Beware Spoilers for Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels

“I’m not so bad am I?”

Ahsoka Tano first appeared in the Clone Wars film, way back in 2008. A prelude to the animated series of the same name (not to be confused with the other Star Wars: Clone Wars) it is set in the galaxy-wide conflict between Attack of the Clone and Revenge of the Sith. Introduced as an apprentice to Anakin Skywalker, the two initially have a rather tense relationship, but bond over the course of the film and early seasons. She was met with a poor reception, as Ahsoka and the film itself were not popular among the fans at first.

As the series goes on, Ahsoka begins to take more of a starring role. Getting much more time to develop and being on equal footing with characters like Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker. As she grows up and matures, so does the show, with her being at the centre of some of the most beloved story arcs. Ahsoka became central to the show as well as to Anakin’s fall to the dark side. During the series, Ahsoka is wrongfully accused of bombing the Jedi temple. Anakin clears her name, but the events make Ahsoka question her place in the order and leave – a Jedi no more. The final episodes see her take centre stage as she battles Darth Maul, explaining her absence in Revenge of the Sith.

“I am no Jedi”

Although not a main character, Ahsoka plays an important part in Star Wars: Rebels. Acting as an agent for the Alliance, she often does missions with the crew of the Ghost, including Hera Syndulla, Sabine Wren and Ezra Bridger. During an epic confrontation with Darth Vader, she discovers the fate of her old master. Her whereabouts for the rest of the series, and the original trilogy are still a mystery. Ahsoka later turns up at the very end of Rebels, in a scene set after Return of the Jedi.

During the events of the finale, the Ghost crew attempt to free Lothal, Ezra’s homeworld, from Imperial rule under Grand Admiral Thrawn, a ruthless tactician. Knowing they cannot beat Thrawn, Ezra uses the Force, and his unique affinity with the whale-like Purgill to transport Thrawn’s ship far away, with him on it. After the Empire is defeated, Ahsoka sets out to find Ezra, after he saves her from Vader, with the help of Sabine.

Ahsoka’s quest has led her to cross paths with the Mandalorian and Grogu, as well as meeting up with Luke Skywalker, but now she’s finally getting her own series, she could be going anywhere, even another galaxy…

Also Read: George Lucas: Beyond Star Wars

The post Star Wars: Ahsoka – What You Need To Know appeared first on Big Picture Film Club.

The canvas Star Wars has to work with is big – a quick google lists the number of populated planets in the Empire in the millions. There are films and TV shows showing the time around the civil war that made up the original trilogy, but references are made to thousands of years of space travel capable civilisations. So with millions of planets and thousands of years to work with the possible stories within this are essentially endless.

Going Solo

Several characters are getting their own series – Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Lando Calrissian and Cassian Andor – all of whom are potentially very interesting protagonists. Kenobi’s show seems to be set on Tatooine in the period between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope and given that this is a planet that will not only have storm troopers but Jabba the Hutt there will be a lot for him to do. Details about the Calrissian project are virtually non-existent to the extent we don’t know who will be playing him and all we know about Tano is that Rosario Dawson will play her and it will be set in roughly the same period as The Mandalorian. Cassian Andor appeared in Rogue One as a Rebel Alliance intelligence officer and presumably he’ll get up to similar spy shenanigans.

Rangers of the New Republic & Acolyte

Rangers of the New Republic is set in the same time as The Mandalorian and Ahsoka – perhaps suggesting some future crossover. Acolyte is perhaps the most original of all the shows as it is set in what is called the High Republic era, this being the several centuries before the birth of the Empire which, at least in film and television, is untouched ground. It’s worth noting that there are many books, graphic novels, computer games and more that have been made since Star Wars first came out that have dealt with what happened before, after and during the films. Grand Admiral Thrawn who appeared in Rebels and has been mentioned in The Mandalorian first appeared in a trilogy of novels set a few years after Return of the Jedi. The vast majority of these books, games etc have been declared non-canonical but are still a rich area to mine.

Animated

Two new animated shows were announced The Bad Batch and Visions, the first being a spinoff from The Clone Wars tv series about a squad of Clone Troopers working as mercenaries in the early days of the Empire, and Visions being a series of short anime-style films.

Why focus on television?

Disney also announced a Rogue Squadron film but most of the focus has been on television – and this is a lot of television. The Disney Star Wars projects have had mixed success with some fans thinking the recent trilogy worse than the much derided prequels. Star Wars fans have proven difficult to please and it’s certainly impossible to please all of them. Some want the films to make references to the original trilogy, some want them to be completely new and original. Some only want new characters, some want to see the old characters. This might be Disney’s strategy – provide a wealth of shows and people can pick the ones they want.

As big a fan of Star Wars as I am, I do think this might be too much and my worry is that the quality will diminish. Ever since the term “franchise” came to surround films there has been an idea that seemingly they will never stop – there will never not be new Marvel superhero films, there will never not be new Terminator films and maybe now there will never not be new Star Wars. I am sure great shows and films will come out of this approach but it does not sit well with me – it’s hard to get excited about Star Wars Project #17 that feels like it’s more about filling a quota than telling a story.

Also Read: The Mandalorian – A New Hope For Star Wars

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