Star Wars Has Retconned 'Star Wars Rebels' Series Finale Affecting Ezra & Thrawn

Star Wars: Rebels gave fans a pleasant surprise when they re-introduced the fan-favorite character Grand Admiral Thrawn back into canon during Season 3. Thrawn was originally created by Timothy Zahn for his Heir to the Empire series and was a fan-favorite character, but he was thrown into Legends continuity in 2014. However, he reappeared in Rebels and kept much of his glory and infamy from the original books. He served as the major villain of the last two seasons of Rebels where he was ultimately defeated by Ezra who had them both taken to the Unknown Regions.

However, with Ahsoka’s famous words in Season 2 of The Mandalorian, Thrawn is back. Not only is he back, but Zahn’s new book Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil seems to alter his backstory and change the ending of Star Wars: Rebels.

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The series finale of Rebels saw Jedi Padawan Ezra Bridger defeat Thrawn with the help of purrgils (space whales). Ezra led the purrgils to Thrawn’s fleet, where they attacked. The purrgils then latched onto Thrawn’s ship and launched into hyperspace taking both Ezra and Thrawn deep into the Unknown Regions. This was the last time Ezra or Thrawn were seen, but Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil looks at Thrawn’s past which might have repercussions for the future. In Legends, Thrawn was a Chiss exile who was essentially taken in by the Empire and became loyal to their beliefs. However, in Thrawn Ascendancy it is learned that his exile was a ploy by the Chiss to get Thrawn into the Empire. The Chiss wanted someone on the inside to learn what kind of power they held as a new ruling government and to discover if they could become a potential ally in the future. Apparently, the Unknown Regions have several threats to their race, and a partnership from the Empire could have aided them in their efforts.

This obviously adds a new meaning to the ending of Rebels. Thrawn was never fully loyal to the Empire and always planned on returning to the Chiss in the Unknown Regions. This means that, rather than sacrificing himself to exile Thrawn into the Unknown Regions and keep him stranded from the Empire, Ezra basically just gave Thrawn a lift home. This could mean that Ezra is in for more trouble than he thought. That being said, Zahn states in his novels that the Unknown Regions are full of hazards, and it is best to navigate or chart them with the aid of a Force user. Perhaps Ezra is charting the Unknown Regions, or he could be forced to navigate for the Chiss. Either way, this implies that things may not be looking great for Ezra, and Thrawn could now be reporting information on the Empire back to the Chiss.

This new information raises questions for Star Wars going forward as well. If Ahsoka is right and Thrawn has returned, why? The Empire has basically been toppled unless Thrawn is attempting to rebuild it. That would mean he is the one behind some of the Imperial stations or a part of the construction of the First Order. However, with the Emperor and Darth Vader defeated, he may be looking to capitalize on the Empire’s resources. Perhaps the Chiss have met a powerful new threat and they sent Thrawn back to the galaxy to find resources and weapons to help them fight off their new enemy. This also raises interesting questions about Ezra as well. If Thrawn has returned, where does that leave Ezra? Did he make it back to the galaxy as well, or is he stuck in the Unknown Regions either charting it or captured by the Chiss? There are definitely a lot of questions to be answered, and Thrawn Ascendancy seems to raise several more. Hopefully, there will soon be some answers. They will likely come in the Ahsoka show, but there is always the possibility some familiar Rebel faces showing up in Season 3 of The Mandalorian or The Book of Boba Fett.

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Source(s): Screen Rant

Written by Alex Lenzini

Syndicated from Culture Slate

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