Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Ahsoka episodes 1 and 2.
Sabine Wren just made her live-action debut in the Ahsoka series, played by Australian actress Natasha Liu Bordizzo. When reintroduced, Sabine has clearly undergone some massive changes since she was last seen in Star Wars Rebels season 4. Sabine has become far more adept at using Ezra Bridger’s old lightsaber, and it’s confirmed that Ahsoka Tano herself helped train Sabine to become a Jedi. This revelation comes as a massive shock to many, as Sabine never showed any connection to the Force in Rebels. Nevertheless, it’s clear her newfound abilities may not be as unbelievable as they sound.
If anything, the Ahsoka debut helps explain where Sabine was during the original trilogy. At some point after Rebels ended, Ahsoka saw enough promise in Sabine to take her on as her Jedi apprentice. This wouldn’t be the first time a character in the franchise magically developed Force-sensitivity, such as when Finn revealed he could feel the Force near the end of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. However, something unexpected came up between Sabine and Ahsoka which caused them to part ways as master and apprentice.
Sabine Has A Lower Aptitude For The Force Than Any Jedi We’ve Ever Seen
David Tennant’s droid Professor Huyang who oversaw thousands of generations of Jedi, and he acknowledged Sabine Wren’s aptitude for the Force is comically low. Huyang even tells her that her Force-sensitivity “would fall short” of almost every other Jedi he’d met. In fact, it seems like Sabine has about as much Force-sensitivity as any average character in the franchise. Not once in her duel with Shin Hati and her assassin droids did Sabine attempt to utilize the Force against them. Instead, she relies almost solely on her skills with a lightsaber, which end up being no match against a trained apprentice such as Shin.
Showrunner Dave Filoni may have made a bold decision to give Sabine some Force-sensitivity, but he clearly chose not to go overboard with it. In fact, he’s taken the complete opposite approach to what the franchise has done in the past. Rather than introducing yet another character who discovers they’re immensely powerful with the Force, Filoni is showing the story of a character trying to be a Jedi without the Force as their ally. Sabine’s journey as a Jedi may very well end up being unlike anything the audience has seen yet.
There’s More To Being A Jedi Than Power
The fact that Ahsoka even agreed to train Sabine as a Jedi—despite knowing Sabine’s lack of talent in the Force—is a testament to her belief that the Force isn’t what makes a Jedi. While it’s true that the Jedi Order almost exclusively sought out Force-sensitives to train, that doesn’t necessarily mean the Force is a requirement to become a Jedi. According to Yoda, there was even once a Jedi poet who had no connection to the Force at all. Ahsoka will continue to show Sabine’s struggles to overcome her lack of talent with the Force, making the moment she connects all the more satisfying.
Ahsoka releases new episodes Tuesdays at 6pm PT / 9pm ET on Disney+.
