Star Words: Episode III, Part 20

Obi-Wan really earns the snarky one-liner award during the prequels, doesn't he? In the opening sequence alone there's quite a few gems. "Flying is for droids!" "Not to worry; we are still flying half a ship" "Another happy landing." And then, of course, we have his cocky demeanor all through the fight with Grievous. Things get pretty sticky toward the end, with Obi-Wan dangling from a ledge (he ends up in that position kind of a lot), but thanks to his Jedi skills and a hastily obtained blaster, he emerges victorious. And immediately tosses the blaster aside in disgust.

"So uncivilized."


Yet another winking callback to the original trilogy. Obi-Wan's opinions remain consistent. Blasters are clumsy, uncivilized, a poor substitute for the elegance of a lightsaber. Sure, he'll use one if there's no better weapon lying around, but only as a last resort.

And there's that recklessness -- arrogance too, maybe -- coming into play again. There's still a battle raging on Utapau, and his lightsaber is nowhere in sight. He can't be sure that he'll ever find it again. Yet he doesn't want to hold that blaster another second. Kind of foolish to run around weaponless, isn't it? Especially when "this weapon is your life." If Anakin weren't on another planet in a battle for his own soul right now, he'd have to be ribbing Obi-Wan mercilessly for failing to follow his own advice. Well, Obi-Wan would have to concede that even uncivilized weapons have their uses now and then.

Next time, Palpatine drops his mask.....