Those who enslave others, inevitably become slaves themselves...
The video: ( click link here for the good one from StarWars.com> )
SPOILERS!!!
What I thought about the episode in general. I have seen this story before. I have actually written stories like this before. So when I see what they have written in the manner they have written it, I liked it. No one in the right mind GOES to a slave auction when they have been enslaved. One would have to be warped to desire to do that.
Yet, that is exactly what the Jedi do: Obi Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano and one of the Clone Troopers--he did not figure prominently in this episode. They fly to main planet of the Slave Empire, Zygerria.
Immediately, Jedi Master Obi Wan Kenobi judges that the people going to Zygerria are "High class scum"... Some of those "high class scum" are from the Republic...
When Skywalker walks out to the planet, Obi Wan asks him how is he going to get to the Queen and then it starts! The laying on thickness of the "fresh" attitude. Like he has man-flavor that all the ladies swoon to. As if he is the end all be all.
From a Separatist POV, we do not break our marriages up like that. If Padme had seen the freshness of the Anakin, he would have not been married to her that long.
In less than two minutes, Anakin Skywalker has the full on freshness like his "son's" newly changed diaper on the Queen Miraj Scintel of Zygerria and he life her hot like an oven...
Who knew that Skywalker had that much playa flava?
Then when the Jedi are discovered they are making a ruse to save the Torgutan colonists from Kiros, the gig is up and they were beaten down like a 10 credit whore. They were made into slaves! Caged and spat upon by the Zygerrians. However, what was interesting is that when Anakin regained his consciousness, he almost kills the Queen with a Force Choke -- a dark side power.
Queen Miraj Scintel is attractive, arrogant and harsh. Her power comes from what she was born and educated to do. Strife has never touched her for her to be so brutal.;
But is Queen Miraj Scintel a "strong woman"? Why are there more "strong woman" without Force Powers on the Separatist side? Whereas, Padme Amidala who is sweet, smart and genteel is not seen as absolutely powerful to "enslave people", but is delicate to where by the end of ROTS she dies due to the "will to live"? Come on!
Ahsoka is a Jedi, a force user, she is supposed to fight back. She suffered immensely on the moon Wasskah via Transdoshan Slave Traffickers! And in this "Slaves of the Republic episode, she is relegated to a slinky blue outfit, now? Reminiscent of a Slave Leia. How about FREE SLAVE LEIA?
So like it seems the Republic has no bad women, and the Confederacy of Independent Systems has no good women... Hmm?
The trope is called "woman in the refrigerator".
From an episode POV -- point of clarification:
In this episode, slaves are processed... Processed means being forced and prepared to serve as a slave. The slavers carried light whips and are seen as beating beings.
In this episode slaves go for ~50,000 credits at start bid. Unknown reason why or if it changes.
In this episode, Obi Wan is caught to be sold off as a slave and Queen Miraj Scintel says:
"Do not fear the Jedi, they are no different from others we have forced into submission, for they have forsaken their ideas to serve a corrupt Senate!"
This quote made me think that the layout, images and dialogue were very reminiscent of Egypt and the Judao-Christian Moses...
From a Separatist POV:
There is a lot of "innuendo" in this episode. Masochistic "innuendo". As if both sides, Republic and Separatists wanted to be whipped as slaves for more power. As if it was a turn on for some people.
But is there a different between what the Republic is doing to the Outer Rim Worlds causing them to starve verses what the Confederacy of Independent Systems are doing in publicly broadcasting their business ventures and not hiding it?
Then there is a questions of Force Users being easily subdued by light whips even when they have their lightsabers. For the Separatists, there may be hope to overtake the Jedi and forcing them to submit. Or forcing any Force User to submit... Is there?
My personal POV as the writer of this blog:
I am glad that TCW tackled this issue and LFL approved it. It was good to see this story arc. As a roleplayer, slavery is something I hate with a passion given my ancestors were once slaves in the United States.
Moreover, slavery is still going on in modern times. Human trafficking is still happening in the US and it is horrific.
As a roleplayer, promoting slavery as a public relations firm as cute and glamorous is a warped way of roleplaying and thinking, given the realities of what slavery does and how ugly it is for many people who suffer from its grip.
For LFL to recreate this part of the canon on this issue of slavery and have a Twi'lek slave jump off a building to her death, shows what the canon is for this generation of Star Wars. It is not cute, it is not pleasant and it is humiliating and I think this episode is showing how horrific it is.
If people want to roleplay as slaves being cute and think they are in a powerful position as slaves, fine. But there is no reason for having a PR firm for slaves, especially ones involving girls...