Obi-Wan Kenobi: Part VI
June 22, 2022 2:17 AM - Season 1, Episode 6 - Subscribe

Obi-Wan desperately tries to protect the future of the Rebellion.
posted by EndsOfInvention (92 comments total) 3 users marked this as a favorite
 
As far as canon filler adventures go, i thought it ended decently. Got me chuckling at more than a couple of canon spackle bits and the setup payoffs, even as it's clear I'm no Jedi because I would've fatally executed a DTMFA move on Vader if i was Kenobi.
posted by cendawanita at 2:37 AM on June 22, 2022 [4 favorites]


I enjoyed the show from beginning to end. Yes, it's a sequel to a prequel and we knew it would be all okay in the end. I think they found enough character detail for me to remain interested. I think seeing Anakin under that mask and really finishing off Anakin and Obi-Wan's story in a way that their sort of distant reunion in A New Hope makes sense. They worked out all their hate and anger here. The Emporer tells Vader not to care so much about Kenobi anymore. Makes sense, feels right.

And if the show achieved nothing else, it gave me more Leia and started to balance out the Skywalker saga a little. You throw in a surprise "you have a sister in a trilogy" but never really reckon with the fact that they are twins and of equal import, it's nice that this show says "actually Leia was as important". It's just a real shame they couldn't finish her story properly in Episode IX. *cries forever*

Franchise stuff is only as good as the characters and the performance. This show was entirely unnecessary. There were no loose ends in the prequels that needed dealing with. There was nothing that needed clarifying in the original trilogy that this series gave us.

But Ewan got to be Obi-Wan with good dialogue and a rich emotional story and that's enough for me. And we got a bit more of Alderaan and kid Leia. That's plenty.
posted by crossoverman at 2:51 AM on June 22, 2022 [17 favorites]


I enjoyed the final confrontation between Kenobi and Vader. The Anakin/Vader voice when his helmet was smashed was cool. The end of the fight made the "when we last met..." line make sense, although Obi-Wan leaving Vader for dead(?) seems a bit like making the same mistake twice. Then again in some ways it makes his sacrifice in A New Hope make more sense - he never could bring himself to actually kill Anakin.

Ewan McGregor and Mose Ingram were both great in the series, and overall I enjoyed it despite the wobbly plot at times.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 2:59 AM on June 22, 2022 [8 favorites]


For the record I'm trying to be very cool but I can't believe 2022 is the year of resurrection of my qui-gon/obi-wan ship.
posted by cendawanita at 3:04 AM on June 22, 2022 [11 favorites]


I know Obi-Wan had to walk away for canon reasons but watching him win that fight two times and make the same mistake both times is just eye-twitchingly enraging.
posted by kbanas at 4:38 AM on June 22, 2022 [9 favorites]


Obi wan walking away from Vader twice does put old grumpy Luke Skywalker's burnout as a teacher in a certain perspective
posted by eustatic at 5:11 AM on June 22, 2022 [10 favorites]


In the end, it was all it could ever been: a logically hamfisted and unneeeded narrative spackling job that had some gloriously wonderful character and emotional beats.

I tempted to write more and may later, but that pretty much sums up Star Wars doesn't it? Doesn't make a lick of sense, but people love the characters and that's all that matters to them and that's just the way it is.

There's no goddamn reason why Reva should be alive, but if it means she appears in a season 2, that I don't care.

And yeah, there should be a season 2, hopefully with Darth outta the way and Obi-Wan just off on an adventure. That's really where the character shines and it would be good have the SW universe not so damn focused on a limited number of people.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:52 AM on June 22, 2022 [5 favorites]


Well, no TV show is necessary. I suppose maybe it is to Disney, which can't make a profit off theme parks and lunchboxes unless these stories are somehow kept alive in human hearts. On a story level, I'm not convinced any of the movies needed to be made after the original trilogy -- to be honest, I'm not convinced any of the movies needed to be made after Star Wars. There is no urgent need to continue the journey. Everything is implicit in that first film -- if it hadn't been, it wouldn't have been so successful, I think. It's always been embellishment, really.

This show exists to make money, obviously, but it wouldn't make any money if there weren't a desire on our part to see these actors and characters again, and it's clear that the players are all excited to be there, too. Even when the plot didn't work, I was happy to see these folks on my television. (I suspect this is part of why it's been so hard for Disney to expand on this universe in any way that doesn't make it all feel like these dramas don't all take place in the same small town...or possibly on the same street: because Star Wars is actually pretty intimate.) It's been nice!
posted by kittens for breakfast at 7:12 AM on June 22, 2022


Me in episode 3: "That's exactly the kind of crap retcon thing that gets on my nerves. Like if Little Leia doesn't get some kind of Jedi mind wipe from Obi-Wan at the end of this show, it won't make any sense."

Me today: "so.....I don't see a mind wipe going on here....????" "No one must know or it could endanger us both" is it here, huh?

Little Leia and her droid and holster continue to be adorably cute, though.
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:27 AM on June 22, 2022


Qui-Gon: You've caught me perusing this fine desert landscape...

Obi-Wan: Fuck you and your one-upmanship "master", that fucking ballbag you saddled me with chopped up all the kids and ended the republic. Balance my fucking arse.
posted by biffa at 11:52 AM on June 22, 2022 [21 favorites]


There’s gonna be an awkward conversation down the line.

Obi-wan: “Yeah, so this Reva, still recovering from a light saber stabbing an—“

Qui-gob: “Wtf?! Back in my day, light sabers actually killed people, what us this shit?!”
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 12:55 PM on June 22, 2022 [9 favorites]


The Qui-Gon cameo was funny for being pure fan service without even trying to work him into the story.

Looking online, the gun holster given to Leia doesn't look like the same one she has in Return of the Jedi? It's a long way to go for another pointless Star Wars origin of some object. But the holster takes up a lot of time on screen if it isn't.
posted by Gary at 1:11 PM on June 22, 2022


The holster can just be a symbol that she will learn to fight in different ways. She's a child now but eventually she will learn to fire a gun and the holster will be ready. For now, it's a good place to keep Lola.

