PT Obi-Wan- underrated?

Obi-Wan's so often compared to the absolute most powerful force users in the galaxy (Palpatine, Windu, Yoda, Anakin, Dooku, etc.), individuals even more powerful than him, that I think people forget he was still one of the most powerful Jedi in the order himself. Most underrated Jedi, IMO.

 

Obi-Wan went toe to toe with Maul, Dooku, Greivous and Anakin, and pretty much proved he was on par with the best of the best. You seem to have been a member for a long time, you must be familiar with all the fan pages and threads dedicated to Obi-Wan. I think he get's just as much credit as he deserves, he is rightly referred to as one of the greatest Jedi in the history of the order.

 

He probably has the calmest demeanor of any jedi . Always so in control of his feelings. That is what makes him great

 

he trained Anakin at first, who easily dealt with count dooku in rots.he defeated darth maul in tpm. trained luke skywalker too. so ye basically obi wan is up there with the best

 

I'm not sure one of the most iconic Star Wars characters of all time could be considered "underrated". Sure he's a skilled warrior, but that's not even remotely the most fascinating aspect of his character. He's also a gentleman, a scholar, a detective, a mentor, a liar, a failure, a ghost... all in all probably the most dynamic Star Wars character there is.

 

In some ways Obi-Wan is overrated. I don't think he's as 'powerful' as he's made out to be in some of the EU material and in fanboy perceptions of him, if 'powerful' means combat skill and ability to use the Force. If that's what 'greatest
Jedi' is all about, power, then no, I don't think he's all that great. That's actually what I like least about his portrayal in RotS, though thankfully there wasn't too much of this in the film (the book is guiltier; and the Clone Wars-era EU even more so).

But being overrated in that sense is precisely why he's underrated in other ways. To me, the whole point of Obi-Wan's character arc in the PT is that he's not 'great' at all, in the sense of powerful, talented, badass, etc. That he really has fairly average abilities for a Jedi (I admit RotS canonshafted this interpretation a bit). His true greatness is in his strength of character, which is really almost superhuman. In that sense, he's the very opposite of, and the perfect foil to, Anakin, who is supremely gifted and powerful to the point of being literally semi-divine, but who suffers from profoundly human frailties -- he's desperately needy and emotionally immature, which leads him into selfishness.

 

^I agree. From going by the PT, I always got the sense that Obi-Wan was, more or less, an average Jedi who experienced some extraordinary things. I never got the impression that he was as powerful as Mace or Yoda, but what Obi-Wan had that greatly benefited him was his intelligence and his wisdom. Those are traits we glimpse as far back as TPM. And his circumstances placed him in some incredible situations, and he typically came out on top because he was patient and knew to go into things smartly rather than brashly. He's an anti-Anakin, if you will. And if you watch TCW, there's much more to his character and the choices he's made along the way that help support the notion that he's not an overly powerful Jedi, and he too is faced with great challenges that he gets around not by his prowess with the Force or a lightsaber, but by his knowledge and cunningness.

 

All of this makes him much more than an average Jedi. In fact, I'd say all this makes him an extraordinary Jedi.

 

It does. My point is that he isn't extraordinarily powerful like Anakin is, and despite that, he has other traits to rely on that still set him apart from most other Jedi.

 

In the Clone Wars Gambit novel - Mace held the Jedi record for Force-powered high jump, until Anakin smashed it by several metres.

Obi-Wan's own highest, was apparently only half a metre less than Mace's.

Obi-Wan may qualify as a "top-tier Jedi" - not quite in Mace's league, but close behind.

 

I think Obi-Wan was perfect in maintaining the strength and skills one would expect from a Jedi, but he also genuinely possessed the humility that a Jedi should also have. That soft-spoken, calm quality of his is one of the most important aspects of his personality, but also helps him blend into the background compared to other Jedi who "put on a bigger show."

 

He was on the high council, was chosen over anakin to capture Grievous due to his experience and skill, and defeated anakin. Hes way above average

 

I would say he's above average, but (in terms of raw power) not above average for, say, a member of the Council.

 

Does a Jedi being on the Council make them more powerful than one who is not? I'm not certain whether or not it's been explained one way or the other, but I get the sense that a Jedi's experience and dependability is probably a more reliable indicator of a good Councilman/Councilwoman than sheer power. When I say Obi-Wan is an average Jedi rather than an extraordinary one, it is in that light. If you believe his experiences make Obi-Wan extraordinary, then I heartily agree with you. But I don't get the impression from the films that he was more powerful in the Force than say Aayla Secura or Quinlan Vos.

 

IMHO I'd say good judgment and experience are the major qualifications for the Council, with power not even a real factor. IF one believes the Council is this super powerful entity, one would wish those wielding the power to have the sense and commitment to do so responsibly, rather than reveling in and falling victim to the "high" of using that power.

Since it appears that the Council's power is more general (at least up until the war) - assigning missions, running the Temple, interfacing with the Senate, et al, and didn't seem to have the absolute power to demand 100% adherence to "the will of the Council" (ex. Qui-Gon: he trys the council's patience but is still well regarded and not disciplined).

I'd also add open-mindedness, but I know many would snicker at this, thinking the council was anything but open-minded. Still, folks can be open-minded on some things and not on others.

My head canon has always been that Obi-Wan is "powerful enough" but not especially so, when it comes to "Force power" - but then again, how does one define that? How far someone can "Force push"?

Obi-Wan's strengths are those less measurable, but perhaps far more valuable.

 

But experience does make you more powerful, its how you get better at anything, a jedi master will beat a padawan because of that. You say his force powers are average, well so is mostly every jedi in the movies. Dooku, Yoda, Palpatine, and Vader are the only ones to show above average force feats. Not sure why your saying that obi wan, a master duelist, isnt powerful and I dont know why your comparing Aayla's power with his when she has almost no on screen feats

 

Power has many manifestations and I think many factors are often overlooked when assessing the power of the various Star Wars characters. Intelligence, composure, discretion and experience can all contribute to making one powerful. Obiwan possessed these things. He was very powerful. Is it always acknowledged? No.

 

Again, I completely agree, and this is exactly what I alluded to in an earlier post. When I refer to power, my meaning is in terms of Obi-Wan's ability to harness the power of the Force. I never said he wasn't powerful. His other attributes, such as knowledge, wisdom, and experience, coupled with the fact that he is Force-sensitive make him very powerful. When I compare Obi-Wan to Aayla it is a comparison of midichlorian counts. I have no idea what their specific counts are, but there doesn't sound to be anything remarkable about anyone other than Yoda and Anakin according to dialogue in TPM. And all I'm suggesting is that Obi-Wan is no more powerful in terms of sheer midichlorian-dictated Force ability than Aayla or any other "regular" Jedi. It is those other qualities of his that set him apart.