On the importance of Qui-Gon as a character, and the purpose of his role in the story:
It’s been a while now since I’ve written about this character, but recently my husband and I were discussing the Prequels (and especially The Phantom Menace), and we both heartily agreed that Qui-Gon Jinn is a truly brilliant addition to the saga, both from a storytelling and ‘in-story’ perspective. Not only is he a compelling figure to watch on-screen (thanks to the mesmerizing Liam Neeson), but he is also an ingenious way of introducing us to the Twilight of the Republic-era Jedi—via someone who is, by that point, considered a ‘maverick’ in comparison to the rest of the Jedi Order.
This is a very clever approach, because it means that we actually experience the entire first half of The Phantom Menace from Qui-Gon’s perspective. Throughout our journey with him—during which time he comes to the aid of many beings, from the hapless Jar-Jar, to Queen Amidala, to a slave-boy and his mother on Tatooine, all while simultaneously on a spiritual quest of his own (aka, to find the Chosen One)—we come to admire a Jedi who is everything that we, as viewers who had only ever seen the Original Trilogy, would expect a Jedi to be. It is only after Qui-Gon’s arrival on Coruscant (when we are met by the comparatively cold, closed, and standoffish Jedi Council), that we realize that…oh… this wonderful, warm, openly-caring, and compassionate Jedi who we ASSUMED must certainly be the ’norm’, is actually anything but.
And so, the fact that the very first part of the saga is shown to us almost entirely from Qui-Gon’s perspective is extremely significant, not in the least because it evokes sympathy for his character and his so-called ‘maverick’ views, and, in turn, has the effect of helping us be all the more sympathetic and understanding towards little Ani.
The importance of this cannot be overstated, because of course, when The Phantom Menace was released, everyone already knew that Anakin Skywalker would eventually become ‘Darth Vader’. So it was absolutely crucial to introduce him to us from the perspective of a ‘wise Jedi’ character who had a firm belief in (the positive nature of) his future potential, and who held a deeply compassionate view toward him, or else the tension and dramatic irony would be greatly reduced, and the impact of the overall story would be lessened. Seeing Anakin through Qui-Gon’s eyes makes us all ask the burning question—how could an innocent and loving little boy like this ever become Darth Vader? Qui-Gon’s presence in the story introduces this question—and this tension—at this early stage, and makes it almost impossible for us not to seek for answers as we go.
In this vein, the mere existence of Qui-Gon as a character helps to inform our view of the state of the Jedi Order at this point in the story. I feel the need reiterate this very obvious point because some people seem to be mis-reading ‘the text’ here and coming to the erroneous conclusion that Qui-Gon (and his views and actions) is somehow representative of the Jedi Order as a whole, and that could not be farther from the truth. Such an interpretation is completely missing the entire point of his character and his role in the story. Qui-Gon is meant to embody the True SPIRIT (his name ‘Jinn’ even means Spirit) of the Jedi religion that has, at this stage, been ‘lost’ or at least largely forgotten in favour of a more ‘letter of the law’ approach. Nowhere is this more clearly embodied than by the Order’s strict adherence to their (often flawed) interpretations of the Jedi Code, as well by as their role of servants of the Republic—something that has led them to this place where they must often put said Republic’s political and military needs above service to ‘the Will of the Force’. (Note how Qui-Gon explains the *ideal* role of a Jedi to Padme when he tells her “I can only protect you. I cannot fight a war for you.” – a role that, only ten years after his death, will be completely overturned by the Jedi Order’s direct participation in the Clone Wars on behalf of the Republic.)
And thus, upon Qui-Gon’s arrival on Coruscant, we experience the realization that many of the things he has said throughout (such as “*FEEL*, don’t think, use your instincts”), and the approaches he has taken (his openly warm manner toward little Ani and his mother) are very likely things that only he, and maybe a few choice others, would say or do or think or feel, rather than the typical mindset or approach of the entire Order. Qui-Gon’s singularity in this respect is necessary for the story to establish, because it likewise establishes him as the ONLY person who could have provided the very particular guidance that Anakin so sorely needed, the only person who could have potentially helped him navigate the more difficult to follow aspects of the Code, the only person who (if he had lived) might have stood at least some chance of equipping Anakin to withstand the machinations of Sidious….I could go on. It supports this notion of Qui-Gon as the ideal teacher of (and father-figure to) Anakin, and even adds weight to the idea they were indeed brought together by the Force, as Qui-Gon himself states (“Finding him was the will of the Force”).
And then, it is this that likewise that renders his sudden death such a ‘fateful’ (hence the name ‘Duel of the Fates’) blow. A loss that is shattering to Obi-Wan *and* Anakin both—one that they of course both feel keenly in the immediate aftermath, but one that also proves even more tragic later on in the course of events. (In the RotS novelization, it even states that the seemingly-endless war that had come to define their lives had, for Obi-Wan and Anakin, begun not with the inception of the Clone Wars, but rather “on Naboo, when Qui-Gon Jinn died at the hand of a Sith Lord.”) In other words, the loss of Qui-Gon removes this irreplaceable Jedi who was very much a ‘True Jedi’, but who nonetheless regularly felt the need to stand up to the Jedi Council’s decisions; this Jedi who was still a much-needed source of council to Obi-Wan, and who was so uniquely poised to guide little Ani—either within, or outside of, the Jedi Order.
Qui-Gon Jinn is a highly underrated character, and the importance of his role, both from a storytelling perspective and an in-story perspective, cannot be emphasized enough. I would go so far as to say that his inclusion into this early part of the saga is intended to form our understanding of it—because, through him, we are shown an example of a True Jedi, one who is warm, tender, caring, and demonstrative of emotions, as well as just as heroic and ‘mystical’ as we’d expect a Jedi Master of that era to be. Through him, we come to sympathize not only with his views, but also with little Ani’s plight. Through him, we are thus primed to view young Anakin positively (or at the very least with an open mind), and to bristle at the Jedi Council’s swift dismissal of this fearful yet still-innocent child, so far from home.
Likewise, through Qui-Gon’s staunch belief in the existence of the Chosen One—a belief that he dies professing—we are shown an example of a Jedi who has unwavering faith in, and dedication to, ‘the Will of the Force’. And yet, through him we are *also* shown that such a Jedi stands on the ‘fringe’ of the Jedi Order, a fact that in and of itself illustrates just how far removed that institution has already become from its original stated purpose (which is, purportedly, ‘to serve the Will of the Force’). Qui-Gon’s death—and with it, the removal of such a defiant-yet-wise figure both from the Jedi Order and from Obi-Wan and Anakin’s lives—is the first ‘herald’ of the tragedy that is the story of the Prequels.
This, in my understanding, is the purpose of Qui-Gon Jinn as a character, and the main reason for his inclusion into this early part of the story. He is a character who is meant to be viewed positively and sympathetically. An admirable figure of great kindness and foresight, a source of warmth, wisdom, and, above all, compassion, whose sudden loss is a heavy blow to all. And as such, he is NOT meant to be representative of the Jedi Order as it exists in its flawed state at the point of the Twilight of the Republic—rather he represents the TRUE *spirit* of the Jedi religion.
