‘Obi-Wan Kenobi’ Finale Breakdown: howdy There, Goodbye - The Ringer

in the season finale of Obi-Wan Kenobi—and perhaps the collection finale, even though let's now not kid ourselves—characters from old trilogies take turns quoting star Wars at each different. "i'll do what I should," Obi-Wan says, again, as he prepares to duel Darth Vader, once more. "then you will die," Vader solutions, once more, as he readies himself to battle a former pal, again. (He also repeats that he must face that friend on my own.) Many parries, rolls, and slashes later, Obi-Wan bids goodbye to his ex-apprentice with the phrases, "Then my friend is in fact dead," echoing an additional hero who will sooner or later try to redeem Darth Vader. the ten-year-ancient Luke of Obi-Wan Kenobi is a protracted manner far from providing a version of that line—even though he does double down on declaring, "I'm now not afraid"—but he (pretty much) mutely flits throughout the finale long satisfactory to set off an obligatory third invocation of K enobi's catchphrase. Whaddya understand? an extra trilogy.

There's without doubt a market for this kind of issue. but as I watched the remaining act of Kenobi (for now) reduce itself to a legacy act tailor-made for DiCaprio pointing or "He pointed out the issue" memes, I felt like Kenobi as he stared at his old buddy's ruined mask. Tragedy attracts power from repetition, actual, but there's a difference between retreading ancient territory for dramatic effect and doing it for lack of new concepts. To regurgitate an old line myself, there is still decent during this sequence—however it's buried in self-reference, rushed characterization, and egregiously incredible plotting, as characters repeatedly make confounding decisions and inexplicably depart each different for lifeless to be certain the ship lands at a predetermined element dictated via canon. From my factor of view, famous person Wars has infrequently gave the impression so ossified—any such prisoner to its protagonists' pasts and a captive to their fu tures.

In its fifty one-minute running time, not counting credits—the 2d-longest within the series after the most appropriate—the finale had loads of plot features to tick off. Extricate Obi-Wan from a apparently inescapable pursuit by using a star Destroyer; engineer yet another showdown with Vader; make Kenobi come to terms together with his previous; rescue Luke and redeem Reva; bring Leia to Alderaan; deliver returned Qui-Gon Jinn. It accomplishes all of these desires, but does so via invariably slicing corners and insulting the intelligence of its characters and viewers alike. The moments that land—and there are a number of—are on the whole a testomony to Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen, and the historical past we've with their characters.

The episode opens on Tatooine, where the collection begun and where all roads in celebrity Wars lead. Reva, unsurprisingly, is attempting to find Luke by the use of Owen. If there's one element we will credit Obi-Wan with, it's preserving our time on Tatooine to a minimal, and this organising scene quickly cuts to house past Jabiim, the place Roken's transport—bearing Obi-Wan, Leia, and the remnants of the route—is fleeing Darth Vader's flagship. What ensues is the longest-lasting house chase we've considered because the first Order's flagship trailed the Resistance's fleet within the ultimate Jedi.

This time, though, the pursuit doesn't make a single lick of experience. Vader's celebrity Destroyer, the Devastator, proves incapable of destroying or devastating an unarmed and unaccompanied transport. Nor does Vader's command crew activate a tractor beam (as they might nine years later to trap Leia in the Tantive IV) or disgorge a single starfighter. They're content to putter after the transport, taking potshots as Roken does his darndest to fix the hyperdrive. This became the first of five instances that I wrote "Come on" in my notes. at the least there's one first-class second, when Obi-Wan watches the budding diplomat Leia comfort the refugees with the support of her droid. "They're scared," Leia explains. "She keeps their minds off of it." Obi-Wan, his face stuffed with a combination of tenderness and dread, jokes, "might be I may still borrow her too."

After one other short cutaway to Tatooine, wherein Owen learns that Reva's lower back on the town, Obi-Wan realizes that this condition isn't sustainable; at some point, most likely, the megastar Destroyer will prevail in disabling the transport's reputedly indestructible shields. His proposed answer is to board an escape craft and lead Vader away. "You've spent 10 years keeping the Jedi," he announces. "here's my probability to return that desire." reasonable sufficient, but neither Leia nor Roken approves of the plan, maybe because Obi-Wan's "You're the longer term! You're what must continue to exist!" makes him sound like he's fixing to sacrifice himself. "but we're so close!" Roken protests, in spite of the fact that, like literally a minute in the past, he informed Obi-Wan that fixing the hyperdrive would take extra time than they had. Obi-Wan is resolute; "You have to promise me that you just'll get her home, Haja," he says , entrusting Leia to a promising persona that the sequence install and then squandered (though he'll likely be lower back). quality figuring out you for a couple of minutes, man.

