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So you know Leia and Han’s iconic ‘I love you’ ‘I know’ moment?

And then in the prequels Padme tells Anakin ‘I love you’ and Anakin responds with ‘Liar’. I feel like this is their version of that classic scene from the original trilogy.

So now I’m wondering… what would other couples (canon or not) version be?

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Twilight but Jacob (the werewolf love interest) is Dug from UP.

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Except in this metaphore Baylan executes Ezra in front of Sabine the second they get to Peridia.

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I won’t tag this because it’s not super relevant, but I just went through my folder of random art n’ such that I’ve done over the last nine or so years and one of the things I found was like 15 pages of a handwritten Sabezra fanfic dated to early June of 2020, mostly written between 2 and 9am. I wouldn’t say it’s good, but a couple of my constructions were kinda neat and the premise was kinda cool. Maybe I’ll do a rewrite.

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Sabine: *intently scrolling the holonet on her datapad*

Ahsoka, with side-eye: So, Sabine, we’ve been searching for Ezra for a long time.

Sabine, without looking up: mmhm.

Ahsoka: And you don’t really do much other than work towards finding him.

Sabine, without looking up: mmhm.

Ahsoka: And when you are relaxing, you’re scrolling the holonet, reading stories about a warrioress who has to track down and save a prince from an evil dragon holding him hostage.

Sabine: mm…hmm.

Ahsoka: SABINE!

Sabine, startled: What?!

Ahsoka: Do you see how this might be an unhealthy fixation?

Sabine: …nope. *goes back to reading*

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Ahsoka: It’s important to not form attachments as a Jedi, Sabine.

Sabine: Lol, too late. Ezra and I have been married for the last twelve years.

Ahsoka: You what? O_o

Sabine: *spinning around in her chair* Oh come on; it’s obvious. How do you think I got the deed to his tower anyway? It goes to next of kin.

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About five years ago, my anthropology teacher in high school wanted to prove that language was flexible and that there existed ideas that hadn’t really been expressed yet, so he asked us to come up with short phrases and plug them into Google within quotation marks to see how many times each phrase had been used before, the goal being to have as few returns as possible.

Anyway, I used the phrase “shared a jet pack,”which only appears in two Wookiepedia articles for Star Wars: Rebels. So, if anyone says Sabine and Ezra don’t have something unique between them, they’re just dead wrong.

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Credit to the Thrawn’s Revenge Empire at War mod for the graphics.

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Ahsoka Tano & Sabine Wren (A Quick Analysis)

Grow Beyond

"The greatest teacher, failure is. Luke, we are what they grow beyond. That is the true burden of all masters." - Master Yoda, The Last Jedi

I've been thinking about this quote a lot regarding these two.

Ahsoka Tano and Sabine Wren; Master and Apprentice. Heirs to the disaster lineage of Jedi (and Sith) stretching all the way back to Yoda himself. The above quote occurs in the scene when Master Yoda is chastising Luke for wallowing in his failure and allowing it to obstruct his judgment. Pass on what you have learned, he points out. Strength, yes, but also failure.

So, what does this mean for Ahsoka and Sabine? How does Ahsoka help Sabine to grow beyond herself? What, specifically, does Ahsoka have to offer Sabine as a Master in terms of successes and failures?

Let's look at Sabine's character first. She was already a formidable warrior, courtesy of her Mandalorian upbringing and the unique advantages her beskar armor bring to any battle. Sabine is loyal to a fault; fiercely devoted to those she cares about. She's fast on her feet and clever with gadgets and tech (as a reminder, she's considered to be a child prodigy). And something I feel that is overlooked, she is compassionate - it's not overt as Ezra's compassion is, which he extends to strangers, but we see it expressed time and again in her actions with loved ones.

The flip side of Sabine's character runs similar to how Anakin Skywalker was: she's hot-headed, reckless, prone to fits of impulsive anger. And she loves deeply but, like every other Mandalorian in existence, Sabine is unable to express it in a healthy manner (although that is mitigated by the Ghost crew's influence on her during Rebels). Sabine's emotions, as we see throughout Rebels and later in Ahsoka, are somewhat of a mystery - possibly even to herself. It takes moments of extreme duress to reveal what she's feeling: her training with Kanan while mastering the Darksaber, for one instance.

