Disney has a somewhat hit or miss record since the company acquired Star Wars. I’d say maybe half of the movies have been any good. The Mandolorian has been fun. The Book of Boba Fett, not so much. Still, bringing back Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen for a mini-series about Obi-Wan Kenobi could go either way. I think we’re far enough past the prequels to maybe re-evaluate them, and Christensen has proven himself much better in other roles. Would it work if Obi-Wan and Darth Vader had some kind of confrontation between Episodes Three and Four?
Perhaps. McGregor managed to do well with the material even then, and he’s a talented actor. Perhaps there was a good story here.
It’s been a few years since the Republic fell and the Empire took over. Inquisitors, many of them Force-powered themselves, are hunting down the last of the Jedi, and for one known as Third Sister (Moses Ingram), the white whale is the long missing Obi-Wan Kenobi (McGregor). He’s hiding out on Tatooine, working sketchy jobs and being generally demoralized and broken. Owen Lars (Joel Edgerton) wants Obi-Wan, now going by Ben, to stay away from young Luke (Grant Freely). However, when Third Sister kidnaps young Leia Organa (Vivien Lyra Blair), her adopted father and Kenobi ally Senator Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits) calls Obi-Wan for help. He reluctantly sets out on a mission to rescue the girl, drawing the attention of Third Sister, the Inquisition, and eventually Darth Vader himself (Christensen and the voice of James Earl Jones).
By the by, good work on the ad campaign keeping Leia’s presence largely a secret. You’d think from the trailers that Obi-Wan would be doing something to protect Luke, but nope. It’s Leia he finds, bonds with, and is much more integral to the plot. It helps quite a bit that Blair is so good in the role, playing a character that could very well grow up to be the same character Carrie Fisher played so memorably. She’s full of spunk, brave, and a little used to getting her own way. Luke does appear in the series, but nowhere near as much as his sister, and I think that’s a welcome development.
But even better is McGregor, sliding back into the role of a Jedi Knight in a very different point in his life. This is an Obi-Wan who has been beaten down by life, a hopeless man who used to be a member of the Jedi High Council, a man who watched his apprentice and best friend turn on everything he believed in. He doesn’t want to confront Anakin again, but he may not have any choice in the matter. The only real allies he has are what looks like a nascent Rebel Alliance, but they aren’t anywhere near what they will be. Now, obviously, this story won’t go anywhere if he doesn’t get his Force-powered mojo back, but his return to form is done in a believable manner, largely due to McGregor’s performance, despite seeing some set-backs along the way. People need hope, and he realizes he is the one man who can give it to them.
As for Vader, it’s always great to hear Jones’s voice speaking Vader lines. Christensen doesn’t really have a lot to do since it’s not him in the suit, but when he does come out, he actually does acquit himself rather well. Vader, as a character, has always been obsessed with Obi-Wan, consistently blaming or crediting Obi-Wan for many of the things that happen in the movies even when Obi-Wan had nothing to do with it. How many times did Vader say to Luke, for example, “Obi-Wan has taught you well” despite the fact that Obi-Wan gave Luke maybe an afternoon’s worth of lessons? Sure, purists might not like the idea that Obi-Wan and Vader met again between movies, but I thought it worked well. The series as a whole isn’t perfect, but as an examination of Obi-Wan as a character and a look at the relationship between him and Anakin, it worked pretty well.
Grade: B+
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