Star Wars: Ahsoka‘s premiere on Disney+ has raised some big concerns with Star Wars fans – many of whome are searching for more information about this pivotal character who has occupied a strange place within the franchise.
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Ahsoka Tano has become one of the most famous and iconic characters in Star Wars – even though most of her major appearances have been filtered through ‘secondary’ media platforms like animated series and novels. That all changed with the casting of Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano in the live-action Star Wars TV series The Mandalorian, as suddenly, Ahsoka’s face, name, and iconic lightsabers were getting introduced to a worldwide mainstream audience.
How to Watch the Best Ahsoka Tano Content in Star Wars… Quickly
In order to get casual Star Wars fans up to speed on the Saga of Ahsoka Tano, we’ve put together what we believe to be the quickest guide to actually showing both the story of Ahsoka and the evolution of her character. While other fan-made guides may lean into more content from The Clone Wars and Rebels animated series, there have been some great (as in more brief) stories that have just as much resonance as some of the longer storylines.
Continue reading below for the most efficient way to watch all the Star Wars content you need to properly prepare for Ahsoka – listed in the exact order you should watch it!
Obviously, MILD SPOILERS are necessary to tell you why you should be watching each piece of content that appears on our list. Story arcs are listed by season number (“S”) and episode number (“E”) to help you easily find them when streaming on Disney+.
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi – S1E1
“Life and Death” is the opening episode of the recently-released Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi anthology series of animated shorts. This is, simply, the prelude to Ahsoka’s saga in Star Wars: a short story depicting her as a very young child among her people, the Togruta, on the day it becomes apparent that she is a truly unique and special Force-sensitive person.
In many ways, the visual metaphors of this story frame the themes of Ahsoka’s life, that follows.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars Movie
The 2008 Clone Wars animated feature film not only introduced the acclaimed animated series and its vision – it also introduced the character of Ahsoka Tano to the masses, as well as the actress who first brought her to life, Ashley Eckstein. The Clone Wars movie chronicles the first meeting of Ahsoka, Anakin Skywalker, and Obi-Wan Kenobi when Anakin is blindsided by the news that she has been assigned to be his padawan.
The pivotal battle that takes place in the film is really a bonding experience between student and teacher that will redefine the Jedi Order and the fate of the galaxy.
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi – S1E5
The Tales of the Jedi story “Practice Makes Perfect” can save you a lot of time on watching the Clone Wars series, with its perfect snapshot and commentary on Ahsoka and Anakin Skywalker’s relationship.
“Practice Makes Perfect” looks at Ahsoka early on in her training with Anakin, when the infamous Jedi General put Ahsoka through a particularly brutal training regiment, fighting an entire squad of stun-gun Clone Troopers by herself. Ahsoka gets zapped unconscious numerous times, but Anakin never lets up on her. In the end, Tano learns to endure and strategize, becoming a one-woman army. Ahsoka also discovers her skill with using two dagger-length lightsabers (instead of one big sword) for the first time.
This Tales of the Jedi story is a subtly serious look at the mix of light and dark influence that came with Anakin’s teachings, and whether it made Ahsoka a different sort of Jedi, as a result.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars – S5E17-20
“The Temple Bombing Arc” was the ending of Star Wars: The Clone Wars Season 5 – and the entire broadcast version of the series, before it was given sixth and seventh seasons on Netflix.
The Temple Bombing Arc is crucial to Ahsoka’s Saga as it chronicles a disgruntled Jedi (Barriss Offee) who frames Ahsoka for a terrorist bombing in the Jedi Temple hanger during the Clone Wars. Despite professing her innocence, Ahsoka is hunted down by her former allies in the Jedi Order and Republic Army and put on trial.
Anakin Skywalker ends up tracking down the real terrorist and clearing Ahsoka’s name; however, seeing her fellow Jedi and soldiers turn on her – plus all the moral questions of war that made Barriss turn in the first place – causes Ahsoka to walk away from the Jedi Order for good, seeking out her own path.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars – S7E9-12
The final season of Clone Wars sees Ahsoka Tano get drawn back into the Clone Wars to settle an old score: liberating Mandalore from the clutches of Maul and his Shadow Collective crime syndicate.
Ahsoka joins the likes of Bo-Katan Kryze and the 501st Legion of Clone Troopers to defeat Maul; however, the victory is short-lived as Darth Sidious launches Order 66 just when Ahsoka and her regiment are headed back to Coruscant with Maul in custody.