And, of course, this infamous moment from Ahsoka:

The difference between these two moments, however, is that Sabine does not self-reflect afterwards in Ahsoka. In Rebels, she has Kanan to offer her guidance and counsel as to why she struggles with the Darksaber.

This is, arguably, Sabine's defining flaw: her inability to really know and understand herself on a deeper level. As a result, her emotions continue to rule over her actions and leads to the terrible consequences that follow.

Which is where Ahsoka comes in. Ahsoka Tano is no stranger to anger and the extremes to which emotions, when unchecked, can carry us. As the survivor of two galactic civil wars, she understands this better than anyone else alive. And, most importantly, she is the padawan of Anakin Skywalker; a fact that weighs heavily on her and, ultimately, affects her relationship with Sabine for the worse.

During her vision quest in Ahsoka 1x05, Ahsoka re-experiences the Clone Wars alongside her master, Anakin. There she asks him an important question, reflecting the core of her struggle with teaching Sabine:

Ahsoka: Is this all I have to teach my own padawan someday? How to fight?

Anakin, at the time, was teaching Ahsoka how to be a warrior - a timely lesson that served her well considering everything that happened afterwards. The problem for Ahsoka is this: that life is all she knows. She never really stopped fighting. She has spent most of her life fighting in a war and even when the Empire was finally defeated, Ahsoka continued to keep finding new battles to fight during a time of peace.

For whatever reason she decided to take on Sabine as an apprentice, Ahsoka must have struggled with this. Yes, she can teach Sabine discipline, lightsaber forms, and basic Force mastery but, outside of that, what else does she have to offer? How does she help Sabine to grow beyond her?

Passing on her failures. How has Ahsoka failed, what she learned from it, and how she can help Sabine to not make the same mistakes.

Returning to Ahsoka 1x05 again, Anakin has this important conversation with Ahsoka about their legacies as Jedi:

Anakin: You're a warrior now. As I trained you to be. Ahsoka: Is that all? Anakin: Ahsoka, within you will be everything I am. All the knowledge I possess. Just as I inherited knowledge from my master and he from his. You're part of a legacy. Ahsoka: But my part of that legacy is one of death - and war. Anakin: But you're more than that. Because I'm more than that.

Ahsoka is not committed fully to her training Sabine; she's afraid that she'll pass on the failures of her master, also inherent within her, to her padawan. But, as Yoda points out to Luke so many years later, that's exactly what she needs to do. She sees herself as only offering a legacy of death and war to Sabine who has already seen her fair share of such.

But Anakin reminds her that she is more than that, just as he was. Those mistakes, that legacy - despite the darkness inherent within it - is important to pass on. Depriving Sabine of all that knowledge runs against what a Master should do, despite their reservations about what that knowledge could give way to - but that's the problem with Ahsoka prior to her reunion with Anakin in the World Between Worlds. She's afraid.

And Sabine pays the price for that fear. It makes her vulnerable to her own emotions and she makes the choice to doom the galaxy in exchange for Ezra's safety.

How do these fears become manifest in these two women? What causes them to become vulnerable to them?

Isolation. Detachment from others. That is, in my opinion, easy steps towards the Dark Side. For a long time, Ahsoka used this a survival mechanism, a necessity for a fugitive Jedi during the Empire's reign. She had to be detached from others in order to fulfill her Purpose, her Mission: help others and fight the Empire.

But the few attachments she did have after the Order fell, I would argue, were pivotal for her journey: Rex, of course, saving her life and returning upon her request to join the Rebellion - and, more importantly, her meeting with the Ghost Crew. Kanan and the others certainly helped her on more than one occasion but it's her relationship with Ezra - despite only knowing each other for a brief time - that ended up saving her life during the duel with Vader on Malachor.

But, after a certain point, that isolation and detachment from others stopped being a necessity and started being a hindrance. Especially with her relationship with Sabine, who also had issues with that - those issues being exacerbated after the loss of her family during the Purge of Mandalore. Instead of staying with Sabine and giving her guidance and counsel and friendship during her lowest point, she sought to abandon her instead. To Ahsoka, it was the best possible choice but remember that she, too, was operating under the influence of her own fears.

Ahsoka should have embraced her attachment with Sabine - not shunned it. That is where she failed and continued to do so until the events of Ahsoka 1x05 in the World Between Worlds.

So, how does Ahsoka - the Master - help Sabine to grow beyond her? How does she rise above her failures?

