Feb 20
Reva Sevander Deserves Her Own Spinoff
- Warning: This article contains spoilers about the first season of Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Since Star Wars premiered in 1977, the film franchise has become more than an iconic series of movies. It has opened the door to much-needed cultural change. Among this change is the place of women. Starting with Princess Leia Organa (the late Carrie Fisher), female characters are as important to the narrative and are as complex as their male counterparts.
In the recent series DisneyPlus, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ewan McGregor returns to the role that he played in the prequels. Taking place in between Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith (2005) and Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope (1977), the program explores where this character was in the eighteen years between the films. One of several antagonists that he encounters is Inquisitor Reva Sevander/Third Sister (Moses Ingram). Sent to Tatooine, her job is to eradicate the last of the Jedi.
Completely dedicated to her work, Sevander is not one to be underestimated. She is smart, tough, and more than willing to go the extra mile. She will say anything, do anything, or kill anyone who she needs to complete her task. Upon setting her sights on Kenobi (who is hiding in plain sight), she makes it her goal to end his life. Chasing him across the galaxy, her ruthlessness and singlemindedness are front and center.
But Reva is more than a one-sided baddie. Towards the end of the series, flashbacks reveal that she is more complicated than she initially appeared to be. As a youngling, she was a Jedi in training who was nearly killed by Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader (Hayden Christensen). Surviving by playing dead, Reva swore that she would take her revenge against the Sith and Vader.
Star Wars has a long tradition of giving female characters the opportunity to step out of the box. Like others who have come before her, Reva is complex and human. She is single-minded to the point of obsession. Nothing else matters except for finding Kenobi and bringing him in. She also has a heart, which until the end of the season, was buried deep inside of her. Add in the fact that Reva is played by a woman actor of color also adds additional flavor to who she is as a person.
One of my favorite things about the SW universe is the opportunity for characters to redeem themselves. Within the series, Reva transforms from an out-and-out villain to a woman who comes to believe that her mission is wrong. When she has the opportunity to kill ten-year-old Luke Skywalker (Grant Feely), she instead saves him.
The series was my first introduction to Ingram as a performer. I was blown away by her performance. She could have easily been the stock 2D villain with no other reason to exist except for being the antagonist. But the way that she was written and portrayed gave her a humanity that made us understand her, even if we disagreed with her. During the airing of the program, a minority of fans started harassing her via social media due to her skin color.
This treatment goes against everything that Star Wars stands for. From the get-go, George Lucas told a story about fighting for democracy and diversity against autocracy and persecution. Though it seemed like an impossible task, a small group of freedom fighters was able to defeat a government that ruled via destruction and persecution. It is a message and a theme that resonates throughout human history.
I understand the loyalty to the original trilogy. It’s the impetus for everything that has been added to the world of Star Wars since 1977. However, having a preference for episodes 4, 5, and 6 does not give someone the right to publicly attack a performer whose character you disagree with. Every fan has the right to state their opinion. But when the line is crossed into verbal abuse (specifically when it is based on gender or skin color), I have a problem with that.
Given her arc over the season, I would argue that she deserves her own spinoff. Audiences love a redemption arc. We want to root for a character who is able to overcome their past. Reva checks that box. I would love a deep dive into what happened between her pretend death and the reveal of who she really is. Those grey areas of the decision she had to make made this writer and Star Wars fan tingle with excitement.
Though this decision is obviously well beyond my purview, I would love to put this out to the universe and the powers that be at Disney and Lucasfilm. Reva is such a fascinating character that I would be very curious to see where a spinoff of her own could go.
