We are somehow already 2/3 through this series, with only two episodes to go before it wraps up its first (only?) season. Let’s get right to it.
1. Deja vu
The odd thing about a six episode series is that the pacing can be hard to nail, and this episode feels a lot like a “oh shit, we have five major event that need to happen but six episodes…which one can we repeat without it seeming too much like a do-over?” So yes, Obi-Wan needs to rescue Leia, again, and this time, the stakes are higher. There are some very cool moments in this episode, and some important growth happens with Obi-Wan, but the framework of the episode feels a little redundant.
While I understand that Third Sister’s entire purpose is to hunt Obi-Wan, and she has in her grasp the last person to spend any time with Obi-Wan, it seems like she expects Leia to have far more information than she could likely have. Sure, she was with Tala in that tunnel, but this kid has just been kidnapped and rescued, and is likely in some sort of shock, if not just utterly exhausted and also not really up on all the rebel lingo. At best, she could remember some planet names or maybe Tala’s name.
But this also begins to sow the seeds of who Leia will grow into. Her will is strong, as we see when Third Sister attempts to do the Kylo Ren “I’ll pull out your thoughts” trick, but fails. This leads to a near-torture for Leia, before it is slightly delayed. And while at first I thought “why does the Empire have a torture device for small children?,” I remembered that they are literally hunting Force sensitive kids, so yes, they would absolutely have this sort of equipment at the ready.
3. Stormtroopers: When you absolutely don’t need someone to be good at their job!
Now, I recognize that the Empire is somewhat correct in thinking that Fortress Inquisitorius doesn’t need to be all that heavily fortified, as it is on a watery moon and is filled with deadly killers, and the Empire has no real competition/enemies with real strength at this point.
But this base is basically left unlocked with lots of ways in and out, and everyone that works there is bad at their job. While Obi-Wan and Leia are escaping, they find a bevy of Stormtroopers who are taken out with the slightest tap from a lightsaber or a blaster to the shoulder. We know how bad their aim is, but this is about as bad as one could humanly imagine, with one Trooper shooting the surveillance droid accidentally because he missed Obi-Wan by 5 feet.
Not only that, but the Imperial officers are equally useless here. Tala kills one of them like 5 feet away, just behind a scrim and no one seems to notice her choking out a dude in their presence. It’s no wonder a band of revolutionaries led by a farm boy who kisses his sister could take this operation out.
That said, throughout the process of rescuing Leia, we see Obi-Wan get more in touch with the Force, and he begins to resemble a Jedi again, in how he can wield the force to cause a distraction or keep the ocean at bay. He is still weak, both physically and in the Force, but he is getting there.
4. The Trophies
When Obi-Wan gets into the Fortress, he encounters a hallway filled with dead(?) Jedi, preserved in amber like the mosquitos in Jurassic Park. Now, whether they are dead or in some sort of proto-Carbonite stasis is unknown, but I would think that these are trophies of the dead, rather deus ex machinas who could be thawed out at any point, free to attack the Empire or enter law school.
But this scene is a stark reminder to Obi-Wan that he’s truly alone. His Order is dead, his friends held as mocking reminders, and his one task – to protect Luke – potentially fallen through the cracks. However, with a connection to the Force reestablished, this is the most alive he has looked all series.
Continued below5. The Path
We get a few more members of ‘the Path’ this week, including O’Shea Jackson Jr. as Roken, all of whom seem like their hearts are in the right place, but this doesn’t seem to be the daring and resourceful Rebellion that will be growing from this point. I wonder if any of these characters will cross over with Andor, as this is the nexus point between the two series. I do find it interesting that this early branch of the Rebellion is so focused on Force users, as by the time we get to A New Hope, it appears that all that is left of that is the phrase ‘May the Force Be With You.’
With L0-LA leading the Empire to Leia, maybe this is the effective end of the Path. I suppose we will find our shortly.
