~ Obi-Wan to Luke Skywalker as well as one of the most iconic quotes of all time.
Obi-Wan Kenobi, also known as Ben Kenobi, is one of the main protagonists of the Star Wars franchise.
He is a legendary Jedi Master who helped train Luke Skywalker in the ways of the Force in the original trilogy, whereas in the prequel trilogy, he was the apprentice of Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn, and later the master of Anakin Skywalker, who would tragically become one of his personal foes, Darth Vader.
He was portrayed by the late Alec Guinness in the original trilogy and in The Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker (via archived audio), Ewan McGregor (who also played Mark Renton in Trainspotting, Christian in Moulin Rouge! and Rodney Copperbottom in Robots) in the prequel trilogy and the Kenobi miniseries, as well as in The Force Awakens and The Rise of Skywalker (both as vocal cameos). He was also voiced by James Arnold Taylor in the Star Wars: Clone Wars microseries, the Star Wars: The Clone Wars 2008 film and TV Series as well as in various other media.
Who's the more foolish, the fool, or the fool who follows him?
„
~ Obi-Wan Kenobi.
In his youth, Obi-Wan exhibited a dry sense of humor and sarcastic wit, with a rebellious nature and had to deal with much emotional anxiety.
In his later years, Obi-Wan became brave, humble, modest, soft-spoken, loyal, moral, honorable, calm, level-headed, patient, peaceful, selfless, cautious, kind, caring, humorous, responsible, self-disciplined, and slightly headstrong, though he retained some of his cynicism, sass and humor. He had a habit of repeating the Jedi Code mentally to himself as this brought him peace and calmed his thoughts. Despite being known for his stern and serious Jedi Master, he also had a prominent funny side, possessing a sharp wit, sass and a light sense of humor. To many, he was the perfect Jedi, and embodied everything a Jedi should be.
Obi-Wan possessed a loyalty to the light side of the Force that was iron clad, and he was rarely ever tempted by the dark side. The closest he ever came to giving into the dark was when Maul taunted him from when he murdered Qui-Gon Jinn, which was still one of the very few times he lost control of his emotions and let anger guide him. Even after suffering severe losses and emotional pain such as the deaths of his Master and Duchess Satine (the woman he loved), and the betrayal of the clones and his apprentice Anakin, Obi-Wan remained a steadfast follower of the light.
Kenobi's loyalty to the Jedi Code was strong, but there were times when his loyalty was tested. He fell in love with a few women over the years, the most serious being Mandalorian noblewoman Satine Kryze, who reciprocated his feelings but neither pursued due to their duty to their respective factions. Obi-Wan admitted that, had she said the word, he probably would have left the Order to be with her.
Despite his honor and good morals, his strict adherence to tradition was a source of friction between him and Anakin. While he may have come off as judgmental, he was in fact highly sympathetic to Jedi struggling to stay loyal to the Order. When asking Anakin about his relationship with Padme during the Clone Wars, Obi-Wan assures him that, although Jedi cannot pursue relationships, it is perfectly natural to fall in love.
As a Jedi, Obi-Wan was intelligent and wise. However, like most Jedi Masters, he was somewhat short-sighted, as he apparently did not realize that his constant lies and deceit towards Anakin, as well as keeping secrets from him, was slowly turning his best friend against the Jedi Order. Obi-Wan never defended him from the Jedi Council in his presence, even when Anakin was right and they treated him unfairly as well as not defending Ahsoka when she was framed for bombing the Jedi Temple. However, unknown to Anakin, Obi-Wan did defend him from the Council after he would leave the council chamber.
As a General, Obi-Wan was viewed as a military genius, a surprise considering most Jedi had no experience as military leaders. Like Anakin, he is often seen fighting alongside his men and he earned the clones' respect, and Kebobi in return cared deeply for his men. Despite this, in keeping with his Jedi principles, he preferred to win battles not with violence, but with persuasion, negotiation and compromise. This common use of talking it out with his opponents earned him the nickname "the Negotiator."
