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00:00 How does the song go?
00:01 Girls, girls, girls...
00:03 Girls on film!
00:04 Well that's how you could definitely describe Ahsoka.
00:07 And we all know that Kathleen Kennedy thinks The Force is female
00:11 but I'm really surprised to see Dave Filoni
00:14 drink the pink Kool-Aid as well.
00:16 But wait a minute!
00:17 Isn't pink Kool-Aid all the rage these days, right?
00:20 Well what makes Greta Gerwig's Barbie so brilliant
00:24 is that it's Barbie AND Ken!
00:26 And Ahsoka ain't got no Ken.
00:28 Even though there's a clear, obvious Ken
00:31 staring us right in the face!
00:33 And that's missing Jedi Ezra Bridger.
00:36 Ooh, will these ladies find Ezra?
00:39 I think they will!
00:40 Because they cast Iman Esfandi in the role
00:43 and he already makes a brief hologram appearance
00:45 not only in the trailer as you've seen
00:47 but in Episode 1.
00:49 So we know he's coming back.
00:51 So the obvious fix here would be to have
00:53 one of the Ahsoka storylines
00:55 of which there are many
00:56 following Ezra wherever he is!
00:58 And then they all meet at the end, right?
01:00 To bring some much needed male energy to this show.
01:04 Also, where's Zeb?!
01:05 Right, they even did a great job
01:08 bringing him into live action in Mando!
01:10 Now I know he would be hella expensive
01:12 to do beyond a cameo
01:14 but I mean he's really missed
01:16 they need more male characters
01:17 and are we doing Rebels Season 5 or not?
01:20 It's really weird that he's not there
01:21 considering he's part of the original team
01:24 and he's still around.
01:25 And we know we can do him in live action!
01:27 He's staring us right in the face on the mural!
01:30 That they've brought over from the Rebels show.
01:32 Now don't get me wrong
01:34 I actually really love these female characters.
01:37 They're all alphas
01:38 and they're all wearing the best activewear
01:40 women's activewear I've ever seen.
01:42 I'm like "Where are you ladies shopping?!"
01:43 "You look fantastic!"
01:45 "Oh I love it!"
01:46 But I want to see strong female characters succeed.
01:50 I want this show to be successful
01:52 or it's just, you know, it's just another
01:55 strike against this stuff.
01:57 Which is very frustrating.
01:59 You know, we want representation to work
02:01 and the way representation works
02:02 is when it's successful.
02:03 Also, I don't like seeing female characters
02:07 especially such good ones
02:08 shortchanged by being relegated
02:11 to what seems like some kind of
02:12 Star Wars Women's League
02:14 instead of being part of the main event.
02:16 Right? It's like
02:17 "Ah, welcome to Star Wars Women!"
02:19 And you're like
02:20 "Why do we have to have our own section?"
02:22 "Why can't we just be in the section
02:23 with everybody else?"
02:24 So yes, I've seen the first two episodes of Ahsoka
02:28 and I can only speak for the first two episodes.
02:30 Maybe a bunch of dudes
02:31 maybe it starts to borrow another song
02:33 "Reigning Men" in Episode 3.
02:35 So this is also a non-spoiler review
02:38 and I'm going to discuss my mixed feelings
02:40 about the show.
02:41 But I'll be breaking down each of the episodes
02:43 as they drop
02:44 which is now on Tuesday evenings
02:46 at 9pm EST.
02:49 So be sure to come back tonight
02:51 for my breakdown of Episodes 1 and 2.
02:53 Now that is not just an evening drop time
02:57 but it's the HBO drop time.
02:59 Ah, that's fantastic.
03:00 And interestingly, Ahsoka
03:02 has some Game of Thrones
03:04 House of the Dragon vibes
03:05 particularly with its end credits.
03:07 You're like "Oh, I see what you're trying to do here."
03:09 But you know, with such atmospheric credits
03:12 put them in the start then!
03:13 You know, put them in the beginning quite frankly.
03:15 I mean, they're wasted at the end.
03:17 You know, think of the HBO shows
03:20 the credits very much from
03:21 from House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones
03:24 to Succession to White Lotus
03:25 those opening credits really do set the mood.
03:29 So if you have such good opening credits
03:31 use them!
03:33 So anyway, the problem though
03:35 is even with those HBO aspirations
03:38 at its heart Ahsoka is still an all-ages cartoon
03:41 because it's a live-action extension
03:44 of the Filoniverse
03:45 which means PG-13 violence and no sex.
