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I've always found it interesting how at the beginning Star Wars Episode III, Count Dooku was able to easily beat Obi-wan Kenobi. Soon after knocking out Obi-wan, Dooku was beaten by Anakin Skywalker in one-on-one combat. Yet, at the end of Episode III, after a lengthy battle, Obi-wan was able to defeat Anakin.

My question is, does this triangle of who beats who, have anything to do with the fighting styles each of the Jedi uses? Or maybe in the case of Dooku over Kenobi, and Kenobi over Anakin, would the master generally know what their apprentice's (or apprentice's apprentice) weaknesses are?

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    Anakin was defeated because he became too proud of himself. He could of made a safe-jump instead of the artistic one and he would of eventually won against his former master.
    – Overmind
    Jul 7, 2016 at 11:32
  • Obiwan also had the high ground, Annikan had to lose. Of the many things from the prequels, high ground always wins and sand sucks are the two that stand out and affect me daily.
    – Dan Shaffer
    Jul 7, 2016 at 13:35

4 Answers 4

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You can find out about all the different styles of light saber combat here: Lightsaber Combat

Skywalker specialized in Form V, as the aggressive fighting form was a good match to his bold, confrontational personality type. ... Kenobi himself specialized in Soresu, adopting the style after coming to the conclusion that Ataru's lack of defensive capabilities resulted in Qui-Gon Jinn's death. While the defensive fighting form stood him in good stead against blaster-wielding opponents, his own confrontation with Dooku went less well, as Dooku's precision bladework simply worked around Kenobi's staunch defense

Vader would only find his match in his former master; Kenobi's mastery of defensive Soresu proved to be the perfect foil to Vader's all out offense. In one of the greatest lightsaber duels of their time, Kenobi would give ground before Darth Vader's relentless attack, guiding the battle to a location of his choice and seizing the tactical advantage. Darth Vader was viciously dismembered by Kenobi, and left to die on the shore of a Mustafar lava river.

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  • That's interesting it says that, when it seemed kenobi didn't actually lose to Dooku via lightsaber combat the second time round, it seemed he lost because Dooku managed to force choke and throw him?
    – Jared
    Nov 22, 2011 at 4:01
  • His first confrontation with Dooku led to a stab in the upper arm, effectively disabling him. You're exactly right about the second one; it seems Dooku thought Obi-Wan was beneath him by that point, while he was eager to test himself against the much-improved Skywalker.
    – KeithS
    Jan 11, 2012 at 1:27
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    And as for Soresu, the following is from the ROTJ novel: "thus had Ben and Yoda both instructed him: when attacked, fall. Let your opponent's power buffet you as a strong wind topples the grass. In time he will expend himself, and you will still be upright".
    – KeithS
    Jan 11, 2012 at 1:32
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The reason Dooku was able to defeat Kenobi in ROTS was because Kenobi's force wall was lacking, making it easy for Dooku to slice through and rag doll Kenobi. The reason why he beat a more inexperienced Kenobi on Geonosis was because Dooku specialized in Form 2, Makashi, which was a precision dueling oriented form most Jedi were not trained to combat, while the reason why Anakin beat Dooku in ROTS was because while Makashi lacked strength, Djem So, Anakin's form was based on strength, making it easy to plow through Dooku's defense. The reason Anakin didn't beat Dooku on Geonosis was because at the time, he had specialized in the Shien variant of Djem So, a form geared for blaster fire. However, Kenobi wasn't just a specialist for Soresu, the all-defensive form. He was advanced in Ataru (the kinetic and acrobatic offense form) and Shien, while he held some proficiency for Niman (a form incorporating details from all other preceding forms) and Shii-Cho (the basic, straightforward form all Padawans learn. The reason he beat Anakin at the very end of ROTS was because he fought smarter, not harder, as well as Anakin's arrogance and anger clouding his judgement and while Kenobi's simple and effective Soresu form allowed him to use his energy more efficiently, Anakin had tired himself out using Djem So to his fullest extent.

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    This is a pretty good argument. Can you back some of these statements up with sources, though? That can turn a good answer into a great one, and is particularly important with Star Wars, where a great deal of the old EU is now non-canon (to the extent that it ever was).
    – Adamant
    Oct 24, 2016 at 0:12
  • I would, but I got all of this from Star Wars versus series which, though they are reliable, I've watched a ton and there are too many sources to keep track. If you wanted to watch one, I'd recommend Antoine Bandele's channel or Jensaarai1. Thanks though.
    – StormGuard
    Oct 24, 2016 at 0:14
  • OK, sure. Here’s a tip: if you go to the Wookieepedia article on the various forms, there should be links to sources about the forms, which might help you find some references for what Obi-Wan knew, for example. Having the references is also really good since it frees people from having to look up whether Obi-Wan really does know these forms before upvoting.
    – Adamant
    Oct 24, 2016 at 0:15
  • But that said, most of this is correct at least in Legends.
    – Adamant
    Oct 24, 2016 at 0:30
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If I teach you as your Master or Guide, then I know your fighting style, strength and weakness. Anakin may have gained extra strength and by embracing his anger and sense of betrayal by Padme and Obi-Wan but his weaknesses were still there.

Actually, anger makes one often overlook the need to practice defense and thus leave holes that are easier to exploit. While Anakin and Obi-Wan seemed to be very evenly matched during their final confrontation in ROTS -- In actuality Anakin was probably much more deadly if he had been able to use the Force to further enhance his skill rather than channel it in just trying to overpower his former Master.

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  • This answer seems to be only tangentially related to the question asked. It should probably be edited to make your point more clear.
    – numaroth
    Nov 25, 2014 at 19:25
  • You seem to be posting a series of relatively low-quality answers in a row. You might want to consider taking the time to work on a single answer and make it longer and more detailed, perhaps with a reference or two to back up your points.
    – Valorum
    Nov 25, 2014 at 19:37
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No. Dooku did not penetrate Obi-Wan's defense. As stated, in the ROTS novel, Obi-Wan's Soresu was too good. Dooku was so strong in the force that he used the force to incapacitate Obi-Wan.

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    Can you add a link, or a quote of what you've mentioned from the ROTS novel?
    – Möoz
    Jul 6, 2016 at 22:43

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