I'm so glad it's not explicitly something from the other films. The problem with SOLO (which I generally liked) was ticking off the origins of all his stuff. Even the name Solo. Groan. The holster shows us where she's going. We know she can hold a gun in A New Hope, so it's an allusion to that.
posted by crossoverman at 3:53 PM on June 22, 2022 [1 favorite]


Well, that about wrapped that up. I'm here to predict that Disney keeps making cannon materials up to ep 4, at which point they will decide to make an alternate universe with obiwan and Hayden and old Luke
posted by rebent at 5:23 PM on June 22, 2022 [2 favorites]


Ewan McGregor's dedication and charm really carried this show. I mean that in a good way. I had fun because he was having fun.

I liked that we got to spend time with tiny Leia rather than tiny Luke. That was a good surprise. I have always loved Leia and I liked seeing her at this age. The actor who played her was great -- a great balance of cute without being too much.

Why was this episode so dark? I usually don't complain about that overall but this was murky in a weird way. I don't have the most powerful TV but the color is calibrated pretty well and I have the backlight turned up high (to the highest?) and even with the lights off in my room, I could barely see what was going on. I didn't have that problem with the other episodes.
posted by edencosmic at 6:11 PM on June 22, 2022 [6 favorites]


It's been a while since I sat through A New Hope but was there any indication that Leia and Obi-Wan didn't know each other at all? She obviously knew to call on him and where to find him. They didn't seem overly familiar with each other, no, but it had also been 10-15 years or whatever, so this person she knew for a couple of days isn't like her best friend or anything. Unless the movie specifically said "we never met before ever" I think this show still fits in with the storyline pretty well.

(I could be wrong.)
posted by edencosmic at 6:20 PM on June 22, 2022


Well hey, that was great. I appreciate the comment on a previous episode that got me watching this with Reva's story centered. It delivered very well on that, I found the end scenes with her not murdering the child and then having a breakdown in front of Kenobi were very moving. Moses Ingram really was a perfect actress for this role and it says a lot she could be in scenes with Ewan MacGregor and hold her own or then some. If they do go further with this storyline it obviously should pick up with her. Aren't there a bunch of ambiguous Jedi types who aren't really properly light or dark side? She'd do well for that. Maybe she can end up running Jabba's place.

The Darth Vader stuff felt tedious to me, but then I'm long since tired of the prequel stories. And yet another pointless Jedi duel on a random rock planet, snore. The Leia stuff would have felt pretty fluffy too but Vivien Lyra Blair was so charming I enjoyed every minute. They really did nail a Leia origin story effectively.

I also liked that Luke ended up not really being much of anything, just an ordinary boy. Particularly appreciated the way they finessed what he learns; all he knows is Tusken raiders attacked and then he slipped and fell in the canyon and it hurt a lot.

Finally a shout out to space moms. Baru being awesome defending her homestead. And Breha Organna telling Leia she thought her holster looked great. What a supportive mother! Although that holster with its kill tally is a pretty grim gift for a kid.

I share edencosmic's complaint about how dark the scenes were. Deliberate choice, not in any way a mistake, and actually the cinematography was quite good given how limited the light was. Excellent contrast and facial detail across people with skin tones as light as young Luke and as dark as Reva's; that's not easy to get right. Still would have preferred being able to see what happened better.
posted by Nelson at 6:26 PM on June 22, 2022 [3 favorites]


... Doesn't make a lick of sense, but people love the characters ...
posted by Brandon Blatcher


lol (just noticed that the lol symbol is me caught between two lightsabers) ... anyway thanks for the observations, I do enjoy these but could not get through a full series without validation of my "wait, what.. makes no sense, well pretty cool visual... but" reaction.
posted by sammyo at 6:49 PM on June 22, 2022


McGregor brought his A game and gave this show so much more polish.

Lightsaber choreography compared to the original movies is definitely a generation apart.

Worth bringing back Christensen, you gotta do it while the actors are still in relevant life stages. Modern skincare, healthcare, makeup, and cg certainly extends the window, as we see here. This kind of feels like a studio's reel.

It stumbled getting there, but a satisfactory story for me.
posted by porpoise at 7:56 PM on June 22, 2022


Re: Leia’s holster, if my daughter was prone to being kidnapped by random Sith, I might arm her.

Obi-Wan is going to fly to a completely different planet, have a 5 minute chat on the tarmac, and then get back in his ship and go home? Not even a stop to pee? At least have a meal, they’ve got to have something you can’t get back on Tatooine - although if 5 minute jaunts to other planets are common, maybe he could just order delivery.
posted by jordemort at 8:37 PM on June 22, 2022 [12 favorites]


I'm there if there's a season 2, but definitely would prefer it have no Vader. At this point the relationship is played out and it would make little sense for them to meet.

Have a separate Vader series if you must, just keep it out of Kenobi!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 8:54 PM on June 22, 2022 [1 favorite]


The only sequel I want to this is LEIA ORGANA: JUNIOR SENATOR OF ALDERAAN, a political drama, lots of Senate chamber stuff, coming of age story.
posted by crossoverman at 9:23 PM on June 22, 2022 [18 favorites]


Obi-Wan is going to fly to a completely different planet, have a 5 minute chat on the tarmac, and then get back in his ship and go home? Not even a stop to pee?

Seriously!! Must have to do with the whole "no one can ever know" business but geez, Obi can't stay for dinner?
posted by EatTheWeek at 10:17 PM on June 22, 2022


This finale felt… underdone. What realization did Kenobi come to that finally enabled him to see Qui Gon? Why was he so blasé to see him after YEARS of praying to see him? I’d be overcome with joy.

The Darth fight was their way of making peace with the past; A whole heartedly apology met with a “nyuh-huh!” and the choreography didn’t grip me. But in a way it made sense - Vader was his own downfall, he finally stopped blaming Obi Wan for “holding him back” and realized in his heart he just wanted to be bad and powerful and there was nothing Kenobi could have done otherwise. And Kenobi could be released from grief.

Still don’t like the Luke casting. Nice to see how Owen loved the boy as his own; ANH makes it seem like he kinda just tolerates him.

