Chi Cho

For other uses, see Chi.

"I have led our people since before you were born. I've seen a hundred planets rise and fall through force of arms. If it's not the Separatists out there, then it is an aggressive and malevolent enemy nonetheless, and I will not let whoever it is jeopardize the security of the people of Pantora."

―Chi Cho, to Riyo Chuchi^[3]

Chi Cho was a Pantoran male politician and military leader who served as the Supreme Chairman of the Pantoran Assembly and the Exalted Ruler of the moon Pantora during the final decades of the Republic Era until his death during the Clone Wars. A stalwart and hawkish leader, Cho was a fierce defender of the interests and safety of Pantora through military force rather than diplomacy. An ally of the Galactic Republic, Cho worked alongside its authorities during the Clone Wars, a pan-galactic conflict between the Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems.

During the war, Cho lobbied the Republic to establish an outpost on the Pantoran protectorate of Orto Plutonia, leading to the discovery of the native Talz tribes and debate over the sovereignty of the planet. Cho dismissed the rights of the Talz and asserted that Pantora still had jurisdiction over Orto Plutonia, sparking the One-Day War between his forces and the tribe of Chieftain Thi-Sen. Cho led a group of Republic soldiers into battle against Thi-Sen's warriors, but the conflict quickly turned against him and he was fatally wounded. The chairman was reprimanded for his actions by the Pantoran Assembly, which ceded Orto Plutonia to the Talz and elected Notluwiski Papanoida as his successor.

Biography[]

Hawk of Pantora[]

"Our moon of Pantora is the only civilization in this system. I'm the one who asked the Senate to protect this planet. This wasteland belongs to us."

―Chairman Cho, on the planet Orto Plutonia^[3]

Pantora-up-close — Chi Cho served as the Exalted Ruler of the moon Pantora.

Chi Cho hailed from Pantora,^[1] a moon in the Outer Rim star system of Pantora that orbited the planet Orto Plutonia.^[5] A talented legislator and leader,^[1] Cho was eventually elected to serve as the Supreme Chairman of the Pantoran Assembly, a legislative body that governed Pantora. As Supreme Chairman, Cho ruled the people of Pantora as their Exalted Ruler. Motivated by the instability that saw various other worlds fall through the force of arms, Cho became a leading advocate of Pantora's military capabilities, believing that Pantora's security depended on such shows of strength. Cho also sought to maintain Pantora's colonial territories, which included the supposedly-uninhabited Orto Plutonia.^[3] In addition, Chairman Cho maintained diplomatic ties to the Galactic Republic, a democratic union based on Coruscant, which governed much of the galaxy. Despite the planet's relations with the Republic, including representation in the Galactic Senate, Cho was focused primarily^[6] on Pantora's predominance.^[3]

By the outbreak of the Clone Wars, a pan-galactic conflict between the Republic and its splinter state, the Confederacy of Independent Systems, Cho had ruled Pantora for far longer than its then-senator, Riyo Chuchi, had been alive. Cho and Chuchi had a difficult working relationship, with the hawkish chairman often stepping over and criticizing the idealism of the timid senator.^[3] Fearful of the fast-spreading Clone Wars and believing the Separatists were a threat to Pantora's security,^[5] Cho and the Pantoran Assembly lobbied the Republic for additional protection by the Grand Army of the Republic, prompting the establishment of an outpost, Glid Station,^[7] in a towering ice spire on Orto Plutonia.^[5] In 21 BBY,^[8] however, Republic forces had lost contact with the clone troopers stationed on Orto Plutonia. The concerned Pantoran Assembly sent Chairman Cho, Senator Chuchi, and a group of Pantoran guards to join a Republic Military team investigating the outpost.^[3]

The One-Day War[]

Protectorate in peril[]

"It appears we've stumbled onto an inhabited planet."
"Impossible. Our explorers have spent much time here over the long history of Pantora. No one lives here. They're trespassers."
"With respect, Chairman Cho, these creatures, the Talz, aren't advanced enough to master space travel. I think they may have been here longer than Pantora."
"Whoever they are, they belong to us. This whole system belongs to us!"

