Which Star Wars characters would these The Walking Dead favorites be?

Rick Grimes and Obi-Wan Kenobi

Both Rick Grimes and Obi-Wan Kenobi are beloved protagonists that play a significant role in the stories that they’re a part of, but the similarities don’t end there.

The two can also both be described as charismatic leaders with heavy expectations placed on them from the get-go.

The expectations placed on Rick from the very first season of The Walking Dead are that he needs to be a leader who helps guide his family – both blood and found – through surviving the zombie apocalypse. Even though he didn’t ask to become leader, the responsibility was placed on his shoulders and he handled it as best he could even as death and chaos ensued all around him on a daily basis.

Obi-Wan’s situation with training Anakin Skywalker – the “Chosen One” – as his Padawan is similar to how the survivors expected Rick to lead them. Obi-Wan did not make the choice to train Anakin but was instead asked to do so in his own master’s dying wish. At that point in time, Obi-Wan did not know if he was ready for such a huge undertaking, but he did what he could to ensure that Anakin was properly guided as he grew up to become a Jedi.

Rick and Obi-Wan also share a life full of heavy losses that they overcame to help lead the new generation of survivors and Jedi, respectively.

When Rick lost his son Carl to a walker bite, he decided to honor him by allowing “[his] mercy to prevail over [his] wrath,” sparing his archnemesis Negan’s life. Rick continued to carry on his son’s dream of a future where people worked together to fight the zombie threat and thrive within their communities, helping unite the communities despite high tensions between them. Without Rick, his wife Michonne and daughter Judith would not have been able to live a life of safety for over six years after his disappearance, and his legacy of bringing people together is still felt on the show to this day.

Obi-Wan’s loss came at the hands of his Padawan and “brother” Anakin. Obi-Wan felt responsible for Anakin’s fall to the dark side and thus knew that he had to help make up for what went wrong by watching over Anakin’s newborn son Luke. The now-old Jedi helped guide Luke at the start of his journey to become a true Jedi like his father once was, and without him there, Luke may never have been able to redeem his father and defeat the Empire.

Despite all that was put on their plate, Rick and Obi-Wan stand as shining examples of heroes who fought through constant adversity to help others.