What ‘Ahsoka’s Galaxy-Building Means for the Future and Past of ‘Star Wars’

The Ahsoka show is bringing together a lot of plot threads that have appeared in previous Star Wars games and shows. These references go beyond irrelevant easter eggs and cameos and instead actively allow us as viewers to learn more about the Star Wars galaxy, both how it was in the past and where it may be going in the future.

Space whales and hyperspace travel

Star Wars Rebels introduced the purrgil as a “creature of the week,” with an interesting bit of lore behind them. When we first meet the purrgil, Hera Syndulla says that some deep space pilots attribute hyperspace technology to the purrgil and call them the first travelers. Hera herself thinks it’s a myth and sees them as more of a menace and a danger to pilots and ships due to hyperspace collisions with these mysterious creatures. However, she is proven wrong at the end of their introductory Star Wars Rebels episode when it is revealed that Ezra Bridger, himself just a young Padawan at the time, could connect with these star whales as they helped the Ghost crew escape a hyperspace fuel refinery safely.

The Ahsoka show takes Star Wars‘ already established purrgil lore a step further by confirming that most hyperspace lanes are actually ancient purrgil migration paths and that Jedi and other Force users were the first hyperspace travelers, thanks to their ability to communicate with the space whales through the Force.

Force-sensitivity and piloting

Another piece of galaxy-building that Ahsoka has confirmed is that part of the reason that Force users like the Jedi and Sith tend to be incredible pilots is that it may have been one of the first skills developed by Force-sensitive people.

The show implies that Force-sensitives like the Jedi were likely the first hyperspace pilots, and this does make sense. If you don’t know where you’re going when traveling faster than light, you’d have to have precognition to be able to avoid hitting anything.

The Thrawn novels explored this, showing how, in Thrawn’s homeland of The Chiss Ascendency, children who are identified as being strong in the Force are made into pilots to help navigate difficult terrain. Ironically, the Chiss call these children “Sky-walkers.” However, this gift appears to fade over time, which Ahsoka alluded to when Din Djarin asked her to train Grogu in The Mandalorian season 2. It seems that, without training, a Force-sensitive being may lose that connection.

This focus on piloting may also explain why so many of the plots of modern Star Wars movies revolve around star charts, wayfinders, and other maps and navigational tools. If the ability to use the Force was first honed by pilots, then arguably, these maps and wayfinders were important tools for training and passing on knowledge. There’s a reason why the end credits to Ahsoka are our first legible map of the galaxy and why the World Between Worlds arguably looks like a 3D star map.

Alien species and other galaxies

The Ahsoka show has also confirmed that the Dathomirian Nightsisters were the descendants of Peridian Nightsisters, who rode the purrgil into the main Star Wars galaxy eons ago. Funnily enough, Ahsoka may have proven that the Nightsisters might not have been the first or only Star Wars aliens to cross over between galaxies.

The Zeffonians—Zeffo for short—introduced in the game Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order were a species of Force-sensitives believed to be native to the planet Zeffo in the Outer Rim. The Ahsoka show may have changed their history, however, or at least revealed their fate, as the Zeffo are referenced in the Temple where Thrawn meets with the Great Mothers on Peridea. The carvings on the walls appear to be in the Zeffo script, taken almost directly from the Star Wars Jedi games. This would suggest that the Zeffo, like the Nightsisters, traveled between galaxies. Given the connections between the Nightsisters and the Zeffo already established in Fallen Order—the Zeffo had built an ancient temple on Dathomir—this additional lore makes sense.

Some particularly dedicated fans have even gone so far as to translate some of the writing on Peridea, which reveals itself to be dedicated to Kujet. Kujet was a Force-sensitive Zeffo sage who was an authoritarian dark-sider. Could Kujet have been an early Sith Lord? This is currently unknown, but something that will likely be answered in stories to come.

The past and the future

It’s important to remember that one of the upcoming Star Wars films will follow the first Jedi and likely round out some of the history and mystery about the Star Wars galaxy before the Jedi, Sith, and Republic. Everything that has been added to Star Wars lore by Ahsoka could be vital to unlocking those mysteries.

I understand that many fans are exhausted by the amount of references or the many forms of media they are expected to keep up with. However, I think writing off the games and shows is a mistake, especially now that we’re seeing the culmination of almost a decade of Disney-era Star Wars mixed media.

The galaxy is a fascinating mystery we are discovering new clues about every day, and it has me truly excited for both the past and the future of Star Wars.

(featured image: Disney+)