Posted in: Disney+, Star Wars, TV | Tagged: Ahsoka, dave filoni, disney, Evan Whitten, Hayden Christensen, lucasfilm, mary elizabeth winstead, Review, rosario dawson, star wars

Ahsoka Season 1 Episode 5 Review: "Hello Darkness, My Old Friend"

Rosario Dawson & Hayden Christensen shine in their finest Star Wars franchise performances to date in Lucasfilm & Disney+'s Ahsoka Episode 5.

Published Thu, 14 Sep 2023 07:38:08 -0500

by Tom Chang

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The latest episode of Ahsoka in "Part Five: Shadow Warrior" represents one of the best well-rounded efforts from the live-action series that shows the kind of potential for greatness the series can really be. Ironically, it's because of how it explores its past rather than how it tackles present events. While we have another half of the season to go, it looks like the series is finally hitting its stride, and creator Dave Filoni provided one of his biggest payoffs in the Disney era that ties all his previous animated works together. The following contains minor spoilers.

Ahsoka: A True Welcome Home for Hayden Christensen to Star Wars

Much of the narrative concerning Star Wars in the Disney era has been trying to introduce new stories while providing more nuance to the existing ones. Such was the case with the Ewan McGregor-starred Obi-Wan Kenobi series that closed the gap a little further on the title character while providing greater depth into his regrets concerning his former padawan Anakin Skywalker. It was quite a memorable moment for sure, with James Earl Jones returning to voice Darth Vader, but also reintroduced fans to Hayden Christensen, who returned to the role for the first time since 2005's Revenge of the Sith and saw his transformation complete. Sharing the role made for great nostalgia, but we were spoon-fed what was expected of the Dark Lord of the Sith, offering a sliver of what Anakin and Obi-Wan once had before reestablishing their rivalry. Ahsoka allowed Christensen to take Anakin into not only familiar territory but a new direction while fully embracing the role he didn't have to share.

Ahsoka Season 1 Episode 5 Review: "Hello Darkness, My Old Friend" — (L-R): Huyang (David Tennant) and Hera Syndulla (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) in Lucasfilm's STAR WARS: AHSOKA, exclusively on Disney+. ©2023 Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.

Christensen and Rosario Dawson can recreate the magic that voice actors Matt Lanter and Ashley Eckstein were able to do for so long in Filoni's The Clone Wars and Rebels. Speaking of which, I get how much people love to use de-aging CG nowadays, but it seems like overkill. Is casting lookalikes a thing of the past? It's a regular thing with stunt performers. They didn't de-age Dawson and cast another actress – the brilliant Ariana Greenblatt – to play her younger counterpart. I don't know why the same couldn't have been done with Anakin in the flashback scenes. It's infuriating since there hasn't been much as far as a positive response to de-aging CG, especially given the recent efforts of 2023's Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.

Aside from those gripes, Christensen and Dawson are the major reasons why "Shadow Warrior" works. It also didn't hurt how much the two know each other in real life. Best of all, Christensen was allowed to show an Anakin beyond Darth Vader that the canon has largely leaned on as of late. Audiences were finally able to see a version of the character that was able to move on. This is easily the best outing from Christensen in the Star Wars franchise. On the secondary front, Hera (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and her son, Jacen (Evan Whitten), were given significantly bigger roles this time around beyond the usual dogfighting we're used to seeing from Hera. It's not really a stretch to see if the series sees season two, both will play significantly bigger parts, even though we still have three more episodes to go.

Given the chock-full of Ahsoka-Anakin exposition, we didn't get anything from the villains this week, but that will certainly change next week. Think this is safe to say this is Filoni's best live-action outing from his corner of the Star Wars universe. Ahsoka streams Tuesdays on Disney+.

Ahsoka Season 1 Episode 5: "Part Five: Shadow Warrior"

Review by Tom Chang

10/10

While the bulk of Lucasfilm & Disney+'s Ahsoka has been pedestrian at best, "Part Five" completely blows open creator/writer/director Dave Filoni's creative sandbox to the possibilities of not only "The Clone Wars" but also "Rebels." Rosario Dawson and a returning Hayden Christensen put in their best efforts to date as Ahsoka Tano and Anakin Skywalker. For Christensen, there couldn't have been a better way to refresh the character and take him in some interesting & bold directions.

Credits

Director

Dave Filoni

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