Television Star Wars: Ahsoka (Disney+) OUT NOW! - Discussion Thread

[Reputator]

Certainly leads you to think that episode five is gonna be kind of a big dill.

[Greatoneshere]

That was a pretty great episode of Star Wars Rebels season 5. I mean Ahsoka episode 5. This episode clearly went for a theater-level feel (hence showing the episode in actual theaters in some places) with the shots, effects, and cinematography all being really well done. I hate the concept of the "World Between Worlds" from Rebels but here it was done with restraint and with a strong pairing of Ahsoka and Anakin. It was great seeing pre-Vader Hayden Christensen as Anakin (got some of that in Obi-Wan), especially with how his lightsaber fighting style changes just as it did in the prequels to indicate how far to the dark side he is (same with his hair, eyes and makeup). You could see Christensen employ moves from fights form the prequels in his fights with Ahsoka as they moved through the endless fog of war. I liked that sequence a lot since it used The Voice in an artistic way while managing to have more than 4 people in a scene at once. The background actors in these scenes helped to sell the sense and scale of war while obviously being on a small set. 

 

Even the stuff happening in reality is well done with the purrgil sequence working better than I thought it would in live-action. The episode still moved too slow for my liking, hitting the same beat a couple of times in the Ahsoka-Anakin sequences (that weird moment where Anakin is joking with Ahsoka was strange). It was nice that Christensen kept Anakin kind of creepy and super intense, because that's who the character was in the prequels, rather than sand down those edges (which they do a little bit when he tries to teach or train her which they should but in general you can tell the dude is kind of crazy, enjoying unleashing the full extent of his almost limitless power in the Clone Wars). 

[Reputator]

Yeah you can definitely see why they thought this particular episode was theater-worthy. It was gorgeous throughout. The directing on the whole seemed to be a notch higher.

 

I actually didn't mind the slower pace. It was thoughtful and emotionally charged, so it still kept me engaged. Hayden was great, and it was pretty cool seeing them together in live action, reenacting moments in Clone Wars.

 

The purgil being the cheesiest things in Rebels, to being pretty cool in live action is certainly not a transition I expected.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

I'll gladly take a Force Ghost Anakin miniseries, thank you very much!

[Reputator]

17 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

I'll gladly take a Force Ghost Anakin miniseries, thank you very much!

 

It could be a sitcom!

Anakin and old Obi-wan are uncomfortable roommates (Anakin always leaves his half-drank coffee mugs sitting around!), while once every episode pervy has-been playboy Qui-Gon pops in to boast about last night's escapades on the town, and always seeming to rope the other two into some troublesome hijinks, while Yoda does his signature slow head shake to the cheers and applause of the audience!

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

5 minutes ago, Reputator said:

 

It could be a sitcom!

Anakin and old Obi-wan are uncomfortable roommates (Anakin always leaves his half-drank coffee mugs sitting around!), while once every episode pervy has-been playboy Qui-Gon pops in to boast about last night's escapades on the town, and always seeming to rope the other two into some troublesome hijinks, while Yoda does his signature slow head shake to the cheers and applause of the audience!

 

 

Funnily enough, I DID imagine it as being something along those lines!

 

It'll involve Anakin, Obi-Wan, Yoda, and Qui-Gon essentially hanging around, constantly arguing with each other about Jedi philosophy while attempting to assist Luke with training the new generation of Jedi Knights.

[Jwheel86]

That was great. 

 

They totally missed an opportunity to explain how the Anakin lightsaber is somehow in Ep7. Ahsoka disarms Anakin, the lightsaber falls onto the planet from World Between Worlds and is picked up by scavengers, meaning the one Rey was given was never Luke's but came directly from Anakin.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

1 minute ago, Jwheel86 said:

That was great. 

 

They totally missed an opportunity to explain how the Anakin lightsaber is somehow in Ep7. Ahsoka disarms Anakin, the lightsaber falls onto the planet from World Between Worlds and is picked up by scavengers, meaning the one Rey was given was never Luke's but came directly from Anakin.

