As a seasoned gamer with countless hours spent traversing galaxies far, far away, I find myself deeply invested in the journey of Cal Kestis. Having followed his transformation from a Padawan refugee to a Knight-errant in the era of Jedi scarcity, I can’t help but feel a sense of empathy and admiration for this character.
In Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, we meet Cal Kestis as a Padawan refugee. By Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, he’s taken on the role of a wandering knight in an era lacking his kind. By the end of the third and final chapter of Star Wars Jedi, it seems that Cal may be forced to hang up his lightsaber or meet his fate in battle. Unless something significant happens in this upcoming installment, there doesn’t seem to be much room left for character growth for Cal.
It wouldn’t be unexpected if, due to his recent violent outbursts fueled by grief, Cal might succumb to the dark side, much like others he’s encountered and defeated. However, using this turn for mere shock value during what appears to be Cal’s final appearance would be a squandering of the goodness he has demonstrated thus far. In truth, Cal’s choice of victim and the reasoning behind it were not hasty decisions. Over the course of games like Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Cal has shown restraint, sparing lives when possible, and offering swift, merciful deaths to those who demanded none.
Cal Kestis Doesn’t Kill Any Key Characters in Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order’s Narrative Beats
In the game “Fallen Order”, Cal consistently defeats numerous stormtroopers, Purge Troopers, bounty hunters, and robots, but when confronting antagonists in predetermined story moments or cutscenes, he never delivers a fatal blow, either because he’s unable to or simply doesn’t.
Cal’s lack of discrimination in fighting ordinary soldiers of the Galactic Empire implies that he might not have hesitated to kill characters like Taron Malicos. However, the game developers didn’t make Cal fight any significant story antagonists. Instead, someone else or a situation typically interrupts the fight before Cal can engage. This could be a deliberate choice to maintain Cal’s youthful innocence and moral integrity. After all, he last used a lightsaber during the Jedi Purge, presumably when he was still a Padawan on Bracca.
On Kashyyyk, Cal amputates the Ninth Sister’s hand, then shoves her off the boss arena platform, and she vanishes from sight before transforming into the tutorial boss fight in “Survivor” on Coruscant;
Cal Kestis Kills Often in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, But Only Out of Mercy, Honor, or Necessity
Cal’s portrayal as killing his adversaries in scripted scenes suggests that he has evolved beyond being an 18-year-old Padawan refugee and transformed into a mature Jedi Knight in his twenties, having endured numerous battles and heartbreaks. The arrival of the Ninth Sister leads to the deaths of Cal’s new crew members except for Bode Akuna, which provides ample reason for Cal’s desire to eliminate her.
Even though he wins against her, when he recognizes she’s beyond help, he grants her a merciful end. He believes or understands that Masana Tide has been corrupted too deeply by the Empire’s cruelty and anger over years of mistreatment to ever change. Cal attempts to reach her by reminding her of her past and using her real name, but her fierce rage suggests she can’t be saved like Trilla does at the end.
It’s possible that Trilla displayed some signs of recovery from her Inquisitor programming before she died, suggesting a potential chance for rehabilitation. However, since Cal decided to euthanize Masana despite this possibility, it could be debated whether or not it was necessary.
In a more simplified manner, we can say: Cal’s decision to kill these characters isn’t heartless; rather, he’s either avenging others, ending someone’s suffering, or fulfilling their battlefield wishes. However, the only instance where Cal might be about to kill someone out of personal gain or malice is when he considers using a Force choke on Denvik, who was responsible for the deaths of those close to Cal, but Merrin manages to intervene.
In the Star Wars saga, even Caij Vanda, whom Cal defends himself against after learning she had him eliminate bounty hunters to maintain her competitive edge, gets an opportunity to yield before Boba Fett takes action. If the third Star Wars Jedi game continues to challenge Cal with more losses, it could turn into a monotonous plot device that Respawn has overused. This could also strengthen the notion that he’s being pushed to his breaking point and might succumb to the dark side of the Force. Regardless, it makes sense why Cal’s propensity to kill his enemies has become so commonplace and rational, and his habit of offering every enemy a chance to surrender showcases his composure as a character despite the turmoil he faces.
According to Cal, as portrayed in the story “Fallen Order”, the Jedi were peacekeepers, and despite the Order being destroyed, he remains steadfast in upholding that role. The last entry in Cal’s databank lore in “Survivor”, titled ‘Legacy’, strongly suggests that he will continue to be steadfast on the path of the light side of the Force: “Cal promises to honor Cere’s legacy by rebuilding the Jedi archive and safeguarding the Hidden Path on Tanalorr.
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2024-10-22 21:36