TV Review: ‘Ahsoka’ Season 1, Episode 7 — Successful Fan Service
by Frank Martin
As more and more franchises start to tap into nostalgia and bring back actors to reprise roles, fandom has become critical of fan service. These are things done to appease fans without any other particular purpose for them. It’s surely possible for fans to accuse Ahsoka of reveling in fan service, but that’s not what’s happening here. The arrival of a beloved droid and more Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) can be viewed as fan service for the sake of fan service, but these characters are utilized properly and progress the story and characters forward, which is what matters most.
As the episode starts begins, Hera (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) is on trial for disobeying orders. It seems as if she is about to get into trouble, when C3PO (Anthony Daniels) makes a surprise appearance with a message from Senator Leia Organa, informing everyone that Hera was acting on her orders. This is obviously a lie, but it adds cover for her actions. Meanwhile, Ahsoka (Rosario Dawson) arrives in orbit around Peridia and is immediately attacked by Imperial forces. She manages to locate Sabine (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) and Ezra (Eman Esfandi), but the battle continues as Thrawn’s (Lars Mikkelsen) troops refuse to give up. Eventually, the Stormtroopers fall back because Thrawn was merely buying time to complete preparations for his escape. Unfortunately, the three were unaware of this and bask in their reunion.
There’s certainly a ton of fan service in this episode. Anakin Skywalker delivers a Clone Wars lesson to Ahsoka and Threepio makes a great appearance at Hera’s trial. The reunion of Ahsoka, Ezra, and Sabine is another incredible gesture of fan service, as the last time all three of these characters were together was in animation. Even Thrawn’s inclusion in this series means that Star Wars is tapping into its lore. But all of these various elements work together to form a great story with great characters. It’s some of the best Star Wars television there is.
Ashoka streams Tuesdays on Disney+.
