Obi-Wan Kenobi Season 1 Review

Overview

Obi-Wan Kenobi is a series that we’ve wanted for so long. As we’re both 90’s kids, we grew up with the Prequels and it’s what made us Star Wars fans today. Fast forward 17 years from Revenge of the Sith, we’re presented with Kenobi, set between Episodes 3 and 4.

We see Obi-Wan deal with the after-effects of Order 66 and suffering from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) as he watches over a young Luke Skywalker.

The show suffered mass hatred due to Reva, played by Moses Ingram, and other issues. Despite all the hatred the show got, we couldn’t help but just enjoy every single minute of it. Yes, there were times when the plot fell a bit flat but we just loved it.

This is one of those times when you have to look at the comments from people and give the show a chance if you haven’t already. Judging by the response from the public, it seems to be a show you’ll either love or hate. I don’t really see an in-between. After all, this review is coming from us who loved it in our opinion.

There are 6 episodes in total, all around the 45-minute mark, give or take. All of the episodes progress the story as it moves forward to the ultimate showdown, Obi-Wan Kenobi vs Darth Vader. We all knew this had to happen given the conversation they both had in A New Hope, and boy does it lead up perfectly.

The fight happens twice in the series, but the final showdown is well worth the wait. The fight is on par with the duel in Revenge of the Sith. So, if this is something you want to see, then the show is definitely worth persevering through even if you’re not a major fan of the show.

The plot begins by centering on a young Leia, and basically, Kenobi is tasked to find her after she’s kidnapped. The Inquisitors (Darth Vader’s force-sensitive army) are hot on his tail as he tries to ensure he brings her home. As you can imagine, it doesn’t all go to plan.

That’s what I adored about the show. It was unpredictable in the way it went forward. You never expected to see Darth Vader straight-up snap civilians’ necks or see Reva’s true goal.

Yes, we’re fanboys of the show, no we’re not paid to write this up. We did genuinely enjoy everything the show had to offer. If you’re not a fan then that’s fine of course. Please respect that before commenting.

Characters

We were already introduced to a handful of characters that appeared in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, Obviously, fans knew Obi-Wan and Vader, as well as having seen Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru from the prequels and sequel movies.

These characters that reappeared were incredible and very accurate to how we’ve previously seen them with the exception of Obi-Wan and Vader. Those two had to change in this new series. Obi-Wan played by Ewan McGregor had to come into the series completely different from the prequel Obi-Wan and the later Obi-Wan played by Alec McGuinness. Ewan had to come into this series as a broken, PTSD-riddled version of Obi-Wan, something we haven’t seen in live-action and he did just that and grew into how he was.

Hayden Christensen returned and had to be Vader, this brutal tyrant of the galaxy who is relentless, violent, brutal, and has no care in the world about killing and he delivered that with the scene where he killed many civilians trying to draw out Obi-Wan. Hayden also had the challenge of being a version of Vader where he’s torn between Anakin and Vader. The scene in the finale where Anakin and Vader both spoke to Obi-Wan proved that.

Rebels fans rejoiced when it was revealed that The Inquisitors would be a major factor in the series. Rebels fans had already met the Grand Inquisitor and the Fifth Brother. Fans who didn’t watch Rebels would be newly introduced to these characters and I think both characters did exceptionally well, especially Sung Kang’s version of the Fifth Brother, who is majorly overlooked from the series.

Reva was a new character created for the show. Played incredibly well by Moses Ingram. She’s a welcome addition to the universe. She had a mission, and while that mission was revenge, she ultimately did what she set out to but ended up changing in the process with the help of Obi-Wan’s words.

Roken and Tala were also new characters introduced to the series that kind of served as a very early footstep into the Rebel Alliance that we all know and love from the original trilogy of movies. Both of these characters served their purposes.

Standout Character

It’s Vader for me. I’ve been calling for Darth Vader to receive his own money or show that’s set in his prime years when he’s hunting down surviving Jedi. The show did Vader justice in many ways as we see the brutality in his fighting. This is especially shown when he fights Reva without a lightsaber. We loved every single second Vader was on screen and we’re glad he got plenty of it too.

Favorite Episode

My favorite episode is definitely the final episode. I think this episode was hands down some of the best visually looking scenes in the entire season. The story of Obi-Wan having to do what he must against a ruthless Vader is incredible and the fight scene between the two was impactful, powerful, emotional, and just incredible. The producers did very well with this fight. It was back and forth. We saw Obi-Wan and Vader go fully in against each other. But what truly made this a spectacular fight was the surrounding. They fought in a dark world within rocks and boulders, with the only light source coming from the blue lightsaber and the crimson red lightsaber. It was beautiful.

Worst Episode

The series by no means had the worst episode. If, and this is a big if but if I had to choose, I personally would say the first episode. By this I mean it was slow although this slow tone to the first episode was needed. A lot of people disliked this because they thought it would immediately be Obi-Wan jumping around like a full-blown Jedi not realizing that this version of Obi-Wan post Order 66 is broken, PTSD-riddled, and a loner version of Obi-Wan. Someone who struggled for years after Order 66, “killing” Anakin, and losing the Jedi Order.

Episodes & Their Ratings

Episode 1: Part I – 10/10
Episode 2: Part II – 10/10
Episode 3: Part III – 10/10
Episode 4: Part IV – 10/10
Episode 5: Part V – 10/10
Episode 6: Part VI – 10/10

Average rating – 10/10

Our Overall Rating 10/10

This is our third show to receive a perfect 10 season behind The Mandalorian and Stargirl, and even in the end, it’s definitely a 10/10 season for us. As we mentioned in the overview we loved every minute of it.

Does It Deserve Another Season?

Does it deserve another season? Yes. Would I be fine with this being a one-season series? Yes. There is definitely room for another one or two seasons worth of story with Obi-Wan Kenobi. Fans want it, Ewan McGregor wants to return and it would mean more opportunity to bring Hayden Christensen back again as Vader after his appearance in Ahsoka.

Availability

Obi-Wan Kenobi is a Disney+ exclusive show and that’s the only platform the show is available on legally. You can see more on the Disney+ website and can sign up if you’re not a member by visiting here.

Season Trailer