Ahsoka

[gmillerdrake]

Took RJ's suggestion and started a thread for the show. I'm sure it will come a surprise to most of you but I'm pretty excited for the show. 

[lonestar]

 

[Samsara]

Rebels Season Five baby! 

Love how Chop is definitively Chop in the trailers! 

[Orbert]

I find it interesting that promotions are referring to her as a Jedi.  I thought one of her defining qualities (or something like that) is that she chose to leave the order.  Didn't Din Djarin ask her if she was a Jedi and she kinda dodged the question?  I don't remember exactly, but I knew something of her background before that, and I seem to recall her response to specifically not confirm that she's a Jedi.

[lordxizor]

I find it interesting that promotions are referring to her as a Jedi.  I thought one of her defining qualities (or something like that) is that she chose to leave the order.  Didn't Din Djarin ask her if she was a Jedi and she kinda dodged the question?  I don't remember exactly, but I knew something of her background before that, and I seem to recall her response to specifically not confirm that she's a Jedi.

She confirmed in Rebels that she is not a Jedi because she left the order.

[gmillerdrake]

I find it interesting that promotions are referring to her as a Jedi.  I thought one of her defining qualities (or something like that) is that she chose to leave the order.  Didn't Din Djarin ask her if she was a Jedi and she kinda dodged the question?  I don't remember exactly, but I knew something of her background before that, and I seem to recall her response to specifically not confirm that she's a Jedi.

She confirmed in Rebels that she is not a Jedi because she left the order.

Yeah, she left the Jedi order for sure and doesn't consider herself a Jedi due to not attaining the rank officially....but....Filoni has suggested in many interviews that she may be the truest form of a jedi that the SW universe has seen. Deeply in tune with the force but not bound by the Jedi orders conditions/rules....IMO she's simply 'better' than what the Jedi were or at least had become.



He's made some statements like this:

“Fans all focus very hard on the line, ‘I am no Jedi,’ from Star Wars: Rebels, but it’s undeniable that she’s trained by the Jedi,” Filoni said. “I think to most observers she is very Jedi to them. I would argue in some ways—by being so selfless and rejecting a lot of paths that would have given her power—she’s more Jedi-like than even some characters who claim to be Jedi.”

"Speaking about where the character is at generally in terms of her skill sets and worldview, Filoni described her as a master of her craft at this point because she no longer really needs to rely on others all that much to carry out her self-determined missions.  “A wandering samurai character is what she really is at this point,” Filoni said. “I’ve always made comparisons to her heading towards the Gandalf stage, where she is the one that has the knowledge of the world and can help others through it. I think she’s reached that point.”

[Orbert]

I would guess that most casual viewers don't distinguish between "Jedi" and "generic person who can use The Force".  Or even "Force-sensitive".  So they're kinda taking advantage of that.

I remember when Rogue One came out, people were saying Chirrut Îmwe (Donnie Yen's character) was a Jedi.  He was clearing using The Force.  I said that that's not all there is to being a Jedi; there's the training, both mental and physical, the culture, the indoctrination, etc.  Chirrut was Force-sensitive, but not Jedi.  If they asked what the difference is, I cut them out of my life, because I don't need that kind of aggravation.

But seriously, Ahsoka's situation is different I suppose.  She was trained, she was Jedi; just because she doesn't consider herself one anymore, does that mean she isn't one anymore?

[Samsara]

The arc of the sequel trilogy clearly indicates (to me) a very blurry line of who is a Jedi and who is not. Remember, it used to be - Jedi or Sith. Now it's Jedi, Sith, inquisitors (force sensitive), ronin Jedi like Ahsoka, etc. They are taking the classic good/evil and now blurring it all for a variety of reasons (some that drive a story, and some that are for marketing, as Disney does).

I'm just very happy Rebels continues with Ahsoka. I was a big fan of The Clone Wars, and Rebels (the latter got much better when it got a bit more serious), and I'm excited to see where it all goes.

