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Count Dooku

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Template:SW Character Count Dooku is a fictional character from the Star Wars universe. Dooku is one of the main antagonists of both Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones and the events of the Clone Wars and is a supporting villain in Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. Count Dooku plays a substantial role in the "Expanded Universe" of novels, comic books, and video games. In his television and video game appearances, Count Dooku is portrayed by voice actor Corey Burton. In all of his film appearances, which consists of the prequel films and Star Wars: The Clone Wars, he is played by Christopher Lee.

Although he was a respected Jedi Master, Dooku became disillusioned with the Jedi Council and became one of the "Lost Twenty" Jedi to leave the Order. In between Episodes I and II, Dooku falls to the dark side of the Force, at which time he is initiated into the ways of the Sith by Darth Sidious, who bestows upon his new pupil the title of Darth Tyranus.

Tyranus leads the Separatists in the Clone Wars, which in turn lead to the destruction of many worlds throughout the galaxy. During the Clone Wars he trains General Grievous, leader of the Droid Armies, and Asajj Ventress, his personal assassin. In Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Darth Tyranus is betrayed by Sidious, who replaces him with his third apprentice, Darth Vader.

Depiction

Film and television

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones

Dooku first appears in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones as the Sith apprentice of Darth Sidious (Ian McDiarmid). He is also the leader of the Confederacy of Independent Systems, a federation of planetary systems rebelling against the Galactic Republic. Dooku claims to be angered by the bureaucracy of the Galactic Senate, as well as the apparent unwillingness of the Jedi Council to aid oppressed galactic systems.

Dooku captures Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) on Geonosis and informs Kenobi that he is attempting to save the Republic from the influence of a Sith Lord named Darth Sidious who he claims betrayed the Viceroy of the Trade Federation, Nute Gunray, during the events of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Dooku also states that he was saddened by the loss of Kenobi's former master and Dooku's former apprentice, Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson). Kenobi refuses to join Dooku, who promptly sentences him to be executed.

An army of clone troopers and Jedi rescue Kenobi, along with Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) and Padme Amidala (Natalie Portman). Anakin and Kenobi chase Dooku and engage him in a lightsaber duel in which Kenobi is incapacitated and Anakin loses his right arm. Yoda (voiced by Frank Oz), Dooku's former master, arrives to save them. Yoda fights Dooku to a stalemate, and Dooku distracts him by trying to make a large pillar fall on the two Jedi. Dooku then escapes from Geonosis as Yoda is distracted. Dooku returns to Coruscant and delivers to Sidious the blueprints for the Geonosian-designed Death Star and informs his master their plan is working; "The war has begun".

Clone Wars series

In the animated series Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003–2005), Dooku is portrayed by voice actor Corey Burton and is the main antagonist of the series. During the series, he leads the Separatists in attacks upon the Republic. He also sends Dark Jedi Asajj Ventress (Grey DeLisle) on a mission to kill Anakin Skywalker — Sidious' ploy to test the young Jedi's worth as an apprentice — and trains General Grievous in lightsaber combat. In the series' final episode, he orchestrates an attack on the planet Coruscant in which Grievous kidnaps Palpatine, setting the stage for Revenge of the Sith. Dooku is also one of the main antagonists in the television adaption of the movie Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

In the opening of Revenge of the Sith, Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi are sent to rescue Chancellor Palpatine (ultimately revealed as Sidious' alter ego) from Separatist leader General Grievous's (Matthew Wood) flagship. Grievous escapes, but they encounter Dooku while freeing Palpatine.

The film's novelization states Sidious and Dooku intend to turn Anakin to the dark side. Dooku intends to appoint him as head of a new Sith Army.[1] Dooku and Sidious seek to eliminate Obi-Wan Kenobi, who has a steadying influence on Anakin.[2] Sidious promises him the operation will result in the destruction of the Jedi and the Republic, to be replaced by the Galactic Empire.[3]

In the ensuing duel Kenobi is incapacitated, leaving Anakin and Dooku to fight alone. During their one-on-one duel, Dooku taunts Anakin, calling on him to use his fear, hatred and anger. However, with Palpatine's encouragement, Anakin channels his hatred of Dooku and taps into the dark side to overpower him, severing both Dooku's hands and leaving him helpless. Palpatine then orders Anakin to kill Dooku; after a moment's hesitation, Anakin decapitates Dooku in cold blood.

The novelization depicts this scene from Dooku's point of view, in which he realizes that Sidious had been using him as a means to engineer the Clone Wars, and as a placeholder for the true apprentice, Anakin Skywalker.[4]

Star Wars: The Clone Wars film

Dooku is featured in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. In the film, in a plot to bring Jabba the Hutt (Kevin Michael Richardson) into the folds of the Confederacy, Count Dooku enlisted Jabba's uncle Ziro to kidnap Jabba's son Rotta. After Ziro's agents deliver the Huttlet to the planet Teth, Dooku contacts Ziro again to arrange for Asajj Ventress (Nika Futterman) to take custody of Rotta. Jabba requests Jedi assistance to rescue his son, and Dooku plans for Ventress to frame Anakin (Matt Lanter) for the crime. The plot fails.

