Chi Cho - Blog Posts

Okay, so I find Riyo Chuchi to be a really interesting character, and this scene from the episode “Trespass” in season one is a fascinating look into her as a person and it’s a fascinating look into the Republic’s political climate at the beginning of the war. This entire episode is a chilling (ha) reminder of how little power the Jedi have, and this interaction is a brilliant one to include.

Because while Riyo isn’t one of the main protagonists, she’s still meant to be a sympathetic character, a character we like and a character we want to succeed. We know that she’s friends with Ahsoka, and we know that she’s at least friendly with Padme. Hell, right after this scene she has a kickass speech and saves the day! Riyo is pretty undeniably portrayed as a good guy to the viewer.

But Riyo still does a pretty huge fandom no-no, for lack of a better way to put it.

Because in this episode, Senator Riyo Chuchi asks the Jedi to negotiate on her planet’s behalf, and when the Council member present says that they can’t, Senator Chuchi changes her tone, and orders them to.

Now, thankfully, Riyo Chuchi is also a logical character, so when Obi-Wan tells her why he said no, she doesn’t fight him on it any further. But it still is fascinating to think about, because… the Jedi serve the Senate. Because even a Senator who’s friends with the “good guys” has no with issue using that fact to her advantage. Because the look that Obi-Wan and Anakin send each other implies that this has absolutely happened before.

It’s just… interesting to think about.

(But also, seriously, the implications throughout this entire episode are kind of horrifying??? Like, within the first two minutes of this episode, we see the Chairman, uh, remind Obi-Wan and Anakin that the Jedi serve the Senate, aka Senator Chuchi in this case, and Riyo then confirms that, leading to Obi-Wan standing down. And that’s pretty much the tone of the entire of the episode! It’s wack.)