
It’s this mindset that leaves Obi-Wan well-prepared to take on Vader one last time, and ultimately move on from his physical form, to the Force.Īnd nothing serves as a greater callback to Guinness’ performance than seeing McGregor finally say in the final episode to Luke, “Hello there,” in Guinness’ same British intonation. “He was the best starpilot in the galaxy and a cunning warrior … and a good friend,” he recounts to Luke about Anakin. I did,” Vader tells his old master in a heartbreaking last exchange that changes Obi-Wan’s perspective - or certain point of view - forever.īut while he’s accepted the fate of Darth Vader, he still remembers his old friend fondly. He adds that it was Darth Vader that killed his father, just as Vader says in Obi-Wan Kenobi’s final episode. “He’s more machine now, than man,” the Jedi tells Luke in Episode IV. It was in these confrontations that McGregor’s Obi-Wan is able to finally let go of Anakin Skywalker, separating the man he once knew from the monster who now exists in Vader. Now, fans know that Obi-Wan evaded Vader’s clutches not just once, but twice before, even defeating the Sith Lord in their most recent duel. And while it’s generally accepted that Obi-Wan not only sacrificed himself for Luke (Mark Hamill), he was also clearly ready to move on from his physical form. “If you strike me down, I shall grow more powerful than you can possibly imagine,” Kenobi tells Vader in their final battle in Episode IV.
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In the limited series, Kenobi undergoes a series of trials and emotional struggles that lead him to become the wise old Jedi who first graced movie theater screens in 1977 - from burying his lightsaber and denying the Force outright, to finally, at the end of the series, making contact with his old Master Qui-Gon Jinn ( Liam Neeson), who plans to teach him the ways of existing beyond. But the similarities aren’t just physical.


Guinness was 63 at the time of A New Hope, so in another 10 years, McGregor will be nearly the same age. While Obi-Wan has yet to fully take on Guinness’ aged appearance, the timing is still there, with McGregor currently 51. He’s also a bit gruff from living in a cave on Tatooine for two decades. Jump 20 years into the future, and Alec Guinness’ Obi-Wan is wise, contemplative and highly connected to the Force. At the heart of his story, he’s also the trusted mentor to padawan Anakin Skywalker ( Hayden Christensen) - the would-be Chosen One who later turns into Darth Vader. He’s a fierce protector and a devoted member of the Jedi Council. Obi-Wan in the prequels is a confident Jedi master who is bestowed the title General in the Army of the Republic. Prior to this story, it was largely accepted by fans that young Obi-Wan of the prequels and Ben Kenobi of the original trilogy were men of not only two different time periods, but two different lives.

With 10 years having passed in the miniseries since Episode III, Obi-Wan draws closer to looking and sounding like Guinness over the course of the six-part show.

Obi-Wan had at least one epic adventure left in him before the 1977 film picked up his story. With this week’s conclusion of Obi-Wan Kenobi, fans were let in on how Obi-Wan overcame his struggle to accept and move on from the tragic events of Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, which left him somewhat broken and the galaxy in peril.Īnd as it turns out, Kenobi didn’t spend 20 years in the desert as “a crazy old man,” as he was dismissed by Uncle Owen in A New Hope.
