So, yeah, I liked Ahsoka. But be warned, I'm not exactly the most critical of Star Wars fans. Hey, I even liked Obi-Wan Kenobi.
I've come to realise that when it comes to Star Wars shows, I'm a complete pushover. You can put anything in front of me TV-wise and I'll gulp it down, as long as it's linked to the good old galaxy far, far away. The same pretty much goes for the movies, with Solo being a possible exception (and I do think that Rogue One has been over-hyped in the wake of Andor). It's a bit troubling to be so undiscerning – Star Wars is, after all, only my second favourite sci-fi franchise after Doctor Who – but at least I have fun.
I do, however, completely understand if true Star Wars fans – the fine diners to my burger gobbler – tend to be less easy to win over. Overall, I have the impression that they had a good time with Ahsoka, but were disappointed that the series didn't deliver more on the promising scenarios it set up (a feeling I as a die-hard Once Upon A Time fan can relate to). As in Once, it's a question of letting go of all the cool concepts that were never properly explored and instead trying to appreciate the things we actually got.
However, what the average Star Wars movie viewer makes of this show, I have absolutely no idea.
This bothered me. The franchise isn't in such a great shape that it can risk alienating "casual" fans – if by "casual" you mean fans who have watched all three trilogies of the Skywalker saga, plus Rogue One and Solo too. Because you can do all that, and still not have the faintest idea who Ahsoka is.
The Ahsoka mini-series prominently features characters from the two animated shows Star Wars: The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels but, unlike characters like Bo-Katan in The Mandalorian, they're not properly re-introduced, in a way as to give you a good grasp of them even if you haven't watched the animated stuff. I got the strong feeling that we're already supposed to know the story of Sabine Wren, Ezra Bridger, Hera Syndulla, Grand Admiral Thrawn and – last but not least – Ahsoka herself when going into Ahsoka. And I did, so there was no problem for me. But Clone Wars and Rebels shouldn't be required viewing for a live-action series such as this one. It should be able to function independently, and ideally make its characters so interesting that viewers will be curious to learn more about them in the animated shows.
Even if you knew everything Clone Wars and Rebels could teach you about the characters, though, character development wasn't this show's strong suit, and in this it reflects a common gripe with me when it comes to Star Wars content: the reluctance to explore relationships. The franchise's large male fanbase may be a factor here. Guys are rightly or wrongly supposed not to be interested in too much relationship-focused drama, especially if the relationships in question are of a romantic nature (and admittedly, the most disdainful dismissals of "shipping" do tend to come from male commentators).
Whatever the reason, we get a couple of surrogate parent-child relationships and some pat-each-other-on-the-back camaraderie in Star Wars, but otherwise attachments are avoided in a way that would make any member of the Jedi Council proud. It's a wonder that anyone besides Anakin and Padmé and Han and Leia procreates at all.
In Ahsoka, the exact nature of Sabine's feelings for Ezra – for whose sake she makes a momentous and un-Jedi-like decision (I'm all for it) – is never fully explained. But even putting romance aside, we don't get a clear idea of what the characters actually think of each other. What's the deal with Ahsoka and Sabine? Or with Morgan Elsbeth and Grand Admiral Thrawn? Or with Baylan Skoll, a fallen Jedi looking for a new creed to follow beyond the Jedi and the Sith, and his power-hungry apprentice Shin Hati? I want to know!
What the series does have, though, is plenty of atmosphere, some heartwarming nostalgia, a fun droid voiced by David Tennant and potential to develop further if there's a series two. Ray Stevenson, who played arguably the most interesting character (Baylan), tragically passed away after the series was completed, but hopefully there's still room to explore his quest (recasting, maybe? It will be tough as Stevenson was seriously good). Then there's Shin, dubbed "Shin Hottie" by the fans, who's a far more fun bad-girl Force wielder than the aggrieved Reva in Obi-Wan Kenobi. I wouldn't mind seeing more battles between her and Ahsoka and Sabine, and maybe even a temporary, easily fractured team-up.
I'm still not convinced by Grand Admiral Thrawn as the next Big Bad in Star Wars, though. I'm sure he was great in the books the serious fans keep referring to, but here as in Rebels, he leans far to heavily into the "Ah, just as I anticipated" kind of villainy. But I appreciate Lars Mikkelsen as an actor, and there's still time to make the blue guy work for me.
