Obi-Wan Kenobi Review: Part V (Season 1 Episode 5)
As the series starts to wind down, answers start to flood in at a rapid pace. One of the great things about Obi-Wan Kenobi Season 1 Episode 5, “Part V” is that none of these reveals feel like too much.
Every new piece of information flows into the previous in the most natural way. Audiences are still surprised or at least intrigued by these reveals even if they feel like a natural progression of the story.
No matter what, “Part V” succeeds at keeping us engaged while once again, not much happens in the bigger picture.
Anakin Skywalker vs. Darth Vader
The big battle this whole time has not been between two people but instead between our minds. We have been trying our best to separate who Vader currently is with who he used to be, aka Anakin Skywalker.
Both characters are iconic and both are two sides of the same coin. Obi-Wan Kenobi Season 1 Episode 3, “Part III” gives us that iconic battle between Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi, meanwhile this episode gives us insight into their bond as Master and Padawan.
This episode really drives it in that while Anakin will always be who Vader started out as, that part of him no longer exists. Anakin Skywalker died during that battle with Obi-Wan on Mustafar.
It’s great to see Hayden Christensen take up the saber as Anakin again for the flashback scenes, but it’s also hilarious. Obviously the actor has aged and so these scenes are funny because they supposedly take place around the time of Clone Wars and yet they don’t look young enough.
These scenes do give us insight into how early on Anakin was susceptible to the draw of the dark side. Even as a young Padawan he has a desire to defeat/kill instead of just unarm his opponent.
Obi-Wan Kenobi’s Dilemma
The biggest issue for Obi-Wan this whole time has been his struggle to accept Anakin becoming Darth Vader. Yes, he knows that Vader is dangerous and needs to be eradicated and yet he struggles to actually go through with it.
This entire episode proves just that, Obi-Wan knows Vader is coming and yet he decides to make plans to cut and run or have Reva handle him. It’s not the same characterization of Obi-Wan we have all grown to love over the years, but it is the new version of him that remains.
Some will say this whole episode is a blatant disregard for who Obi-Wan Kenobi is as a Jedi, but I disagree. He is still a strong Jedi, he just knows that in his heart he cannot kill Anakin/Vader despite the gross betrayal that occurred.
Obi-Wan’s main objective now is to protect Leia at all costs and he knows he’s not a strong enough fighter anymore to defeat Vader. The level of force strength Vader demonstrates in those final moments with the ship prove that.
Reva’s Real Mission
I’ve been saying from the beginning that I figured Reva to be a surviving youngling. What I hadn’t expected was for Reva to actually be playing dirty spy all along.
I just figured Reva had joined Vader to survive, but actually she pretended to be someone else in order to get close to Vader in an attempt to defeat him. The coolest part about this whole plot is that Vader has known all along she is that surviving youngling and simply used her rage to his advantage.
The level of force strength Vader now has shows that he hasn’t been messing around for the last 10 years. In fact, he’s been honing those skills, as demonstrated when he splits her saber in half during their battle.
While it’s not entirely evident currently what will happen to Reva, we all know she’s tougher than she looks and will possibly survive even Vader’s wrath. What’s not great is that she has the message from Bail that mentions Luke.
It’ll be interesting to see what she does with it and where this story goes in the final installment.
Stray Thoughts:
- I’m so sad about Tala, she was a fabulous addition to the Star Wars universe.
- Of course Leia found the tracker! She’s kind of a genius after all.
- Haja…did he drop that communication on purpose? What is his real game here?
What did you think of this episode of Obi-Wan Kenobi? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Obi-Wan Kenobi airs Wednesdays on Disney+.
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Mads Misasi
Mads is a part-time entertainment journalist and full-time marketing content creator. They love any and all TV Dramas with a few sitcoms mixed in. Join in the fun talking about TV by following them on Twitter: @dorothynyc89.