Let's Talk About OBI-WAN KENOBI Episode 3 - Darth Vader Is Pissed at Obi-Wan
The last time that Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) saw Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen), he cut off his limbs and left him for dead on the volcanic planet of Mustafar. Well, the two come face to face for the first time since that tragic event took place in episode 3 of Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Darth Vader is freakin’ pissed.
The episode opens with a great sequence of Vader being put together in the iconic suit that keeps him alive. Reva meets with Vader and he tells her that he knows she wants to be the Grand Inquisitor. He’s willing to grant that to her if she is able to lead him to Kenobi, as he’s been hell-bent on finding the Jedi Master and the Third Sister, Reva (Moses Ingram), manages to deliver.
The reunion of Kenobi and Vader was the most exciting thing for me about this series, unfortunately, when the big moment came, it ended up being disappointingly bland. The build-up to the initial moment saw Vader walking through a little community snapping the necks of bystanders. It was super dark, but the initial reunion of Vader and Kenobi lacked intensity, and I felt it was a missed opportunity to do something incredible.
As the series played out things got a bit more intense with Vader lighting the ground on fire with his lightsaber and dragging Kenobi into that fire to torture him. Vader makes it clear that he is going to make Kenobi’s life a painful, living hell, and dragging him into a fire and burning him is only the tip of the iceberg.
Kenobi has clearly lost a step, and he’s not as sharp and skilled as he used to be, which doesn’t make sense. If his mission is to protect Luke Skywalker, you’d think he would have to continue to practice, stay sharp, and in shape both physically and in the mind. If something did threaten Luke, how is he supposed to protect him with his lack of skills and his hesitancy? Then there’s the fact that he wanted to teach Luke the ways of The Force, but how can he teach him if he’s not a skilled Jedi anymore? Or, if he doesn’t want to draw attention because training Luke would draw all kinds of attention.
I don’t know, I’ve just been expecting more from Kenobi. At this point, Vader has definitely got the upper hand! I’m starting to wonder how Kenobi has survived as long as he has. Young Leia seems to have it together more than Kenobi.
The episode features a few other brain farts with the Stormtroopers looking for a Jedi on the desert planet of Mapuzo. Seriously, they are looking for a Jedi and they don’t realize the bearded guy in front of him wearing brown Jedi robes is a Jedi? Then they need a droid to scan his face? At one point Kenobi hilariously tells the Stormtroopers that he doesn’t even know what a Jedi would look like.
I’m also not sure why Kenobi is being so shy about busting out his lightsaber, even against Vader. Why is he so hesitant? The first time he does bring it out and fire it up is when he’s scared shitless. At least at one point, Kenobi actually does do something useful when he draws his blaster against the group of Stormtroopers and blows them all away John Wick-style. It looks like he’s got some blaster skills and it’s kind of amusing to look at his quote from A New Hope when talking to Luke: "Your father's lightsaber. This is the weapon of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy or random as a blaster. An elegant weapon, for a more civilized age."
He should definitely be busting out his Lightsaber more! There’s no reason why he shouldn’t be using that thing!
Look, I have been enjoying the series for the most part, and I’m invested in seeing how the story plays out. But there are just a lot of things to nitpick. I’m confused by some of the creative decisions that are being made as they tell this story. It just seems like the story and script should be little smarter.
What did you all think about the third episode of Obi-Wan Kenobi?