Obi-Wan Kenobi is almost out, and soon anyone with a Disney+ subscription will be able to see new adventures with one of the most popular Jedi masters of all time. Folks may love Obi-Wan and think he’s a cool character, but admittedly may not know a ton about him.
For that reason, we’ve revisited some of the notable moments of Obi-Wan’s life in Star Wars thus far that might be relevant in the Disney+ show. Some of these things might seem incredibly obvious, but there are others that the casual fan might not be aware of. Let’s dive in and run through the notable things anyone should know about the Jedi master ahead of the Disney+ series.
Obi-Wan Defeated Anakin Skywalker On Mustafar
Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith saw the “death” of Anakin Skywalker, which then gave way to the rise of Darth Vader. Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin engaged in an epic lightsaber battle on Mustafar, and after their intense battle, it seemed Obi-Wan gained the upper hand. The Jedi was willing to spare his former student, but an Anakin blinded by rage tried to continue anyway. Obi-Wan sliced off the remainder of Anakin’s remaining limbs and left him to burn on Mustafar.
To our knowledge, that was the last time Anakin and Obi-Wan saw each other ahead of Obi-Wan Kenobi. Now, the two will meet again in the series, and I’m sure Darth Vader would love to exact some vengeance on his former master. He may even blame Obi-Wan for the death of Padme, which will only make his rage and want to kill his former master much more intense. In short, if the two meet again, I don’t expect it to be a warm reunion.
After Revenge Of The Sith, Obi-Wan Moved To Tattooine Under The Name Ben To Protect Luke Skywalker
Obi-Wan defeating Anakin on Mustafar was a short-lived victory, as Emperor Palpatine’s execution of Order 66 eradicated most of the Jedi and the Jedi Order. Any Jedi who survived went into hiding, including Obi-Wan. The Jedi fled to Tattooine, where he lived under the name Ben and watched Luke Skywalker grow up from a distance.
The trailer for Obi-Wan Kenobi showed the Jedi speaking with Luke’s uncle Owen, who didn’t seem to appreciate him hanging around so close to their home. Obi-Wan ensured him that he was only hoping to protect the child, which opened him up to the cheap shot from Owen that he didn’t do a great job protecting his father. Hopefully, we’ll learn more about that dynamic in the Disney+ series, and maybe even see what ways Luke and Obi-Wan’s relationship develops to where it ends up in Star Wars: A New Hope.
Darth Vader Believed Obi-Wan Was The Key To Finding Other Exiled Jedi
Order 66 eradicated the Jedi to the point that a traditional Jedi Order couldn’t exist, but there were still a handful who survived by living in exile across the galaxy. While the Empire always had the upper hand, Darth Vader expressed in Star Wars Rebels that he believed the Jedi could reunify and listed Ahsoka Tano and Obi-Wan as Jedi capable of making it happen. Emperor Palpatine expressed doubt that Kenobi was still alive, which speaks to how well the Jedi was able to hide.
I think it’s a given that Darth Vader would hunt Obi-Wan until his dying breath if he had the opportunity, but the Emperor had many other tasks for him to accomplish. With that said, it’s not hard to see how Vader might be laser focused if he hears that Obi-Wan is out in the world, and how he might do whatever it takes to try and bring his former master down. Of course, he might be a little more calculated this time, especially given how many limbs he lost last time.
Obi-Wan Communicated With The Force Ghost Of Qui-Gon Jinn
It might not be apparent by his screentime in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, but Qui-Gon Jinn was one of the most exceptional Jedi in the franchise. Sure, he died by the hand of Darth Maul, but he also mastered one of the greatest powers only a few in the Jedi Order can accomplish, becoming a Force Ghost. Qui-Gon used this technique to speak to his former Padawan, Obi-Wan, after his death, which fans saw in the Mortis arc during Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
If Obi-Wan spoke to Qui-Gon during the Clone Wars, then it seems reasonable that the two could have an exchange during Obi-Wan Kenobi. After all, at some point we’d have to expect he’ll learn to become a Force Ghost from his former master or at the very least be put on the path to figuring it out. It’s not necessarily something we’d need to see in the miniseries, though if the show was hoping to sneak in a quick little Liam Neeson cameo, this sounds like the best way to do it.
Obi-Wan Once Believed It Wasn’t His Place To Join The Rebellion
After Order 66, Obi-Wan went undercover and didn’t participate in the rebellion despite efforts by others to try and strike back against the Empire. He believed it wasn’t his place to join the rebellion, but rather to protect the one asset he feared Darth Vader obtaining the most.
That asset, of course, is Luke Skywalker. With protecting Luke being the top priority, it’s not as though Obi-Wan could go off on missions helping the rebellion anytime he wanted. Additionally, if anything happened to him during a mission, then there’d be no one there to protect Luke if Vader learned of his existence. Of course, Obi-Wan, obviously, gets pulled into some sort of adventure in the upcoming Disney+ series, so it seems like he’ll spend at least some time away from the boy.
Obi-Wan Has Meaningful Ties To Mandalore
Obi-Wan went to a lot of places during The Clone Wars, but there’s definitely something special about the time he spent on Mandalore. Obi-Wan spent a good deal of time there to the point that he grew close to Satine Kryze, a person Star Wars fans heavily speculate he had something going on with.
Satine is dead, but her sister, Bo-Katan, is obviously around during this time period. I wouldn’t be surprised if the character shows up in Obi-Wan Kenobi, just to promote some synergy between the Star Wars shows. In any case, if Mandalore gets a mention or a flashback scene, just know that’s a place of importance to Obi-Wan and could make him think of Satine and her death.
Obi-Wan Will Ultimately Die By Darth Vader’s Hand
As hard as it might be to believe now, there was once a time when Obi-Wan Kenobi was just the old Jedi in Star Wars who disappeared into thin air when Darth Vader cut him down. Obviously, we’ve gotten a lot of content since then, thanks to animation and Ewan McGregor, but no matter how Obi-Wan Kenobi ends, it all ultimately leads to that death in Star Wars: A New Hope.
As such, it feels like a golden opportunity for Obi-Wan Kenobi to foreshadow Vader ultimately killing Obi-Wan in some way. Viewers should keep an eye open for some sort of nod, subtle or not, that teases Obi-Wan’s ultimate fate in some way. Additionally, let’s remember these two ultimately reunited as Force Ghosts, so maybe we’ll see a tease that they still care for each other?
Obi-Wan Kenobi premiers on Disney+ on Friday, May 27th. It’s just the latest in a long list of upcoming Star Wars projects, so be sure to keep an eye on what’s coming later this year and beyond.
