- Episode 1: Life and Death
Out of all of the episodes, this one is the most unique. It offers a glimpse into Ahsoka’s childhood and life before the Order, as well as her blooming Force-sensitivity. Her mother’s methods of teaching her about death are a bit strange, but it’s not beyond the pale for Star Wars parenting.
I will argue, though, that I found it odd for Ahsoka’s Force-sensitivity to be discovered through a connection with an animal. It is an established fact that Jedi can connect with all sorts of creatures through the Force, that I know. But when I think of animals, Ezra Bridger from Rebels comes to mind. His affinity for different kinds of animals is somewhat unique to him. With the exception of Morai, Ahsoka isn’t often tied to animals in her journeys.
This really isn’t a big deal. I get that this is one of the easier ways to show Ahsoka’s Force-sensitivity and it works well. I think I just really miss Ezra.
- Episode 2: Justice and Episode 3: Choices
I found these episodes incredibly similar: Dooku goes on a mission for the Jedi, finds corrupt Senators, and learns that the Republic isn’t perfect. While it is interesting to see him interacting with different Jedi in these episodes – Qui-Gon Jinn in one and Mace Windu in another – them being so alike is something of a missed opportunity, given that these episodes make up a third of the entire show.
It does make sense that Dooku’s reservations about the Order and Republic would continue across the years. But a different situation could’ve been used in Choices to emphasize this.
- Episode 4: The Sith Lord
In Dooku’s final episode, you see what his doubts about the Republic have led to. There are some nice tie-ins with The Phantom Menace that I liked, and drawing specifically on Qui-Gon’s death is a painful angle to dive into Dooku’s emotions.
This is a pretty great episode, especially with the appearance of Yaddle. It’s great how she represents Dooku’s last chance to turn away from the dark side and rejoin the Jedi. There’s some very nicely done light and dark imagery as well.
Also, while it’s amusing that Yaddle doesn’t have the same speech patterns as Yoda, it makes sense. She’s around 400 years old in the prequels, whereas Yoda was nearly 900. So it stands to reason that the way Yoda talks isn’t because of his species, but his age.
- Episode 5: Practice Makes Perfect
This is the second Ahsoka episode of the show. I thought there would be more of a focus on her youth, but she’s in the Clone Wars and a Padawan of Anakin Skywalker by this point. Episode 5 focuses on her learning to defend herself, with Anakin being both tough and caring towards her. And the episode ends with an unexpected gut punch that brings back all the emotions of season 7 of The Clone Wars.
This is the only episode of the show where Anakin and Ahsoka interact. I love their bond, and I wish we could’ve gotten a bit more of that. The focus is more so on Ahsoka’s relationship with her men, which works well. I can’t complain. Hopefully, we’ll get some good Anakin and Ahsoka moments from the Ahsoka show this September.
Early in the episode, when Ahsoka is practicing, you see baby Caleb Dume (aka Kanan Jarrus) eagerly watching her alongside his master, Depa Billaba. As a Rebels fan, I enjoyed the cameo, and I liked how it answered an old question brought up during that show’s release. I remember Dave Filoni being asked if Kanan and Ahsoka knew each other in the Temple, and he answered that they knew of each other but weren’t close friends. It’s nice to be able to see that here in TotJ.
- Episode 6: Resolve
Out of all the episodes, this one is the most cinematic. The animation and fight scenes are fantastically done. There’s a pretty great battle scene at the end, and it really works for this to be the fight that everything Ahsoka does is leading towards.
I enjoyed the relationship between Bail and Ahsoka, too. You can feel his trust in Ahsoka going beyond that of a desperate man reaching out to a lone Jedi. He’s not just looking for her help; he’s looking to help her.
Also, if Ahsoka was at Padme’s funeral, it stands to reason that she knew that Padme was pregnant when she died. And if Ahsoka knew that, then she likely knew about Anakin and Padme’s secret relationship, too. It’s a fragment of Anakin’s past where it’s never explicitly confirmed if Ahsoka was aware – there are hints in certain episodes, but they’re only hints. I’m still hungry for the moment when Ahsoka learns that Anakin and Padme had children, but I can wait. We better get that scene one day.
Minor spoilers here for the episode:
Out of everything from this entire show, the reveal that Rex was still with Ahsoka after Order 66 made me the most emotional. I always assumed that the two of them stayed together after they crashed their ship on that moon at the end of season 7. But I heard theories that the moon was actually where they parted ways when they both went into hiding.
I didn’t place much stock in this rumor – Ahsoka was only seventeen when Order 66 hit. I found it absurd that Rex would part ways with her so soon. But the absolute confirmation from TotJ that yes, they didn’t leave one another, was lovely. I wish we had a few more Rex and Ahsoka interactions in this show, but I’ll take what we can get.
The biggest problem with this episode, though, is its blatant conflict with the 2016 novel Ahsoka. That book takes place one year after Order 66, with Ahsoka in hiding and avoiding the Empire. She ends up fighting an Inquisitor and joining Bail in the Rebellion – two major events that also happen in this episode of the show. She also goes by the name “Ashla” – the same secret identity from the book.
Resolve feels a lot like a heavily abbreviated version of Ahsoka, with all of the build-up and queer themes gone. (While watching the show, I joked about the village girl and how Ahsoka seems to make girls all over the galaxy crush on her, like Kaeden from Ahsoka. But if this unnamed character from Resolve is supposed to be a new version of Kaeden, she’s a disappointing shadow of her predecessor.) I’m not the biggest fan of the Ahsoka novel – it can be pretty slow – but Resolve definitely isn’t worth undoing all the events of the book.
Funnily enough, Dooku’s episodes work very well alongside his own book, Dooku: Jedi Lost… but that’s a whole separate blog post. For my thoughts on how both the Dooku and Ahsoka books do and don’t coexist with TotJ, read my article HERE.
