Russo-ISC

Russo-ISC was a SP-4 ISC crime scene analysis droid who served the Jedi Order, working at the Jedi Temple during the Clone Wars, a conflict between the Galactic Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems. In 21 BBY, Russo served as a crime scene analyzer, working alongside Police Inspector Tanivos Divo, as they investigated the murder of the Trandoshan assassin Nack Movers, who had been murdered his girlfriend Ione Marcy and his bodyguard Cassilyda Cryar.

Russo's service with the Jedi continued towards the end the Clone War and in 19 BBY, he was assigned by Jedi Master Mace Windu to assist the Jedi in investigating the bombing of the Jedi Temple hangar. In the Temple's hangar, he met Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan Ahsoka Tano, who were also assigned the mission. Despite rumors that a Jedi was involved in the plot, Skywalker convinced Russo to bring Tano with him to interview the witnesses. They interviewed the witnesses in the Jedi Temple medical bay, where they learned it was Jackar Bowmani who had bombed the Temple.

When Russo checked the Temple's security footage, he discovered Bowmani was fed nano-droids, which went into the Abyssin's bloodstream, transforming Bowmani into a bomb that left only his hand intact. After Skywalker and Tano arrested Bowmani's wife Letta Turmond for feeding her husband the nano-droids, Russo went through the security footage again. The analysis droid confirmed Bowmani had acted alone, meaning according to his research, no Jedi aided the saboteur.

Biography

Coruscant work

Russo-ISC was a SP-4 ISC crime scene analysis droid, who was manufactured by Cybot Galactica^[2] and constructed on^[1] the galactic capital^[7] of Coruscant. He served both the Jedi Order^[3] and the Galactic Republic's Coruscant Security Force during the Clone Wars.^[6] As the modern Jedi Order's role as guardians and peacekeepers extended to crime-prevention and detective work,^[1] Russo worked in tandem with Jedi investigators^[3] and local law enforcement, keeping both updated on the evidence he gathered.^[6]

As the pall of dark side of the Force clouded the investigators' ability to use their intuition and connection to the Force, analysis droids such as Russo became more prevalent and were called upon to assist^[3] the Jedi with specialized work, including the analysis of crime scenes.^[2] This continued into the Clone Wars as the Jedi's services became overshadowed by their new duty as military commanders; a role in which the Jedi never felt comfortable.^[1] Russo and his team of analysis droids worked alongside the Jedi investigators to solve mysteries and assist in crime scene analysis as the Jedi increasingly relied on the technological resources available in the Jedi Temple.^[3] These resources included using the Temple's cutting-edge analysis equipment and facilities to help his team and Jedi Knights in their investigation. As a Jedi detective, Russo also had access to the vast trove of research material available in the Jedi Archives, which was tended to by librarian Jocasta Nu.^[1]

Movers's case

In 21 BBY,^[9] the notorious Trandoshan assassin Nack Movers was slain by his girlfriend Salenga Ione Marcy and Terrelian Jango Jumper Cassilyda Cryar; his bodyguard and assistant. Police Inspector Tanivos Divo had been monitoring all three of them for some time and knew Movers had previously evaded the law due to his connections.^[8] Jedi Master Tera Sinube and Padawan Ahsoka Tano were the first to discover Movers' corpse as they searched for Tano's stolen lightsaber in Movers's^[10] Jrade District^[8] residence. Marcy and Cryar fled from their home, but the Jedi pursued the criminals across the cityscape, and police droids arrested them at Coruscant elevated maglev train stations.^[10] After Cryar and Marcy's arrest, Russo joined the investigation, creating a crime scene examination report as he worked alongside Divo.^[8]

While analyzing the crime scene, Russo reported Movers's height and weight, and the substances discovered in his bloodstream. Movers was trained as a Malkite poisoner and Russo detected the Trandoshan assassin had been contaminated with the same Sennari drink that he used to poison his victims, with 11.3 of the Sennari extract appearing in his bloodstream. The rest of Russo's blood sample analysis confirmed the other substances in the Trandoshan's bloodstream were non-contaminants. Russo and Divo's examinations of knocked-over furniture and claw marks on a painting of Movers, Marcy, and Cryar confirmed that Movers's death had been near-instant after a series of convulsions from the poison, which was toxic to Trandoshans. All of Russo's analysis results were subsequently noted in the file Divo compiled on the case.^[8]