So overall ended with a whimper for me… not that I didn’t love the entire series for a chance to spend time with old friends. I’ll take any bit of magic I can.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 11:24 PM on June 22, 2022


Oh my godddd you guys I can't believe it's now canon that Darth Sidious told Darth Vader he was being just a little too horny about Obi-Wan Kenobi and that's why Obi-Wan Kenobi managed to hide on Tattooine for so many years. INCREDIBLE.

I'm on the record as having loved every minute of this series and I obviously loved every minute of this. Except! Why does Reva think it would constitute "justice" to kill Luke? Who does she think Luke is?

I guess also like, the whole "oh man seeing Anakin's partial face behind the helmet" thing maybe felt crazy and amazing for people who haven't watched the animated shows but I felt it was a bit "been there, done that" given Ahsoka has already had that exact experience. But I did love his eyes flipping between yellow and blue. It's good shit, I understand why they went back to that well, but it is a well they've been to before.

I'm really hoping they do at LEAST Reva comics and ideally a Reva show. I'm very interested in what this franchise might do with a rehabilitated inquisitor and damn would I just watch Moses Ingram chew the scenery for 45 minutes a week, like, basically indefinitely.
posted by potrzebie at 11:28 PM on June 22, 2022 [6 favorites]


Oh I bet Reva is gonna turn up in the Ahsoka show isn't she. Yaaaay I love Star Wars
posted by potrzebie at 11:31 PM on June 22, 2022 [4 favorites]


What realization did Kenobi come to that finally enabled him to see Qui Gon?

The show has a real tendency to undercut the key emotional moments even as they're on screen but essentially it's his overwhelming guilt over what happened with Anakin and relatedly, the rest of the Jedi Order. My jaw dropped when Anakin/Vader (like in ROTJ) insisted the fall is by his own hand. There's the egoism that he's responsible, as well as the Doylesian beat that it's calling back to the ROTJ exchange but at the Watsonian level it's also an unexpected gift of absolution to Obi-Wan, that signals there's still some Anakin left to save later on. What's interesting is the speed that this character beat resolves, it reads like Obi-Wan just grabbing to that benediction with open hands and then leaving "Darth" behind because he also still cannot kill Anakin.

In any case bitchy Qui-Gon is very very LOL. No wonder ANH!Ben got his old man sass on.
posted by cendawanita at 11:56 PM on June 22, 2022 [7 favorites]


There's also something to be said and applauded about how this show has been really good at communicating character growth via action setpieces for Obi-Wan. Especially the episode where he was rescuing Leia, where the earlier episodes set up he was secluded also from the force and it was actively hurting him to access it again. The show made it out like he'd been hiding himself in all senses of the word. With the rescue, the hallway fight showed active progression from start to end, and it's like by the time this episode rolls, shedding that guilt was the final step and you can see it in that physicality.

What I also really liked is however much the prequels clumsily presented its argument, Lucas was very clear the Jedi Order was also at fault for that fall. Their rigidity to tradition definitely caused major oversights not just in Anakin's upbringing but also inability to spot how Sidious was reaaaaally stretching the Sith convention of having two at a time. And the whole edict about having no attachments caused so much pain and suffering. How did Obi-Wan recover from being literally buried by rocks? He called on his love for Anakin's twins and not just an abstract one either. His time with Leia deepened that love into something human(e). I really liked how the show actually did continue the thesis. If anything it's doing more to expand on the vision than the sequel trilogy.
posted by cendawanita at 12:10 AM on June 23, 2022 [16 favorites]


How did Obi-Wan recover from being literally buried by rocks?

Tartakovsky, 2003
posted by mikelieman at 3:26 AM on June 23, 2022 [3 favorites]


Nice to see how Owen loved the boy as his own; ANH makes it seem like he kinda just tolerates him.

I mean, teenage boys. Sometimes the best you can do is just tolerate them.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 3:33 AM on June 23, 2022 [20 favorites]


I thought almost everything about this series was awful and I would watch it again.
posted by aesop at 3:42 AM on June 23, 2022 [6 favorites]


I really like Ewan MacGregor and I think his back must hurt from carrying this show. Almost everything about the story and writing was awful. So much stuff that just didn't make sense, but could have! if the scenes had been rewritten just a little bit.

If I can sit here and watch it and say "But why didn't they..." five times an episode, the writers room could do that too.
posted by Fleebnork at 4:20 AM on June 23, 2022 [7 favorites]


Still don’t like the Luke casting.

Every time his face was visible, you could see the actor thinking "I get to be Luke Skywalker!!!"
posted by rocketman at 7:45 AM on June 23, 2022 [3 favorites]


Worth bringing back Christensen

It was, but it wasn't until this episode that I thought so - I didn't understand the point, if we never got to see his face or hear his voice.
posted by jordemort at 8:01 AM on June 23, 2022


For a series that takes place a long time ago in a galaxy far far away, Star Wars devotes an annoying amount of time to Canon. Don't get me wrong, I love Star Wars apologetics, and you don't get that without canon, but on the other hand, these are mythic archetypes in a mythic setting. Star Wars Legends is already a thing. Tartakovsky shows that some of the best Star Wars is already in legends. Any prequel is going to break canon in various ways, why not say to hell with it and tell your own story? Kill off Luke and the Owens in the opening scene, and now saving Leia has some urgency. Now all the tension from the movies can be back on the table. What happens if Vader finds out about his daughter when she's still a ten year old?

How does Luke die as a child and save the Galaxy later? Well, somehow Palpatine returned. Or, to be less glib, that was a different story.

As for Kenobi, it was fine. Agree with people who wanted more Reva, and thought that MacGregor's performance covered-over a lot of problems.
posted by surlyben at 8:38 AM on June 23, 2022 [1 favorite]


Why does Reva think it would constitute "justice" to kill Luke? Who does she think Luke is?

I think the show explained this fully. Reva hears the message for Kenobi about "the boy" on Tattooine with Owen. She deduces that the kid is Vader's son and decides she's going to murder the child as revenge for Vader's attack on her and the other kids at the Jedi school. The deduction feels a bit like a leap but, eh, close enough. Oddly she does not seem to ever figure out who Leia is, presumably necessary for continuity since even George Lucas didn't know who Leia was in the first movie. Some links on this: one, two.
posted by Nelson at 8:52 AM on June 23, 2022 [5 favorites]


I enjoyed this whole series well enough. At the beginning, I said I wanted Leia in every episode and a return of Kamail Nanjiani's character, and both of those things happened, so I'm pleased. The Reva story played out pretty much exactly as I said it would. I thought all of the performances were good. So, all in all, good job.

