Apologies for the clickbait sounding title, but I don't like how "I don't like how all of the main lead characters from Rebels and Clone Wars have been adapted to live action" would have sounded as a title to an IMDB review.
That's my simple reason. I don't like how Ahsoka, Sabine and Hera Syndulla have all been adapted into live action. That's not to say I don't like these characters, far from it, I LOVE these characters in their animated versions. Hera in particular topped my list that I made a few years ago of the best Star Wars characters that Disney has introduced to the franchise.
They just don't work for me in live action. None of them have any of the charm or personality that they had in their animated forms.
This isn't a criticism of the actresses either. I've been a fan of Rosario Dawson and Mary Elizabeth Winstead for a long time, but they just don't embody the characters they are portraying to my satisfaction on screen. I've been very patient especially with Rosario Dawson about this because I haven't liked her as Ahsoka since the first time I saw her in the role in the Mandalorian.
I don't think this is about their ability as actors, I think this has a lot more to do with how these characters are being written and directed in the live action shows. Ahsoka in particular is SO STIFF in every shot she's in, especially her action shots. She shows NOTHING of the trademark agility and acrobatics that she displayed all throughout her animated portrayals. I get that this is somewhat impractical due to the constraints of live action costuming but it's something that I feel is VERY important to the character and something that they simply do not try to compensate for enough. Too often the character just shows no movement, she stands there with her arms crossed barely moving her head or her body while the camera pans around her.
Dawson herself doesn't sound anything like her, not just that her voice is MUCH deeper, but also lacking any of the light hearted charm, sarcasm or brevity that Ashley Eckstein brought to the character.
Hera Syndulla, just seems off in about every way from how she was in Rebels. I can't even quite put my finger on what specifically feels so off about her, it's just the entire character. When I'm watching her on screen, she just isn't Hera Syndulla anymore. She has a lot of the same issues of feeling "stiff" that Ahsoka does, but there's more to it that I just can't quite put my finger on.
Sabine Wren however I know exactly what my problem is with. I do not like what they have done with Sabine Wren. I TRIED to give "Jedi" Sabine a chance and it just doesn't work. Go back and watch Sabine in Rebels and this new angle they are trying to take her in just goes completely against her character. It is trying to jam a square peg into a circular hole. I get that the show is TRYING to showcase just how off this feels for the character and that this is somehow supposed to show how our journeys can take us to some totally strange and unusual directions or whatever, but it just doesn't work. Sabine's charm is totally gone. I LOVED how she was a tech wizard, explosives happy, trigger itchy Mandalorian in Rebels. She felt so perfect alongside the rest of the ensemble in that role. Trying to squeeze her in as the Jedi trainee in place of Ezra just doesn't work at all for her. Giving her a lightsaber instead of blasters and a jetpack just makes her feel weak and uninteresting.
I have genuinely tried to be patient and understanding with how these characters have all been adapted as they were some of the main reasons I had any interest in this show to begin with, and I just can't do it. I don't like how these characters look, sound or behave in Ahsoka and if I can't get on board with them it's almost impossible for me to get on board with anything else going on in the show.
That's my simple reason. I don't like how Ahsoka, Sabine and Hera Syndulla have all been adapted into live action. That's not to say I don't like these characters, far from it, I LOVE these characters in their animated versions. Hera in particular topped my list that I made a few years ago of the best Star Wars characters that Disney has introduced to the franchise.
They just don't work for me in live action. None of them have any of the charm or personality that they had in their animated forms.
This isn't a criticism of the actresses either. I've been a fan of Rosario Dawson and Mary Elizabeth Winstead for a long time, but they just don't embody the characters they are portraying to my satisfaction on screen. I've been very patient especially with Rosario Dawson about this because I haven't liked her as Ahsoka since the first time I saw her in the role in the Mandalorian.
I don't think this is about their ability as actors, I think this has a lot more to do with how these characters are being written and directed in the live action shows. Ahsoka in particular is SO STIFF in every shot she's in, especially her action shots. She shows NOTHING of the trademark agility and acrobatics that she displayed all throughout her animated portrayals. I get that this is somewhat impractical due to the constraints of live action costuming but it's something that I feel is VERY important to the character and something that they simply do not try to compensate for enough. Too often the character just shows no movement, she stands there with her arms crossed barely moving her head or her body while the camera pans around her.
Dawson herself doesn't sound anything like her, not just that her voice is MUCH deeper, but also lacking any of the light hearted charm, sarcasm or brevity that Ashley Eckstein brought to the character.
Hera Syndulla, just seems off in about every way from how she was in Rebels. I can't even quite put my finger on what specifically feels so off about her, it's just the entire character. When I'm watching her on screen, she just isn't Hera Syndulla anymore. She has a lot of the same issues of feeling "stiff" that Ahsoka does, but there's more to it that I just can't quite put my finger on.
Sabine Wren however I know exactly what my problem is with. I do not like what they have done with Sabine Wren. I TRIED to give "Jedi" Sabine a chance and it just doesn't work. Go back and watch Sabine in Rebels and this new angle they are trying to take her in just goes completely against her character. It is trying to jam a square peg into a circular hole. I get that the show is TRYING to showcase just how off this feels for the character and that this is somehow supposed to show how our journeys can take us to some totally strange and unusual directions or whatever, but it just doesn't work. Sabine's charm is totally gone. I LOVED how she was a tech wizard, explosives happy, trigger itchy Mandalorian in Rebels. She felt so perfect alongside the rest of the ensemble in that role. Trying to squeeze her in as the Jedi trainee in place of Ezra just doesn't work at all for her. Giving her a lightsaber instead of blasters and a jetpack just makes her feel weak and uninteresting.
I have genuinely tried to be patient and understanding with how these characters have all been adapted as they were some of the main reasons I had any interest in this show to begin with, and I just can't do it. I don't like how these characters look, sound or behave in Ahsoka and if I can't get on board with them it's almost impossible for me to get on board with anything else going on in the show.
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