#StarWars #Thrawn #Ahsoka #ahsokashow #thrawn #davefiloni #starwarsmoive #starwarsnews #ahsokatheory
Recently, it has been confirmed by Filoni that as we move into this new era of star wars, thrawn will be the main villain of this period. And for most part for star wars fans this is fantastic news. After all thrawn is a fascinating character, one that promises to bring a new fresh perspective on what villains can look like in the star wars universe. And filoni himself has said the same. With thrawn being this fresh iconic villain that stands apart from others like palpatine or vader which most star wars villains since then has been molded after. But as everyone is excited for thrawn to be the new face of bad guys I actually think everyone is forgetting that Thrawn isn’t actually a villain. At least not in your traditional star wars sense. In fact I would go as far as to describe him as more of a pragmatic anti hero. Certainly capable of villainous deeds but not incessantly hateful or malicious. At least not the Thrawn in Canon.
You see traditionally speaking villains in star wars have always represented a facet of evil. You have palatine who is the embodiment of it with his whole existence designed to be a physical manifestation of it. On the other hand you have villains like Vader and Maul who are evil in their own right but also slaves to it. Then you have others like Dedra and Syril who while complex in their own way and not necessarily the embodiment of complete evil but represent those guilty in facilitating its possibility. Thrawn on the other hand doesn't really fit into any of these categories. At least not straightforwardly. And part of that is due to the fact that Thrawn isn't a true imperial. Unlike others like Tarkin, Gideon, or Palleon, Thrawn isn't a die hard fan of the Empire. In fact he sees it more as a means to an end. And the primary reason for that is that Thrawn's true loyalty lies with the Chiss ascendancy which is located within the unknown regions and relatively unknown to the rest of the galaxy.
And if you read the thrawn trilogy and the thrawn prequel trilogy you will find that the only thing thrawn truly cares about is the ascendancy. And the only reason why he pledged his allegiance to the Empire is so that he may find and gather resources for the Chiss to defend themselves against an impending invasion from the Grysks, a cruel race of aliens whose whereabouts are currently unknown. And Thrawn has actively recruited members of the Empire to join the Chiss Ascendancy. The first being his aide Eli Vanto and the second being Krennic’s Assistant Director, Brierly Ronan. Much like the Thrawn in legends, he knows that there are bigger things at stake. He sees the conflict between the Empire and the rebels, now new republic, as a sideshow for the main event. And prior to his disappearance and the collapse of the Empire, Thrawn had hoped that the Chiss would be able to leverage the vast resources of the Empire when the conflict with the Grysks comes to a head. Simply due to the Gryskls' expansive nature, they are indeed a threat to all.
And so with Thrawn set up to be featured as the villain in the Ahsoka show, we need to keep in mind that his motivations and designs are not yet clear. If at all his promised return on the side if the Empire actually raises a lot of questions. One could have assumed that with the Empire now collapsed, Thrawn might have come to the conclusion that what remains may no longer be useful for the Chiss. On that same note there is also a question about thrawn oath. Upon meeting the emperor Thrawn did indeed swear an oath of loyalty to the Empire but it remains unclear whether that oath still stands with the presumed death of palatine and the Empire a shadow of its former self. Not to mention, Thrawn has also made it clear to his fellow Chiss counterpart Admiral Aralani that while the Empire has the loyalty of his actions, the Chiss still have the loyalty of his heart.
And so it is still entirely feasible that the imperial Thrawn we see in Ahsoka may not stay imperial by the end of the story. It's also worth mentioning that Canon Thrawn is by no means a tyrant. In fact Canon thrawn actually values life. Unlike the usual star wars villains, Thrawn isn't one to waste life on a whim and nor is he above teaching those around him his methods. He doesn't berate or criticize his own people. Instead he takes the time to show them their mistakes and how to improve...