 

That was kinda/sorta addressed in issue #4 of the currently ongoing Star Wars comics series

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

This week, Ahsoka tried to do the hardest thing Star Wars has ever done

WWW.POLYGON.COM

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Episode 5 of Ahsoka might have its most stunning sequence yet

 

Quote

 

This week’s episode of Disney Plus’ Ahsoka threw out a big bone to any viewers unfamiliar with Star Wars: The Clone Wars, the animated series it continues from — but unless you are familiar with the show, you might not have realized it.

 

Call it a flashback, call it a Force vision — Ahsoka’s “Part Five” is a quick and compelling demonstration of everything you really need to know about Clone Wars, as Clone Wars creator and Ahsoka showrunner Dave Filoni takes another swing at expressing the thing the Star Wars prequels were trying to say all along.

 

The supernatural sequence in “Part Five” offers a glimpse at the best parts of an imperfect show that was trying to do something very, very difficult: Take the franchise named “Cool Wars, Huh” and use it to say “War is bad.”

 

 

[Greatoneshere]

1 hour ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

I'll gladly take a Force Ghost Anakin miniseries, thank you very much!

 

Just give Hayden a series already.

 

[Jwheel86]

11 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

The supernatural sequence in “Part Five” offers a glimpse at the best parts of an imperfect show that was trying to do something very, very difficult: Take the franchise named “Cool Wars, Huh” and use it to say “War is bad.”

 

 

Kid Ahsoka definitely had child soldier vibes to it. 

[Greatoneshere]

Andor is saying "war is bad" in a real way. Ahsoka episode 5 said "war is bad" in a traditional Star Wars is for kids and teenagers way, but elevated it with great filmmaking, and that counts too.

[cusideabelincoln]

On 9/13/2023 at 2:08 AM, Greatoneshere said:

That was a pretty great episode of Star Wars Rebels season 5. I mean Ahsoka episode 5. This episode clearly went for a theater-level feel (hence showing the episode in actual theaters in some places) with the shots, effects, and cinematography all being really well done. I hate the concept of the "World Between Worlds" from Rebels but here it was done with restraint and with a strong pairing of Ahsoka and Anakin. It was great seeing pre-Vader Hayden Christensen as Anakin (got some of that in Obi-Wan), especially with how his lightsaber fighting style changes just as it did in the prequels to indicate how far to the dark side he is (same with his hair, eyes and makeup). You could see Christensen employ moves from fights form the prequels in his fights with Ahsoka as they moved through the endless fog of war. I liked that sequence a lot since it used The Voice in an artistic way while managing to have more than 4 people in a scene at once. The background actors in these scenes helped to sell the sense and scale of war while obviously being on a small set. 

 

Even the stuff happening in reality is well done with the purrgil sequence working better than I thought it would in live-action. The episode still moved too slow for my liking, hitting the same beat a couple of times in the Ahsoka-Anakin sequences (that weird moment where Anakin is joking with Ahsoka was strange). It was nice that Christensen kept Anakin kind of creepy and super intense, because that's who the character was in the prequels, rather than sand down those edges (which they do a little bit when he tries to teach or train her which they should but in general you can tell the dude is kind of crazy, enjoying unleashing the full extent of his almost limitless power in the Clone Wars). 

 

I think it's safe to say "slow" is Filoni's directorial style for live action. It's been his go-to so far (classic Western/Samurai inspired), and I hope he's got something more in the bag because I don't think this style will translate to the movie he's supposed to be making.

[Reputator]

4 hours ago, cusideabelincoln said:

 

I think it's safe to say "slow" is Filoni's directorial style for live action. It's been his go-to so far (classic Western/Samurai inspired), and I hope he's got something more in the bag because I don't think this style will translate to the movie he's supposed to be making.

 

Respectfully disagreed. I'd happily sit through a feature-length film in the style of this episode. I much prefer it over the breakneck ADHD pacing of JJ Abram's Star Wars.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

I'm gonna laugh so damned if now that we finally get the chance to travel to an entirely different galaxy that the first planet we encounter somehow turns out to be practically a carbon-copy of Tatooine 

[Greatoneshere]

9 hours ago, cusideabelincoln said:

 

I think it's safe to say "slow" is Filoni's directorial style for live action. It's been his go-to so far (classic Western/Samurai inspired), and I hope he's got something more in the bag because I don't think this style will translate to the movie he's supposed to be making.

