‘Ahsoka’ Just Brought Back One of the Most Mysterious Force Concepts
Ahsoka episode 4 premiered on September 5 and it’s one heck of an episode. “Part Four: Fallen Jedi” sees Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) and Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) make their move to foil Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto) and the Dark Jedis’ plans to travel beyond the galaxy to find Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen). Unfortunately, Hera Syndulla (Mary Elizabeth Winstead)’s reinforcements are too late, and the mission goes terribly wrong.
Spoilers ahead for Ahsoka episode 4, “Part Four: Fallen Jedi“
In the midst of a brutal battle with Baylan Skoll (Ray Stevenson), Tano manages to get a hold of the star map but badly burns her palm in the process. This leaves her fighting one-handed against both Skoll and Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno). To top it all off, Tano gets pushed off a cliff by Skoll after she instructs Wren to destroy the star map. As she disappears over the cliff’s ledge, it almost seems as if the series has prematurely killed off its titular character. Fortunately, we see Tano once more before the episode ends.
The blue glow surrounding Tano tips viewers off that she’s not in a very familiar part of the Star Wars universe. As the camera pans out, we see endless glowing blue pathways forming an intricate pattern across space. Additionally, Tano is not alone in this place, as Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) appears to her. Given that the elder Skywalker is dead by the time Ahsoka takes place, some may wonder if Tano is in some sort of afterlife. Those who have watched Star Wars Rebels will recognize that she’s in the mysterious World Between Worlds.
What is the World Between Worlds?
The World Between Worlds is a component of the Force that was first introduced in Star Wars Rebels. Since Star Wars Rebels is the only media to feature the World Between Worlds before Ahsoka, it remains one of the most mysterious aspects of the Force. The World Between Worlds is essentially a realm within the Force that exists between time and space. The paths seen in the realm are pathways between different moments throughout time and space. While initially posited as a theory among the Jedi, it is very much real, with one gateway into the World Between Worlds located in the Jedi temple on Lothal.
In Star Wars Rebels, the Sith sought to access the World Between Worlds to use its powers for nefarious means. However, Ezra Bridger (Taylor Grey) was able to unlock the gateway first by using the Force. Once in the plane, he used the pathways to go to the ruins of the Malachor Sith Temple two years earlier, where Tano (Ashley Eckstein) disappeared while dueling Darth Vader (James Earl Jones). He saves Tano from Malachor and brings her into the World Between Worlds. Tano then decides to return to her own time in Malachor while Bridger sets out to close the gateway on Lothal. While the pair expressed a desire to close all the gateways to prevent them from being used by the Sith, it is believed that Tano found another gateway in the Sith temple and went on a spiritual journey through the World Between Worlds during the Galactic Civil War.
Viewers did not see any Tano’s presumed journey in the World Between Worlds, so it’s still unclear to what extent it could be used for time travel or to change the past. This is why Anakin Skywalker’s appearance in the realm is still a mystery; we’re unsure if it’s a Force Ghost of Skywalker that made it into the World Between Worlds or if it could actually be a time-traveling Skywalker. Ultimately, the World Between Worlds remains quite mysterious, but some new aspects may come to light to explain Skywalker’s presence in Ahsoka.
(featured image: Disney+)
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