[axeman90210]

I finished my selected episodes Rebels rewatch last night can't wait for tonight

[lordxizor]

I think Jedi is more like Catholic (Christian with a certain set of structure and dogma) and then there are light side force users (without a defined name) who are like Christians (general believers in Jesus). I don't know that there's much value in coming up with a new term for non-Jedi light side force users. I do think that the prequels and related animated content showed the flaws and hubris of the Jedi, so wanting to create a new Jedi era is a little odd. Feels like they should come up with a new term and try to fix the flaws in the Jedi way. But they'll probably just keep calling them Jedi, which I'm generally fine with.

[Orbert]

I like that analogy.  The general term that everyone knows, and also the more strict order.  And also that most outsiders don't really care.

I watched a 20-minute YouTube video called The Only Recap You Need Before Watching Ahsoka or something like that, and I found it very informative and helpful.  Since I'd seen all the Tales of the Jedi and started on the "homework list" (from the main Star Wars thread) I saw how a lot of it fit together, and it also fleshed out a lot of what I'd heard/read incidentally, especially with regard to Anakin and Darth Maul.  Then yesterday I saw a different video suggested -- I seem to think this one was closer to 30 minutes -- that also purported to be the only recap I'd need.  I was gonna try to check that one out, but if Ahsoka's dropping tonight I'll probably just dive in.

[gmillerdrake]

I was gonna try to check that one out, but if Ahsoka's dropping tonight I'll probably just dive in.

I saw a quick little vid from two guys who watched the two episode premier, one of which had not seen any Clone Wars or Rebels.....and that guy said the two episodes he saw were very enjoyable even not having any of the background info. Filoni had said as much, that they told the story without 'needing' to know all the background crap....but if you did, it'd only heighten the experience.

[lordxizor]

I've got 4 more "essential" episodes of Rebels to watch with my son before Ahsoka. Was hoping to get that done yesterday, but didn't happen. Can't decide if we should watch them tonight and then catch up on Ahsoka next week (will be gone camping for the rest of this week and the weekend) or just dive in with Ahsoka.

[Orbert]

I saw a quick little vid from two guys who watched the two episode premier, one of which had not seen any Clone Wars or Rebels.....and that guy said the two episodes he saw were very enjoyable even not having any of the background info. Filoni had said as much, that they told the story without 'needing' to know all the background crap....but if you did, it'd only heighten the experience.

Yep, that's what Dave's been saying all along, and based on what I've seen with The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett I trust that that will be the case.

[Samsara]

It's really interesting how the character of Ahsoka has endeared herself to the fanbase, despite never appearing as a live action character until The Mandalorian. I'm not going to say it's rare, because it happens regularly now. But I just find in the Star Wars mythos, very few of the non-original characters are as beloved as Ahsoka is. You don't see this love for Rey. You don't see it for a variety of non-original trilogy characters. But some way, George and David created and fleshed out Ahsoka Tano in such a way that has endeared her to, at least in my opinion, a much more broad percentage of the fan base.

Rosario Dawson is a great actress, and so far, in the limited screen time, I think she nailed an older Ahsoka. And Ashley Eckstein's voice really worked for a younger version that matured in both The Clone Wars and Rebels.

I really hope this series is impactful as the first season or so of The Mandalorian. Her character, and honestly, Rebels, deserves it.

[lonestar]

Solid first episode.. On to EP2....

[gmillerdrake]

This show is 100% Rebels Season 5 which is A OK with me. Really enjoyed the first two episodes…..so many details layered in there…..but it’s late and I’m too tired to dig in.

[Samsara]

Yep, totally Season 5. Loved it. Just finished Ep 2 and I need to be up in less than six hours. More tomorrow!

[lonestar]

Really enjoyed what I saw...unlike most of you, I'm still a bit blind to most of the backstory, but I didn't feel lost at all with how the story developed. I'm a huge Dawson fan, so felt she's so good in the role, and also loved all the other actors in their respective roles. One thing I was very pleased to see, or not see I should say, was the cheesy campiness that's been hurting the Mandalorian and killed Obi Wan. Aside from a bit of cringe from Wren's character in the beginning the show held a pretty serious tone throughout. That was one of the things that really made Andor shine, hoping they continue to pull that thread.


