Star Wars Comics Reveal The Real Reason Jedi Take Younglings

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Star Wars: Trail of Shadows #1.

The latest Star Wars comics have suggested why the Jedi really take Younglings from their parents. Jedi may generally be portrayed as the heroes of Star Wars, but undoubtedly some of their decisions come off as more than a little dark. Take, for example, their tendency of carefully watching out for the birth of a potential Jedi, testing potential inductees when they are toddlers, and then taking them away from their family. By the prequel era, this has led to a popular perception that the Jedi are “baby-snatchers,” damaging their reputation and creating a gulf between the Jedi and ordinary citizens that Palpatine would ultimately exploit in the aftermath of Order 66.

But why do the Jedi take Force-sensitive children away from their families? By the time of the prequel era, the Jedi would probably claim this was an attempt to prevent attachment. Although the Jedi believed in the importance of connection, they feared these Younglings would retain a selfish attachment to their parents that could be exploited by the dark side. But, in practice, this argument simply doesn’t make sende; the Jedi substituted the Order itself for the original family unit. Anakin Skywalker’s attachment to the Jedi – an attachment that prevented him from walking away – even though he had lost faith in the Council’s judgment and the Jedi Code itself – was a far greater problem than his remembering his mother.

Star Wars: Trail of Shadows #1, by Daniel Jose Older and David Wachte, suggests there may be another reason. It reveals an ancient nursery rhyme that has a basis in fact; that millennia ago, there were predators who feasted on Force-sensitives, hunting them and feeding on their midichlorians, reducing anyone Force-sensitive to dust. Although it’s uncertain, they appear to be related to the terentateks from the old Expanded Universe, believed to have been created by the Sith and scattered across the galaxy in order to prey on the Jedi.

This potentially explains the real reason the Jedi began to take Younglings from their families: in order to protect them. The nursery rhyme seems to be widespread across the galaxy, meaning there must have been a time when these beasts were common. The terentateks can sense the Force, and they’d have become aware of children who were strong in the Force, hunting them down in order to feed on their midichlorians. There’s a sinister sense of helplessness in the nursery rhyme, reflective of how powerless parents would have been to stop them:

They’ll do what they can

And they’ll do what they must

But when they do find you all you’ll be is…

Dust.”

The Jedi would have been able to do what a Younglings’ parents could not; they would have protected the child against the terentateks. What’s more, parents would have understood this much better than they would have understood the motives of the prequel era Jedi; they were basically being offered a chance to allow their child to stay alive. But, as the millennia passed, the terentateks became rarer, and this issue was forgotten. The Jedi – always portrayed as tending to blindly follow tradition – would have simply found alternative explanations. Over time, the Jedi philosophy towards attachment would have become engrained in their approach towards Younglings instead, with few of the Jedi questioning it. And so, like many aspects of the Jedi tradition, by the time of the main Star Wars saga they had forgotten what they had once stood for.

About The Author

Thomas Bacon
(4894 Articles Published)

Tom Bacon is one of Screen Rant’s staff writers, as well as a Peer Mentor for new writers and a member of the Care Team, offering support and a listening ear to members of the Comics group. A lifelong fan of major franchises including Star Wars, Doctor Who, and Marvel, Tom is delighted his childhood is back – and this time it’s cool. You can find him on Twitter @TomABacon.

A graduate of Edge Hill University, Tom remains strongly connected with his alma mater as a volunteer chaplain. He’s heavily involved with his local church, and anyone who checks him out on Twitter will swiftly learn he’s into British politics too.

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