We’re just a little under a week out before both Star Wars Celebration, and the debut of the Obi-Wan Kenobi show. To say that there is a lot riding on both is an understatement.
Recent commentary surrounding rumors has had me mulling over what I think the possibilities and pitfalls could be for the show, and I wanted to put some thoughts together before the debut. Why Obi-Wan Matters The story of the prequel and original trilogies centered around love and compassion. The tragedy of the prequels was that the obsessive love that Anakin had for Padme, and the compassion that Obi-Wan felt for him led what could have been the greatest of all the Jedi down the darkest path possible. (I subscribe to the belief that Obi-Wan definitely knew what was going on between Anakin and Padme – he willfully turned a blind eye due to his love and compassion for Anakin.)
The triumph of the original trilogy is that that same compassion from his son allowed Anakin to re-emerge from the shell of Darth Vader. Obi-Wan was a witness to the lives of both Skywalkers. In an era where the Jedi were humorless and kept themseleves apart from the people they were meant to serve, Obi-Wan had a twinkle in his eye. Though Obi-Wan argued with Qui-Gon in the Phantom Menace, there was more than a little bit of Qui-Gon’s philosophy that infused Obi-Wan after Qui-Gons death. Obi-Wan could have – and perhaps should have been – the first of a new breed of Jedi in the Qui- Gon mold. If Palpatine had not kept the Jedi too busy to see what was going on in front of them perhaps Anakin would not have fallen. More than all of this – Ewan and Hayden sold these characters. Each of them embodied their part and sold the fraught nature of a pseuo-father/son relationship in the awkard years of growing up. The relationship is special, and should be at the core of the show. Why this era Matters My own position on the prequels is a little complicated.
I see The Phantom Menace as a seriously flawed film, but never understood the hate that Attack of the Clones got. (At the time of release, I ranked it only behind The Empire Strikes Back.) Revenge of the Sith was a bit of a mixed bag for me, but that was mostly because I knew it was the end of an era, and I was sad that new movies would not be forthcoming. While I never hated the prequels as much as many of my generation, I did think they had issues , but they expanded the Star Wars galaxies’depth from inches to fathoms deep. I have been delighted to see how the Clone Wars series expanded on this period, and how critical re-evaluations of the prequels have taken place in the ensuing years. This series gives us the opportunity to see Obi-Wan and Anakin at perhaps the lowest points in their lives. Obi-Wan will have been grieving the death of the Jedi Order for 10 years. After a life of structure and purpose, what does a a broken and defeated man do when surrounded by evil – particularly when he must remain hidden? As for Anakin – 10 years may have passed, but the scars will likely still be raw. Physically, emotionally, and spiritually, Anakin has been nearly destroyed – but I’m betting a vestige remains. He has not yet been completely consumed by Darth Vader, but the conflict within him will be very apparent in this period.
Hopes: Much has been made of the prominent position that Reva has held in the trailers. This is one concern that actually doesn’t bother me, as long as she doesn’t overtake the show. This HAS been a consistent failing of Disney Star Wars – in almost every case, the legacy characters have been shown as flawed and weak, and consistently shown up by Disneys new and “better” characters. So why am I hopeful? Because I actually think the Inquisitors have potential.
While I think they were underutilized and underpowered in Rebels, I loved the way they were handled in Jedi: Fallen Order. The Inquisitors predate Disney Star Wars – in the old canon, Jerec and his Dark Jedi were Inquisitors hunting down the Valley of the Jedi, and at odds with Kyle Katarn. I think providing the Inquisitors more of a spotlight could be a good thing, as long as they are not the focus. If handled correctly, this could be a hook to show more of the dark side knowledge that Sidious was investigating during this era. There are other rumors that we are in for an “emotional, layered” Darth Vader. While I balk at tying this characterization to Kylo Ren, I actually welcome an emotional and layered Vader. At this stage, I think what is left of Anakin is going to be looking for answers from Obi-Wan. From his standpoint, he does feel betrayed by the Jedi. Why did they bring him of Tatooine if not to right wrongs? How could the Jedi leave Tattooine to the slave trade? Most of all – why did Obi-Wan come for him? Why did he leave him to be burned on Mustafar? This is what makes me most hopeful – Ewan and Hayden are both here. I believe that we will see a significant amount of Vader out of the mask – highlighting the dual nature of Anakin/Vader. We’ll see the pain he struggles with, physically and emotionally, and my suspicion is that we will see Anakin and Vader speaking to each other as he tries to resolve the conflict within himself.
Finally – Deborah Chow is running the show, and Disney seems confident.
Fears: This show cannot be given the Boba Fett treatment. If Obi-Wan does end up being a side-character in his own show, or if he’s shown up by Reva, instead of having a compelling character arc for both characters, this show will be the final nail in the Star Wars coffin. There will be no going back. If this show tries in any way to tie itself to the sequel trilogy, the same is true. The irrelevant: Some fans see the “rematch” between Obi-Wan and Vader as canon-breaking, but I don’t see it that way. If we believe that Obi-Wan is broken after the fall of the Jedi Order and the loss of Anakin, then we must believe that part of his hurt comes from his perceived failure with Anakin. If he truly saw Anakin as a son (or a brother), he couldn’t just give up on him.
There has to be a transition between grieving the loss of Anakin and “He’s more machine now than man – twisted and Evil.” Both Obi-Wan and Anakin should be looking for answers in this series – how did things come to this? The tragedy for both is that Obi-Wan cannot reveal the existence of Anakins children – Anakin will be left without answers, and it is this that allows Darth Vader to fully subsume Anakins identity. Only the revelation that his son lives rekindles the spark that is Anakin – and the compassion of Luke allows him to accept and correct for his actions, over the previous 30 years.
The line by Lucas gets mocked a lot – but I think here it applies: History doesn’t repeat itself, but it does rhyme.
For all the latest news that should be fun, keep reading That Park Place! As always, drop a comment down below and let us know your thoughts. Do you agree or disagree with how I’m sizing up the upcoming series?
