The Enduring Hero of the Saga

After analyzing the saga in its entirety, I have come to the conclusion that the greatest, most noble hero of the saga was not even of the Skywalker bloodline. It's Obi-Wan Kenobi. In every film, he pulls through.

I understand that Anakin Skywalker was the one who single-handedly toppled the Empire, but he was also the man who was responsible for plunging the galaxy into darkness because of his own self-interest and greed.

Chancellor Palpatine would have been powerless before the Chosen One after he gambled that Skywalker would side with him. Anakin could have averted the entire collapse of freedom, justice, and peace in the office.

Obi-Wan, however, stayed comitted, no matter how painful it was, to the saving the universe throughout every enstallment. He had the best interest of everyone at heart in every film and never once jeopardized that for himself.

His duty came before his emotion. He didn't allow his passion to rule his reason when he "did what he must" in Revenge of the Sith by attempted to kill his best friend and the man he trusted above all others.

Also in A New Hope by deceiving Luke in order to create a flicker of hope in the despair of the Galactic Empire. He was strong and objective enough to realize that telling Luke would only confuse the boy.

He gave Luke the will to live when he could have rolled over and died in the bitter storm on Hoth. He gave Luke the advice he needed to see the conflict through in Return of the Jedi despite the young man's misgivings.

This is why I feel Obi-Wan Kenobi is the true hero of Star Wars.

<[-]> Saber

 

Ah yes. I do agree!

Who develops the entire Saga? Who teaches us in every movie? Who is the one character that everyone knows? Kenobi ... Obi-Wan Kenobi.

The character, Obi-Wan Kenobi, is why I fell in love with Star Wars. His characteristics, his personality, the way he handles every situation with such ease and calm. The trademark of a True Jedi. Never thinking inward ... always thinking about others. He is, in my opinion, the central character of the Saga. He is the True Master ... next to Yoda of course. He commands so much confidence in the Force that he goes beyond his own power and will ... he lets the Force drive him. He lets the Force use his body as a tool for it's desire.

There is one huge difference between Obi-Wan Kenobi and every other Jedi. Connection. Connection with the audience and connection with the characters. If ever Obi-Wan were to defy the teachings of the Jedi, it would be for the people he loved. Take Anakin and Padme for example. As written in the Episode III Novel, Revenge of the Sith, it goes on to say that there is a scene between Padme and Obi-Wan. A scene where Obi-Wan fears Anakin is been dealing with alot of stress. Obi-Wan goes on to say that he knows about Padme and Anakin. However he has no intention of informing the Jedi Council. He has no intention to begin a lecture on how Anakin is defying the Jedi Order. This scene is also a deleted scene soon to be see in the upcoming DVD, Revenge of the Sith.

Connection is the fundamentally key with Obi-Wan. Yoda is a great Jedi Master, but it's hard sometimes (especially in the PT) to feel his connection and attachment to the other characters. For Obi-Wan, it's easy. He cares for those around him, cares for Anakin, cares for Padme, cares for Luke. He has that caring connection. That despite his greatness with the Force, he still has time to do the best he can to help the ones he cares about the most without even thinking of himself. That is a great Jedi, but even better ... a great person. Plus, he loves helping out the ones he loves so much, that even a little thing like death doesn't stop him.

Just like Saber said in his post, the Skywalker Bloodline could be viewed as the heroes of the Saga. But I ask you, who taught and guided both Luke and Anakin?

Kenobi is the true hero.

 

"I understand that Anakin Skywalker was the one who single-handedly toppled the Empire, but he was also the man who was responsible for plunging the galaxy into darkness because of his own self-interest and greed.

Chancellor Palpatine would have been powerless before the Chosen One after he gambled that Skywalker would side with him. Anakin could have averted the entire collapse of freedom, justice, and peace in the office."

I disagree with that statement. Anakin did destroy the Empire, in his finest hour, however I don't agree that he brought the galaxy into chaos. The only time Palpatine was ever powerless was in his final minutes of life, he always controlled the game in the earlier films. It really doesn't matter if Skywalker had sided with him, the Empire would still have been founded. He would either find another apprentice, or use massive amounts of troops and bombing to destroy the Jedi. It seems like the far majority of Jedi were killed in Order 66, which had nothing to do with Anakin.

