THE CLONE WARS (S7E8+9): Out Of The Shadows

As Clone Wars leads us further and further toward end of the series, the show is beginning to set the pawns in place for their final showdown. Ahsoka, Darth Maul, Anakin and Grevious have all appeared in the last two episodes, along with our Mandalorian friends. The question must be asked; what will they connect this ending to? The writers of Clone Wars have the opportunity to connect Clone Warsto the larger Star Wars canon, something the show has always aspired to do, but something that always seemed just out of reach due to the show being animation while most of the other properties are live-action. Will we connect to Revenge of the Sith? Will they set up Rebels? Or will they look even further into the future toward The Mandalorian?

It seems like they’re hinting at a bit of everything, but I’m wondering whether or not they’re going to focus specifically on one property to link these final seasons to. It’s a fun question, and makes you watch the show more closely, scouring its contents for clues to see just what’s going to happen next. Regardless, the show seems to be operating on a “save the best for last” attack plan, because these past two episodes were the best yet. Let’s dig in.

Goodbyes and Hellos

Ahsoka and her new companions, Trace and Rafa, are still in the clutches of the Pykes. Ahsoka struggles as she attempts to free them while maintaining her hidden identity as a former jedi. The Martez sisters make a deal with the Pykes and attempt to steal more spices to appease them, while Ahsoka has no choice but you use her skills as a jedi to escape. Meanwhile, Bo-Katan, the Mandalorian who has been watching Ahsoka from afar, enlists the former jedi to help liberate Mandalor once more, as she reveals Darth Maul has once more taken up residence there.

In the following episode, Ahsoka is finally reunited with her old Masters, Anakin and Obi-Wan. In a less than joyous reunion, Anakin and Obi-Wan tell Ahsoka that they cannot help her go after Maul, as they’ve been given orders to go after Grevious. They do, however, supply Ahsoka with a squad of troops, and Anakin leaves Ahsoka with a second gift: her lightsabers, new and improved with a blue glow. Ahsoka takes her troops to Mandalor, and the episode ends with her and Maul standing face to face once more.

And we’ve still got a few episodes left!

Reunions

We’ve waited a long time for the reunion of Ahsoka and Anakin. Their relationship in the early seasons of the show is responsible for my, and probably a large portion of the Star Wars fandom’s, newfound love for Anakin as a character. Clone Wars brought some much-needed character to Anakin’s character. Watching him interact with Ahsoka like a big-brother/father was a delight. So when they separated, we not only felt the loss of a beautiful relationship, but the loss of a character we’d wanted to love so badly in the prequels, and finally could with Clone Wars.

Their reunion in episode 9 was a somber affair. Anakin wants things to snap back into place. He wants to call her “Snips” and go on a mission with her like in the old days, but Ahsoka regards him with caution and doesn’t fully allow herself to fall back into her old relationship with her master. She treats him like a business partner, not ready to completely let her guard down around him. She’s still hurt by what happened, and it’s grueling to watch. It hurts, but it’s a really brave move on the writers’ part that I respect. This doesn’t have to be a happy ending. In fact, we know for a fact that it’s about to get really rough for everyone, so why not start the pain now?

Obi Wan’s interactions with Ahsoka hurt almost just as much. He seems to be taking the Ahsoka route and regards her no longer as a peer. It’s a tough look for our favorite mentor figure, but his way of treating Ahsoka speaks to the larger problems with the Jedi order, a subject that Clone Wars has always been adamant on confronting. Ahsoka character exists to expose the Jedi as a problematic organization and now that she’s been with people who have shown her what the view of the Jedi truly is, it’s unlikely she’ll ever look at the Jedi the same way again.

Lightsabers!

I have some friends that tell me Solo: A Star Wars Story is better on a rewatch. I rewatched it, and was about as lukewarm on it as I was when I first saw it. And at the end of the day, I think my dumb brain just doesn’t get serotonin watching Star Wars unless I see lightsabers. I can’t help it! Lightsabers are cool. So when we finally got to see Ahsoka ignite her signature weapons once more, I was giddy. It lead to the best action sequence…perhaps in the show’s history?

Ahsoka leaps from a ship to the roof of another and starts bringing down foes left and right. She turns the lightsabers off and on quickly for each attack, so the show can boast that iconic ignition sound a few times in a row, all while the force theme swells behind her. She jumps into a split and kicks guards on either side of her, slashes someone’s jetpack so they spiral to the ground, and lands on the ground and stands up to an explosion behind her. It’s awesome. It’s what we’ve been waiting for. It’s Ahsoka Tano, folks.

What did you think of these past two episodes? Will Ahsoka and Anakin get a reunion before it’s all over? Let me know in the comments below!