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There’s one character already attuned to DC’s version of the Force: Buddy Baker, aka, Animal Man.
One DC hero would be a powerful Jedi . . . but it’s not one of the big three nor anyone likely at the top of most reader’s lists. In the DC Universe, many characters could be a Jedi–a Green Lantern, Batman, Superman. However, there’s one in particular already attuned to DC’s version of the Force: Buddy Baker, aka, Animal Man. Baker is the chosen avatar of DC’s life-force, the Red, setting him up to be DCs closest equivalent to a Jedi.
In the DC Universe, the morphogenetic field created by all life is called the Red. It is an all-pervasive “mystical and powerful” life force. It pervades every living thing, there are a few special people who are particularly attuned to this force and able to use it to great effects. Animal Man was chosen as an avatar of the Red and used the power initially to borrow the abilities of various animals: the speed of a cheetah, flight of a bird, strength of a rhino, and more including the electrical discharge of electric eels. As his understanding of his connection to the Red grew, Baker could access any animal throughout history, whether they were nearby. He could access the whole web of life and its abilities.
Much of the prior description of the Red and its champions parallels the Force and its Jedi. Obi-Wan Kenobi, teaching Luke Skywalker, gave this definition: “The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It’s an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together.” Both the Jedi and Animal Man serve as avatars of their respective great cosmic life-forces that bind every living thing. The Red and the Force are formed from life, bind life, flow through life, and are in each organism. Both find that the connection between avatar and force is found in the blood. Yes, even for the Jedi with the introduction of the midi-chlorians.
Assuming Baker’s natural connection with the Red as being attuned to the life-force of all living things, if he were to find himself in the Star Wars galaxy, he would be instantly attuned to the Force itself. That attunement, being the basis of the Jedi’s powers, would give Baker an incredible advantage as a Jedi if he were to choose that path. Baker has shown a remarkable affinity for exploring his abilities, navigating the web of the Red, and going far beyond what was initially considered possible. As a Jedi, Baker would do the same. Jedi Baker (perhaps, in keeping with the Star Wars crossover, his name should be spelled Jedi Bud’e Bah’ker) would explore the Force itself, pushing both it and his own borders to achieve something unique.
Flipping the perspective though, perhaps all of the abilities that the Jedi or the Sith use are just those they access through the web of life known as the Force and they utilize the abilities of animals, although they do not credit that source. Within the Star Wars galaxy, Jedi have used the Force to engage with animals before. Jedi were taught “animal bond” or “animal friendship, beast control, or beast trick” – the force ability required to control an animal. In Star Wars Rebels, padawan Ezra Bridger found an uncommon ability to touch the mind of animals throughout the galaxy, to calm them and guide them. In one instance, taming a dangerous creature required Ezra to completely surrender his inhibitions and release himself to the will of the force. He had to stretch his limits of understanding the Force itself and recognize that it bound not just sentient creatures but all life everywhere.
The parallels between the Red and the Force go beyond just the powers they provide their champions. In his more recent iteration, Baker discovered that the Red is not the only aspect of the morphogenetic field–there is also the Rot, the antithesis of the Red. In a manner, the Rot is the Dark Side to the Red’s Light Side. The Red is not alone in generating the life-force; working alongside and sometimes in conjunction (and sometimes at odds) is the Green which arises from the entirety of plant life (Swamp Thing is the most prominent avatar of the Green). As Anakin Skywalker and Count Dooku moved from the light side to the dark side, so too can avatars of the Red become avatars of the Rot. The Hunters Three were each an avatar of the Red that had been fully corrupted by the Rot.
Finally, both sets of champions have a similar afterlife. When Jedi have passed, if they have mastered certain techniques, they are able to serve as guides in the afterlife to living Jedi. In a manner, they are a Parliament that has maintained their unique essences after death within the Force. All of the former avatars of the Red, serve as Totems, from the Parliament of Limbs and serve as guides to current avatars of the Red.
Animal Man is often underestimated and yet his powers are far greater than they appear. His unique connection to the Red would enable him to be quickly attuned to the living Force in the Star Wars galaxy. As a Jedi, Baker would have a deep sense of the web of life throughout a galaxy teeming with life. Not what many would expect, Jedi Baker would be an immensely powerful Force wielder.
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