Meeting Skywalker and Tano

As the war continued to progress, the public's opinion about the Jedi Order and their generals became less popular.^[11] In 19 BBY, during the final year of the Clone War,^[12] the public's fear, anger and doubt led to the unthinkable: an attack on the Temple, resulting in one of the Temple's hangars being bombed.^[11] The bombing cost twenty-six people's lives, while dozens more were wounded. This shocking terrorist strike at the heart of the Jedi Temple crystallized how unpopular the war had become on Coruscant^[8] and proved how fragile the image of the Jedi as benevolent protectors had become.^[13]

As rumors spread that a Jedi might have betrayed the Jedi and planned the attack, Jedi Master Mace Windu assigned Russo to uncover the perpetrator. The Jedi Council also assigned Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and his apprentice Ahsoka Tano^[5]—the same Padawan from the Movers case^[10]—to the mission. As Skywalker and Tano entered the smoldering wreckage of the extensively damaged hangar, they discussed the possibility of a Jedi being responsible for the bombing. Tano doubted that a Jedi could bomb a place so sacred to the Jedi Order,^[5] killing their own colleagues and dedicated servants in the process.^[11] However, Skywalker reminded her that there were Jedi that did not agree with their approach. Therefore everyone, including Jedi, were potential suspects for the perpetrator.^[5] All Skywalker and Tano knew was the same as Russo, the seeds of doubt made the truth of the matter murky and unclear.^[11]

In the hangar, the Jedi met Russo, who alongside a few other SP-4 analysis droids had already begun investigating the debris. Russo told them that only analysis and investigation would prove what was true and what was not. Skywalker requested that Russo and Tano began the witness interviews together.^[5] However, the crime scene analyzer droid^[6] countered, requesting to interview the witnesses^[5] and survivors^[1] by himself as many of the wounded had heard rumors that a rogue Jedi was responsible for the bombing,^[5] which unsettled everyone,^[1] and the witnesses would therefore be ill will towards Tano. However, Skywalker disagreed, and he requested Russo brought Tano with him, as the bombing killed many Jedi, as well as clone troopers and Temple maintenance workers.^[5]

Interviewing witnesses

While they were in the medical bay, Tano told Russo the witnesses' distrust was troubling, as many of them had worked in the Temple for years. In response, Russo told her fear made even the most trusting individual irrational. One injured witness said he believed Jackar Bowmani was responsible for the hangar bombing. Tano asked the Pantoran witness to inform her and Russo on Bowmani's identity, while Russo looked up Bowmani on his datapad. The Pantoran told them Bowmani was one of the maintenance crew in the hangar. As the witness began his shift, he passed Bowmani, who had been working all morning in the section of the hangar where the bomb had detonated. It was last place the Pantoran saw Bowmani. Russo then showed the Pantoran an image of an Abyssin male on his datapad, and the Pantoran confirmed the image was of Bowmani. Russo asked the Pantoran witness if he had seen Bowmani since the explosion. The Pantoran replied he had not, as he did not see much of anything after the explosion.^[5]

With the knowledge of their presumed suspect, Russo and Tano prepared to depart the medical bay and Tano told Russo their next mission was to find Bowmani. At the doors, they met with Skywalker, who informed them the rumor about the perpetrator being a Jedi was growing. Skywalker told them he sensed increased anger and confusion throughout the Temple. In response, Tano told Skywalker she and Russo had a lead, and they were looking for Bowmani, as she showed Skywalker the holographic information of Bowmani on an imagecaster. Russo informed Skywalker one of the witnesses saw Bowmani in the vicinity before the bomb exploded and Bowmani had been unaccounted for since the explosion. Skywalker responded that no one just disappeared, and in response, Russo concluded the bombing must have therefore been well planned out. Skywalker informed his colleagues it had to be well planned out for Jedi to not detect the bombing plot. He then left the medical bay to talk with^[5] Chief of Security^[14] Cin Drallig, while Tano and Russo continued their investigation.^[5]

An unexpected discovery

Russo and Tano created a sensor composite of the crime scene by assembling data from security sensors, as well as efficiency and safety monitors that covered the hangar facility. They holographically projected these streams of data over the bombing site, enabling an in-context analysis of the explosion to be conducted. Russo, Skywalker and Tano were then able to walk through varying points of the bomb site, and throttle backward and forward in the timeline, to piece together the chain of events.^[8]

After the projection was assembled, Russo and Tano scanned the holographic reconstruction of the explosion, studying the remains of the gunships and other debris.^[15] Tano used the trajectory of the debris to conclude the precise origin-point of the blast, and Russo questioned why there was no bomb residue. When Skywalker arrived, Tano informed him that she and Russo were under the assumption that whoever blew up the hangar triggered a ship to explode. As Russo used the shrapnel to see if that could help identify the perpetrator, Tano speculated that based off what the Pantoran witness told them, Bowmani may have planned to bomb the hangar and kept quiet.^[5]

