Rise of Skywalker - December 19, 2019

Chances are if you're reading this post, you've already seen Rise of Skywalker.  Don't worry - I'll keep this spoiler free!  I'm still processing my feelings about it, but I think I liked it, particularly the parts with this motley crew pictured above.  That was good stuff.  I'm sure I'll see it again, if not three or four more times.  And I can't help but think this isn't the last we'll see of these friends...

...or these friends!

That's right, as is our custom, we Dueled before a new Star Wars movie!  It's always slightly strange to Duel while the sun is in the sky, and even stranger when we actually get done in three hours.  Imagine that! 

Our Rise of Skywalker Duel was momentous for a couple of reasons, including the debut Duels for Diego and Jeremy as well as Lucas turning professional.  Congrats to all three!

Curtis chose chair one and repeated his 2019 Championship character pick with Luke Skywalker.  That's not a good thing on Carbon, though.  Rob (Emperor Palpatine) and Kaleb (Anakin Skywalker) also doubled their character picks from the Championship.

The face of a madman.

The fireworks started early when Jeremy made the decision to wreak as much havoc as possible.  His Darth Vader zeroed in on Rob's Emperor among others.  Rob couldn't convince Lucas to work with him to eliminate the threat, and thus the wrinkly old man (wait, is that Rob, or the Emperor?) started taking damage.  It was Jordan's Bowcaster, though, that extended Rob's lead in most times finishing last.  He was really glad to take vacation time for that experience.

The Fetts (Alex and Christopher) flipped early too in order to stay in the majority.  While that majority started picking off the remaining dark side, things took a brutal turn when Diego's Yoda went after David's Obi-Wan.  That included a Force Lift, which was a real back-breaker for David.  Ben's Mace eventually killed Obi in eleventh.  They did you dirty, David!

Lucas' Darth Maul, who had refused to help Rob against Vader, was now being targeted by Jeremy.  And to add to his worries, Curtis' Luke Skywalker played I Will Not Fight You on him too.  There was little he could do after that as the majority block rained down lasers.  It was Curtis' Princess Leia who got the final hit on Maul.  Lucas finished tenth in the Duel, but debuted as the eighth ranked professional on the charts - congrats Lucas!

Plotting and scheming.

Jeremy's Darth Vader kept up his chaos mission when he Threw Debris at Alex's Boba Fett.  But Natalie's Count Dooku was allowed into the alliance late, making Vader the only remaining target.  There wasn't much Jeremy could do after that.  Alex got the last laugh when, in a slightly risky move, he used Greedo's Desperate Shot for the exact seven points of damage he needed to oust Jeremy.  It worked, and Jeremy was a goner.

That left eight Duelers on the board, and Christopher had the unfortunate honor of being the next victim.  He tried to retreat to the other end of the board, but Kaleb's Anakin Wrathed to that side and dropped a five point attack to lay Jango to rest.

Once it got to seven Duelers, the light sabers were still nervous about the shooters, particularly when Jordan publicly announced he was going to use Never Tell Me The Odds to shuffle his Bowcaster back into his draw pile.  Nobody wanted to see that 11-point attack come back into play, so the Corellian smuggler got popped.  The final blow as a three point attack from Natalie's remaining Super Battledroid.

Curtis and Natalie in happier times...

And then there were six.  Alex's Boba was still limping from the Throw Debris, and Ben's Mace was fully loaded.  He wanted Curtis to follow him on an attack of Boba.  Curtis was a bit reluctant and, in an unexpected turn of events, Ben instead turned his attention to Curtis and attacked Luke!  That caused a lot of confusion as Diego/Yoda and Natalie/Dooku had to decide who they would follow into battle.  Curtis ended up winning the argument and the collective directed their ire on Mace.  Ben tried a desperate Wisdom to escape the situation, but Kaleb was waiting with an attack from Anakin to seal Ben's fate in sixth place.

After that stunning turn of events, the rest of the board was no longer comfortable with Yoda in the game.  You have to give Diego credit, as a rookie Dueler, he wasn't afraid to call his shots and be aggressive in order to advance.  It was out of respect for both the character and newbie Dueler came to a halt in fifth place.  That's a great Dueling start, Diego!

With four to go, Kaleb/Anakin and Curtis/Luke got into it with each other, but when Natalie was reluctant to join Curtis, Curtis tried to weaken Dooku with a Justice as a means to solidify their partnership against Ani.  It didn't work.  Natalie committed to go after Luke and before Curtis knew it, it was three against one.  Alex's Boba got the kill shot.  If you told Curtis he would have Luke on Carbon and finish fourth before the game, he'd gladly take it.  Well done, Curtis!

How romantic!

Then there were three!  Folks watching the Duel assumed Kaleb/Anakin and Natalie/Dooku would team together to play against Alex's Boba Fett, but that's not quite how it went down.  All three traded attacks with each other, but it was Natalie who bore the worst of it and quickly started running out of defense cards.  Kaleb finally dispatched her in third place.  Hand it to the amateur, though, Natalie has two top-four finishes in three career Duels!  We've got ourselves a natural!

Despite fawning to the rest of the table they didn't trust each other, Kaleb and Alex were clearly working together most of the game.  But Alex was fully loaded with all of his best cards, and topped some monsters after he reshuffled.  It would be a Wrist Cable that would prevent Kaleb from doing a double Anger, as he lost an action.  Alex stayed adjacent to Dooku as he Thermaled himself and the Count, and then unleashed a final Wrist Cable for the win.  Boba Fett!!!  Congrats to Alex, who is performing at an unprecedented level in league history and now has five career wins.  Here's the final order of finish:


12.  Rob/Emperor
11.  David/Obi-Wan
10.  Lucas/Maul
9.  Jeremy/Vader
8.  Christopher/Jango
7.  Jordan/Han
6.  Ben/Mace
5.  Diego/Yoda
4.  Curtis/Luke
3.  Natalie/Dooku
2.  Kaleb/Anakin
1.  Alex/Boba freakin' Fett

Folks...that ends things for 2019!  We'll be back in January, probably on the 11th, for the annual A NEW HOPE Duel, stay tuned for more details on that.  And go see RISE OF SKYWALKER, give them all the money so they'll make more!!!