Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi - All The Biggest Franchise Reveals Explained
Star Wars new animated anthology series on Disney+, Tales of the Jedi, uses Ahsoka Tano and Count Dooku as springboards to stories that fill in some pivotal pieces of canon from the Star Wars Prequels, Clone Wars, and early Empire eras. George Lucas' initial set of Prequel Trilogy movies (The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, Revenge of the Sith) have been largely expanded upon in projects like The Clone Wars animated series, which both helps to fill in gaps and expand upon key characters – but also leave greater possibility for holes in the canon storyline that need later patchwork or further explanation. Here is a breakdown of all the major Star Wars reveals that take place in Tales of the Jedi:
How Raxus Became the Separatist Homeworld
The Confederacy of Independent Systems was the main antagonist or enemy of The Republic during the Star Wars Prequels. The Confederacy was led by Count Dooku (at the behest of Darth Sidious), and main homeworld of the Confederacy was moved to the planet Raxus, after Geonosis was reclaimed by the Republic (in Attack of the Clones). Raxus was the site of some pivotal events during The Clone Wars – like a peace-seeking mission that teamed Queen Amidala with Ahsoka Tano, or Jedi Master Quinlan Vos and Dooku's apprentice Asajj Ventress staging a failed assassination attempt on the Sith Lord.
In Tales of the Jedi, we get to see the first seeds of dissent forming in Count Dooku, following a mission on Raxus with Mace Windu. The pair of Jedi come to Raxus to retrieve the body of Jedi Master Katri after her death – an event that Dooku feels needs more investigation. The mystery turns out to have a tragic answer: the senator of Raxus was corrupt, and his guards sought to forcibly coerce him into instilling new and more benevolent policies in the Senate. When Master Katri found out, they killed her to protect the secret.
Dooku ends the tale helping Windu defeat the rogue guardsmen, and arrest their leader. However, Dooku privately confesses to the captain of the guard that he respects the moral resolve of Raxus and its people, and encourages the captain to keep stoking fires of independence in the people. The encounter also forces Dooku to question whether the Jedi have indeed become Senate puppets – a question that inevitably grows into his own motivation to break from the Order and follow Darth Sidious.
Dooku Erased Kamino From the Jedi Archives
One of the biggest mysteries in the storyline of Star Wars: Attack of the Clones is how the existence of Kamino and its army of Clone Troopers were kept hidden from The Republic and Jedi Order for so many years. During Attack of the Clones, Obi-Wan Kenobi's investigation of Kamino reveals the planet is missing from files kept in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. That deletion prompted a disturbing question Obi-Wan and Yoda had to ponder: who would've had knowledge of this secret and access to the Jedi Temple records to hide it?
Tales of the Jedi reveals what many Star Wars fans probably guessed: Dooku is the one who erases the knowledge of Kamino from the Jedi archives, in service to his new master, Darth Sidious. Based on what is seen in TotJ, Dooku erased Kamino from the archives when his former pupil Qui-Gon Jinn had grown into a Jedi Knight and was beginning to mentor his own padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi. That confirms the records were missing for some number of years until Obi-Wan finally realized the deception.
Dooku Killed Jedi Master Yaddle
Jedi Master Yaddle has become another unintended breakout of the Star Wars franchise who we barely knew. Like Boba Fett, Yaddle was just a background character in an pivotal ensemble scene – in this case a member of the Jedi Council that first met Anakin Skywalker as a young boy in The Phantom Menace. Howevever, Yaddle being one of the only characters in Star Wars from the same race as Yoda and Grogu (and the only female member we have) instantly made her something of an icon.
Yaddle's fate in the Skywalker Saga has been a very muddled piece of the canon. It was revealed that she stepped back from the Jedi Order after the Battle of Naboo, but what happened to her in the years after during the Clone Wars and Order 66 was unclear.
Tales of the Jedi' darkest story reveals what became of Yaddle: she was murdered by Count Dooku as a test of his loyalty to Darth Sidious.
