Asajj Ventress
| Asajj Ventress | |
|---|---|
| Star Wars character | |
 Asajj Ventress in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. |
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| Voiced by | Nika Futterman (Star Wars: The Clone Wars (film and TV series), Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Jedi Alliance, Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Republic Heroes, Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Lightsaber Duels and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II) Grey DeLisle (Star Wars: Clone Wars and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed) Montego Glover (Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron) |
| Fictional profile | |
| Species | Dathomirian |
| Gender | Female |
| Homeworld | Rattatak (originally Dathomir) |
| Affiliation | Dark Acolytes Nightsisters |
Asajj Ventress is a fictional character from the Star Wars series, appearing as an antagonist in Star Wars: Clone Wars (voiced by Grey DeLisle) and as a recurring villain in Star Wars: The Clone Wars (voiced by Nika Futterman).
A powerful warrior with exceptional combat abilities, at the time her character is first introduced she desires most of all to join the Sith order and destroy the Jedi. She also has many distinctive Sith tattoos and wields dual curved lightsabers that can attach together and form a double bladed weapon with a curve in the middle.
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Character origins [edit]
Before Count Dooku's character was developed, the Art Department for Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones developed a Sith villainess by Dermot Power.[1]
When the Expanded Universe resurrected this female Sith idea as one of Dooku's underlings who could appear more frequently throughout the Clone Wars, this nameless Separatist Commander was dubbed 'Juno Eclipse' but the name was rejected as "not villainous enough" and she was renamed 'Asajj Ventress' (while 'Juno Eclipse' was later recycled for use in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed).[2]
LucasArts' Leland Chee suggested using "Asajj" as Ventress' first name, naming her after the character Asaji from Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood.[3]
Appearances [edit]
Star Wars: Clone Wars [edit]
Introduced in the mirco-series, Ventress appears before Count Dooku (Darth Tyranus) when the Sith Lord arrives on Rattatak to add it to his Separatist movement. Ventress defeats every other combatant in a large arena and claims to be a Sith warrior.
Though impressed by her victory in the arena, Dooku laughs aside the notion that she is a Sith. Enraged, Ventress tries to attack him but he renders her unconscious with a blast of Force lightning. After she wakes, Dooku abruptly attempts to attack her but she jumps backwards and ignites her lightsabers. A short duel takes place in Ventress' quarters to which Dooku cuts her two lightsabers in half and renders her defenseless. The Count states that it would not be so easy to defeat a Sith warrior but he is nonetheless impressed with Ventress' abilities. He recruits her by appealing to her hatred of the Jedi. Once he has enticed her into his service, he appoints her commander of his Separatist forces. He presents her with a pair of lightsabers with curved hilts. Darth Sidious (Dooku's master) then appears before Ventress, and personally assigns her to kill Anakin Skywalker. After she leaves, Sidious tells Dooku that her failure is certain and that she is merely an instrument used to test Skywalker's willingness to release his anger.
Ventress then engages the Republic fighter forces in orbit of Muunilinst and lures Anakin into a chase. When Ventress and Skywalker go to Yavin IV, the two fight a fierce battle from the forest to the Massassi temple. Though she initially gains the upper hand in the ensuing lightsaber duel, Skywalker soon calls upon his immense connection to the Force and brutally overpowers her, causing her to fall into a deep crevasse.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars [edit]
In the 2008 feature film, Ventress helps Dooku in his plot to kidnap Rotta, Jabba the Hutt's son. Ventress attacks both Anakin and his apprentice Ahsoka Tano. When Obi-Wan Kenobi arrives as backup, he resumes their battle with her but she flees after he nearly defeats her.
In the television series' first season, Ventress travels to the moon of Rugosa as Dooku's emissary, to form an alliance between Toydaria and the Separatists. The king is reluctant, but he allows Ventress to face Yoda in battle to prove which side is superior. When the king decides to side with the Republic, Ventress gets Dooku's permission to kill the king so they may have a better chance with his successor. Yoda thwarts Ventress' attempt, however, and she is forced to flee.
In the second season, Ventress is ordered by Dooku to spy on Kamino for the Separatist forces, planning an invasion with General Grievous to destroy the clone production facilities. Although Grievous fails in his part of the invasion, they later attack Kamino again with Ventress almost managing to steal a DNA template of Jango Fett from the production facility. Ventress then frees Trade Federation Viceroy Nute Gunray from the custody of Luminara Unduli and Ahsoka, fighting the two before ultimately succeeding in her mission.