In regard to the ultimate hero, I agree that Obi-Wan is one of the most noble and selfless characters, I however still view Luke as the ultimate hero. He is hopeful, naive, has strong ideals, and powerful convictions. His loyalty to his friends and the cause he fights for, is very admirable. Unlike Obi-Wan, he never gives up his hope.

-Seldon

 

Yes but surely Anakin siding with Palpatine, killing Jedi and spreading fear and control across the Galaxy could be said to be "chaotic" in sense, right? Sure I guess you can say Palpatine would've done it anyway, but with Anakin helping him ... the fear and control that I mentioned spread across the entire Galaxy much more swiftly.

 

I don't think anyone will deny that Anakin did help to spread chaos, fear, and political strife. SaberGiiett7 stated:
"but he was also the man who was responsible for plunging the galaxy into darkness because of his own self-interest and greed."

All I'm saying is that the man responsible for plunging the galaxy into darkness is Sidious. Did Anakin play a role? YES! That however, doesn't make him a critical part of the operation. He may have become critical, but the important aspect to consider is that he could've been replaced, and it would still work out for the Empire.

-Seldon

 

Palpatine was exposed. Anakin could have struck him down with the threeway stand-off between he, Mace, and the Dark Lord. Palpatine was powerless then. Anakin only had to choose right. Anakin didn't. Palpatine benefitted.

Palpatine didn't woo Anakin to the dark side because he wanted to fill the "Tyranus-vacuum." If Sidious did that, Vader would have only turned on him because of his own will to power like any Sith apprentice before him.

Palpatine needed Anakin to comply to his evil plans.

Palpatine understood Anakin was the most powerful Force-adept in the galaxy, if not, history. He could not have possibly proceeded without a lap dog of such potential at his beck and call to ensure the destruction of the Jedi.

Palpatine was only the schemer. He ruled the galaxy through fear. Who personified and caused that fear? Who carried out his edicts? Who straightened out rebellious systems? Force-choked stubborn and unruly Imperials?

All along, Vader was the one who truly kept the Empire in line and working for his master. Vader could have overthrown the old Emperor at any time. He remained loyal for reasons beyond my understanding.

Darth Vader was the custodian of terror. Palpatine gave out arbitrary orders from some distant throne. Darth Vader managed the affairs of a massive Empire. Grown men practically turned to jelly before him.

We're off-topic, however.

Excellent post, ObiWan506

<[-]> Saber

 

I think that Mr. Jedi Rules Kenobi is by far one of the best. If you watch the films closely you will notice that Kenobi has a certain weakness. His love for Anakin ... and even Luke. Kenobi is always the one to follow every Jedi rule to the exact, this was apparent even in TPM. Though his love and connection for Anakin (As I made mention of in my previous post) is the one things that makes him falter that strict Jedi line he walks.

His love seems to overshadow everything else he cares about. Kenobi does have an attachment ... it's Anakin.\

EDIT: Thanks!

 

I disagree. The one big flaw of Obi-Wan's is he does not feel that Anakin can be turned from the Dark Side. His purpose for training Luke is to finish what he had started and kill Vader. Remember that when Luke says he can?t kill his own father Obi-Wan states that then Emperor has already won. Obi-Wan believes that Luke is their only hope but Yoda says that there is still Leia. Did Obi-Wan forget that Anakin is had two children.? Is Obi-wan sexist? No. He believes that Leia does not have the necessary training to face Vader and destroy him. However, Yoda still considers Leia an alternative because should Luke fail his mission Leia is still an option because the goal is not to destroy Vader but to awaken the good side in him. I don't think Obi-Wan ever got that.

While Anakin is the main character, I think the true heroes of the saga are Luke (of course!) and Padme (huh????). I think people would agree that Luke fits the profile of the hero, but Padme???? Allow me to explain my logic.

