Grand Admiral Thrawn his made his triumphant return to the Star Wars galaxy, and he brings the promise of a galaxy-wide conflict with him. After having been stranded in another galaxy with Ezra Bridger for nine years or more, Thrawn is ready to re-establish himself in a post-war galaxy, and he considers continuing his work in the name of the Empire to be the best way of doing so. Thrawn has always been known to thrive where his adversaries are the weakest, and thus he gets to know those he fights so well that he can target the parts of them they didn’t realize were vulnerable – using elements of their personal history, culture, art, and more to do so.
While the Star Wars heroes of the New Republic have proved to be some of the strongest, even they have their own personal areas of weakness. From The Mandalorian’s Din Djarin and Grogu to Ahsoka’s titular Jedi Ahsoka Tano, everyone has something they could lose in a fight with Thrawn, which only makes his threat to the galaxy even more exciting. The New Republic’s weakness and arrogance only adds to that threat, making the galaxy far too exposed in a future battle against someone as intelligently frightening as Thrawn – and here are 8 weaknesses he can target in either the greater government or its heroes.
8 Imperial Moles In The Amnesty Program
The Mandalorian Season 3
The Mandalorian season 3 unveiled the New Republic’s Amnesty Program, aimed towards providing former Imperials with a new outlook on and life within the galaxy following the Empire’s fall. Elia Kane showed that despite the efforts the New Republic was trying to make with this program, the Empire has moles within it, and her schemes of ruining Doctor Penn Pershing’s cloning research and dissuading the New Republic from sending aid to Nevarro were just a few examples of how they can continue to operate. Now that Moff Gideon is gone, Elia could go on to work exclusively for Thrawn, as could any others who are planted in the Amnesty Program with her.
7 The New Republic’s Lack Of Control In The Outer Rim
The Mandalorian & Ahsoka
The New Republic has made it clear its leaders don’t care about what happens in the Outer Rim, or at least strongly favor helping the planets closest to them before attending to matters on the Outer Rim. The planets of the Outer Rim are not only aware of this, but they prefer it, as even Din Djarin himself referred to the New Republic as a “joke” in The Mandalorian and Greef Karga has expressed his disinterest in making Nevarro an official part of the New Republic. Thrawn, then, could easily win over the Outer Rim by showing even just a sliver more care towards them than the New Republic does, or he can at least keep himself concealed there until he’s ready to emerge and fight.
6 Hera Syndulla Having A Son
Ahsoka Season 1
Hera Syndulla was well-known by Thrawn in Star Wars Rebels given their lengthy history of battles against one another, and should the knowledge of the son she had with Kanan Jarrus reach him, Jacen Syndulla’s mere existence would be an easy target for him to use against her. Thrawn has already used Hera’s family ties and culture against her before, when he once had possession of her family’s Kalikori, which detailed the Syndulla clan with such importance and depth that he knew Hera would want to go after it. With Jacen now being one of the last tangible parts of Kanan that Hera has left, he could become a target of Thrawn’s should the Grand Admiral hope to weaken Hera in any way during the battle.
5 Grogu’s History In The Inquisitorial Database
Ahsoka Season 1
Ahsoka confirmed that Thrawn has access to the Inquisitorial database, which he used to read up on Ahsoka Tano with details specific enough to inform him that Anakin Skywalker was her former master. It’s possible, then, that Thrawn can do something similar for Grogu by looking him up in the very same database for information that will reveal potential vulnerabilities in Grogu. Whatever Thrawn finds could then be used against both Grogu and his adoptive father, seeing as Din already knows little about Grogu’s backstory other than the fact he once trained at the Jedi Temple. Given how much trauma Grogu has already endured, anything Thrawn rehashes could be damaging for the Mandalorian apprentice.
4 Din Djarin’s Imperial Facial Scan
The Mandalorian Season 2
Though the Imperial facility on Morak was blown up by Migs Mayfeld at the end of The Mandalorian season 2, episode 7, it’s very likely that the scan of Din’s face remains somewhere out there in the Imperial network for Thrawn to find. If he traces the scan back to Din somehow, which could potentially be done by seeing who requested access to the coordinates of Moff Gideon’s light cruiser on Morak around that time, then he might be able to use the permanent scan of Din’s face against him. The one thing Din considers as precious to him as Grogu is the Mandalorian Creed, and if Thrawn threatens to expose this scan in a way where redemption would never be possible for Din again, it could cause him to shatter completely.
3 Mandalore’s Rebuilding & Din Djarin Connections
The Mandalorian Season 3
The Mandalorian season 3 finale sees Mandalore at long last being reclaimed and starting to rebuild after the Empire devastated it years before, but Thrawn’s return to the galaxy alone is a threat to that. His home base of Dathomir is very close to Mandalore, and if he catches wind of Din hunting for the New Republic, he could use Din’s close ties to the planet as a means of justifying any action he takes against Mandalore to make Din and the New Republic suffer. The Imperial Shadow Council was also unveiled in The Mandalorian season 3, and given that Thrawn will now be their leader, he may take their collective fear of Mandalore more seriously in the future.
2 The New Republic’s Hesitance To Fight
Ahsoka Season 1
Hera’s discussions with the New Republic senate in Ahsoka reveal that they’re simply tired of fighting, and wish to avoid it at all costs, no matter what they might be missing out on. They preferred to sit back and keep Hera from using resources to investigate the return of their greatest threat rather than at least taking the safe option and making sure they prepared for what could be coming. Meanwhile, Thrawn is getting new energy simply by returning, and he has no opposition to fighting if he has to. Thrawn is the master of tactics, and so it’s reasonable to conclude that he create specific attacks across the galaxy that will wear the New Republic down even more.
1 Mon Mothma’s Fear Of Grand Admiral Thrawn
Ahsoka Season 1
After her court hearing, Hera was approached by Mon Mothma to determine the true likelihood of Thrawn’s return, and she looked terrified while making her inquiry. The fact that the Chancellor of the New Republic herself is so afraid of Thrawn is a strong weakness in and of itself, one that already gives Thrawn a foothold before he even begins launching any attacks. Mon Mothma is certainly familiar with Thrawn given her involvement with the Rebellion, and she clearly wants to avoid ever having to face the Grand Admiral again. Now that he’s back in the Star Wars galaxy for good, Thrawn can use Mon Mothma’s fear to his advantage, perhaps making proposals that will always give him the benefit of the doubt in exchange for him withholding certain attacks.