But I'm not all that keen on them making a second season. Doesn't really seem to be any point.
posted by briank at 9:59 AM on June 23, 2022


Cendawanita- that comment is layered can you please unpack some more for this old fool who doesn’t recognize the ROTJ call back you mention (even after 1000 viewings) I don’t know what a doylesian is.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 10:10 AM on June 23, 2022


Oh sure thing.

Watsonian Vs Doylist (oops I used Doylesian) - it came out of the Sherlock Holmes fandom way back when when discussing a story - the in-story perspective (as how John Watson would describe the death of Sherlock, so you engage with the narrative as-is including how Moriarty must truly be a spectacular genius to one-up Holmes) or the Doylist view (ACD just wanted to kill off the guy because he was sick and tired of him, so you talk about welp, a fall of a waterfall is as definite a cause of death as any). With something that's is as fanservicey and extended universe as this one, having both views clarifies my engagement I find.

Re: ROTJ - it's that moment on Endor when Luke allowed himself to be caught by the Imps and when he was doing his walk and talk with Vader, Vader was firm that there's no longer any Anakin left and that it's too late for him, and Luke says, "then my father is truly dead."
posted by cendawanita at 10:33 AM on June 23, 2022 [1 favorite]


After thinking about it overnight I don't think there's any reason to believe Reva thinks Luke had any connection to Anakin. I think the critical insight I was missing is that Reva explicitly blamed Obi-Wan for Vader's fall in the last episode. So I think the reasoning is, this Jedi failed in his duty and some kids I cared about died; I'm overcome with rage and grief about my own failures and past and want to lash out at him, and apparently this child matters to him since someone left him a voice mail about it, so this appears to be an opportunity to make him hurt.

I think there's no need for Reva to have figured out more of the situation than that. Obi-Wan clearly gives a shit about this couple of random kids, to the point he's been hiding out on Tattooine near one of them for years, who cares why, I'm looking to hit Obi-Wan where it hurts and this is clearly a place where it'll hurt. Frankly, it seems equally likely to me that she thinks these are Obi-Wan's kids.

Really wish ANY time had been given to explaining this because I think a lot of people are assuming Anakin was involved in the calculation somehow, and I don't think that's a leap that's required. Clearly Anakin doesn't know these kids exist, so why would it affect him at all if she killed them?
posted by potrzebie at 10:37 AM on June 23, 2022 [4 favorites]


Yeah on second thought I think you're right, potrzebie; Reva's reason for killing Luke is not quite clear. It could be a way to get at Obi-Wan instead. That feels a little strange given she was sort of helping Obi-Wan just the episode previous, but then again we also know she blames him for not protecting her and the other children.

I tried to handwave how Reva would have connected Luke to Vader just from the recording and really that's not clear in the text either. Note Vader doesn't know about Luke, so it's not like Reva had offscreen access to some Sith documentation to spell it all out. Conceivably she has more information from research in her job as a Jedi hunter and her interested in Jedi children.

FWIW there's a whole Reddit thread on this question and after some 200+ comments no one seems to really know. Lots of opinions either way though.

More time explaining this would have helped. I think what is clear in the episode is she thinks murdering Luke is somehow revenge for her being attacked at the Jedi school. So her redemption arc works either way, her realization that killing children will not be justice for other children being killed. The redemption scene hits even harder if you read it as Reva trying to hurt Obi-Wan by killing Luke.
posted by Nelson at 11:01 AM on June 23, 2022


I guess also like, the whole "oh man seeing Anakin's partial face behind the helmet" thing maybe felt crazy and amazing for people who haven't watched the animated shows but I felt it was a bit "been there, done that" given Ahsoka has already had that exact experience.

One neat thing about this - it's the other side to the Ahsoka's. Meaning that neither Ahsoka nor Obi gets to fully unmask Vader. The only person who gets to do that is Luke (with love).
posted by coriolisdave at 3:57 PM on June 23, 2022 [13 favorites]


Inquisitor: An escape pod just launched.

Vader: It’s Kenobi! Follow him!

Inquisitor: You understand this is a whole-ass Star Destroyer, right? We have options. How about we keep chasing down this rebel network and send a few dozen of the TIE fighters we’re carrying after Kenobi? Maybe a Lambda-class shuttle full of troops?

Vader: No, I think we’ll be devoting all of our resources to chasing him down. Let me know when we get to wherever he’s headed so I can fly down alone in my personal shuttle.

Inquisitor: Could you just take your personal shuttle now? Since that’s what you’ll eventually be doing anyway? And we could use this, and I repeat myself here, whole-ass Star Destroyer to chase down the Jedi-smuggling network?

Vader: I feel like you’re not getting this. No, we’re going to take this Star Destroyer to whatever planet Kenobi heads to and then you and all of our fighters and all of our troops will wait in orbit while I go down to the planet alone and have a lasersword fight with him.

Inquisitor: While the Jedi-smugglers get away?

Vader: Yes.

Inquisitor: So on the off chance Kenobi beats you in this lasersword fight and leaves you screaming impotently on the planet’s surface we should use this whole-ass Star Destroyer to stop him when he tries to leave, right?

Vader:

Inquisitor:

Vader: No.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 4:59 PM on June 23, 2022 [39 favorites]


Inquisitor: So on the off chance Kenobi beats you in this lasersword fight and leaves you screaming impotently on the planet’s surface we should use this whole-ass Star Destroyer to stop him when he tries to leave, right?

This gaping plot holes are absolutely what drives me nuts about SW and some other SciFi in general. The creators are just like "fuck it, we don't even have to fill that hole, let's just keep it moving". It always manages to push my buttons.

Yes, I'm in therapy, shut up.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:13 PM on June 23, 2022 [11 favorites]


The series was good, although there were some pretty clunky moments, like:

“It's not about us, is it? You want to do it. It's about you and him.”

Like, what are you, dude? The grand expositor?
posted by snofoam at 5:26 PM on June 23, 2022 [4 favorites]


This gaping plot holes are absolutely what drives me nuts about SW and some other SciFi in general.

