Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for Ahsoka Episode 4.
The Big Picture
- Sabine’s Mandalorian weapons and armor give her an advantage in combat against Shin Hati, providing extra protection and firepower in Ahsoka Episode 4.
- Sabine is a pragmatic and morally grey combatant, willing to do whatever it takes to win and make decisions based on her emotions.
- Sabine’s embrace of the Mandalorian way parallels Ahsoka’s own journey, as both characters defy traditional Jedi teachings and rely on their own unique abilities and experiences.
The first four episodes of Ahsoka have managed to re-introduce many characters and concepts from Star Wars Rebels, most notably Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo). The Mandalorian warrior has more or less served as Ahsoka‘s deuteragonist, as she accompanies Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) on a journey to find Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi). Said journey revealed that before the events of the series, Ahsoka attempted to train Sabine in the ways of the Jedi – and didn’t entirely succeed, as Sabine decided to walk away from said training. But in the last week’s episode of the series “Fallen Jedi“, Sabine embraces her Mandalorian heritage – and becomes a better fighter for it.
Sabine’s Mandalorian Weapons And Armor Give Her An Edge Against Shin Hati
Sabine doesn’t originally start off on the right foot. She ends up fighting against the Dark Side user Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno) in Ahsoka‘s premiere episode, “Master and Apprentice”, which resulted in the first-ever live-action lightsaber duel between two female combatants. Hati is victorious, delivering a seemingly fatal blow to Sabine…but the Mandalorian manages to survive. During their rematch, things are different: Sabine is now wearing her trademark Mandalorian armor, which provides her extra protection against Hati’s blade. Even when Hati disarms her, Sabine has a literal weapon up her sleeve in the form of a flashbang grenade — stunning Hati and allowing her to make an escape.
Much like Din Djarin and Boba Fett, Sabine’s Mandalorian heritage means that she utilizes Beskar armor as well as a variety of weapons including a wrist-mounted flamethrower, miniaturized heat-seeking missiles, and jetpacks. These weapons make Mandalorians some of the most formidable warriors in the galaxy and give Sabine the edge she needed in her rematch with Hati. The Mandalorians even developed their weaponry and fighting style to combat the Jedi, which was touched upon in Rebels as well as Star Wars: The Clone Wars and The Mandalorian. For showrunner Dave Filoni to touch upon this element is not only further proof that his work is becoming integral to the Star Wars universe, but it also makes sense in the story. Sabine hasn’t fully connected with the way of the Jedi, but the way of Mandalore has managed to serve her well.
Sabine Is a Far More Pragmatic Fighter Than Ahsoka — and a More Morally Grey One To Boot
Sabine also tends to be a more pragmatic combatant than Ahsoka or any other Jedi Knight who’s appeared in Star Wars media. The Jedi usually abide by a strict code, from their ethics to their combat. In contrast, Mandalorians will use any and every edge to win. A key example is the Season 2 finale of The Mandalorian, entitled “The Rescue”, where Djarin engaged in combat with Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito). Djarin presses his advantage, attempting to tie up Gideon with his grappling cord and not letting up with the hits when he gets in close. Sabine takes a similar tactic, delivering swift & precise strikes in her second duel with Hati as well as the droid assassins employed by the Dark Sider. Where a Jedi would seek a more peaceful route, she seeks to end the fight by any means necessary.
But it’s not just combat where Sabine employs a morally grey approach. During the closing moments of “Fallen Jedi”, Baylan Skoll (Ray Stevenson) offers to spare her life and take her to Ezra if she gives him the map that Elsbeth Morgan (Diana Lee Insanto) had been using to find Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen). Sabine, who had been ready to destroy the map, hesitates…and ends up giving it to Skoll. It’s rare that a hero actually complies with the villain’s request, but it makes for a far more interesting beat than if Sabine had simply destroyed the map Unlike the Jedi, she let her emotions influence her decisions…though it’s fairly clear that Skoll is playing on said emotions in order to find Thrawn. If the second half of Ahsoka keeps up storytelling decisions like these, it’ll make for one of the more interesting Star Wars shows to date.
Sabine Embracing The Mandalorian Way Makes Her More Like Ahsoka
These decisions only serve to draw parallels between Sabine and her Master, both in terms of the choices they make as well as how they stand out from the usual Jedi. Like Sabine, Ahsoka was more in tune with her emotions – especially when she was framed for attempting to assassinate the Jedi Council during the Clone Wars. Though Ahsoka’s innocence was revealed, her faith in the Order was shattered and she ended up leaving. Sabine is also wrestling with a great deal of emotion: she apparently lost her family during the Empire’s siege on Mandalore, and it’s implied that this is what led to her leaving Ahsoka’s tutelage. Even though The Mandalorian has revealed that there are pockets of Mandalorians scattered across the galaxy, the once proud warrior race is a shadow of what it’s been.
Ahsoka taking on Sabine as an apprentice also mirrors the unorthodox approach that her own master Anakin Skywalker took with her. Despite the fact that Anakin never technically became a Jedi Master, he served as a teacher to Ahsoka. It’s also safe to say that Anakin’s lessons weren’t the same as the ones he learned from his master Obi-Wan or the other Jedi; Ahsoka deals with losing her lightsaber, fighting enemies on her own, and finally returning to the Jedi to help apprehend Darth Maul. Likewise, Sabine isn’t able to tap into the Force like most Jedi, and she is a Mandalorian — a warrior race literally made to fight the Jedi!
Despite this, Sabine’s Mandalorian heritage has given her the tools she needs to fight Thrawn’s allies, and could provide the edge that she and Ahsoka need in their quest. It also continues to solidify the Mandalorian race as one of the most important elements of Star Wars stories, and could provide a roadmap to the upcoming film that Filoni is set to direct.
