Star Words: Episode IV, Part 7

[matril]

Artoo, devious droid that he is, has tricked Luke into removing his restraining bolt and is now roaming the Jundland Wastes. Which is where Luke and Threepio catch up with him, only to get attacked by sandpeople. It's a markedly different encounter than the one we saw in Episode II. Young, inexperienced, without any Jedi training, Luke is pretty much at their mercy. Until old Ben Kenobi comes along to save the day.

It's a great introduction to the character, whether as his first appearance or as a continuation from the prequel version. A mysterious hooded figure whose mimicked screech scares away a horde of Tusken Raiders....revealed to be an ordinary-looking old man. His first words are a kindly reassurance to Artoo, while he greets Luke with friendly concern. Then Luke describes Artoo's odd behavior and mentions the name of Obi-Wan.

"Obi-Wan Kenobi. Obi-Wan. Now that's a name I've not heard in a long time. A long time."

Without any other context or backstory, this line with its masterful delivery and haunting music paint a vivid picture. A former life left behind, long-buried memories rising to the surface. Old Ben must have had one heck of a past. But whatever serious matters he's recalling, he still carries a sense of humor about it. Luke wonders if Obi-Wan is dead, and he replies wryly, "Not yet." And further clarifies. "Of course I know him. He's me." There's an almost whimsical quality to his words.

The wise old wizard is a time-honored archetype, and Ben Kenobi fills it nicely. He is the possessor of great knowledge, lore and experience, but he is also personable, compassionate, even occasionally self-deprecating. We all know it was far from Alec Guinness's favorite role, but you couldn't tell from his performance. He was never phoning it in.

Next, we get a glimpse at that mysterious backstory....

Comments

[krpalmer]

Your comment about the attack of the sandpeople being "a markedly different encounter than the one we saw in Episode II" does have me contemplating "the sins of the father are visited upon the son" and the whole "endless wheel of revenge," too... Still, your next comments about Obi-Wan's introduction or re-introduction had me musing once more that however unlikely it may be that some hypothetical person would start watching the Star Wars movies in numerical order knowing nothing about them, it's still amusing to try and imagine those different perspectives. Presumably, "Ben Kenobi" would start raising questions the moment it came up in dialogue.