Where Was Obi-Wan Kenobi During Order 66?

Watching episode 5 of Obi-Wan Kenobi will make you understand more about the backstory of Reva and how she came to be what she is right now. In fact, she was the product of Order 66 as she saw her friends getting slaughtered by Anakin in the Jedi Temple when she was just a youngling. This also allowed her to develop her rage for Kenobi, who she thought could’ve prevented Anakin from slaughtering the younglings. So, where was Obi-Wan Kenobi during Order 66?

Obi-Wan Kenobi was at Utapau during Order 66 as he had just defeated General Grievous and brought the end to the Clone Wars. Right as he was about to lead the attack on the remaining forces, Order 66 was initiated. He got shot out of his giant lizard but survived to escape Utapau and rendezvous with Bail Organa.

The thing that Reva didn’t understand was the fact that Kenobi wasn’t in the position to stop Anakin because he was away on a separate mission. There was no way for him to stop his former Padawan from slaughtering the younglings in the Jedi Temple during Order 66 because he was physically unable to. So, with that, let’s look at where Obi-Wan was during Order 66.

Why Is Reva Angry At Obi-Wan?

Early in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series, one of the things that we saw was the fact that Reva was viciously hunting the Jedi Master during his exile and was so intent on finding him that he was willing to do anything to get to Kenobi. She seemed like a vicious mad dog that simply wanted to go after the biggest bone in the galaxy so that she could rise in power and become the new Grand Inquisitor.

At first, this seemed in line with the way that Jedi who have fallen over to the Dark Side would think. Dark Side Force users tend to be power-hungry, and that seemed to be the case for Reva because she was so ambitious that she was willing to do anything to get her hands on Kenobi and get closer to Vader. But that really wasn’t her end goal.

During the events of episode 5 of Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Empire had the Path trapped in their base as they were about to break through the barricade. Obi-Wan and Reva had the chance to talk. That was when Kenobi told her about his hunches about who she was, considering that the only way she could’ve known that Anakin was Vader was if she was there during Order 66.

That was when Reva told the Jedi Master her backstory. She revealed that she was indeed a youngling during the events of Order 66 when Anakin was sent by Palpatine to the Jedi Temple to slaughter the younglings there. Reva saw how Anakin remorselessly killed all her friends in cold blood as all that she could do was pretend that she was dead while hiding under the bodies of her fallen friends.

Reva has since been plotting her revenge against Darth Vader by getting as close to him as she can so that she can kill him when given a chance to do so. That was why she was hunting Kenobi viciously, as doing so would allow her to gain Vader’s trust.

However, when Kenobi told her that they could work together to defeat Vader, that was when Reva told him that she didn’t want his help because Anakin was his Padawan. Despite that, Kenobi couldn’t do anything to stop him and wasn’t even there to prevent the slaughter of the younglings when his former Padawan was sent to the Jedi Temple.

Without even answering back, Obi-Wan Kenobi had a look of regret on his face. It was obvious that he realized that he should’ve been there to stop Anakin from slaughtering the younglings. Nevertheless, he was off somewhere else when things went to worst in the Jedi Temple, where Reva’s friends were slaughtered in cold blood.

Where Was Obi-Wan Kenobi During Order 66?

Yes, Reva was angry at Obi-Wan because she thought that he could’ve stopped Anakin back then. He was Anakin’s master and was in the best position to prevent the slaughter because he was the one closest to his former Padawan. So, where was Obi-Wan Kenobi during Order 66?

Order 66 was actually a plan that was carefully executed because it happened right after Chancellor Palpatine was already sure that the Republic would win the war against the Separatists. And it was during the time when all of the best Jedi in the galaxy were scattered all over the galaxy in an attempt to weaken the Separatist forces.

Obi-Wan, of course, was the one who the Jedi Council trusted the most to defeat General Grievous because, among all of the Jedi generals during the Clone Wars, he was the most accomplished. After Anakin defeated Count Dooku, Grievous was the only Separatist leader that posed a threat to the Republic. That was the reason why only the best general was sent after him to a planet called Utapau. 

Kenobi went to Utapau to hunt down Grievous, who he managed to defeat after a fierce battle. He confirmed the Separatist general’s death and transmitted it to all of the Republic leaders, as Chancellor Palpatine himself had realized that the Republic was going to win the war. That was when he put Order 66 into action.

During Order 66, Obi-Wan was on his way to lead his clones and Commander Cody to round up the remaining Separatist forces. However, as he was climbing up a cliff with his giant lizard mount, Order 66 was initiated. Commander Cody, who didn’t have his inhibitor chip removed, was compliant enough to immediately shoot the man he regarded as a friend throughout the entire Clone Wars because he was programmed to obey the mandates of Order 66 without question.

Kenobi was shot down from his giant lizard into a pond but managed to survive. He escaped Utapau on the starfighter that Grievous used. After that, he made contact with Bail Organa, who witnessed the slaughter at the Jedi Temple himself.

As such, during the slaughter of the younglings when Order 66 was initiated, Obi-Wan Kenobi was not in the position to find a way to get back to the Jedi Temple to stop Anakin. He was sent to kill Grievous. After that, he was fighting for his life after Commander Cody and the other clones attempted to kill him. It was already too late for him to stop the slaughter, as he didn’t even know that Anakin was responsible for it until he saw the video of the slaughter when he and Yoda infiltrated the Jedi Temple to look at the archives.

Why Couldn’t Obi-Wan Stop Anakin During Order 66?

So, the reason why Obi-Wan Kenobi couldn’t stop Anakin Skywalker during Order 66 was that he physically couldn’t. He was far off in another star system to put an end to the war as he and the other Jedi believed that killing Grievous was the best way to restore peace to the Republic. Kenobi didn’t even know that his Padawan was going to kill the younglings until he saw the video feed from the Jedi Temple when he and Yoda infiltrated it.

Nevertheless, Obi-Wan was not in the position to tell Reva that he couldn’t stop Anakin from slaughtering the younglings. That’s because, as his master, he believed he could have done more to keep Anakin away from the Dark Side. And being a better mentor, in his mind, would’ve prevented the entire disaster involving the Jedi Order and the Republic from happening.

Throughout the entire Obi-Wan series, Kenobi lives with the regret of not being able to stop one of the most catastrophic events in the history of the galaxy when he failed to lead his Padawan away from the Dark Side. To his mind, had he been a better master, he could’ve helped Anakin become a better person and ultimately prevented the fall of the Republic and the slaughter at the Jedi Temple.

Nevertheless, Obi-Wan has been too hard on himself throughout the entire time as the one thing he is yet to learn is that there was nothing more that he could’ve done to save Anakin from himself. It was all Anakin’s decision to become Darth Vader for selfish reasons. Anakin was the one who failed his master, but Obi-Wan is yet to let go of the thought that he was the one who failed his Padawan.