She encourages Sabine to get a life.

. . . This is not a joke. The best possible way for Ahsoka to help Sabine move forward and become a better Jedi than her is to encourage a life outside of being a Jedi.

For all her life, Ahsoka has lived a life of Purpose - but that can't be all there is. That's what led to her failure with Sabine in the first place; she separated herself from others, keeping in contact only when necessary. She didn't cultivate relationships, friendships, find hobbies, other interests outside of her need to keep finding a cause to fight for.

It led to a life devoid of the simple joys that make it worth living. A life filled with Purpose is grand and noble but it's the people in it, the experiences we enjoy, the moments we spend with loved ones that stick with us to the end.

Ahsoka has led a lonely life. And that, in my opinion, is something she should actively encourage Sabine against.

Sabine needs people in her life. Her time with the Ghost crew did so much good for her, as we all know. When they separated, Sabine was adrift in her search for Ezra - until Ahsoka appeared and offered her a new path forward.

And then that path was cruelly taken away. Sabine was alone again with her bitterness, her yearning, and her grief. She - like all of us - are at our best when surrounded by loved ones who encourage us and stand by us when we are at our lowest.

The Jedi of old were wary of attachments - not love, but attachments that could specifically lead to possessiveness, which is not healthy - but the Order fell a long time ago. The Jedi who survived had to adapt in order to survive; some did it the way Ahsoka did, going for a lone wolf approach.

Others, however . . .

How do Jedi survive in a time when there is no Jedi Order? How do they define themselves?

It is my belief that Kanan did it best. He embraced his attachments; his newfound family, the Ghost Crew - Ezra Bridger, Sabine Wren, Chopper, Zeb, and, most importantly, Hera Syndulla. But he never let his feelings for the others - especially Hera - cloud his judgment when the mission was at stake.

He found a way to honor the Jedi code but adapted it in a way that suited him best.

(Cal Kestis of the Jedi videogame series also followed this approach, but we have yet to see how that ends for him.)

I'm going to paraphrase (probably badly) a post from - I believe but correct me if I'm wrong - @seleneisrising that said something along the lines of that in the absence of a Jedi Order, Kanan and Ezra acted as their own within the Ghost Crew family. They acted in place of an Order but did it in their own way, not strictly adhering to what came before.

The Ghost Crew was a family.

It was Kanan and Ezra's home.

It was their own version of a Jedi Order; one that was perfectly in balance with their feelings and understanding of their Purpose. One that didn't eschew attachments in favor of emotional neutrality but embraced them and allowed those relationships to empower them.

This is how Sabine surpasses Ahsoka. Not following the 'ronin' lifestyle of her master but finding a home to call her own; a place to be herself, truly, as Ahsoka needs her to be.

Finding a life outside of Purpose. Finding friendships, finding family, and finding love.

You know who that last part is referring to.

Sabine follows in the footsteps of Kanan and builds her own Order - her own Clan, to honor her own Mandalorian roots. She does it with Ezra, with Hera, with Zeb, with Chopper, and some day, Jacen when he's ready for his journey. And with Ahsoka too. (And can't forget Murley.)

. . . Huyang, too, I guess. If he wants to come along.

To paraphrase a discussion I had with @starryjediknight: Sabine and Ezra become the new Kanan and Hera for Ghost Crew 2.0.

If isolation, detachment, and distrust from others can be seen as a Path to the Dark Side, then the opposite must be true as a Path to the Light; family, community, and trust being the way to break down barriers to love.

We see that with Sabine's reunion with Ezra - how, immediately, she is almost returned to her former self. How she is healed in his presence and then further healed when Ahsoka returns and begins to make amends with her, promising to stick by her no matter what from now on.

In a way, by doing this, Sabine could fulfill the dream that Anakin wished to see realized: staying true to the Jedi way while also being allowed to follow his feelings.

Rebels was always, at its heart, about family - found and lost.

Ahsoka could be about finding your way back, no matter how far you've strayed. Failures don't have to define you but are lessons to be learned from. They can be markers along the way on this journey we call life for those following us to see the pitfalls that loom when we lose the path.

Ahsoka can see those markers clearly now. She can point them out to Sabine.

And then Sabine can grow beyond her. Reach her full potential. Add her story to the legacy that she's inherited from Ahsoka, just as she did from her master.

