Well, last week was pretty intense, right?
Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) almost DIED, and, in the midst of her dying delusions, she confronted her old master, Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen). Seemingly more enlightened after this, Ahsoka and Huyang (David Tennant) decided to fly into a space whale’s mouth as migration season began. Hopefully, the purrgil will take them to where they want to go.
Meanwhile, Bad Guy Incorporated, Baylen Skoll (Ray Stevenson), Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno), and Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto) have taken the Eye of Scion to the location of Grand Admiral Thrawn, bringing Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) along as their prisoner.
Will they find Thrawn and Ezra? Or have they both perished, as was long believed by the Empire and New Republic alike? Maybe we’ll find out!
We’re in a space CON-VOY across HYPERSPACE!
Ahsoka and Huyang muse about old stories from long-forgotten galaxies. Ahsoka cannot focus on those stories, however. There’s something weighing on her conscience. She neglected to tell Hera (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) that Sabine chose to go with Baylen willingly. Huyang warns Ahsoka to not let fear overcome her and to not jump to conclusions.
Changing the subject, she asks Huyang to recount one of his stories.
“A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…” HE SAID THE THING!
Baylen visits a jailed Sabine, not gloating, but not not gloating. After a brief conversation, he takes his leave and heads to the bridge. Morgan and Shin question Sabine’s continued existence, but Baylen posits that she could be useful.
The Eye of Scion drops out of hyperspace, the visage of a Saturn-like planet before them. Morgan explains this is the ancestral home of her people, the Dathomiri. Her people, long ago, used the purrgil to travel between galaxies, and this was once their capital. That’s a lore-drop and a half! As they fly closer to the planet, it’s clear that the rings are comprised of the remains of dead purrgil. Sad.
A beacon is being transmitted from the planet’s surface. That’s their invitation!
Shin collects Sabine from the brig, and they board a drop-ship heading for the signal. After traversing a thick layer of cloud, they see remnants of giant Nightsister statues littered across the landscape. And a castle. The ship lands, and the crew disembark.
Three figures clad in red, face painted pure white, stand atop the castle, performing the spell for the beacon transmission. Morgan approaches the three women. It was their spell that reached Morgan with Thrawn’s message. That makes a lot more sense than it being actually Thrawn. They say that the big man is on his way, creepily, like all three are speaking at once, but in a whisper.
Their gaze falls upon Sabine in disgust. She stinks… of Jedi. They confine her with a spell and sequester her within the castle. No reprieve from incarceration for Sabine.
Baylen and Shin discuss cycles of good and evil and how it never ends. Or will it? Baylen’s purpose here is higher than Thrawn or Ahsoka. Their power is but a fleeting moment in time. He searches for something to stop the cycle altogether. What that is, we are left to wonder.
Down in her cell, prisoner Wren tries to wield the force to free herself. For a second, she thinks she may have done it, but no. She’s awful.
The rumbling was The Chimaera, Grand Admiral Thrawn’s (Lars Mikkelsen) flagship, somehow docking with the Nightsisters’ castle fortress. It’s seen better days, for sure, and it’s probably not spaceworthy, but it’s imposing as hell.
Docking is done; the hangar bay erupts with the battle cry of a battalion of stormtroopers, their uniforms all in different stages of disrepair. Captain Enoch is among them, sporting a redonkulous design where the front of the helmet has been replaced by a face of gold.
Measured footsteps are heard before the reveal we’ve all been waiting for: THRAWN IS HERE!
His calm demeanor belies a menace bubbling beneath the surface. He is introduced to Baylen Skoll, a name he had once heard prefixed by the title of “General” of the Jedi Order. Baylen appears to ease Thrawn’s concerns, stating he had left the Order behind long ago. He has also brought him an opportunity: his prisoner, Sabine. Thrawn always seeks a tactical advantage, and Baylen could have delivered it to him.
A frosty Sabine is brought before Thrawn, but he honors Baylen’s promise, setting her free to find Ezra and providing her with her equipment, intel and a mount (the cutest rideable dog-like creature in the whole wide world! Yes, he is!).
Of course, Thrawn isn’t stupid. He dispatches Baylen and Shin to tail Sabine and, once she’s found her friend, ensure the threat is neutralized. Smart from Thrawn, stupid from Sabine. She’ll lead them to Ezra, a man that has eluded Thrawn for years!
In the wasteland, bandits ambush Sabine, causing the howler (bestest boy) to scurry away in fear. She’s hit with blaster fire to her armor multiple times; lucky it’s got that beskar durability! Eventually, Sabine kills or causes the retreat of the bandits.
On the Chimaera, Thrawn discusses preparations for his triumphant return when Captain Enoch interrupts. Thrawn orders the deployment of two squads to follow Baylen and Shin. It doesn’t matter to him whether the two mercenaries return, and I get the feeling it’s his desire that they don’t! Sneaky double-double-cross!
Sabine! I’m seriously reconsidering your status as a protagonist! Don’t yell at the returning Bestest Boy (BB) howler! Despite her condemnation, the howler follows Sabine like a lost puppy dog… which I guess it is? Sabine finally relents and welcomes back BB.
With a knowing sniff, the howler leads Sabine to a rocky stream. Wait. They ain’t no rocks! They’re crab people! They have the same energy as an Ewok, cute and unable to communicate effectively. When Sabine crouches to talk to one, it notices her rebel insignia. An insignia that it also carries. Ezra?
The crab people lead the way. To where? Who knows.
Baylen and Shin arrive at the bandit massacre, discussing Baylen’s past as a Jedi. He misses the idea of the Order but not the Order itself, and that’s why he trained Shin to be something more. Bandits survey the scene. An alliance is on the horizon. Literally.
Crab People camp, population: a few. Sabine is led into their camp, Bestest Boy in tow. BB licks his lips, looking at all the tasty morsels he can see, but for now, he’s behaving himself.
Out of nowhere, a voice says, “I knew I could count on you.” It’s Ezra (Eman Esfandi)! Instead of instantly hugging the man she’s been searching years for, she decides to have bants. OK, there’s the hug. It’s emotional.
But Sabine, being the worst, spoils it by hiding the fact she’s responsible for potentially ALLOWING THRAWN TO ESCAPE THIS PLACE AND RE-ESTABLISH THE EMPIRE! There’s a shitstorm a-brewing, and you’re at the center, Sabine! She’s made a HOWLER!
The coven of Nightsisters warns Thrawn of a Jedi approaching them through the stars. Thrawn deduces it’s Ahsoka Tano, journeying by star whale. He’s so smart! But needs more knowledge. He orders Morgan to compile a dossier on the former Jedi and destroy any approaching purrgil.
I wonder how Ahsoka will prevail…
This was my favorite episode of the show thus far. It sets up the last two episodes perfectly, with all of the players in position. Thrawn is back, calculating and methodical, yet as savage as ever. Baylen and Shin are making their own play for something even more powerful. Sabine and Ezra are together for the first time since parting ways on Lothal. And Ahsoka and Huyang are on their way. I’m ready for the chaos to begin!
My mind, however, keeps wandering back to Baylen and Shin. The more I think about their story, the more I’m intrigued by it. Thrawn is a huge character, and I don’t believe they will kill him off to end the season. But Baylen? His quest to find something powerful on the planet to begin anew, away from the cycle of light and dark forces. That’s a showstopper, and I can’t wait to see where it goes.
How do you think the show will end? Will Baylen or Thrawn be the Big Bad of the show?