In ESB, Luke takes on the role of Obi-Wan in ROTS trying to destroy Vader. But then he finds out Vader is his father and does a complete 180. All of a sudden he believes that there is good inside of him and that he can be turned from the dark side. Why the change of heart? Because now he is carrying on the mission his mother started when she traveled to Mustafar. Padme's goal was not to kill her husband but to bring him back to the good side. When she failed, that duty fell upon her children. Luke, like Padme, realizes that love not violence is the only way to stop the Sith because through love Vader can become Anakin once again and fulfill his destiny as the Chosen One.

 

Obi-Wan does all he can to bring Anakin back. Tries to talk to him, tried to understand him, tries to be his friend. In the end he couldn't control the fact that Anakin wanted to kill him. Obi-Wan at that point was facing Vader, not Anakin. Something I think the films do a good job of portraying as two completely different characters.

 

Well I disagree with the assertion that Obi-Wan did all he could. It doesn't look like he's trying to understand him. He seems to just be judging him, NOT that Vader doesn't deserve it after the horrible things he's done. I don't think Obi-Wan believed that there was anything left of Anakin in Vader. He says as much in ROTJ, that Vader killed Anakin, and Anakin is no more. I'm not trying to say Obi-Wan was wrong in believing this. Put yourself in his shoes. If you saw someone doing all these bad things would you still believe there was still good inside of him? I just don't think this makes him the hero either.

 

I think the main problem is that there might be some confusion between Anakin and Vader. Anakin died, in Obi-Wan's mind, on the Mustafar Platform when he saw Vader squeeze the life out of someone that Anakin loved. At that point Kenobi thought Anakin was dead forever. That was his one mistake, giving up too easily. But that's it. It doesn't take away from his love or attachment for ANAKIN.

 

Another thing I noticed about Obi-Wan is that, when the Saga is viewed chronologically, he's the one that anchors the two trilogies together. Obi-Wan is the character who transitions the viewers from Episode III to Episode IV. Kind of lends credence to him being the "enduring hero", even if the story is ultimately Anakin's.

 

To me MANY were heroes, not ONE in the Saga. Anakin in the clone wars and at the end killing the emporer, ObiWan killing Maul and Grievous, Luke redeeming Vader and restoring the Jedi, etc

 

Obi-Wan always seems to be the wise one, even when he is a kid in TPM. He is always helping everyone out is his own way. Without him, Luke would never have become a Jedi and the Empire would never have fallen. Three cheers for Obi-Wan!

 

He is always helping everyone out is his own way

Except that he sort of begrudged Qui Gon's taking on of Jar Jar
and Anakin.

In fact, how ironic is it that Kenobi's fate was to spend
that prime of his life living in solitude in the Jundland Wastes
in order to look after "another pathetic lifeform."

 

I don't know about that line. I always thought of it as a joke.

"Why do I get the feeling we have picked up another pathetic life form?"

I always thought this was a sarcastic comment for a little comic relief. I never really gave it that much thought.

 

Novels go into this but I won't for the sake of keeping EU out of this thread. Obi-Wan feels jealous and abandoned by Qui-Gon. You would too if your Master was spending time picking up other creatures and lifeforms.

Plus, Obi-Wan didn't know it was Anakin yet. You can't blame him for what he said as an in-general statement.

 

O/T i always thought it was Yoda followed by Luke.

Having seen the whole saga I now rate it as Obi Wan, Luke and then Yoda as the heros in that order.

 

By design, it has been and always will be Luke.

Other characters do heroic things and have aspects of the "hero" about them, but none fit the archetype as smoothly or as consciously as Luke. That's the way Lucas always wanted it. Within the epic span of six films, Luke's light shines the brightest.

 

Obi-Wan is the glue that holds the saga together. Even the Official Site describes Obi-Wan as "the greatest Jedi of the saga" in the description of the "Becoming Obi-Wan" webdoc. He not only endures, he thrives. And he does it with grace. He's left to assume other people's responsibilities and clean up after them. I'm sure the character doesn't think of it that way, but I do as a viewer.

I loved the character as an older man and the skill of Ewan McGregor playing him saved the PT. I can't imagine watching the PT without Obi-Wan Kenobi in it; it would be unwatchable in my view, particularly AOTC.