―Obi-Wan Kenobi and Chi Cho argue about the inhabitants of Orto Plutonia^[3]

Accompanying the Pantoran dignitaries to Orto Plutonia was a Republic military unit led by Jedi Generals Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, as well as Clone Captain CT-7567, known by the nickname "Rex." The Jedi also brought two droids, the astromech R2-D2 and the protocol droid C-3PO, to assist in their investigation of Glid Station. The group headed for the outpost with five LAAT/i gunships, one of which carried Cho, Chuchi, and their guards. Upon landing on the flats outside the ice spire, the Jedi ordered Rex's soldiers to survey the surrounding area and set up sensor beacons. To Cho's consternation, Kenobi requested that he and Senator Chuchi remain on their gunship until the clones secured the area. Cho protested that although he respected Kenobi's judgment, Orto Plutonia was sovereign Pantoran territory. General Skywalker inquired whether Orto Plutonia was technically unaligned, given that it was uninhabited, and the chairman explained that Pantora, as the only civilization in the system, had automatic jurisdiction over the planet.^[3]

GlidStationInvestigation-T — Cho observes General Kenobi and Captain Rex inside Glid Station.

Kenobi countered that it was up to the Senate to decide official control of Orto Plutonia, not the Pantoran government. At Cho's encouragement, Chuchi responded that Pantora reserved the right to consider the planet its protectorate. Relenting to Cho's wishes, Kenobi ordered Skywalker to stay with Chuchi and the droids while he, Cho, and the clones secured the station. When the company opened the bay doors to Glid Station, they saw numerous clone trooper helmets set on spikes. Cho immediately suggested that the Separatists had attacked the base, but Kenobi was uncertain. In the station's command center, Cho asked the general if the Separatists could be constructing a forward base on Orto Plutonia to target Pantora, but Kenobi, noting that the computer systems were untouched, concluded they likely were not dealing with a Separatist attack. Moments later, Captain Rex alerted them that his scouts had discovered a droid base on the other side of the ice ridge, confirming Cho's belief that there was a Confederate presence.^[3]

While Kenobi, Skywalker, Rex, and a squad of clones left for the Separatist base, Cho stayed behind in command of the soldiers remaining at Glid Station. Cho ordered the clones to get the station's weapons system back online and the shields operational as a precaution for whatever the Separatists could be planning. Despite Cho's steadfastness, Chuchi doubted that the Confederacy was behind the attack, pointing out that there were no battle droid remains or blaster marks at the base. Reminding Chuchi of his seniority over her, Cho chided her and told her that, regardless of whether the Separatists were involved, there was still an aggressive and malevolent force at play, and he would not allow them to harm the people of Pantora. Chuchi tried explaining to the chairman that they did not have to be hostile in their response, but Cho brushed aside her idealism and questioned her loyalty, pointedly asking if she was as willing to fight and die for her people as he was.^[3]

ChoKenobi-Trespass — Cho argues with the Jedi over the status of the Talz.

The Jedi's team, meanwhile, discovered that the Separatist outpost, two XT Beetle Transports, had been attacked similarly to Glid Station. By accessing the transport's security system, they discovered that a group of Talz had attacked the droids and was likely responsible for the attack on the Republic base. After visiting a settlement of the primitive species nearby, Kenobi and Skywalker returned to Glid Station, where they informed Cho that Orto Plutonia was inhabited. Cho dismissed their claims since Pantoran explorers had never found any indigenous populations, then suggested the Talz were "trespassers." Kenobi replied that the Talz had no access to space travel and may have been on Orto Plutonia longer than the Pantorans, leading Cho to angrily assert that the planet belonged to Pantora. Chuchi interjected that only the Senate could decide sovereignty if the Talz were indeed native to Orto Plutonia, at which Cho argued the Talz were just savages, citing their attack on the station as proof.^[3]

