The Jedi Master couldn’t finish off his former padawan in the Obi-Wan Kenobi finale. You might think that it is because of their past memories and emotions but the truth is quite unexpecting.
When the fans witnessed the epic duel between Obi-Wan and Vader; they couldn’t believe what had happened. Honestly, when Vader told us that Anakin has long gone forever and when Obi-Wan finally acknowledged that; we thought he would finally finish the Sith Lord this time but this never happened.
Obi-Wan had the golden opportunity to end the long pursuit and the biggest threat to the Jedi, but he choose to let Vader live. Let’s take a look if Obi-Wan actually did make a perfect choice.
The epic duel between Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi
Obi-Wan Kenobi’s final episode features Kenobi attempting to divert Vader from the people who were on board. He then gives Haja Elstree the assignment of ensuring Lei’s safety and makes his way to battle with the Sith Lord.
Vader and Kenobi boarded the drop ship after Obi-Wan made the decision to go. And in an abandoned planet, we get to see Vader and Obi-Wan face off once more. We finally get to see the moment that everyone was desperately waiting for; the battle between the Jedi Master and the Sith Lord.
But yet again, Vader demonstrates that he is stronger than Obi-Wan. Vader overwhelms him and it almost kills him as well. He buries Kenobi beneath a group of boulders and continues to walk off.
But little does Vader know that Obi-Wan is going to appear again and overwhelm him this time.
Obi=Wan returns and this moment, he doesn’t let his guard down. He battles the SIth Lord with all his heart and Avenue manages to destroy his suit and helmet during the process. And the next thing we saw was the innocent eyes of Anakin Skywalker.
One of the most spectacular scenes in the franchise is undoubtedly the fight between Obi-Wan and Anakin. Obi-Wan sobs after Vader’s helmet is cracked open. He apologizes to Anakin after realizing the suffering he had to endure. Vader responds with a torn mask, “I am not your failure, Obi-Wan. You didn’t kill Anakin Skywalker. I did.”
When Vader’s helmet cracks, Obi-Wan is finally able to see his former Padawan. He anticipates seeing the same charm in Vader’s eyes that he found in Anakin. Under that darkness, he hopes to re-discover his friend. Vader hatters his hopes and informs Kenobi that his friend passed away a long time ago.
Bade confirms that Anakin Skywalker we all knew was already dead. Obi-Wan then understands that Anakin Skywalker, his former Padawan, is indeed gone. He has complete control over the situation and has the ability to kill Vader immediately if he so chooses, but he decides to let him go.
After their epic battle on Mustafar, Obi-Wan thought he had already slain Anakin when he abandoned him to perish on the shores. But in that instance, Vader had once more escaped death because Obi-Wan had hesitated to deliver the fatal blow on his former Padawan.
Why Obi-Wan Didn’t Kill Darth Vader?
When we saw the real eyes of Anakin Skywalker inside of that cracked helmet, do you know what we witnessed? We saw his burned face, his facial structure was fully broken and that was the result of Dark Force,
The Dark Force had absorbed him completely and when Obi-Wan witnessed what his former padawan was going through, he stopped right on his track and started to reminisce about the past, and what he could’ve done to avoid Anakin from this suffering.
Well during their previous battle on Mustafar; Obi-Wan decided to not kill Vader because he thought there was some of Anakin Skywalker still alive, somewhere in the corner but during this duel, he accepted the truth; the young padawan that he knew is no longer behind the mask.
As Obi-Wan Kenobi faces off against Anakin Skywalker, his former student, the intensity of the situation is at an all-time high. Obi-Wan recognizes that Anakin has changed since their days as master and apprentice, but he remains resolute in his dedication to the Jedi Code
But Obi-Wan chooses to spare Anakin’s life because even though Anakin is a threat to the Jedi he can’t work beyond the Jedi codes. This decision shows how bonded Obi-Wan is still and the unbreakable connection between teacher and student, even in the darkest of times.
The guardians of the galaxy, the Jedi, have as their responsibility to preserve life rather than end it. This was the Jedi Code that was getting in the way of Obi-Wan during their showdown’s final moments.
Jedi are known as the people who fight for justice and they don’t even carry any kind of gun because they believe their force is strong than anything else, the same goes for Obi-Wan.
He couldn’t finish his former Padawan; initially, because he was a Jedi but he was his former partner as well. Many of you might think of the Jedi Code as the biggest weakness of Obi-Wan but this was his greatest achievement.
Many other members of the Jedi have set such an example by choosing not to kill them in the end but a Sith doing such a thing is a completely different story. In the final episode; Luke was cornered by Reva. She had the full opportunity to exterminate the future of Jedi but she chose not to.
She fought hard with the Dark Force and made herself out of it. She eventually managed to get away from the grasp of the Dark Force and didn’t let it absorb and control her fully.
This scene shows that humanity still remains in Sith and Obi-Wan was hoping for something like this with Anakin, which never happened. Although his expectation was shattered into pieces; he fulfilled the duty as a “True Jedi Warrior” by letting go of Darth Vader, and by choosing life over death.
Was Letting Vader Live An Important Decision?
Darth Vader will remain as the Sith Lord, an extremely powerful member of the Dark Force whose presence still remains a big threat to society. Putting all our memories and emotions aside, he is a person that needs to be killed, eventually.
Well, if we take look from a different perspective letting Vader live was the perfect decision made by Obi-Wan. This decision personally rewarded him because he was finally able to connect with the Force.
After the epic duel with Vader, Obi-Wan finally witnessed the force of his former master; Qui-Gon. The latter said; “I was always here Obi-Wan. You were just not ready to see it.” His decision proved to be right because he had finally opened up a path to be one with the Force.
His decision of letting Vade live was important for his character development. Even though Anakin had deceived him and murdered other Jedi, Obi-Wan demonstrated that he was still devoted to the Jedi principles.
If we take a look at episode 5 of Obi-Wan Kenobi we can find that Obi-Wan once had told Anakin about ‘a Jedi never kills’ and seeing how committed he has portrayed him as the true Jedi Master.
Thus, Obi-Wan made the perfect choice by letting Anakin live because he was finally able to be one with the Force (although he struggles a bit) and set a perfect example for the future of Jedi by choosing life over death.
Final Thoughts
Aghhhh!! It’s hard to believe that a masterpiece like Obi-Wan Kenobi has finally ended. Truly, the show had everything we needed. From the epic duel between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Darth Vader to Reva fighting her own battle with the Dark Force; the show was truly mesmerizing.
When Vader’s helmet fell to pieces and when we finally saw the miserable eyes of Anakin; we couldn’t stop ourselves from sobbing like a child. If we would’ve been in the place of Darth Vader, we would have been the same.
Of course, nobody can wield their sword against a former student no matter how evil they have become. But as we’ve already discussed Obi-Wan didn’t choose to let Vader go only because he was his former padawan but because he was a true Jedi.
The episode included almost everything. The plot couldn’t have been more tragic and epic, and there was the great Star Wars conflict between the greatest characters.
