The Star Wars universe is still full of mysteries and undiscovered territories. After 46 years of establishing and exploring this world, we still don’t know much, even about the most popular places like Tatooine or Coruscant. In the newest Star Wars series Ahsoka we learn again that this galaxy is just one of many. But why is it so important? Why is discovering a new galaxy so exciting and meaningful to not only the past but the future of Star Wars in general? The answer may lie in the introduction of the first Force users, and potentially tying Ahsoka to James Mangold’s Star Wars film!
[Warning: Spoilers from Star Wars projects and Ahsoka series are discussed below!]
A new galaxy equals new threats and rules
Discovering new planets in the Star Wars universe comes with unknown threats. But imagine finding out about the existence of a new galaxy existing parallel to one long ago and far away. There are definitely new species present there, with a whole new history and worlds beyond imagination. That’s why the Star Wars universe will change forever.
In order to save Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi) and to prevent Thrawn’s (Lars Mikkelsen) return, Ahsoka (Rosario Dawson) and Sabine (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) had to travel to the new galaxy. They don’t know anything about it, a sentiment shared by the viewers. It’s a whole new undiscovered region. But I believe that it’s the perfect place for new Star Wars stories to be set in.
Comparing it to the currently known worlds from both Legends and New Canon, the possibilities are infinite. From all we know, there might be no one there to protect those worlds. There might even be something worse than an Empire, maybe a new canon version of Yuuzhan Vong. We know nothing about what this galaxy holds, which is both scary and exciting.
This is not the first time we have discovered a new planet/region where the future of Star Wars will be important. In Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, the main goal of Cal Kestis’ (Cameron Monaghan) story is to reach Tanalorr. A planet that’s safe from the Empire, in order to build a new Jedi Order there.
The Jedi Order is no more, and those that have survived Order 66 are not keen on rebuilding it, at least not all of them. Cal Kestis wants to rebuild, Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) too. Yet, the possibility of them traveling to visit this new galaxy is really small. Especially for Luke, cause we know what he decided to do with his plans to rebuild the Jedi Order, and what happened in the future.
I believe that this new galaxy will be a place that is mysterious and unknown to Jedi and people who lived in the past 25,000 years BBY. And all of it is based on the story of an upcoming movie from director James Mangold.
James Mangold’s Star Wars project
James Mangold’s first Star Wars project will focus on the first Force users (not necessarily the first Jedi) in the universe. As Mangold described it in the past:
“I wanted to make a kind of Bible movie, a kind of Ten Commandments of Star Wars–kind of a Cecil B. DeMille film about the arrival of the Force. […] It’s a movie that both connects to the worlds we know, but is also far enough away from it that I think there are a lot of opportunities to tell a story freely, also… and not be so incredibly tied in by the knots and different story strands that are already in place.” (via Empire)
We know that the first Jedi Temple was built on Anch-To around 25,000 years BBY, and that’s a very long time ago. It’s far beyond the accessible knowledge about the Star Wars universe (not counting the Old Republic era). And that’s good, especially in terms of creating a new story that doesn’t have to depend on events from the past or future of already released projects.
We don’t know anything about the first Force users and how Jedi and Sith were created in the new canon, and I believe that movie will explain it. Especially by using this new mysterious galaxy as the source of all this knowledge. Giving Mangold the space to create his own movie without focusing on the connections to Skywalkers, the Galactic Empire, or the High Republic era is fantastic.
That’s why it’s not a coincidence introducing that new galaxy in Star Wars: Rebels and now in Ahsoka. Exploring it before the movie will show us how it looks now, so we can compare it to how it looked 25,000 years BBY. I think that we’ll learn what caused either the first Force user or many of them to leave this galaxy and travel to “our galaxy”.
Who knows, maybe we’ll even find out how Mortis Gods were created or if they were the ones who chose the first-ever Force user as their chosen one. But thinking about it, I’d like for it to be its own thing and not making it like the Assassin’s Creed series of games; where during the story, main characters from the past were doing something to help the chosen one in the future. That would simply miss the point of doing a stand-alone project.
Listen to more at Cosmic Circle Ep. 39: Ahsoka Premiere Discussion (Spoilers)The Star Wars universe is bigger than we expected
Exploring those different regions of the new galaxy will definitely be integral to future Star Wars projects. For example, Skeleton Crew, The Acolyte, the Rey Skywalker-led film starring Daisy Ridley, or others may give us hints or show us some materials that would explore this new galaxy more. And that’s absolutely fine with me. That’s sort of their own way of creating new stories without the need to do reboots/remakes or repeating the same story but with different characters 500 years later.
Taking a look at the current Star Wars universe, it’s like looking at one small portion of rice in a big bowl of it, and that’s exciting. That way we can see different projects set in different galaxies without the need for them to be a part of the Skywalker Saga or any other known story/conflict in history.
For example, we can learn that there are various worlds where some kind of celestial beings live, and creatures who look like humans are extinct. Maybe there are even more weird physics, social rules, vehicles, etc. that we’ll see. Maybe even the science/Force is different there, and all of the people/aliens living there use the Force on a daily basis. Or maybe lightsabers never existed there and they were only created in “our” galaxy.
The possibilities are infinite, and I hope that it’s only the beginning. Because creating projects that will only happen 50 years before or after the Battle of Yavin doesn’t make sense anymore. It’s just wasting the potential of source material.
Starting with James Mangold’s project there’ll be a new space for creating different projects. After all, there are 25,000 years of stories to tell, and as Mangold said, creating this whole Star Wars Bible is an important task. Knowing what projects to create, without adding more and more fanservice within each project is definitely the way to go.
Ahsoka is currently airing on Disney+. What are your thoughts on the first Force users and the potential of new Star Wars universes? Let us know on social @mycosmiccircus or in The Cosmic Circus Discord.
Grand Admiral Thrawn Companion Guide
Theory: What Ahsoka May Find in the New Galaxy
Review: Ahsoka Season 1 Finale