 

5 hours ago, Reputator said:

 

Respectfully disagreed. I'd happily sit through a feature-length film in the style of this episode. I much prefer it over the breakneck ADHD pacing of JJ Abram's Star Wars.

 

Slow for me means story slow. Meaning repeating the same beats between Anakin and Ahsoka and Ahsoka and Sabine over and over again. It's like: "we get it". Slow as in pace is great! The Mandalorian and Ahsoka, etc. understand not to do The Force Awakens and Rise of Skywalker, since they ruined the slow tone of Star Wars. But slow in terms of repeating plot points rather than moving past them is bad in any show. It's frustrating because the show really wants to sell that Ahsoka feels like she needs to train Sabine into being a Jedi (but not Jacen when it's easier to train kids?) when all that shit happened off screen after Rebels. It's hard to get invested heavily into something that hasn't been earned yet. Things like Huyang acting super sad and saying things like: "I tell them to always be together" when we've seen only one or two training sessions in a short time between them is a level of unearned drama on a plot point that has a history we've never seen.

[Reputator]

2 hours ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

 

Slow for me means story slow. Meaning repeating the same beats between Anakin and Ahsoka and Ahsoka and Sabine over and over again. It's like: "we get it". Slow as in pace is great! The Mandalorian and Ahsoka, etc. understand not to do The Force Awakens and Rise of Skywalker, since they ruined the slow tone of Star Wars. But slow in terms of repeating plot points rather than moving past them is bad in any show. It's frustrating because the show really wants to sell that Ahsoka feels like she needs to train Sabine into being a Jedi (but not Jacen when it's easier to train kids?) when all that shit happened off screen after Rebels. It's hard to get invested heavily into something that hasn't been earned yet. Things like Huyang acting super sad and saying things like: "I tell them to always be together" when we've seen only one or two training sessions in a short time between them is a level of unearned drama on a plot point that has a history we've never seen.

 

It's not perfect. I don't like that most of the tension in the relationship between Ahsoka and Sabine is left off screen. I will say your example in that scene with Huyang worked alright for me because we've seen lots of the characters themselves elsewhere, and we know how stubborn they are. If these were all new characters I definitely wouldn't have cared that much. Of course you're right about "show, don't tell", and some of the stuff about failing to save Mandalore, and Ahsoka abandoning Sabine falls into that category, but there's other elements that are working thanks to past in-universe media.

[Greatoneshere]

1 hour ago, Reputator said:

 

It's not perfect. I don't like that most of the tension in the relationship between Ahsoka and Sabine is left off screen. I will say your example in that scene with Huyang worked alright for me because we've seen lots of the characters themselves elsewhere, and we know how stubborn they are. If these were all new characters I definitely wouldn't have cared that much. Of course you're right about "show, don't tell", and some of the stuff about failing to save Mandalore, and Ahsoka abandoning Sabine falls into that category, but there's other elements that are working thanks to past in-universe media.

 

Hey now I said it was a great episode!  I'm just pointing out what I meant by "slow" is all. A lot of it is definitely working, I agree. The Huyang scene was solid, it's not like I disliked it, but it didn't have much dramatic weight or heft. I'm saying it's believable but not earned. But I was overall impressed by how this episode stepped things up.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

6 hours ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

I'm gonna laugh so damned if now that we finally get the chance to travel to an entirely different galaxy that the first planet we encounter somehow turns out to be practically a carbon-copy of Tatooine 

 

Or Hoth for that matter.

