Star Wars Finally Redeems A Wasted Obi-Wan Villain In Tales Of The Empire
This article contains spoilers for "Star Wars: Tales of the Empire"
After spending years out of the "Star Wars" spotlight, Barriss Offee (Meredith Salenger) has returned to the franchise forefront via "Star Wars: Tales of the Empire." It's revealed that following the fall of the Jedi Order, she joins the best part of "Star Wars," the Empire, as an Inquisitor: dark side users tasked with carrying out covert missions, oftentimes hunting down the galaxy's few remaining Jedi. In becoming an Imperial agent, Barriss joins a more seasoned Inquisitor who "Star Wars" fans might recognize from "Obi-Wan Kenobi." Emphasis on "might."
In her "Tales of the Empire" episodes, Barriss works closely with the Fourth Sister Inquisitor, who joins her during her training and missions. The Fourth Sister — real name Lyn — previously appeared on "Obi-Wan Kenobi" alongside other Inquisitors. Unlike the Third Sister (Moses Ingram, who loved playing a "Star Wars" villain for a surprising reason) and the Fifth Brother (Sung Kang), however, she doesn't get much to do or say on the series, mostly standing around in the background. Thankfully, "Tales of the Empire" rectifies her misuse with plenty of action, drama, and even a potential turn to the light. After abandoning the Empire herself, Barriss convinces Lyn with her dying breath to leave the regime behind as well — similarly to how Obi-Wan (Ewan McGregor) helps the Third Sister, aka Reva, reform herself on "Obi-Wan Kenobi."
It's great to see that the Fourth Sister has made some character progress thanks to "Tales of the Empire." Sadly, other underdeveloped Inquisitors received no such treatment.
The Fourth Sister fared better than other previously underdeveloped Inquisitors
After "Tales of the Empire," the Fourth Sister feels like a character with the potential to appear in other places and tell interesting stories. She has gone from a calloused agent of the Empire to someone disillusioned with the regime and seeking to make a difference to honor Barriss Offee's memory. Suffice to say, she has come a long way from her "Obi-Wan Kenobi" appearances. Meanwhile, there are other Inquisitors in "Tales of the Empire" who don't receive proper development in their previous "Star Wars" appearances, and, unfortunately, don't make forward strides this time around.
First up is the still-unspecified Inquisitor (Clancy Brown), who makes a brief appearance in the episode "Devoted." He previously popped up in the "Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi" episode "Resolve," terrorizing a village before dueling and losing to Ahsoka Tano (Ashley Eckstein). His cool look and menacing presence immediately piqued fan interest in the character, but "Tales of the Empire" had no additional information to provide. Marrok (Paul Darnell) also appears in "Devoted" with absolutely nothing to do but blend in with the background. His biggest claim to fame remains appearing on "Ahsoka" and being killed by the title character in short order, continuing a "Star Wars" tradition of nerfing its coolest Sith.
As the Fourth Sister's story begins to find its footing, time will tell if other poorly-handled Inquisitors like the Inquisitor and Marrok will get larger spotlights of their own down the line.