Just when we think we have to wait a long while for more Star Wars, Disney surprises us all and gives us a release date for the Disney+ Obi-Wan Kenobi series. This coming May, we will be reunited with Ewan McGregor’s Obi-Wan on the sands of Tatooine, and it’s been a long time coming.
Fans of McGregor’s spin of the character have patiently sat on the sidelines and waited to see our favorite Jedi again. Luckily, we were gifted with a beautiful poster, as well as a May 25th release date with the series.
Just to start: Obi-Wan is carrying a lightsaber, and as we know, he took Anakin’s from him on Mustafar and kept it for decades to give to Luke Skywalker when the time came. So, we can assume that the lightsaber Obi-Wan is carrying is that one, so let that sink in and break your heart just as it did mine.
Back to Anakin’s home
What hurts the most about Obi-Wan Kenobi’s “hermit” ways is that he’s spending his time alone on Tatooine, the planet where Anakin Skywalker grew up and where he first met his “brother.” He has to see memories of Anakin everywhere, watch as Luke grows to not know who his father is, and know everything he lost to Palpatine’s power over Anakin’s fear of losing Padmé.
Anakin, in all his care for Padmé, didn’t care who else lost people. He didn’t care about Obi-Wan, his brother. He cared about his own feelings, and it set Obi-Wan onto a path of loneliness and upset over the betrayal of the man he looked at as family. The ways of the Jedi are far from perfect. They can destroy people and force them to turn to the dark side of the Force. We know all of this, but it doesn’t change how sad and upsetting Anakin’s betrayal was.
So what does that mean for Obi-Wan Kenobi as a whole? Well, there are still moments in Star Wars history that we have not seen yet in live action, mainly those things that happened throughout the animated series. Does this mean we could see Obi-Wan take on Darth Maul once more? Maybe! But we also know that the show will feature Hayden Christensen’s Anakin and the two will have scenes together.
What I do think this show is going to give us is that pain that exists between both Obi-Wan and Anakin. What we see in A New Hope is two men struggling with their pasts coming face to face in a final battle. Luke, at that moment, doesn’t understand what is happening between Obi-Wan and Darth Vader, and for that matter, neither did we as an audience. But looking back at it now, we know the pain that exists because of Anakin’s turn.
So the show having both of them in it and reuniting? I think we’re going to see a lot more of that relationship fleshed out and the anger the two have explored in a new way. But seeing Obi-Wan in the desert with Anakin’s lightsaber? That is something that will never not hit and bring tears to my eyes.
(featured image: Lucasfilm)
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