Obi-Wan and Leia may have escaped their first run-in with the Empire’s forces, but the chase is far from over. The pair make their way to the planet Mapuzo, where they see first hand just how deeply the Empire’s sunk its claws into the galaxy — and Obi Wan is forced to confront a past he just can’t escape, in Obi-Wan Kenobi Part III!
Austin Gorton: Armaan! Hello there! Even though it’s only been a week since the series launched, we’re already at the halfway point (thanks to the two-part premiere followed by this episode coming in the show’s regular “time slot: just a few days later). Suitably, the scale and pace of the series is already starting to come into focus, and I’m mildly surprised to realize that this whole “rescue Leia” mission is likely going to be the central narrative of the series (which is, presumably, why its episodes are just numbered and not named). It doesn’t seem like this is going to be a show in which Obi-Wan gets embroiled in a lot of different adventures, but rather, just one big one.
Before we get into the specifics of this episode, how are you feeling about the series here at its sudden mid-point?
Armaan Babu: Oh. Wow. Halfway. That was fast! It still really feels like we’re just getting started, but when I consider some of the big things that have happened this episode, I don’t really have any complaints!
I’ve been enjoying this. Ewan McGregor has been doing such a fantastic job telling this one specific story. I haven’t consumed even a quarter of the Star Wars content that’s out there, so I have a very limited experience with stories that show off just how bad things were in the Empire when it was at its worst. It’s a good show, but let’s dive into specifics!
Trust Falls
Armaan: One of the more frustrating things about prequels is that, every so often, they’ll introduce an idea that you know won’t get followed up on — in this case, after a little time stewing in his own guilt, fear and desperation, Obi-Wan talks to Leia about the Force. Had I been watching Star Wars in order, I’d have been VERY excited about the idea of Leia taking after her father, learning to use the Force, but alas, it’s not something that is really touched on until right at the end of her life.
One thing that did fascinate me about this conversation, though — when Leia asks what the Force is like, Obi-Wan describes it as a feeling of being safe. There’s something that’s just so haunted in his eyes; this is a man who has not felt safe for a very, very long time, and it’s got me wondering — have we seen him use the Force at all in this series so far, aside from that one moment, saving Leia? Has his ability to use the Force been weakened?
Austin: Textually, yeah, I believe the only time we’ve seen him actively use the Force at this point is when he grabbed Leia. And it seemed physically difficult – even pained – to do so. Subtextually, I think the idea we’re supposed to be getting is that he has indeed withdrawn from the Force, to some extent (something not unlike what Luke was revealed to have done in The Last Jedi). Whether to better hide himself or because it just hurt (emotionally) too much to maintain that connection, Obi-Wan has cut himself off from the Force (which is probably also why he’s having such a hard time making contact with Qui-Gon).
The discussion about the Force between Obi-Wan and Leia (which I agree, is frustratingly tantalizing in that we know Leia won’t be going down this path for a long time – and never on-screen) gets cut short when their automated cargo ship lands on the mining world of Mapuzo. The pair proceed to the coordinates Obi-Wan was given by Haja Estree (Kumail Nanjian’s character) last episode but…there’s nothing and no one there.
Armaan: So Obi-Wan is untrusting to an almost ridiculous degree here, he barely waited 30 seconds before concluding that Haja Estree betrayed him. In fact, I’m beginning to think that he never trusted Haja at all — he was just out of places to run. Which is a shame, as we’ll find out, because Obi-Wan’s inability to trust people lands in some pretty hot water.
At the same time, I can understand this. It’s not long before Leia (who completely ignores the cover story Obi-Wan gives her) hails a cart, and the two hitchhike towards the nearest town — and it’s here we find out just what life under the Empire has become in the ten years since it took over.
Shadow of the Empire
Armaan: The two hitch a ride with a local farmer named Freck, who is eager to show to everyone on his cart just how much he loves the Empire. This was honestly pretty chilling stuff to see — especially when Obi-Wan and Leia had to join in on the conversation, to denounce the Jedi and lie about their allegiances.
It was a great scene that shows off the hatred, fear and mistrust that is baked into everyday conversation under the Empire, all covered with a pleasant front. There’s no room to stand up for the truth, to show yourself as anything less than the ideal Empire citizen is to invite death. In Part I, we saw people with guns to their head, but the Empire doesn’t really need that anymore. Just a presence.
Austin: The quiet omnipresence of the Empire in this episode was legitimately chilling. Freck was voiced by Zach Braff, and the contrast between his amiable pleasantness and the presence of the Empire did a lot to increase the tension throughout this sequence. A shot was never fired, but Obi-Wan and Leia riding in the back of a space pickup truck with Stormtroopers was as attention-holding as any of the action scenes from the previous episode (we also see that Leia is *much* better at this undercover game than Obi-Wan, who pretty much blows their cover with the seemingly-amiable Freck).
