Ahsoka Episode 6: Far, Far Away Review – Thrawn’s Foreboding Return

So the moment has finally arrived. Grand Admiral Thrawn, the greatest threat to the galaxy’s newfound peace after defeating the Empire, has made his return. He’s not the only one though, as Ezra Bridger also makes his live-action debut and reunites with Sabine on Peridea. Ahsoka Episode 6: Far, Far Away was another “set-up” episode, lots of plot threads and character development to establish the events that will occur in the final two episodes. Although it had minimal action, it’s still a very important episode and we’ll break down exactly why.

If you haven’t already, you can watch all five episodes of Ahsoka on Disney+ right now. You can also check out my previous reviews on the show if you want to read my thoughts on those.

• Episode 1: Master and Apprentice
• Episode 2: Toil and Trouble
• Episode 3: Time To Fly
• Episode 4: Fallen Jedi
• Episode 5: Shadow Warrior

Spoiler alert for those who have not watched Ahsoka Episode 6: Far, Far Away.

Story – The Final Arc Begins 

Ahsoka picks up where we left off in Episode 5: Shadow Warrior, Ahsoka and Huyang are traveling through hyperspace in the Purrgil. She reveals to Huyang that Sabine went with the enemy willingly, she shows resentment towards her decision. Huyang tries to convince her that Sabine may have made a bad choice, but did so with good intentions. Ahsoka tries to move on and asks Huyang to tell her a story, which he starts by saying the iconic “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” line.

This is Ahsoka’s final appearance in this episode, a stark contrast to the previous one that was completely centered around her and the inner turmoil she experiences. Episode 6 gives those characters who were absent in Episode 5 time to have the plot centered around them. This time, the plot will center around Sabine and her journey with the antagonists. It’s an interesting choice to not have Ahsoka for the majority of the episode, but it does give Sabine and other characters a chance to develop further before we reach the finale.

A pod of Purrgil traveling through hyperspace

Sabine and the antagonists eventually reach their destination, Peridea, the once great Witch Kingdom of the Dathmiri. They meet a trio of Nightsisters. These Nightsisters and the eventual appearance of the Night troopers evoke references to Greek culture. The Sisters call to Thrawn and his infamous Imperial Starcruiser, the Chimaera, looms over the tower our characters stand on. An army of Night troopers stand at attention and Thrawn finally makes his debut. Lars Mikkelson does a terrific job portraying Thrawn and it was a smart decision to cast the person who voiced Thrawn in Star Wars: Rebels. 

Thrawn thanks Morgan for her dedication, and notices Sabine who has been a thorn in his side in the past. Thrawn acknowledges the deal Baylan and Sabine made in the previous episode. He gives her a mount and allows her to begin her search for Ezra. He’s no fool, however, and has Baylan and Shin follow her to finish them both off. As Baylan follows Sabine, we get more insight into his world view and what his ultimate goal is. Sabine and Baylan were very strong in this episode, but I would like to see a bit more about how Shin feels about her master’s plan.

The Nightsisters on top of a tower in Peridea

As Sabine makes her journey to find Ezra, the show interjects some levity by having her Howler mount be very dog-like and she encounters these turtle-like creatures called Noti. The Noti notice the Rebel insignia on her armor and she realizes they can lead her to Ezra. These scenes were light hearted and showed Sabine does have some connection to the force through animal communication. However, I felt some of the dialogue was written with the intention of servicing the comedy and not in service of Sabine’s character. Also, her running into the Noti through complete happenstance just came off as lazy, her search for her friend across an entire planet took a matter of hours within the same day. 

After the Noti discover she has the Rebel insignia, they take her back to their home, where Ezra Bridger has been hiding from Thrawn. Ezra makes his live-action debut and he embraces his friend that traveled all this way to rescue him, except he doesn’t know that Sabine has no exit strategy. It’s a tender moment that the whole show has been building towards and it’s exciting to know Ezra will play pivotal role in the show’s finale.

A shot of Enoch, Captain of Thrawn’s guard

The show ends with the Nightsisters prophesizing that another Jedi is making their way to Peridea by traveling on the Purrgil. That Jedi, of course, being Ahsoka Tano. Thrawn is disappointed, but not surprised, as he knows the Jedi can be troublesome to keep dead. He turns to the Nightsisters and menacingly says he will need their dark magick again. This episode wasn’t the best of the series, but with the introduction of two huge characters and the development of Baylan and Sabine, it was serviceable and provided some good moments. 

Characters and Performances – Secondary Characters Shine

Since this episode didn’t contain much of the titular character, it gave time for secondary characters to get their moment. As much as I wasn’t a fan of the scenes with Sabine and the creatures of Peridea, they were humorous and made Sabine relatable. The show also did a good job with the creature production and they emoted them well. Baylan also shined in this episode and they elaborate more on his perspectives. I find Baylan really compelling and Ray Stevenson portrays the character so well. Of course, Lars Mikkelson as Thrawn was absolute perfection. His voice, his mannerisms, completely capture the menacingly cold and intelligently ruthless character that is Thrawn. I also liked what I saw from Eman Esfandi as Ezra, but he only showed up near the end so he didn’t get much screen time.

One of the Noti, nomads who live on Peridea

Cinematography and Sound – Beautifully Morose

This episodes cinematography was on another level. The planet of Peridea isn’t exactly filled with color or vibrant landscapes, but the muted colors they did have mixed with the sweeping shots of barren mountainous ranges and the stormy atmosphere were excellent at matching the tone of the episode. I also love the idea that the Purrgil come to Peridea to die and the rings of the planet were made of the bones of perished Purrgil. The shot of Thrawn’s Chimaera looming over the tower as it approaches perfectly matched the grandiosity of Thrawn’s grand debut. Honestly, the cinematography of this episode alone contributed to most of its score. 

Editing and Pacing – A Slow Burn Episode

The editing and pacing was about giving characters time to speak and grow their characters and establish the new major villain. It was simple, but effective. I mentioned earlier my gripe with Sabine finding Ezra within a matter of hours. It’s a whole planet, Ezra could have been literally anywhere, but he just happens to be close enough nearby that it doesn’t even take a whole rotation of the planet. In the grand scheme, it doesn’t matter at all. The plot required Sabine to find Ezra and so they get the search over with quickly, but the hand wavyness of it is what bothers me.