Critics have given the first two episodes of Disney’s Mandalorian spin-off Ahsoka mediocre reviews.
According to some, the miniseries centered in the Star Wars world is aimed at die-hard fans of the franchise.
The Guardian noted in a two-star review, “The foundations are in place, if the show can remember that Star Wars at its best is snappy and fun.”
It received four stars from Empire, which noted that “Ahsoka continues to do away with Star Wars’ light-versus-dark dichotomy.”
Ahsoka, which takes place after the events of Return of the Jedi, which was released in 1983, follows Ahsoka Tano as she investigates threats to the galaxy after the Empire falls.
Its arrival on Disney+ comes at a critical and hard time for the firm, which lost over four million customers in the first three months of 2023.
Variety’s Aramide Tinubu called the concert a “transcendent experience for lifelong Star Wars fans.”
“Though the core of Ahsoka isn’t very different from what’s previously been seen in Star Wars, unique elements make the series stand out,” she explained.
“Not only is this the first show to center on non-humans, but the female-led cast provides a powerful and stunning visual born from a relatively niche segment of the universe.”
The Guardian’s Jack Seale was less enthusiastic, questioning whether casual viewers would be able to grasp the show.
“After an opening double bill introducing us to the new adventures of Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson), we don’t really know,” he said.
“Ahsoka has plenty of flickers of what made Andor and the early Mandalorian such a ride, but it suffers from the same syndrome that makes Bad Star Wars bad: it’s so in awe of franchise lore that it keeps taking our interest for granted,” he wrote.
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Empire’s Dan Jolin gave the program a four-star rating, noting that Ahsoka does well to “grapple with something a little more complex” than past Star Wars spin-offs.
“Fans of Clone Wars and Rebels will appreciate this live-action continuation of Dave Filoni’s saga,” he continued, “while newcomers should dig its promise of a different kind of Force clash.”
Lucasfilm, the company behind recent Indiana Jones films and other Star Wars spin-offs including Andor, The Book of Boba Fett, and The Mandalorian, has released Ahsoka.
The New York Times’ Mike Hale stated that Ahsoka doesn’t reach the same high notes as Andor, adding that the plots in Ahsoka “will be important to Star Wars devotees and background noise to the rest of us.”
He went on to say, “The overwhelming scale of the franchise, across every type of commercial medium, and the profusion of winding alleys down which its storylines run make it difficult for the casual fan to work up much interest in the world-building ramifications of any given instalment.”
The Telegraph’s Ed Power, who gave the series four stars, was even more enthusiastic.
“Ahsoka has two qualities that have been lacking in much recent Star Wars output,” he remarked. “A strong story with a creative visual twist on George Lucas’ universe.”
Power commended Rosario Dawson’s character, describing her as a “Jedi warrior with cold penetrating eyes” and a “action figure reborn,” and said the series is a “space opera full of bite and brawn – one that promises to go some way towards restoring the damage inflicted by The Mandalorian’s downward spiral.”
The Hollywood Reporter’s Daniel Fienberg is still undecided about the program, writing, “so much of Ahsoka is shamelessly tailored to fit the audience’s commodified needs.”
“Everything feels like a reference,” he said, “and if you don’t understand why the camera is lingering on a background character or drawing or piece of technology, a bigger fan will.”