It’s only a plot hole if you start with the premise that Vader is smart. If you approach everything from the position of “Anakin has always been a messy himbo who makes terrible decisions and only ever survives any scene he’s in because he’s the Force’s favoritest boy” most Star Wars plot holes resolve themselves pretty neatly.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 5:38 PM on June 23, 2022 [25 favorites]


I can’t possibly be the only one who heard “And that is why you will always lose” and immediately said, “Because good…is dumb.”
posted by MrBadExample at 6:55 PM on June 23, 2022 [8 favorites]


I wonder if we will see any of these characters pop up in Andor. Roken, for example.
posted by jimw at 7:04 PM on June 23, 2022 [2 favorites]


I'm just wondering if Reva will find a Dark Side recovery group anywhere. Hey, it's a big galaxy.
posted by Halloween Jack at 8:30 PM on June 23, 2022 [1 favorite]


disney money printer go brrrrrr
posted by lalochezia at 8:37 PM on June 23, 2022 [6 favorites]


Honestly, Vader having tunnel vision about Kenobi and taking the whole damn Star Destroyer on the hunt for him is like the whole point of Vader's story in this episode. Honestly, I think some of you watch this show like tacticians thinking about how you would have done things if you were a smarter genocidal maniac.

"I woulda done this" is like the absolutely most worthless criticism of film and television. You are not Darth Vader. It's not a plot hole if Darth Vader/Anakin does something stupid, hot-headed, not-fully-thought-through. It is IN CHARACTER. Especially here.

By the end of the episode, he declares his total loyalty to the Emperor because his tunnel-vision was hampering the Empire and the Sith's goals.
posted by crossoverman at 9:28 PM on June 23, 2022 [17 favorites]


Yeah Vader making everyone come along and wait around in the car while their quarry gets away so he can showboat solo on planet with Obi-Wan is basically his whole deal. It's that theatrical, extra Skywalker Shit that keeps me coming back to this stupid franchise. Those Terrible Skywalker Choices. That "I'm Darth Vader and I'mma go ahead and stand on top of the TIE fighter as I make my entrance so my cape billows intimidatingly in the wind" energy. I love it. Can't get enough.

Again I am just getting a vibe that my experience of SW is very different from others' on these threads, lol. It makes the entire episode for me when Darth Vader throws some kind of stupid ass tantrum and messes up his own life again because he's so impulsive, presumably because he's so godawful powerful that he can't tell the difference between "the promptings of the Force, which indicate that this thing I'm about to try against all common sense is actually going to pan out fine" and "my momentary urges and feelings, which come with no such guarantee". I literally laughed out loud when Obi-Wan was like "well it's not going to be a siege (because homeboy has never voluntarily waited more than five minutes for anything in his entire life and I'm willing to bet he hasn't started doing that recently)" last episode. I live for this shit.
posted by potrzebie at 11:12 PM on June 23, 2022 [29 favorites]


Potrzebie you made my night with that comment Peace OUT
posted by St. Peepsburg at 12:11 AM on June 24, 2022


Also if anything this Kenobi series has made me love Star Wars again so much that I made my husband watch phantom menace with me tonight I haven’t seen that movie in 20 years and I love it; I love Qui Gon with dad-dropping lessons and lectures all over, I love young Kenobi, I love Queen Amidala, and I don’t hate jar jar bunks anymore and That’s Growth.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 12:15 AM on June 24, 2022 [6 favorites]


Yeah I think what watching this series has made me realise is that I just don't love star wars as much as I used to.

I loved the OT growing up; I was able to see at least some of them at the cinema in the nineties, and watched them to death on video. I read and loved the Timothy Zahn novels, which managed to continue the story with characters I loved, and introduce engaging new ones as well.

The prequels came out when I was in my late teens, and yup, they sucked. I remember going to see Attack of the Clones and the entire cinema bursting out in laughter when Yoda did his silly ligbtsabre fight.

And then the sequels came out. And Force Awakens was really fun, and managed to introduce some new, really engaging characters. The plotting wasnt there, but still. Then Last Jedi came out, and it felt new and diffferent and I loved it, and was dismayed at the fan reaction to it.

Then... well then it was downhill. Solo and Rogue One were fine, but felt limited to me in different ways. And then of course, there was the last film, which was so actively bad it retrospectively made the sequel trilogy worse. A huge amount of budget spent to make what was a piece of incoherent nonsense. I mean, a lot of choices in the prequel trilogy were bad, but at least there was a clear through line. ROS was just nothing.

And now I watch these Tv shows colouring in the gaps... and theyre fine, but so so limited. Meanwhile at the same time they release Ms Marvel which feels so much mpre human and real, and the contrast just makes me sigh.

I really did like the final fight between Obi Wan and Darth, and I thought the emotional conclusion was satisfying. But Obi Wans decision to not kill him makes no sense. Why leave him alive? Other than having read the script, an act of mercy on someone who has just declared himself to be unrepentantly evil is just... evil. It was bad enough in the prequels, but Obi Wan is now responsible for every act of evil Darth will do. And thats quite a lot! He spent this series seeing all the awful things Darth did. Hell he encouraged Reva to get her revenge on him.

I think though the biggest failing for me was Reva. I dont blame the actor, and clearly her arc worked for others but because of the way the story was told I never really engaged with her, and her decision not to kill Luke didn't feel compelling to me at all.
posted by Cannon Fodder at 1:32 AM on June 24, 2022 [3 favorites]


Cannon Fodder, your feelings about Star Wars are very similar to my own. I used to love it a lot, played the SWRPG, and was super excited before the prequels were released.

Imagine if Yoda had moved like a kung fu master instead of a spinning top. Ugh. Anakin sounded like a whiny punk instead of someone consumed by evil.

I liked The Last Jedi and the new direction it was trying to take, and thought Rise of Skywalker was an awful mess.

I really enjoyed the Mandalorian, Book of Boba Fett not as much.

In general, Filoni's stuff has been pretty decent, but Star Wars just seems like it's trying to sloppily connect all of the characters to all of the other characters without the care that has been shown on the Marvel side of things.

