Left for Dead
Posted by Mr. Yoder on 28 April, 2010
Watching The Clone Wars on Cartoon Network (excellent, by the way, easy half and half on the milk scale for the whole season, individual episodes were heavy cream) this season has gotten me thinking about the relationship between Anakin and Obi-Wan.
On Mustafar in ROTS Obi-Wan tells Anakin he was like a brother to him. The Clone Wars is likely setting the groundwork for that statement, although most of the interactions have shown Anakin to be subordinate to Obi-Wan. What I really want to get at though, is the end of that fight on Mustafar.
Anakin (now Darth Vader in name if not in costume), in a fit of hubris rivaled only by Scott Boras going into the hot stove season, attacks Obi-Wan who has already declared that he has won since he is standing on higher ground (+3 to hit from higher ground?). Obi-Wan cuts off some limbs, Vader is engulfed in flames and Obi-Wan leaves.
Let me consider some other outcomes. First, what happens if Vader doesn’t attack from the lower ground? There’s a few possibilities. One is Obi-Wan attacking of his own accord, down hill. I don’t think he would do this as this would certainly not be very Jedi-like. But if Obi-Wan doesn’t attack, what does Vader do? It is possible that Vader stands there and waits. If the fight is stalled for long enough (until Palpatine shows up, since he is on his way to check that Vader killed off the separatist leaders) Obi-Wan is going to lose big time. In fact, from the perspective of the Sith, that’s a best case scenario. If Obi-Wan doesn’t survive, Luke and Leia likely aren’t born. At the very least, Leia certainly doesn’t come seeking Obi-Wan, starting off the events of ANH.
What does happen is a gruesome dismembering of Vader and Obi-Wan leaving him. But what is Obi-Wan thinking, just leaving like he does? Does he figure the lava will take over and Vader will die? That’s awfully presumptuous of him (Vader is a Force user, after all, and ultimately, 18 years later, this costs Obi-Wan his life). The alternative would be killing Vader right there, but here again, that’s not very Jedi-like. A truly compassionate Jedi would have tried to rescue him.
In leaving Vader for dead, Obi-Wan is just as bad as Vader in a very black and white interpretation of light and dark sides. Looking to the gray areas, he doesn’t completely fall to the dark side. I think the wistful look as he reminisces about Anakin with Luke in ANH is part regret, part fond memories of the good times. Following Vader’s attack, had Obi-Wan tried to help him as a compassionate Jedi ought, maybe Palpatine’s rise to power stops right there.