Obi-Wan Kenobi — The Teaser Trailer

Star Wars fans have just recently been gifted with their first glimpse into the newest addition to the “galaxy far, far away”. As of March 9th, 2022, the official teaser trailer for the new Obi-Wan Kenobi series, starring Ewan McGregor, was released on various online platforms. Ever since the show’s initial announcement at the D23 expo in 2019, Star Wars fans have speculated as to what the highly anticipated series might entail. For instance, might Disney incorporate some fan-favourite animated characters into the live-action Star Wars universe? Will Darth Vader and Obi-Wan Kenobi finally be given the opportunity for a much-awaited lightsaber rematch? Unfortunately, the teaser trailer wasn’t able to answer all of our questions (we’ll leave that up to the series itself), but it was certainly capable of staving-off some of our ravenous hunger for new Star Wars content. In fact, why don’t we take the next few minutes to examine some of the elements of this new teaser trailer that left everybody marking their calendars for the 27th of May (the show’s release date)?

The teaser trailer begins with a frame of sand shifting on what appears to be Disney’s favourite Star Wars planet: Tatooine. However, the monotony that Tatooine repeatedly imposes becomes tolerable, or even exciting, when the camera shifts to Obi-Wan watching a young Luke Skywalker through his miniaturized electrobinoculars. For those in need of a quick reminder, Obi-Wan was tasked with protecting Luke (and Leia) after Padme died in Revenge of the Sith. Now, ten years later, Luke Skywalker isn’t the tiny newborn that he used to be, but rather, a young boy that apparently loves the concept of podracing. This short clip has led fans to theorise that one of Obi-Wan’s key objectives in this new series is to protect Luke Skywalker from any danger that he might encounter on the desert planet. Unfortunately for Obi-Wan, his problems only seem to grow exponentially from there after the teaser’s next clip.

As the Lucasfilm title card appears, and a nostalgic rendition of John Williams’ Duel of the Fates plays in the background, a dark imperial vessel travels towards what Jedi: Fallen Order fans might recognize as the Fortress Inquisitorius. A tall, ocean-locked tower that houses the base -of -operations for the Emperor’s inquisitors: an elite clade of force-sensitive hunters with only one goal in mind: to locate, and eliminate, all remaining Jedi. Then, almost poetically, the booming voice of the Grand Inquisitor narrates that “the key…to hunting Jedi…is patience”. If that name doesn’t immediately set-off alarm bells in the back of your mind, let me inform you as to why it should. The Grand Inquisitor (who was featured as the main villain in the animated series Star Wars: Rebels) is the highest-ranking Inquisitor in the Galactic Empire. He reports directly to Darth Vader, and leads the other Inquisitors in their hunt to destroy any remaining Jedi that survived the “Great Jedi Purge” of Order 66. Throughout the remainder of the teaser, we can also identify the return of the Fifth Brother: another deadly Inquisitor that was featured in Star Wars: Rebels. As well as two newly introduced Inquisitors: Reva, and an unnamed alien inquisitor. If fans weren’t already biting-their-nails for Obi-Wan Kenobi’s safety in this new series, they most certainly are now.

The camera then shifts to another fan-favourite: Luke Skywalker’s guardian, AKA Uncle Owen. Uncle Owen finds himself in the middle of a town -square, bearing witness to the lynching of a man by the Imperial Inquisitor Reva. Fans can only speculate that the man -in -question refused to give-up information regarding a specific Jedi, perhaps Obi-Wan Kenobi himself, and was forced to pay for that withdrawal of information with his life. We are later introduced to the unnamed inquisitor as she inspects a row of potential Jedi on a new planet, unaware that Obi-Wan Kenobi lurks in the background. As stormtroopers surround an old man, the Grand Inquisitor wields his famous rotating double-bladed red lightsaber and speaks the phrase “where is he?” with a most terrifying tone. Finally, as a firefight between two unknown characters ensues, and a few more scenes fly -by, fans are given a close-up look at Obi-Wan Kenobi’s face as he stares into the blue Tatooine sky. But then, as the title card for the Obi-Wan Kenobi series rises from a haze of golden sand, Darth Vader’s distinct robotic breathing can be heard, almost promising a rematch between the dark lord and Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Once again, Obi-Wan Kenobi premiers on Disney+ the 27th of May, and brings the promise of many more lightsaber duels, as well as a thrilling story to be remembered for generations to come. The series stars Ewan McGregor, and to the delight of many Star Wars fans, Hayden Christensen as Darth Vader himself. For now, fans can only speculate as to what challenges Obi-Wan Kenobi might face in this new original series, but he most certainly will face quite the plethora of challenges after what we were treated with in this teaser trailer for Obi-Wan Kenobi.