03:48 So the slower dramatic pace
03:51 with none of those adult elements
03:53 to jazz things up
03:54 and a serious tone
03:56 taking the place of a high energy
03:58 the high energy of an all-ages cartoon
04:00 like Rebels had
04:02 it's not only an adjustment
04:03 but it's a little bit of a slog
04:04 at least again in the first two episodes.
04:06 The first two episodes are very slow
04:09 with Ahsoka getting her Indiana Jones on
04:11 as she looks for a missing star map
04:13 and how to activate it.
04:14 It was very Raiders, in fact, at some points
04:17 only much slower!
04:18 And speaking of slow
04:20 well Rosario Dawson could not look better.
04:22 She looks absolutely amazing
04:24 and she can sure smize, boy
04:27 Tyra Banks would be proud
04:29 but she and she's very good
04:31 at hitting her fighting marks
04:32 and looking cool while doing it
04:34 but she's just too slow in her execution.
04:37 I believe I brought this up
04:38 back when she first appeared on The Mandalorian
04:40 where she had the same problem
04:42 and I said back then
04:43 that she needed serious fight training
04:45 and she still hasn't received it.
04:47 So as a result
04:48 her opponents need to slow down as well
04:50 and that just makes the fights really weird
04:53 because you're like
04:53 why would the opponent slow down
04:55 to match Ahsoka's speed
04:56 instead of just taking her out
04:58 being like
04:58 what luck this Jedi is a turtle!
05:00 So while her fights look cool
05:03 they have a weird vibe to them
05:05 as I said
05:05 that they seem more like practice sessions
05:07 or more like
05:08 I know they're fight choreography
05:10 but they seem like choreography
05:12 instead of actual fights with any high stakes
05:14 you know
05:14 it's almost like a dance instead
05:17 a very cool dance
05:18 but not the fight that I wanted.
05:20 The other big issues for the show
05:23 big issue for the show
05:24 besides a lot of ladies
05:26 and being very slow and low energy
05:28 is that if you haven't watched Rebels
05:30 I'm so glad that you guys insisted
05:32 I watch Rebels
05:33 or this would be a disaster
05:34 you're gonna have a hard time
05:36 not only catching everything
05:38 but connecting to the show emotionally
05:40 because the show isn't about Ahsoka
05:42 it's Rebels season 5
05:44 I don't care what the title is
05:45 I mean Ahsoka isn't even in a lot of the scenes
05:47 which is kind of good
05:49 because at this point in her life
05:51 she doesn't have a lot of personality
05:52 which is also weird
05:53 because she was
05:55 because she became famous
05:56 and well known
05:56 and a fan favorite for her personality
05:58 and then she lost it
06:00 Dave Filoni wrote all the episodes for Ahsoka
06:03 and part of me wonders
06:04 now that I've seen the first two
06:06 if that was the best idea
06:07 I mean I love Dave Filoni
06:09 you guys have turned me
06:10 and his work has turned me into a Dave Filoni believer
06:12 but every time I watch an animated episode
06:14 I pay attention to who wrote and directed it
06:16 and it's very often not Dave Filoni
06:19 so he has a very strong stable of Star Wars animation writers and directors
06:24 and maybe he should have brought some over for Ahsoka
06:26 now that I've seen the first two episodes
06:28 Dave Filoni also directs the first episode
06:31 which is close to an hour
06:32 and when you put the first two episodes together
06:34 you get a nice little movie
06:35 so there's your Tuesday night taken care of
06:37 he brings an old-school Star Wars feel to the show
06:41 like really old school
06:42 like OG trilogy 1970s feel
06:45 which is kind of cool
06:46 but then also at the same time you're like
06:48 "whoo this is very 70s"
06:49 uh you know in terms of like being like
06:53 like a little I don't know
06:54 like a little silly maybe
06:56 I don't know I don't know
06:57 like I feel like maybe sometimes Star Wars recently has gotten too modern
07:00 but I feel like Dave
07:01 it's the pendulum effect
07:03 so I think Dave Filoni maybe went a little too far in the other direction
07:06 maybe we can settle somewhere in the middle
07:08 I mean I think Mando pretty much has gotten it right
07:10 and then he also
07:12 Dave Filoni also brings in some other classic Star Wars elements
07:15 that I don't want to spoil
07:16 that have been missing from some of the more recent installments
07:19 and were also kind of cool
07:21 and Filoni and his team though to their credit
07:24 they got the flourish
07:25 oh the flourish is nice here
07:27 there are a few moments in episode one and two
07:29 albeit very brief
