Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022) Review

Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)

Obi-Wan Kenobi follows Obi-Wan, who, after Leia is kidnapped by an Inquisitor, abandons his quiet Tatooine lifestyle to get her back, putting him on a collision course with his former padawan. 

Who would’ve thought nearly 20 years later, not only would we see the return of Ewan McGregor’s Obi-Wan Kenobi, but also the long-awaited return Hayden Christiansen’s Anakin Skywalker? And while it’s not unlike Star Wars fans to be pointlessly divided these days, I can personally say, I loved every damn second of this. We pick up on Ben, 10 years after the fall of Republic, old and jaded, disconnected from the force, living a quiet existence on the sands of Tatooine. For him, this series represents a spiritual journey of sorts, not just to save Leia, but to rediscover himself and come to terms with his past failures. Those past failures being Darth Vader, who, even after a decade, is still a rage filled machine, set on finding Kenobi and getting revenge on his former master. 

Now, say what you will about Disney’s run of Star Wars but something they’ve consistently gotten right is Vader and that is no more apparent than in this series, where we get (possibly) the best iteration of Vader yet. The rage, the anger, the hatred; for once, it feels like Anakin under the suit and it’s utterly terrifying to watch. Of course, the buildup to his and Obi-Wan’s final duel is full of exciting little tidbits, and it was a true joy getting to see Obi-Wan and a young Leia pair up, but man, that rematch was everything I could’ve asked for and then some, emotionally bridging Revenge of the Sith, The Clone Wars, and A New Hope all in one and allowing these two to find a closure of sorts before Ben’s eventually sacrifice. 

We get a great cast too, starring Sung Kang, Kumail Nanjiani, Rupert Friend, O’Shea Jackson, Indira Varma, Jimmy Smits, Joel Edgerton, Moses Ingram, Vivien Lyra Blair, James Earl Jones, Hayden Christiansen, and Ewan McGregor. God, the pairing of Jones & Christiansen as Vader opposite McGregor’s Kenobi is so emotionally charged and deeply personal, the two have hardly missed a beat since Revenge and I’d argue this is them at the top of their game as these characters. 

Obi-Wan Kenobi, directed by Deborah Chow, though falling into a lot of the same story paths as a lot of Disney Star Wars projects lately (fathers looking after wayward kids), is an amazing little journey of acceptance and discovery, setting Obi-Wan on his path to be the old Ben we know from Episode 4, while allowing him to confront his past with Anakin and provide him the chance to move on from his failure. 

8.7/10