Obi-Wan Kenobi: Good Series or Star Wars Kitsch?

Obi-Wan Kenobi, the next series based on George Lucas' sci-fantasy epic, has started on the Disney+ streaming service. With a double episode, the makers herald the beginning of the six-episode spin-off about the legendary Jedi master Obi-Wan Kenobi. Is it worth the fun? It looks quite like this.

Fans have long been looking forward to the new mini-series Obi-Wan Kenobi - this was also the case for the other two new Star Wars series on Disney +. In the end, the feedback was quite mixed: from a big hooray to a shake of the head, the individual episodes of The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett had just about everything. And Obi Wan Kenobi? There is actually a clear leap in quality.

Luckily no surprises

Vor rund anderthalb Jahren hatte Disney angekündigt, man wolle eine neue Geschichte um Jedi-Meister Obi-Wan Kenobi in ein Serienformat pressen – Fans warteten lange. Fans warteten sehnsüchtig. Fans hatten eine neue Hoffnung. Die populäre Figur aus George Lucas Sci-Fantasy-Universum war auf der Leinwand oft präsent, blieb manchmal ungewöhnlich blass, hatte aber in Rache der Sith ihr episches Finale in einem Kampf zwischen Gut und Böse, aus dem letztendlich etwas noch Böseres resultieren sollte. Zehn Jahre nach den Ereignisse der Prequel-Trilogie spielt nun „Obi-Wan Kenobi“, so der nüchterne Titel der neuen Star Wars-Serie auf Disney+. So schlicht der Titel daherkommt, so treffend ist er: der gute alte Ben steht im Mittelpunkt und daran lassen die Showrunner keinen Zweifel. Rund neun Jahre vor Krieg der Sterne – A new Hope ist Obi-Wan allein auf Tatooine. Einsam, aber nicht ohne Mission, lebt er als Einsiedler auf dem kargen Wüstenplaneten: Er muss Luke Skywalker beschützen.

What we know: There will be several reunions. With Darth Vader, with Commander Cody, with the Tusken, with Owen and Beru Lars. And: With the Inquisitors as fans already from the animated series Star Wars Rebels should know.

The frame is right. But what good is the Obi-Wand Kenobi series? Some and more. After the first two episodes it can be said: Much more than expected. The series closes gaps in the story that fans have only been able to fill in through their fantasies - or through books from the Expanded Universe, which, however, are no longer part of the official canon. Disney had a chance to rewrite Star Wars history with Obi-Wan Kenobi -- and it seems they've made good use of it. Technically everything is top notch as expected. Cinematically, Obi-Wan Kenobi is a stunner. The atmosphere grips the viewer and doesn't let go. Dramaturgically, you work towards an expected moment until the end of the second episode.

Obi-Wan Kenobi is ambivalent. You use the most modern film technology and at the same time use perhaps the oldest element from the Star War franchise: memory. The makers are taking advantage of the fact that fans want to reminisce about the good old days. They want to hear before they see, to guess before they know - evil is approaching. What the memory of Star Wars still dictates for Obi-Wan Kenobi: we know the end of some relevant events that form the framework of the plot. An epic clash between the Dark Lord of the Sith and the wise Jedi Master? It will come. And then? Will Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi both survive. The course of the Star Wars story dictates this - the showrunners have to stick to it and yet after just two episodes you are looking forward to the inevitable. Only later will old Ben lose a direct duel, want to lose it, perhaps have to, so that the galaxy can regain balance. Until then, Disney's new ones fill up Star Wars-Sequence up the small gaps, don't invent them, but connect them. This is the great strength of the great drama this time.

In order for this to succeed, the showrunners rely on familiar faces: Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan, Hayden Christensen as Darth Vader, Bonnie Piesse and Joel Edgerten as Beru and Owen Lars and Jimmy Smits as Bail Organa. They are all known from the prequel trilogy and they all appear in the miniseries. As fans, you get into the format well. Han Solo would put it like this: Chewie, we're home.

And despite the series title about the big name, fans know one thing above all. Basically, it's not Obi-Wan Kenobi that's the focus - it's the kids. Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, they're all about them. Therefore, Obi-Wan Kenobi revolves around them. Old Ben is therefore the main character of the series, but not its center

It almost seems as if this new Star Wars series is the most important because it not only tells stories, but also links two trilogies together. That's quite odd, because the series doesn't come as a surprise because - at least in terms of the overarching plot - it can't. It looks wonderful on screen, a lot better than, say, Star Wars Episode III. The series is made for fans, and director Deborah Chow and Co leave no doubt about that either: You swing the nostalgia club with force, fortunately. Because somehow - despite all the criticism - that also makes a good Star Wars experience. Will Obi-Wan Kenobi be a good series as a whole? Of course, that can't be said after just two episodes - the foundation has been laid.

A new episode of Obi-Wan Kenobi is out Fridays on Disney+.

Preview	Product	Rating	Price
	Star Wars 1 - 9 - The Skywalker Saga [Blu-ray] *	Currently no reviews	89,99 EUR	Buy

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