Kenobi leaned heavily on Millennial nostalgia to try to spackle over the poor writing. I wish they had tried a little harder.

I still like Ewan MacGregor, though.
posted by Fleebnork at 5:06 AM on June 24, 2022 [2 favorites]


There are apparently no missiles in Star Wars. Bombs, for some gravity-defying reason, but no missiles.
posted by schoolgirl report at 5:11 AM on June 24, 2022


"I woulda done this" is like the absolutely most worthless criticism of film and television.

When watching a character repeatedly throw away everything good they had, to the point where they are killing kids and adults, betraying their former beliefs, losing limbs and getting badly scarred to the point they need advance technology to survive, saying "well, I would have done that differently" isn't worthless. It's highlighting some terrible plotting and stunning lack of character growth.

Hell, Darth Vader is nothing more than a puppet for the Emperor. Whatever fantastic powers Vader has, it's all mitigated by the fact that he was manipulated to such an extent that he continues to choose to be a mass murdering lap dog.


It's not a plot hole if Darth Vader/Anakin does something stupid, hot-headed, not-fully-thought-through. It is IN CHARACTER. Especially here.

I agree that Vader's choices in Kenobi to go it alone do seem to be in character, but to repeatedly have him make such basic mistakes is incredibly boring.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 6:15 AM on June 24, 2022 [1 favorite]


Overall I did enjoy this series. Leia is great and seeing her as young Leia was great fun. Reva is new and interesting and still available for fun future stories.

As for Anakin being whiny, it bothered me in the prequels when I was around twenty. But now that I’m over forty, a whiny-ass kid becoming ultimate evil makes sense. So much evil happens in our world because some over-privileged little boy never grows up; why shouldn’t that be true in Star Wars too?

On the other hand the gaping plot hole that bugged me was Obi Wan escaping the rock planet. Vader isn’t on the star destroyer, so who is to stop them from picking off one little ship?
I guess I had a problem with the rock planet in general because I had a hard time following the fight choreography (not lighting related; I could see fine but couldn’t figure out who was standing where; nor could I understand how the literal ton of rocks thrown by each character failed to do much if any damage. It’s a styrofoam rock planet.)

Anyhow I had fun. But rather than rekindle my love for Star Wars, watching it at the same time as the first few episodes of Strange New Worlds made me realize I really do like Trek better.

That having been said I would totally watch Teenage Leia Learns to Use That Holster And Stay A Friend to Droids.
posted by nat at 6:18 AM on June 24, 2022 [1 favorite]


But Obi Wans decision to not kill him makes no sense. Why leave him alive?

His is just the classic trope where you are allowed to murder all the stormtroopers you want, but if you let named villains live you are a merciful Hero.

What I don’t get is why in this series Vader does it. He wounds Reva last episode and leaves. Then this episode he dumps a bunch of rocks on Obi-wan and slowly walks back to his ship. The heros should be forced to have daring escapes, not be left alive because Darth Vader doesn’t like the sight of blood.
posted by Gary at 8:43 AM on June 24, 2022 [6 favorites]


I'm generally forgiving and willing to suspend my disbelief but I found this episode clumsier and more packed with clichés than the previous. Without McGregor, it would have been excruciating. The chase scene for instance:

1. Escaping ship dodging their blasts. Helpless pursuers unable to land a shot until "Increase fire power" order from Vader. Ahh.... thanks big guy! We didn't think of that. (And it should have been increase fire rate since that was what they did.)

2. Escaping ship is getting shot from behind. "Put all power into rear shields!" shouted to the passengers rather than the cockpit, well into the chase.

3. "Ben, we're not going to make it. No chance at all. Absolutely none. I can't fix it in time." Sigh.
"OK, I'll cause a distraction to buy us time. No guarantee I'll die -- I'm a Jedi after all."
"Nooooo, Ben. Definitely don't do that. Stay with us and die!!"
posted by NailsTheCat at 2:08 PM on June 24, 2022 [4 favorites]


4. Also lets have long angsty chats about getting off the ship rather than quickly leaving to save their lives.

The writing in this series has been AB-YS-MAL.
posted by lalochezia at 2:47 PM on June 24, 2022 [3 favorites]


@jordemort My wife and I watched, and she had the same questions about Obi-Wan's quick trip to Alderaan, and then it dawned on me that I can't recall ever seeing a bathroom in any of the Star wars products I have consumed.
posted by oldnumberseven at 5:43 PM on June 24, 2022 [2 favorites]


1. Escaping ship dodging their blasts. Helpless pursuers unable to land a shot until "Increase fire power" order from Vader. Ahh.... thanks big guy! We didn't think of that. (And it should have been increase fire rate since that was what they did.)

There is a long a proud tradition in Imperial gunnery of keeping you and your artillery crew alive by working out ahead of time the cannon settings that will show the Sith Lord having a fit what he wants to see when he starts shouting vague commands and swirling his cape around.
posted by EatTheWeek at 6:53 PM on June 24, 2022 [4 favorites]


OK, so I loved Obi-Wan, I loved Little Leia, and I loved Reva. There was a lot of good stuff in here that was missing in The Book of Bobba Fett. The whole idea of "plot holes" being live-withable because Anakin/Vader aren't as smart as he looks is a revelation to me (and I've been watching this stuff since 1977).

I, too, have softened a bit on my hatred of the prequel trilogy. The Phantom Menace as a movie is still awful, but seeing young Obi-Wan and young Padme (plus the pod race) makes it almost worthwhile. This series actually did a pretty good job of filling in some Skywalker family history.

I'm of the camp that believes it's time to move on from the Skywalker era. But while we're still here, the stories of Leia, Reva and (hopefully) Asohk are good stories to explore. I would especially love to see "Princess Leia Goes To Coruscant" to see her development as a senator and leader.
posted by lhauser at 11:00 AM on June 25, 2022 [2 favorites]


I thought most of the series was pretty forgettable and unnecessary, but Ewan McGregor made it worthwhile overall - the final Vader/Skywalker/Kenobi confrontation is probably the single best live-action one outside of the original trilogy, in that the emotional stakes are the real focus. The prequels still make Anakin’s fall seem a little silly and ungrounded, but their fight in this feels more like a bookend to a better story with the same fundamentals, again mostly on the strength of the acting, and some very nicely done sound work with the voice modulator and really effective lighting.
posted by Jon Mitchell at 1:28 PM on June 25, 2022 [2 favorites]


It was nice that Luke’s aunt and uncle were able to, well, fight, and do something, not just be forever background characters.
When Reva pursued Luke into the canyons, I sorta hoped he’d bullseye her, like a womp rat.
Hahah Darth Vader lost like a chuuump!
I was amused Leia ran right past Obi-Wan to see Lola.

