With the premiere season of Ahsoka finally reaching its conclusion, Star Wars fans are mostly applauding the series for its galactic twist, and for setting up what clearly seems to be a second season.
However, some fans felt underwhelmed, and I have to reluctantly include myself amongst them. But instead of just telling you what I thought the finale could have done better, I will also tell you exactly how.
So, be warned, that this is obviously a major spoiler alert if you haven’t watched the finale episode yet.
5. I would’ve given Anakin more influence
Anakin’s appearance in the series ultimately didn’t really have a profound affect on Ahsoka. There was no real emotional change; not in Ashoka’s character, not in the direction of her story, or in her motivations. We had even been teased by Thrawn, who suggested she could end up like her master, yet we never experience this possibility in the story, outside of the Anakin scene in which she relives a battle as her younger self.
A confused Ahsoka, showing off some Dark Side tendencies, could make us wonder whether she might become a female version of Darth Vader. This tension would’ve added much-needed depth to her character, and the story could have concluded with her clearly deciding against that path, making the ending even more satisfying.
4. I would have had the crazy experience effect change on the characters
Ezra Bridger has been through a lot, though you wouldn’t know it. He unintentionally took off to another galaxy with one of the most evil people possible, then wound up going back with that same evil dude in tow, after people tried killing him. It seems strange that Ezra has is not somehow a changed man, outside of having grown up.
In fact, none of our main heroic characters go through any change. They suffer no trauma, and are totally fine. Sabine and Ahsoka are already settling into the new world, and don’t manifest any real emotional reaction to their new circumstances.
Point is, no one is scarred. How is that possible? We don’t need to go overboard, but the audience needs to be able to look back at this story, and identify these experiences as having altered or developed at least one of the main characters.
3. I would have given Morgan Elsbeth more to do
Morgan Elsbeth was basically a throwaway character in this series, there to fill certain roles that the storytellers were too scared to have filled by others.
Let me explain. The main characters journey to another galaxy, but they need a “how.” Enter Elsbeth, who hears the calling from another galaxy, and ultimately finds the map, with help from others. She is also used as the sacrificial villain who dies at the hands of the titular hero. So, she clearly exists for those reasons.
However, given the above, it made no sense that Thrawn and the Nightsisters chose her to sacrifice her life, to buy more time for them to leave — because Elsbeth was the only one that heard the Nightsisters calling from another galaxy. This seems like that type of ability can come in handy. Point is, those two roles have to be served by two different characters, otherwise it doesn’t work from a logical sense.
2. Thrawn would have won a decisive battle
Grand Admiral Thrawn is a master military strategist, and he also is the single most significant threat in the series; his return to the unnamed galaxy far, far away is the one thing that our heroes must stop.
However, we never see Thrawn doing anything, other than giving orders as if he’s in a massive battle, even though it’s just a couple of people that his mini-army is trying to defeat. Thrawn, praised for his military intelligence, makes small-scale decisions here, such us moving from an air attack to a ground attack just to take on three people, and his troops basically fail every time.
The major missed opportunity is that this is the rare story in which our heroes actually fail — because Thrawn does indeed escape — which should be the perfect platform to boost your villain. Yet, no one is ever going to look back on the series and say, “Man, that was one of Thrawn’s greatest victories.” It’s a shame, because that has to happen considering the conclusion of this story.
Even worse, an entire rebel alliance knew Ahsoka blasted off to another galaxy (or whaled off, as it were) but they were against it. The writers should have had a fairly large portion the rebellion agree and somehow go with Ahsoka (which would likely require retrieving the map and creating a scenario where it’s not entirely broken). Why? Because the story needs Thrawn to show off his military prowess with a small army by defeating a much larger force. Then, we can see Thrawn in his true element, destroy an entire portion of the rebellion, and easily take off back to the home galaxy.
This would also give Hera more importance, because she could be the one to lead the rebellion to the other galaxy, making the audience truly believe that Thrawn really is a threat, moving forward.
1. I would have featured Baylan Skoll and Shin Hati more prominently
This was, by far, the biggest letdown of the episode; the writers successfully created two new baddies that they certainly knew they were going to be popular, showcased them throughout the series, then all but ignored them in the finale.
Even worse, throwaway character Morgan Elsbeth was used in the end fight, making it all too predictable what would happen. The series should have ended with a Baylan Skoll vs Ahsoka duel, or an Ezra vs Skoll and an Ahsoka vs Hati duel.
Even better, since Skoll and Hati are left stranded, they could’ve fought Thrawn alongside Ahsoka and the others, something that would have likely wowed Star Wars fans. And since the two were not necessarily darksiders, and Hati really didn’t seem to like Elsbeth, she could’ve offed her instead of Ahsoka.
This wouldn’t necessarily mean that they are all now a team moving forward, because the finale would’ve been a case of fighting against a shared enemy.
This concludes my thoughts on the missed opportunities in the Ahsoka finale. It was a good Star Wars show, but it clearly could have been much better.