Jesse

Biography

Creation and Battle of Mimban

Jesse, initially designated CT-5597, was a clone trooper serving in the 501st Legion of the Galactic Republic's Grand Army during the Clone Wars against the Confederacy of Independent Systems.

Jesse participated in the Battle of Mimban alongside Clone Captain Rex and clone trooper Hardcase. The battle was initially under the leadership of Jedi General Laan Tik, who was killed, leading to Senator Jar Jar Binks taking over command. Rex then consulted with Jesse and two others to devise a plan for evacuating the 501st forces while he handled a shield generator.

Battle of Saleucami

By the time of the Battle of Saleucami, Jesse had attained a higher military rank compared to his comrades Kix and Hardcase. When the 501st, along with the 7th Sky Corps's 212th Attack Battalion, landed on the planet Saleucami to locate Separatist General Grievous, Jesse accompanied Captain Rex. Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi soon instructed Rex to take Jesse, Kix, and Hardcase on BARC speeders to search the wetlands. As they moved, a pair of commando droid snipers detected them and shot Rex, injuring him. Jesse called for Kix to protect their captain while he and Hardcase pursued and eliminated the droids. Kix then contacted Jesse, urging him to return quickly due to Rex's serious injuries. Jesse, noticing they were on farmland, decided to take Rex to the farmstead for shelter and medical care.

There, they encountered Suu, a Twi'lek woman who initially aimed her weapon at the clones. However, Jesse assured her they meant no harm and explained their need for a place for Rex to recover. She allowed them to leave Rex there to recuperate overnight. Jesse was left in command of the squad, and they proceeded through the wetlands to meet with General Kenobi, Clone Marshal Commander Cody, and their forces. When Republic forces eventually cornered Grievous, Jesse and his squad attempted to shoot down a shuttle trying to extract Grievous, but they failed to prevent the Separatist general's escape.

Training Ahsoka

Later on, Jesse contributed to the lightsaber training of Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano. Jesse joined Anakin Skywalker, the 501st's Jedi General, Rex, and other clones from the 501st at the military operations center to assist Tano with her exercises. Skywalker instructed the clones to form a circle around Tano and fire stun blasts at her to practice her defenses. During the initial attempt, Tano struggled, and Jesse's blast eventually stunned her, rendering her unconscious for an entire hour. Jesse and the others stood by, waiting for Tano to awaken, and Jesse quickly apologized when she did. The training continued, with the clones standing around and waiting between rounds whenever Tano was stunned and lost consciousness.

Battle of Umbara

In 20 BBY, Jesse was with the 501st during the Republic's attack to reclaim Umbara. After landing and securing the initial Umbaran position, Jedi General Pong Krell took command of the 501st when Anakin Skywalker was summoned back to Coruscant by the Jedi High Council. During their first attempt to capture the capital, General Krell led the 501st to the main road leading to the capital without allowing them to rest. An enemy attack forced Jesse and the rest of the 501st to retreat.

As the men grew weary from marching for long hours, Jesse and Fives requested a rest from Rex, but Krell denied their request. When ordered to advance directly up the main road without any reconnaissance, Jesse and Tup expressed their disapproval of Krell's strategies. Their advance turned disastrous, and the advancing squads retreated after suffering significant losses.

When ordered to seize an Umbaran airbase, Krell ordered the troops to advance through a narrow gorge straight toward the capital. This time, many of the men disagreed with the plan, with Jesse stating that Krell was insane for ordering them to advance without reconnaissance or air support, arguing that without knowing what they faced, casualties would be high. However, Rex instructed the clones to trust their leadership. Jesse held his ground against the Umbaran Militia's mobile heavy cannons while the clones suffered heavy losses until Fives and Hardcase devised their own plan and destroyed them using commandeered Zenuas 33 Umbaran starfighters.

