Obi-Wan Kenobi

Director: Deborah Chow
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Rupert Friend, Sung Kang, Moses Ingram, Vivien Lyra Blair, Kumail Nanjiani, Hayden Christensen, James Earl Jones, Indira Varma, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Benny Safdie, Joel Edgerton, Bonnie Piesse, Simone Kessell, Flea, Jimmy Smits, Zach Braff, Maya Erskine, Ian McDiarmid, Grant Feely
Original Airdate: 2022  

**The following review contains major 'Obi-Wan Kenobi' spoilers **

★★★ (out of ★★★★)

How much is too much? That's been the billion dollar question for Disney since their 2012 acquisition of Lucasfilm. Since then, we've seen an entire Star Wars sequel trilogy, a standalone Han Solo film, a much admired big screen A New Hope prequel and an almost equally beloved streaming series thought to have "saved" the franchise. From a commercial standpoint it was all worth it, regardless of how often they hit the creative bull's eye or the amount of vitriol the actor and directors involved seem to receive. But when churning out this much content, we know the real risk comes in trying to fill every story gap in the SW universe with a series or film, leading to potential oversaturation and backlash. In other words, they need to pick their spots.

As one of the few who feel Disney's done better than they've gotten credit for, there's no ignoring the reasons why The Mandalorian worked and The Book of Boba Fett spinoff underperformed until Grogu, Mando and Luke came in for the save. A legendary bit player, Boba's popularity and mystique always revolved around what we thought he could be, but Pedro Pasquel's Mando already had the badass market cornered, leaving a surprisingly restrained Boba without much to do in his own series despite a strong Temuera Morrison performance. So now with viewers still questioning the sustainability of that series comes Obi-Wan Kenobi, which carries an even greater risk.  

Taking place ten years after Revenge of the Sith but a decade prior to A New Hope, Disney's playing with fire in the most literal sense. They've brought out the big guns in not just the title character (whom Ewan McGregor is reprising for the first time since 2005), but Anakin/Darth Vader, Luke and Leia at an unseen stage in their journeys. What's done here can affect perceptions of what happened before and what we know eventually comes. "Continuity" is a loaded word, and as no fan of the prequels, it's come as a bit of a surprise how much nostalgia and affection now suddenly exists for those who grew up on them. The best news is that the series revolves entirely around the long-term aftermath of Episode III, arguably that trilogy's finest hour. 

The show walks a tight rope in trying to get into Kenobi's headspace during this era while not disrupting or diminishing what's already been established, helping make this experiment fascinating to watch unfold. With occasionally scattershot storytelling, some of the six episodes are a mixed bag, but as the finale proves, it gets the big things right and feels like Star Wars, successfully revisiting the complicated bond between Obi-Wan and his former pupil while adding a few wrinkles to their feud.

With more focus, McGregor surpasses what he did in the prequels and channels some of what Alec Guinness brought to A New Hope, as we slowly inch closer to that period. And Disney continues its streak of nailing Vader, actually building on what made him such a terrifying, intimidating force in all his previous incarnations while exploring his fractured psyche. After a somewhat shaky start, it mostly comes together, ensuring that any potential rewatch of the interconnecting big screen sagas could play a lot differently now.

Ten years since Obi-Wan Kenobi (McGregor) survived Order 66 and left a horribly burned and disfigured Anakin Skywalker for dead on Mustafar, he's living as "Ben" on Tatooine, having seemingly abandoned his Jedi ways. Still consumed with guilt over Anakin's turn to the dark side, he resides alone in a cave, working a meat packing job and watching over young Luke Skywalker (Grant Feely) from afar. But Darth Vader's shadow looms large, as vengeful Third Sister and Jedi-hunting Inquisitor, Reva (Moses Ingram) becomes obsessed with finding Kenobi and delivering him to master Vader. 

Reva's ruthless ambition draws the ire of the Grand Inquisitor (Rupert Friend) and Fifth Brother (Sung Kang), who find her rash methods intolerable, even as she sets the ultimate trap, kidnapping 10-year-old Leia Organa (Vivien Lyra Blair) in an effort to lure Kenobi. Unaware of her biological father's identity or his relationship to Obi-Wan, the feisty and brave young Princess of Alderaan must learn to trust this mysterious, bearded Jedi as he prepares for his inevitable confrontation with former Padawan turned Sith Lord, Vader. Haunted and emotionally paralyzed, it's a showdown a weakened Kenobi never expected to occur, and one he may not have the strength to endure.

