Ahsoka: [SPOILER]'s Lightsaber Fight Continues Star Wars' Newest Brutal Tradition
Contains spoilers for "Ahsoka" Episode 1 — "Master and Apprentice" — and Episode 2 — "Toil and Trouble"
Like every great time-skipping sequel, "Ahsoka" continues the story where "Star Wars Rebels" left off but mixes things up quite a bit. Years have passed since Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) and Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) embarked on a mission to find Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi), and time hasn't been kind to their relationship. While Ahsoka is still trying to find Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen) — and, by proxy, Ezra — Sabine has left the Padawan life behind and the pair's relationship has soured. In "Master and Apprentice," the two have to re-establish their relationship in a hurry after Ahsoka acquires the map she was seeking in "The Mandalorian" Season 2 and needs Sabine's help to figure it out.
Sabine sneaks out with the map orb, and while she does indeed solve the puzzle, she's promptly attacked by Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno). The episode-ending lightsaber duel wraps up in a gruesome way when Shin drives her energy blade through Sabine. Fortunately, "Ahsoka" Episode 2 is quick to reveal that Sabine survives the injury and recovers ... which is no mean feat since similar lightsaber wounds have finished Jedis as mighty as Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson).
Sabine's survival continues the Disney+ "Star Wars" shows' trend of major characters surviving nasty lightsaber stab attacks. Before her, both the Grand Inquisitor (Rupert Friend) and Reva Sevander (Moses Ingram) survived their respective lightsaber wounds in "Obi-Wan Kenobi" ... and with the number of characters waving lightsabers around in "Ahsoka," we wouldn't be surprised if more characters joined the list before long.
The survivable stab wound seems to be Star Wars' latest trick to make lightsabers less deadly
Lightsabers have always been the signature weapon of the Galaxy Far, Far Away, and their deadliness is established in "Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope" when Darth Vader (David Prowse and James Earl Jones) cuts down Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness) during their iconic duel. Back in the days of the original trilogy, there were so few lightsabers around that the movies could easily afford to keep them virtually unstoppable. However, with so many key characters now fighting with these incredibly dangerous weapons, it's understandable that the franchise has felt the need to figure out ways to lessen the energy blades' all-cutting, game-changing impact.
Over the years, "Star Wars" has introduced countermeasures such as electrostaffs and beskar equipment to balance out the vast advantage lightsaber users have on the battlefield. Now, "Obi-Wan Kenobi" and "Ahsoka" have shown that the franchise has come up with a way to keep characters alive even when the lightsaber connects.
The sword stab is an iconic finishing move from countless shows and movies, and "Ahsoka" Episode 1 underlines its deadliness by having Baylan Skoll (Ray Stevenson) use the maneuver early on. Still, because of the fact that the lightsaber isn't a physical blade and effectively cauterizes the wound, this sort of lightsaber attack isn't necessarily fatal ... and with its various bacta tanks and advanced healing gadgets, the "Star Wars" universe has long established that even grievous injuries can be dealt with.