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Ahsoka Season 1 Episode 8 Missed the Mark as Far as Finales Go: Review
Ahsoka S01E08 "The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord" was a disappointing season-ender that failed when it came to what a finale should do.
If there's something that's profoundly annoying about the streaming era is how fast and loose the term "season" is. Ahsoka is a miniseries with its eight episodes, but the way creator Dave Filoni left things felt like more of a corporate decision by Disney. The typical season of Star Wars Rebels from seasons one to three was 22 each, and the fourth and "final" was 15 episodes – an important point to keep in mind considering we're talking about a series that feels like it's nothing more than a sequel to the two animated series. The following contains minor spoilers but mostly a gripe about how the series spent most of its first season doing nothing.
Ahsoka: Why Season One Finale Felt Like First Half of a Real Season
The setup for the Ahsoka season finale, "Part Eight: The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord," seems to promote a Chronicles of Narnia vibe but with an almost complete lack of wonder. So the standard rules for television generally apply here where as soon as a character, who normally isn't the focus, gets more to do, it usually doesn't end well. Such is the case of Diana Lee Inosanto's Morgan Elsbeth, who finally gets an upgrade from the Great Mothers, enhanced by the Dark Side, and given a new toy. I'm glad Filoni finally gave her something to do than say, "Yes sir" and "No sir" to Lars Mikkelsen's Grand Admiral Thrawn. I get how he's trying to stress how great a tactician Thrawn is, but she really became the major forgotten character in most of the season. The same goes for the mysterious Great Mothers, who just take up space and act all "evil" until we see what they can do.
There are also the two Dark Jedi characters who we barely heard from in the finale, Baylan Skoll (Ray Stevenson) and Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno). If it weren't for the fact it was a "finale," we get a tease into season two from the two of them – who have literally nothing to do with this final push against Thrawn. The rest of the episode involves the three primary protagonists, Ahsoka (Rosario Dawson), Sabine (Natasha Liu Bordizzo), and Ezra (Eman Esfandi) – with the latter getting a chance to shine with a lightsaber. The bulk of the episode sees them get a condensed version of the kitchen sink from Thrawn's forces, including the new "zombie" stormtroopers. It's an exciting videogame sequence, that's for sure.
As far as any epicness to the episode, it's sorely lacking any real urgency, and we're merely told it is without any satisfying reason why it should. I felt a sense of déjà vu even if the roles have changed. While Mikkelsen naturally chews up every scene he's in, the only moment worthy of being included in a "season finale" is the sequence between Morgan and Ahsoka. Sadly, most of this season is wasted when more could've been done to better develop Inosanto's character. Short of recasting for the late Stevenson, it's downright criminal that he wasn't afforded that final bow. "The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord" is a season finale in name only, failing to deliver any deep sense of a resolution with meaning, with predictability all across our screens. And when you consider the buildup to "big bad" Thrawn, the finale shortchanges the supposedly complex & nuanced character – ruining some of Thrawn's mystique in the process.
This doesn't even factor into what the Mouse will ultimately do, given their non-commitment to their streaming programming, and the labor strikes being used to make some dramatic programming decisions. We don't know if Lucasfilm will commit to a second season because renewals are far from sure things anymore – and then there's the matter of Filoni's upcoming film set in "The Mandalorian" universe to consider.
Directed by Rick Famuyima, the Ahsoka season finale delivers consistent with Filoni's previous efforts but fails to reinvigorate excitement in the franchise. It's not the fault of the stars, it's the complacent writing that fails to take advantage of the live-action format and the talent involved. Dawson, Esfandi, and Stevenson thrived organically in their roles, but everyone else felt like they were delivering like they would a cold reading or standard voiceover. David Tennant is the obvious exception as the voice of the droid Huyang, delivering one of the most consistent, stoic, and grounded presences as largely a non-combatant in the franchise. It was genuinely hard to care about Sabine's path to the force because she felt like an afterthought. We never got anything more than scraps from the Dark Jedi characters. We shouldn't wait for next season to invest and care about these characters, and I'm not sure a second season is warranted.
Ahsoka Season 1 Episode 8 "Part Eight: The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord"
4.5/10
Directed by Rick Famuyima & written by Dave Filoni, the Ahsoka season finale "Part Eight: The Jedi, the Witch, and the Warlord" delivers consistent with Filoni’s previous efforts but fails to reinvigorate excitement in the franchise. It’s not the fault of the stars, it’s the complacent writing that fails to take advantage of the live-action format and the talent involved. Rosario Dawson, Eman Esfandi, and Ray Stevenson thrived organically in their roles, but everyone else felt like they were delivering like they would a cold reading or standard voiceover. David Tennant is the obvious exception as the voice of the droid Huyang, delivering one of the most consistent, stoic, and grounded presences as largely a non-combatant in the franchise. It was genuinely hard to care about Sabine’s path to the force because she felt like an afterthought. We never got anything more than scraps from the Dark Jedi characters. We shouldn’t wait for next season to invest and care about these characters, and I'm not sure a second season is warranted.
Credits
Director
Rick Famuyima
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