The thing about Star Wars canon is that it’s pretty fluid. With loads of different stories being told in different timelines (especially now the Disney Plus spin-offs are around) there are plenty of opportunities to fill in gaps, add in stories that hadn’t previously been considered and have characters interact who fans might have assumed had never met.
All of which is to say that The Book of Boba Fett’s latest episode seized the opportunity to have two iconic Star Wars characters interact in an unexpected way, driving fans wild into the bargain.
We’ll stop teasing. The interaction in question was between none other than Mark Hamill’s Luke Skywalker (digitally de-aged as he was in The Mandalorian season 2) and Rosario Dawson’s Ahsoka Tano. Ahsoka was on-world to check out Luke’s new Jedi school and his first pupil Grogu (aka Baby Yoda) and ran into The Mandalorian (Pedro Pascal) when the latter came to visit his little green friend.
Later, Luke and Ahsoka have a chat about Grogu’s progress, in a meeting that viewers are calling a highlight of the episode. Why? Well, because as Ahsoka said earlier in the episode she’s a “friend of the family” – specifically Luke’s father Anakin Skywalker, aka the one-time Darth Vader.
I wanted this moment for so long and it finally happen! Ahsoka Tano and Luke Skywalker together on screen! Thank you Dave Filoni! #TheBookOfBobaFett #BookofBobaFett pic.twitter.com/p4qJll0RRN
— HENRY SKYWALKER(REY SKYWALKER STAN ACCOUNT) (@HENRYJEDIKNIGHT) February 2, 2022
In fact, Ahsoka probably knew Anakin better than almost anybody. In the animated Clone Wars TV series she’s introduced early on (voiced by Ashley Eckstein) as the elder Skywalker’s padawan, accompanying him on his battles during the titular conflict (set between Episodes II and III of the prequel movies). Later, she falls out with the Jedi and leaves the order, returning briefly only to escape the death of her fellows in Order 66.
#TheBookOfBobaFett Chapter 6 spoilers
— peep (@TheGeekyPeep) February 2, 2022
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Ahsoka “I’m an old friend of the family.” ???????? pic.twitter.com/D8lQia1qVr
The next time Anakin and Ahsoka met was in animated follow-up Star Wars Rebels, where she realised her mentor and Sith Lord Darth Vader were one and the same after a pitched battle. Since then she’s been all over the place, most recently popping up in The Mandalorian season 2 where she told Mando to seek out a different Jedi to teach Grogu – and it seems that at some point she tracked down her old friend’s son Luke.
The Book of Boba Fett spoilers
— Cody | Star Wars Content (@codyfettt) February 2, 2022
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This was something I've always wanted to see happen in Star Wars. It feels unreal seeing Luke and Ahsoka meet. Ahsoka referencing Anakin made it 100x better. pic.twitter.com/ASdw7tRRHg
It makes sense that the pair would have met – they were more or less the only Jedi or former Jedi operating in the galaxy, around the same time – but this is the first time fans have had it confirmed, with Ahsoka even getting a little nostalgic for her time with Anakin as Luke frets over his teaching style
“So much like your father,” she tells him warmly, though presumably hoping he doesn’t take after him in some other ways.
#TheBookOfBobaFett spoilers
— e ???? TBOBF eve (@clonehumor) February 2, 2022
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"I'm an old friend of the family" and Ahsoka telling Luke she reminds him of Anakin ☹ DON'T HMU pic.twitter.com/15kcvHbEU3
At the end of the episode Ahsoka disappears onto her next adventure, leaving to Luke to ask “Will I see you again?”
“Perhaps,” she replies, before taking her leave, definitely leaving the door open for more interaction between the pair (possibly in Dawson’s already-announced spin-off series).
OK, it’s blatant fan service – but when it’s pulled off so adroitly, it’s hard to care. And in a cameo-packed penultimate episode for The Book of Boba Fett, it was still a stand-out moment for plenty of fans. We’d call that a productive meeting.
The Book of Boba Fett releases new episodes on Wednesdays on Disney Plus. For more, check out our dedicated Sci-Fi page or our full TV Guide.