> Qui-gob: "Wtf?! Back in my day, light sabers actually killed people, what us this shit?!"
I'm just noting the "gob" typo made me read this in Will Arnett’s voice.

> @jordemort My wife and I watched, and she had the same questions about Obi-Wan's quick trip to Alderaan, and then it dawned on me that I can't recall ever seeing a bathroom in any of the Star wars products I have consumed.

The Mandalorian had spaaace toilets.
posted by Pronoiac at 11:00 PM on June 25, 2022 [8 favorites]


It was nice that Luke’s aunt and uncle were able to, well, fight, and do something, not just be forever background characters.

Makes me wonder what their deaths were like. I always imagined they were just slaughtered by storm troppers, leaving their burned corpses behind. But those old farmers might have had some fight in them.
posted by crossoverman at 4:00 AM on June 26, 2022 [6 favorites]


> Qui-gob: "Wtf?! Back in my day, light sabers actually killed people, what us this shit?!"
I'm just noting the "gob" typo made me read this in Will Arnett’s voice.


"Oh, sure, the guy with the twenty thousand credit Inquisitor armor is just gonna die from a lightsaber impalement?! COME ON!!"
posted by CheesesOfBrazil at 4:02 AM on June 26, 2022 [8 favorites]


> @jordemort My wife and I watched, and she had the same questions about Obi-Wan's quick trip to Alderaan, and then it dawned on me that I can't recall ever seeing a bathroom in any of the Star wars products I have consumed.

The Mandalorian had spaaace toilets.


Haha, this totally unearthed a long-buried memory of this Mad Magazine/Sergio Aragones comic.
posted by ejs at 9:43 AM on June 26, 2022 [4 favorites]


Not sure if this praise belongs to Ewan McGregor, the stunt team, or a half dozen digital puppets with work so strong that it became invisible, but I was personally persuaded by Obi-Wan's physical performance as a middle aged man reaching for abilities he's not sure were there, and eventually finding more there than he expected.

I loved that he went for the Jedi kung-fu and couldn't quite manage it. I love that over the course of episodes we got to see his slowly shed his hesitancy and stiffness and remember who he was. And I loved that even as the rhythm of Old Republic style lightsaber fighting came back to him, he still couldn't quite hit that "straight over and behind the head" block like he used to. Sorry Obi, some things are about your connection to the Force and others are about your connection to the Force and lat flexibility. Ghost Qui-Gon can probably show you some stretches.
posted by EatTheWeek at 1:50 PM on June 26, 2022 [12 favorites]


For those surprised that Aunt Beru had a stash of guns she was both able and prepared to use: it's canon that Beru is deeply involved in the underground movement to liberate enslaved sentients on Tattooine, for the presumably several people in this thread who haven't read the Padme-centric YA novel Queen's Hope.
posted by potrzebie at 1:57 PM on June 26, 2022 [5 favorites]


From the internet:

Who would win in a fight between Superman and Batman? Depends on how much prep time Aunt Beru has.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:13 PM on June 26, 2022 [4 favorites]


For those surprised that Aunt Beru had a stash of guns she was both able and prepared to use: it's canon that Beru is deeply involved in the underground movement to liberate enslaved sentients on Tattooine, for the presumably several people in this thread who haven't read the Padme-centric YA novel Queen's Hope.

"Several people in this thread" is probably almost everyone in this thread.

It's retcons all the way down.
posted by Fleebnork at 4:59 AM on June 28, 2022 [2 favorites]


But we finally know how Uncle Owen got his limp, in case that was keeping anyone awake for the last 45 years.
posted by ActingTheGoat at 10:37 AM on June 28, 2022 [8 favorites]


Yeah lol I definitely wasn't assuming anyone else in the entire world read those Padme books. I have no idea whether Beru's liberation efforts are even known to the writers on this show! But my spouse was like "dang Aunt Beru is more badass than expected" and I got to be like WELL ACTUALLY and now you all can drop the same knowledge on your nearest and dearest so, You're Welcome
posted by potrzebie at 1:23 PM on June 29, 2022 [3 favorites]


Ok. So. I just finished a rewatch of the prequels, with my dear husband, who asked questions like “wait if Natalie Portman is Padme then who’s the queen?” And “well we still don’t know who Darth Sidious really is.” Bless his heart.

And I now love them unconditionally. Deeply flawed with great bones; I love them.

There were tons of plot points I had either totally forgotten or not understood the first time around; so we paused at times to get the different fractions and war tactics clarified. That really helped.

But the biggest thing I forgot was how yoda says Qui Gon has figured out immortality, and he will teach it to Obi wan. So that’s what he’s headed out to the desert to learn. Secondly, with return of the Jedi Luke and Leia being twins always felt like a convenient plot point to me and totally contrived; in revenge of the sith now it was clear they are the ones to balance the force. Anakin was presumable conceived by midicholorians, a singleton, but balance is two not one. The sequels should have been centered on the twins, one passionate the other even tempered, and how they unite together (ie embrace our shadow sides) to truly bring peace to the galaxy. Omg what an epic failure of storytelling the sequels were.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 9:25 AM on July 2, 2022 [8 favorites]


Omg what an epic failure of storytelling the sequels were.

Whew. I'll drink to that.
posted by potrzebie at 11:40 AM on July 2, 2022 [3 favorites]


Omg what an epic failure of storytelling the sequels were.

I thought the one bright spot was Tartakovsky's 2003 "Clone Wars" shorts on Cartoon Network. Introducing Grievous, and ending on a cliffhanger. So I was motivated to go see Revenge of the Sith on opening night.

