Though Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace was launched in 1999—almost a decade earlier than Star Wars: The Clone Wars debuted, one delicate Anakin Skywalker element within the film surprisingly foreshadows the eventual introduction of his Jedi Padawan, Ahsoka Tano.
Star Wars films and TV exhibits have lengthy been recognized for his or her retcons, and The Clone Wars was no exception. That present (and the identically named film earlier than it) was set between Star Wars: Episode II – Assault of the Clones and Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith within the Star Wars timeline, years after the prequel trilogy concluded.
Among the many modifications The Clone Wars made to the prequels was the revelation that Anakin had as soon as had a Padawan, one thing that wasn’t indicated at any level all through the prequel trilogy. But, one blink-and-you-miss-it element in The Phantom Menace foreshadows Ahsoka’s eventual introduction, even when she wasn’t deliberate for on the time.
Anakin Skywalker’s Phantom Menace Podracer Shares A Design With Ahsoka
One of the crucial important moments in The Phantom Menace is Anakin’s podrace, upon which his freedom relies upon (unbeknownst to him). Jedi Grasp Qui-Gon Jinn has made a take care of Watto, who owns each Anakin and his mom, Shmi Skywalker, as slaves, whereby Watto should launch Anakin from slavery if he wins the race.
Maybe due to the depth of these circumstances, it is easy to overlook that Anakin’s podracer design is similar to the design of Ahsoka Tano’s lekku. Though Ahsoka is just not a Twi’lek, which is the Star Wars race finest recognized for his or her lekku, Ahsoka (a Togruta) has distinctive blue-and-white striped lekku which are surprisingly much like the stripes on Anakin’s podracer.
Actually, extra surprisingly, Anakin’s podracer even has an orange design that appears like an “A,” harking back to each Ahsoka’s face and her identify. Curiously, these particulars appear to have gone largely neglected by many Star Wars followers, regardless of how jarring the similarity is. Which will very nicely be as a result of, honestly, there’s little or no chance this similarity was intentional.
It was George Lucas himself who needed Anakin to have a Padawan, though Ahsoka’s design was primarily created by brand-new Lucasfilm Co-President Dave Filoni, who did not be part of the corporate till 2005—years after The Phantom Menace. It is doable there was some connection, however it’s more likely that that is an odd coincidence that foreshadows among the best decisions Star Wars ever made.
Ahsoka Wasn’t The Plan But, However She Grew to become Essential
Regardless of Ahsoka not being current within the prequel trilogy and all three films going with none point out of or reference to a Padawan for Anakin, she has turn out to be some of the important characters in Star Wars. For one, Ahsoka was instrumental in making Anakin’s fall to the darkish facet make significantly extra sense.
Particularly, when Ahsoka left the Jedi Order, it meant an enormous hit to Anakin’s belief within the Jedi. These cracks in his belief and perception within the Jedi in the end allowed Palpatine to deprave Anakin’s thoughts, convincing him that he wanted to activate the Jedi in Revenge of the Sith.
Actually, a serious grievance about that film had been that Anakin appeared to activate a dime. With the introduction of Ahsoka and Anakin’s painful narrative arc when it got here to his relationship along with her, his fall grew to become way more contextualized and, because of this, significantly better.
Ahsoka’s affect and significance prolong far past simply Anakin’s story, nonetheless. Ahsoka can be essential for the way forward for the Star Wars franchise. Most notably, Ahsoka season 2 is at present the one confirmed upcoming live-action Star Wars present, and it is clear that, significantly with Filoni now on the helm, she’s going to proceed to be essential transferring ahead.
Ahsoka’s in depth affect and future virtually actually weren’t on anybody’s thoughts because the designs for Anakin’s podracer in The Phantom Menace have been being drawn up, however the visible similarities between the 2 are jarring, and, maybe inadvertently, they now serve to foreshadow the introduction of this massively vital character, in addition to Anakin Skywalker’s eventual destiny.
- Launch Date
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Might 19, 1999
- Runtime
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136 minutes
- Producers
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Rick McCallum