William Shakespeare's The Jedi Doth Return

William Shakespeare's The Jedi Doth Return by Ian Doescher

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Authors: Ian Doescher
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shakes my spirit, spurs
    My aging wither’d body, and doth make
    Me young again—I am a Jedi Knight,
    By Obi-Wan instructed; Anakin,
    The name by which my mother call’d me, calls
    Me now to resurrect my former self.
    Methinks I feel the Force within me here—
    Not to perform the deeds of evil men
    But to release myself from bitter hate
    And rescue Luke, whose courage I behold.
    It is the cause, it is the cause, my soul.
    Be Anakin Skywalker now—recall
    The man thou wert and rescue thy dear son!
    [Darth Vader lifts Emperor Palpatine and throws him down a long shaft, where he is killed amid his lightning and flames.
    LUKE
    O Father, thou hast sav’d me from great woe—
    And thou hast sav’d thyself. Now, let us go!
    [Exeunt.

SCENE 3.
    Inside the shield generator bunker on Endor / Space / Inside the second Death Star.
    Enter
I MPERIAL COMMANDER
and
I MPERIAL TROOPS
on left sideof stage.
H AN S OLO
appears in viewscreen, dressed as an Imperial AT-ST pilot.

    HAN
    The battle’s over, my commander. All
    The rebels have been routed, and abscond
    Unto the forest. Reinforcements are
    Requir’d to aid us in our quick pursuit.
    TROOPS
    Hurrah!
    COMMAND.
    —Send thou three squads to bring them help!
    Pray, open up the back door speedily.
    What joy! The rebels know defeat today,
    And we’ll rejoice to bear the news unto
    Our officers superior. Go now!
    [The Imperial troops open the back door and are met by Ewoks and rebels, who disarm them.
    HAN
    A cunning line! And you are quite the catch—
    Deceiv’d by rebels playing Empire’s part!
    We dangled all your hopes for victory
    As bait to draw you in and hold you fast,
    And now we take the bunker in our care.
    Let fall your weapons, else I shall release
    Your lives unto these creatures’ fearsome pow’r!
    Perchance they seem not vicious, yet they have
    What thou canst never know: fierce bravery.
    Enter
P RINCESS L EIA
and
C HEWBACCA ,
joined by
H AN S OLO ,
into the bunker. The Imperial troops remain guarded by the rebels at the back door.
    LEIA
    This bunker shall anon destroyèd be,
    And then our friends may strike their final blow.
    HAN
    Indeed! Pray, give to me another charge.
    We shall fulfill this task with perfect skill—
    And leave no charge unusèd.
    CHEWBAC.
    —Auugh!
    LEIA
    —’Tis set!
    Now let us fly! Else we shall bear the blast.
    [Han Solo, Princess Leia, and Chewbacca run from the bunker, which explodes.
    Enter
L ANDO OF C ALRISSIAN , N IEN N UNB , A DMIRAL A CKBAR , W EDGE A NTILLES ,
and other
REBEL PILOTS
on right side of stage,
dueling with
I MPERIAL TROOPS
in their ships.
A DMIRAL P IETT
and
I MPERIAL CONTROLLER
are aside, inside the Death Star.
    ACKBAR
    ’Tis done, the Endor crew hath triumph’d yet—
    The shield is down! Upon the Death Star’s main
    Reactor let us fly anon. Then shall
    We reach the core and give it quite a zap!
    LANDO
    We fly with haste! Red Group, Gold Group, form up
    And follow me! Today rebellion shall
    Have reason to exult! Our enemies
    Shall soon be vanquish’d! O what triumph shall
    Be ours when this great Death Star its own death
    Doth undergo. Three things shall be achiev’d
    Thereby. The first shall be a victory
    For our Rebellion—all the fervent hopes
    Of these past years attain’d in one swift stroke.
    The second benefit of Death Star’s end
    Is freedom and security for all
    Within the galaxy—no more oppress’d
    By evil tyrants, people shall once more
    Be free to dwell in possibility.
    And finally, the third result of this
    Great Death Star’s fall shall be the rising up
    Of all whose pasts conceal some awful guilt,
    Some aspect of their lives that brings regret.
    I speak of my own past—you all know well
    How I betray’d my friend when th’Empire forc’d
    My hand. And e’en that friend, good Han, hath through
    Rebellion’s cause found purpose he had ne’er
    Imagin’d. In this battle we fight not
    To merely terminate an enemy—
    Full many of us rebels seek the bliss,
    The balm and healing

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