The noose is tightening offworld as well, with Reva receiving orders directly from a freshly-dressed Darth Vader himself to put all of the Inquisitorius’ resources into finding Kenobi. This leads to the release of probe droids, one of which manages to ID Obi-Wan and transmit his location before getting blasted.
Armaan: So a few things I’m fascinated by here. One is the Reva-Vader relationship. They have a common closeness, one that’s unexplained, but one that has her feeling pretty comfortable going over her superior’s heads to talk to Vader directly. It’s not very close — she still goes through the motions of pretending someone else killed her boss, but Vader clearly doesn’t care. I imagine he sees right through her but still doesn’t care — double-crossing your superiors is just another day at the office, if you’re working with the Sith.
Another thing that gets me is that despite the years, Vader seems just about as eager to track down Obi-Wan as if the events of Revenge of the Sith had happened a week ago. His rage is undimmed. And I can’t help but wonder how much of Reva’s obsession with Obi-Wan is her own, and how much of it comes from wanting to impress Vader.
Austin: There definitely seems to be more to the Reva-Vader relationship than that of boss-subordinate, something likely born of Reva’s seemingly-enhanced empathic abilities (see, for example, how she was able to use the Force to find the secret tunnel in this episode). I’m more convinced than ever that her knowledge of Vader’s true identity is unique to her amongst the other Inquisitors, and I agree, that may well be feeding into her obsession with Obi-Wan as much as some personal beef with him in the past and/or the belief that capturing him is key to her personal advancement/career success.
She remains a fascinating character, in part because of how different she is from her peers and the institution to which she belongs. Reva is dangerous because she’s willing to disobey orders/think outside the strictures of the Empire. It’s what makes her more of a threat to the heroes (because they rely on the predictability of the Empire to create openings for them) and such an irritant to her peers (who are deeply invested in structure and hierarchies, to the point that it’s built into their designations: Third Brother, Second Sister, etc). In that way, she’s a lot like Vader too, in that, thanks to his position as basically the Vice President of the Empire, he answers to no one but the Emperor and can cut through both Imperial redtape and basic morality (such as when he just starts slaughtering civilians in this episode to draw Obi-Wan out) as needed.
This Duel Is On Fire
Armaan: Speaking of Vader — what did you think of his return this episode? I definitely enjoyed hearing James Earl Jones return to the role, though with the AI voice generator Respeecher being credited, I do wonder just how much returning Jones actually did.
Austin: It is always a pleasure to hear Jones as Vader (though in much of his latter day work, I find his voice slightly tinny, which I suspect is a result of the Respeecher stepping in a fair amount, alas). And while I’m not yet convinced having Hayden Christensen in the suit is making that much of a difference in terms of the character’s presentation, I certainly appreciate the effort to bring him back into the fold and let him continue on with the character.
Vader’s introduction to the series in this episode is overall strong. From the operatic “getting dressed” montage to his confab with Reva to the way he strides into the village on Mapuzo and gets down to business, he makes an impression. Vader is at his best when he’s presented as a force of nature, and that’s definitely the case here.
Armaan: And nowhere is that more apparent than in that Obi-Wan and Vader fight. I’m sorry, I’m skipping ahead, but let’s face it, it was the most exciting part of the episode!
These scenes were a long time coming, and they were absolutely worth the wait — and brilliantly directed, besides.
Props again to Ewan McGregor’s acting, too, as he sees Vader make his entrance. It’s fascinating, and heart wrenching, to see a man so broken by the Empire in Obi-Wan. You never see a moment of, “I hope my friend is still in there!” Anakin is the Empire. To be caught by the Empire means death. And Vader certainly doesn’t disappoint.
This was a great fight, more because of the storytelling than the fight itself. The way Obi-Wan brought his lightsaber out…but didn’t light it up until he had no choice whatsoever, further reinforcing just how disconnected from his Jedi training he is. The fight itself — Vader’s impatient one-handed hewing vs. Obi-Wan’s desperate two-handed defense. Obi-Wan is COMPLETELY outmatched here.
(Minor tangent — how much does a Lightsaber screw with one’s vision when you’re fighting in the dark, or does the Force help one to not be blinded by their own weapon? Or is Darth Vader’s greatest strength in lightsaber duels is that he’s got permanent shades on?)