Kenobi reasoned that the Talz had only attacked Glid Station because the Separatist droids had provoked them, but Cho dismissed the general again. Believing the Talz were dangerous and had to be subdued, Cho ordered Captain Rex to prepare his soldiers for battle despite the Jedi's warnings that they had promised the Talz leader, chieftain Thi-Sen, that there would be no retaliation. Incensed, Cho asserted that the Talz were not protected by the Convention of Civilized Systems, meaning that the Jedi High Council had no say in the matter. Senator Chuchi timidly tried to argue against Cho, saying that the status of the Talz could be in doubt if the Jedi had been able to communicate with them, but the chairman accused her of standing against him. Though alone in his stance that the Talz were a threat, Cho agreed to the Jedi's request that he meet with Thi-Sen diplomatically.^[3]

Cho versus the Talz[]

"Chairman, can you hear me?"
"Senator, good. You must avenge me. As my final command as Chairman of Pantora, I order you to destroy the Talz!"
"I'm afraid I cannot do that, Chairman. The Pantoran Assembly has called you out of order. I'm to negotiate peace."
"No, Impossible! Peace? Never! I died for our people…"

―Riyo Chuchi and Chi Cho, just before the latter dies^[3]

Chi Cho insults Thi-Sen — Ignoring the Jedi's warnings, Chairman Cho demands that Chief Thi-Sen and the Talz submit to Pantoran rule.

Chairman Cho joined the Jedi, Chuchi, C-3PO, and a group of clones led by Rex to the designated meeting spot, the defunct Separatist outpost, traveling there by individual speeders. Once the group arrived, Cho ordered Rex to station his soldiers on a nearby ice ridge, where they would attack the Talz once they arrived. Kenobi demanded that Cho stand down, but when the chairman reasserted Pantora's territoriality over the Republic, Kenobi informed him that the Talz were already there, having tracked the group since they left Glid Station. After Skywalker ordered the clones to stand down and refrain from provoking the Talz, Cho and the others entered the droid base. Inside, Kenobi and Skywalker greeted Thi-Sen with C-3PO as a translator and the Talz chieftain welcomed the Pantorans to his home, hoping they came in peace. Disregarding Thi-Sen's warm welcome and Chuchi's attempt to speak in his place, Cho demanded that C-3PO tell Thi-Sen that the planet belonged to Pantora and that the Talz had no right over the Pantorans.^[3]

General Kenobi attempted to dissuade Cho, but the chairman declared that the matter was now an internal affair for the Pantorans. Acceding to Cho's demands, C-3PO translated his message to Thi-Sen, who reacted angrily and gave Cho an ultimatum: if he did not leave Orto Plutonia, the Talz would wage war against the trespassers. Choosing to go to war with the Talz, Cho ordered the Republic soldiers to mount their speeders and follow him into battle. At Skywalker's insistence, Rex joined them in order to protect the Pantoran leader. While Cho and his forces departed, the Jedi and Chuchi returned to Glid Station, determined to procure the authority to stop Cho's preemptive strike. Cho, meanwhile, led his group of soldiers through an ice canyon, where a trio of Talz, riding native narglatches, awaited them. Cho ordered the clones to fire on the Talz once they were in range, but Rex informed him they only had the authority to protect him. As the group approached the Talz, however, Thi-Sen's war party rose from under the snow to ambush them.^[3]

Chi Cho dead — Chi Cho dies stripped of authority and reprimanded by the Pantoran Assembly for his cruel actions.

