When people talk about Anakin Skywalker’s Jedi mentors, most fans immediately think of Obi-Wan Kenobi, and for good reason.
Think about Plo for a second — calm in a crisis, zero ego, treats clones like people, and somehow earns instant trust from younger Jedi (just ask Ahsoka). That’s a very different energy from the Council’s stiffness and even from Obi-Wan’s “older brother” dynamic.
So what was it about Plo’s way—his discipline, his restraint, his quiet compassion—that might have fit Anakin better than anyone else’s?
A Father Figure, Not a Brother
When Qui-Gon Jinn died, the Jedi Council made a hasty decision. Obi-Wan had just been knighted, was still grieving, and was immediately tasked with training the most gifted Padawan the Order had ever seen. Their bond was genuine—deep mutual respect, even love—but it always felt more like two brothers fighting through the galaxy together than a Master guiding his student.
Anakin needed stability. He needed someone older, wiser, and emotionally grounded enough to balance his fire. Plo Koon fits that mold. In Legends, he’s already a veteran of the Stark Hyperspace War and is described as a close friend of Qui-Gon Jinn, having fought alongside him during that conflict. By the time Anakin comes into the picture, Plo isn’t just another Council member in the background—he’s someone who knew exactly what kind of Jedi Qui-Gon was and why he would risk so much to bring a boy from Tatooine into the Order.
On screen and in The Clone Wars, we see the same traits that would’ve made him a good counterweight for Anakin: patient, introspective, strong without needing to show it off, willing to question the Council when morality and bureaucracy don’t line up, and leading by quiet example instead of barking orders. If anyone was positioned to step in after Qui-Gon’s death and take both Obi-Wan and Anakin under his wing, it wasn’t a fresh Knight still reeling from losing his Master—it was someone like Plo.
Plo Understood Anakin’s Strengths
On the surface, Plo Koon and Anakin had a lot in common. Both were natural pilots, some of the best the Jedi Order ever produced, and both favored Form V, the aggressive, defense-turned-offense lightsaber style built for momentum and power.
But where Anakin’s mastery of Djem So often came from emotion and instinct, Plo’s Shien technique represented control. He knew how to channel strength without letting it consume him.
Even beyond combat, both men shared a willingness to experiment with the Force itself. In Legends, Plo Koon was known for using “Electric Judgment,” a light-side variant of Force Lightning. That alone says a lot about him, he wasn’t afraid to explore techniques most Jedi would label “too close to the dark side,” as long as his intent stayed pure. That kind of flexible thinking could have resonated deeply with Anakin, who constantly struggled against dogmatic Jedi rules.
Respect and Trust That Already Existed
Even in The Clone Wars, we see how much Anakin respected Plo Koon. When the Malevolence threatened the Republic fleet, it was Plo who advised striking the ion cannon instead of the bridge, and Anakin immediately listened.
That kind of obedience was rare for him. Normally, Anakin would argue, challenge, or outright ignore orders if he thought he knew better. But with Plo, there was a quiet mutual understanding. Plo spoke, Anakin listened.
Another example came during The Lost Padawan arc, when Ahsoka went missing. While most of the Council urged patience or detachment, Plo approached Anakin differently. He didn’t lecture him about attachment or fear, he simply reminded him that if he had trained Ahsoka well, she would find her way back. That empathy calmed Anakin in a way no other Master could. It was the kind of reassurance he’d always needed but rarely got.
