STAR WARS: New Book Reveals Obi-Wan Kenobi Sensed Darkness Within Luke Skywalker During RETURN OF THE JEDI

In some respects, the Obi-Wan Kenobi we met in the original Star Wars trilogy was a tad manipulative when it came to his relationship with Luke Skywalker.

He failed to tell the young Jedi the truth about his father's identity and even sacrificed himself in battle with Darth Vader as a means of pushing Luke to become a hero. Well, that's how one could look at the situation from a certain point of view. 

In an upcoming Star Wars book, From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi, Lucasfilm will revisit and expand on several key moments and characters from the movie to mark its 40th anniversary. 

A newly released excerpt (via SFFGazette.com) reveals Obi-Wan could sense the darkness within Luke and feared he might eventually follow in his father's footsteps. This goes some way in explaining why he and Yoda contemplated there being "another" who could bring down Emperor Palpatine and Vader in Leia should Luke fail. 

This short story will also be interesting because it should pull back the curtain on why "Ben" felt it was necessary to lie to Luke about his lineage. The Jedi Master will likely also elaborate on his claim Anakin Skywalker had been killed by Vader. 

Much of how Obi-Wan behaved can be put down to George Lucas retconning certain elements of A New Hope as the trilogy continued. A book like this, however, is a good opportunity to better explain that and fill in some long-standing plot holes.  

Remember, The Last Jedi strongly hinted that Luke nearly embraced the Dark Side by striking down his nephew, Ben Solo. Had he chosen to deliver the fatal blow, it's a decision we have to believe would have sent the hero down a path he couldn't return from. Instead, he went into hiding and abandoned the Galaxy; his betrayal of Ben, meanwhile, led to the teenager becoming Kylo Ren.

You can this excerpt from the book below. From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi will be released on August 29.