“Midi-chlorians are a microscopic lifeform that reside within all living cells and communicate with the Force. … Without the midi-chlorians, life could not exist, and we would have no knowledge of the Force. They continually speak to you, telling you the will of the Force.” –Qui-Gon Jinn, The Phantom Menace.

For some fans, the biggest complaint they had about the first Star Wars prequel was not Jar Jar Binks, but the introduction of midi-chlorians to the mythology of The Force.

Since there was no mention of them in the classic half of the saga, some fans felt, that midi-chlorians somehow betrayed the mystic nature of the force.  Arguments I heard were that they took all of the mysticism away and turned it into science and made them hate the concept of the force.

A 1977 quote was found by StarWars.Com from George Lucas that is the first known instance of midi-chlorians and it made me ponder the concept enough to bring forth an explanation of what the midi-chlorians actually are based on the explanations in the film that everyone who shouts the most loudly about them seems to forget.

So let’s start with the quote from George Lucas, circa 1977:

“The Force is really a way of feeling; it’s a way of being with life. It really has nothing to do with weapons. The Force gives you the power to have extrasensory perception and to be able to see things and hear things, read minds and levitate things. It is said that certain creatures are born with a higher awareness of the Force than humans. Their brains are different; they have more midi-chlorians in their cells.”

— 1977 interview excerpt published in The Making of Star Wars

For one, this is proof positive that the classic trilogy was shaded by concept of midi-chlorians.

But my wonder is how do midi-chlorians take away from the Force?  They have in no way replaced the Force and there is nothing it can take away from that mysticism.  The Force is still an energy field created by all living things, but only some of those things have the capability of quieting their mind enough to listen to it.  The midi-chlorians continually speak to those with more midi-chlorians in their system, telling them the will of the force.

But Anakin was a special case and had more than any Jedi anyone had ever dreamed of.

Perhaps people were upset by the aspect of science involved, even though Qui-Gon merely sought to check Anakin’s midi-chlorian count AFTER sensing him so strongly in the Force.  But something Kyle Newman (director of Fanboys) said at our Prequels panel at Celebration V has stuck with me.  He said, “It’s kind of ridiculous to think that after a thousand generations the Jedi Knights hadn’t explored the scientific aspects of their gifts.”

And that makes a lot of sense.  In a world so technologically advanced, why wouldn’t they have discovered something different that set those who were more sensitive to the force apart from those.  A lot of people seemed upset by the idea that only people with this genetic predisposition were capable of becoming a Jedi instead of any old person being able to tap into that mystic force.  But this was always the way of things in the Star Wars Universe.

For one, Luke points out in Return of the Jedi that it runs strong in families genetically when he explains to Leia that she also has the capability of being a Jedi.  And even in the early EU and the old roleplaying games (of which I played many in my Junior High and High School years) there were individuals that were clearly Force sensitive and others that clearly weren’t.  But explaining that difference with a symbiotic life form that resides in all living cells that acts as a liaison between the voice of the Force and those who would wield it.

But the most important thing to note is that Qui-Gon never changes the definition of the Force, he only explains a conduit through which the Force acts.

But the nature of the midi-chlorians and the Force begs the question about those who wield it for the Dark Side.  If Palpatine uses the midi-chlorians to listen to the will of the Force and foresees everything he needed to to bring about the destruction of the Jedi, was that too the will of the Force?

Maybe so.  I’m reminded of another quote from Qui-Gon Jinn:  “Nothing happens by accident.”

It certainly made a dramatic film.  And midi-chlorians didn’t take anything away from my enjoyment of any of the Star Wars movies, and I hope you can look at it in a different light and not let it bug you either.  I was talking to a friend about this article who is as close to Star Wars as I am, only moreso, and he said I shouldn’t write it because at the end of the day people just didn’t want to be reminded of midi-chlorians.

But I think when you think about it logically instead of with a knee jerk reaction, they’re not that bad and serve an interesting story point.