Starting Over
Be in constant preparation for the call to adventure, and rebirth
What drives us to reinvent ourselves? To start anew? Let’s delve into the story of the latest Star Wars video game, Jedi: Survivor. Prepare for spoilers, plot twists, and my thoughts on the concept of rebirth in Star Wars.
TLDR review: I loved this game. 5/5 stars.
Honestly, I was having a hard time discerning why I loved this game so much, but then I stumbled across this excellent Twitter thread by @MaceAhWindu. Whether it's a burning homestead or the legend of Tanalorr, Star Wars shows us that the old must pass to make way for the new. Think of a controlled burn in a dense forest with layered underbrush. This is how life is truly rekindled when excess becomes a burden.
The past may define us, but our future depends on whether or not we learn from it.
Rebirth
Jedi: Survivor centers around a simple human experience - starting over.
Picture Luke Skywalker leaving his life on Tatooine, leaving his aunt and uncle and their shared home in flames, destined to become ash — embarking instead on a journey to become a Jedi Knight (like his father before him).
This is an intrinsic feature of Joseph Campbell’s “Hero's Journey.”
In the context of Campbell's monomyth theory, starting over becomes a vital part of the narrative lifecycle. It's baked into the "Call to Adventure" phase - that moment when a protagonist leaves the familiar behind and steps into the unknown. Think Luke boarding the Millenium Falcon to leave Tatooine, Indiana Jones accepting the job to go race the Nazis in finding the Ark of the Covenant….it’s you when you accept a new job in a new town, or when you finally settle on a college but it’s nowhere near your geographic comfort zone.
Starting over is etched into the DNA of Star Wars lore and is beautifully mirrored in the Jedi: Survivor video game. Each character's quest for a fresh start aligns with their initial break from a certain status quo, setting them on a transformative journey. This becomes a recurring motif as Cal Kestis continually grapples with the Dark Side's allure - representing the 'easy way’ for an understandably tired hero.
Cal in Jedi: Survivor is not just surviving — he’s learning, evolving, and most importantly, becoming. Each new beginning is another step on his path and a living testament to the indomitable spirit of the Jedi.
Starting Over
One character arc takes a particular turn that cements the theme of "starting over" — Bode Akuna. Initially introduced as a friend and ally to Cal, Bode's shocking betrayal leaves us reeling as he kills Cal’s mentor Eno Cordova, steals the Abyss Compass, and rats out the location of the secret Jedi archive to the Empire.
Bode, it turns out, was a Jedi Knight during the Clone Wars. He was once a covert operative for the Jedi Council. Disappearing into the shadows after the decimation of the Jedi Order, Bode started anew, this time as a family man, father to a daughter named Kata. His quiet interlude was disrupted when the Empire closed in on him, forcing him to cut a deal with the Imperial Security Bureau to ensure Kata's safety.
In Bode's story, we see a mirror of the sometimes painful process of starting over. Bode is both the hero and the villain of his own journey, embodying the dual nature of rebirth — both its beauty and its pain.
Bode and Cal: The Dichotomy of Choice
Two characters, two paths, and two wildly contrasting outcomes. Jedi: Survivor uses Cal and Bode to highlight the diverging paths you can take when faced with the decision to start anew.
Cal Kestis is the embodiment of resilience, a beacon of hope even amidst overwhelming despair. Throughout his journey, he remains committed to the ideal of the Jedi - despite temptations to compromise when faced with the lure of the Dark Side.
On the flip side, like Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels, Bode's path is marked by compromise. He gives in to his fear and in a misguided attempt to protect his daughter, betrays those who trusted him. His choices reflect a man compromised, a former Jedi who, in trying to save his family, strays from the path and spirals into moral ambiguity. His choices swallow him whole.
This contrast between Cal and Bode is a reminder that the journey and destination can vastly differ based on the choices we make. Their stories show us that in the face of adversity, we can either rise above our fears or fall victim to them. Or perhaps as shown in the oft-quoted passage from the Greek poet, Archilochus — 'We don't rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training.'
Let’s simplify this: Your training is what you’re reading, what podcasts you’re consuming, and the things you spend your time on. They are in fact choices that will have downstream effects — because those things are shaping you….slowly and steadily. When your trials come, when your Call to Adventure is presented….your training and moral preparation will determine what happens next. Rise!
Until next time.
This is the way.