Going back and watching Return of the Jedi now, I cannot believe it forgot a big part of Luke Skywalker’s character. Return of the Jedi has never been too high in my ranking of the Star Wars movies, but that is not to say I do not like it. I think it is weaker than the other two installments of the original trilogy, but I would still hold it in higher regard than two of George Lucas’ prequels and one of Disney’s sequels. The fleshing out of Star Wars’ New Republic timeline of late has also made me appreciate it more.

Upcoming Star Wars TV shows will only continue to provide more context to the galaxy after Return of the Jedi, too. This will only benefit the sixth chronological Star Wars movie, at least where the episodic тιтles are concerned, and increase its cruciality to the overarching Skywalker Saga era of the franchise. Despite all of this, though, Return of the Jedi‘s treatment of Luke seemed to leave out a major part of his character from its predecessors.

Luke Skywalker Was A Pilot Before He Was A Jedi

Luke’s Flying Skills Were No Joke

The key part of Luke’s character in question was his abilities as a pilot. A New Hope kickstarted Luke’s training as a Jedi, but it was his skills in the cockpit of a starfighter that allowed him to triumph at the Battle of Yavin and destroy the Death Star. The Empire Strikes Back then focused further on Luke’s efforts as a pilot by showing him at the Battle of H๏τh flying a snowspeeder. Before he ever became a Jedi and awakened his dormant Force abilities, Luke’s primary skillset came was utilized as a pilot, like his father, Anakin.

We Deserved To See Luke Pilot In Battle With His New Jedi Abilities

Return Of The Jedi Was Perfect For This

In Return of the Jedi, Luke’s apтιтude for flying was never highlighted. The only time Luke is seen behind the wheel of an X-Wing in the third original trilogy movie is at the end of the first act when he travels back to Dagobah to complete his training under Yoda. Although Return of the Jedi features one of Star Wars’ best space battles, Luke was never seen in full action, now with his increased Jedi abilities.

After spending years training with Yoda, surely Luke’s piloting skills would have increased too. In Return of the Jedi, we deserved to see this and really witness just how strong Luke had become, not only as a Jedi but as one of the best starfighter pilots in Star Wars’ Rebel Alliance. Sadly, Return of the Jedi forgot about this part of Luke’s character in favor of showing him as a Jedi Master.

Star Wars Never Really Did Justice To Luke’s Piloting Skills Again

The Legend Of The Jedi Overtook The Skills Of A Pilot

From this point onwards, Luke Skywalker became defined as a Jedi more than a pilot. Of course, I am not saying this made no sense, as Luke is one of the greatest Star Wars characters because of his transition from a farm boy to a knight of the Jedi Order. Nonetheless, I think there was room for both Luke’s Jedi techniques and piloting skills to be showcased in Star Wars, as was the case in both A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back.

After Return of the Jedi, though, the focus of Luke’s character became the Jedi. He was briefly seen in The Mandalorian season 2 flying an X-Wing, but the main cause of excitement during this cameo was his lightsaber and Force skills as he cut through legions of Dark Troopers. In The Rise of Skywalker, Luke raises his X-Wing from the depths of Ahch-To, yet for Rey to fly. All of this just proves that the depiction of Luke Skywalker shifted after Return of the Jedi, moving him away from X-Wings and ushering him more towards the Force.