Note: As before, I watched the episode twice before writing this review. There will be a non-spoiler impressions section at the top, followed by the full spoiler review after a warning.
Impressions: I felt that Episode 3 of Obi-Wan Kenobi was a huge step up from Episode 2. There are a couple of issues with the plot that can break your immersion if you stop and think about them, but if you’re willing to overlook them and try to have a good time, this episode is (mostly) fun. Overall, this series is much better than The Book of Boba Fett. That said, I can’t help but feel that with maybe one more script pass, it could have been made even better. I still can’t say it’s enough to subscribe for – but it’s worth your time if you’re willing to forgive small details.
****SPOILERS****
We pick up soon after the end of Episode 2, with Obi-Wan once again reaching out to Qui-Gon. As ever, his former master remains silent. There’s no doubt in my mind we’ll be hearing Liam Neeson before the series is over, and I can’t wait to hear his voice. Soon after, we cut right back to Vader, and he really knows how to make an entrance. It’s hard not to think that this scene wasn’t partially inspired by Star Wars Theory’s Vader fan film, but it’s hard to blame Lucasfilm for going for the fan service here. The suit-up sequence is great, and when Vader strides towards the camera in silouhette with his cape billowing behind him, it’s hard not to be excited. We then see Vader speaking to Reva – she is informs the Dark Lord that Obi-Wan has escaped. It’s hard to understand why probes need to be sent to locate him – they know what automated ship he was aboard, and should know where it’s bound, but nevermind.
I know a lot of people were worried that James Earl Jones might not be voicing Vader again, as no announcement had been made, but I’m happy to say that he once again returned. I don’t think a 91 year old man has ever sounded more malevolent, and to my ears he sounded better here than in Rogue One. Vader reveals that he has been watching Reva, and that if she succeeds, she will be made the new Grand Inquisitor. This puzzles me – I don’t understand why they’re keeping up the charade that the Grand Inquisitor is dead – but nevermind.
We return to the automated ship, and find Obi-Wan fixing L0-LA59 for Leia. He really does have a talent for droid repair, and I suspect that would’ve been his line if he hadn’t been chosen by the Jedi. Ewan acts his heart out here as Leia questions him about what the Force feels like. You can sense his frustration and pain, but also his care for Leia as he explains that the Force is like turning on a light when you’re afraid in a dark room. Great writing, great acting. The ship lands on Malfuso, and they slip away undetected. They make their way to the coordinates they were given in the last episode. Obi-Wan is certain they’ve been sold out, but Leia still has faith. Ben finally snaps at her – “People are not all good, Leia!” His pain and loss of faith really come through here.
As he’s reflecting on his own outburst, he has a vision of Anakin – berobed and angry looking. Whether this is a hallucination caused by stress or a vision as a result of Vader reaching out to sense him, we can only speculate – as he is coming to grips with what he is seeing, the phantom disappears. We cut from the scene to the Fortress Inquisitorius. Reva attempts to sit in the Grand Inquisitors Chair, but is held back by the Fifth Brother. Reva asserts that she is acting under instructions from Vader, and orders them to send out probes to find Obi-Wan. This still seems silly, and the other inquisitors seem sillier. I just can’t take them seriously, and I think this is a shame. The inquisitors have a lot of potential when handled right, but so far Reva is the only one I buy.
Back on Malfuso, Leia soon spots a beat up cargo hauler going down a dusty road, and she tries to flag it down. Obi-Wan is frustrated, but it’s too late. The hauler stops for them , and the driver (Frank?) agrees to give them a ride after they give him a contrived story of being farmers who have become lost. As they board, Obi-Wan spots the Imperial Cog flag on the back of the truck. After they’ve driven awhile, they come across an Imperial patrol, who also board the truck. They know Frank, and they’ve been out looking for “A Jedi and a Girl.” The lead stormtrooper is obviously suspicous and questions Obi-Wan and Leia. Unfortunately, Obi-Wan slips and calls Leia by her real name, not the aliases they had agreed upon. The stormtrooper notices and becomes very suspicious, but Obi-Wan covers quickly. They somehow buy the story and disembark. This scene is immersion-breaking – the stormtroopers are looking for a Jedi and a girl, the Empire has an APB out for them, Obi-Wan is wearing clothes that CLEARLY a Jedi would wear, and he called her by her name. Plot armor is the only explanation, and it feels like a Jedi Mind Trick would’ve been appropriate here.
Fortunately, this bad scene is quickly followed by a good one – Leia recognizes that Obi-Wans cover story was based on memories of Padme, and tells Ben that she knows he has been lying to her. She knows he is keeping secrets and wants to know if Obi-Wan is her father. What follows is a touching scene, handled with care. Both Ewan and Vivien Lyra Blair sell this, and it was a nice quiet moment when we learn a bit more about both. Shortly after this scene, the cargo hauler stops at an Imperial checkpoint. The stormtroopers may not have picked up on who their fellow travellers were, but Frank did. He tips off the stormtrooper at the checkpoint, and Ben and Leia are ordered out of the flatbed. A probe is whistled up, and makes a positive ID. Ben gets terribly uncivilized, and we see the effectiveness of a laser gate. (Kudos to Disney! Glad to see they’re not being as squeamish as they once were!) All of the stormtroopers are dispatched, but reinforcements arrive, led by an Imperial Officer. When it appears that Ben and Leia are going to be executed, the Officer (Tala) reveals herself to ba turncoat. She was the contact who was meant to meet them at the rendezvouz point, but was delayed by the arrival of the probe. This seems improbable – but nevermind.
