Star Wars: The Clone Wars returned with new episodes after years of seemingly fruitless fan campaigns for a revival, and the seventh and final season on Disney+ is finally finishing the stories of Ahsoka and the rest of the characters in the final days of the Republic. While Star Wars fans know how the Clone Wars end thanks to Revenge of the Sith, The Clone Wars is filling in some vital blanks, and voice actress Ashley Eckstein has weighed in on why Season 7 is packed with hope, how Ahsoka's legacy will endure, and more.
With the full run of The Clone Wars so far, the ongoing seventh season, and the full run of Clone Wars' follow-up series Star Wars Rebels all available streaming on Disney+, Ashley Eckstein shared with CinemaBlend whether these series (all featuring Ahsoka) are suitable for binge-watching:
Oh, definitely! Clone Wars and Rebels are definitely binge-worthy. I recommend watching Clone Wars first before you watch Rebels because there's gonna be some spoilers that won't make as much sense, or won't be as enjoyable if you don't watch Clone Wars first before you watch Rebels. So I do recommend it in that order, but it's definitely binge-worthy. Once you get hooked, you become attached to Ahsoka, you become attached to Captain Rex, you care about them as though they're literally a member of your family, and you need to find out what's going to happen to them. So I highly recommend it.
With Star Wars: The Clone Wars bridging the gap between Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones and Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, and Star Wars Rebels filling in the final years ahead of the original Star Wars trilogy, the shows can definitely become addictive to Star Wars fans. Considering The Clone Wars is only weeks away from seven full seasons and Rebels offers four seasons, these shows can keep viewers busy for more than just a couple of days!
Considering current events have meant more people staying home, streaming TV may have more appeal than ever. Ashley Eckstein shared how Ahsoka can represent hope with The Clone Wars and even Season 7, despite the upcoming events of Revenge of the Sith:
I also, especially during times right now, where so much feels out of our control and there's so much fear and negativity and anxiety, Clone Wars and especially Ahsoka represent so much hope. Especially Ahsoka. To me, Ahsoka means hope, and I think it's actually the perfect time for these new episodes of Clone Wars to be released, when everyone's home watching because she brings hope. She brings so much light and she brings so much positivity.
With Disney+ offering so much new and classic Star Wars content, series like The Clone Wars and Rebels have the potential to reach even greater audiences than they did back in their days on cable. The Mandalorian was a big attraction to Disney+ when the streaming service launched in late 2019, putting Star Wars TV on the radar of a lot of people who might not have checked it out before.
With The Clone Wars culminating in the upcoming Siege of Mandalore arc that sets the stage for some storylines in Star Wars Rebels and potentially even The Mandalorian, Ashley Eckstein addressed whether the Siege of Mandalore would be a good hook:
I recommend Siege of Mandalore and even Clone Wars in general to Star Wars fans, because The Clone Wars happens between Episode II and Episode III, but there are so many questions you have when you watch Episode III that you're like, 'Wait!' It's like you're missing a huge piece to the puzzle, and Clone Wars makes the puzzle complete. I can only imagine for Mandalorian fans, they're gonna find some parallels as well. Anything that is canon. It really all connects, and it really is meant to eventually, I know it's a lot to watch, but eventually, to watch everything. That is truly when the puzzle will be complete.
Ashley Eckstein teased that she's seen the Siege of Mandalore episodes of The Clone Wars, and while she of course didn't drop any details about what fans can expect from the final chapter of the Star Wars saga ahead of Revenge of the Sith, fans clearly have a lot to look forward to.
Of course, the end of Clone Wars also means the end of the Ahsoka's journey before the fall of the Republic, but that doesn't have to mean the end of Ahsoka. The character will make her live-action debut on The Mandalorian, Star Wars TV fans were thrilled (albeit a little worried) when Ashley Eckstein voiced Ahsoka again for Rise of Skywalker, and Eckstein has a new book about Ahsoka's journey.
When I noted that Ahsoka's legacy is enduring, Ashley Eckstein responded:
Yes, I hope so! I started the hashtag back when Ahsoka came back on Star Wars Rebels, I started the hashtag #AhsokaLives, because for the longest time we didn't know if Ahsoka lived. Now I updated it to be #AhsokaLivesInAllOfUs, because it's not just me. Ahsoka's bigger than just me. I think we're all continuing to carry on Ahsoka's legacy. The fans never gave up on Clone Wars and helped bring Clone Wars back. So Ahsoka lives in all of us, and I hope that her legacy will continue through all of us.
Ahsoka really has survived some of the unlikeliest odds of any character in the Star Wars saga, and Clone Wars fans can at least be confident she won't meet her end in the Siege of Mandalore thanks to Rebels. Fans can also see another example of Ahsoka's legacy extending beyond Clone Wars thanks to Ashley Eckstein's new Star Wars book, available now, called I Am A Padawan.
Ashley Eckstein shared the process of getting to write the book:
Lucasfilm actually reached out to me and asked me if I would be interested in writing it. I got to know the publishing team because I got to write another book for Disney called It's Your Universe: You Have The Power To Make It Happen. I actually once said I would never write a book because I didn't believe that I could. I just didn't think that I had the talents to do it. I was scared, actually, and once I wrote my first book then it becomes infectious and you're like, 'Oh my goodness, now I want to do it again!' And so I shared that with Lucasfilm. I said, 'Look, if there's ever any other opportunity, I would love to be considered.' And so they called me one day out of the blue and asked if I would write a Little Golden Book for Ahsoka as part of the I Am series, called I Am A Padawan. I think it was the fastest I've ever said yes in my entire life.
As the voice of Ahsoka in projects ranging from The Clone Wars to Star Wars Rebels to Forces of Destiny, Ashley Eckstein is uniquely qualified to tell a story revolving around the character.
Ashley Eckstein went on to explain why the Little Golden Book can be important for adults as well as children:
It's a great book, not only for kids to introduce them to Ahsoka or introduce them to what it means to be a Padawan, which is really just a student, and all of the lessons that Ahsoka learned as Padawan, even though Ahsoka learned them in a galaxy far, far away. They're relevant to kids today, in their everyday lives and going to school and at home. So not only are they good lessons for young kids to learn, but they're also good reminders for us adults. It was definitely a dream come true and one that I'm forever grateful for. Star Wars has provided so many wonderful opportunities, and this is definitely like bucket list level.
Ashley Eckstein's I Am A Padawan book is available now for a new look at Ahsoka's journey as a Padawan. You can also find Ashley Eckstein as Ahsoka with the remaining episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars on Disney+.
One more episode remains of Ahsoka's adventures with the Martez sisters before the Siege of Mandalore arc marks the beginning of the end of Clone Wars, so be sure to check out Disney+ on Fridays to find out what happens next.
