Obi-Wan Kenobi is in the perfect position to revisit an unintentionally hilarious line in Star Wars regarding stormtroopers and their marksmanship. When introduced in the original Star Wars, the Imperial stormtroopers are demonstrably frightening opponents, disposing of well-trained and well-equipped Rebel troopers aboard the Tantive IV with ease and leaving a trail of dead innocents in their wake during their search for the droids R2-D2 and C-3PO. More recent Star Wars works have reduced stormtroopers to comically inept cannon fodder, but the Disney+ series Obi-Wan Kenobi can either redeem their status as threatening adversaries or at least explain why Obi-Wan makes such an inaccurate assessment in the first film.
Stormtroopers are the spiritual successors to the Galactic Republic’s clone troopers. While the clones are heroic and free-thinking elite warriors who fight alongside the Jedi Knight to uphold democracy, the stormtroopers are recruited fanatics who, while technically special forces, are far less competent than their predecessors and fight for a dystopian fascist regime. Stormtroopers are notorious for their poor accuracy when attacking major characters, but this can easily be hand-waved as plot armor for the heroes. In Star Wars properties like Star Wars Rebels and The Mandalorian, however, stormtrooper competence is exaggeratedly poor, reducing them to comic relief when their presence should inspire dread.
Obi-Wan Kenobi infamously says, “Only Imperial stormtroopers are so precise” in A New Hope, which is high praise from a battle-hardened General from the Clone Wars, but it doesn’t reflect the stormtroopers shown in recent Star Wars material. One of the best retcons that the Obi-Wan Kenobi show can make is portraying stormtroopers as highly-skilled cold-blooded killers who follow their unscrupulous commands without a second thought. Alternatively, Obi-Wan Kenobi can, at the very least, not have Obi-Wan observe stormtroopers in combat, leading him to assume that they’re brainwashed clone troopers and therefore far more competent than they’re normally depicted as being.
Obi-Wan Kenobi will show the horrors and paranoia of being — and hiding — a Jedi during the Jedi Purge. Imperial stormtroopers and dark side-trained Inquisitors spy on citizens and commit extrajudicial killings in pursuit of their enemies. While Inquisitors and hired bounty hunters will no doubt be shown as dangerous antagonists, Obi-Wan Kenobi can finally depict stormtroopers as faceless and deadly brutes who enforce the will of the autocracy with deadly efficiency, lending much-needed veracity to Obi-Wan’s words.
Another, more humorous, way that Obi-Wan Kenobi can make sense of the questionable Star Wars dialogue is by having Obi-Wan not observe stormtroopers directly, but only learning that they’re now called stormtroopers instead of clone troopers. In this case, Obi-Wan would mistakenly believe that they’re still clones whose skill in battle hasn’t changed since the Clone Wars. This would make Obi-Wan’s infamous line a better reflection of the troops he served with during the Clone Wars than the sinister minions of the Empire.
It’s a mistake to reduce antagonists to bumbling fools too often, as it lessens the credibility of their threat to the heroes. Separatist Battle Droids are similarly bumbling, but they’re shown to pose a threat to even the best Jedi and clone troopers in large enough numbers. While a comedic explanation for Obi-Wan’s Star Wars line would be sufficient, Obi-Wan Kenobi ought to finally portray Imperial stormtroopers as skilled and fearsome enemies so that the line and its apparent Star Wars plot hole actually makes sense and the heroes are credibly challenged by the Empire’s soldiers.
Key Release Dates
Rogue Squadron
Release Date:2023-12-22
