Jedi of the Republic – Mace Windu 1

"The galaxy is at war. The role of the Jedi has changed, leading armies into battle. Is this their place? If peace is the ends, are the means justified? Are they on the right side of said peace? These are the kind of soul-searching questions Mace will have to dig deep and answer for himself."

―Matt Owens^[5]

Jedi of the Republic – Mace Windu 1 is the first issue of the canon comic book miniseries Star Wars: Jedi of the Republic – Mace Windu. The issue was written by Matt Owens, illustrated by Denys Cowan, and published on August 30, 2017 by Marvel Comics. The story is set shortly after the events of Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones.

Publisher's summary[]

For over a thousand generations, the Jedi have been the peacekeepers of the galaxy - but now, at the dawn of the Clone Wars, they find themselves in a new role: generals in the Army of the Republic. As Mace Windu, one of the Jedi's greatest warriors, leads a small unit of Jedi into battle shortly after the war begins, the Jedi must make peace with their new role, or be lost to the violence around them!

Plot summary[]

MACE WINDU
Book I, Part I

It is a time of war! The Separatist plot to build a
massive droid army on Geonosis was interrupted when
the Republic activated an army of clone troopers
secretly commissioned by a late Jedi Master years
earlier. To lead this newly-formed Grand Army of the
Republic, Jedi Knights have been made military
Generals.

Jedi Master Mace Windu fought on the front lines of
the Battle of Geonosis, helping to secure a victory for
the Republic, but not without loss—many Jedi fell.

Now, as the Clone Wars rage on, Windu and his fellow
Jedi find themselves pulled away from their roles as
peace keepers to become warriors for the Republic....

In the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, Mace Windu talks with the hologram of fellow Jedi Master Ki-Adi-Mundi, and recounts the events of the Battle of Geonosis which was a very costly battle. So many voices of the Force are now but echoes in the void, and while their spirits have departed, they are not lost as they’ve become one with the Force. While their presence will be missed, the Jedi need to gather all of the strength that they can muster now that war is upon them, and with violence being a never ending tide, it is rising again and they knew that this day would come. Mace takes issue with the Jedi’s new role in the Republic, and when questioned why by Mundi, he explains that the Jedi have always been the champions of peace for the galaxy and protect life, and sometimes this means becoming a sword instead of a shield. Now they get to add general to their list of titles, and in order to lead the Republic down the right path, Jedi Masters must vacate their seats. As the two Jedi make a toast to the pursuit of peace and to sacrifice the fallen, Windu is summoned to speak in front of the Jedi High Council.

Yoda brings up the topic of war and their diminished numbers, and with the Separatist’s numbers growing and their reach spreading farther into the Outer Rim, Mace is tasked with a new mission to stop this. One of the Separatist’s footholds is on the jungle planet Hissrich as a large number of vessels have made planetfall in the recent days. Mace is to lead a small unit to monitor the Separatist’s movements and determine what their purpose is, but due to their stretched resources, no Clone unit can be provided for the mission. Having already selected the Jedi that will join him, Mace presents fellow council member Kit Fisto who fought bravely at his side during the Clone Wars and has an aptitude for surviving in harsh environments, Prosset Dibs, who lacks physical sight but has the gift of great intuition and will provide great insight, and Rissa Mano, who is a young newly knighted Jedi who has excellent pilot and engineering skills. Later, Yoda finds Windu and wishes to have a final word with him before he leaves for his journey as he senses that he’s troubled. When Mace says that these are troubling times and doubt clouds his mind, Yoda informs him to not doubt the ways of the Force as it tests them but leads them where they need to be. He also shouldn’t doubt himself as he’s a wise and capable leader, and while Mace believes that too many lives were lost on Geonosis, Yoda asks him how many more will die if he doesn’t lead and fight. Before Windu departs, Yoda reminds him to trust in the Force and in himself, as he too trusts in him.

Mace and his team depart aboard Mano's T-6 shuttle Westwind, and while in space, Rissa masks the ship by scrambling their signal. Meanwhile, Kit Fisto informs Prosset Dibs that they are nearing their destination, but Fisto is told that he sees so little for having such big eyes. Dibs says that the Force shudders due to war being no place for a Jedi, but Mace arrives and explains that they are right where they need to be, and explains that the planet is not well documented, and it’s in a state of near-perpetual darkness as it only gathers light from a distant sun about one hour per monthly cycle. With this being a covert mission, they can use the stealth to their advantage, and Mace has them change into new mission attire to help regulate body temperature on the humid surface before landing. As the Jedi depart from the shuttle, Mace holds Dibs back to have a word with him and the latter expresses his thoughts that there is an unease in the Force, with all of their teachings and beliefs being tested, and he’s unsure of the steps in front of him. Mace provides his insight, and says that war breeds confusion, so they must hold those teachings close to their hearts, and some of them include combat which is necessary.

As the Jedi continue forward, Rissa talks to Fisto about her awe for Master Windu, as he’s an exemplary figure of the Jedi principles, and she’s studied his teachings, resulting in his style of lightsaber combat becoming a foundation for her own. He is a top five Jedi Master of all time for her, and when Fisto asks about his ranking, she puts him in the top twenty to thirty. Just then, the Jedi group spots a Separatist patrol squadron and plans to take them out fast and hard. When one droid complains that patrol duty is boring, another believes that they’re doomed as he’s jinxed them, and sure enough, the Jedi attack the droids and swiftly cut them down. As they assess the situation, the Jedi suddenly sense something and become surrounded by the planet’s native species. In the distance, a battle droid observes this through macrobinoculars and quickly runs off to inform his commander. Traveling on a STAP, he flies back to the Separatist outpost and urgently informs his commander that there have been Jedi spotted in sector two zero nine, and so the commander points out the flaws of the Jedi, which is that they are slaves to their own doctrine - the Force. While they place their faith in the Force, he, a mercenary droid for hire named AD-W4, only places his faith in credits.

Continuity[]

Jedi of the Republic – Mace Windu, Part I first introduced the Jedi character Prosset Dibs, who later appeared as the Tenth Brother Inquisitor in the fourth arc of Charles Soule's Darth Vader comic series.^[6]