During his exile, Obi-Wan came to believe that what had happened to Anakin was largely his fault, and that it had been arrogant of him to think that he could have trained Anakin as well as Yoda could have. He believed that his shortcomings as a teacher left Anakin vulnerable to the Emperor's influence.
In his final days, Obi-Wan retained his traits of patience, virtue and foresight, as well as gaining some of the boldness reminiscent of his youth.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
“
You can't win Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine.
„
~ Obi-Wan Kenobi's last words to Darth Vader.
Initially, Obi-Wan was viewed as a relatively weak Force user, just barely meeting the power level to become a Jedi. However, through training and hard work, as well as valuable experience, Obi-Wan became one of the greatest and strongest Jedi who ever lived and a legend among the Order's history.
The Force: Obi-Wan was an extremely skilled Force user, one of the greatest in Jedi history. Although he was not quite a powerhouse like other powerful Jedi such as Anakin Skywalker, Mace Windu or Yoda, Obi-Wan was still one of the most skillful Force-users in the history of the galaxy. In essence, it was his application of the Force that made him powerful as opposed to sheer raw power. During a conversation with Padmé Amidala, Anakin described Obi-Wan as being "as wise as Yoda and as powerful as Mace Windu". Following his 19 years of in exile on Tatooine, Obi-Wan's connection the Force strengthened by a significant degree.
Telekinesis: Obi-Wan was highly skilled in the use of Telekinesis and utilized it either as offensive or defense.
Force push: Obi-Wan utilized Force push to send his opponents flying through the air, causing them serious injury or temporarily incapacitating them/knocked them unconscious.
Force pull: Obi-Wan utilized Force pull to pull his opponents or objects towards him.
Force Crush: Obi-Wan utilized Force Crush to crush objects or droids.
Tutuminis: Obi-Wan can use the Force to deflect harmful projectiles with his hands, such as blaster bolts, spikes, and flamethrowers.
Force jump: Obi-Wan utilized Force jump to jump or leap at great distances.
Force Dash: Obi-Wan utilized Force Dash to move great distances in short bursts of amazing speed.
Mind trick: Obi-Wan utilized Mind trick to control the minds of other sentient beings, however, it did not work on individuals who have very strong wills.
Beast Control: Obi-Wan utilized Taming beasts to control the minds of other animals.
Force sense: Obi-Wan utilized Force sense to sense another sentient being's emotions, the future, ripples in the Force caused by momentous or traumatic events, impending danger and the presence of the Dark side.
Force Ghost: Obi-Wan learned how to retain his identity through the Force from Yoda and the disembodied spirit of Qui-Gon Jinn, who in turn learned it from the Force Priestesses. He became a Force spirit upon being struck down by Darth Vader and retained his identity through the Force, allowing him to become immortal and omniscience.
Abilities[]
“
Obi-Wan is a great mentor; as wise as Master Yoda, and as powerful as Master Windu.
„
~ Anakin Skywalker speaking of his master.
Lightsaber Combatant: One of the greatest swordsmen in galactic history, Obi-Wan Kenobi was extremely skilled in lightsaber combat. Although he was more than capable of using offensive and counter techniques, he focused more on defensive techniques. Despite this, he was still one of the greatest lightsaber duelists in the history of the galaxy, prior to the events of A New Hope, being responsible for the defeats of Sith Lord Darth Maul and infamous Jedi Killer General Grievous, respectively. He was also able to defeat his former apprentice, Anakin Skywalker, now the ruthless Sith Lord Darth Vader, in a massive duel on Mustafar; despite being on the defensive throughout the fight, Obi-Wan was eventually able to gain the high ground over Vader and dismembered the rage-filled Sith Lord when he recklessly jumped towards him; indeed, Obi-Wan's plan in defeating opponents such as Vader focused on exploiting their weaknesses in an area of the battlefield where Obi-Wan was at his strongest and they at their most vulnerable. However, by the events of A New Hope, having gone for approximately nineteen years without a duel or practice, Obi-Wan's strength and skills had greatly diminished and atrophied. In his final confrontation with Vader, he was only able to hold his own against his former apprentice for a relatively short period of time; due to his age, lack of practice, and the sheer physical force of Vader's attacks, Obi-Wan quickly became exhausted. Realizing his death was inevitable as well as the fact that he could not defeat Vader and would only be able to hold him at bay, he willingly left himself wide open for an attack and sacrificed himself to allow Luke to escape. Mace Windu considered him the greatest defensive swordsman in galactic history.