After establishing a camp at the airbase, Krell tasked Jesse with stacking ordnance while Fives and Hardcase worked on the Umbaran starfighters, breaking the Umbarans' codes. By the time Jesse joined them, Krell had ordered a reckless attack on the capital to quickly aid Kenobi and his forces. When the clones learned about the long-range missiles in their path, Jesse agreed with Fives that they should use the Umbaran starfighters to destroy the Separatist supply ship causing the problems, rather than follow one of Krell's "suicide missions" through the missiles. However, when Krell refused to agree to their plan, Jesse continued working on the starfighters with Fives and Hardcase. Krell stopped them and insisted they concentrate on their attack. Jesse, Fives, and Hardcase then decided to attack the supply ship themselves, without Krell's support. They informed Rex of their plan, but he warned them that he couldn't protect them if they were caught.

Jesse, Fives, and Hardcase took the starfighters, pretending to be a recon patrol, and made their way to the supply ship. They couldn't destroy the ship's main reactor with its shields active. As they doubted their plan, Hardcase jumped out of his fighter and told Fives and Jesse to leave. Fives was hesitant, but Jesse convinced him to leave, saying he knew Hardcase and there was no point in staying. Jesse and Fives narrowly escaped while Hardcase stayed behind to destroy the ship, sacrificing himself. When Jesse and Fives returned, they were taken to General Krell, who punished them and sent them to the brig.

Rex's attempts to convince Krell to release Jesse and Fives were unsuccessful, leading Krell to order their execution. Just before the order to fire was given, Fives spoke out against Krell's orders, causing the firing squad to intentionally miss Fives and Jesse. They were returned to the brig to be dealt with later. Jesse and Fives were held in the brig while the other clones were sent into battle, unknowingly set up by Krell to attack a platoon under "Waxer" and fire on their own men. When Rex and the 501st and 212th returned to arrest Krell, they freed Jesse and Fives along the way, returning their armor and weapons. Jesse, Rex, and the other clones then stormed the command center to arrest Krell for treason. However, Krell escaped into the jungle. Jesse, Rex, Fives, and the other clones captured Krell, who revealed himself as a Separatist agent. Jesse agreed with Fives and Rex that Krell should be executed. He then watched as Dogma, who had previously trusted Krell's tactics, executed Krell.

Battle of Ringo Vinda and aftermath

Jesse fought with other members of the 501st at the Battle of Ringo Vinda, where Skywalker led them alongside Jedi Masters Tiplee and Tiplar, and their clone forces. When Tup shot and killed Tiplar, Jesse and the rest of the Republic forces retreated. After the battle, the 501st returned to Coruscant, and Jesse and Kix went to 79's, a bar frequented by clones. The two were at the bar when Fives, wanted for the attempted murder of Supreme Chancellor Sheev Palpatine, spotted them. Fives followed Kix into the refresher to give him coordinates to a location where he wanted to meet with Rex and Skywalker. Kix informed Rex and Skywalker, and they met Fives there, during which he was killed by the Coruscant Guard. Sometime after Fives' death, Jesse became an Advanced Recon Commando due to his combat skills.

Raid of the Separatist supply base

Based on intel from Jedi Quinlan Vos, secretly loyal to Count Dooku, Jesse joined a mission to steal medications, weapons, starship repair parts, and foodstuffs from a Separatist supply storage base on an asteroid. After Skywalker, Kenobi, Vos, and Akar-Deshu briefly investigated the site, Jesse and several other clones, including Rex and Cody, met them in three transports to load the supplies.

While Jesse and the others loaded the supplies, Vos discovered bombs inside the base set to detonate in three minutes. Unable to disarm the numerous bombs in time, Jesse and the others evacuated the base and escaped before the explosions.

Battle for Anaxes

Jesse later participated in the Battle of Anaxes, a prolonged conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems for the planet of Anaxes. During the campaign, the Republic forces initially struggled, and the planet was close to falling to the Separatists. Rex and Cody, suspecting foul play, met with Skywalker and Mace Windu to discuss their recent failures. Rex theorized that the Separatists were anticipating his strategies, and based on the tactics used by himself and the Confederacy, he believed Echo was still alive.