And it was such a letdown for that cliffhanger to be resolved by Obi-wan riding Selma's pet iguana Jub-Jub.
posted by mikelieman at 3:14 AM on July 3, 2022 [1 favorite]


Although that holster with its kill tally is a pretty grim gift for a kid

It wasn't a kill tally. It was a kids saved tally. That was perfect for Leia.

There had better be a Reva show about her next adventures. If there can be this whole series about Obi Wan Recovers From PTSD, surely Reva deserves that as well.
posted by medusa at 6:18 PM on July 3, 2022


No part of this show made sense. There are so many others that have been mentioned already in these threads, but there are still plot points that are just plain dumb. Obi-Wan swears to rescue Leia and return her to Alderaan, and twice - TWICE! - just hands her off to someone he's barely met (one a former Imperial officer, the other a charlatan, neither one trustworthy) so he can go sacrifice himself. The refugees are besieged and hoping for a last-second escape, but they wait until Leia can get the doors open before they START boarding the transport?

The worst part was the same disease that infected the movies (at least the first six) - looking to make connections with the story as known, but instead creating wholly avoidable problems (like ROTJ Leia having memories of a mother who later apparently died in childbirth, Kenobi not owning a droid, etc.). ANH Luke led a thoroughly boring life and had no idea what a lightsaber was, yet here he's being chased by a Sith. You'd think that would stick in the memory. The whole reason Kenobi was on Tatooine was to watch over Luke from a distance, but he agrees to have nothing to do with him... and then stays for another ten years?

I've enjoyed all these movies and shows, but not one logically connects to the others. Absolutely no continuity, which is bizarre considering how the fandom pretzels itself to force it to make sense. It succeeds in spite of itself.
posted by GhostintheMachine at 6:30 PM on July 4, 2022 [1 favorite]


ANH Luke led a thoroughly boring life and had no idea what a lightsaber was, yet here he's being chased by a Sith.
He doesn't know that. His uncle tells him that there are Tusken raiders coming, and then to run away, and then he falls and hits his head. He never sees who's chasing him, and presumably Owen and Beru let him believe that it was Tuskens after all.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:35 PM on July 4, 2022 [1 favorite]


The refugees are besieged and hoping for a last-second escape, but they wait until Leia can get the doors open before they START boarding the transport?

Have to agree with this, this was very dumb. And that surprise second ship that appeared from nowhere?
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 9:43 PM on July 4, 2022


Obi-Wan Kenobi: The Patterson Cut. A fan-made 2.5 hour movie.
The Obi-Wan show, in my opinion, suffered from things that were easily fixable in the script and in the edit... awkward pacing, whole scenes that ultimately amounted to nothing, goofy dialogue and directing choices, so I decided to take matters into my own hands and change what I could. I want to be very clear, this is my own artistic interpretation of how these scenes could be strung together to make something that works better for me personally.
Might be interesting, haven't seen it. One of the big things to get the axe is most of Reva's story, so this is not the edit for me. (His FAQ makes it clear he did this with respect.)
posted by Nelson at 11:38 AM on July 8, 2022 [1 favorite]


When Obes served up that swarm of boulders in the Vader fight, I said, “No! A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense! NEVER for attack!” (I guess I let Force-pushes slide, but rocks are A Bit Much)
And then I thought maybe a good Season 2 would be about Obi-Wan having to recover from his brush with the Dark Side, which could well be the thing that ages him up and saps his powers.
But they’ll never actually do that. I can dream, though.
posted by Mister Moofoo at 9:40 AM on July 13, 2022 [1 favorite]


Was his power sapped? I just put it down to the limitations of filmmaking in the late 70s.

That reminds me of this awesome fan project that reimagined the New Hope lightsaber fight so it was actually cool.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 6:47 PM on July 14, 2022 [1 favorite]


I think that yes, his overt power maybe could have been diminished, as well as also technical filmmaking limitations.
You have to account for the change in his fighting style, too, if you are stubborn enough to care about those kinds of things.

Mostly I don’t, because I find some people’s need to have story explanations for technical concerns a little tiresome, but it’s a fun game to play if nobody expects me to get mad about it.
(That’s not directed at anyone here. It’s mostly about someone who doesn’t even go here, but we all know somebody like that.)
posted by Mister Moofoo at 8:36 AM on July 18, 2022 [1 favorite]


You have to account for the change in his fighting style, too, if you are stubborn enough to care about those kinds of things.

The day before A New Hope, Obi Wan put his back out and Vader pulled a calf muscle.

Or maybe the other way round, since Vader doesn't have calves.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 3:58 PM on July 18, 2022 [5 favorites]


Hey, it just hit me: did we ever see Obi dig that droid he had buried in his yard back up?
posted by EatTheWeek at 6:19 PM on August 14, 2022


Jill Bearup: This Fight Changed Everything...
posted by 1970s Antihero at 5:12 AM on August 16, 2022 [2 favorites]


Someone should do the force ghost scene at the end but with Begbie off Trainspotting instead of Qui-Gon.
posted by biffa at 4:23 PM on September 12, 2022 [1 favorite]


So, one thing I've been wondering about...

Reva finds out that Obi-Wan worked with Bail Organa during the Clone Wars. She kidnaps Organa's daughter, figuring that Organa will get Obi-Wan to come out of hiding to rescue Leia. (Unless she thought somehow Obi-Wan would just know that she was kidnapped on his own?) All of which, of course, happens, and also all of which she's reported to both the Grand Inquisitor & Darth Vader. So, the Empire knows that the Organas know Obi-Wan and how to find him. Even if the Emperor tells Vader to forget about hunting his former master, they still are completely aware that an Imperial Senator (is that what Bail does?) was in contact with and potentially illegally hiding information about a wanted criminal Jedi. And yet, no one ever goes to Alderaan to ask him anything? What's he going to say, "Oh it's just a coincidence that this guy went to rescue my daughter?" Why wouldn't they just scoop him and his family up at any point for conspiring with an enemy of the Empire? They have all the evidence they need (and they don't actually need any since they are the Empire), and we know from ANH that Alderaan isn't a military threat, so why not just kill the Organas and be done with it? That's why the whole "no one can ever know" thing makes no sense. EVERYONE KNOWS NOW, DUDE!
posted by Saxon Kane at 2:22 PM on October 31, 2022 [1 favorite]


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