Disney+’s Ahsoka is just around the corner, and Star Wars fans’ excitement for the show seems to be steadily rising. Something that has franchise devotees like myself particularly pumped is the fact that the series has major connections to the animated series Rebels. Reports have suggested that the program will also have ties to a specific era in the Skywalker Saga – the prequel trilogy. On that note, a new rumor suggests that the Rosario Dawson-led show is going to feature a new take on one of the best scenes from that first set of films.
The notion of the limited series references events from the prequels isn’t all that surprising, since the titular Jedi has direct ties to that time period in the galaxy far, far away. Ahsoka Tano served as Anakin Skywalker’s apprentice amid the Clone Wars. It was even previously reported that Anakin actor Hayden Christensen is reprising his role for this project. (The actor has yet to confirm that.) Despite all of that, I’m not sure anyone would’ve theorized what this recent rumor claims about the upcoming show. It was said, during an episode of Making Star Wars, that the production aimed to recreate Anakin and Obi-Wan’s Mustafar duel but with a key twist:
They filmed a sequence where Ahsoka sees herself on Mustafar, fighting Hayden Christensen’s Darth Vader before he’s in the suit. … They had a dummy for a dead Kenobi, and they had clothes for a dead Kenobi. So they had two ideas there. One is Anakin literally kills Kenobi in that fight, where the idea would be Ahsoka and Kenobi confront Darth Vader. Another is he turns into a pile of clothes just like he always did – he becomes one with the Force at that time in the narrative.
The Mustafar sequence occurred at the end of 2005’s Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. It’s an emotionally charged scene that sees former master and apprentice Obi-Wan and Anakin (who’s known as Darth Vader by that point) dueling to the death. Ultimately, Kenobi emerges victorious after cutting off Vader’s arm and legs. All in all, it’s easily one of the finest – and most heartbreaking – moments within George Lucas’ prequel trilogy. Tano isn’t present during the fight, because (as revealed in the Clone Wars series finale), she was entangled in a dangerous situation of her own.
The Mustafar sequence occurred at the end of 2005’s Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. It’s an emotionally charged scene that sees former master and apprentice Obi-Wan and Anakin (who’s known as Darth Vader by that point) dueling to the death. Ultimately, Kenobi emerges victorious after cutting off Vader’s arm and legs. All in all, it’s easily one of the finest – and most heartbreaking – moments within George Lucas’ prequel trilogy. Tano isn’t present during the fight, because (as revealed in the Clone Wars series finale), she was entangled in a dangerous situation of her own.
I’m intrigued by the idea of recreating the major moment and inserting Tano into the proceedings. However, there are a few reasons to be, at least, slightly concerned, if these scenarios were indeed filmed. For one, how does the overall idea fit into the story? The obvious answer would be a dream Tano has but, given she wasn’t actually present for the real event, one has to wonder how she’d have context regarding the specifics. On the whole, either theoretical sequence could just be tricky to sell to an audience. The host of Making Star Wars didn’t agree with the “pile of clothes” approach, arguing that it didn’t make sense in that context. And there’s a fair chance other fans may feel the same or have negative thoughts on other aspects of the sequence
But of course, I could just be getting ahead of myself, as a Mustafar moment is far from confirmed for the show at this point. Heck, Hayden Christensen still hasn’t even been officially announced for the series – even though Rosario Dawson seemed to confirm the casting with a social media post. An appearance from Chrstensen would track, though, not just because of Anakin’s connection to Tano but because the actor previously returned to SW through Obi-Wan Kenobi.
Speculation aside, what we know about Ahsoka is that it’ll see the wandering warrior reuniting with Rebels characters like Sabine Wren and Hera Syndulla. The trio and more will have to team up in order to fight the impending return of Grand Admiral Thrawn. It’ll be exciting to see how that all comes to fruition and, if a Mustafar scene pops up at some point as well, so be it.
Ahsoka has its two-episode premiere on August 23 as part of the 2023 TV schedule, with one installment dropping weekly after that. Be sure you have a Disney+ subscription so that you can stream the show and eventually enjoy other upcoming Star Wars shows.