Windu allowed Rex and Cody to assemble a small squad of clones, including Jesse and Kix, to infiltrate enemy lines and assault the Separatist cyber center to determine if the enemy had Rex's algorithm. Cody enlisted the help of Clone Force 99, nicknamed "The Bad Batch," an elite group of clones with beneficial genetic mutations. Rex and Cody gathered Jesse and Kix to greet the mutated clones. As they arrived, the clone force flew their shuttle aggressively into the hangar, prompting Jesse and Kix to exchange disapproving glances. Cody introduced everyone, and the group boarded a Republic gunship to be taken behind enemy lines.

When Bad Batch member Crosshair questioned Rex's plans, Jesse defended Rex. Bad Batch member Wrecker intervened, grabbing Jesse by the throat and lifting him. Rex insisted Wrecker release Jesse, but the situation wasn't resolved until Bad Batch leader Hunter ordered Wrecker to drop Jesse. Jesse then assisted Rex and the Bad Batch in invading the Anaxes Separatist Security Outpost before they abandoned it to infiltrate a Separatist Cyber Center. While Rex and Tech extracted data showing the algorithm being traced from Skako Minor, they were soon overwhelmed by Separatist reinforcements, so they left the Cyber Center and returned to Republic lines.

Jesse was later present at the planning base for the attack on the Separatists' assembly complex, where Windu suggested moving their forces to the complex. He participated in the combined assault on the complex to seize it. After discovering that the Separatists had planted a powerful bomb in the complex, Kenobi ordered Jesse to evacuate his men. The bomb was eventually disarmed, leading to a Republic victory.

The Siege of Mandalore

By the war's end, Jesse's survival made him one of the oldest Jango Fett clones still alive in the 501st. Troopers under his command, such as Sterling, were much younger.

Following the Battle of Yerbana, the 332nd Division was formed to participate in the Siege of Mandalore, a joint invasion of Mandalore by the Mandalorian resistance and the Grand Army of the Republic to capture the rogue Sith Lord Maul. Jesse was among the clones in this company and accompanied former Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano, Lady Bo-Katan Kryze, and others aboard a LAAT/i gunship as part of the initial landing wave en route to the capital city of Sundari. Before the battle, he witnessed a hologram communication between Kryze and Prime Minister Almec. Shortly after, Republic gunships came under attack by Maul's forces, forcing everyone inside, including Jesse, to join the aerial battle, using his jetpack to fight.

The Mandalorian resistance and Grand Army of the Republic landed and secured much of Sundari in the ensuing battle, forcing Maul's forces into hiding. Jesse, along with other clones, was en route to reinforce the entry point on C-deck in the undercity of Sundari when Maul's forces launched a counterattack. During the attack, Maul easily overwhelmed their forces, asking about Tano. Using the Force, Maul looked in Jesse's mind and realized he was an older clone who had likely served under Tano. Knowing this, Maul took Jesse alive to extract information about Tano.

Maul took Jesse to his forces' hiding place in the Undercity. Jesse was placed in stuncuffs and held by one of Maul's leaders, Rook Kast, struggling as he told Maul he wouldn't reveal anything. As Maul mentioned Darth Sidious's plan, Jesse asked what he was referring to. Maul explained that the plan had a grand design in which he had a role, but he was discarded after fulfilling his purpose. Maul turned to Jesse, saying he needed information, but Jesse, unaware of Maul's Force abilities, refused. Maul explained that his mind would speak to him or break, using the Force to probe his mind for information on Tano. As the interrogation continued, Jesse cried out in pain.

After the interrogation, Maul brought Jesse to the Sundari Royal Palace, awaiting the arrival of Tano, Kryze, and Rex. As they entered, Kryze rushed Maul and fired her blasters, but Maul effortlessly deflected the bolts with the Force before lifting and dropping her. After this feeble attack, Maul used the Force to free Jesse from his stuncuffs, allowing him to return to his allies as a gesture of good faith. Once he returned, he apologized for giving Maul information during the interrogation. Tano forgave him, and Rex helped him out of the palace.

