Warning: The below contains full spoilers for Ahsoka Episode 6, which is now streaming on Disney+.
Ahsoka Episode 6 featured a milestone moment for Star Wars fans as the Disney+ series put more pieces in play heading towards its final two chapters, including the finale in the first week of October.
The two-episode premiere of the latest Star Wars series, Ahsoka, set up the search for Grand Admiral Thrawn, the central villain of the story, so naturally, fans have been waiting in eager anticipation week after week to see Lars Mikkelsen reprise his iconic Star Wars Rebels role and bring the character to live-action.
Final spoiler warning! Thrawn's grand entrance came in the sixth episode of Ahsoka titled "Far, Far Away", and a grand entrance it was as he marched on to the scene into an echo chamber of name chants from his army of Night Troopers. Viewers at home also joined the chorus, taking to social media to celebrate his arrival.
This is such a cold entrance for Thrawn ??? #Ahsoka pic.twitter.com/2i2lKculQH
— RjClipzzz (@RjClipzzz) September 20, 2023
Of course Grand Admiral Thrawn, the galaxies best art critic, would have a grand & epic entrance like this... #StarWars #Ahsoka #Thrawn pic.twitter.com/3sl18TauYQ
— SpectreSaunders (@SpectreSaunders) September 20, 2023
GRAND ADMIRAL THRAWN IS BACK AFTER 5 YEARS AND WITH AN ARMY !! #Ahsoka pic.twitter.com/WOxhXPJWDe
— cai (@IllegalCai) September 20, 2023
There’s a new Thanos-level threat coming to a galaxy far, far away ?#Thrawn #AdmiralThrawn #Ahsoka #AhsokaTano #TanoTuesday #StarWars pic.twitter.com/03oZZfOZnN
— Kyrie Ó Corra (@kenjiAkarii) September 20, 2023
Thrawn looks right out of Rebels ✨#Ahsoka #Thrawn #GrandAdmiralThrawn pic.twitter.com/mvVdxT90Sg
— RaFe ? (@RaFe_Tano) September 20, 2023
Star Wars fans have been waiting a very long time to see Thrawn in live-action, and it seems like it was worth the wait as several viewers praised Mikkelsen's performance in Episode 6, calling it "perfect casting" while also noting that the villainous character is much more "terrifying" in live-action compared to animation.
Lars Mikkelsen as Grand Admiral Thrawn is much more terrifying in live action than animation! #StarWars pic.twitter.com/QcFdwMjqZu
— The Star Wars Academy (@TheStarWarsAcad) September 20, 2023
Christ, #Ahsoka just keeps getting better and better! Episode 6 is another banger, the story is a blast and Thrawn, at last, is magnificent. He’s so intimidating and Lars Mikkelsen is again fantastic. I’m so stoked this series is good, I’m giddy with excitement…I need more! ✨? pic.twitter.com/POQYVB7nVP
— George Clark (@GeorgeAlexClark) September 20, 2023
Lars Mikkelsen IS Thrawn. Perfect casting ??#Thrawn #AdmiralThrawn #Ahsoka #AhsokaTano #TanoTuesday #StarWars pic.twitter.com/Yf9sRvpFxC
— Kyrie Ó Corra (@kenjiAkarii) September 20, 2023
I am beyond happy with how they’ve handled the return of Grand Admiral Thrawn. Lars Mikkelsen can portray #Thrawn to perfection through his voice and physically! I can’t wait to see how he’s utilized for the next couple of episodes! #Ahsoka pic.twitter.com/w2zaaECZz1
— Block A ⏳ (@VillainousComix) September 20, 2023
Lars Mikkelsen being officially announced as live action Grand Admiral Thrawn at SWC23. The roar of the crowd and the tears in his eyes, this is something out of a dream. I hope Lars is sitting in his Danish home right now feeling all this love today. #Ahsoka pic.twitter.com/dElqOkVHo6
— TheRaeSide (@TheRaeSide) September 20, 2023
Ahsoka had been building up the excitement towards this moment for much of the season. Even Thrawn creator Timothy Zahn couldn't wait to see the execution of the character's live-action introduction. He shared his feelings about the Grand Admiral's role in Ahsoka during a recent appearance at Dragon Con 2023.
"Very excited, especially when it's under Dave Filoni's tutelage," Zahn said, per Collider. "He'd shown back in Rebels that he understands Thrawn, understands how to write for him, understands how you defeat him. You give him something he can't control or something he doesn't know. I would always be nervous about whether the writers bringing him in would understand him enough to write properly. Filoni seems to have got it. So, I'm looking forward to see what he is doing. I know a little bit of some of the new characters, some of the new dynamic. It's going to be interesting to see."
We can expect to see more of Thrawn in the final two episodes of Ahsoka, though we're sure many will be rewatching the latest installment leading up to that. IGN called Ahsoka Episode 6 "amazing", noting that it offers "villainous plots with a side of cute critters" as "the action moves to a new galaxy far, far away".
Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.
