Asajj Ventress is a supporting antagonist from Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
Background
Personality
Asajj was very sophisticated and often taunts Anakin Skywalker whenever they encounter. Her voice actress Nika Futterman describes her as "a bad guy with heart".
Asajj was shaped by a tragic history, of being taken from her mother, enslaved, saved by her Jedi Master, who died, and shifting the blame of his death onto the Jedi Order itself. Her many tragedies and hardships instilled into her a darkness that not even her master, Ky Narec, could fully heal.
She took great pride in her skills, reacting viciously when Luminara insulted her lightsaber skills as being "unrefined, amateurish; sloppy", and she developed an obsession with Obi-Wan Kenobi, partly for his stealing her master's lightsaber (her one keepsake of her master).
Asajj also had a lack of rationality, for blaming her master's death on the Jedi, believing them to have abandoned him.
She believed her path was to follow the Dark side of the Force and even side with the Sith, only to experience true betrayal from them when Dooku, at the behest of Sidious, ordered her death.
Taking to being a bounty hunter wasn't much of an improvement as Asajj didn't like the lack of morals that came with the job.
Powers and Abilities
Powers
- The Force: Asajj was extremely powerful and had a very strong connection to the Force. Although she was not quite as powerful as Anakin Skywalker, Asajj was still one of the most powerful Force users of her time.
- Telekinesis: Asajj utilized Telekinesis either as offensive or defense.
- Force choke: Asajj utilized Force choke to either weaken or kill her opponents.
- Mind control: Asajj utilized Mind control, to control the minds of other sentient beings, however, it did not work on individuals who have very strong wills.
- Force Jump: Asajj utilized Force Jump, to jump or leap at great distances.
- Force speed: Asajj utilized Force speed, to move at amazing speed.
- Force sense: Asajj utilized Force sense, to sense another sentient being's emotions, the future, ripples in the Force caused by momentous or traumatic events, or impending danger and the presence of the light side.
- Blood trail: Asajj utilized Blood trail, to use her own blood to mark her target(s) and track them through the blood mark using the Force in case they escaped.
Abilities
- Lightsaber Skills: Asajj was extremely skilled in lightsaber combat and a highly gifted duelist. Although she was not quite as skilled as Anakin Skywalker, Asajj was still one of the greatest lightsaber duelists of her time.
- Form II: Asajj was extremely skilled in Makashi.
- Form IV: Asajj was extremely skilled in Ataru.
- Jar'Kai: Asajj was a master of Jar'Kai.
- Expert Hand-to-hand Combatant: Asajj was extremely skilled in unarmed combat.
- Expert Pilot: Asajj was extremely skilled in piloting various speeders and every type of flying craft.
Weapons and Equipment
Lightsabers
Asajj's valued weapon and possession was her lightsaber. She had only had four lightsabers.
- First Lightsaber: Asajj built her green lightsaber during his apprenticeship under Ky Narec. It would remain in her possession until it was destroyed in her duel against Dooku.
- Second Lightsaber: Asajj received Ky Narec's green lightsaber, after her mentor was killed by a Weequay raider. It would remain in her possession until it was destroyed in her duel against Dooku.
- Third Lightsaber: Asajj received her first paired red lightsaber from Dooku, it belong to Dooku's former apprentice, the late Komari Vosa. It would remain in her possession until it was taken from her by Barriss Offee.
- Fourth Lightsaber: Asajj received her second paired red lightsaber from Dooku, it belong to Dooku's former apprentice, the late Komari Vosa. It would remain in her possession until it was taken from her by Barriss Offee.
Television Appearances
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Asajj was born to the Nightsisters clan, but while she was still an infant, the clan head, Mother Talzin, was forced to give Asajj to a criminal, Hal Sted (taking the poor child from her mother) for the safety of the clan. Asajj lived the early part of her childhood as a slave until Hal Sted was killed by pirates. She too would have died had she not tapped into her latent Force potential, and Force-pushed two pirates away from herself in self-defense. This was observed by a stranded Jedi master, Ky Narec. Narec took in the child, and raised and trained her as his Padawan. Asajj and her master formed a close and loving bond, and she trained hard with his guidance. Together, they fought for the oppressed people of the planet they were on, leading the masses in rebellion against various warlords. Alas, Narec was killed by one of the warlords they'd long fought, again leaving Asajj with no one. The death of her master drove Asajj to embrace the Dark Side, as she blamed the Jedi for abandoning Narec.
Taking up her master's lightsaber along with her own, Asajj self-trained in Jar'kai (wielding two lightsabers), and managed to get off-world to seek Count Dooku, whom she had heard was a Sith Lord. Dooku admitted she was more powerful than he had sensed but Asajj went too far by declaring herself a Sith.
Eventually, however, Sidious demanded her death, sensing she was becoming too powerful in the Dark Side and feared that Dooku might be training her as a Sith Apprentice, and would betray him. Ventress survived Dooku's attempt to kill her, and returned to the Nightsisters' clan she'd been born to long ago and was welcomed back. However, several attempts of revenge on Dooku, the first of which included using the Nightbrother, Savage Opress, led to the slaughter of the clan and Ventress was forced to flee and eventually became a bounty hunter.
Asajj would soon take up on a bounty for her former servant, Savage Opress, and tracked him down, only to find he had a brother, Darth Maul, and they had captured Obi-Wan Kenobi. Leading the brothers away, she helped Obi-Wan to his feet, stating she supposed she was there to rescue him. When the brothers returned, Asajj lent Obi-Wan one of her lightsabers, as Maul had taken Obi-Wan's, but stated she wanted it back. Obi-Wan said it was fine, "Red's not (his) color".
The two former enemies then crossed blades with the brothers, during which Asajj was disarmed and forced to fight Savage with hand to hand while dodging his saberstaff. Thankfully, Obi-Wan recovered his lightsaber and threw Asajj back the one she'd lent him.
Realizing they were outmatched, Ventress and Kenobi made their way to the cockpit and jettisoned from the craft.
Presumably, Ventress and Obi-Wan went their separate ways and Asajj continued to be a bounty hunter. She would later take up another, this one for Ahsoka Tano. She tracked her in the deeper levels of Coruscant, and captured her. However the two came to a mutual understanding and agreement due to suffering true betrayal; Ahsoka would plead Asajj's case and wipe her record clean if Asajj would help her find a way to clear her name. Asajj waited while Ahsoka contacted her friend, Barriss Offee, who gave them a lead at an old warehouse where Ventress led her and they went their separate ways.
However, Ventress was later ambushed by an unseen assailant, who stole her lightsabers. Anakin would later track down and attack Ventress, demanding why she betrayed Ahsoka, but Ventress managed to reveal she did not, that she was helping Ahsoka because the Jedi betrayed her for the sake of self-interest like Dooku did to her, that someone else had attacked Ahsoka, and told Anakin they were directed to the warehouse by Barriss. Anakin let Asajj go, and she was last seen walking the streets of Curscant. It was soon revealed that Barriss was the one who framed both Ahsoka and Ventress; it is unknown if Asajj ever got her lightsabers back.
Later during the end of the Clone Wars, Asajj Ventress teamed up with Quialan Vos on a mission to assassinate Count Dooku.
Disney Parks
Star Wars Weekends
Asajj Ventress appears as a meetable character during Star Wars Weekends at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
Trivia
- Asajj Ventress was originally supposed to be a villain in Attack of the Clones, but didn't get added and was put in The Clone Wars.