07:30 that are just so incredibly cool
07:32 that I'm like wow
07:34 there's real potential here
07:36 Filoni as we all know is now set to direct an upcoming Star Wars theatrical film
07:40 and quite frankly though
07:41 having seen these two episodes
07:43 I think that while he has potential as a live action director
07:46 he still has some ways to go
07:48 and he's like he's no Rick Famuyua
07:50 I think Rick Famuyua maybe should have gotten the gig
07:53 and Filoni could have written and produced
07:55 Rick Famuyua of course
07:56 while he directed some of the earlier Mando episodes
07:59 I think Rick Famuyua really leveled up with the finale
08:02 the last two episodes of season three for Mando
08:04 and I'm excited that he's directing the finale for Ahsoka
08:07 so far under Filoni's directing
08:10 and the other director that they brought on here
08:12 who's also done a lot of television
08:14 I can't believe that none of the
08:16 Star Wars Filoni animation directors got the call here
08:20 they're probably like
08:21 we're just sitting here
08:22 we know what we're doing
08:23 and you've worked with us before
08:24 why don't you bring us in here
08:25 like why isn't anyone who directed Rebels working on this show
08:28 it's weird to me
08:29 again because it is Rebel season five
08:31 all right so
08:33 sometimes Ahsoka looks a little TV
08:34 rather than cinematic
08:36 like the picture is a little too clear
08:38 and then also when you add to that the 70s
08:40 like I think the 70s look that's it
08:42 the 70s look only works when you have like 70s grain in the film
08:45 right you're like ah yeah
08:46 so it's cinema
08:48 but when you have like the picture
08:49 clear picture of today
08:51 and then they're still dressed like they're in the 70s
08:53 you're like this is weird
08:54 and then also you can really tell when you're
08:57 they're using the volume
08:59 which seems to be quite a bit
09:00 I don't know if you've developed the ability to see the volume
09:03 but no despite the larger digital frame
09:06 you can see that all the action takes place in the middle
09:08 like in a circle
09:09 because the volume is a circle
09:11 so you're like oh I can see the edge of where you can film
09:13 and you felt you filled everything else with in with VFX
09:16 and I can see that a lot now
09:18 and it's become it becomes very distracting
09:20 I'm wondering do you see it
09:21 and now that I described it
09:22 do you then is it help you to see it
09:24 but one thing that I absolutely adored
09:28 about the first two episodes of Ahsoka
09:30 is that it has a lot of Jedi and droids
09:32 oh boy
09:33 and I love the Jedi
09:35 and especially after watching Rebels
09:37 to watch Kanan and Ezra fight on that show
09:39 was just thrilling
09:40 it's the best Jedi fight sequences I've ever seen
09:43 so it's a little disappointing
09:44 they're not a year on this show
09:46 but also then to see Jedi go up against
09:49 assassin droids
09:50 I did not know how much I needed this in my life
09:53 also assassin droids are fantastic
09:55 because they not only look cool
09:56 but you can slice and dice them
09:57 and still qualify as a family show
09:59 brilliant
10:01 very smart
10:01 I'm curious how they're able to animate so many droids
10:05 so convincingly for a Disney+ show
10:08 like wow
10:08 but I'm not complaining
10:09 I'm having a fabulous time
10:11 droid it up baby
10:12 Jedis and droids
10:13 what a combo
10:15 all right let's talk cast
10:16 as I said Rosario Dawson
10:18 makes a great figurehead for the show
10:21 but at least in the first two episodes
10:23 she's as closed off and distant
10:25 as she has been on Mando
10:26 so she can't be the lead character
10:28 because nobody wants to be around that
10:29 for a long period of time
10:30 but again she is smizing up a storm
10:34 there are a couple shots in the first episode
10:37 you'll know what I'm talking about
10:38 where I'm like
10:39 what a eye shot
10:40 wow
10:40 but instead our emotion for the first two episodes
10:43 comes from Sabine Wren
10:45 brought to life by Natasha Lou Bordizzo
10:48 Bordizzo sure looks like the animated character
10:50 but when she's first introduced
10:53 it's the classic
10:54 and I really hate this
10:54 and they particularly use it for female characters
10:56 which annoys me
10:57 it's the classic
10:59 ah isn't this character cool
11:00 because she doesn't get along with anybody
11:02 I hate that trope
11:03 it's really annoying and frustrating
11:05 and no one likes that type of person
11:07 but luckily that quickly falls away
11:09 and in the second episode in particular