Exterior: Tatooine. Owen, knowing Reva might be after Luke, makes a beeline for the farm, where he briefs Beru. "Ben is long past," he confesses, to which Beru retorts, "Whose fault is that?" (It's basically Reva's fault, however Beru's husband didn't help.) Owen desires to hide, but Beru doesn't see the element; nor does she want to endanger any individual else with the aid of requesting counsel. She opts for the DIY strategy of combating off a force-wielding, lightsaber-swinging ex-Inquisitor with a couple of blaster rifles. It's no longer the worst move any person makes during this episode, however that's handiest because the competition in the bad-conception department is so deep.

lower back on the galaxy's most excellent-shielded transport, Obi-Wan gifts Leia Tala's holster—empty, to the Princess's remarkable remorseful about—bids her a fond farewell, and guarantees to return. Then he has one more one-approach convo with Qui-Gon. "I have to face him, grasp," he says. "no matter if he dies, or I do. This ends nowadays." This season of Obi-Wan Kenobi, yes; the saga of Obi-Wan and Anakin, no. Roken—his ultimate name, obviously!—isn't over both. He's still trying to talk Obi-Wan out of parting approaches with the transport; "we are able to nevertheless repair the power," he insists, waffling all over again. remember, this is the man who went from "that's now not my difficulty" to "in case you desire my help, you bought it" in under a minute in Episode 4, and he's nonetheless in first-rate flip-flopping form right here. at least Roken has the self-recognition to know he's now not the leading appeal, assert ing, "It's not about us, is it? … It's about you and him." precisely, so let's conclusion this needless scene, notwithstanding the big name Destroyer continues to be taking its sweet time turbolaser-smart.

earlier than Obi-Wan excuses himself, he shares a brief tribute to Roken's off-monitor management competencies. "people follow you," Obi-Wan says. "Don't stop." Roken, in most likely probably the most dismaying sentence spoken during this series, says, "simply getting begun." Is Disney losing bread crumbs for a Roken spinoff? Will Roken reappear in Andor? Does any individual want greater of him? Memo to Lucasfilm: in case you want us to care about Roken, that you may't simply inform us he's a hero. up to now, we've considered him do two things: are trying and fail to fix things, and regularly contradict himself. I even have deeper emotions for Wade. (Is it viable that Obi-Wan has secretly been Jedi intellect-tricking Roken all along? that would clarify why he can't seem to make up his mind. one way or yet another, he have to be weak-willed.)

eventually, Obi-Wan disembarks in the dropship and peels faraway from the transport, which forces Vader to make a call. The Grand Inquisitor, who doesn't take into account Vader's desires in addition to Reva did, argues in want of staying on course and removing the transport and the resistance network on board. Vader predictably decides to move after his nemesis as an alternative. Of course, there's no cause he has to opt for one or the different; he might go after Obi-Wan in his own ship, or—once again—dispatch one of the crucial dozens of TIE combatants that famous person Destroyers raise. alternatively, the Devastator may blast the rattling dropship out of the sky. but no; it's a celebrity Destroyer, now not a Dropship Destroyer, so Kenobi eludes the lasers and draws the ship away from his chums. (This changed into the source of the second "Come on"; this sequence doesn't even fake to explain its largest leaps of common sense.)

eventually, he leads the Imperials to a desolate, craggy planet local, the place he lands and awaits Vader's arrival. On the floor, he finds Lola hidden in his cloak, a further pleasant second and a nod to his previous alternate with the precocious princess. On Mustafar, Obi-Wan followed Vader to a duel; right here it's the wrong way around. The "i'll do what I need to"/"then you will die" nods to Revenge of the Sith and Rebels, respectively, turn up, after which the fight starts.

That skirmish is considerably greater wonderful than the intercut one that takes region on Tatooine between Reva and Owen. i used to be hoping for a house on my own–fashion series of booby traps on the moisture farm—maybe a blue-milk dunk tank or a domesticated Krayt dragon—but all Owen can do, anyway blast away, is kick flowerpots and throw packing containers. Naturally, he's no suit for Reva; as I waited impatiently for the center of attention to shift from the undercard to the leading adventure, i realized that Roken's comment that "It's about you and him" additionally applied to this episode.

