Ahsoka Brings Back A Familiar Location From A Classic Star Wars Film
There will be spoilers for "Star Wars: Ahsoka" Chapter 1 – Master and Apprentice.
Though "Ahsoka" takes place quite a few years after "Return of the Jedi", it makes a certain sense that the hardware and ships used by the Rebel Alliance to restore the Republic would still be in use years later. As the first episode of "Ahsoka" opens, we're treated to a ship that appears to have a Mon Calamari design (at least internally), and they are in communication with another ship called Home One. That just so happens to be the Mon Calamari flagship where Admiral Ackbar oversaw the fleet operations for the assault on the second Death Star over the forest moon of Endor. It was on the bridge there that he uttered his most famous line, "It's a trap!"
In "Ahsoka," we meet this new ship and a new captain as another vessel approaches, claiming to be from the Jedi. Before Captain Hayle (Mark Rolston, aka Drake from "Aliens") can make their rendezvous with Home One, he and his crew are slaughtered by Baylan Skoll (the late Ray Stevenson) and his apprentice, Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno). That leads to a message being sent out to Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) in the hopes she can help identify these mysterious attackers with burnt orange lightsabers.
A familiar briefing room
Ahsoka, on a quest of her own, meets General Hera Syndulla (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) aboard Home One, and they have a meeting in a very subtle but familiar location. This large, white room with a holoprojector in the middle is the very same room where the Rebel Alliance leaders gave their briefing to the troops and heroes of the Rebellion prior to the Battle of the Second Death Star.
It's in this room where Han Solo reveals that he's been picked to lead the ground assault on Endor, and Lando Calrissian reveals that he's accepted the mission to fly into the Death Star's superstructure. It's also where Luke Skywalker arrives from Dagobah and offers his support to Han Solo's mission. This room is also where audiences caught our first introduction to Mon Mothma, a character that would become incredibly important in later stories in the "Star Wars" saga, including "Andor."
The weight of history
Though there is almost no attention paid to the fact that so much history of the "Star Wars" galaxy took place in this room, there's a weight to its use that we feel as an audience. Even if that feeling is entirely subconscious, it gives us visual cues that tie it to the nostalgia and comfort of the classic trilogy and the importance and weight of those moments. Thrawn's return and finding Ezra hold as much weight in this world as the dire situation caused by the existence of another Death Star. Thematically, the use of this space tells us exactly how important Dave Filoni feels this moment is and what the stakes are. When you have a legacy of 45 years of storytelling, it gives you options that can enhance your story if you can tie things together in the right ways, and it looks like Dave Filoni did exactly that in this first episode of "Ahsoka."
New episodes of "Ahsoka" premiere on Tuesday nights on Disney+ at 9:00 PM EST.