A moment later, Russo informed Tano and Skywalker he discovered an anomaly that should not have been there.^[5] From the control panel, Russo resumed the playback, then tapped on his datapad, moving the holographic projection around to reveal pieces of debris from the blast origin.^[5] They contained nano-droids, which where 1.5 nanometer-long^[8] microscopic droids of a highly volatile nature.^[5] These droids were usually undetectable, except by dedicated sensors. They were illegally reprogrammed, allowing them to reconstitute carbon-based matter into dangerously unstable configurations, which in turn enabled them to create violent explosions, such as the Temple bombing.^[8] After Russo's revelation, Skywalker instructed him to go through security footage and check if Bowmani went to any other part of the Temple.^[5]

The truth behind Bowmani

In the Jedi Temple central security station, a SP-4 analysis droid gave Skywalker a datapad with the file on Bowmani, which revealed that Bowmani was the foreman of all the Temple's gunships, bombs and weapons and he specialized in nano-weaponry. Skywalker and Tano then met with Russo, who was scanning security monitors at high speeds. Skywalker questioned Russo if the monitors were going too fast for him to comprehend. Russo responded it was simple data and at that pace, he could view hundreds of hours of footage.^[5] The pace Russo could tap into the security systems and review the holographic security footage was far faster than any Jedi could view them.^[13]

Skywalker asked Russo if he found Bowmani, to which the droid lifted up^[5] his optics and scanning visor^[6] and replied he had not. Therefore, Skywalker informed Russo he was going to gather some Jedi to search the Temple, elaborating that if Bowmani was still in the building, he may have been planning another attack. Russo gestured to^[5] the other forensics droids^[4] and replied that instead of Jedi he had droids who could complete the task much faster. While the Jedi departed from the central security station, Russo gave his subordinates their next assignment.^[5]

After Russo did further investigation, the visored detective reported to Skywalker that he had found Bowmani. Skywalker and Tano had just finished their latest report to the Jedi High Council and Skywalker ordered Russo to lock down all exits so Bowmani could not escape. However, when Skywalker and Tano arrived, they scanned the room, confused on why the saboteur was not in sight. Skywalker questioned Russo on Bowmani's location,^[5] to which the ISC droid^[6] replied part of him was in there. Skywalker retorted it was a bad time for jokes, before Russo revealed that only Bowmani's hand remained. The rest of Bowmani exploded as his body was transformed into a walking bomb.^[5] The nano-droids in Bowmani's system triggered the carbon bomb to explode, resulting in Bowmani's death, along with eleven other maintenance workers, as well as eight clones and six Jedi, while dozens of others were wounded.^[8]

Russo gave Tano a handheld sensor which revealed Bowmani's hand was covered in nano-droids. Tano asked how the droids got in Bowmani's bloodstream, prompting Skywalker to tell Russo and Tano they needed to search Jackar's home for evidence. As Tano and Skywalker searched Bowmani's home, Tano discovered nano-droid traces in the food disposal, which confirmed the Abyssin had consumed them. Bowmani's wife Letta Turmond soon arrived and Skywalker informed Turmond they were taking her in for further questioning, but she fled down an alley. The Jedi quickly apprehended Turmond, and Skywalker pressured her to confess she fed Bowmani the nano-droids.^[5]

Aftermath

Shortly after Turmond's arrest, Skywalker and Tano reported to Windu and Yoda that Turmond was being held in a cell in the Jedi Temple Detention Center to await further questioning. During their report, Russo contacted Tano on an imagecaster and informed her that he found no other nano-droids in his search of Temple. He also was relieved that based off the security footage, Bowmani acted alone, which meant that according to his analysis, no Jedi was involved in the bombing plot. Tano thanked Russo for his assistance in the investigation.^[5]

After the transmission ended, Windu informed Skywalker and Tano that although there was no indication of Jedi involvement in the bombing, he was deeply concerned that the incident served to fuel anti-Jedi sentiment amongst Republic citizens.^[5] Turmond was later transferred to military custody and detained at the Republic Center for Military Operations, where she revealed to Tano that a Jedi had convinced her to feed the nano-droids to Bowmani. However, Turmond was strangled to death before she could reveal to Tano the name of the culprit.^[16] Ultimately, Skywalker proved that Tano's close friend Barriss Offee was the Jedi who had masterminded the bombing of the Temple hangar,^[17] murdered Turmond and subsequently framed Tano for her crimes.^[16] Once the verdict was delivered to Offee, intelligence was shared with Inspector Divo, who reviewed a redacted report of Russo, Skywalker and Tano's investigation.^[8]