There were a lot of assumptions made going into these handful of episodes directed by The Mandalorian's Deborah Chow. Would Obi-Wan take a backseat to Reva in his own story? Would his interactions with young Leia and Luke contradict or negatively impact their presumed introduction to him in A New Hope? Would Vader be depicted as the same brutal, intimidating killing machine from the original trilogy? How much, if any, Anakin is left within him? And maybe the most important question is how this all affects Kenobi's fateful encounter with Vader ten years later, which we thought was their only confrontation after Mustafar. 

Kenobi's defeated state of mind during this period makes sense, and while you run the risk of unwanted comparisons to Luke's much maligned exile in The Last Jedi, it is an entirely unrelated situation. It's impossible to believe Obi-Wan wouldn't still be heavily traumatized after leaving Anakin to die, or so he thought, with the big twist being that that he knew nothing of his ex-friend's survival until now. This, along with the revelation that A New Hope didn't mark his first encounter with Luke and Leia, opens up a new can of worms. Though it's not technically cheating from a narrative standpoint, accusations of this being revisionist history will probably persist. But unlike George Lucas' superficially pointless Special Edition changes, this isn't physically altering the actual films, but instead shifting the conversations around them.

The Inquisitors are kind of one-dimensional (especially Sung Kang's grunting and grouchy Fifth Brother), and while Reva 's the notable exception, it even takes her character a little while to get going. Since her rather obvious backstory is easily telegraphed by viewers right away, it becomes a matter of filling in the details and fleshing out why she's so obsessed with bringing Kenobi to Vader at any cost. Having to play everything in a single note until the very end puts Moses Ingram in a tough spot, but she's clearly our main gateway to the two former friends coming face-to-face again. Obviously, we're far more invested in Kenobi, Vader, Leia, and Luke, so it's easy to trust that Chow will eventually get us there.  

As young Leia, the series-stealing Vivien Lyra Blair is sassy and headstrong, while bringing just the right amount of sarcastic precociousness to make it entirely believable she'll emerge as the version Carrie Fisher later portrays. Since we know she'll contact Obi-Wan for help in A New Hope, the writers seem especially careful in developing this temporary bond between the two, borne out of necessity, but primed to be revisited years down the road. 

Kenobi's knowledge of Leia's bloodline and past with Anakin and Padme creates a compelling dynamic while her kidnapping(s) gives the child a closer, harsher look at the Empire that contradicts what she's been fed from adopted parents Senator Bail (Jimmy Smits) and Queen Breha (Simone Kessell). With trusty droid L0-LA in her pocket, little Leia's a handful, as she should be, but Lyra Blair's performance opposite McGregor is perfect in how it plants the seeds for how valuable her rebellious spirit will be. There are also some strong supporting performances from Indira Varma as an Imperial Officer helping Kenobi and Leia, Kumail Nanjiani as a Jedi-posing con artist and O' Shea Jackson Jr. as another Jedi aiding in their escape. But there's only one thing anyone will be talking about after the sixth episode: Kenobi and Vader.  

Voiced again (with some technological enhancement) by the legendary James Earl Jones and getting a physical assist from the returning Hayden Christensen under the armor, this Vader is very much in line with what who we saw in the original trilogy and Rogue One. While not quite at that level of confident brutality yet, this succeeds at showing he's well on his way. Choking villagers and breaking necks left and right on the hunt for Kenobi, it's fitting that Vader's reunion with his mentor should end in Obi-Wan being burned and nearly put in the same state he left Anakin on Mustafar. Obi-Wan's realization that his best friend is still alive as this monster, yet not, becomes nearly impossible for him to reconcile.