Order 66 and death

Following the capture of Maul and the defeat of his Mandalorian forces, Jesse, along with Rex, Ahsoka, and the remaining troops, left Mandalore aboard the Tribunal, a Venator-class Star Destroyer. On their journey back to Coruscant, their mission being to deliver Maul to the Jedi Council for trial, Darth Sidious, of whom Maul was increasingly wary, executed Order 66. This activated the inhibitor chips within all clones, including Jesse. The clones, now under Sidious' control, immediately turned against Ahsoka Tano, with Rex seemingly leading the charge. Jesse, accompanied by other troopers, stormed into the command room and opened fire on Tano, who managed to escape amidst the chaos and smoke. Upon realizing Tano had fled, Rex commanded Jesse and the other clones to pursue her, emphasizing the importance of Order 66.

Soon after, Tano captured Rex and successfully removed his inhibitor chip. Now free from the programming, Rex assisted Tano in her escape and severed all communication with the other clones. This left Jesse in charge of organizing the clone forces in their hunt for Tano. Following Tano and Rex's escape from the medical bay, Jesse received word that "Target 1" was on the move and inquired about Rex's location. This conversation was overheard by Maul, who Tano had released as a diversion, using a stolen wrist comm. Upon learning that Rex was still missing, Jesse questioned whether he had aided Tano's escape, but the answer remained uncertain. Later, Maul sabotaged the Tribunal's hyperdrive, causing it to head on a collision course with a nearby moon. After Tano and Rex seized control of the hangar control room, Jesse was informed that contact with them had been lost. Consequently, Jesse ordered several clones to converge in the main hangar to prevent any escape attempts, as the ship's escape pods had been previously destroyed. Maul also overheard this order.

When R7-A7, an astromech droid assisting Tano, located a shuttle in Bay 12 and opened the bay's blast door, Jesse and his troops emerged, rushing from the other bays into the central hangar and forming a line atop the doors to the repair bay. Jesse declared that anyone attempting to escape would have to go through them. Shortly after, he received information that Maul was heading to the hangar, just before Rex entered, seemingly having captured Tano and ordering the clones to cease fire. Jesse then commanded all available forces on the ship to gather at his location, before reminding Rex of their orders from Sidious to execute Tano. Rex asserted that he had the situation under control and attempted to convince Jesse that Tano, no longer a Jedi, was technically not a target of Order 66. Jesse countered, reminding Rex that he himself had stated they were under special orders from Sidious to eliminate her. Rex tried to appeal to their shared history, but Jesse, unable to overcome the influence of his inhibitor chip after a moment of hesitation, accused Rex of treason against the Grand Army of the Republic, declaring that he would be demoted and executed alongside Tano.

Before Jesse could carry out the execution, the droids aiding Tano and Rex dropped the hangar elevators. Tano used the Force to push Jesse into the opening, but he survived the fall. After regaining consciousness, he began firing at Tano, who had also been Force-pushed into the hole by Maul and caught by a cable from RG-G1. Realizing the elevator controls were locked, Jesse ordered the attack to be redirected toward the droids. Eventually, Tano and Rex were forced to retreat to the repair level after Jesse's reinforcements arrived and Maul escaped, resulting in the droids' destruction after they raised the lifts to clear the level. Jesse led a final assault on Tano and Rex, but Tano used the Force to repel him. At that moment, lateral control of the ship was lost following an explosion on the command bridge, triggering a chain reaction of destruction throughout the vessel. Tano and Rex escaped the Tribunal aboard a BTL-B Y-wing starfighter/bomber found in the repair bay before the ship crashed. Jesse, along with the other clones, perished when the Tribunal collided with the moon. Later, Tano and Rex recovered and buried Jesse's body, along with those of his men, marking their final resting places with their helmets.

