The story of Count Dooku is far deeper than most casual Star Wars fans may realize. By the time we meet him in the prequel trilogy, where he's played by Christopher Lee, he had already fallen from the Jedi Order into the arms of the Sith Lord Darth Sidious. But Dooku was the Anakin Skywalker of his day. He was the Hero, the Rogue, the Ignored. His fall from grace was a catastrophic failure on the part of the Jedi; Anakin’s own fall was merely the final nail in the coffin.
Dooku’s complicated story is something that should be explored in as much detail as possible, ideally in a multi-film or multi-season TV series. Let's have a look at how that could work.
Beware SPOILERS from here on out!
As a baby, Dooku was rejected and left for dead by his own father after discovering he was Force-sensitive. Thanks to a Jedi Seeker, he was brought to the Jedi Temple from Serenno. He was then raised among other younglings and inducted into the Hawk-Bat Clan, led by Master Tera Sinube. Here, Dooku would meet long-time friend Sifo-Dyas, who will come up a few times in this story. Young Dooku’s natural abilities with the Force earned the jealousy of his peers, not that he helped his cause; he often isolated himself, giving he appearance that he thought himself superior.
If we were to make a TV show out of Dooku's life, a sudden plot twist in season 1 would be him returning to his home planet of Serenno. Lead by Tera Sinube and Grand Master Yoda himself, the Hawk-Bat Clan would come to Dooku’s home world to attend the Galactic Festival. Dooku would meet two children, Ramil and Jenza, who show him the Great Assembly in the Palace. Intrigued by the histories and artifacts on display, Dooku would accidentally get too close, unintentionally awakening the Tirra’Taka, an ancient Serrennian Dragon, and causing a sudden earthquake. Count Gora, upon discovering that his estranged son was the cause of the quake, confronts Yoda, exclaiming that he never wanted to see his son ever again. Dooku, desiring to know of his origins, asks Yoda who he truly was and where he came from… and Yoda revealed that Ramil and Jenza are his siblings and that Count Gora is his father.
Upon returning to Coruscant, Dooku faces some of his most difficult tests after realizing that his own father rejected him without a second thought. This theme of rejection would always be an underlying factor in Dooku’s story, something he must either give in to or overcome. Other notable events in Dooku's life include the tale of his near-expulsion from the Jedi Order after discovering the Bogan Collection (forbidden artifacts that were associated with the Dark Side of the Force) and Master Lene Kostana’s extreme methods of testing the youngling’s resistance to the dark side. All of this fosters a rebelliousness in young Dooku. We would also see Dooku undergo his initiate trials, overcoming his youthful doubts and hardships to be selected by Grand Master Yoda himself as his Jedi Padawan.
Already, we have several plot points that begin to interweave, making Dooku’s story complex from the very beginning of his life. An opening season focusing on younglings would be something that we haven’t really seen. It would be more than just a glimpse, really digging deep into the trials and tribulations that younglings must endure to simply become Padawans. Imagine the inner strength required to become a Jedi Knight, or even a Master. Well, that would be for Season 2. Let’s have a look.
A second season would cover Dooku’s growth under Yoda, but also their increasing differences. Not all master-padawan relationships were as close as Anakin and Ahsoka's. Many were fraught with difficulty and tension, with neither participant truly able to see the other’s perspective. Imagine the scenes we could have of Yoda and Dooku meditating or practicing lightsaber combat while the small gaps in their outlooks beginning to widen. Imagine Yoda’s response to Dooku beginning his practice of Makashi (the duellist’s form of lightsaber combat) and creating his curved lightsaber hilt (something the Jedi Order looked down upon). How would Dooku feel, knowing that he was already becoming different to most other Jedi in the order, just like Anakin would later?
Season 2 would begin to really pick up speed following the funeral of Anya, Dooku’s mother. His presence at the funeral would unleash Count Gora’s fury upon his son. Following this, Dooku would go on a mission with Master Kostana and her padawan Sifo-Dyas. After being taken hostage, Dooku would unleash Force lightning for the very first time in order to escape. Him tapping into the dark side would be a direct result of his mounting frustrations with everything he had endured up to that point.
There are other stories that could fit well in a second season, like Sifo-Dyas’ vision of a solar storm hitting the planet, as well as Dooku passing his Jedi Trials and officially becoming a Knight of the Order, or perhaps even a Master.
A third season would focus on the trials of teaching. For those who don’t know, Dooku had a padawan before he taught Qui-Gon Jinn: Rael Aveross. Dooku makes several mistakes as a first-time master with Aveross; he's overly stern and his teaching methods too tough. These mistakes would mostly be corrected when he takes on Qui-Gon as his apprentice.
At this point, Dooku is beginning to see the corruption within the Republic. While his resentment grows, he serves as the dueling master for the Thranta Clan of Jedi Younglings, aids the Dathomiri Witch Mother Talzin, and goes on other adventures. The main story throughout the season would concern Dooku and Qui-Gon Jinn, a relationship that would alter Dooku's fate forever.
Season 4 would be the breaking point for Dooku. There are so many stories a show could explore, beginning with the history of the Lost Nineteen, 19 former Jedi who left the order for one reason or another. It would foreshadow Dooku’s own withdrawal from the Order, becoming the Lost Twentieth.
This season would delve deeper into Dooku’s darker side as he first meets Palpatine (and later, his alter-ego, Darth Sidious), who promises to reform the Republic from within. Also, Dooku takes on another padawan following Qui-Gon’s promotion to the rank of Jedi Knight. There is little information regarding this padawan, but we know that she fell to the dark side. Perhaps we could see Dooku's own emerging dark side rub off on his pupil.
Ultimately, as was perfectly shown in the Star Wars show Tales of the Jedi, the death of Qui-Gon Jinn would prove to be the final straw for Dooku. After allying with Darth Sidious and killing Master Yaddle, Dooku meets with the Jedi Council to announce his intention to leave. He even offers his lightsaber, but Yoda allows him to retain it. With that, Dooku withdraws to Serenno, where his brother Ramil is ruling as count. During the Invasion of Serenno, a crisis created by Ramil as an excuse to help Serenno secede from the Republic, Dooku kills his brother and take the title of Count for himself.
Season 5 would be about the last hope for a doomed man. In Attack of the Clones, there is still a flicker of doubt in Dooku’s eyes when he first meets Obi-Wan Kenobi on Geonosis. The pain of losing Qui-Gon Jinn still affects him deeply; we see a man trying to hold onto the last vestiges of light within himself. Imagine the stories that could round up this five-season series: the creation of General Grievous, Asajj Ventress becoming Dooku’s padawan, Jango Fett and the Kamino plot and arguably Dooku’s greatest and most tragic moment, the Raxus Address, where he founds the Confederation of Independent Systems. The reason why I say this could be his greatest and most tragic moment is that this is the point where he can never go back. With Dooku’s announcement to the entire galaxy of the formation of the Separatist Movement, his path is set in stone.
A TV series focusing on Count Dooku has great potential to rival even Anakin Skywalker's tragic tale. Tales of the Jedi has given us a glimpse of how tragic a character Dooku actually is, all within the space of less than an hour. Imagine how much deeper a five-season show could go. Hopefully, one day, it happens.
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