Kenobi's guilt makes him incapable of killing Vader no matter how much damage him surviving will cause. This is at the crux of the series, as the finale sees Kenobi recognizing that he doesn't "need" to end Vader, but rather abandon any delusions he had in returning him to the light side of the force. Only Luke can, because unlike Kenobi, he'll see his father and Vader as one, eventually proving Padme's dying declaration that there's "still good in him" to be true. But for all of this to happen and Vader to vanquish Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) in Return of the Jedi, Obi-Wan has to let him go. But not until after the epic lightsaber duel that the season's been building toward.

With Chow paying homage to a familiar scene Rebels scene, half of Vader's mask is cut open as his face straddles between lightness and dark, electronically slipping in and out of James Earl Jones and Hayden Christensen's voices. Considering the speculation surrounding just how much the latter would be used with Anakin now fully suited up, a prequel era flashback (minus de-aging effects), hallucinations and that final emotional reveal give us more Hayden than expected. And even his biggest detractors would have to admit his handling of Anakin's turn in Revenge of the Sith was the actor's strongest showing. He delivers again here, being utilized in a way that makes sense, likely satisfying a vast majority of fans that go beyond your usual prequel defenders.  

The question of when Anakin truly becomes Vader will always be mired in debate, with many contending it's when he first dons the suit at the end of Episode III. But this series adds a huge footnote, hinting perhaps that his full evolution into the Sith Lord happened in stages, with this season-closing battle with Kenobi marking a final important step. While Vader takes credit for killing Anakin, strangely absolving his former master and enabling him to let go of the guilt he's carried, it's far from a benevolent gesture. The admission officially confirms that Anakin's gone, with the armored suit now sustaining Vader as much psychologically as physically.  

The creation of this entire Vader persona reveals itself as the only way Anakin can live with guilt of what he did to Padme and the destruction he's caused. His confession that he wished Obi-Wan finished the job on Mustafar is sadly the truth on many levels. After getting demolished in this final duel, Vader crawls away defeated, but lives to fight another day stronger than before, having finally rid himself of this Kenobi obsession. He now has bigger plans on his mind than one mere Jedi, as Palpatine manipulatively reminds him. Having John Williams' iconic Imperial March blasting over the soundtrack in the last episode couldn't be more appropriate. Obi-Wan is no longer an Anakin problem since Anakin now ceases to exist. This is the rise of Darth Vader.

Reva turns out to be both more and less than we thought. As expected, she was secretly plotting against Vader for the Order 66 slaughter but at least the writers were smart enough to keep him more than a few steps ahead. The only thing we may have underestimated was the full range of her anger, not only toward him, but Kenobi, whom she holds almost equally responsible. Reva's sneak attack on Vader had as much chance of succeeding as her being able to move on from the past trauma, but she takes it to a whole new level in targeting young Luke. It's surprisingly satisfying seeing Uncle Owen (Joel Edgerton) and Aunt Beru (Bonnie Piesse) in action combat mode, adding another layer to characters who desperately needed to be remembered as more than the charred skeletons in A New Hope. 

With this comes confirmation of how much the Lars family cared for Luke, while also providing some background on Owen's overprotectiveness. His irritation toward Kenobi for wanting to be a part of Luke's life starts to thaw, indicating that the seasoned Jedi Master is closer to the fully actualized Obi-Wan who later trains Luke, as McGregor's performance expertly conveys it. But for now, we'll settle for a brief tease (along with a "Hello There"), as the wide-eyed youngster greets him with the same look of reverence and astonishment Leia does in their emotional goodbye on Alderaan. 

Finally at peace able to see and communicate with the Force Ghost of Qui-Gon (Liam Neeson), you have to wonder what could possibly be left for a second season, assuming Disney's interested in going there. Attempting to extract even more from Kenobi and Vader probably isn't advisable, but that never stopped them before. And then there's the curious creative decision to leave a now fully redeemed and very injured Reva alive as a dangling story thread, which seems perplexing given how much she knows. 

While still a notch or two below the Mandalorian, Obi-Wan Kenobi keeps with the constantly shifting tone and aesthetic of Star Wars, revealing just enough to keep us intrigued with the past and future of the saga without stepping on too many toes. As an intersecting point between the prequel and original trilogies, it hits the sweet spot, with its best portions recalling a lot of what was done right in Rogue One. If winning over every warring, polarized faction of Star Wars fandom was always an impossibility, this at least does an admirable job in crafting a new adventure worth taking.