Really looking forward to the rest, and may take advantage of my time off to watch some of the animated shows to catch a bit of the backstory.

[Samsara]

Okay, now that I have a minute...

WOW. So much nostalgic thrills once they got to Lothal. The opening scene for Lothal, it looked like it started as animation and then blended into the more current "realism" of The Volume that they use for the scenes. I'm not sure if that was on purpose, I like to think it was, and it really made the connection to Rebels for me. And seeing the mural?!?!? All the feels!!!!! 

And Ryder! How awesome is it that the actor that voiced him is acting the part as well? I mean, again, it just brought it all home to me. I was giddy. The Loth-cats too! And Chopper...Chop is Chop, and he was his usual self, which...good on them for keeping him real.

My only small two gripes...the actress that plays Hera...not connecting with her yet. And the young, bad female force user...not impressed. It's like they are trying to make a young girl be Darth Maul. Didn't work for me. But I have a feeling I'll be fine with Hera. So far, I give it a solid 9 out of 10. Bring on Zeb, Ezra...and lets get the force ghost of Kanan!

Really enjoyed what I saw...unlike most of you, I'm still a bit blind to most of the backstory, but I didn't feel lost at all with how the story developed.

...

Really looking forward to the rest, and may take advantage of my time off to watch some of the animated shows to catch a bit of the backstory.

Glad it made sense without having that backstory. But yeah, Rebels is a great series. Those "essential" episodes are really helpful, but I'd suggest watching the last two seasons. The writing was just top notch. Season 1 was a bit juvenile, but as it got serious, it was just so, so good. Chopper, whom my wife calls "the Murder Droid" (Chop has been known to...straight up not give a F), really has some good development throughout. All the major characters do.

[Grappler]

I really liked the two episodes and was glad that I binged Rebels over the summer.  Looking forward to more!

[soupytwist]

Found these new Star Wars shows a mixed bag - Andor and Mando are good, Fett and Obi were bad.  Early days but thankfully this feels like it could be another good one.

[gmillerdrake]

Here are my initial thoughts now that I have a chance to properly respond.

First off, kudos to Rosario Dawson. You can tell she's invested a lot of effort into capturing the mannerisms of Ahsoka which has to be a pain in the butt considering she's trying to mimic an animated character that has capabilities beyond what a 'human' can do. And then, she's also done a really good job of learning the cadence of the way Ahsoka speaks....AND learned Ashley Eckstein's delivery of the dialogue also. Just really hard feats I would think to learn and she's done well at both.

Aside from a bit of cringe from Wren's character in the beginning the show held a pretty serious tone throughout.

I could see that BUT at the same time everything I saw last night was pretty true to her character in Rebels.

...the actress that plays Hera...not connecting with her yet.

Right there with ya. I don't think the actress is doing a bad job per say....I just don't think that the physical resemblance is there. Hera has a very thin and long face structure whereas Mary Elizabeth Winstead does not. This may be one of those instances where they cast an actress because of how closely tied she is to a few folks involved rather than actually looking for someone who 'looked' the part. I'm sure it'll be fine but like you, I'm not feeling it yet with her.

I really dug the detail in the star map when it was opened that showed the galaxy that Thrawn (and Ezra) were most likely whisked off to at the end of Rebels S4.....and the galaxy map was ornately decorated with purrgil glyphs. Which makes sense being that they are the species of animal that inspired light speed travel....that Ezra reached out to through the force to help him defeat Thrawn and that had both Ezra and Thrawn in tow when they jumped to light speed.

My largest 'gripe' if I had to find one is that given that the show was set up for non Rebels or Clone Wars watchers to not be lost while watching.....there was too much time spent on laying out the story so to speak. They did a good job of detailing the world and the story but again, if I had to find a gripe it'd be the groundwork took a bit long to lay out.

I thought the action was great and it all 'looked' amazing. Can't wait to see how it all unfolds.

