Sorry, Anakin: Star Wars' Most Controversial Jedi Is Someone the Series Doesn't Want You to Know About
Anakin Skywalker has a reputation for stirring up controversy in Star Wars' Jedi Order, especially once he shifts allegiance to the dark side of the Force, but another forgotten Jedi puts him to shame. Although he may not undergo a Sith turn, his name alone has caused Star Wars to pretend he never existed. As problematic as Anakin can be, this Jedi's name is a far more shocking offense.
The Jedi in question is Soon Bayts - alternatively spelled as Baytes - who was created by Randy Stradley and debuted in 2000's Jedi Council: Acts of War miniseries. His name isn't so bad on its own, but it takes on a whole new meaning when the title of Jedi Master is applied. Thus, Soon Bayts becomes Master Bayts.
The obvious joke in poor Master Bayts' name has resulted in him fading into obscurity, as he's scarcely been referenced since he was killed by General Grievous. Nonetheless, the story behind the most absurd Jedi name continues to bewilder and entertain Star Wars fans to this day.
Soon Bayts Is Star Wars' Most Controversial Jedi, Thanks to His Unfortunate Name
Jedi Master Bayts May Be Gone, But His Name Is Impossible to Forget
Star Wars has never held back from giving its characters weird names that involve puns, such as The Clone Wars' Ima-Gun Di (pronounced as "I'm-a gonna die") and Savage Opress (a Sith who oppresses people). Still, those pale in comparison to Soon Bayts, whose name has gone down in history as the funniest to ever grace the franchise and led many to wonder how it was possibly approved. Thankfully, Randy Stradley has shared his side of the story via a post on the Jedi Council Forum in 2008, finally shedding light on how and why Master Bayts came to be:
I certainly did it on purpose, but I only (and always) had characters in "Acts of War" refer to him as "Soon Baytes." See, the thing was, Sue Rostoni would go through my scripts and if, for instance, I had a character refer to Yoda as just plain "Yoda," she would change it to "Master Yoda." So, I introduced a completely unimportant tertiary Jedi character named Soon Baytes, hoping that she would be going through the script, come across the character, and change him to "Master Baytes," and I could say "gotcha!" and then change the character's name to something more suitable.
Unfortunately, she never requested the change, and the character went into canon, a not-so-witty time bomb waiting to be triggered.
According to Stradley, he created Master Bayts as a prank on editor Sue Rostoni in response to her habit of adding "Master" in front of Jedi names. He'd expected her to pick up on the pun and fix it for publication, but when the joke went over the editor's head, Master Bayts became a canon Jedi within Star Wars lore. He calls the situation a "time bomb" because Bayts wasn't actually called a Master in his early appearances, and it was Haden Blackman who later pulled the trigger and canonized the full title in Star Wars: Obsession #4 - the same comic that killed him off.
Will Master Bayts Ever Return to Star Wars Continuity? It Isn't Likely
Soon Bayts Was Killed by General Grievous, And He Probably Isn't Coming Back
Those waiting for Soon Bayts to make his long-awaited comeback shouldn't get their hopes up, because he's already been dead for a good while. He met his end moments after he was finally called "Master Bayts" back in 2005, with General Grievous dealing the fatal blow. The Star Wars universe contains plenty of Jedi, so there's no need to bring him back any time soon, yet his hilarious memory lives on. Though Star Wars wants audiences to forget that Master Bayts ever existed, this controversial Jedi will forever be immortalized in the comics he snuck his way into against all odds.
Source: Jedi Council Forums
- Created by
- George Lucas
- First Film
- Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope
- Cast
- Mark Hamill, James Earl Jones, David Prowse, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Ian McDiarmid, Ewan McGregor, Rosario Dawson, Lars Mikkelsen, Rupert Friend, Moses Ingram, Frank Oz, Pedro Pascal
- TV Show(s)
- The Mandalorian, Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Book of Boba Fett, Ahsoka, The Acolyte, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, Lando, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels, Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Star Wars: Resistance, Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures, Star Wars: Visions
- Movie(s)
- Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope, Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens, Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi, Star Wars: Episode IX- The Rise of Skywalker, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi, Star Wars: New Jedi Order
- Character(s)
- Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Rey Skywalker, Emperor Palpatine / Darth Sidious, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka Tano, Grand Admiral Thrawn, Grand Inquisitor, Reva (The Third Sister), The Fifth Brother, The Seventh Sister, The Eighth Brother, Yoda, Din Djarin, Grogu, Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Leia Organa, Ben Solo/Kylo Ren