In the third season, Ventress' back story is explained. She hails from the planet of Dathomir. She was sold by the nightsisters to criminals and spends her early years in Rattatak. She would have likely been killed in a pirate raid if not for the Jedi Ky Narec, who had crashed on Rattatak. Narec sensed the potential of Ventress and so he trained her in the ways of the Jedi. However, the planet's warlords become concerned by the duo's prowess. Under Osika Kirske's leadership, they kill Narec before Ventress can become a full-fledged Jedi. She develops an implacable hatred of the other Jedi who had abandoned her master and ignored the bloodshed on her planet.[4]
In the fourth season, Dooku was forced to eliminate Ventress on Sidous's order because of her growing prowess with the dark side. Barely surviving the attempt on her life, the jilted former apprentice vows to take revenge, turning to her kinswomen, the Nightsisters of Dathomir, for aide as they engineered Savage Opress (Dooku's new apprentice) to serve as their assassin. But the scheme failed when Ventress caused the rage-filled Opress to try to kill her along with Dooku. Returning to the Nightsisters, Ventress underwent the baptism into becoming full-fledged Nightsister before Grevious and a large droid army slaughter them, leaving her the only survivor with Mother Talzin's spirit telling her to find her own path. After ending up helping a team of bounty hunters in a dangerous but profitable mission, Asajj finally made peace with her past with an ideal future as a bounty hunter. In the fourth season's penultimate episode "Brothers", Ventress is haunted by Savage's presence in the universe. In the season finale "Revenge", Ventress hunts down Opress to collect his bounty and finds him on Raydonia. When she arrives on Savage's spaceship, she confronts him and his brother Darth Maul as they are about to kill Obi-Wan. Ventress teams up with Kenobi to fight the two deadly siblings, but they are ultimately defeated and forced to escape in their shuttle. Obi-Wan comments that soon Maul and Opress would hunt them down.
In the fifth season's finale arc, Ventress returns originally after Ahsoka for the bounty on her head in Coruscant's lower levels. But seeing Ahsoka to be no different then her in retrospect of being betrayed by their respective orders, Ventress aids Ahsoka on her word that she would be pardoned for her crimes during her Separatist days. After helping Ahsoka reach her destination, she is knocked out by Barris Offee with her helmet and lightsabers stolen. When Anakin goes after her on the notion that she framed Ahsoka, Ventress reveals her side and directs Anakin to Barriss.
Extended Universe [edit]
Novels [edit]
As portrayed in the novel The Cestus Deception, Ventress appears on Ord Cestus during the Bio-Droid Crisis. She is behind the X'Ting criminal Trillot's dealings with Obi-Wan. Ventress also destroys the Republic Cruiser carrying Barrister Doolb Snoil returning to the Republic; however, Snoil survives. Ventress later challenges Kenobi and his fellow Jedi Master Kit Fisto to a duel. Ventress disarms Fisto but is then engaged by Kenobi. Their duel leads them into an underwater chamber and Ventress is forced to escape after Kenobi slices her across her abdomen. She lets loose a smoke bomb and flees back to the Confederacy and Dooku.
Comic books [edit]
In the Republic story "The New Face of War", Ventress joins forces with the bounty hunter Durge on the invasion of Naboo's moon, Ohma-D'un. Together they use swamp gas to wipe out the Gungan colony and prepare to launch a biological attack on Naboo. In the ensuing battle with Republic forces, Ventress makes her first public appearance in the war (in the series' chronological timeline). Ventress kills Jedi Master Glaive in the battle and cuts off his apprentice Zule's left arm. She engages Obi-Wan and the pair are evenly matched. Ventress escapes with Durge after ARC Trooper Alpha destroys their fueling station.
In Star Wars: Jedi - Mace Windu, Dooku sends Ventress to Ruul to help frame Mace Windu. Ventress briefly confronts Sora Bulq, who had been secretly corrupted by Dooku, as a ruse. Ventress kills Mira in the battle and then engages Jedi Masters Sian Jeisel, K' Kruhk and Rhad Tarn all of whom she defeats singlehandedly. After framing Windu for the crime, Ventress corrupts Tarn. While Tarn fights against Jeisel, Ventress defeats K'Kruhk in combat. Windu's timely arrival saves the Jedi; Ventress finds that she is no match for Windu's power and is forced to flee.