[lonestar]

For you it was too long, for us who haven't watched it, it was basically necessary.

[gmillerdrake]

For you it was too long, for us who haven't watched it, it was basically necessary.

Yep....totally get it. That's why I can't even call it a 'gripe'.....it's about the only thing I'd have personally changed....and I think they did a great job of laying out the foundation for the season. But, to be fair.....Ahsoka training Sabine to be a Jedi was never in Rebels. Sabine was trained by Kanan for a short period of time after the Dark Saber was found and given to her. He was teaching her how to battle with the light saber....but, there was nothing of Ahsoka and Sabine. Just the closing scene of them meeting on Lothal. So Sabine being a padawan of Ahsoka was new to me.

[Samsara]

For you it was too long, for us who haven't watched it, it was basically necessary.

Yep....totally get it. That's why I can't even call it a 'gripe'.....it's about the only thing I'd have personally changed....and I think they did a great job of laying out the foundation for the season. But, to be fair.....Ahsoka training Sabine to be a Jedi was never in Rebels. Sabine was trained by Kanan for a short period of time after the Dark Saber was found and given to her. He was teaching her how to battle with the light saber....but, there was nothing of Ahsoka and Sabine. Just the closing scene of them meeting on Lothal. So Sabine being a padawan of Ahsoka was new to me.

Same here. That threw me.

[lonestar]

Ahsoka never had a padawan, did she? She was never a jedi, right?

[gmillerdrake]

It's really interesting how the character of Ahsoka has endeared herself to the fanbase, despite never appearing as a live action character until The Mandalorian. I'm not going to say it's rare, because it happens regularly now. But I just find in the Star Wars mythos, very few of the non-original characters are as beloved as Ahsoka is. You don't see this love for Rey. You don't see it for a variety of non-original trilogy characters. But some way, George and David created and fleshed out Ahsoka Tano in such a way that has endeared her to, at least in my opinion, a much more broad percentage of the fan base.

Rosario Dawson is a great actress, and so far, in the limited screen time, I think she nailed an older Ahsoka. And Ashley Eckstein's voice really worked for a younger version that matured in both The Clone Wars and Rebels.

I really hope this series is impactful as the first season or so of The Mandalorian. Her character, and honestly, Rebels, deserves it.

The difference maker between Ahsoka and Rey is Ahsoka is just a more developed character. There is SO much backstory and experience behind her getting to and being the powerful 'jedi' and force wielder that she is. There's nothing cheap about it because we got to see her earn every bit of it and prove herself time and time again.

Rey on the other hand has no meat and potatoes to her story. We're supposed to just accept that she has this inherited variant of the force....this dyad with Ben Solo that made her super powerful really quickly. It always felt forced (no pun intended) and cheap....and actually fit the larger problem of the sequel trilogy. Nothing planned or thought out...just threw some cool looking stuff at the wall and waited to see what stuck. There is nothing in Rey's story that begs us to endear ourselves to her....actually the opposite for me.

[gmillerdrake]

Ahsoka never had a padawan, did she? She was never a jedi, right?

No and No. That's what is weird. She left the Jedi order after they showed their true colors towards her when she was framed for an assassination. Anakin (and Kenobi to a lesser extent) was the only one who was dead set on proving her innocence. When he did....the jedi council said 'my bad'....please come back and she told them to piss off and left the order.

Sabine being her padawan was a 'new' development. But, as I mentioned earlier.....Sabine was trained by Kanan for a time after she gained possession of the Dark Saber and was going to lead Mandalore. But, after a short time she bequeathed the Dark Saber to Bo Katan....

[lonestar]

Ahsoka never had a padawan, did she? She was never a jedi, right?

No and No. That's what is weird. She left the Jedi order after they showed their true colors towards her when she was framed for an assassination. Anakin (and Kenobi to a lesser extent) was the only one who was dead set on proving her innocence. When he did....the jedi council said 'my bad'....please come back and she told them to piss off and left the order.

