Airing in 2018, the Star Wars Rebels series finale set up the future of the Ghost crew - one that will finally be revealed in the upcoming Ahsoka Disney+ TV show. Created by Dave Filoni, Simon Kinberg, and Carrie Beck, Star Wars Rebels was an award-winning animated TV show set shortly before the first Star Wars movie. This was a turbulent time in the galaxy, with rebel cells finally beginning to coordinate and the Empire clamping down on them forcefully.

Star Wars Rebels focused on a small rebel cell on the Outer Rim planet Lothal, and from the outset viewers expected it to end in tragedy. Its stars included Jedi Knight Kanan Jarrus and his Padawan Ezra Bridger, who were of course entirely absent by the time of the original trilogy. This gave a powerful sense of tension to Star Wars Rebels season 4, and Kanan's death in episode 10 ("Jedi Night") felt crushingly inevitable. The Star Wars Rebels series finale saw the remaining rebels go up against Grand Admiral Thrawn, one of the Empire's most skilled tacticians, but Ezra managed to outsmart their ruthless enemy. A finale epilogue scene established the future of the Ghost crew, and is now best seen as setup for the upcoming live-action Ahsoka Disney+ TV show.

Related: Ahsoka: Release Date, Trailer, Story & Everything We Know

Palpatine Wanted Ezra So He Could Gain Access To The World Between Worlds

Star War Rebels Finale Ezra Emperor Palpatine

Palpatine considered Grand Admiral Thrawn and Grand Moff Tarkin to be his best strategists, and it is no coincidence both were assigned to the galaxy's outskirts, where the Empire's grip was weakest and there was greatest risk of rebellion. The rebels successfully captured Lothal City, but Thrawn arrived with the seventh fleet he commanded. Thrawn threatened to bombard the city, killing its civilians, if the rebels did not surrender. Ezra chose to give himself up, aware he was particularly important to the Emperor. The scene was deliberately evocative of Return of the Jedi, in which Luke Skywalker sought to draw the attention of Palpatine and Darth Vader on him rather than on the rebels on Endor.

Palpatine knew Ezra had previously accessed a mysterious plane of the Force known as the World Between Worlds, and he coveted its power. A gateway to the World Between Worlds had previously been opened at the Jedi Temple on Lothal, and Palpatine had the ruins of that temple restored, where he tempted Ezra with the prospect of rewriting history and resurrecting his parents. "There are infinite paths and infinite possibilities," Palpatine teased, hinting at a Star Wars multiverse, "But you must open the door." Instead, Ezra resisted the Emperor's temptation and destroyed the gateway to the World Between Worlds. Palpatine was only a hologram; Ezra escaped and headed off to confront Grand Admiral Thrawn on the bridge of his flagship, the Chimaera.

Star Wars Rebels' Ending Revealed Ezra's True Plan

Star Wars Rebels Series Finale Ghost Purrgils Space Whales

Ezra was the mastermind of the Empire's defeat on Lothal, and his surrender was part of that plan. He had already tricked the Empire into enacting Protocol 13, an order that instructed all Imperial personnel to immediately evacuate a planet. Ezra had a vision in the Force warning him Thrawn would return before the rebels took control of the Imperial Complex. He had Mart fly the Ghost into high orbit above Lothal and transmit a signal, summoning a flock of purrgil - Star Wars' space whales - to attack Thrawn's fleet.

Ezra knew how this would end. The purrgil locked their tentacles around the Imperial Star Destroyers before jumping into hyperspace, taking Thrawn and the seventh fleet with them. Hera and Sabine realized too late what was about to happen; though they pleaded with Ezra to return to them, he was determined to see it through. "The Force will be with you, always," Ezra told them.

Thrawn's Defeat Made The Galactic Civil War Possible

Ezra, Thrawn, and Purrgils in the Star Wars Rebels series finale.

Ezra had saved Lothal from the Empire, with the rebels defeating the remaining Imperial forces and destroying the Imperial Complex. Star Wars Rebels' epilogue established that a counter-attack never came, though, likely because of the timing. Palpatine was preparing the Death Star, and he presumably placed Lothal on the list of targets. But Luke Skywalker destroyed the Death Star. Grand Moff Tarkin died in that attack, meaning the Emperor lost both of its greatest tacticians in the space of just months. Palpatine soon had a lot more to worry about than a single rebel world, with the Galactic Civil War truly beginning.

