Ahsoka: Sabine's Cat Creature Explained
For fans of the best "Star Wars" series, "Star Wars: Rebels," the sight of Sabine's (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) feline friend on "Ahsoka" is a welcome one. Resembling a cat with an odd face and bird-like feet, Loth-cats hail from Lothal, the planet on which Sabine lives. To understand why the Loth-cat gets so much screen time in the new "Star Wars" venture, viewers will have to understand its history in canon.
Ezra Bridger (Eman Esfandi), who has a connection with a white Loth-cat, recites the rhyme "Loth-rat, Loth-cat, Loth-wolf, run. Pick a path and all is done" during Season 2 of "Rebels," using it to choose his next move. Although viewers know very little of what happens to Ezra between "Rebels" and "Ahsoka," we can surmise that the real reason Sabine keeps the Loth-cat so close has everything to do with the boy she grew up with and subsequently lost.
Loth-cats are commonplace on Lothal
Ezra Bridger may be somewhat mysterious on "Ahsoka," but he is much less so on "Rebels," which follows the teenager from the streets of Lothal, where he grew up, on his journey to becoming a Jedi. He joins the crew of the Ghost, where he learns from his teacher, Kanan Jarrus (Freddie Prinze Jr.), and meets the artistic and explosive-loving Sabrine Wren (Tiya Sircar). Since the series takes place on Lothal for the most part, Loth-cats appear often, but they carry more significance than that — they help Ezra (Taylor Gray) along his journey.
In addition to the typical Jedi abilities, such as telekinesis, Ezra is also proficient in some that are not often featured in "Star Wars" canon. In fact, his strongest power is the ability to communicate with animals, including Loth-cats. His connection with these creatures is so prominent that Sabine even includes them in the mural she paints following Ezra's disappearance. Viewers can see it in the series finale of "Rebels" as well as the first two episodes of "Ahsoka."
Lothal is the only connection Sabine has to Ezra
Some may be wondering what a battle-tested Mandalorian like Sabine is doing living on Lothal. She was instrumental in ridding the planet of Imperial presence, but the answer is a little simpler than that. Look at her room, and you can see artifacts that Ezra left behind, including his collection of Stormtrooper helmets — Sabine is living in the same space that Ezra used to call home. The Loth-cat is just another connection to someone she doesn't think she will ever see again.
Sabine and Ezra's relationship is a nuanced one, though it is not explored much during "Rebels." Ezra clearly harbors a schoolyard crush on her during the animated series, but their feelings become more complex as they age, with Ezra becoming fully entrenched in his Jedi training as the entire crew makes sacrifices to ensure the Empire is defeated. There is no time for romance, as much as they may have wanted.
The most tragic part about Ezra and Sabine's relationship is that they never had a chance. In the final days of the Liberation of Lothal, Ezra disappears into hyperspace, never to be seen again. After that, Sabine makes Lothal her home and does her best to protect it because she thinks it is what Ezra would have wanted, making this stray Loth-cat one of the only things that connects her to the boy she once knew.