Obi-Wan Kenobi Part III Review: Darth Vader casts a mesmerizing spell in the best episode so far

Part III combines a strong road trip story with a truly terrifying climax to deliver one of the best Star Wars episodes on Disney Plus. The episode succeeds by doubling down on the series’ strengths and improving upon the weaknesses by adding depth.

Obi-Wan Kenobi and young Leia escaped Daiyu in Part II. They arrive on the mining planet Mapuzo to rendezvous with an ally who can provide safe passage. The contact doesn’t arrive on time. Obi-Wan panics and decides to walk the unfamiliar planet. A taxi driver with allegiances to the Empire stops by and offers the duo a ride. These scenes between Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan and Vivien Lyra Blair as Leia are terrific.

Meanwhile, Reva has figured out where Obi-Wan is located. She informs Darth Vader. Vader sets out for Mapuzo with the Inquisitors in tow. Vader is terrifying. In an effort to draw Obi-Wan out, he attacks a village. He kills children, snaps necks and when Obi-Wan finally does stand against him, Vader is utterly merciless. Hayden Christensen takes on the physical performance, while James Earl Jones delivers the iconic voice. Jones sounds outstanding.

After two one-note performances by Moses Ingram, she delivers a lot more subtlety in Part III. Her anger is still palpable, but there’s more to her anger than just aggression. I really enjoyed the power struggle between the Fifth Brother and Reva as they seek to become the new Grand Inquisitor.

Zach Braff does a great Seth Rogen impression as Freck, the cab driver. I wish Obi-Wan and Leia had gotten out of the vehicle sooner. Freck’s allegiance to the Empire is clear throughout. Yet Obi-Wan and Leia don’t leave when there were multiple opportunities to do so. Overall, it’s a pretty small gripe in an otherwise fantastic, frightening adventure in a galaxy far, far away.

With the overview out of the way, let’s dive deeper into the elements that stood in Part III. There may be some minor spoilers. Obi-Wan Kenobi is available to stream on Disney Plus.

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A road trip on Mapuzo in Part III

Obi-Wan’s lack of trust and patience is an astounding testament to how far he’s fallen. When he shows up on Mapuzo, he immediately bails out of the rendezvous point. Leia recognizes they’re going to need help getting off-planet. When a shuttle pops along, she waves the driver down. Obi-Wan and Leia hop in the back of Fleck’s shuttle.

Fleck is all for the sense of order provided by the Empire. Eventually, a group of stormtroopers boards the shuttle. Amusingly, Obi-Wan bungles the story by dropping Leia’s name, Leia keeps it together. They’re able to recover.

There are a number of sweet moments between Obi-Wan and Leia. While entering Mapuzo, Leia asks Obi-Wan about the Force. Obi-Wan responds by describing the feeling of being afraid of the dark and then the comfort of the light turning back on. A remarkably simple explanation that speaks volumes.

While on the shuttle, Leia asks Obi-Wan if he is her biological father, which he regretfully is not. Everything about this shuttle ridge is wonderful with the exception of the ending. Fleck predictably turns on them at a checkpoint, but all isn’t lost.

Resistance

The Stormtroopers at the checkpoint ordered a probe droid to scan Obi-Wan’s face. Obi-Wan’s able to turn the table on the stormtroopers using his blaster. Before Leia and Obi-Wan can escape, more troops appear. Suddenly, an imperial officer shows up. She takes care of the other stormtroopers.

The woman, Tala was the contact Obi-Wan was supposed to meet. She was a bit late to the rendezvous point and mentions Obi-Wan should have just waited a couple of minutes.

Tala helps Jedi, force-sensitive individuals as well as sympathizers of the republic reach an underground terminal that leads to a port. Once she saw what the Empire was really about, she turned against her employers. Indira Varma does a great job in the role.

Tala’s decision to change sides may be telegraphing Reva’s trajectory. Reva butts heads numerous times with the Fifth Brother. There’s a lot more nuance going on internally with Reva. Ingram does a wonderful job of conveying seeds of doubt and fear, without losing her strength. Clearly, Reva’s a character who never wants to be perceived as weak. Part III does a much better job of showing her internal conflict.

Darth Vader emerges

Vader’s presence is all over Part III. The episode opens with a horrific getting ready for the day scene intercut with Obi-Wan trying to communicate with his old master. Every element of this opening felt like a horror film and is complete with Obi-Wan saying “he’s coming.”

Vader orders Reva to find Obi-Wan. He dangles a carrot and a much bigger stick. She will deliver Obi-Wan to him or she will not live to regret it. If she succeeds, she will be his right hand.

Obi-Wan senses Vader’s presence on Mapuzo. He asks Tala to get Leia to the pilot, while he distracts Vader. While Obi-Wan gets into position, Vader proceeds to single-handedly destroy a village. In a particularly brutal moment, he force-pushes a child into a wall and snaps the kid’s neck.

Obi-Wan appears, then immediately runs away. Vader, using his best Michael Myers impression, just slowly walks as Obi-Wan runs away. Obi-Wan does face off against his former Padawan but is no match for Vader in his current state. Obi-Wan just reconnected with the force. He’s simply not up to this challenge at all.

Vader toys with Obi-Wan throughout the short lightsaber duel. Eventually, Vader uses his lightsaber to ignite the ground. Then, he force-grabs Obi-Wan and drags his former master through the flames. Tala returns and uses a few well-placed shots to distract the troopers. Vader unwilling to walk through the flames allows Obi-Wan to escape.

Tala’s decision to help Obi-Wan comes at the expense of Leia’s safety. Reva kills the pilot that was supposed to take Leia to safety. The Inquisitor kidnaps Leia to end the episode.

I still think Vader’s siege of the Rebel ship in Rogue One is a more terrifying display of power than decimating the village in Part III. However, every moment Vader is on screen is terrific.

Part III final thoughts

Every moment Vader, Obi-Wan and Leia are on screen is magnificent. Part III also succeeds by adding some much need layers to Reva and a new promising character in Tala.

I’m interested in seeing where the series goes from here. I think the next episode may be flashback-heavy dealing with Anakin and Obi-Wan’s relationship.

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