Summary
- Star Wars: Ahsoka confirms the fate of Ezra Bridger and Thrawn, revealing that they both survived the events of the animated show.
- The appearance of the Purrgil in Ahsoka signals the return of these majestic space creatures and suggests that Ezra and Thrawn will make their return to the galaxy.
- Despite earlier assurances, Ahsoka has established itself as a sequel to years of animated Star Wars material, potentially limiting its appeal to new fans.
Star Wars: Ahsoka has confirmed the fate of Ezra Bridger and Thrawn from Dave Filoni's Rebels series.
Emerging as a spin-off following the live-action debut of its titular heroine in The Mandalorian, Star Wars: Ahsoka follows her adventures in the post-Empire period before the rise of the First Order and the sequel trilogy's events. Taking a lot of its inspiration from Star Wars: Rebels, The Clone Wars, and other animated shows, Ahsoka attracted attention from fans of the franchise who had followed the animated shows with great interest and newcomers who took lead actress Rosario Dawson's encouraging words regarding the show's accommodating nature.
After a premiere that beat The Mandalorian season 3, Ahsoka episode 3 delivered a double helping of Rebels fan food, with the show giving the first live-action look at the majestic space creatures known as the Purrgil. The creatures showed up for a short time in the third episode, creating the first solid link to Ezra Bridger and Thrawn, who were last seen being dragged by the Purrgil into hyperspace aboard Thrawn's ship, with Bridger refusing his friends' pleas and staying on the vessel to ensure Thrawn's defeat. However, the Purrgil's appearance in Ahsoka signals their return to the galaxy far, far away.
While there has been uncertainty concerning how exactly the two characters would factor into the series, showrunner Dave Filoni, who revealed Ahsoka's connection to Rebels early on, confirmed that they were alive following the events of the animated show’s finale. "I thought a lot about that… It's one of those things that you go 'Oh boy, I love the idea of an end credits scene!'" Filoni said on the Star Wars Show in 2018. "But as tempting as that is, I [decided that] if I cover that, then I want to do it right, and I don't want to commit to things right now because things might change. So I have a lot of theories about it and what I think happens and where they are. I'll say this much: They're not dead. Both of them survive, both Ezra and Thrawn I would say survive it."
Ezra Bridger is one of the most highly anticipated parts of the live-action Star Wars experience that Ahsoka offers, with fans having a special connection to the character, who served as the protagonist of Star Wars: Rebels, which Ahsoka has effectively become an extension of. With rumors already circulating about Bridger getting his own live-action spin-off after appearing in Ahsoka, fans are going to go rabid over his appearances in Ahsoka, and getting some form of confirmation from the series that he will appear soon is a nice touch.
While each episode of the live-action series has been met with overwhelmingly positive responses, each subsequent episode has also reinforced the reality that Ahsoka might not be welcoming to new Star Wars fans after all, despite earlier assurances. With just 3 episodes, the series has managed to firmly establish itself as a spiritual and literal sequel to years of animated Star Wars material and lore that fans were assured they wouldn’t need to enjoy the show.
Star Wars: Ahsoka is available for streaming on Disney Plus.
Source: Star Wars Show