11:11 she becomes more like the Sabine Wren
11:13 Rebels fans have come to know and love
11:15 I also found myself
11:17 quickly coming around on Mary Elizabeth Winstead
11:20 as Hera aka General Syndulla
11:23 aka General Mom
11:24 that's right
11:25 she's still very motherly
11:27 and Filoni and Winstead say
11:28 that this is a new type of feeling general
11:31 but I have to say
11:32 from Rebels to here
11:34 I never get the feeling that she has any power
11:36 because she never has any underlings
11:38 she never seems to be
11:38 she's a general
11:39 but she seems like a general
11:40 in terms of nothing
11:42 like she has
11:43 she never seems to be commanding anything
11:45 at least in episode 2
11:47 she has some boss moments
11:48 which I appreciated
11:49 so I started
11:50 in episode 2
11:51 I was like
11:51 okay I'm coming around on this Hera
11:53 but it's still a different Hera
11:54 than the animated series
11:55 because Mary Elizabeth Winstead
11:57 just has a totally different vibe
11:59 our villains don't say much
12:01 but also look cool
12:02 but Ray Stevenson's Balin Skoll
12:05 sends his female apprentice
12:06 to do almost all of his work
12:08 so again
12:09 more ladies
12:10 but also again
12:12 Ivana Sockno does a really good job
12:14 she's great
12:15 it's just it's a lot of women
12:16 David Tennant also is fantastic as Hoi Yang
12:20 also apparently from Clone Wars
12:23 right I'm not familiar with his character
12:25 but I'm loving him so far here
12:27 although he's still my second favorite
12:29 humanoid droid
12:30 after K2SO
12:32 because I don't love
12:33 Hoi Yang's design
12:34 Hoi Yang's design
12:35 I think that could be a little better
12:36 you just can't top K2SO's design
12:39 I love me a snarky droid
12:41 chopper
12:42 chopper shows up in the first two episodes
12:44 but that's all I want to say
12:45 all right
12:46 since the Mandalorian
12:47 went on to become so entrenched
12:49 in the Star Wars feloniverse
12:51 the animation animation lore
12:52 it is weird to be telling
12:54 yet another story in that same space
12:56 without the Dins
12:57 Mando and Grogu
12:58 oh I love that
12:59 they're a family
13:00 Clone Wars
13:02 Rebels
13:02 Mando
13:03 the Bad Batch
13:04 and now Ahsoka
13:04 it's all part of the same story
13:06 so again
13:07 thank you to all of you who insisted
13:09 I get in on this
13:10 because now I'm pretty entrenched in that story
13:12 and I get it
13:13 I told you
13:13 when I was covering the Bad Batch in Mando
13:15 I was like
13:16 one day it just all clicks
13:18 and you understand Star Wars
13:19 and so I'm part of the party now
13:21 but it's a small party
13:23 the feloniverse has never had a huge audience
13:25 it has a faithful
13:26 fervent audience
13:27 but it's never been that big
13:28 so I wonder if that
13:30 if the audience can get bigger
13:32 as it continues to expand into live action
13:35 you know I think as Mando
13:37 got more into the feloniverse
13:39 you would see some
13:40 normies fade away
13:42 because they were like
13:43 they didn't know what was going on
13:44 but is Ahsoka really the show to expand
13:48 expand the audience as necessary
13:50 I think if it was truly a season five of Rebels
13:53 with the quick pace and high energy
13:55 and more excellent male characters
13:56 to balance out these phenomenal female characters
13:59 I think that would help it reach the wide audience
14:01 it needs to
14:02 as a very expensive Disney+ show
14:04 like I don't see it being an HBO style juggernaut
14:07 on social media
14:08 even with the new 9pm Eastern Standard Time drop
14:12 I mean maybe with some later episodes
14:14 if there are some really big moments
14:15 and some big character returns
14:17 although again
14:18 you know like some of the big characters
14:20 that are expected to return
14:21 Thrawn and Ezra
14:23 those are big enough I think to trend
14:24 but not to like explode the fanbase
14:27 because it's still a small group
14:29 that even knows who they are
14:30 but I think if Disney+ continues with this
14:33 and drops Loki season 2
14:35 at 9pm Eastern Standard Time
14:37 I hope that show's good
14:38 if it's as good as the first season
14:39 then I think Disney will get the results they're looking for
14:43 with the night time drops
14:45 you know American time
14:47 so that's my non-spoiler review of Ahsoka
14:50 episodes 1 and 2
14:51 and again be sure to come back this evening
14:52 for my breakdowns
14:54 but share your initial thoughts down below
14:56 subscribe today
14:57 and of course as always
14:58 you can check out some more videos right now
15:01 [Music]