Austin: Agreed all around! You can tell Obi-Wan is still reeling from the news that Anakin is still alive, and now he’s suddenly face-to-face (so to speak) with him. Here’s his old friend, his brother, whom he thought he’d killed, but just learned is alive. Plus, Obi-Wan is trying to bring this girl back to her adopted father, a girl who just happens to be Vader’s daughter that he doesn’t know about, and it’s critical that Obi-Wan maintain that secret, and frankly, with all that swirling around inside him, it’s amazing Obi-Wan is able to mount any kind of defense at all.
But he is overmatched, physically and mentally, and really, the only reason he survives is because Vader is petty AF. He doesn’t want to kill Obi-Wan (yet). He doesn’t even want to capture Obi-Wan (at the moment). He just wants to burn Obi-Wan, to make him feel the pain Obi-Wan inflicted on Vader (from Vader’s point of view, at least). Like you said, Vader has been carrying this anger and rage for ten years, and his first act when Obi-Wan is at his mercy is to inflict his pain and vengeance back on him above all else, even at the cost of letting Obi-Wan slip away.
Armaan: Obi-Wan is saved at the last moment by his ally, someone we didn’t get to discuss much, Tala Durith, a defector from the Empire. This is twice, now, that Obi-Wan’s been saved by a South Asian guest star pretending to be someone they aren’t, and I kind of hope this is a new series trend. I’m also hoping it’s the start of Obi-Wan relearning how to trust people — if he’d only trusted Haja and stuck around, waiting for Tala, he’d have gotten Leia home safe and back watching Luke.
As it stands, though, he’s burned, defeated, and worst of all, separated from Leia, who has fallen into Reva’s hands. Correct me if I’m wrong — but Vader doesn’t know Leia is his daughter, yes? Or that he even has children?
Austin: Correct – at this point in time, Vader believes his child died with Padme. He learns of the existence of Luke during Jason Aaron’s run on the Star Wars comic (and first learns he has a daughter, of course, during the climax of Return of the Jedi), which is considered canonical, but also, I wouldn’t be surprised if something like this were to overwrite that.
Armaan: I wouldn’t be surprised, though, if we get a confrontation between Leia and Vader next episode — they certainly seemed to have a passing familiarity with each other when they met in A New Hope, and I’m really excited to see that. He may not know she’s his daughter, but given both their high ranking statuses I wouldn’t be surprised if they were at least strongly aware of each other as the years went by.
My heart’s going to break, though, if at any point we see a “You remind me of someone I once cared for moment” between the two.
Then again, perhaps they don’t meet at all. What I’m looking forward to seeing the most, here, is just how Obi-Wan recovers from this absolutely crushing defeat.
Force Facts
- The episode opens with Obi-Wan once again trying to contact Qui-Gon; at this point, the repeated attempts are too much of a Chekhov’s Gun for something not to come of it in the series.
- Force Ghosts! Force Ghosts! Force Ghosts!
- Obi-Wan’s “quiet Leia, I’m trying to think!” voice rings a little too close to home for all the parents out there.
- Do we think this is it for Obi-Wan and Vader confrontations in the series? Can we safely finish Vader’s trailing dialogue in A New Hope of “a presence I’ve not felt since…” with “…Mapuzo”?
- This is probably the fight that Obi-Wan must rally from in order to come back all the stronger later in the season. “..a presence I’ve not felt since he, ah…kicked my butt.”
- Between Freck and Saga’s Ianthe, I’m gaining a real distrust of anthropomorphic alien anteaters in in science fiction.
- Loader bots in sci-fi, though – they’re fantastic.
- Love how Leia’s empathy for even droids continues to be a thing.
- Obi-Wan calls out Quinlan Vos as having passed through Tala’s safe house; the one-time star of a Dark Horse Clone Wars-era series, Quinlan was a fan favorite character canonized (via mention by Obi-Wan) in Revenge of the Sith and later appeared in The Clone Wars.
- Jabiim, the world said to be the end destination of the secret refugee program for Force sensitives referred to as “the Path” in this episode, also has notable Expanded Universe connotations. It was the setting of a crossover of sorts between the Clone War-era series and the post-A New Hope series, in which Anakin and Luke’s actions on the world across the decades echoed and/or contradicted one another’s.
- Vader can get rid of a fire he started, but apparently not fires other people start?
Austin Gorton also reviews older issues of X-Men at the Real Gentlemen of Leisure website, co-hosts the A Very Special episode podcast, and likes Star Wars. He lives outside Minneapolis, where sometimes, it is not cold. Follow him on Twitter @AustinGorton
Armaan is obsessed with the way stories are told. From video games to theater, TTRPGs to comics, he has written for, and about, them all. He will not stop, actually; believe us, we've tried.
