Fans are wondering about the background of Force choking after the most recent episode of Disney’s The Mandalorian. Is it a dark side power? This latest installment in the Star Wars saga is going to require a little digging into Star Wars background.
This article will have major spoilers for Episode 7 of The Mandalorian.
Choking Tends To Be a Dark Side Power
For the most part, choking tends to be a Force power that’s part of the dark side. But in The Mandalorian Episode 7 we saw Baby Yoda use the Force Choke, and now that has fans rethinking everything.
Here’s a look at Darth Vader’s Force Choke:
And a compilation from The Clone Wars.
According to Wookieepedia, the Force choke is typically a power of the dark side. This form of telekinesis is often used by the Sith. It’s typically fueled by dark emotions like anger or fear. There have even been times when it’s been employed through viewscreens from far away.
Darth Sidious and Darth Vader could force choke more than one person at a time.
Anakin started using the Force Choke when he was a Jedi before he turned to the dark side. But when he was Darth Vader he used it far more viciously. He even once used the Force Choke on Padme Amidala, although he loved her.
Kylo Ren has also displayed use of the Force Choke.
It’s also been said that Luke used the Force Choke power in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi when he went into Jabba’s palace and was confronted by the guards. Even Mark Hamill thinks it’s a Darth Vader dark-side force in the video below. But right after he says that, you can see a clip of Luke using the power.
Still, it’s debated whether Luke was actually using the Force Choke in that scene or not. I think he was, but some might disagree.
As for Baby Yoda, there are a lot of questions after seeing him use the Force Choke when he thought Mando was being hurt in an arm wrestling competition.
First, what were Baby Yoda’s motivations? Was he using the Force Choke out of anger and fear or was it out of love for Mando? Does that make a difference? Or does this demonstrate that Baby Yoda has a lot of the dark side in him? (Or in her, since we don’t really know at this point.)
It’s also possible that Yoda’s species is able to yield dark side powers more easily than others. (Although Yoda himself certainly didn’t seem to act that way when he was talking to Luke or Anakin.) Maybe Baby Yoda is special and the light and dark sides of the Force are already perfectly balanced within him, so he can yield good and bad sides without being affected.
There are a lot of unanswered questions about the Force Choke. For the most part, it tends to be a dark side power. But Luke did use it once and he did not end up going to the dark side (although he was indeed tempted.) So how it relates to Baby Yoda is still a big mystery.
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