Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones featured the first-ever Yoda fight in a Star Wars movie, a clash against Count Dooku that ended with Darth Tyranus running away. Unlike the original trilogy, each of the Star Wars prequels featured a different main villain. After Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace introduced Darth Maul and his iconic doubled-bladed lightsaber, Attack of the Clones brought Christopher Lee as Dooku, a fallen Jedi turned into Sith that would eventually fight his own master, Yoda, towards the end of the film.
While Count Dooku was created for Attack of the Clones, the character’s story traces back to before the events of The Phantom Menace. Dooku joined the Jedi Order somewhere around 86 BBY, having been initially assigned as Yoda’s padawan. Decades later, Count Dooku would take on his own padawan, Qui-Gon Jinn. A lot of Dooku’s personality and beliefs were reflected in the type of Jedi Qui-Gon turned out to be – a questioning spirit who did not always agree with the Jedi Council. Following Qui-Gon Jinn’s death at the hands of Darth Maul and the political instability caused by the Naboo crisis, Dooku stopped trusting the Jedi Order and eventually aligned himself with Darth Sidious.
By the time Attack of the Clones introduces Dooku, the now Darth Tyranus had already given in to the dark side and founded the Separatist Alliance. However, the Jedi were not aware that Dooku was a Sith Lord, only that he had become a Separatist leader. Count Dooku and the Separatist Alliance were a key part of Palpatine’s long-term plan, which started with the Battle of Geonosis. As the Jedi and the newly formed Republic Clone Army were battling the dozens of battle droids in the Geonosis fighting arena, Yoda had to save Anakin and Obi-Wan Kenobi from being killed by Count Dooku. Darth Tyranus had no difficulty in beating Anakin and Obi-Wan, but the fight against Yoda was much more complicated. After a force-push showdown and a lightsaber duel, Count Dooku ran away from the fight against Yoda. That is because Dooku had no plans of killing or capturing Yoda at this point, plus the Sith Lord could not risk being killed or captured before the Clone Wars even began. The Battle of Geonosis was not supposed to be a definite move against the Jedi, but rather just the sparkle of a much longer war. That is why Count Dooku had no interest in continuing his duel against Yoda.
Could Dooku Have Beaten Yoda?
More than a strategic retreat, Count Dooku running away from Yoda is a reminder that Dooku is far less powerful than Yoda. Dooku could have not beaten Yoda in Geonosis, meaning that the fight would have ended with Dooku either killed or captured had it continued. At that point, the only two Force-sensitive warriors who could beat Yoda in a fight were Mace Windu and Darth Sidious. Dooku was powerful and extremely skillful with his lightsaber, to the point he easily beat Anakin and Obi-Wan. Still, Dooku was less powerful than both of his masters – Darth Sidious and Yoda.
The Battle of Geonosis set Palpatine’s ultimate plan in motion, and it is considered the first battle of the Clone Wars. Dooku’s role in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones was much more complex than what the Jedi Council believed. By running away from Yoda, Dooku was able to escape from the Jedi to become the most wanted person in the galaxy in the eyes of the Republic.