As for the latest rematch of the two former Jedi generals: It's exceptional. It's no longer well-nigh as lengthy, acrobatic, or accompanied through a very rad theme tune as their first battle from Revenge of the Sith, however's no Episode IV ancient-man meeting or Episode-three-of-this-series beatdown. Kenobi, brandishing his saber in his old stance, does certainly stand extra of a chance this time, so tons so that it could actually account for Vader's caution once they meet years later. "Your strength has back," Vader says, as he assesses the very nearly amazing reconnection to the drive Obi-Wan has made within the span of three episodes. "but the weak spot nonetheless is still." He sounds gratified that his historical master is placing up a combat, and in advance positive. So prematurely, basically, that he tells him, "you have failed, grasp" after he fractures the earth and plunges Obi-Wan into the low floor earlier than burying him under boulder s. (in this context, that "grasp" sounds mocking, however additionally unhappy.) Then he walks away devoid of completing off his old pal—or, seemingly, even sensing that Obi-Wan is the use of the drive to hold the boulders at bay—which inspired my third "Come on."

On Tatooine, Luke runs far from Reva, who's gotten previous each Owen's outer perimeter and Beru's remaining line of protection. And on … anyplace Vader and Obi-Wan are, Obi-Wan is exploiting Vader's overconfidence to dig himself out of the floor, with an assist from the force boost he gets by means of contemplating his chuffed times with Leia. As Vader stalks again to his shuttle, a stealthy, super Saiyan Obi-Wan overtakes him, drive-hurls him as Vader did to him on Mapuzo, levitates a cloud of huge rocks like Rey on Crait, after which pelts his ancient apprentice with them. Vader's gonna should get his armor re-buffed.

Or maybe he'll want greater extensive repairs: Obi-Wan uses the hilt of his saber to harm Vader's suit controls, hits him with an additional boulder, and then, whereas the as soon as and future Skywalker wheezes like he will when he throws the Emperor into the reactor core, uses the company end of his saber to hint a glowing line throughout the again of his cloak. here he's like a matador surgically stabbing a bull with a muleta; he runs circles across the outstanding Sith lord, then pushes him again, leaps toward him, and splits his helmet down the center, giving Vader one of the vital head scars he activities in Return of the Jedi and reaffirming his lightsaber supremacy.

Like Ahsoka six years later in the Rebels Season 2 finale, Obi-Wan can now look Anakin in the eye—his left eye, on the opposite aspect of his face from the one Ahsoka uncovered. "Anakin is long gone," a sparking, gasping Vader tells Obi-Wan. "i'm what continues to be." His heartbreaking voice is half Hayden, half distorted James Earl Jones. The mild from Kenobi's blue blade and his personal crimson one dances over Vader's face, symbolizing his Jedi past and Sith latest; his eye color fluctuates too, from its natural coloration to Sith yellow. Obi-Wan, his eyes moist with tears, apologizes "for all of it." however Vader—out of a lingering flicker of affection for Obi-Wan, an unwillingness to give Kenobi credit for what he's become, or a mix of both—absolves his historical master of any accountability combating him from heading down the dark course. "i am not your failure, Obi-Wan," he says. "You didn't kill Anakin Skywalker. I did." It� ��s an agonizing exchange, made more heartrending through the attractions and sounds of Vader's voice, Obi-Wan's eyes, and the weapons they cling.

This isn't only justification for the "definite element of view" Obi-Wan espouses when he says Darth Vader betrayed and murdered Luke's father. It's additionally the absolution Obi-Wan has been expecting: affirmation that, as Rebels' Bendu says, "only that you may exchange yourself," for first rate or ill, and that as Yoda warns, your salvation or undoing may also be traced to "what you're taking with you," no longer the movements of others. however Vader's cathartic confession isn't a prelude to a reconciliation. The next words out of his mouth are "The identical means i'll spoil you!" After that, Obi-Wan foreshadows Luke's "in reality dead" assertion and provides a "Goodbye, Darth" that hearkens returned (or forward) to how he addresses him at their subsequent assembly. and then, particularly, he leaves, prompting Vader to scream his identify. "I gained't depart you," Ahsoka says when she meets Vader. "not this time." h owever Obi-Wan will, with none obtrusive qualms. We've reached my fourth "Come on."

To recap: Between the 2nd episode and the finale, Reva did not conclude off the Grand Inquisitor; the Grand Inquisitor and Vader did not finish off Reva (once again); Vader didn't finish off Obi-Wan (twice); and now Obi-Wan fails to finish off Vader (again). a few of these selections have been excusable, however that's an awful lot of leaving mortal enemies alive.