Sabine being her padawan was a 'new' development. But, as I mentioned earlier.....Sabine was trained by Kanan for a time after she gained possession of the Dark Saber and was going to lead Mandalore. But, after a short time she bequeathed the Dark Saber to Bo Katan....

Cool...starting the essential watching list on D+...when I get to S3 of Rebels I may dig in and do the whole season. We'll see how time goes, but at the moment I got 9 days off with not a whole bunch of plans.

[Samsara]

Ahsoka never had a padawan, did she? She was never a jedi, right?

No and No. That's what is weird. She left the Jedi order after they showed their true colors towards her when she was framed for an assassination. Anakin (and Kenobi to a lesser extent) was the only one who was dead set on proving her innocence. When he did....the jedi council said 'my bad'....please come back and she told them to piss off and left the order.

Sabine being her padawan was a 'new' development. But, as I mentioned earlier.....Sabine was trained by Kanan for a time after she gained possession of the Dark Saber and was going to lead Mandalore. But, after a short time she bequeathed the Dark Saber to Bo Katan....

Cool...starting the essential watching list on D+...when I get to S3 of Rebels I may dig in and do the whole season. We'll see how time goes, but at the moment I got 9 days off with not a whole bunch of plans.

It's a good watch. After the first season, when things really start going, I was hooked through the end. Even bought all four seasons on Blu-Ray, just to have them. I think you'll dig it, and it goes by fast.

[gmillerdrake]

Ahsoka never had a padawan, did she? She was never a jedi, right?

No and No. That's what is weird. She left the Jedi order after they showed their true colors towards her when she was framed for an assassination. Anakin (and Kenobi to a lesser extent) was the only one who was dead set on proving her innocence. When he did....the jedi council said 'my bad'....please come back and she told them to piss off and left the order.

Sabine being her padawan was a 'new' development. But, as I mentioned earlier.....Sabine was trained by Kanan for a time after she gained possession of the Dark Saber and was going to lead Mandalore. But, after a short time she bequeathed the Dark Saber to Bo Katan....

Cool...starting the essential watching list on D+...when I get to S3 of Rebels I may dig in and do the whole season. We'll see how time goes, but at the moment I got 9 days off with not a whole bunch of plans.

It's a good watch. After the first season, when things really start going, I was hooked through the end. Even bought all four seasons on Blu-Ray, just to have them. I think you'll dig it, and it goes by fast.

First season is its weakest season for sure....but I still enjoyed the heck out of it. It took a bit to get accustomed to some of the characters....especially Ezra because he's just a bratty kid at that point. But once the series gets going it's pretty much full throttle ahead.

[The Realm]

Don't want to be a party pooper but I thought it was really bland and boring. Very disappointing. It was just extremely slow moving and had nothing of the pace and energy of the Rebels tv series. Also since the second episode basically ended at the same point as the Rebels season 4 epilogue, couldn't the Ahsoka show just continued from that point? These 2 episodes felt really unnecessary. I really hope it picks ups and I'll keep the faith it does.

Overall I found it hard to believe the same creative team who brought us Rebels are also behind this show, they feel like polar opposites at the moment. The characters are all so morose and nothing like their cartoon counterparts.

[gmillerdrake]

Don't want to be a party pooper but I thought it was really bland and boring. Very disappointing. It was just extremely slow moving and had nothing of the pace and energy of the Rebels tv series. Also since the second episode basically ended at the same point as the Rebels season 4 epilogue, couldn't the Ahsoka show just continued from that point? These 2 episodes felt really unnecessary. I really hope it picks ups and I'll keep the faith it does.

Overall I found it hard to believe the same creative team who brought us Rebels are also behind this show, they feel like polar opposites at the moment. The characters are all so morose and nothing like their cartoon counterparts.

Those two episodes were necessary for the folks who haven’t watched any of TCWs or Rebels. Which is a large part of the audience.

I get it and share ‘some’ of the sentiment. But even with having to wait through the story being filled in for everyone it was still a fun watch.

[King Postwhore]

I now want a space kitty.