Legacy

Tan Divo's grandson, police commissioner Exantor Divo of the New Republic's capital^[8] planet^[18] Hosnian Prime, later catalogued both the Movers and the Jedi Temple bombing cases in Scum and Villainy: Case Files on the Galaxy's Most Notorious,^[8] a series of security files he published in 34 ABY.^[19] Russo's work in both cases was reflected in Scum and Villainy alongside a portrait of him.^[8]

Characteristics

Personality and traits

Russo-ISC was a modified SP-4 analysis droid,^[6] who stood at 1.8 meters (5 feet, 11 inches).^[2] He had black sensors, as well as full-plate, metal coverings^[6] that were mostly blue and silver, but had some gold plating on his head, limbs and fingertips. He also had the symbol of the Jedi Order displayed on the left side of his chest plate.^[5] Russo's full-body plating was featured on ISC droids, but was normally absent from other analysis droids, as Russo and his ISC counterparts did not need the same level of irradiation cleaning.^[6]

Russo was a no-nonsense analysis droid,^[13] designed to analyze crime scenes and interview witnesses.^[20] He also was a team leader, taking command over the other analysis droids who were plugged into the sensor and security networks of the Jedi Temple. Russo's detectable sense of pride, keen perception and a strong independent streak enabled him to take on some of the hardest cases the Jedi faced.^[3]

Like many ISC droids, Russo had the beginnings of a quirky personality.^[6] His speech was punctuated by him habitually flipping^[21] his optics and scanning visor up and down while stating brusque and over-dramatic revelatory statements. Russo's brusque, to-the-point manner took Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan Ahsoka Tano some time to get accustomed to hearing.^[6]

Skills and abilities

Russo was effective at crime scene analysis,^[5] and was a reliable assistant to Jedi investigators while they solved mysteries.^[3] As he was a good interrogator,^[2] Russo was capable of interviewing the Temple bombing witnesses by himself, but he was ultimately convinced by Anakin Skywalker to work alongside Ahsoka Tano to interrogate the witnesses.^[5] Russo was effective at tracking and pattern recognition.^[2] He could also tap into security systems and review hundreds of hours of holographic security footage at a far faster pace than any Jedi.^[13] Russo used the Temple's security footage to conclude that Jackar Bowmani acted solo in the Jedi Temple hangar bombing.^[5] Russo led other analysis droids including regular SP-4 droids while they worked with the Jedi to solve crimes. He also analyzed data from the crime scenes to construct a full timeline of events. During this process, he interviewed witnesses and suspects, comparing the data from his conversations with the crime scenes' reconstruction, as well as checking local surveillance, confirming or discarding alibis.^[6]

Equipment

Like all SP-4 ISC units, Russo had an optics and scanning visor, which gave him the same optical magnification and scanning abilities as a JN-66 analysis droid. He also carried a datapad to help him filter and prioritize the wealth of information coming back to him for analysis, which was also standard amongst ISC units.^[6] Russo was also experienced with handheld sensors.^[5]

Behind the scenes

Russo-ISC first appeared in "Sabotage,"^[5] the seventeenth episode of the fifth season of the animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars, which premiered on February 9, 2013.^[22] Russo was voiced by Dee Bradley Baker,^[5] who also voiced all the clone troopers in the show.^[23] Russo's speech pattern, name and habit of flipping his visor to punctuate his speech are all nods to David Caruso's character Horatio Caine from the crime drama series CSI Miami.^[21] A character illustration of Russo by David Le Merrer was posted in the Concept Art Gallery for "Sabotage."^[24]

Appearances

• Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Sabotage" (First appearance)

Sources

• "Sabotage" - The Clone Wars Episode Guide on StarWars.com (original link is obsolete)
• "Sabotage" Episode Guide | The Clone Wars on StarWars.com (backup link)
• Letta Turmond in the Encyclopedia (original site is defunct)
• Russo-ISC in the Encyclopedia (original site is defunct)
• Star Wars Helmet Collection: Boba Fett Databank A-Z: Alzoc III–Antilles
• Star Wars: Build Your Own R2-D2 47 Droid Directory: Jedi Droids – Data Analysis Units
• Star Wars: Scum and Villainy: Case Files on the Galaxy's Most Notorious
• The Clone Wars Rewatch: It's a "Sabotage"! on StarWars.com (backup link)
• Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Character Encyclopedia - Join the Battle!
• Crime Scene Analysis Droid in the Databank (backup link)
• Jedi Temple in the Databank (backup link) (Picture only)
• Russo-ISC in the Databank (backup link)

Notes and references