This remaining case takes the cake. look, we knew Obi-Wan wasn't going to kill Vader when there's still a death on the loss of life star to return 9 years hence. however i assumed that some scenario would avoid him from taking Anakin's lifestyles, and that's not what took place right here. He had the choice! Yet after all that, he made the equal option he made on Mustafar? but worse, as a result of this time there's no lava lake to presumably conclude the job? The Revenge of the Sith novelization explains that Obi-Wan left Vader to sizzle on Mustafar for just a few reasons: He sensed Palpatine coming near and desired to make himself (and the pregnant Padmé) scarce; he "would not homicide a helpless man;" and he relied on in "the need of the force" to decide Vader's destiny for him.

first-class. however cases have changed! certain, he has to hurry back to Tatooine, but it surely wouldn't take lengthy to dispense the killing blow. And this time Vader isn't helpless. And mightn't this 2d opportunity be the will of the drive sending a pretty mighty sign? What came about to "This ends nowadays"? What took place to "You're what needs to survive!"—a line addressed to individuals Vader has been searching, and would proceed to hunt if left alive? What happened to "i'll do what I must"? Did he not hear Vader say, "make sure you have killed me when you had the opportunity"?

now not handiest is Obi-Wan jogging away the weakest-sauce solution conceivable—tantamount to the writers of Obi-Wan Kenobi shrugging and saying, "neatly, we couldn't kill him"—nonetheless it basically undercuts the supposed catharsis of the scene. It's appropriate and poignant that Obi-Wan would conclude that Anakin is unreachable, after we know he's not: Obi-Wan may additionally not have doomed Anakin to the darkish facet, however he couldn't connect with him in a method that could shop him from it. most effective Luke can help Anakin summon his historical self and entirely remove the masks. but when Kenobi believes that his chum is basically dead, and if what "ends these days" is his hope that Anakin could be brought returned to the easy, then what's holding him lower back from making Anakin's/Vader's loss of life official? however, if he doesn't accept as true with that Anakin is irredeemable, but he's running away anyway, what has he in fact discovered during this series? if so, he would still be backing out to the sideline and dumping his difficulty on the relaxation of the galaxy, whereas others—together with the surviving Jedi and the path—pay the rate. Isn't killing Vader the most reliable manner for him to offer protection to Luke and Leia? And if he wasn't willing to kill him beneath any instances out of loyalty to Qui-Gon's perception that Anakin would carry balance to the drive, why waste our time confronting him at all?

We're now not rather entire with drive sensitives being spared after enemies have long past to notable lengths to kill them, although. On Tatooine, Reva comes as near killing the more youthful Luke because the older Luke will come to killing Kylo, however simply as she psyches herself up to deliver the blade down, it dawns on her that killing a drive-delicate child could now not be the top-quality approach to get lower back at Vader for killing drive-sensitive kids. greater late than under no circumstances! by the point Obi-Wan reaches the Lars farm to be a part of the search for Luke, Reva is returning, a modified lady, with the unconscious but safe farm boy in her hands. She thinks she failed her former fellow padawans by means of staying Luke's execution, however Obi-Wan assures her she's honored them, subtly discounting Anakin's line from closing week: "Mercy doesn't defeat an enemy." Obi-Wan, channeling Bendu, tells her, "Who you become now, it is up to you." And, possibly, whoever at Lucasfilm assigns her subsequent experience. "Now you're free," he says. "We each are."* And so are we! well, virtually.

*Moses Ingram did what she may with what she became given, however i can't help but feel Reva's arc may have held up greater with a younger actress. now not best does the padawan-to-adolescent-Inquisitor timeline not rectangular with Ingram's precise age—28—but Reva didn't look like a person who turned into just getting the cling of the force and dipping a toe in atrocities. Had she appeared like extra of a force neophyte who became just beginning to opt for a gloomy-facet/gentle-side lane, her face turn might have been extra believable and significant.

just to evaluate: Obi-Wan and Luke are hiding on Darth Vader's domestic planet, using their precise surnames, youngsters that (a) the Inquisitors recently raided the planet and located a distinct Jedi there; and (b) a type of Inquisitors, who basically killed Luke, now is aware of exactly where they are, even though she's supposedly on their facet or neutral now. Oh, and (c) Obi-Wan and Bail had been speakme and traveling from side to side between Tatooine and Alderaan frequently adequate for any person who's been paying consideration to word. talking of which, Obi-Wan has an extra trip to make.

