Star Wars Theory Sets Up The Redemption Of Ahsoka’s Greatest Rival

Barriss Offee is set to continue her fall to the dark side in Star Wars: Tales of the Empire, but a new theory suggests she’ll be able to find redemption in the show. In The Clone Wars, Barriss was a Jedi and close friend of Ahsoka Tano, but she eventually betrayed both her and the Order by bombing the Jedi Temple and framing Ahsoka for it. Based on the story details for Tales of the Empire, the aftermath of Barriss’ treason will be explored in depth. Though she turned to the dark side, a new theory suggests it may not be a permanent decision.

Since Tales of the Empire is replacing Tales of the Jedi season 2, the show will follow a similar format of having two main characters, Barriss Offee and Morgan Elsbeth, with multiple-episode stories. The trailer showed the beginning of Elsbeth’s alliance with Grand Admiral Thrawn, but it also proved that Barriss was training as an Inquisitor, an agent of Darth Vader tasked with hunting down Jedi who survived Order 66. While it did establish her connection to the Empire, the trailer also left ample room for Barriss to find her way back.

Barriss Offee Is Only Confirmed To Have Trained As An Inquisitor

She was never shown as a fully-fledged Inquisitor

While the trailer did show Barriss training under the Grand Inquisitor and meeting Darth Vader, it didn’t show her fully taking on the role. There were also several hints in the trailer that Barriss wouldn’t complete her training. Though she received one, she was never shown using the Inquisitors’ double-bladed red lightsaber, as even the later shots were of the Fourth Sister, not her. A likely explanation for why Barriss wasn’t seen using her red lightsaber is that she didn’t have it for long. Barriss wouldn’t have had many opportunities to use it if she never fully became an Inquisitor.

There were also some clues beyond Barriss’ equipment in the trailer. In a later scene, Barriss was shown running towards a fight between the Fourth Sister and an unknown Jedi. It isn’t clear why she was heading towards them, but the fact that her lightsaber wasn’t drawn could indicate she wasn’t going to help the Fourth Sister. There was also a large Force blast in the same sequence, and though person causing it was completely hidden in the shadows, it could have been Barriss. Those details together could hint that Barriss never finished her first mission with the Fourth Sister.

If Barriss never fully completed her training or left during her first mission, there must have been a reason for it. Inquisitors were disposable to Vader and the Empire, but bringing Barriss back just to kill her seems like a waste. A more likely reason is that something caused Barriss to rethink her decisions and leave the Inquisitors. The Empire wouldn’t let her just leave, though, so her reason to go must have been particularly compelling, and it may have gone down to the very essence of her character and the show itself.

Barriss’ Redemption Would Mirror Tales Of The Jedi

Barriss and Morgan Elsbeth could have similar fates to Ahsoka and Count Dooku

In recent years, Star Wars has leaned more heavily into its themes of balance, and Tales of the Jedi was no exception. Tales of the Jedi was balanced in the sense that its two main characters, Ahsoka and Count Dooku, directly mirrored each others’ journeys. Dooku’s episodes depicted his fall to the dark side, while Ahsoka’s showed her decision to rise up and join the Rebellion. While they both ceased to be Jedi, one of them turned to the dark, and the other to the light, preserving balance in the Force.

Tales of the Empire could have the same balance that Tales of the Jedi depicted. Morgan Elsbeth is decidedly villainous, and the ending of her story has also already been shown, given her death in Ahsoka, so she would fulfill the dark side of balance. Barriss’ story doesn’t have a set ending, though, so she could find redemption, which would mirror Ahsoka’s journey and fulfill the light side of balance. Her redemption would even work towards balancing the entire franchise, as it would go against Star Wars‘ recent penchant for Inquisitors and fallen Jedi, and offer a more hopeful story in their place.

Star Wars Loves A Redemption Story, And Barriss Is Perfect For One

Barriss has always been a compassionate character, and redemption would suit her perfectly

Star Wars is filled with redemption stories, from recent additions like Crosshair’s redemption in The Bad Batch to the most famous example: Darth Vader becoming Anakin Skywalker again in Return of the Jedi. There’s a long tradition of characters finding their way back to the light, and Barriss Offee would be the perfect person to continue the trend. Her betrayal of Ahsoka and the Jedi was heinous, but it also gave her ample reason to seek redemption.

Barriss is also deserving of redemption in general. Her fall to the dark side was extremely similar to Count Dooku’s, as she wasn’t searching for power, she had legitimate critiques of the Jedi Order and the Clone Wars. Her actions and anger, while misguided, weren’t borne out of hatred, but compassion. That empathy is a central part of Barriss’ character, and Star Wars has a chance to let it shine through again. Barriss’ redemption would also keep Tales of the Empire from being too dark of a story, and allow it to end on the hopeful note Star Wars is known for.