GameSpot listed six flaws in Obi-Wan Kenobi, then rounded them up to a 7
The Original Review
“Obi-Wan Kenobi is a show that shouldn't work, on paper. It's a story whose ending we already know, about characters whose fates are predetermined.”
I ran the numbers on this one, and I need everyone to remain calm. GameSpot's Obi-Wan Kenobi review contains, by my count, the following documented defects: the middle 'drags considerably,' two entire episodes are 'an extended detour,' the plot logic is 'questionable,' the pacing is 'inconsistent,' and the action sequences look 'shot on a soundstage the size of a studio apartment.' That's five load-bearing criticisms. The score attached to this inventory of damage: 7/10. Good. I've seen insurance adjusters total a car with fewer line items than this review, and the car got a better rating.
Let's do the arithmetic GameSpot refused to do. If a ten-point scale means anything, each major flaw should cost something. Five significant flaws at a modest 1 point each puts us at 5/10 — and that's charity math, that's flaw pricing from 2009 before inflation. Instead the review deducts a grand total of 3 points for a show it describes as one-third detour. That means each catastrophic structural problem cost 0.6 points, which is not a scoring system, it's a loyalty program. Watch six episodes of meandering, earn a free 7.
The review's secret weapon is the qualifier. Nothing is bad — it's 'somewhat' bad. Nothing fails — it 'mostly' works. This is criticism run through a fabric softener cycle until every sharp edge comes out smelling like lavender. The show 'shouldn't work, on paper' is my favorite line, because the review then spends eight paragraphs demonstrating that it also doesn't work on screen, and concludes that it works. That's not analysis, that's a proof where you cross out the answer and write a smiley face.
Here's the comparison that breaks the spreadsheet: this same outlet has handed lower scores to shows it criticized less. The Disney+ corridor of GameSpot's scoring history is a flat line at 7-8 with the occasional tremor, like an EKG for a patient who is legally required to be fine. A 7/10 for a show that is 33% detour means the ruler they're measuring with is made of soup. The math aint mathing.