This time, it won't be about death and destruction.

It can be better.

It can be about love.

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Now that that meme’s off my chest:

All,

I know these arguments can be all-consuming. Its easy—and sometimes necessary—to be divisive. It’s much more difficult to build an effective argument which will change hearts and minds and it may take great courage to speak out. In my limited experience, what is most neglected is the basic core work we all need to do as humans. We don’t see the Ghost Crew go about their daily lives—washing up, maintaining equipment, and putting in the labor that comes with any community. But we know it must be happening somewhere in the background because without it they wouldn’t be an effective fighting force.

Coalition building happens from the ground up and it is much more than just talking. Consider the time you spend deliberating which Star Wars ship is best. Who has supported you to give you the time to do so? Who has done “care work” for you? Your parents, spouse, or house mates? The fast-food worker who made you lunch? The bus driver or road maintenance worker who allowed for your travel today? This isn’t to say you’re necessarily selfish or aren’t doing your part, but is to point out that we are enmeshed in a massive coalition of people helping each other out even if money greases the wheels a little.

To do this requires that we agree on some ground rules—like that you can dye your hair whatever color and have sex with other mutually consenting adults. We’ve also generally established that you can write fictional stories if you like and say just about anything, but that you can simultaneously be disagreed with. Disagreeing with someone is not dealing some grievous injury.

In closing, go touch grass there’s a lot of work to be done. From the song Cabinet Battle #1, “Winning was easy, young man. Governing’s harder”. Go unionize your workplace, get in contact with your local political committee or run for local office. Do the dishes. Change your sheets. Review safety protocols. Ask your co-worker or neighbor how it’s going. It will reap dividends for you and everyone else.

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Love how we’re intently discussing how we shouldn’t have ship wars…and then holding a massive tournament to determine which Star Wars ship is best.

We will not fight each other on the field of battle, but we will joust for honor I suppose.

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“what's your excuse?”

“. . .i missed you.”

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Ahsoka: But I warn you Sabine, the path of a Jedi forbids attachment. It’ll break your heart.

Sabine: *looking up from Ezra’s hologram* Already broken.

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Someone else pointed this out and took screenshots, but I’ve arranged it into a meme template.

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This is my first Tumblr post, so sorry if I break some sort of convention.

Alright, I know we’re all bummed that Sabezra is separated again. However, thanks to the sequels we know that there is such a thing as a force dyad. It really seems that a lot of the storytelling in the shows serves to clean up around the movies…TCW did this for the prequels and Mando, Ahsoka, etc are going back and elaborating for the sequels. Grogu did force healing. Now, which character suddenly had a massive increase in her force abilities as soon as she reunited with Ezra?

Lots of people complained about about Rey and Ben just suddenly coming into this dyad. Ezra and Sabine have a LOT of history and have now chased each other across multiple galaxies. It makes more sense that they would develop some sort of special force connection than just about anyone else. Moreover, Sabine resolved the conflict within her at the end of Ahsoka season 1. She let Ezra go. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t care about him. It means that they have a healthy relationship where they can respect where they both need to be, unlike at the end of Rebels where they were very much in conflict. So I expect Sabine to retain her powers if not grow in them. Now what does that mean? First, the downsides. Force dyads, like Star Wars relationships, pretty much only have a history of ending tragically. Much as I’d like for them to catch the next purgill to the other galaxy, they will need to respect each other’s independence. “We are one when parted.” Ezra needs to deal with Thrawn and Ahsoka and Sabine need to figure out what’s going on with the Mortis Gods on Peridia. Still, I imagine that their paths will cross again.

Now the positives: There can be force Skype calls. It might take them a minute to figure out how or take some sort of divine intervention, but we have plenty of that just sort of lying around at the moment. There might be an “our lightsaber” moment—yeah I know Ezra made a new one, but it would still be epic. This has less to do with the force dyad theory I’m proposing, but if someone was gonna train Grogu it should be Sabine and I think there’s good reason to have Ezra there too. If, as some people are, you wanna insist that Sabine noticing the baby Noti is foreshadowing then rather than the unlikely conclusion that she wants a child, it could foreshadow that she’s going to teach The Child.

All in all, there’s hope for these kids yet. Their bond has been tested yet again and it’s stronger than ever. They’re the right person for each other. Eventually it’ll be the right time too.