Just when I thought I was back in, they kicked me out. Somehow, the ending of Ahsoka was worse than I feared. I was mostly concerned with Sabine facing any consequences for her decision that allowed Thrawn to return to the galaxy and reunify the Imperial remnants. Not only was this completely whiffed, but there was so much more that simply felt dumb. I don’t want to spend time complaining about everything that was poorly executed, there’s plenty of content out there for that. I want to focus my ire on the handline of Sabine. It is inexcusable in my opinion.
By allowing her emotions to get the better of her, she brought Thrawn back for the possibility of seeing Ezra. I still don’t know why she was allowed to go see Ezra at all. Thrawn could have had her killed the moment she arrived and saved himself a lot of trouble. But whatever. The lack of even any pushback from Ezra for ruining his sacrifice or Ahsoka for reintroducing a genocidal warlord to the galaxy is an awful message. Part of being a parent is standing by your kids, but also making them aware that their actions may have negative consequences. Ahsoka is a bad master if she is willing to reward Sabine’s impulsiveness. I cannot in good faith say I am doing my duty as a father if I completely absolve my son when he does something that will hurt others. I can still love him while making him empathize with the people he has hurt.
I’ve used the phrase, “in a better-written show…” already to describe Ahsoka. I am going to use it again. In the hands of better writers, I could be more lenient. I could tell myself that the writers are writing Sabine to be unlikeable. But the writers haven’t earned that write. I think they still want us to see her as a hero even though she kind of sucks. It is possible to write a compelling, purposefully unlikeable character. Look at Jamie Lannister. Hell, it is possible to write a monstrous character, but do it in such a way that the audience occasionally and momentarily forgets how awful they are. Look at Humpert Humpert. I think Filoni et al. want Sabine to be a likeable character, so they’re afraid of confronting her with the consequences. Do they think the audience is too immature to handle it? Are they worried we will dislike Sabine if the other characters dislike her?
Defenders of Ahsoka might be correct if they say that this can get cleared up in a second season. As it stands, Sabine and Ahsoka are stranded in a galaxy far from home. They have plenty of time to work through Sabine’s decision to sell out the galaxy for her friend. But I doubt it will happen. There hasn’t been enough in this first season to make me think the writers are interested in pursuing this thread. I won’t note every scene that makes me feel this way because I am not getting paid to do it. Others are. Go read or listen to their work. Or watch Ahsoka and if the finale upsets you as much as it upsets many fans, read up on the peak-end theory and get even angrier that creators are ignoring basic human psychology.
The Keasy Depot 