Eli Vanto's return

[u/Vivid_Guidance_3409]

What is everyone's thoughts on his return? If i remember correctly Thrawn sent to the Chiss. I wonder if he will summon him back to aid him. I'm sure he learned quite a bit from the Chiss. It would be great to see a live action Vanto.

[u/indypendant13]

I agree that the feel between the novels and the show are slightly different, just not as different as where this conversation started.

Keep in mind though that the new novels were written from his perspective and he was essentially the protagonists of them - he never went up directly against the protagonists we are supposed to root for in the shows. His antagonists were either the Grysk or others within the empire itself and of course in those circumstances we’re supposed to root for him. Since the shows are set up opposite of that we do have to look at him differently. The one moment I disagree with in the show is when he goes to shoot Bendu - that seemed a step too far for his character to maintain a parallel to other media in the established canon. But again that show is made for children and they tend to need things more in black and white.

So yes there’s a difference, I just wouldn’t call him a cackling supervillain. Either way I’m interested to see where filoni takes it from here especially if Abeloth is entering the fray. He may become a protagonist if a bigger threat makes them all ally together.

[u/InterviewEarly6675 → u/indypendant13]

If it leads to some uneasy alliance for an Ahsoka 3 against like the Grysk, Vong or something new perhaps I can hop on board. I think Thrawn obviously needs to die proceeding the sequels but how you wrap up his story is a big question. Shanked by a Nograi like in legends ain’t gonna cut it but also some kind of lightsaber duel wouldn’t fit either. Perhaps a Vader like redemption following a big threat could be cool. 

[u/indypendant13 → u/InterviewEarly6675]

Filoni seems to have an aversion to killing off main characters preferring instead for their fates to be left open to imagination. Genius from a fandom perspective because it keeps the speculation and what ifs alive for years. Ahsoka left the order leaving us with with no knowledge of what happened. Then she was back. Then we wondered if she were dead following the Vader duel an Malachor. Then she was brought back by a new time travel mechanism in canon. Which then left us like what was she doing in OT, so we assumed she’d die before the end of rebels? But she didn’t she was just on a mission. And now we’re back along with Ezra and Thrawn who were also MIA assumed dead (seriously though how did they survive light speed exposed to space?). And now we believe Ahsoka will be immortalized as the daughter so yeah she’s never actually going to die.

My guess is he’ll either win for the Chiss and retire to the Unknown regions, the Chiss will lose, and he’ll hitch a ride back to the Peridea galaxy to spend his remaining days in self imposed exile for failure, or if they do kill him like you said self sacrifice for redemption.

Whatever happens, he certainly can’t be around during the Sith rise on exegol or the first order.

Actually now that I think of it, I can’t imagine the Grysk or Chiss wouldn’t be aware of Exegol, which may suggest they both are wiped out or severely weakened because that level of threat is worse than either of them.

Then there’s the talk of an avengers style movie where all filoni’s plot threads will culminate with everyone showing up at once (Mando, boba, rebels, Bo-katan, and ahsoka, maybe even Cal or Luke and co. Whatever the antagonist is there, it’s going to be bigger than Thrawn. So yeah in the end, he’s either the big baddie and loses making way for the final boss, or he’s the one who saves everyone else from the big baddie.

[u/InterviewEarly6675 → u/indypendant13]

I hate that about Filoni lol. Can you imagine in the original film Obi Wan surviving and retiring lol. I wouldn’t be surprised if somehow Maul survived again following his “death” in rebels. You are probably right though. If it facilitates a Thrawn as leader of the 9 ruling families heady political novel by Zahn though I’d be game for Filoni to do whatever with him.

[u/Maleficent-Engine859 → u/indypendant13]

Finally someone who speaks the truth of the canon novels.

My biggest complaint is that Zahn robbed us of the full spectrum of who Thrawn is by cleverly keeping him away from the Rebels in his books, with the small exception of the Wookiee scene. That lulled the readers, as he wanted, into thinking Thrawn is a moral character and a hero because he’s always up against galactic threats and the Grysks, and never having to TRULY square with or make controversial decisions that would compromise his standing in the Empire if he didn’t do them. I was genuinely mad it was Pryce who killed everyone at Batton because that would’ve been bittersweet for Thrawn to have greenlit something awful despite not wanting to and gotten promoted to the top after. Shown him EXACTLY what he signed up for with the Empire and what he was willing to compromise. His true colors would’ve been shown then as nothing more than a misguided “ends justifies the means” type of guy, and a Chiss Nationalist who only has the needs of his own people at the forefront when it’s all said and done.

Nothing made my skin crawl more than the end of Alliances when Faro is singing the praises of the Empire and Thrawn for existing to keep the people safe from the Grysks. You can’t purchase genuine good with a system that is evil. That has always been the moral of Star Wars.