# Star Wars Episode III: Revenge fo the Sith. Couple Questions..... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 7, 2005, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607 "2005-01-07T17:54:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/41 "2005-01-08T05:43:49Z")
> [@Wolfian](#): > > Dooku notes that though the… um, thing looks (what was her name?) and fights like a Sith she couldn’t possibly be one as he sensed fear from her. Dooku seems to have info about Sith behavior, but it is possibly that he read it in a book. [Asajj Ventress](http://www.starwars.com/databank/character/asajjventress/): “Though Ventress longed to identify herself as a Sith, she did not receive Sith training.” ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/42 "2005-01-08T07:44:25Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > My take on Vader and Tarkin: > > Vader was on the Death Star for one very specific reason. He was there to kill Tarkin if Tarkin decided to use the Death Star to make a power play for the Emperor’s throne. Tarkin is a ruthless, ambitious, murderous megalomaniac. He’s not going to settle for second fiddle forever. Palpatine knows this, and Tarkin knows Palpatine knows this, and Palpatine knows Tarkins knows that Palpatine knows this, and so on and so forth. Vader himself, at least in the first movie, is outside the hierarchy of the Imperial military. He reports directly to the Emperor, and to no one else. I suspect that, when the Emperor sent him to the Death Star, he was told something like, “Go keep an eye on Tarkin. Make sure he doesn’t get too greedy. Do whatever he says, but if he steps out of line… you know what to do.” But that is not entirely consistent with what actually happens in “Star Wars.” At the beginning of the movie, Vader is in a star destroyer, hunting down the “plans” to the Death Star, which is why he captures Leia’s ship. He’s clearly been running the operation to bust up the Rebel spy ring and get the plans back, which he’s apparently pretty far into, as he isn’t surprised to find Leia on the ship. He only ends up on the Death Star after he’s got Leia. Tarkin is looking for the Rebel base; Vader is looking to bust up the Rebel intelligence organization. I’m sure Vader and Tarkin would eventually have to off each other but Vader clearly has much more substantial responsibilities in “Star Wars” than just keeping an eye on Tarkin. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/43 "2005-01-08T10:57:05Z")
> [@JustPlainBryan](#): > > Tarkin imperiously commands Vader (not even Lord Vader!) to do something. My feeling is that at the time, Tarkin was far more influential with the Emperor than Vader, even though Vader was a Sith Lord. Tarkin must have been one hell of of a ruthless person to be better buddies with the Emperor than Vader was. Vader was a rising star at the time of Episode IV. He wasn’t a military commander, Tarkin was. Vader knew that undermining Tarkin’s command authority would have worked against the Empire’s interests. ---
**Author:** ![BooBoo316](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e0b2c6/32.png) [@BooBoo316](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BooBoo316)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/44 "2005-01-08T15:22:35Z")
> [@World Eater](#): > > OK makes sense now, I couldn’t imagine profanity in any way shape or form in SW. Come on now, I can’t be the only person who heard (in my mind) Sam’s line at the end of AotC as “This party’s over, motherfucker.” ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/45 "2005-01-08T16:31:16Z")
I hope the OP will forgive a continuation of the Sam Jackson hijack, for I have a question that is not worthy of a thread, but one which is hard to ask in most threads… How tall is Jackson? In “Clones,” in the fight scenes, he moves with what I call (for lack of a better term) “extremely tall man’s clumsiness.” He moves very stiff-legged at times, deliberately, not fluidly. Did anybody else notice this. Now, as I understand it, despite his fairly youthful looks, Jackson is actually over 50, so that may account for it also. Thanks. Sir Rhosis ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/46 "2005-01-08T23:50:03Z")
> [@Sir Rhosis](#): > > How tall is Jackson? [He’s 6 ft 3, and 56 years old.](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000168/bio) ---
**Author:** ![Earthworm\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f07891/32.png) [@Earthworm\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earthworm_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2005, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/47 "2005-01-09T01:59:19Z")
> [@World Eater](#): > > I couldn’t imagine profanity in any way shape or form in SW. Damn fool, I knew you were going to say that. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Kaspar\_Hauser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b3f665/32.png) [@Kaspar\_Hauser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaspar_Hauser)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2005, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/48 "2005-01-09T17:01:36Z")
Vader was not a bureaucrat, Tarkin was. In the first movie, remember that the Senate has _just_\* been dissolved. Ruthless as Tarkin was, he had some diplomatic skills and Tarkin had the Emperor’s ear for all governmental issues. The Emperor needed him, he knew it, and Vader knew it. Vader also knew you don’t piss off the Emperor by killing his chief governmental stooge. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2005, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607/49 "2005-01-10T03:45:32Z")
I also like to think that Vader had a bit of respect for Tarkin’s ruthlessness and the fact that Tarkin didn’t tip-toe around him. Of course, if Tarkin screwed up, we all know that Vader’d choke him a flash. But until then, Vader seems almost amused by Tarkin. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-wars-episode-iii-revenge-fo-the-sith-couple-questions/283607.md?page=2)