Star Wars The Clone Wars series

Corey Burton reprises his role as Dooku in the Clone Wars series. In the first episode of the series, "Ambush", Dooku tries to broker a treaty with Toydaria, and during the Malevolence episodes ("Rising Malevolence", "Shadow of Malevolence" and "Destroy Malevolence"), he commands Grievous in surprise attacks by the Star Destroyer Malevolence. He then sends Ventress to free Gunray. He also tests Grievous by sending Kit Fisto and his padawan to fight Grievous.

In "Dooku Captured", he is imprisoned by pirates, but escapes in the following episode along with Kenobi and Anakin. After that, he orders one of his generals to destroy a colony with a new weapon but fails. In "Liberty on Ryloth", Dooku orders his servant, Wat Tambor, leader of the Techno Union, to retreat after learning of the arrival of Mace Windu. However, he does not evacuate in time and Dooku orders the droids to destroy his base, though the attempt fails.

During the Clone Wars, Dooku and the Confederacy officially back the Death Watch, a group of Mandalorian terrorists whose goal is to bring down the government of the pacifist New Mandalorians. Dooku urges the leader of the Death Watch, Governor Pre Vizsla of Concordia, to give the Galactic Republic a reason to send a military presence to Mandalore, which Dooku believes will inspire the inhabitants of Mandalore to start a revolution, spearheaded by the Death Watch movement.

However, his plan falls through. Duchess Satine Kryze of Mandalore presents her case to the Galactic Senate, urging them to hold off a military force, despite the attempts of a Death Watch assassin, sent by Dooku and Vizsla, to silence her. Dooku orders Vizsla and his men to hold off the attack force, claiming he has further plans for them.

In the following story arc, Dooku is ordered to prove his loyalty to Darth Sidious by killing his own assassin, Ventress, whom Sidious fears has grown too powerful to control. Dooku follows his orders, albeit reluctantly. However, unknown to him Ventress survives and swears revenge on her former master. Enlisting the aid of the Nightsisters, a coven of force-sensisitive witches on Dathomir, (of whom she had originally come from), she tries to kill Dooku. Failing this, she instead takes part in a plan to have her replacement apprentice, Savage Opress, as her own secret weapon against him. However, both Ventress and Opress fail to kill Dooku, and are forced into retreat.

Expanded Universe

Comic books

In the Star Wars: Republic series, set during the Clone Wars, Dooku trains multiple Dark Jedi apprentices, most of whom he uses as minions. His apprentices include Ventress, Tol Skorr and, most notably, renegade Jedi Quinlan Vos, who initially intends to infiltrate the Separatists as a spy for the Jedi Council, but instead nearly falls to the dark side.

Novels

Dooku appears as a main or secondary villain in many Expanded Universe novels.

Legacy of the Jedi

In Jude Watson's Legacy of the Jedi, he is first tempted by the dark side of the Force as a child, when he and fellow Padawan Lorian Nod steal an ancient Sith Holocron from the Jedi Archives, and he informs on his friend to stay in the Order; he is intrigued by the Sith's open embrace of power, and realizes that he is just as capable of treachery as they are. Years later, he encounters (and eventually kills) Nod.

Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

In Sean Stewart's Yoda: Dark Rendezvous, he attempts to trap his former Master by offering to negotiate an end to the war. In the novel it is revealed that Dooku always resented his parents for "giving him away" to the Jedi Order.

Labyrinth of Evil

In James Luceno's Labyrinth of Evil, he engineers General Grievous' transformation into the Separatists' cyborg commander, and trains him in lightsaber combat. He then schemes with Sidious to invade Coruscant — thus setting the stage for Revenge of the Sith — in what he believes to be a plot to kill Obi-Wan Kenobi and initiate Anakin Skywalker into the Sith.

References

Bibliography
  • Stover, Mathew. Revenge of the Sith. Lucas Booka, Century, London. ISBN 0-7126-8427-1
Notes
  1. ^ Stover 2005, p. 53.
  2. ^ Stover 2005, p. 52.
  3. ^ Stover 2005, pp. 55–56.
  4. ^ Stover 2005, pp. 76–79.
Further readings
  • The New Essential Guide to Characters, 1st edition, 2002. Daniel Wallace, Michael Sutfin, ISBN 0-345-44900-2
  • Reynolds, David West. Star Wars: Attack of the Clones: The Visual Dictionary, hardcover, 2002. ISBN 0-7894-8588-5
  • Luceno, James. Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: The Visual Dictionary, hardcover, 2005. , ISBN 0-7566-1128-8
  • Slavicsek, Bill & Collins, Andy. Star Wars Roleplaying Game: Revised Core Rulebook, hardcover, 2002. , ISBN 0-7869-2876-X

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