50 most shocking moments in Star Wars history

18. Count Dooku cutting off Anakin’s arm (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones)

The prequels give us another big moment when Anakin loses a good chunk of his right arm in Attack of the Clones. There are many ways this could have happened, but it happens at the hands of Count Dooku. Don’t get me wrong, Dooku is a solid opponent, but I never would have thought he’d be one to get the upper hand on Anakin.

After being hit by Force lightning from Dooku, Anakin is able to recover, but not well enough. As he jumps back into the battle, Dooku is able to slice off more than half of his right arm. The Star Wars website actually breaks down every time someone lost a limb in the movies, which is helpful when it comes to Anakin (more on that next, don’t worry).

How much does the loss of most of his right arm affect Anakin? Not a whole lot, to be honest. He gets a mechanical arm that works well enough for him. I was more surprised at how he lost his arm than the fact that he lost it. If someone were to slice off his arm, I would have expected it to be the Emperor as a way to teach him a lesson.