Form III: Obi-Wan was a master of Soresu; in fact, he was so skilled at it that he was considered by many to be not a master of Soresu, but the master of Soresu.
Form IV: Obi-Wan was extremely skilled in Ataru, favoring it heavily during his years as a Padawan.
Form V: Obi-Wan was highly skilled in Shien/Djem So.
Form VI: Obi-Wan was highly skilled in Niman.
Jar'Kai: Although Obi-Wan usually used only one lightsaber, he was highly skilled in Jar'Kai. Although not a master of the technique, he was skilled at it enough that he was able to hold his own very well against the combined might of Darth Maul and his brother Savage Oppress, slicing off the latter's arm.
Expert Hand-To-Hand Combatant: Obi-Wan was highly skilled in unarmed combat.
Expert Marksman: Obi-Wan was extremely proficient in the use of firearms. Despite his skill as a marksman, Obi-Wan was fairly disdainful of blasters in general, considering them "clumsy", "random" and "uncivilized" and much preferred to use his lightsaber.
Skilled Pilot: Obi-Wan was very skilled in piloting most speeders and most types of flying crafts. Ironically, despite his piloting skills, Obi-Wan openly disliked flying, claiming "flying is for droids".
High-Level Intellect/Master Tactician/Leader: Obi-Wan was highly intelligent; his intelligence and wisdom was surpassed only by Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Yoda and Palpatine. As a Jedi General, Obi-Wan was a highly skilled tactician and a capable leader. His formidable mind allowed him to easily adapt to and exploit an opponent's weaknesses in battle, especially when combined with his masterful dueling abilities. Despite his prowess as a military commander, he preferred to use diplomacy and persuasion to win battles without violence, earning him the nickname, "the Negotiator." In his final confrontation against Vader, Obi-Wan attempted to exploit the latter's weaknesses; however this backfired due to the fact that his former apprentice learned from his mistake on Mustafar and used Obi-Wan's own tactics against him.
Weapons and Equipment[]
Lightsabers[]
Obi-Wan's valued weapon and possession was his blue-bladed lightsaber, he had only had three lightsabers and one temporary lightsaber.
First Lightsaber: Obi-Wan used a blue-bladed lightsaber as a Jedi Padawan. It resembles Qui-Gon Jinn's lightsaber, but with a ball-shaped end. He used it throughout The Phantom Menace, but lost it in a fight with Darth Maul who kicks it into the hole in the refinery complex chamber. That made him have to use his mentor's green-bladed lightsaber, although he's not seen again with it.
Qui-Gon's Lightsaber: Obi-Wan used Qui-Gon's lightsaber temporarily between the events of The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones until he rebuilt his blue-bladed lightsaber.
Second Lightsaber: Obi-Wan rebuilt his blue-bladed lightsaber, using it throughout Attack of the Clones until he is captured by the Separatists. It's design is very identical to his previous one from the events of The Phantom Menace. He was last scene using it while fighting off battle droids and being overwhelmed by them in a holographic message. He was given another spare blue-bladed lightsaber in the battle of Geonosis by a Jedi. He fought Dooku with this weapon and gave it to Anakin, who was given a green-bladed lightsaber when his was destroyed. Anakin used this lightsaber with his spare green-bladed lightsaber, which he then lost. This spare blue lightsaber was dropped and presumably recovered by the Jedi after Anakin himself was defeated by Dooku.
