose a different color, so that Luke uses a green lightsaber in Episode VI.

In the more recent films, computer games and books, exotic double-bladed lightsabers have also appeared, which have a longer handle from both ends of which a “light blade” is projected. This variant is used both with one and two hands. The film villain Darth Maul also uses such a double-bladed weapon in the film Episode I - The Phantom Menace , but it was first seen in a Star Wars comic in 1995. The two-handed fight with two lightsabers is also carried out in the newer Star Wars films, such as The Clone Wars . The use of a double lightsaber is a lot more dangerous for its owner than it is for the enemy. The villain General Grievous even fights with four lightsabers at the same time. In the game Star Wars: The Force Unleashed , a black lightsaber blade appeared for the first time, which the player can unlock during the course of the game. Black lightsaber blades were wanted by fans a long time before and implemented in various mods . In the The Clone Wars episode Conspiracy on Mandalore , this is taken up again and presented as a "dark sword", which is an ancient lightsaber. The dark sword is definitely Mandalorian in appearance, as the handle is already in the angular shape. The blade is created by a certain connection between the sword and the user, the power of thought is converted into electrical currents and flows into the power of the sword. The dark sword (in English Darksaber ) is of course also able to parry conventional lightsabers . According to the Star Wars Rebels animated series , the dark sword was made by the first Mandalorian Jedi, Tar Viszla. When he died, it was kept as a unique weapon in the Jedi Temple, but it was stolen again by Mandalorian warriors and passed on from the leader to the next Viszla, and so the dark sword also served as a status symbol for the Mand'alor, i.e. the leader of Mandalore and its people. Shortly before the Clone Wars, the dark sword went to Pre Viszla, who used it in the Clone Wars series in the fight against the Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi. Pre Viszla took over taking over Mandalore with the help of Darth Maul , Savage Oppress, the Black Sun and the Pykes. In a duel for the leadership of Mandalore, Pre Viszla was struck down by Darth Maul and the dark blade passed into the possession of Maul, who among others murdered Duchess Satine Kryze. He continued to use it in the fight against Darth Sidious, the latter defeating him in that duel. Maul was captured but shortly thereafter freed by his Mandalorian allies and got the dark sword back. He also used them in duels with General Grievous and Count Dooku; also known as Darth Tyrannus. After the end of the Clone Wars, he kept it in a temple, where the Mandalorian rebel Sabine Wren found it and took it with her. She used it in the battle against Gar Saxon and against the Empire on Mandalore. Thereafter, the dark sword passed into the possession of Bo-Katan Kryze, the sister of Satine Kryze. Bo-Katan Kryze led the Mandalorian tribes.

Noise generation

The lightsabers make humming noises in the film, even when the blade is not hitting an object or enemy. When it hits, there is a hissing, sometimes crackling noise. During the shooting of the first Star Wars film, an intensive search was made for suitable sources of noise. They finally found what they were looking for by chance: half of the humming sound of a lightsaber consists of the sound of old film projectors in standby mode. Sound designer Ben Burtt discovered the second component when he was walking past an old television set with headphones on and a microphone in hand, and the typical hum could be heard as interference. For the actual setting of the lightsabers in the film, he mixed the two noises and played them back over a loudspeaker. He now used another microphone, which he moved back and forth in front of this loudspeaker, analogous to the film recordings, and was thus able to generate and record very different superimpositions.

Making the prop

For the first Star Wars film, the handle of the lightsaber by John Stears was constructed from an old handle of a photo flash and other parts.

Trivia

For the 30th Star Wars anniversary in autumn 2007, the original lightsaber, which Mark Hamill had used in the 1983 film Return of the Jedi, flew to the ISS and back on the Discovery (Mission STS-120 ). The prop was first brought by plane to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston and exhibited there. It was then taken to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where it was prepared for launch on the ISS.

Use in virtual reality games

Lightsaber of the game

In cooperation with the Disney group, Lenovo launched the virtual reality game set “ Star Wars : Jedi Challenges” in December 2017.

In addition to the software, it consists of a virtual reality headset , the lightsaber shown and a tracking device.

In May 2019 ILMxLAB, the VR studio of Lucasfilm , began with the release of the trilogy "Vader Immortal" for the VR headset Oculus Quest . In the course of this series, the player learns, among other things, how to use a lightsaber to reflect blaster shots and fend off battle droids. In “Vader's Dojo”, which is included in the three games, the player can purchase different crystals to change the color of the light blade. In the third part, a double-bladed lightsaber is also available.

Use in other films, series and games

In the third cycle of the novel and television series Sword Art Online , the main character Kirito uses a lightsaber in the VR MMORPG / FPS Gun Gale Online (GGO) which is referred to in the series as Kagemitsu g4 . The original sounds from Star Wars were used for the sound.

Web links

Commons : Lightsaber  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Carol Titelman (Ed.): The Art of Star Wars: Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope . Bastei Lübbe, Bergisch Gladbach 1996, ISBN 3-404-21900-7 , p. 49 .
  2. Star Wars. The Essential Guide to Weapons and Technology. Ballantine Publishing Group, New York 1997, ISBN 0-7522-2338-0 , p. 56.
  3. http://www.starwars.com/databank/technology/lightsaber/?id=bts May 4, 2006.
  4. Interview with Ben Burtt https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0WJ-8B6aUM
  5. https://www.pcwelt.de/a/star-wars-jedi-challenges-lichtschwert-duell-mit-darth-vader,3447956
  6. https://www3.lenovo.com/at/de/jedichallenges/
  7. ^ Anthony Breznican: First look inside the Star Wars virtual reality experience Vader Immortal. Entertainment Weekly , May 7, 2019, accessed January 2, 2020 .
  8. Ben Lang: 'Star Wars Vader Immortal' Review on Quest - Come for the Story, Stay for the Lightsabers. Road to VR, May 9, 2019, accessed on January 2, 2020 .