Obi-Wan Kenobi, the most anticipatedStar Warsproject sinceThe Force Awakens, received mixed reviews from both fans and critics when the show featuring Ewan McGregor’s return as the famous Jedi completed its run on Disney+ last year. Yet, it was loved by many, as we followed Kenobi protecting Vivien Lyra Blair’s young Leia and witnessed both Hayden Christensen and James Earl Jones work together to bring Darth Vader to life in the epic and emotional battles between brothers, and many fans have been calling for a second season ever since, despite the fact that it was marketed as a one-and-done limited series.
McGregor has earnestly supported a second season and Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedyhas hinted at the possibility, plus the overall positive response and talk around the show,Obi-Wan KenobiSeason 2 may actually happen. The show was built as a miniseries, where the plot wraps up nicely by the last episode and sets up no expectation of continuing. Kenobi’s story is already continued in the mainline films, so there is no reason to continue the show.Obi-Wan Kenobidoes not need a Season 2.
Kenobi’s Story Is Already Finished
Obi-Wan Kenobitells a complete and fulfilling story within a big blank spot in the canon’s history, but just because there are some small gaps doesn’t mean they need filling. Kenobi’s story finished inA New Hope, the same place where it started. We already know what happens, and whileObi-Wan Kenobiexcellently shadesin the blanks of the Jedi’s arcwhile effectively adding depth to the whole saga, it is still a small part of the larger narrative which has already answered everything we need to know, and doing anymore with this specific show is meaningless addition.
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Kenobi’s life is already told. We will see him defeat Maul for the final time inRebels, we know his time as an apprentice in several novels, we saw his adventures as a master to Anakin and the death of his love Satine Kryze inThe Clone Wars.There is no meaningful way to expand Kenobi’s story. A second season could follow Kenobi’s spiritual journey with his old master Qui-Gonn Jinn, which was the original idea for the second in a trilogy ofscrapped Kenobi movies, but that’s not enough for another six episodes, and dangling plot threads like The Path and Reva Sevander can be told without Kenobi and are better tied up in other stories. There are plenty of reasons whyObi-Wan Kenobicould continue, yet none of them are simply good enough.
WhatObi-Wan Kenobidoes so well is understanding and expanding classic characters. We now know why Leia reached out to Kenobi, because he was her only hope as a child against the Empire’s Inquisitors and Vader, soLeia reaches out to Kenobiwith the Death Star plans and names her future son Ben. We see that Darth Vader has truly killed all of Anakin Skywalker, absolving Kenobi of the decade of guilt which had led him to despair. Because ofObi-Wan Kenobi, we finally understand why Kenobi is hopeful for Luke, Leia, and the whole galaxy, yet not Anakin. The show fills in the missing pieces of many classic characters' lives in an emotionally satisfying way, and to continue would detract from all the value and significance ofObi-Wan Kenobi.
There Are Timeline Restrictions
The galaxy far, far away is getting packed, and the show’s writers expressed great frustration with the canon restrictions creating just six episodes in theStar Warsgalaxy. Both the new and old canons are rich and deep, though creators often step on each other’s toes trying to squirm their way through, making the whole universe feel pretty small. Leaving space for other creators to come in means more freedom to tell great stories like this in the Star Wars galaxy.
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Plus,Obi-Wan Kenobiwould have to continue without Leia, Luke, or Vaderdue to canon timeline restrictions. They technically weren’t supposed to meet at all between mainline films, so the show has already contradicted much canon and made things even more complicated for creators, soObi-Wan Kenobiwould have to rely solely on Kenobi to keep the name. He’s supposed to be a lonely old hermit for another nine years, which has been the basis of several great novels and comics, but it doesn’t make so greatStar Warstelevision.
While it seems like the obvious choice to keep going on with the show, continuingObi-Wan Kenobiwould diminish everything that it had accomplished, and considering that there are plenty of ways for stories to continue in theStar Warsuniverse and plenty more coming, it’s better to just leave the old hermitalone.
