This past week as people were sitting down to enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday, Disney Plus was unveiling the ultimate episode of the second season of The Mandalorian.

As in my review of the episode titled “The Jedi”, the series didn’t bury the lede when they brought former Jedi Ahsoka Tano to life in the first five minutes of the episode and proceeded to excite fans of the character by having her not only show what a badass character she is, but giving her the duty of filling in some of the backstory of the Child, who now has a name.

So what does Ahsoka’s appearance on The Mandalorian signal for the series going forward? We can only guess what’s going on in the minds of Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni as they craft and expand the Star Wars universe. But isn’t guessing the best part?

So here are my fan based guesses on what this episode could mean for the series and the Star Wars television universe going forward.

[SPOILER ALERT] If you have not watched Chapter 13 of The Mandalorian, watch it first and finish reading this.

The Fight to Reclaim Mandalore

As Din Djarin pursues his mission of returning the Child (now to be known as Grogu) to his people aka The Jedi, the complicated politics and conflicts of a galaxy far far away continue. As we saw in Chapter 8 (Redemption), Moff Gideon cheated death and escaped from is downed Tie Fighter using the Dark Saber. The Dark Saber is a symbol of great power on Mandalore and was once carried by Bo Katan of Clan Kryze, sister of the slain former Mandalorian leader Satine. During the purge, the weapon was taken by Gideon and Bo Katan wants it back in order to unite her people in the wake of the Empire’s destruction.

Ahsoka Tano has a history with Bo Katan and the fight for Mandalore. It would stand to reason that the two would join forces again with Din and Grogu as the bridge that brings their mission together. All three could invariably find themselves coming together on Mandalore for different reasons with Bo Katan looking to unite her people, Ahsoka continuing her hunt for Thrawn and Din Djarin learning more about the true Mandalorian culture. This plot could definitely translate into the story for the third season of the series or a spinoff series focused on Bo Katan and her Nite Owls.

The Hunt for Grand Admiral Thrawn

Ahsoka Tano’s mission on Corvus was action packed and filled with beautiful lightsaber battles and drama. It also had another purpose. Her attack on the stronghold of Imperial Magistrate Morgan Elsbeth was a quest for information about the location of Grand Admiral Thrawn.

Created by writer Timothy Zahn in the book “Heir to the Empire”, Thrawn is from the Unknown Regions of the galaxy and rose to the rank of Grand Admiral in the Imperial Navy after showing his strategic skills in battle. On Star Wars Rebels, Thrawn has a bigger role in the events of the Star Wars universe as he takes on the task of ending Hera’s rebel forces and ran into not only former Jedi’s Kanan Jarrus and Ahsok Tano, but also Padawan Ezra Bridger. Their final conflict took them into hyperspace and set Ahsoka on a mission to find Bridger.

The introduction of Ahsoka in The Mandalorian was brilliantly done and her mission to find Thrawn was a beautiful piece of not only fan service, but connection to the Rebels series. That being said, there is too much story here to be contained within the confines of Din Djarin’s story and trying to service it would take away from the character. While there are certainly moments that could include Mando and cub in this story, the arc would be much better served with its own series.

While there is currently no news about a possible Ahsoka solo series, the groundwork has been laid in this episode which could definitely serve as a backdoor pilot featuring Ahsoka’s hunt for Thrawn and Bridger. It could also bring live action versions of more Rebels characters including Mandalorian Sabine Wren as well as Hera and Zeb to the screen.

With the end of the Skywalker Saga, the Star Wars universe continues to expand as it looks back to the days of the Old Republic and forward with shows like The Mandalorian. With Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni bridging the gaps between those stories and telling all news ones, the future of Star Wars looks bright and ready for more tales to be told.

I want to know what you think. Do you think spinoff shows featuring these characters would work? Which stories would you like to see on the big or small screen? Let me know what you think in the comments below.

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