[cusideabelincoln]

3 hours ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

 

Slow for me means story slow. Meaning repeating the same beats between Anakin and Ahsoka and Ahsoka and Sabine over and over again. It's like: "we get it". Slow as in pace is great! The Mandalorian and Ahsoka, etc. understand not to do The Force Awakens and Rise of Skywalker, since they ruined the slow tone of Star Wars. But slow in terms of repeating plot points rather than moving past them is bad in any show. It's frustrating because the show really wants to sell that Ahsoka feels like she needs to train Sabine into being a Jedi (but not Jacen when it's easier to train kids?) when all that shit happened off screen after Rebels. It's hard to get invested heavily into something that hasn't been earned yet. Things like Huyang acting super sad and saying things like: "I tell them to always be together" when we've seen only one or two training sessions in a short time between them is a level of unearned drama on a plot point that has a history we've never seen.

 

It was slow in both regards. And honestly, repeating "rhyming" plot points is what most of the sequel Star Wars does - even moreso than what Lucas did with the prequels. 

 

I'm still waiting for the explanation as to how we got to this version of Ahsoka (bland, boring, emotionless "Jedi Master") from the Ahsoka in Rebels who proclaimed "I am no Jedi."

[Greatoneshere]

1 hour ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

Or Hoth for that matter.

 

I'll throw in a vote for Endor/Kashyyyk forest-type planet or Mustafar lava-type location. 

 

36 minutes ago, cusideabelincoln said:

It was slow in both regards. And honestly, repeating "rhyming" plot points is what most of the sequel Star Wars does - even moreso than what Lucas did with the prequels. 

 

I'm still waiting for the explanation as to how we got to this version of Ahsoka (bland, boring, emotionless "Jedi Master") from the Ahsoka in Rebels who proclaimed "I am no Jedi."

 

 

I will say that I am seeing a lot of criticisms about the stiff acting overall in the show and how Ahsoka particularly comes off as, as you said, bland/boring/emotionless "Jedi Master". That's one criticism I'm not sure where I stand on it yet because Ahsoka is older now, as Anakin pointed out and Ahsoka responds by doing her typical arms folded thing and said "it happens". Clearly the Clone Wars and the original trilogy war affected her in a lot of ways and as you get older the things you've done in the past take on a lot of new potential meanings, like killing a lot of sentient beings as a child Jedi soldier and only now feeling the moral weight of killing those living beings. For me, Ahsoka comes off as much more considered in her movements and actions rather than stiff, very much like a monk where they are very aloof. I think a lot of people are mixing up bland and boring for aloof, or Rosario Dawson isn't doing a good enough job selling it, I'm not sure which yet.

[Reputator]

I think Ahsoka also had some character development in this last episode. After her vision, you notice how much more playful and adventurous she seemed? Maybe she chose to leave the darkness of her past behind, and "live".

[Littleronin]

I will say I have never seen more feeling and expression from an expressionless droid as I did in that last episode.

[cusideabelincoln]

4 hours ago, Greatoneshere said:

 

I'll throw in a vote for Endor/Kashyyyk forest-type planet or Mustafar lava-type location. 

 

 

 

I will say that I am seeing a lot of criticisms about the stiff acting overall in the show and how Ahsoka particularly comes off as, as you said, bland/boring/emotionless "Jedi Master". That's one criticism I'm not sure where I stand on it yet because Ahsoka is older now, as Anakin pointed out and Ahsoka responds by doing her typical arms folded thing and said "it happens". Clearly the Clone Wars and the original trilogy war affected her in a lot of ways and as you get older the things you've done in the past take on a lot of new potential meanings, like killing a lot of sentient beings as a child Jedi soldier and only now feeling the moral weight of killing those living beings. For me, Ahsoka comes off as much more considered in her movements and actions rather than stiff, very much like a monk where they are very aloof. I think a lot of people are mixing up bland and boring for aloof, or Rosario Dawson isn't doing a good enough job selling it, I'm not sure which yet.

 

The stiffness is definitely intentional, and I think this characteristic is supposed to "rhyme" with how all of the council members in the prequels had the same demeanor and not necessarily just be a result of Ahsoka getting older. I'm just not in love with execution. Even an older and considered Obi-Wan, Luke, and Yoda had distinct personalities.

 

3 hours ago, Reputator said:

I think Ahsoka also had some character development in this last episode. After her vision, you notice how much more playful and adventurous she seemed? Maybe she chose to leave the darkness of her past behind, and "live".

