Kanan Jarrus – Replacement Cowboy Jedi and Ronin

After the announcement of the Disney Acquisition of Lucasfilm, there was a long time to wait for the first non-LIucas Star Wars film.  Into the gap came Star Wars: Rebels – an animated series taking place between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope.  One character tease gave us a glimpse of Kanan Jarrus – described as a cowboy Jedi.  But he wasn’t the first –

Kanan Jarrus, upon introduction, presents himself as a devil-may-care smuggler, handy with a blaster, and working with the crew of the Ghost.  He’s a gunslinger and not much interested in politics, but that all changes by the end of Spark of Rebellion.

The timeframe is different, and a lot of the details are as well – but there’s no question that the cowboy/gunslinger/Jedi motif rings true to the original cowboy Jedi, Kyle Katarn – and Kanan flat-out raided his closet:

While both Kyle and Kanan were built in the “Jedi Maverick” role, their dispositions also shared another important trait that came from The Old Republic era.

After we’ve known Kanan for some time, its revealed that Palpatine recruited from the Jedi Temple Guard to form the Inquisitorious.  In the new canon, Jedi were rotated in for duty into the Temple Guard.  Their primary duties involved guarding the temple itself, but also investigations and police-style work.

In the Knights of the Old Republic games, Jedi “classes” were part of the RPG system, and were divided into 3 distinct groups:

Guardians
Focused on combat and athletic disciplines, tendency to blue lightsaber blades

Consulars
Focused on force abilities, meditation, and mastery of the Force, tendency to green lightsaber blades

Sentinels
Presented a balanced approach, with a boost to skills – “Jack of all trades, master of none”, tendency to yellow lightsaber blades

The Jedi Temple Guard under this classification would’ve been considered sentinels, and by all accounts Kyle and Kanan both would’ve fit right in.

From his introduction, Kanan ended up deviating from Kyles path in some pretty significant ways – but he became more a cowboy of the east, where Kyle was a cowboy of the west.

Cross-Genre Pollination

It’s possible you’ve never read the novel “Red Harvest”, but you’re certainly familiar with the story.

Written by Dashiell Hammet in 1929, it follows a “continental op” (an agent called in to town from the “Continental Agency” who was summoned by a newspaper publisher who was killed before the op arrived.  When he gets there, he finds rival criminal gangs vying for control of the town – and in appearing to work with both, pits them against each other to destroy them both.

Sound familiar?  It should…it’s also Yojimbo, (which was also partially inspired by The Glass Key, also by Dashiell Hammet).  Yojimbo starred Toshiro Mifune, whom George Lucas originally wanted to play Obi-Wan Kenobi.  (Yojimbo was also directed by Akira Kurosawa, a major influence for Lucas).

Its also A Firstful of Dollars, starring Clint Eastwood, and who partially inspired Boba Fett.

It’s also Last Man Standing, probably the most faithful adaptation of the original novel, starring Bruce Willis.

Another famous cross-pollination example between Kurosawa and the eastern/western genres is The Seven Samurai/The Magnificent Seven.

While making Star Wars, Lucas took many of these eastern and western genres, threw them in a blender with Dune and John Carter, and sprinkled in a heavy dosage of race car driving, WW2 era dogfights, and “Faster and more intense.

All of this is important, because once Kanan announced himself as a Jedi, he went down the eastern path – he became a Jedi Ronin.

Ronin

In the Feudal period of Japan, a Ronin was a masterless Samurai – literally translated as “Wanderer”, the Ronin could’ve become masterless through the death of his master, or through disgrace and exile.

Other Jedi (such as Dass Jennir in the Dark Times comic books) have been depicted in this style before, but Kanan is probably the most well known example.  The “Cowboy Jedi” persona was concocted as a cover to hide his abilities after the loss of his Master Depa Billaba during Order 66.  (Originally depicted in the Kanaan: The Last Padawan comics, and later retconned by The Bad Batch.)

After he reveals himself and decides to train Ezra, his demeanor changes.  Initially lacking the confidence to train Ezra, he eventually commits, and in trying to protect his own Padawan, loses his sight.

This is another trope of the genre, probably most famous from the Zatoitchi novels and movies, of which Freddie Prinze Jr. is a HUGE fan.  A blind swordsman wanderer is very much what Kanan became, until his untimely death (and brief restoration of sight) while protecting the Ghost Crew.

Conclusion

Kanan is the most tenuous connection to Kyle Katarn, but there’s definitely a dose of Kyles DNA there.  Most of the lifts in this case are cosmetic, but I like the fact that they leaned into the Ronin aspect of the character.  Rebels isn’t as well respected as some of the other animated series, but I think that’s a shame.  It’s true that it didn’t have anywhere near the budget that The Clone Wars had, and it was geared at a younger audience – but it also had some truly great episodes.  Some of my favorites involve Kanan coming to terms with the loss of his sight with the help of the Bendu on Atollon, and following from that are some great episodes where Kanan helps Sabine Wren to overcome her fears of wielding the darksaber and returning with it to Mandalore in hopes of reuniting the Mandalorian Clans.

I’m not sure if we would have The Mandalorian today if we didn’t have Rebels as a stepping stone, and it’s possible we never would’ve had Kanan if Kyle hadn’t walked a portion of his path first.

For an the latest analysis that should be fun, keep reading That Park Place!