Obi-Wan Kenobi is one of the most beloved Jedi in the Star Wars galaxy. Alec Guinness’ version is a wise old space wizard while Ewan McGregor’s younger interpretation is one of the best parts of the prequels. Fans love Obi-Wan, then, but maybe it’s time we accepted something about the character: he’s not all that bright. In fact, with the evidence given in Star Wars: The Clone Wars season 7, we’ve to come to the conclusion that Kenobi is the dumbest Jedi of them all.
At least, that’s the harsh but somewhat fair argument that CBR has laid out. The crux of the accusation is an exchange Obi-Wan shares with Ahsoka Tano in “The Phantom Apprentice,” one of the last episodes of the animated show’s final season. The Jedi Master touches bases with Ahsoka to tell her that Anakin has just killed Dooku and has been assigned to spy on Palpatine. It’s to do with Darth Sidious, he tells her, as the Order thinks the Chancellor is playing both sides.
For one, Obi-Wan should’ve been smart enough to work out that if Palpatine is duplicitous he may be Sidious himself. It gets worse, though, after Ahsoka tells him that she’s heard from Darth Maul that Sidious is controlling both sides of the conflict and plans to take over the galaxy soon. Even armed with this knowledge, he still doesn’t suspect the shady politician of being the Sith Lord.
CBR argues that we’ve known all along Obi-Wan wasn’t the brightest lightsaber around. After all, when tasked with hiding Luke Skywalker from Vader he took him back to Vader’s home planet, Tatooine. Maul even lands there a few years later in Rebels and works out the truth. Basically, if Obi-Wan had more brains, the whole shape of the Skywalker saga would’ve been very different.
You can now stream the complete seventh season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars on Disney Plus.
