Before Count Dooku led the Separatists during the Clone Wars, he spent most of his life in the Jedi Order, and now Star Wars fans will get a glimpse of this period thanks to Dooku's former master, Yoda. Dooku would meet his end as Darth Tyranus, apprentice to Darth Sidious, but his progression through the ranks of the Jedi Order reveals who he once was.
However, in the upcoming Star Wars: Yoda #4, by Jody Houser and Luke Ross, fans will get to see a younger version of Dooku. The issue will see Dooku still committed to the Jedi cause and nothing more than a dark haired Jedi Master, when Yoda calls upon his former apprentice to help him teach the next generation of Jedi Padawans. All the while readers, will be treated to a glimpse of the friendship that existed between the small Jedi Grandmaster and a man who is possibly believed that he was the chosen one.
Who Was Dooku Before He Fell To The Dark Side?
Dooku was born on the planet Serenno to the planet’s ruler Count Gora. His father despised the Jedi and when it was discovered that his son had Force abilities he abandoned him to freeze to death. Thankfully the young Dooku was taken in by the Jedi and raised in the temple. Dooku was an apprentice of Master Yoda, and showed immense talent and skill in the ways of the Jedi arts. He even became one of the order’s most skilled lightsaber duelists, a skill he was particularly proud of as evidenced by his curved handle dueling blade. In time Dooku grew into a respected Jedi Master and took a young Qui-Gon Jinn as his apprentice. Much like Jinn, Dooku himself was never a blind follower of Jedi doctrine, and often took liberties to achieve ends he thought were right. Its this sort of unorthodox methodology that brought him to the attention of Darth Sidious aka Sheev Palpatine. After the death of his parents Dooku left the order under the guise of taking up his father’s position on Serenno, but in reality he had attached himself to the Sith Lord and was actively helping him bring about the Clone Wars in hopes of setting right certain injustices that Dooku saw in the Republic and the Jedi.
Count Dooku is perhaps one of the most fascinating Jedi in the entire order, and though fans got to see a bit of his motivation and fall in Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi, he is a character well worth exploring even further. Though he was cast as the villain in the movies, all indications seem to point to that his motivations were genuine. Unlike Sidious, who craved power, or even Vader, who succumbed to his fear, Dooku was one example of a Force user who truly believed that his ends justified his means. To him both the Jedi and the Sith were just two different paths to achieving what he believed to be the best for the galaxy at large. And, in the midst of a corrupt senate, growing unrest, and a stagnant and corrupted Jedi Order, Dooku was not necessarily wrong about his beliefs.
His perception of not seeing the galaxy or the Force as black and white is a truly refreshing one among the usual back and forth of Star Wars’ Jedi and Sith conflict. Unfortunately, Dooku learned too late that his new master could not be trusted, and that his own hubris and blind belief had led him astray. But this new pre-Clone Wars appearance offers a real opportunity for fans to get a look into the philosophies and ideas of Dooku and watch as he interacts with a true believer like Jedi Master Yoda.
Star Wars: Yoda #4 will be on sale from Marvel Comics on February 22, 2023.