I really enjoyed Ahsoka. I can't fault the show in any way: the casting was great (Thrawn particularly), the characters were solid and true to their origins, and the whole show looked stunning. I thought the new races and locations were done really well (whilst remaining very Star Wars), the soundscaping and music were incredible, and the shot framing was utterly beautiful at times – that one shot of Thrawn as the TIE fighters leave their docks and roar by overhead in perfect symmetry was iconic. And yet, it wasn't quite a slam-dunk, and I'm not sure why.

Rosario Dawson's Ahsoka is certainly a more mature, measured, and overall "Jedi" approach to the character, and perhaps that doesn't quite feel earned, but between her arcs in Rebels and her near-death sequence (which I really enjoyed, and thought the de-aged Anakin worked remarkably well), I'm not sure that's fair. It is weird seeing these characters in non-cartoon form, and as well as they cast Sabine, Hera, and Ezra, there is this slightly off feeling to them that was hard to place. Or maybe it's just that the show feels so utterly intertwined with Rebels and Clone Wars, almost too tightly. The Witches are back, Thrawn is back, there are strong hints that the new world houses something at least similar to the "Force Family" that Anakin and Obi-Wan find (the whole brother/sister/father triad; there's even an owl in the closing shots); we also get those weird death-Force-bridges again, space whales, and another ex-Jedi. But I like all of those things. I always felt the destruction of the Witches felt a little too complete, so I'm happy to see them being resurrected, and you can't really do a follow-up from the end of Rebels without going down the space whales/Thrawn/Ezra route. Plus, Ahsoka is so heavily intertwined with those characters, and we've already seen plenty of them pop up in the other Star Wars TV series. So here, again, I can't honestly fault the show for taking these routes or playing with this fan service, not least of all because it all does seem relevant, rather than merely shoe-horning in cameos.

Plus, all of the individual character arcs are great for our returning heroes, Thrawn (as mentioned) is just a brilliant character done absolute justice, and as much as you would be allowed to roll your eyes at another ex-Jedi turned mercenary, Baylan Skoll is being set up for a much more interesting second act, helped by an excellent portrayal and a clever mystery that hints at some much more original stories yet to come. And to top it all off: David Tennant as Huyang, not only a great droid, but one of the only ones with a semi-normal name!

Which is all to say that I really enjoyed Ahsoka. I can't fault the show in any meaningful way. And I'm very much hoping for/looking forward to a sequel that dives into more of the lore of this new galaxy, whilst also giving us a villain worthy of the post-Skywalker era (honestly, Thrawn would have been so much better than Snoke et al, even if I quite enjoyed the sequel trilogy).