Obi-Wan Kenobi

Director Deborah Chow and star Ewan McGregor deliver a stunning start to the "Obi-Wan Kenobi" series.

Taking place during "the dark times" when the Republic has fallen, an Empire has risen and the last remaining Jedi have disappeared, "Obi-Wan Kenobi" fills in a gap between two of the best chapters in the Star Wars film franchise and so far, delivers in almost every way.

Fans worried that "Kenobi" wouldn't live up to the hype or expectation shouldn't be concerned. Director Deborah Chow delivers a stunning start to the series with two episodes that deliver on multiple levels but, most importantly, doesn't rush to get into the story. By taking its time to craft a universe that is both familiar yet new, the story plays at a perfect pace that is equally exciting and subtle.

Part 1

This current version of Obi-Wan Kenobi is not the proud and powerful Jedi we've come to know. He's gone from a Jedi Master to a master of inaction, splitting time between working a mundane job and keeping watch over his former padawan's son Luke (Grant Feely). It's a very simple life for the once-proud Jedi.

But his simple life is upended when a group of Inquisitors, force-sensitive beings with the sole mission of wiping out the remaining Jedi who survived Order 66 come to town. Here we see how far Kenobi has fallen as he struggles to act when Owen Lars (Joel Edgerton) is threatened by the Third Sister named Reva (Moses Ingram). He remains hidden in the shadows, paralyzed by his past.

As a man who spent most of his time in an order where companionship was easy to come by, he finds himself alone and at odds with one of only two people on the planet who knows his true identity. When Kenobi drops a model of a T16 Skyhopper off at the Lars homestead under cover of night, we see how much he desires a connection with the young boy who reminds him so much of the man he failed – Anakin Skywalker. At this moment Owen wants his nephew to have nothing to do with the crazy old wizard and leaves the model in a heap at Kenobi's feet and warns him to stay away from his family. Since Luke is seen with the T16 Skyhopper model in “A New Hope” I’m eager to see how be gains possession of it.

Kenobi's simple life is challenged again as Anakin's other child, the adopted Princess of Alderaan, Leia Organa (Vivien Lyra Blair), is kidnapped. Bail Organa (Jimmy Smits) enlists him to rescue her and bring her home, reminding Obi-Wan that "she is as important as he is," referring to Luke when he hesitates to take up the quest. Obi-Wan now must leave the isolated world he's called home for a decade and hope that he isn't discovered, jeopardizing both children's lives.

The first episode of this series is terrific. The scenes between characters are powerful and emotional and everything a fan could hope for. From Obi-Wan and Owen's strained relationship to Obi-Wan and Bail's emotional scene involving Leia to Obi-Wan discovering that Leia reminds him so much of her mother - every relationship in this episode is perfect.

Rupert Friend as the Grand Inquisitor was much better than I expected. In fact, I was impressed with the Inquisitors in general, except for the character of Reva. I found Ingram's performance wooden and one-dimensional which was a shame for a character I thought would be a major league badass. I hope, with time, we see this come to fruition.

McGregor and Edgerton are excellent as always. I was shocked by how perfectly Edgerton captured the cadence and tone of Phil Brown's (the original Uncle Owen) voice. I hope to see a lot more of him in this series. For McGregor, he's able to take a character that every Star Wars fan knows incredibly well and give us someone we feel we don't know anything about. He's able to use his eyes and body language to convey that this is a man who truly is lost and broken by the weight of his past.

Part 2

Having left the safety of Tattoine, Kenobi travels off-world in search of Leia Organa, but he's not alone. Reva who recruited Vect (Flea) and his group of goons to kidnap the princess in hopes of luring the Jedi out of hiding is hot on this trail. Reva is obsessed with finding Kenobi and handing him over to Darth Vader. I hope we learn more about her motivation as the series goes along because I'm genuinely interested.

Once on Daiyu, Obi-Wan must turn to conman Haja (Kumail Nanjiani), a man who pretends to be a Jedi to separate unsuspecting people in need from their credits in order to find Leia. Following Haja's tips, Obi-Wan locates Vect and his crew in the city's seedy underbelly and must fight his way to free Leia. Here we get to see how out of practice the former Jedi Master as he struggles to easily defeat a few bumbling thugs.

Most of Part 2 is spent with Kenobi and Leia navigating the streets of Daiyu as they try to find a way off-planet after Reva puts a bounty on Kenobi when the Grand Inquisitor relieves her of her duty. Now the duo must escape the converging Inquisitors and a bounty hunter on every street corner. The chase through the city is exciting and we once again see how far removed from the force Obi-Wan has become as he struggles to hold Leia in the force after she falls from a building.

Reva tracks the two down just before they reach the ship taking them off the planet. But before she can capture Kenobi, the Grand Inquisitor again shows up and stops her. He intends to bring in Kenobi himself, but Reva and her lightsaber have other ideas as she plunges her crimson blade through the Grand Inquisitor and continues to stalk her prey.

As she inches closer, she reveals a truth Kenobi never imagined – Darth Vader, his former apprentice Anakin Skywalker, is alive. Kenobi and Leia make it to their ship and as they flee the planet, Obi-Wan reaches out into the force, saying his former apprentice's name, and, much to his surprise his call is answered.

The interaction between Kenobi and Leia is played so perfectly. Blair captures the essence of Leia wonderfully. Her power and playfulness would have made our original Leia, Carrie Fisher, proud. She also has two of my favorite lines in the series so far, telling Kenobi he "seems kinda old and beat up" when he informs her he's a Jedi. Then when Obi-Wan is laying out their cover story and says she is his daughter, she quips, "granddaughter, maybe."

Another of my favorite things in this episode was seeing Temuera Morrison playing a homeless 501st Clone Trooper. They play the scene as if the clone trooper doesn't recognize the former Jedi General, but a small look at the end makes me believe he knows precisely who Kenobi is. This opens up a lot of exciting possibilities. Seeing more elements of the animated series make their way into live-action makes this Star Wars fan so happy.

Something else I didn’t expect was how well it cleared certain things up, at least for me. I never understood why Leia would name her son after a man she had barely met. I thought it to be a ridiculous choice, quite honestly. Purely fan service. But this series shows he wasn’t a mere casual acquaintance – he was her rescuer. I also liked how we see that Obi-Wan and Luke took similar paths when they failed one of their students. I was a fan of what Rian Johnson did with the Luke Skywalker character in “The Last Jedi,” and this portrayal of Obi-Wan only strengthens my love of Johnson’s choice.

The first two episodes, "Obi-Wan Kenobi," lay an exciting foundation for this series. A powerful story and wonderful performances have me very excited to see where this series takes us.