Third Lightsaber: By the time of the events of Revenge of the Sith, Obi-Wan had built a new blue lightsaber, this time designed differently from the last two, which he uses to fight Count Dooku a second time, General Grievous and Anakin twice, the second time he was fighting Anakin as Darth Vader. He continued to use it during his 19-year exile on Tatooine until his final duel with Darth Vader on the Death Star during their rematch in A New Hope. It remains unknown what happened to the weapon after Obi-Wan's death. It's possible that Vader took it with him as a trophy, had it destroyed or if not then it was destroyed with the Death Star. Luke Skywalker's second, green-bladed lightsaber would greatly resemble this weapon, as he had used its schematics as the base for making his own.
Portrayals[]
Films[]
In the original trilogy, he was portrayed by the late Alec Guinness.
In the prequel trilogy and the titular TV series, he was portrayed by Ewan McGregor, who also played Edward Bloom in Big Fish, Mark Renton in the Trainspotting films, Lumière in the Beauty and the Beast remake, and Christopher Robin in the titular 2018 film, and also voiced Rodney Copperbottom in Robots.
Television[]
In Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Star Wars Rebels and Tales of the Jedi, he was voiced by James Arnold Taylor, who voices Plo Koon in the same series and Johnny Test in the titular series, and also voiced Ratchet in the Ratchet & Clank series, Tidus in the Final Fantasy series, Captain Jack Sparrow in Kingdom Hearts II, young Emmett Brown in Back to the Future: The Game, Milo James Thatch in Atlantis: Milo's Return, Willy Wonka in the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory tie-in game, Arthur Pendragon in the Shrek the Third tie-in game, Fred Flintstone in The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, and George Jetson in Space Jam: A New Legacy.
Taylor previously voiced the character in the Revenge of the Sith tie-in game and Star Wars Battlefront II, and later reprised his voice in Disney Infinity 3.0.
In the Star Wars Rebels episode Twin Suns, he was voiced by Stephen Stanton.
In Lego Star Wars: The Padawan Menace, he was voiced by David Scott.
In Lego Star Wars: The Yoda Chronicles and Lego Star Wars: Droid Tales, Sam Vincent (who also voiced Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Tweety Bird in Baby Looney Tunes, Krypto in the titular animated series, Jerry Mouse in Tom and Jerry Tales, and Lloyd Garmadon in Ninjago) as Obi-Wan Kenobi, as Michael Donavon (who also voiced Mega Man X in Mega Man, Master Roshi in Dragon Ball and Alex Mason in Call of Duty: Black Ops - Declassified) voiced the character as Ben Kenobi.
Donavon reprised his voice for the character in Lego Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures.
In Family Guy, he was voiced by Mark Hamill, who also played Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars franchise, and also voiced Skips in Regular Show.
Video Games[]
In the 1992 pinball game, he was voiced by Fred Young.
In The Phantom Menace tie-in game, he was voiced by Scott Cleverdon.
Cleverdon reprised his voice for the character in Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles.
In Star Wars: Super Bombad Racing, he was voiced by Lewis MacLeod.
MacLeod reprised his voice for the character in Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds and Star Wars: Obi-Wan.
In Star Wars Rogue Squadron II, he was voiced by David Ian Davies.
Davies reprised his voice for the character in Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds as Ben Kenobi.
In the 2002 Star Wars: The Clone Wars video game, he was voiced by Jonathan Love as Obi-Wan, as Daran Norris (who also voiced Cosmo, Jorgen Von Strangle, and Mr. Turner in The Fairly OddParents) voiced the character as Ben Kenobi.
In Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike, he was voiced by Timothy Omundson.
In the Revenge of the Sith tie-in game, Nick Jameson (who also voiced Kyle Katarn in Star Wars: Dark Forces) voiced the character as Ben Kenobi.
