Ahsoka episode 3 review: Time to Fly

In short, episode 3 of Ahsoka is a love letter to A New Hope but with a brand new address. 

I’m not going to sugar-coat it: This episode of Ahsoka brought out the absolute worst in me last night. I’ll start by saying that I was equal parts pleased and frustrated after watching it, and I had to wear my big girl pants and re-watch it so I could focus on the story unfolding in front of me instead of seething during parts that are supposed to be meaningful.

With that said, let’s get to the good part first – let’s review this super fun and visually stunning episode of Ahsoka, shall we?

*** SPOILERS GALORE BELOW! ***

Ahsoka episode 3 review

Aboard Ahsoka Tano’s shuttle, the former Jedi herself, her Mandalorian apprentice Sabine Wren, and my spirit droid ex-Jedi Temple droid Huyang are all out to uncover Imperial loyalist Morgan Elsbeth’s dirty secrets. The scene from Star Wars: A New Hope where Luke and Obi-Wan train aboard the Millennium Falcon is beautifully mirrored the right way when Ahsoka and Huyang take turns training Sabine in the saber arts. Huyang’s humor and sarcasm is absolutely fantastic and sharp, and Sabine realizes that there’s much more to her training as she isn’t Force sensitive herself.

The scene where Ahsoka and Sabine spar while Sabine is only relying on her instincts and hearing is divine. Truly beautiful and it totally channels the samurai movies that inspired the original trilogy – it’s a respectful exchange of blows and strikes, it’s elegant, it’s smooth, it kind of feels like a dance. I love how they filmed that scene, and I love that while it did pay homage to A New Hope, it’s not a copy/paste job.

Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s General Hera Syndulla shows up in a tense scene, exchanging spicy words with Senator Hamato Xiono and connecting with Chancellor Mothma, bringing the worlds of Andor, Star Wars Resistance, and Rebels together very, very nicely. Her attempts to get the Republic to sanction a trip to the Denab system, and to follow through to stop Morgan Elsbeth from bringing Thrawn back fail, unfortunately. As government officials typically do, they brush her request aside and say that this is only a desperate attempt to try and find Ezra Bridger, who went missing along with Grand Admiral Thrawn. How. Rude.

After Hera delivers the news that she will not be joining Ahsoka and Sabine on their quest, the duo is engaged in a really fun dogfight with Sith Apprentice Shin

Hottie

Hati, Marrok, and a few other unimportant pilots that just so happen to be the ones to die in the space fight that goes down. Though the stakes do feel a little low, it’s still pretty and pretty cool.

I did kind of tilt my head when Ahsoka went outside the ship and…. deflected incoming fire from the fighters as they flew by. It was cool, I just kind of lost my immersion because she had entirely too much gravity on her side. But hey, it’s Star Wars, it’s a fictional show (this has been my mantra since 9:03 pm EST last night). We also get to see the wondrous and gigantic Purrgil – the space whales that just kept swimming as they took Thrawn and possibly Ezra away In Rebels.

Let’s not forget our villains – Shin does add an edge and a dangerous chill to the space chase, setting the stage for Sith Master Baylan Skoll to step in. I love her sarcasm towards Morgan Elsbeth and the pure disdain they have towards each other. Elsbeth is still my favorite character in the show so far, representing my favorite faction in the Star Wars Extended Universe – the Nightsisters.

This disappointingly short episode left us with a few questions. Will Ahsoka and crew find Grand Admiral Thrawn? Will the New Republic ever get its act together – a freaking ship full of Sith escaped from Corellia and we’re just going to pretend that this is okay?!

With nods to the past and teases for the future, this episode is a fun one for both new fans and old.

HOWEVER. I did say I was incredibly pissed after the episode as well. Here’s why.

The big issue with Ahsoka

Filoni may be the Godfather of modern Star Wars storytelling, but even the mightiest Jedi aren’t infallible.

There’s something outright sacrilegious about tweaking the intricate world-building of the Star Wars universe, especially when it’s not officially re-established, redefined, or not even paired with any kind of clarification or explanation. Instead, we get an opening crawl in the first episode with grossly inaccurate terms regarding Ahsoka’s past with the Jedi Order that felt like it was spit out by a malfunctioning droid. The complete absence of clarifications feels like a gigantic disservice to fans who are very passionate about the Star Wars universe (hi, it’s me, I’m a fan who is very passionate about the Star Wars universe), fans who like to have lines established and clear rules on what happens when those lines are crossed.

Sabine is not Force sensitive. She’s getting good at saber combat, sure, but when Ahsoka implies that she can totally manipulate the Force if she keeps practicing was a little hard to swallow. I kept watching that stupid cup on the table, really hoping it wouldn’t budge towards Sabine as she’s trying to Force Pull it, and I am so happy it didn’t.

Don’t get me wrong: if Sabine were to become Force sensitive, good for her. It’d be very odd, as the Force more often than not manifests itself in the early ages of whatever being has been chosen to have an affinity with it, but it’s not unheard of. I mean, Ahsoka was 14 when she became a Padawan – much, much older than her fellow Younglings. I am all for Sabine being able to manifest Force abilities as she trains under Ahsoka – that’s fine. What’s not fine is clumping Force users together as Jedi when they aren’t a Jedi.

Yes, Luke is doing his own thing with the Order and we’ve seen Ahsoka hanging out with him in The Book of Boba Fett, but was that supposed to hint at Ahsoka coming back to a newly established, rebuilt Jedi Order? Why not make things clear by telling us what we missed between the bits and pieces of Ahsoka’s moments we’ve been shown since Rebels? I already have enough personal bullshit to figure out in real life. Could we not make my favorite franchise something in which I also have to look between the lines and do mental gymnastics in order to understand what you’ve changed or are currently trying to?

What I’m trying to say is, I’m livid, yes, but also captivated by the incredible main plot of this show and where it’s going. I just want some clarification, damn it!

Thank you, again, for coming to another one of my BSP Talks.

With all of that said, episode 3 of Ahsoka is comforting yet surprising, familiar yet new. Another excellent entry in a so-far remarkable new show. All flaws aside, of course.