Obi-Wan is the Man. He is a mentor, and more importantly friend to those around him. He is – without a doubt – my favorite character in Star Wars. I absolutely loved Ewan Mcgregor’s portrayal of the character in the prequels, but I have to admit that I have a very special place in my heart for Old Ben in ANH.
Wisdom
One of Obi-Wan’s most important traits in ANH is wisdom. The way he interacts with Luke in the film shows an incredible level of discernment when you consider how much he knows is at stake. Think about it. Luke is whining as he tries to decide whether or not to stay at the Lars homestead or go off to the Imperial Academy to pursue his dream of flying off into the stars.
Both of these choices would have been disastrous for the rebellion and dashed the “New Hope” of the remnants of what represented good and justice. Obi-Wan is so wise in his choice to let Luke come to his own conclusion. He is extremely deliberate in how he presents an opportunity for Luke to change the course of his destiny.
Caring
There’s another aspect of the way Obi-Wan relates to Luke in ANH. He is subtly able to push Luke in the right direction, but in a caring way. It becomes so evident how much Obi-Wan cares about Luke simply by looking at how he personally stayed on Tatooine to watch over him from a short distance.
I don’t remember Yoda deciding to hang out on Alderaan to watch over Leia 😉
However, Obi-Wan shows a kind of personal commitment to Luke in a way that is rather un jedi-like, but indicates just how much he cares about him. I get the sense that he takes a sort of personal responsibility for the Son of Vader since he failed his Father. This lends special meaning to Vader’s line “He was a good friend.”
Be sure to catch our LIVE watch party of ANH tonight at 8pm ET!
-Riley