Thrawn's defeat was more important than many viewers realized. In Charles Soule, Ramon Rosanas, and Rachelle Rosenberg's Star Wars #7, Palpatine noted that Tarkin and Thrawn were the only ones who could have really stemmed the tide of rebellion sweeping across the galaxy. Ezra's sacrifice, and the heroism of the rebels of Lothal, made victory in the Galactic Civil War possible. As Sabine explained in Star Wars Rebels' epilogue monologue, "The small rebellion had become bold. And with a decisive victory at the Battle of Endor, the Emperor's reign of terror came to an end."

Star Wars Rebels' Epilogue Showed A Happily Ever After for Zeb & Kallus

 Kallus and Zeb on Lira San in Star Wars Rebels

Star Wars Rebels' epilogue fast-forwarded three years, into the aftermath of Return of the Jedi. It revisited the different members of the Ghost crew, revealing their fates. The unlikely friendship between Zeb Orrelios and Alexsandr Kallus - the man who believed he'd wiped out Zeb's people, the Lasat, but who ultimately betrayed the Empire - came to a beautifully satisfying conclusion. Zeb took Kallus along a secret hyperspace route to the Lasat world, Lira San, where they were thriving. Kallus was welcome to join them.

The Mandalorian season 3, episode 5 revealed Zeb seems to have returned to the New Republic. A live-action Zeb - still played by Steve Blum, the voice actor from Star Wars Rebels - was introduced as a member of the New Republic Rangers, patroling the Outer Rim. This is expected to be setup for a major role as The Mandalorian era expands.

Hera Has A Son, Jacen Syndulla

Hera and Jacen Syndulla in Star Wars Rebels

Kanan Jarrus may have been a Jedi, but Star Wars Rebels season 4 confirmed his love for Hera. According to the epilogue, the relationship between Hera and Kanan was a little more physical than had previously been believed. "Hera fought in the Battle of Endor," Sabine narrated, "As did Commander Rex. By that time, there had been a new member added to the crew of the Ghost - Spectre 7, Jacen Syndulla. Born to fly, just like his mother; and well, we all know what his father was like." This is a beautiful touch, giving Kanan another lasting legacy in the Star Wars universe.

The name "Jacen" is a historic one in Star Wars lore, evoking memories of Jacen Solo - the son of Han and Leia in the old (non-canon) Expanded Universe. Hera has now been cast in live-action for The Mandalorian era, where she will be played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead. It's currently unknown whether Jacen himself will appear in Ahsoka, although Hera has been seen in trailers. Alternatively, it's possible Jacen will have been taken to Luke Skywalker's Jedi Temple on Ossus, where he would be one of Luke's first students.

Star Wars Rebels' Epilogue Sets Up Ahsoka & Sabine's Quest For Ezra

Ahsoka Tano and Sabine Wren in Rebels.

The ending of Star Wars Rebels culminated in the reintroduction of Ahsoka Tano, Anakin Skywalker's former Padawan and a member of the Ghost crew who had been missing for years - after Ezra used the World Between Worlds to save her life. This set up a new quest for Ahsoka and Sabine, one expected to be picked up in the Ahsoka Disney+ TV show, with the characters now played in live-action by Rosario Dawson and Natasha Liu Bordizzo. It makes sense for these two to be at the core of the quest to find Ezra; Ahsoka swore to find him after he saved her life, while Sabine was his closest friend among the Ghost crew. Sabine had apparently remained stationed on Ezra's homeworld of Lothal throughout the Galactic Civil War, protecting it as she believed Ezra would have wanted, and now she will be part of bringing him back.

In his last message to his friends, Ezra told Sabine he was counting on her. She assumed it meant protecting Lothal, but after the war, the Star Wars Rebels epilogue suggests she realized it instead meant something more. It will be exciting to see this particular plot thread picked up once again, albeit in a very different medium.

This final scene also set up a surprising transformation for Ahsoka, who appeared in shimmering white. In interviews, Lucasfilm's Dave Filoni has revealed this transformation is based on that of Gandalf in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, with Ahsoka the Gray essentially becoming Ahsoka the White. Live-action recreations of this scene in Ahsoka appear to have changed this, however, with Ahsoka once again dressed in gray. It's likely this element of Star Wars Rebels' ending has been retconned, simply because Ahsoka will tell the story behind this transformation.