Personality and traits

Designated CT-5597, the clone known as Jesse, derived from the genetic template of the bounty hunter Jango Fett, was a human male with a height of 1.83 meters, equivalent to six feet. Jesse possessed black hair, typically maintaining a shaved head throughout the Clone Wars, and was more seasoned than some clones participating in the Siege of Mandalore. He had tan skin, brown eyes, and a tattoo depicting the Republic crest on his face.

Jesse was a dedicated and patriotic soldier who proudly displayed the Republic crest on his helmet, mirroring the facial tattoo he bore. Like his comrades in the close-knit 501st Legion, Jesse demonstrated unwavering loyalty to his Jedi General, Anakin Skywalker. Within the clone ranks, Jesse was known for his sense of humor, a trait referenced by Fives before their scheduled execution, as he initially believed Jesse was making another joke. Jesse was also fiercely devoted to Captain Rex, confronting Crosshair and engaging in altercations with members of the Bad Batch when he perceived disrespect towards his captain. However, the inhibitor chip negated this bond.

Jesse enjoyed the confidence of both his fellow clones and Anakin Skywalker, who entrusted him with assisting in the training of his Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, on various occasions.

During the Battle of Umbara, Jesse voiced strong disapproval of Krell's strategies, believing they needlessly endangered the lives of his brothers. He was among the clones who challenged Krell's tactics and argued with Rex, but Jesse took a more decisive step by joining Hardcase and Fives in directly defying Krell's orders, commandeering Umbaran starfighters to execute their own mission. By the time of the Siege of Mandalore, Jesse had aged beyond some of the clones under his command, like the trooper Sterling.

However, the activation of Order 66 turned Jesse against the Jedi Order, rendering him blindly loyal to Darth Sidious due to his inability to resist the programming imposed by his control chip. Consequently, Jesse lost the aspects of his personality that distinguished him. He accused his brother and comrade Rex of treason and relentlessly attempted to kill his friend Ahsoka Tano, without hesitation. He believed he was delivering justice for treason, yet his conditioning ultimately led to his demise when the Tribunal crashed.

Skills and abilities

As a member of the 501st Legion, Jesse possessed proficiency in both armed and unarmed combat. He also possessed a strong understanding of military tactics. Having proven his capabilities as a warrior and earned trust as a seasoned soldier, he achieved the rank of ARC trooper. He demonstrated skill with several standard blasters used by the Grand Army of the Republic.

Equipment

Early in the conflict, Jesse wore Phase I clone trooper armor adorned with distinctive blue markings representing the 501st Legion. While his armor was unadorned during a training session with Ahsoka Tano, he eventually retained similar blue markings and transferred the design to his Phase II clone trooper armor. Jesse's helmet bore the cog-shaped symbol of the Galactic Republic, mirroring his tattoo. During the Battle of Umbara, Jesse also equipped his Phase II helmet with a macrobinocular set. As an ARC trooper, Jesse wore Phase II ARC Trooper Armor, which also had an option for macrobinoculars.

Jesse primarily used a DC-15A blaster carbine throughout the Clone Wars. As an ARC trooper, he also carried two DC-17 hand blasters. During the Battle of Saleucami, Jesse operated a BARC speeder. He also piloted an Umbaran starfighter during the Battle of Umbara.

Behind the scenes

Jesse's initial appearance was in "The Deserter," which was initially broadcast on January 1, 2010 as part of The Clone Wars: Season Two. Dee Bradley Baker, the voice actor for all clones in the series, provided Jesse's voice.

In "Practice Makes Perfect," the fifth episode of the 2022 anthology series Tales of the Jedi, Jesse appears wearing unpainted Phase I clone trooper armor. However, within the episode, Ahsoka Tano's test is overseen by Tera Sinube, whom she first encountered in "Lightsaber Lost," which is placed in 21 BBY. Jesse is depicted wearing painted armor in his first appearance, "The Deserter", which is set before "Lightsaber Lost" in the official chronological episode order, as well as the comic "501 Plus One," which is set in 22 BBY. Therefore, Jesse must have possessed an alternate set of armor or removed the paint from his gear for a period.