“Hello there.”
The Disney+ original series, Obi-Wan Kenobi aired its finale Wednesday, concluding the six-episode arc that feature the titular character being pulled into action for the first time in ten years.
Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor reprising his role from the prequel trilogy) has been living on Tatooine for the past 10 years, following Order 66 and the presumed death of his padawan, Anakin Skywalker turned Darth Vader (Hayden Christensen, reprising his role from the latter prequel films), and the death of Padme Amidala. Since his exile, Obi-Wan has watched over Luke Skywalker (Grant Feely) who lives with his uncle Owen (Joel Edgerton) and aunt Beru (Bonnie Piesse).
Obi-Wan, now living under the pseudonym Ben, has seemingly given up his life as a Jedi. He buried both his and Anakin’s lightsabers in the desert, and indeed buried his past and the terrible memories associated with his apprentice’s dark turn.
However, Obi-Wan is quickly pulled into action. Senator Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits reprising his role from the prequels and Rogue One) reaches out because his adoptive daughter and Luke’s secret twin, Leia (Vivien Lyra Blair) has been captured. It is quickly revealed Leia was captured in order to draw out Obi-Wan. The Inquisitor Reva (Moses Ingram) planned Leia’s kidnapping in order to earn favor with Darth Vader.
The six episode show features Obi-Wan being pulled back into action, while also introducing a memorable motive for Reva’s actions. Reva is a character with her own agenda, with little regard for the Jedi or the Sith, which makes her that much more compelling and adds depth to her character. It is revealed Reva has huge motivation for her actions, which are drawn out during a confrontation with Obi-Wan in one of the later episodes.
Seeing the Inquisitors in live action for the first time was welcome. The Grand Inquisitor (Rupert Friend) first appeared in the animated series Rebels and he acts as a servant to Darth Vader, though he is certainly able to hold his own as a villain, much like the character we met in Rebels. Also present is the Fifth Brother (Sung Kang) and the Fourth Sister (Rya Kihlstedt), both of whom stay faithful to both Vader and the Grand Inquisitor, unlike Reva.
When Hayden Christensen was announced to reprise his role as Anakin/Vader, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy teased that his return would lead to the Rematch of the Century between Vader and Obi-Wan. Kennedy was certainly correct in that regard. The showdown between the two characters in the final episode is just as intense as their confrontation in Revenge of the Sith.
This time, the stakes are higher since Obi-Wan is fighting not just for himself, but to protect the lives of Anakin’s children. The final moment of the battle will leave you in tears as you think about the tragedy both Obi-Wan and Vader have gone through leading up to this fight. The confrontation is eerily similar to Ahsoka confronting Vader in the season two finale of Rebels.
The finale also features cameo appearances by two more familiar legacy characters. While somewhat surprising, they fit the narrative perfectly and interact with the two main characters for brief, albeit important, moments.
Casting for the twin characters was done with perfection. Vivien Lyra Blair’s performance as Leia would make Carrie Fisher so proud. She’s just as feisty as the Princess we first met in 1977 and should there be any more stories to tell with a young Leia, Vivien is the person for the job. Grant Feely as Luke is great casting, too. Grant’s Luke is full of the same wonder provided by Mark Hamill in the original film, with the young Luke dreaming of adventures in the stars and out to prove he is not afraid.
And yes, for those of you wondering: Obi-Wan does say “Hello there” during this series. You have to wait until the final minutes of the last episode to hear it, and it’s a perfect moment.
If you grew up with the prequels as your Star Wars films, this series is for you. It pays a lot of tribute to those films, while also balance the events to come in the original trilogy. Kenobi is the perfect blend of both the prequel and original films.
Obi-Wan Kenobi is streaming exclusively on Disney+
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