With the season finale of Obi-Wan Kenobi offering a rematch of the ages between Old Ben and his fallen former apprentice Darth Vader, Star Wars fans had a landmark moment from the Rebels animated series brought to life action. So we will analyze how they did it and how it enriches three different eras of Star Wars.
We have seen Darth Vader helmet open in slices
The finale sees Obi-Wan Kenobi lead Darth Vader away so the Path refugees can escape, and he meets him on the surface of a rocky planet for a good old-fashioned light sword duel. As the fight reaches its climax, Obi-Wan is able to take advantage and strike Vader’s helmet on the left side, exposing the scarred and corrupt man from below. This is not the first time Star Wars fans have seen this awesome visual. In the finale of Rebels season 2, “Twilight of the Apprentice”, which takes place between Sith Revenge and New Hope, Ahsoka Tano fought her old master and was similarly cut on the right side of his mask. Both cases have direct parallels. When they saw the man in the helmet, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka shouted Anakin’s name, shocked to see their ex-boyfriend’s face and how corrupt he had become. Image source: Lucasfilm / Disney. Image source: Lucasfilm / Disney. Both Obi-Wan and Ahsoka are frustrated by what they see, and eye contact with Anakin – a direct human connection – makes them lose their focus and remember what it meant to them. They both trained with him in the Jedi Order, fought side by side as heroes and loved him as a family. And despite all the evil they know Vader has done, this intimate human connection provided by the broken helmet allows them both to express a desire for reconciliation. But Vader will do Vader, and make it clear to his former allies that their old friend Anakin Skywalker is dead and eliminating that part of himself was a decision he made. Image source: Lucasfilm / Disney. Image source: Lucasfilm / Disney. These are harsh responses to Obi-Wan and Ahsoka’s heartfelt efforts to reach the Anakin they once knew, but somehow relieves them of any further guilt. They did everything they could to help Anakin, but in the end he chose to reject them. Vader makes it clear that he no longer appreciates their love and actually enjoys this disgust of the Sith that is fueled by the hatred that has been done. And for this purpose, in another direct parallel, he gives the same promise to both when they say that they will try to stop him: “Then you will die!”.
A purpose for the parallel
Yes, these two scenes look incredible. Maybe very similar? But again, Star Wars is full of parallels and callbacks, so that kind of equals the franchise. After all, the Ahsoka / Vader scene is one of the best moments of all time in Star Wars history, so we can not blame Lucasfilm for wanting to recreate it in live action for the Obi-Wan Kenobi series. That said, there may be a good reason to repeat at the same time with two characters. Vader’s showing that he refuses the help of his old friends at two different times underscores how far he was – how completely consumed by the Emperor’s evil. Something that afterwards makes his complete redemption in Return of the Jedi even more moving. Maybe it’s just a coincidence, but we choose to see a strong symbolic message in how Ahsoka could only break the right side of Vader’s helmet, and Obi-Wan only the left, but it took the love of Vader’s son, Luke, to remove it completely – and finally bring his father back to the Light Side. Image source: Lucasfilm / Disney. For more on Obi-Wan Kenobi, take a look at our review of the Obi-Wan Kenobi season finale and why the Obi-Wan Kenobi series may have caused more problems than it solved.
