Your Ahsoka fix doesn’t have to (and definitely shouldn’t) end with her recently concluded live-action show.
Join me on a deep-dive thru The Clone Wars, Rebels, and other supplemental material to find out why our titular hero might be the best character in all of the Star Wars.
Many of you have now – blissfully, finally – come to know and love Lady Tano the way a specific set of fans have for years and years (…and years). Your interest piqued through the live-action Ahsoka series, you may be craving more Ahsoka.
Don’t worry boo, I got you.
But first, one must understand that to get to know Ahsoka is no casual thing. It requires a dive into the largely animated STAR WARS world created by Dave Filoni, in collaboration with George Lucas himself, and lovingly known as the “Filoni-verse”. Because in the Filoni-verse, there’s no one bigger than Ahsoka Tano.
You know Anakin Skywalker? You better know Ahsoka. It’s not a discussion.
George Lucas probably
Strap in, it’s about to get weird
Many fans feel the stories that take place in the Filoni-verse most closely capture the weird DNA of STAR WARS. Much of that is owed to the fact that, to this point, it’s taken place almost exclusively in animation. Right or wrong, animated media is more closely associated with “kids stuff” and is eschewed by *ahem* serious STAR WARS fans 🙄, very much to their loss. But the Filoni-verse is a lot more than just a few animated kid’s shows.
If The Madolorian season 3 or the Mando tangent in The Book of Boba Fett had you scratching your head, the Filoni-verse will answer your questions. Soon enough, you’ll be as geeked as we are at Bo-katan’s historic retaking of Mandalore (though the wisdom of relying on narrative established in a different mediums has yet to really be proven).
You see, this is because the Filoni-verse is widely regarded to have some of the best STAR WARS storytelling. Deep characters with real development, found family, emotional themes, and narrative payoffs are the currency with which the Filoni-verse peddles. In Filoni We Trust.
But what about that weird STAR WARS DNA? Well, the Filoni-verse is also known for it’s heavy use of Force mysticism, witches and other Force beings, pocket dimensions and other just generally weird sh*t.
Personally, I’ve thought for many years that the Filoni-verse would never satisfy the mainstream because of this weirdness. For example, during the finale of Rebels, I definitely thought the hyperspace hopping purrgils would be too much for normal fans. I’m ecstatic to be proved wrong.
Put simply, the Filoni-verse turns admittedly wooden, one or two dimensional film characters into real people, with real problems, taking actions that make sense, and introduces loads of compelling new characters too. It helps add much needed shading to those characters that didn’t have time to fully develop on-screen.
This is where the fun begins
With the end of Ahsoka‘s run and the (hopeful) beginning of the unstoppable Lady Tano zeitgeist, now is the perfect time for a stroll through Ahsoka’s arcs in various Star Wars media, beginning with the beloved animated Star Wars series, The Clone Wars. The Clone Wars spotlights heroic Anakin, sassy Obi-wan, complicated Count Dooku, compelling villains like General Grievous and Sith smoke show Asajj Ventress, heated battles, Jedi Council drama, and *gasp* maybe even more talk of politics and trade deals than even the Prequels. And of course, it features the phenomenal development of Ahsoka Tano from a bratty teen foil to heroes Anakin and Obi-wan, into the biggest badass left in the galaxy by the time of Ahsoka.
On this journey, I’ll cover, explore, and explain the character of Ahsoka, her relationships with her Master, Anakin Skywalker (seriously, EVER HEARD OF HIM!?), and his master, Obi-wan Kenobi, as well as the themes and connective tissues that are now beginning to bind all canon Star Wars content into a cohesive narrative, much in the way the Living Force binds all things. I’ll also talk a little about our world, and how these considerations influenced narrative direction.
This article serves as the first of three “prologue” articles before I get into The Clone Wars re-watch. Next, I’ll briefly cover why Ahsoka exists in the first place, followed by a brief orientation within the STAR WARS timeline to help you understand where exactly we are and what has happened at the time of Ahsoka’s introduction. From there, I’ll go through the important Ahsoka story arcs one-by-one on a semi-recurring basis, providing a brief synopsis and plenty of my witty and profound commentary.
may the force be with you
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