Obi-Wan Kenobi shows why Deborah Chow needs her own Star Wars movie

Step aside The Book of Boba Fett - and any other Star Wars series for that matter. Disney+'s Obi-Wan Kenobi has the high ground, and it's all thanks to series director, Deborah Chow.

The first two episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi just dropped on Disney+ and given the history and premise of the characters involved, both episodes have delivered on the action and lore, providing fans with a satisfactory continuation of the sequel trilogy, which have in turn showered the show with love and support.

After what many fans would consider a disappointing outing for legacy character Boba Fett in his solo spin-off series, director Chow has swooped in to restore some faith in fans.

So much so that we think she needs her own Star Wars movie.

Now, Obi-Wan Kenobi isn't her first journey into a galaxy far, far away. The Canadian filmmaker directed two episodes of the first season of The Mandalorian, making her the first woman to direct a live-action Star Wars project.

Her first episode, Chapter 3: The Sin, received one Primetime Emmy Awards nomination, while her second, Chapter seven: The Reckoning, won a Primetime Emmy Award for Cinematography, and that success was what paved the way for her to get the gig on Obi-Wan Kenobi, where she's directing every episode.

The first episode of Obi-Wan Kenobi hit all the right marks for fans of the long-standing franchise.

It had just enough easter eggs that pointed to the films without being over-reliant on nostalgia and introduced younger versions of beloved characters that kept true to its spirit.

With the help of quippy writing by Joby Harold, the episode somehow still manages to remain light despite seeing deaths on screen and a group of new villains who are bloodthirsty for Jedis.

With viewers now familiar with Tatooine, having seen plenty of it in The Book of Boba Fett and a few episodes in The Mandalorian, worldbuilding is perhaps a job that Chow didn't need to do much of for Obi-Wan.

But what Chow did give fans, was a closer look into Alderaan and what it looked like before well, you know, the Death Star came for it.

And more importantly, it showed an important character whom fans know and love, but have never seen up until now - a precocious 10-year-old Leia Organa.

And while Alderaan has been briefly seen in the prequel trilogy, and it stands out as one of the most prestigious locations in the Star Wars saga, we've never seen Leia interact with the beautiful planet until now.

In just a few short scenes, Chow has included an additional layer to the mythos, because we now know what the elder Leia felt when she witnessed the destruction of her beloved planet.

Episode two of Obi-Wan Kenobi doubles up on the action and drama, with rooftop chases and stealthy missions, providing audiences with the one revelation that all fans have come to assume but never witnessed until now, providing perhaps one of the greatest cliffhangers in Star Wars live-action history - the moment when Obi-Wan Kenobi realises that Anakin Skywalker is not dead after he was left for dead on Mustafar and that Anakin and Darth Vader are one and the same.

And when the camera cuts from the look of realisation from Obi-Wan, to that of Darth Vader in a bacta tank, who has also realised that Obi-Wan can be sensed in the Force… well, this is going to lead to a great showdown, and who can we credit for the great editing, and for leaving the impact that it did?

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Chow clearly knows what fans want to see, and she delivers accordingly, with a flair that we won't chuck as fan service. Obi-Wan Kenobi is also a strong character-driven series, which is something that lead to the success of The Mandalorian, before it was cast aside in The Book of Boba Fett.

And whilst much of the characterisation of a character bows down to the writer, Chow was able to translate it visually onto the screen, with production values and shots that mimic the original films.

To put it simply, there's a charm to the way Chow directs that feels right at home, and yet so fresh at the same time. With quite a repertoire at directing sci-fi/fantasy episodes and her being a long-time fan of Star Wars too, one can only imagine how much more Chow has to offer should she take on a full Star Wars movie.

Come on Kathleen, what are you waiting for?

This article was first published in Geek Culture.