I Can't Believe These 10 Ways Star Wars Rebels Completely Changed The Skywalker Saga

Star Wars Rebels premiered more than 10 years ago, and since then, aspects of the animated show have gone on to impact much of the Skywalker saga and a galaxy far, far away. Rebels give audiences a new point of view on the growth of the Rebel Alliance, and how small cells of Rebels came together in the years before the events of the original Star Wars trilogy. The show also expanded audiences' understanding of the Force and the fate of the Jedi years after the Empire took over.

Rebels quietly did a great job of setting up so many of the stories audiences have enjoyed in recent years. Not only have many Rebels characters made their live-action debut in recent years, but they’ve also become pivotal in some of the current and upcoming Star Wars stories. Once you’ve recognized some of these Rebels moments, it’s hard not to see them in the rest of Star Wars canon.

10 Rebels Season 4 Introduced The World Between Worlds

And It Returned In Ahsoka Season 1

Rebels season 4 really leaned into the mysticism of the Force and the ideas of destiny. This was abundant in the final episodes of the show when Ezra Bridger entered the World Between Worlds. The mysterious realm was a surprise and led to a lot of confusion and theories about how and if time travel would be used in Star Wars. While in the World Between Worlds, Ezra heard dialogue from many different Star Wars titles, including things that hadn’t happened yet chronologically.

Reddie Prinze Jr and Star Wars Rebels characters.

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The World Between Worlds made its return in Ahsoka episode 5, when Ahsoka Tano comes face to face with her former master, Anakin Skywalker. While in the World Between Worlds, Ahsoka revisits past battles for Anakin to teach her a lesson and “complete” her training. Both times the World Between Worlds has appeared, it’s been used as a device for teaching characters lessons. Ahsoka learned to not let the sins of the past impact her future, and Ezra learned that he couldn’t save everyone. It’ll be interesting to see when the World Between Worlds will make its return.

9 Grand Admiral Thrawn Was Reintroduced Into Canon in Rebels

And Is Now Being Set Up For The Big Screen

Grand Admiral Thrawn was created by Timothy Zahn in 1991, but after Disney bought Lucasfilm in 2012, all the books featuring Thrawn became part of the non-canon Legends continuity. Rebels creator Dave Filoni, however, was fond of the character and slowly recanonized aspects from Legends, and his first big swing was reintroducing Thrawn to canon. In Rebels, Thrawn proved to be the best villain; he was smart, calculating, and ruthless. After he disappeared alongside Ezra Bridger in the Rebels series finale, it was a question of when the character would return, not if.

Grand Admiral Thrawn

Created By: Timothy Zahn
Cast: Lars Mikkelsen

Grand Admiral Thrawn made his live-action debut in Ahsoka and yet again proved to be a formidable foe, even after nearly a decade in exile in a different galaxy. Thrawn’s men worshiped him, and it showed once again why he was the highest-ranking non-human in the Empire. With Thrawn now hiding out on Dathomir, it seems Lucasfilm is setting him up to be the main villain in Dave Filoni’s upcoming Star Wars movie.

8 Mon Mothma’s Defection From The Empire Was First Shown In Rebels

And Will Be Revisited in Andor Season 2

Rebels season 3, episode 18 “Secret Cargo” saw members of the Ghost assist with Senator Mon Mothma’s escape from Coruscant following her defection from the Empire. It was an excellent episode that showcased the delicate nature of the Rebel Alliance and also set the senator up for future appearances. Additionally, the episode served as another way that Rebels helped connect to the larger Star Wars galaxy.

It’s expected that Andor will show Mothma’s actual escape, but it’s possible that the story could overlap with what we’ve already seen in Rebels.

With Andor season 2 set to premiere soon, it seems that the show will be revisiting Mon Mothma’s defection, and may even show the Gorman Massacre, the event that was the catalyst for the senator’s defection. It’s expected that Andor will show Mothma’s actual escape, but it’s possible that the story could overlap with what we’ve already seen in Rebels. With such a pivotal moment in the Rebel Alliance’s history, it’s interesting that everything that stems from this event must refer back to Rebels.

7 Rebels May Have Confirmed One Major Captain Rex Fan Theory

Audiences Learned of Rex’s Involvement in the Rebel Alliance

In the Rebels epilogue, Sabine Wren narrates what the remaining members of the Ghost crew did after Ezra disappeared with Thrawn. Among the things mentioned was that clone Captain Rex was among the ground forces that fought at the Battle of Endor. The battle is one of the major settings from Return of the Jedi, and there has been a long-held fan theory that Rex was one of the soldiers under Han Solo’s command on the moon.

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Sabine’s confirmation that Rex was at the Battle of Endor clued audiences in that a particular soldier was, in fact, Rex. While Dave Filoni has never confirmed which soldier was Rex, it’s awesome to know the fate of a beloved Star Wars character. It’s unclear when we’ll see Rex next, but it’s possible that he could appear in Ahsoka season 2, where he may even recount his time on Endor for audiences.

6 Rebels Made The Darksaber (& Mandalorians) Important Again

And Helped Set Up Their Future

Star Wars fans have been obsessed with the Mandalorians since Boba Fett appeared in the original trilogy, but their culture wasn’t truly introduced until Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Despite the fact that certain Mandalorian characters played a major part in The Clone Wars arcs, the Mandalorian people were largely on the periphery of Star Wars’ focus. However, including Sabine Wren as one of the main characters in Rebels changed that.

