In this episode, we share our thoughts on Obi-Wan Kenobi with friend of the show and regular guest, Josh Bernhard. We each discuss our overall thoughts and then discuss specific points and ideas of the show.
SPOILER ALERT! We talk about everything in the show, so if you haven't watched Obi-Wan yet, wait before you listen. But after you finish watching, you should definitely come back and listen!
00:00 We start the show with our overall thoughts about the series. We talk about how we think Ewan McGregor is now the definitive Obi-Wan Kenobi: not just because his performance is so nuanced, but also because he loves playing the character. We point out that, for us, it is also really important that Ewan immediately stood alongside co-star Mosses Ingram when she was receiving hateful and racist treatment from toxic Star Wars fans.
9:40 We talk about how this show finally makes us feel as though Darth Vader from the original trilogy *is* Anakin Skywalker from the Prequels and Clone Wars. We also talk about the scene in the last episode of the series, wherein Obi Wan apologizes to Anakin (who has been revealed under Vader’s damaged mask), and how emotional and chilling that moment was. We also discuss how this story overall was needed for the characters of both Obi-Wan and Vader.
16:25 We discuss how this series makes it clear that Anakin chose to go to the dark side. We also talk about how the scene between Obi-Wan and Vader in the last episode fixes some plot holes.
21:00 We talk about the different ideas and themes we each got from the show: parents favoring certain children, themes of depression, and the notion of self-forgiveness for things that one did not understand at that moment.
29:30 We talk about the hero's journey Obi-Wan travels throughout the series, as well as through the first 4 movies and the Clone Wars series. This leads us into a discussion about how Obi-Wan deals with loss. We also talk about the nature of a hero’s journey and the insidious nature of depression.
46:00 We discuss the opening scene of the first episode (specifically, the murder of the younglings) and how that leads to childhood trauma, leading us to talk about Reva’s journey as a character, and how Reva's story is not the stereotypical use and exploitation of a black woman’s pain as a component in a story.
1:00:00 We talk about the casting of the different roles in the show through the lense of representation and overall optics of the audience; we also discuss the original trilogy and the idea that the Empire represents a non-diverse white ruling class versus a diverse Rebellion desperate to change things.
1:09:00 We talk about why Obi-Wan chose not to kill Vader at the end of episode 6.
1:15:00 We talk about the true nature of the Jedi; we get into how they were not holding to what the Jedi are in the Clone Wars.
1:19:00 We talk about whether this show should have been a movie.