Quickly surrounded by the Talz, the clone troopers formed a defensive circle with their speeders, with Chairman Cho in the center. One Talz warrior broke through the barricade and struck down a Pantoran Guard, but was killed by the other before it could attack Cho himself. With the Talz, led by Thi-Sen, advancing and picking off clones with their volley of spears, Rex ordered his men to retreat, to Cho's anger. Before he could protest, however, Cho was pierced through the back with a spear, calling the clones savages as he fell to the ground. Rex killed numerous Talz attempting to kill Cho, then placed the chairman onto his speeder and retreated with the surviving clones. While Cho was in battle, Senator Chuchi contacted the Speaker of the Pantoran Assembly and petitioned him to approve intervention by the Jedi Council. At the Speaker's request, the Assembly hastily declared Cho out of order and granted Chuchi the authority to negotiate a peaceful settlement with the Talz on behalf of Pantora.^[3]

As Chuchi and the rest of the Republic detachment from Glid Station headed to the frontline, Thi-Sen's warriors cornered the surviving clones near a ravine. Chairman Cho regained consciousness as the clones fired at the oncoming Talz, but the arrival of the five LAAT/i gunships led to a brief ceasefire. Chuchi and the Jedi disembarked a gunship and approached Rex as the reinforcements took their positions. Rex informed Chuchi that the chairman was wounded, and she knelt by his side. Chuchi asked if Cho could hear her and, as he died, he ordered her to avenge him by destroying the Talz. Removing his hand from her shoulder, Chuchi denied his request and stated that the Pantoran Assembly had reprimanded him for his actions and had given her authority to negotiate peace with the Talz tribes. Bewildered, Cho exasperatedly exclaimed that peace was impossible and that he had died for his people before drawing his final breaths.^[3]

Legacy[]

"To die for one's people is a great sacrifice; to live for one's people, an even greater sacrifice. […] We will leave Orto Plutonia under the watchful eyes of the Talz from this day forth, and recognize your sovereignty as a free and equal people."

―Senator Chuchi establishes peace with the Talz after Chi Cho's death^[3]

Chuchi peace — Senator Chuchi negotiates peace with Thi-Sen after Cho's death.

After Cho's death, Senator Chuchi removed^[3] his military cap^[1] and, with C-3PO as a translator, approached Thi-Sen and his war party. Chuchi lodged a Talz spear into the ground between them, then placed Cho's cap on the weapon. Chuchi told the chieftain that it was braver to live for one's people than to die for them, directly echoing and contrasting what Cho had told her earlier. Offering peace between Pantora and the Talz, she convinced Thi-Sen to relent, and he dug his spear into the ground alongside hers. Soon after establishing peace and ending the One-Day War, Chuchi and the Republic forces left Orto Plutonia,^[3] and the Pantoran Assembly hastily voted to abandon Glid Station and officially cede sovereignty of the planet to the indigenous Talz tribes.^[5]

With Cho dead, the office of Supreme Chairman was opened and Assemblyman Notluwiski Papanoida, a popular figure among the Pantorans, was elected to succeed him^[7] and proved to be a far more reasonable leader than he had been. Papanoida and Senator Chuchi enjoyed a closer relationship than she had had with Cho, with the elder chairman guiding her as she,^[9] freed from under Cho's heel, grew into a passionate and outspoken leader in the Senate.^[10] To many Pantorans, Chi Cho's "One-Day War" represented both the dangers of political power and the triumph of diplomacy and democracy. In addition to other events in subsequent decades, Chairman Cho's selfish crusade against the Talz greatly diminished the Pantoran people's aspirations for recognition as a galactic power. Cho also shared his name with the noble Kyja Cho.^[11]

Personality and traits[]

"Senator, I am willing to fight and die for my people. It's time to ask yourself if you are brave enough to do the same."

―Chairman Cho, to Senator Riyo Chuchi^[3]

Chi Cho was a male Pantoran^[4] who stood at 1.98 meters, or 6 feet and 6 inches tall.^[1] He had gold eyes and black hair, which had begun to gray by the time of the Clone Wars, and he often kept pulled back into a bun.^[3] Like other Pantorans, Cho had golden facial tattoos to symbolize his status in Pantora's sophisticated society. Though the tattoos were nothing more than simple lines, they recalled symbology from ancient Pantoran texts.^[6]

Chi Cho leading attack — Cho was a staunch militant and was willing to fight and die in the name of his people.