In Star Wars Battlefront II, Stephen Stanton (who also voiced Legolas in The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth, Iron Man in the titular tie-in game, Happy in Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep) voiced Ben Kenobi, as James Arnold Taylor voiced Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Stanton reprised his voice for the character in Star Wars: Empire at War, Disney Infinity 3.0, and Star Wars Rebels.
In Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, he was voiced by Rob Rackstraw, who also voiced Scoop, Muck and Travis in Bob the Builder.
Other[]
In the Star Wars radio drama, he was voiced by Bernard Behrens.
In the Star Wars story-book CDs, he was voiced by the late Roy Dotrice.
Quotes[]
“
I have a bad feeling about this.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Qui-Gon Jinn.
“
Master Yoda, I gave Qui-Gon my word. I will train Anakin... without the approval of the Council, if I must.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Yoda on becoming Anakin's master.
“
Why do I get the feeling you're going to be the death of me?
„
~ Obi-Wan to Anakin.
“
This weapon is your life.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Anakin on his lightsaber.
“
That may be so, but I defeated you before, and I will defeat you again.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Darth Maul.
“
You can kill me, but you will never destroy me. It takes strength to resist the dark side. Only the weak embrace it.
„
~ Obi-Wan Kenobi to Darth Maul.
“
It can't be. It can't be!
„
~ A horrified Obi-Wan upon seeing a hologram of Anakin killing his former allies.
“
Your anger and your lust for power have already done that. You have allowed this Dark Lord to twist your mind, until now... until now, you have become the very thing you swore to destroy.
„
~ Obi-Wan confronting Anakin on Mustafar.
“
Only a Sith deals in absolutes. I will do what I must.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Anakin.
“
I have failed you, Anakin. I have failed you.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Anakin towards the end of their fight.
“
It's over, Anakin! I have the high ground!
„
~ Obi-Wan to Anakin.
“
You were the Chosen One! It was said that you would destroy the Sith, not join them! Bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness!
„
~ A heartbroken Obi-Wan to Anakin after defeating him.
“
I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Anakin. For all of it.
„
~ A tearful Obi-Wan apologizing to Darth Vader after their fight.
“
You haven't failed them. By showing mercy, you have given them peace. You have honored them.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Reva.
“
Look what I've risen above.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Darth Maul in Rebels.
“
Well, the Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It is an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together.
„
~ Obi-Wan Kenobi to Luke Skywalker, explaining the force to him.
“
I need your help, Luke. She needs your help. I'm getting too old for this sort of thing.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Luke, asking for his assistance to save Leia.
“
In my experience, there is no such thing as luck.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Han Solo.
“
I felt a great disturbance in the Force... as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened.
„
~ Obi-Wan after the destruction of Alderaan.
“
Only a master of evil, Darth.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Darth Vader.
“
You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Darth Vader before his death.
“
Remember... the Force will be with you, always.
„
~ Obi-Wan's voice to Luke before the latter destroys the Death Star.
“
Your father was seduced by the dark side of the Force. He ceased to be Anakin Skywalker and became Darth Vader. When that happened, the good man who was your father was destroyed. So what I told you was true, from a certain point of view.
„
~ Obi-Wan's force ghost to Luke on Dagobah.
“
He's more machine now than man. Twisted and evil.
„
~ Obi-Wan to Luke, not believing there's good in Vader.
“
You will be tempted. But you can learn. The Force will be with you..The dark side..The Jedi...You will do it alone...Rey...These are your…first…steps…
„
~ Obi-Wan's voice to Rey in The Force Awakens.
“
These are your final steps, Rey. Rise and take them.
„
~ Obi-Wan's voice to Rey in The Rise of Skywalker.
Trivia[]
The late Alec Guinness won the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance.
The American Film Institute placed the character as the "37th greatest movie hero of all time" in 2003.
IGN listed the character as the third best character in the franchise.
He returns in the Angry Birds: Star Wars. His actor is Bomb, and he can fire a burst of energy that causes objects to fly in the direction it headed.
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Heroes