Not only did audiences learn more about the Mandalorians, but it also reintroduced the Mandalorian Darksaber in Rebels season 3. Sabine Wren giving the Darksaber to Bo-Katan Kryze in Rebels season 4 set up much of the character’s story in The Mandalorian and also showcased the blade’s importance to the people of Mandalore. Much of the background for The Mandalorian can be learned from the later seasons of Rebels.

Katee Sackhoff has portrayed Bo-Katan Kryze in both animation and live-action in The Clone Wars, Rebels, and The Mandalorian.

5 Ahsoka Tano’s Rebels Journey Set Up Her Future & Show

Ahsoka’s Final Appearance In Rebels Was Recreated

The final shot of Rebels implied that Ahsoka Tano and Sabine Wren were teaming up to go find Ezra Bridger after he had gone missing. The scene was repurposed in Ahsoka and instead of just focusing on finding Ezra, it was also about preventing the return of Grand Admiral Thrawn. Ahsoka also revealed that there was more history to Sabine and Ahsoka’s story than people knew.

Dave Filoni made minor changes to the scene, most notably adding Ezra’s lightsaber as part of Sabine’s arsenal, and changing Ahsoka Tano’s cloak from white to gray. These changes were purposeful, as they informed the journey that both women would go on throughout the show. Ahsoka’s promise to find Ezra, however, was the crux of the scene, and gave fans a starting point for Ahsoka and Sabine’s motivation throughout Ahsoka season 1.

4 The Mortis Gods’ Importance Was Reestablished

After Being Missing From Canon For Almost A Decade

The Clone Wars season 3 introduced audiences to the Mortis gods, the living embodiments of the Force. The Son represented the dark side, the Daughter the light, and the Father the balance between the latter two. The Mortis arc was one of the best arcs in The Clone Wars, but images of the gods were largely absent from Star Wars following the deaths of the Father and Daughter.

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While Rebels didn’t bring back the characters of the Mortis gods, their images appeared as part of the entrance to the World Between Words. It indicates that there’s a lot more about these gods than initially meets the eye, and it makes them important figures. When one of the final shots from Ahsoka season 1 saw Baylan Skoll standing atop a stone carving of the Father on Peridea, it became clear that these gods would be coming back in some important way.

3 Imperial Inquisitors Made Their Onscreen Debut

And Have Gone On To Appear in Many Star Wars Titles

The first shot of Rebels introduced audiences to the Grand Inquisitor, and throughout the first two seasons of the show, he'd be a major enemy of the Ghost crew. Imperial Inquisitors were former Jedi who were turned to the dark side and became assassins for the Empire that hunted down and killed any remaining Jedi. The Inquisitors are largely believed to have mostly been killed off by the time of the Rebels season 2 finale, but there were likely others that were still dispatched throughout the galaxy.

Since first appearing in Rebels, Inquisitors have returned in many titles, including Obi-Wan Kenobi, Tales of the Jedi, Tales of the Empire, and Ahsoka. Learning more about these characters has been fascinating, and they’ve truly made for some of the most interesting adversaries in Star Wars. It’s unclear when we’ll see Inquisitors next, but hopefully, it continues to demystify Darth Vader’s assassins.

2 Rebels Showed What The Empire Did With Murdered Jedi

And Obi-Wan Kenobi Made It Worse

Throughout Rebels season 1, Kanan Jarrus constantly doubted his ability to train Ezra Bridger as a Jedi, and when the opportunity presented itself to have Jedi Master Luminara Undulli train Ezra instead, Kanan made it his mission to find the imprisoned Jedi. It turned out that Luminara had been dead for years and her body was being reanimated by the Grand Inquisitor as a way to lure Jedi into a trap.

While the scene revealing Luminara’s body was horrible, this was only compounded when Obi-Wan Kenobi premiered and showed a hall of preserved murdered Jedi in the Fortress Inquisitorius.

While the scene revealing Luminara’s body was horrible, this was only compounded when Obi-Wan Kenobi premiered and showed a hall of preserved murdered Jedi in the Fortress Inquisitorius. Knowing how the Empire used Luminara as bait, it’s likely other bodies were used similarly. Not only had the Empire made hunting Jedi a quasi-sport for the Inquisitors, but it also mounted their prey as a way to show their superiority.

1 Rebels Gave Historical Reference To The Cross Guard Lightsaber

Right Before The Force Awakens

When Star Wars: The Force Awakens premiered, many Star Wars fans were shocked to see Kylo Ren’s crossguard lightsaber, as it was something that hadn’t been seen before in canon. However, just months before the movie's debut, Rebels showcased a crossguard lightsaber. In the two-part Rebels season 2 finale “Twilight of the Apprentice,” Ezra Bridger, Kanan Jarrus, and Ahsoka Tano travel to the planet Malachor to find the secret to defeating the Sith.

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While exploring the planet, it becomes clear that it once served as a former battleground in the Jedi-Sith war from centuries earlier. Curious, Ezra picks up a cross-guard lightsaber and briefly ignites its green blade before it fizzles out. This brief moment canonized the crossguard lightsaber as being an ancient lightsaber shape, thus legitimizing Kylo Ren’s blade. It’s clear that there are so many connections between Star Wars Rebelsand the rest of the galaxy, and that the animated show has gone on to be vital watching for other titles.