Cho was a steadfast defender of Pantora's interests,^[1] but he became ruthless in his beliefs and patriotism^[4] through his long years of service. Seeing the downfall of hundreds of worlds around him to violent force made him a staunch war hawk, disinterested in diplomatic work or finding peaceful solutions to conflict. Due to his intense fear of outside threats to Pantora, Cho was an ally of the Galactic Republic, which he petitioned to increase its military presence in his system.^[3] Despite being allied with the government, Cho focused primarily on the needs of his people^[6] and saw the Republic and the Jedi Order as nothing more than tools of blunt force.^[4] He was likewise contemptuous of the Galactic Senate and its standards and was curt and dismissive towards Senator Chuchi, who he saw as naïve and inexperienced due to her youth and idealism.^[3]

Chairman Cho was a colonialist, deeming any society lesser than Pantora's^[3] highly developed and ancient culture^[6] as uncivilized and savage. He believed that the Talz were nothing more than violent animals despite evidence of their rich culture and treated them as though they were trespassers on Orto Plutonia. Cho was unwilling to admit that the Pantoran government was misinformed on the history of Orto Plutonia and fiercely denied that the Talz had likely been native to the planet for far longer than Pantorans had explored it. He refused to negotiate the sovereignty of Orto Plutonia with them, instead declaring that the interests of Pantora overrode their rights as a species and even going so far as to claim that the Convention of Civilized Systems did not cover them. In his blind hatred of the Talz and fear that they posed a threat to Pantora, Cho made the ill-conceived decision to go to war, misguidedly believing that he was acting for the good of his people and losing his life in the process.^[3]

Equipment[]

Because of his high status on Pantora, Chairman Cho wore fine-tailored clothing and elegant jewelry.^[6] During his time on Orto Plutonia, shortly before his death, he wore a military outfit, complete with an overcoat^[3] and a cap with warm earmuffs.^[1] Aside from his refined clothes,^[6] Cho was also the owner of a white and gold blaster pistol.^[1]

Behind the scenes[]

"Are there any historical figures you can liken to Chairman Cho? Any historical events you feel are similar to those that unfold in "Trespass"?"
"Not really one person, but there are any number of recent events that inform the episode. The ethnic cleansing that went on in the former Yugoslavia. The Rwandan genocide. Darfur. Unfortunately, the list goes on and on. Cho is one of those bullies that lead by inciting blood-lust and hatred of 'the outsider' rather than by any positive visionary message. There always seems to be a Cho lurking about, ready to bloody the water."

―Pete Vilmur and Brian George on the character of Chi Cho^[12]

Chi Cho was created for "Trespass," the fifteenth episode of the first season of the animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, which aired on January 30, 2009, and was directed by Brian Kalin O'Connell and written by Steven Melching.^[13] In "Trespass," Cho was voiced by actor Brian George, who had previously lent his voice to King Katuunko in The Clone Wars. George first read for the part of Chi Cho in his agent's office, where he listened to a demo recording of the character's lines by a worker from Lucasfilm. According to George, Lucasfilm liked the quality of the demo recording and asked actors auditioning for the part to incorporate the mild South African accent used in the demo into their performances. Because of both Cho's role in the script and Lucasfilm's request for him to audition with the South African accent, George finalized his version of the character by drawing upon the leaders of South African apartheid as inspiration.^[12]

In an interview with Pete Vilmur for StarWars.com, George compared Chairman Cho's actions in "Trespass" to not only South African apartheid but several real-world atrocities, including the ethnic cleansing in the Bosnian War, the Rwandan Genocide, and the Darfur Genocide. To George, Cho could not be compared to any one historical figure but was instead representative of any group motivated by "blood-lust and hatred of 'the outsider' rather than by any positive visionary message." George liked that Cho doesn't learn from his mistakes or develop over the episode, appreciating that the character didn't face any "epiphany" and instead remained blindly prejudiced, which he felt was more reflective of real life.^[12]