These final episodes of Clone Wars provide the crucial answer to how Ahsoka Tano, Maul, and Captain Rex all escaped Order 66 – as well as the dark trauma of that day for Ahsoka, who sensed her master Anakin Skywalker’s fall to the dark side as few others could, and had to put down many of the loyal soldiers that fought with her in the war.
This story arc also brings things full circle to Tales of the Jedi’s “Practice Makes Perfect” storyline.
Tales of the Jedi – S1E6
The Tales of the Jedi story “Resolve” shows how Ahsoka made it back to Coruscant in time to find out Padame Amidala is dead, and her master Anakin was gone, along with the Jedi Order and Republic. The short story then chronicles how Ahsoka tries to go into hiding but is unable to evade the dark side forces on her heels (Inquisitors) or refrain from intervening when innocents are being hurt/threatened around her.
“Resolve” is a short-but-effective story of what makes Ahsoka Tano decide to still fight as a hero in the darkest of times – with or without the Jedi Order. It’s also a much shorter piece of content to absorb than the 2016 Ahsoka YA novel by E.K. Johnston, which tells a longer and more in-depth version of the same story.
Star Wars Rebels S2E21-22
“Twilight of the Apprentice” is the story arc that fans have hailed as one of the best of the entire Star Wars Animated Universe.
An old Sith Temple holds a relic that draws the early Rebel Alliance cell The Spectres (including Jedi Master Kanan Jarrus and padawan Ezra Bridger) into a race against both Maul and Darth Vader to claim it. At this point in time, early in the formative years of the Rebellion, Ahsoka is working as the infamous spy agent “Fulcrum,” and aids the Spectres on this high-stakes mission, while also offering guidance to both Kanan and Ezra.
The climax of “Twilight of the Apprentice” sees Ahsoka duel Darth Vader for the first time and confirm that he is indeed Anakin, when she cracks his helmet partially open during the fight. The story arc also introduces the realm of the “World Between Worlds,” which is crucial to the ending of Rebels, and possibly the events of the Ahsoka live-action series.
Star Wars Rebels S4E1-2
The “Heroes of Mandalore” Arc that opens Star Wars Rebels Season 4 doesn’t really have anything to do with Ahsoka Tano – but it is a crucial story for Sabine Wren, who is a major character jumping from the animated Rebels to the live-action Ahsoka series.
The story arc sees Sabine head back to Mandalore after learning Grand Admiral Thrawn and the Empire are using one of her old designs from the Imperial Academy to build a brutal new super weapon for destroying Mandalorian warriors. Sabine and Bo-Katan fight and ultimately defeat Tiber Saxon (brother of Gar Saxon), destroy the weapon, and re-unite Mandalore under Bo-Katan’s leadership.
This arc also sees Sabine pass the Darksaber to Bo-Katan, setting up many events that are later explored in The Mandalorian live-action series.
Star Wars Rebels S4 E13-15
Star Wars Rebels got weird with its final story arc, which ran for three episodes (“A World Between Worlds”, “A Fool’s Hope” and “Family Reunion – and Farewell”). The Spectres Rebel cell was locked into a final showdown with Thrawn and his lackeys, with Ezra Bridger’s home planet Lothal being the prize to fight for.
The Spectres ultimately battle Thrawn to a standstill: Ezra used his considerable Force powers to commune with Hyperspace whales that trapped Thrawn on his ship and transported him, the ship, and Ezra out into the unknown regions of space. Ahsoka Tano and Sabine Wren committed to finding Ezra and bringing him back.
This is the crucial Star Wars Rebels cliffhanger that inspired the plot of the Ahsoka TV series – so it’s definitely mandatory viewing. It also saw Ezra and Ahsoka Tano access the World Between Worlds realm, setting up the potential for time travel in the Star Wars Universe.
The Mandalorian – S2E5
A lot of mainstream Star Wars fans met Ahsoka Tano in “Chapter 13: The Jedi” during Season 2 of The Mandalorian.
That said, The Mandalorian Chapter 13 had a lot of key clues about what Ahsoka’s new story arc in the New Republic Era is all about – and it hits a LOT differently when you’ve watched all the content listed above. Before Ahsoka gets her own series, be sure to re-watch her live-action debut.
Star Wars: Ahsoka will premiere its first two episodes on Disney+ on August 23rd.
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Image courtesy of Disney+