 

The episode was a nostalgia trip. Ahsoka was visited by the Force Ghost of Order 66 Past. If we don't finally get to see a happier Scrooge my disappointment in the series will continue. I can't see any reason for the show's pace to not pick up as we're going to an entirely new galaxy and will presumably get to see the first live action Ezra and/or Thrawn.

[Remarkableriots]

40 Years Later, 'Ahsoka' Confirms the Meaning of a Pivotal Lightsaber Battle

WWW.INVERSE.COM

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A key moment in 'Ahsoka' Episode 5 echoes the crucial lesson Luke Skywalker learns in 'Return of the Jedi's climax.

 

[Spawn_of_Apathy]

On 9/13/2023 at 10:00 PM, Jwheel86 said:

 

Kid Ahsoka definitely had child soldier vibes to it. 

yeah I’ve seen some fans of Clone Wars state this episode really drove home how young Ahsoka was in that animated show how young many Padawans were when they started getting trained to be warriors and expected to lead troops into battle. 
 

It’s been a little surprising to me to see many people online read the interaction as Anakin teaching Ahsoka to have the will to fight and live. Focusing so much on that “Anakin let Ahsoka win”, when who won wasn’t even the point. He taught her how to survive in a war. Now he’s teacher her how to live in peacetime. To help her close the loop on her past with the clone wars and with Vader. But more importantly how to make that choices for herself.

 

I wasn’t expecting to see the clone wars and wasn’t sure how I felt. I didn’t want to just be fan service, but ultimately it served a purpose, it served Ahsoka’s arc. And not just “oh she remembers”. 
 

I really liked this episode. The physicality and physical acting by Haden was so very good too. I’m a bit of Star Wars nerd and it was so neat to see him physically convey 4 different eras of Anakin Skywalker, 1 of which being brand new. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Hoooo boy - that was a HELLUVA episode!

 

Peridea didn't turn out to be a carbon copy of Tatooine or Hoth, but was definitely a dark side-infused planet as would be expected from a world that gave birth to the Witches of Dathomir and I'm guessing it's that dark side influence that's "calling" to Baylan.

 

As for Thrawn's Night Troopers, my understanding is that they're undead stormtroopers kept "alive" by Nightsister dark side magick.

[69los]

 

This was pleasing and surprising.

[Kal-El814]

Yeah this was quite good.

 

As a mini painter I'm hoping some of Thrawn's team comes to Legion or Shatterpoint. They looked really cool!

 

Dunno how they're gonna wrap this up in 2 episodes, I'm suspecting a cliffhanger at this point.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Also, I'm pretty sure that the oblique reference that Baylan made that the Nightsisters are running from "something" will eventually turn out to the be the Yuuzhan Vong

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

2 hours ago, Kal-El814 said:

Dunno how they're gonna wrap this up in 2 episodes, I'm suspecting a cliffhanger at this point.

 

Oh - I have little doubt that this series really is an extended prelude to Fioni's film.

[CayceG]

57 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

Also, I'm pretty sure that the oblique reference that Baylan made that the Nightsisters are running from "something" will eventually turn out to the be the Yuuzhan Vong

 

I hope not. The existing canon stuff refers instead to

 

Spoiler

the Grysk

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

1 hour ago, CayceG said:

 

I hope not. The existing canon stuff refers instead to

 

  Reveal hidden contents

the Grysk

 

 

Oh yeah - that could definitely be the case!

 

The reason why I suggested those other guys is because they were "extra-galactic" in the old EU.

[CayceG]

Yeah. The ones I mentioned are extra-galactic (or adjacent to the Chiss) in the current canon. That's my bet. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

9 minutes ago, CayceG said:

Yeah. The ones I mentioned are extra-galactic (or adjacent to the Chiss) in the current canon. That's my bet. 

 

Right - I'm just not aware of anything in the canon that specifically identifies them as originating from an extra-galactic location or whether they're native to the Unknown Regions (which wouldn't make them extra-galactic).