It’s time for Star Wars to show Obi-Wan Kenobi at his worst

In just seven episodes, The Book of Boba Fett accomplished something extremely important: It proved Star Wars can, and should, tell more stories exactly like it. Not necessarily about crime lords and Tatooine politics, but instead about characters who respond to traumatic events with good intentions. Obi-Wan Kenobi could be the show that continues the trend.

It’s time Star Wars dedicated another series — one starring a longtime fan-favorite character — to showcasing the trauma stories in a galaxy far, far away hasn’t always dealt with on-screen.

With just six episodes in the series and no more planned after that, the Kenobi series has a fairly limited time to tell an extremely important story. It will have to expertly balance its explosive moments with its quiet ones; it needs to be quick when it matters and slow where it counts. It needs to show the impact of physical as well as emotional pain on an individual as well-known and well-loved as Obi-Wan Kenobi.

We’ve seen Obi-Wan fight through the worst of days, even confronting and presumably killing his “brother” once he knew there was no chance of saving him. Star Wars: Rebels skipped most of Kenobi’s time in the desert and showed a man who has grown wise and hopeful with age.

The Kenobi series takes place almost exactly halfway between these two points — a decade after Revenge of the Sith  and about nine years before A New Hope. What does he go through in that time? What does he learn? How does he grow?

We often forget that Obi-Wan lost Satine, Anakin, and the entire Jedi Order in a very short time period. Amidst all that devastating loss almost all at once, he still took on the task of watching over his best friend’s son — not just for a short time; for the rest of Obi-Wan’s life.

How does a man who lost all hope become so hopeful that he’s willing to sacrifice his life to save the same galaxy that took everything from him?

That is what the Kenobi series should explore. Should it have action and adventure too? Of course. But The Book of Boba Fett taught us that a broken man in a broken galaxy can fight for survival on the outside while also battling his own demons on the inside at the same time. And one doesn’t have to overshadow the other.

They can exist in perfect balance, as they always should.

Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi is directed by Deborah Chow and stars Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen. The series premieres exclusively on Disney+ May 25, 2022.