Here’s Why Luke Skywalker Is the Strongest Jedi in the Franchise

There are a lot of different powerful Jedi and Force wielders in the history of Star Wars, but the Skywalkers have always been right at the top of the list regarding how powerful they are. Of course, the person who stands head and shoulders above all of the Force wielders in the galaxy is Luke Skywalker, who is often called the strongest Jedi in history. So, why exactly is Luke the strongest Jedi?

Luke Skywalker is the strongest Jedi in the Star Wars franchise because he possesses the same potential that the Chosen One, Anakin Skywalker, had. While his potential was not as high as Anakin’s, he had decades to hone his power and reach a level that only a few Jedi in the past could come close to.

The thing about Luke Skywalker is that much of his story between the events of the original trilogy and the sequel trilogy is unknown to some fans who couldn’t read his adventures in the comics and the novels. But Luke eventually became strong enough to actually perform feats we haven’t seen before in Star Wars. That said, let’s look at why Luke is the strongest Jedi.

Luke inherited his father’s potential

When we first met the child version of Anakin Skywalker in ‘Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace,’ we learned that he had extraordinary abilities. Qui-Gon Jinn, who studied the Prophecy of the Chosen One extensively, believed that Anakin was the Chosen One because he fit the description in the prophecy. But the most important part was that he believed that Anakin was conceived by the Force not only because he didn’t have a father but also because his Midi-chlorian count was higher than any Jedi ever had.

Midi-chlorians are microscopic organisms that live within all living beings. They are responsible for communicating with the Force, the cosmic power that governs the galaxy. So, if a person has a higher Midi-chlorian count, that means that they have a stronger connection with the Force. And because Anakin had an insanely high Midi-chlorian count, he had the potential to become the strongest Force wielder of all time.

Of course, Anakin never reached his full potential because he lost his limbs and got injured beyond the capabilities of Star Wars medicine. His Midi-chlorian count decreased dramatically when he was already the armor-clad Darth Vader. While he was still very powerful as Vader, he never reached his full potential and was still weaker than his master, Emperor Palpatine.

Nevertheless, before he fell to the dark side, he bore twin children with his secret wife, Padmé Amidala. Luke and Leia were born just after Anakin fell to the dark side. And because they were the children of the Chosen One, they were also born with incredible potential in the Force.

Luke, on his part, had a potential that was almost on par with Anakin’s own potential. Of course, he probably didn’t have the same Midi-chlorian count as the Chosen One. But the fact that he inherited his father’s genetics means that he was also able to inherit his insanely high potential in the Force. As such, Luke and even Leia always had an innate connection with the Force that was stronger than almost all of the other Force wielders in the entire galaxy.

The fact that Luke’s potential was high was seen in how fast he progressed as a Jedi. In only a matter of four years, he became strong enough to challenge Darth Vader and defeat him. He progressed so fast as a duelist and a Force wielder that he defeated one of the mightiest Sith Lords in history. Many well-trained Jedi in the past tried but failed to even fight Vader on par, but Luke not only matched his father but defeated him as well.

But the most impressive part was that Luke wasn’t even at his full power back then. He was yet to reach his full potential because he still had years of training left to hone all of the aspects that made a Jedi powerful. This included his discipline and wisdom, which were things that needed decades for a Jedi to develop.

Luke had decades to reach his full power

Anakin never reached his full potential because he became a shell of himself when he lost to Obi-Wan Kenobi on Mustafar. While he still became powerful by relying on the dark side, he never truly became the historically powerful being that Palpatine wanted him to become. But Luke, on the other hand, had decades to become stronger.

There were three decades between the fall of the Empire and the events of the sequel trilogy. In those 30 years, Luke never stopped training and honing his power in the Force. While he was already a gifted duelist when he defeated Vader, he improved so much that he could defeat all of the Knights of Ren on his own without any effort on his part.

By the time he fought Kylo Ren during the events of ‘Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi,’ he was clearly head and shoulders above his nephew. Ren was already putting his all into every strike that he tried to land on Luke. However, Skywalker either dodged or parried those attacks while clearly showing that he wasn’t even trying to kill the former Ben Solo. And the most surprising part was that this was only a Force projection.

Luke’s Force abilities also reached levels no Jedi has ever reached. When he rescued Grogu in ‘The Mandalorian,’ he threw and destroyed Dark Troopers around like they weighed nothing. Then, in a duel with an archeologist possessed by the spirit of a Sith Lord, Luke had to hold back his own power so that he wouldn’t accidentally kill the possessed archeologist.

On top of that, Luke could also use the Force to slow down the descent of a TIE Defender about to crash on the moon. The impressive part about that was that Luke did it from a great distance as he was on a separate starship when he telekinetically slowed down the crashing TIE Defender.

But the most impressive Force ability that he showcased was the power to create a Force Projection that he sent to the Resistance several lightyears away. This Force Projection looked and fought like the real Luke Skywalker, as he could overwhelm Kylo Ren in their duel. Nevertheless, the fact that he used so much power to create this Force Projection drained and killed him.

Still, Luke became one with the Force and became Force Ghost. As a Force Ghost, he performed a feat that we hadn’t seen before, as he could interact with physical objects when he touched the Skywalker lightsaber and gave it back to Rey.

With all that said, Luke could reach his full potential because he had decades of training to learn different powers and abilities. But while he was incredibly powerful then, he was still a student because he still needed Yoda’s guidance. That was how it was shown that Luke wasn’t the wisest Jedi Master, even though he was the strongest. Still, in terms of raw power and ability, no other Jedi was at his level.

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