In the Republic story "Blast Radius", Ventress and Durge again engage the Jedi taskforce in a facility on the planet Queyta. Ventress briefly fights against Kenobi and Fay. Durge kills Jon Antilles and Knol Ven'Nari. After Ven'nari is killed in an explosion, Durge pushes Antilles into a lava pit. Ventress uses her lightsabers to collapse the ceiling, sending a shower of lava onto Diath's head. Although the Separatists claim a victory, Ventress spares Obi-Wan's life under Dooku's orders, though she impales Fay in the chest with her lightsabers. Fay gives Obi-Wan the last of her strength to escape the facility.
In "The Battle of Jabiim", Ventress captures Obi-Wan and Alpha from Jabiim and transports them to Rattatak for torture and interrogation. Obi-Wan and Alpha escape in the following story, "Hate & Fear", and the Jedi Master takes Ky Narec's lightsaber, making the animosity between him and Ventress deeply personal.
In "Dreadnoughts of Rendili", Ventress and fellow Dark Jedi Tol Skorr fight Obi-Wan and Quinlan Vos on Titavian IV. Obi-Wan unleashes a rancor to distract Ventress, but she manipulates it via the dark side. Obi-Wan fights Ventress after killing the rancor but he escapes with Vos before the duel is settled. Grievous arrives to rescue the two Dark Jedi, shaming Ventress in their master Dooku's eyes.
Ventress then travels to Coruscant to kill Vos and Obi-Wan. During the mission, she discovers Anakin's secret marriage to Senator Padmé Amidala. Enraged, Anakin engages Ventress. During the duel, Ventress scars Skywalker's face but she is once again overpowered and suffers another huge fall. Republic Intelligence assumes that she is dead.
"Obsession" marks the character's final appearance in Republic. Ventress survives her encounter with Anakin on Coruscant but is badly injured. She is sent to Boz Pity where Dooku places her in a bacta tank and fits her with cybernetic modifications. One month later, Obi-Wan infiltrates the facility. Ventress wakes up and subsequently attacks him. She fights against both Obi-Wan and Anakin only to be abandoned by Dooku, who orders an IG-100 MagnaGuard to kill her as she runs towards Dooku's shuttle. Enraged and badly wounded, Ventress tries to kill Obi-Wan as he tries to help her. Anakin slashes her from behind, mortally wounding her. As she lays dying, she tells him the location of the Separatists' next target. Believing Ventress to be dead, Obi-Wan puts her on a ship bound for Coruscant. However, Ventress survives by placing herself in a Sith trance. While on the shuttle, she emerges from her trance and orders the pilots to take her as far away as possible from the war, Dooku and the Jedi.
Other media [edit]
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Star Wars: Battlefront II [edit]
Ventress is a downloadable character in the Xbox version of the video game Star Wars: Battlefront II. In the game, she has two curve-handled lightsabers but they are connected by a fiber-cord. The character selection screen lists the weapon as "Linksabers".
Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron [edit]
She is also a villain in Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron, who can be used if the player is a Separatist and earns enough points to use her. She is available as a character on the Saleucami and Sullust level.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars video games [edit]
Ventress appears in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars video game spin-offs. She is a supporting villain in Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Jedi Alliance where Ventress is seen on Coruscant holding Ziro the Hutt hostage. The Jedi have to defeat her in order to gain more information on the Nightsisters. Ventress also appears in Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Republic Heroes also as a supporting villain to the game's plot. She is fought in a boss battle with the Jedi characters Luminara Unduli and Aayla Secura. Ventress appears in the game Star Wars: The Clone Wars - Lightsaber Duels as a playable character.
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed [edit]
Ventress has a non-canon appearance in the PlayStation 2, Wii, and PlayStation Portable versions of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed as a costume skin that can be used on Starkiller, the main character of the game. In the Wii version, she is also a playable character in the 2-player fighting game mode called Duel Mode.
References [edit]
- ^ "Star Wars - Encyclopedia". Retrieved 2012-07-12.
- ^ "Star Wars - News". Archived from the original on 1 November 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-01.
- ^ http://forums.starwars.com/thread.jspa?threadID=93010&start=4935
- ^ "Star Wars - wookieepedia".
External links [edit]
- Asajj Ventress in the Official StarWars.com Encyclopedia
- Asajj Ventress on Wookieepedia: a Star Wars wiki
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