Yes, Ahsoka Seems To Retcon Rebels, No, It Doesn’t Ruin The Series

One of the most controversial aspects of the trailers for the live-action series has been given a surprisingly thoughtful explanation that doesn't contradict its predecessor.

As a batch of new teasers and trailers for Ahsoka began to appear in anticipation of the show's release, observant fans noticed something rather odd in them.

Sabine Wren, a former Mandalorian bounty hunter who was one of the main characters in the Star Wars Rebels animated series, was wielding a green lightsaber, and some of the trailers implied that she had become an apprentice to the titular Jedi, Ahsoka Tano.

In Rebels, it was strongly implied that although Sabine can use a lightsaber, she is not Force-sensitive.

During the scene where she was training to use the Darksaber, Sabine was no match for Jedi Padawan Ezra until she was given Mandalorian equipment to even the odds.

The fact that neither Ahsoka, Kanan, nor Ezra could feel the Force in her only supported this claim.

Given all of this, some fans were concerned that the live-action TV series would retcon this aspect and make her just another Force user.

Now that the first two episodes of the show have been released, have their fears been justified? Yes and no.

It seems that Sabine is indeed Force-sensitive now, and was even a Padawan of Ahsoka's until the latter stopped training her.

But judging by a line from Professor Huyang (a lightsaber-crafting droid who has helped generations of young Jedi) that he has "known many Padawans, but Sabine's aptitude for the Force would fall short of them all," it seems that while she is Force-sensitive, her connection to it leaves much to be desired.

This seems to be the reason why Ahsoka gave up trying to train her in the ways of the Jedi, along with Sabine's difficult character.

As for the green-bladed lightsaber Sabine uses to fight Shin Hati in the debut episode, many fans speculated that it might be the second lightsaber Ezra Bridger owned in Rebels, although the hilt looked different.

Now it is clear that they were right, as it is explicitly stated that this is Ezra's lightsaber, although it is barely recognizable due to the many modifications Sabine has made to the weapon.

In summary, while Dave Filoni did change the aspect of his own writing in Rebels, he did it in a clever way that doesn't contradict the events of the animated series and adds a new layer to Sabine and Ahsoka's relationship.

Episode 3 of the series will be released on August 29, 2023.