We cut to a short scene where the Fifth Brother undercuts Reva – he is now also trying to curry favor with Vader, and has informed the Dark Lord that Kenobi has been located on Malfuso before Reva was able to. Back at Malfuso, the fugitives make their way to an automated droid repair shop. Tala tells them that this is one of a series of safehouses called “The Path” – an underground railroad for fugitives trying to escape the Empire. The next stop on their journey is intended to be Jabiim, where they will receive new identities. As Ben and Leia explore the hidden rooms, they find evidence of the travels of others before them. The Youtube Channel belonging to Bombastic has noticed several Easter Eggs that indicate that Corran Horn, Valin Halcyon, and Roganda Ismaren have been partially recanonized from the old EU. Obi-Wan spots writing left by Quinlan Vos as well. As all are preparing to traverse the underground tunnels, stormtroopers arrive and demand to search the droid depot. The Loader Bot that runs the station has no speech capability (possibly a reference to Elbee, from the Knights of the Old Republic comic series?), but is ready to defend if things get rough. Thankfully, the stormtroopers don’t discover the secret room, and they depart. Just before they are to leave, Obi-Wan asks Tala why she does this. This is a bit of a false note – Obi-Wan should KNOW why she does this. As broken as he is, he shouldn’t be quite this beaten. Nevertheless, it’s another small misstep.
Turning towards the tunnels – a sudden feeling. Ben’s eyes sharpen, and a haunted look comes over his face. Vader descends on the town. Once again, the man makes an entrance. Seeing him stride into the town reminded me of his entrance into Echo Base. It is obvious that Vader can feel Ben’s presence, but not his location – so he begins plucking citizens from their homes – holding them aloft, choking them, or snapping their necks – daring Obi-Wan to come out and face him. Obi-Wan begs Tala to take Leia and make sure she makes it to Alderaan, promising to draw the Imperials off.
He runs off towards the mining quarry, but is met by Vader. He again tries to flee, and Vaders voice booms and echos throughout the night – “You can’t run, Obi-Wan!” After a few moments of running in the dark, they once again find themselves face to face. Obi-Wan asks “What have you become?” Vader answers “I am what you have made me!” Ben runs again, drawing Vader deeper into the quarry.
We cut back to the Inquisitors, who have been ordered to roust the rest of the town to flush out any other fugitives. Reva sees the loader droid leaving the repair station, and enters – sensing this is the right place. From there, we cut to Leia and Tala, fleeing down their escape tunnel. Leia tries to convince Tala to turn back, to help Obi-Wan, but for now she resists.
Finally, Obi-Wan and Vader meet at the middle of the quarry processing station. There is a brief lightsaber duel – I wish I could say it was impressive, but there were a couple of things I noticed – first, I can’t imagine it’s easy to fight in a helmet that obscures most of your vision. While the fight wasn’t “bad”, I did notice a lot of intercutting and long shots. Secondly, in this scene it was obvious that Vader is too short – when seen in frame together, he is not much taller than Ewan.
We cut back to Leia and Tala making their way down the tunnel – Leia turns to Tala and tells her “Go.” Tala now departs, and this is another false note. It likely had to happen for the episode, but I don’t believe this woman would abandon Leia after she promised Ben she would get her to Alderaan. Also, I still have a hard time believing that a Leia this young would be so wise as they’re trying to make her out to be. Despite her much better performance this episode, I can’t help but feel that Leia should’ve been cast older. We cut back to Reva, who has discovered the hidden chamber with the writing on the walls – she finds the emblem of the Jedi Order, and is enraged. It is a familiar mood for her.
We return to skirmish between Obi-Wan and Vader, and Vader has lost patience. He picks Obi-Wan up with the Force, holding him aloft and dumps a load of the mineral the town has been mining. His lightsaber lost, Obi-Wan can only watch as Vader ignites the unstable mineral, turning the ground into a field of fire. Vader wants to HURT him – to make him experience the pain he suffered on Mustafar – and tells him that this is only the beginning of his pain. He pulls him into the center of the fire, burning him. Just as his cloak looks like it is about to truly catch, Vader waves the flames down. Obi-Wan gasps for breath as Vader orders the stormtroopers to bring him to him. Tala has observed this, and takes sight on a power relay near the field – she shoots it, causing power to arc and the field of fire to ignite again, separating Vader from Ben.
As stormtroopers fire, Ben and Tala flee. We cut once more to Leia, who has almost made it to the tunnel exit and freedom – only to find Reva waiting for her. One thing that bothers me – how did Reva get ahead of Leia? Wouldn’t she have to pass Leia in the tunnel? But nevermind. Leia asks Reva if she is the ship’s pilot, and Reva tells her that “Unfortunately, he couldnt’ make it – but I’ll take you from here.” Leia looks over and sees the body of the dead pilot, and runs back down the tunnel – Reva in pursuit. We then cut to end credits.
You can see that you have to willfully suspend disbelief in several places for this episode – but in spite of all of that, I was having fun. I can understand if this episode or this show are not your cup of tea, and I still think that the Mandalorian has been the best Star Wars TV that we’ve had. But if you can get past Disney being Disney, Lucasfilm being Lucasfilm, and some narrative problems, I think there’s still a lot to like here. I’m more anxious for next weeks episode than I was for this one, and I think that’s a good thing.
What did you all think? Let us know in the comments below! As always, remember That Park Place is your place for all the news that should be fun!