Several of the stories in Tales of the Jedi hint that Yaddle recognized the growing darkness in her friend Dooku before he fully turned. After Qui-Gon Jinn's death in The Phantom Menace, Dooku was intensely upset about losing his former pupil – with his anger aimed at both the Jedi Council and Sidious. When Yaddle witnesses Dooku leaving on a secret errand she follows him, only to find him slipping into the rusted ruins of Coruscant to meet with Darth Sidious. Yaddle surprises the two conspirators, recognizing Sidious as a true Sith Lord. She tries to coax her old friend Dooku back to the light, but it's too late: after an intense duel, Dooku cuts Yaddle downb in cold blood, completing his transformation into "Darth Tyrannous."
Feat not, though! While Star Wars has fixed the canon regarding Yaddle's ultimate fate, the character's long life span has allowed the franchise to explore her in greater depth as part of The High Republic line, where Yaddle is a renowned Jedi instructor and warrior in her prime two centuries before Phantom Menace.
Why Ahsoka & Rex Survived A Major Clone Wars Battle
This scene hits a lot different after watching Tales of the Jedi… #TalesOfTheJedi pic.twitter.com/byqMx1LtzM
— Scenealizer (@scenealizer) October 26, 2022
The final episodes of The Clone Wars animated series gave Star Wars fans a key piece of missing history: how Ahsoka Tano, Bo-Katan Kryze and the Clone Troopers of the 501st Legion liberated Mandalore from Maul's criminal syndicate. It was after that victory – and Maul's subsequent arrest – that Sidious enacted Order 66, forcing Ahsoka and Maul to fight together to survive being slaughtered by the brainwashed 501st Clone Troopers. Captain Rex managed to get out his inhibitor chip (saving him from being brainwashed like other clones) and Clone Wars ended with the sad imagery of Darth Vader eventually tracking Ahsoka to where she and Rex landed and went into hiding, leaving behind a mass graveyard where they buried the 501st Legion.
Tales of the Jedi Episode 6 tells a story of how, early on, Anakin Skywalker put Ahsoka through an intense exercise of being surrounded by Clone Troopers and shot with stun blasts until she inevitably learned to defeind against an entire gang of attackers. Tales of the Jedi reveals that this same exercise led to Ahsoka's signature fighting style of using dual lightsaber "daggers" as opposed to one long blade (better to defend and attack multiple enemies); it also ends with a jump in time, which reveals that it was this same training Ahsoka ultimately drew on in order for her and Rex to battle the brainwashed 501st Legion during Order 66, and make it out alive. The irony of Anakin's brutal training ultimately saving Ahsoka probably wasn't lost on her. Or us...
NOTE: That same training session left a very big impression on a young Kanan Jarrus, who would become Ahsoka's teammate and ally years later.
Why Ahsoka Decides to Become Rebel Agent "Fulcrum"
The final story of Tales of the Jedi's first installment sees Ahsoka hiding out on a farming planet, working for a local community of farmers. One day out in the fields one of the young women is nearly crushed in a baling accident, and Ahsoka uses the Force to save her. Most of the farmers don't mind Ahsoka's presenve or her secret – some are even grateful for it. However one young boy who has been radicalized by the Empire's propoganda thinks the "right" thing to do is turning in a Jedi to protect the community. This, of course, backfires and an inquisitor shows up to lay waste to the farm and use the farmers as bait. Unfortunately that same Inquisitor put more effort in looking fearsome than actually being fearsome, and a weaponless Ahsoka kills him with his own lightsaber in about three quick moves.
Ahsoka's inability to escape the Empire – or her duty protecting others – brings up a conversation we see her having with Bail Organa during Padame's funeral during Revenge of the Sith's epilogue. Senator Organa's call to action finally hits home, and Ahsoka leaves the farm and contacts Bail, ready to join the Rebellion.
As seen in the Star Wars Rebels animated series, Ahsoka Tano becomes the elite Rebel agent "Fulcrum" and eventually ends up in the company of one of the early Rebel cells, The Spectres. In fact, Ahsoka's unfinished business with the Spectres (and their nemesis, Grand Admiral Thrawn) will be the subject of her upcoming live-action series.
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi, The Prequel Trilogy Films, and The Clone Wars series are all streaming on Disney+.