while he's en route, Vader conferences with the Emperor, who looks by the use of hologram as he first did within the Empire Strikes back. (though he wasn't firstly played by Ian McDiarmid, who reprises his signature function in this episode.) Palpy presses Vader about his feelings for his historical grasp, and Vader assures him that there isn't any battle; he's a one-grasp man, and Kenobi's simply his ex. ("Kenobi is nothing," he says, an about-face from "Kenobi is all that matters.") "The probes are monitoring each equipment within range," Vader reports. "we will destroy everything in our route until he's discovered." This seems like a great time for a fugitive from the Empire not to take a trip to the Core. but in its place of mendacity low, Obi-Wan, flying a ship that's conventional to the Empire, hand-supplies Lola to Leia, together with some sentiments about Leia's wonderful fogeys and her exceptional self. It's a heartwarming capper to the Obi-Wan-Leia teamup, however the risky shuttle earned the episode a bonus sixth "Come on" from me. and that i'm no longer that tough a critic.

Leia, who addresses "Ben" as Obi-Wan during this scene, asks in Anakin's phrases from The Phantom threat even if she'll see him once again. "maybe," he says, "one day, in case you ever want support from a drained historical man. but we have to be careful. nobody should recognize, or it may endanger us both." here's as close as the collection comes to making an attempt to retcon why Leia doesn't allude to their old relationship in the hologram she sends him in Episode IV. however, in that message she admits to being a rebellion agent, so it doesn't seem as if disclosing her past ties to Obi-Wan would location her in any extra danger.

When he makes it again to Tatooine, Obi-Wan, wearing his fit from wonder's famous person Wars comics, packs up his few possessions and escapes from his cave. He gets some grudging acceptance from Owen, offers his trademark greeting to Luke and, in the end, catches a glimpse of Qui-Gon's force ghost—performed by using a bewigged Liam Neeson, who had maintained that he wouldn't be lower back. (For what it's value, his identify's not within the credits.) "i was at all times here, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon says. "You simply were now not able to see. Come on. We've acquired a how you can go." i'm hoping that was price the weeks of buildup.

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As Obi-Wan rode off into the sundown, I had a hole feeling, the form caused via consuming a narrative whose highlights in most cases stemmed from recognizing references. It's form of high-quality to grasp that Obi-Wan and Leia had a real relationship, besides the fact that it felt a little shoehorned in. It's slightly pleasant, as a Clone Wars watcher who's spent a ton of time with the animated types of those characters, to learn how Obi-Wan found out Vader changed into alive and permitted that Anakin was beyond his support. however after six episodes, we didn't study a whole lot about existing characters that we couldn't have inferred from the trilogies or gleaned from supplementary material, and the collection struggled to set up new heroes who could seed other installments. Obi-Wan had its emotional moments, by and large thanks to McGregor, but handiest every now and then did it consider totally baked, and it likely gained't alter the way I watch or inte rpret the trilogies to a pretty good diploma. Throw in the uneven visible consequences, the undistinguished ranking—aside from Obi-Wan's theme, a few recycled classics, and a few soundalike motifs—and the commonly facepalm-beneficial plotting and talk, and Obi-Wan Kenobi, whereas now not a stain on star Wars, was many midi-chlorians wanting qualifying for "chosen one" fame. however audience activity may also yield a 2nd season, it's complicated to think about one other go back and forth to Tatooine, and one other non-load-bearing strut between trilogies, improving on its complications.

ultimate month, I laid out a few techniques in which Kenobi might go incorrect, and the collection ran afoul of a few of these feasible pitfalls. most advantageous amongst them are the format and time duration, which sapped one of the crucial suspense that reports about new characters or new eras can offer. As I've written earlier than, celebrity Wars nevertheless needs films in addition to streaming collection, and it desperately has to expand past legacy characters and time periods that may fall prey to the prequel curse. recently, Taika Waititi offered a new hope on the horizon, promising to "create some new characters" and "extend the realm" along with his impending film. no longer long before that, Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy teased experiences set after the sequel trilogy. those are promising signs.

"the long run will focus on itself," Obi-Wan tells Owen. In so many celebrity Wars stories, that's undebatable, because the future is already written. Nostalgia may also be excellent, and from time to time there's price in relearning what we've learned. but what we learned from Obi-Wan Kenobi is that it's time to observe the master's assistance and take a step into a larger world.