Obi-Wan Kenobi Episode 4 Puts Obi-Wan Back On The Path
There will be spoilers for "Obi-Wan Kenobi" Episode IV.
At the end of the last episode, Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) had been badly wounded and whisked away from Mapuzo along the Path to Jabiim. Unfortunately, Leia (Vivien Lyra Blair) had been left in the clutches of Reva, the Third Sister (Moses Ingram) of the order of Inquisitors tasked with hunting the Jedi. She brings Leia to the water moon of Nur in the Mustafar system, where she interrogates Leia for information about the Jedi sympathizers. After visions of Vader in his stay in a bacta tank, Ben comes out of his shell and shows some of the old Obi-Wan spirit, hatching a plan to get into the Fortress Inquisitorius and rescue Leia.
With the help of Imperial double agent Tala (Indira Varma), the plan works to a point, but it's a close call. Little do they know that Reva has placed a tracker on Leia's droid, Lola. This single act saves Reva's life from a furious Lord Vader who demands results.
With two episodes left, it's building closer and closer to an epic standoff between former master and student.
The Fortress Inquisitorius
Leia is taken by Reva to the Fortress Inquisitorius on the water moon of Nur in the Mustafar system and it carries a lot of significance throughout "Star Wars" storytelling. The first hints of the importance of the Mustafar system continuing beyond "Revenge of the Sith" began in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" when it was revealed that Vader's castle was nestled along the rocky lava flows of Mustafar. Then, in "Star Wars Rebels," the concept of Inquisitors were introduced. When the crew of the Ghost set out to rescue Kanan Jarrus who had been captured, Hera Syndulla remarked of Mustafar, "I've only heard that name once, from Kanan. He said Mustafar is where Jedi go to die."
The reputation of the place was legendary.
In "Star Wars: Jedi: Fallen Order," Cal Kestis finds himself infiltrating the Fortress Inquisitorius as well, and in some similar ways, too. there is definitely swimming and flooding of the base in the game. The design between the levels in the game and what we see here in "Obi-Wan Kenobi" match perfectly, down to the murky green of the water through the glass.
The importance of the Fortress grew in subsequent appearances in comics and is a place to watch out for as we learn more about the dark times of the Empire in this era of "Star Wars" storytelling.
The fate of Master Tera Sinube
One new facet of the Fortress Inquisitorius that we learned was that it entombed a number of Jedi. There were a number of new or unrecognizable Jedi, including a youngling still in their training gear. The one Jedi that did seem recognizable was Master Tera Sinube.
Master Sinube was an aged Cosian Jedi Master who served from before the time of the High Republic all the way to the rise of the Empire. His first substantial appearance was in "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" in the season two episode "Lightsaber Lost." In that episode, he plays Takashi Shimura to Ahsoka Tano's Toshiro Mifune in a "Star Wars" retelling of Kurosawa's "Stray Dog." Terra Sinube trained many infamous Jedi over the years, even overseeing the training of Sifo-Dyas and Dooku during their days as younglings. In his later years, long after his time on the Jedi Council, he served as a Jedi investigator, becoming entrenched in contacts with the underworld of Coruscant. His lightsaber hilt, at least in his later years, doubled as his cane.
Sinube was a wily old Jedi and kindly. His appearance here in the tomb of the Fortress would hit Obi-Wan Kenobi particularly hard.
Details to watch out for
This episodes connects a lot of dots to other parts of the "Star Wars" saga in subtle ways. There are simple things, from echoes of Obi-Wan's swim to Otoh Gunga in "The Phantom Menace" to the architecture of the torture equipment. There are some good deep cuts, though.
First is the mention of the planet Balnab, a planet Reva intercepted a transmission from a year prior. During the Clone Wars, Balnab was a planet in the early stages of its development where the four-armed denizens of Balnab were easily tricked into believing that a number of Pit Droids were their master. Artoo and Threepio crash landed on the planet and pulled the curtain back on this "leader" in a direct send up to "The Wizard of Oz." Artoo and Threepio run out of batteries on Balnab, and are later captured there by Weequay pirates. Imagining the Balnab helping the Jedi escape is actually kind of funny to think about.
Another planet that gets name-dropped is Florrum. Florrum was the original home base of the Weequay pirate Hondo Ohnaka and was where he captured Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Count Dooku on "Star Wars: The Clone Wars."
Fans will notice the reference to the T-47s in this episode. T-47s were adapted to the cold (after a lot of trouble) in "The Empire Strikes Back" for use on Hoth against the Empire. It's funny to think their original use, according to the nascent rebels here that their primary use is hauling sewage. That one line explains their tow cables and the way they operate, making it a fun connection that adds to the lore of the Rebellion. They were literally fighting the Empire with sewage haulers and won.
Marching toward conflict
As the show marches toward what will likely be the penultimate battle between Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi, it is slowly building Ben Kenobi back into the wisened mentor that we knew in "A New Hope." At the start of the series, Ben had really given up and not focused on becoming the pinnacle of what the Jedi represent. He's really abandoned being a Jedi.
"Look what has become of you," Maul will tell Ben a few years later in the "Star Wars Rebels" episode "Twin Suns," "A rat in the desert."
"Look what I have risen above," Kenobi responds proudly, holding his head high, having regained his dignity.
Though that moment is at least six or seven years away, we see how Ben is back on that path for good in this episode. Having the guardians of the Path give him old Jedi robes to wear as he infiltrates the Fortress Inquisitorius is just one more symbolic step toward that final end.
How will the show end up playing out, though? I think a few things are certain. Leia will be reunited with her family on Alderaan. Vader will further embrace his reign of terror, lashing out to control things from fear. I get the sneaking suspicion that the Third Sister will meet her end, though I think it's just as likely that she escapes. And Ben will end his story back on Tatooine, working harder to rise above.
There are two more episodes of "Obi-Wan Kenobi" left, new episodes premiere on Wednesdays on Disney+.