Disney Plus’s original series, Star Wars Visions, Season 2 Episode 5, “Journey to the Dark Head,” explores the story of the pilot Ara (Jang Ye Na & Ashley Park) and the Jedi Padawan Toul’s (Lee Kyung Tae & Eugene Lee Yang) journey to the Outer Rim world of Dolgarak during the Old Republic Era. The short episode begins with Ara’s childhood in a hidden temple in Dolgarak, where she takes part in a ceremony led by an old priest. The ceremony focuses on Ara and the other children, seemingly Force-Sensitive, picking up stones that show vague prophetic images of the past or future. The old priest asks Ara what she sees. She replies by explaining how the prophetic image portrays a clash between two figures and is unsure who the third figure at the center is. The old priest continues to ask Ara if the vision takes place in the past or future. He records what Ara sees on a tablet during the process. Following the event, the old priest tells Ara she is not strong enough to see the prophetic images well and must improve herself with further training. In response, Ara complains about why they are recording events and not participating in a war against the Sith, which the latter is winning. She believes they need to share their recorded prophetic images with the Jedi to help them win the war against the Sith. The old priest replied by teaching Ara that war is part of nature, and it is not in their place to be involved in the war but merely record what happens in history.
Years later, Ara became a grown-up pilot and aided the Jedi Order in their war against the Sith Order. She petitions the Jedi Council to help her travel to her homeworld of Dolgarak’s two colossal statues hidden by clouds for centuries. One statue represents the light, and the other is dark. Ara believes cutting off the dark head of the dark statue can change the tide of the war because of its strong connection to the Dark Side of the Force. In other words, Ara asks the Jedi Council for assistance decapitating the dark statue’s head to shift the balance of the Force to the Light Side. The Jedi Council approves the mission and sends the Jedi Padwan Toul to assist Ara.
Toul is a Jedi Padawan struggling from his temptation to the Dark Side. In the past, the Sith Lord Bichan (Yun Yong Sik & Daniel Dae Kim), possibly a former Jedi, killed Toul’s master and several other Jedi, leaving Toul as the only survivor. Following the fight, Bichan spares Toul’s life as he desires the Jedi Padawan to become a Sith with Bichan himself as Toul’s Sith master. Despite this, Bichan scars Toul as a reminder for the Jedi Padawan.
In the present, Toul joins Ara in their mission, and both travel to Dolgarak’s two statues. However, the Sith Lord Bichan follows Toul and Ara because he is still interested in making Toul his Sith Apprentice and is curious why they travel to the Dolgarak’s two statues. Soon, Toul and Bichan duel while Ara works to destroy the dark statue. However, Ara stops her mission when she realizes the prophetic image she saw during her childhood was the current duel between Toul and Bichan, with Ara as the third figure at the center. Ara concludes that her destiny is to save Toul from Bichan and the Sith Lord’s temptations to make the Jedi Padawan a Sith. With this understanding, Ara saves Toul by distracting Bichan long enough for Toul to kill the Sith Lord.
In the aftermath, Ara apologizes for dragging Toul on a hopeless mission. The reason is that Ara gradually understood that the Galaxy’s conflict will never end because the Force needs balance: Light and Dark. Destroying the dark statue will not change what happens in the Galaxy. In response, Toul reassures Ara that there will always be hope in the Galaxy no matter what future conflicts arise. The short episode ends with Toul and Ara becoming friends that will help continue to fight and defend the Galaxy against the Sith Order.
Star Wars Celebration LIVE! 2023 – Day 4
Director Heyong Geun Park, writer Chung Se Rang, and those involved with the episode “Journey to the Dark Head” in Studio Mir did an excellent job creating a Star Wars story of a pilot understanding her destiny and a Jedi Padawan struggling with the temptation of falling to the Dark Side because of a Sith Lord. Director Park explained he started the project by having “great chats with writer Chung Se Rang, a great fan of Star Wars.” They wanted to create a short episode of “the first-ever prehistoric war between the Jedi and the Sith.” Director Park continued to explain that the theme that the short episode focuses on is “the contrasting position of good and evil,” a heavily common theme in Star Wars. This theme is focused on one character, the Jedi Padawan Toul, who fears becoming a Sith. Overall, Director Park and writer Chung Se Rang created a great Star Wars Visions story with excellent animation, made with the support of those working on the short episode in Studio Mir.
The Jedi Order vs. The Sith Order
The Old Republic Era was when the Jedi and the Sith warred for Galactic control. The Jedi Order wants to bring the Galaxy peace, justice, and freedom. On the other hand, the Sith Order desire to dominate the Galaxy under the Sith’s tyrannical and oppressive rule. The Sith controlled the Galaxy through various Sith Empires until they destroyed themselves because of their greed, allowing the Jedi Order and the Republic to destroy the Sith until only the Sith Lord Darth Bane remained. Darth Bane wanted the Sith Order to endure, so he created the Rule of Two, a decree that only two Sith Lords can exist: a Master and an Apprentice. The Jedi Order is the champion of the Light Side of the Force, while the Sith Order is the champion of the Dark Side of the Force. Conflict is needed to bring balance to the Force, with no side able to dominate the other because of this.
Rating: 9/10