This Empire-centric follow up to Tales of the Jedi is split into two three part stories. The first focuses on Morgan Elsbeth, recent villain of Ahsoka, and provides some interesting context for her actions.

‘The Path of Fear’, shot with apocalyptic menace by Nathaniel Villanueva, reveals that Morgan is a survivor of the Clone Wars. Losing her friends and family to General Grievous, who thanks to Matthew Wood has never sounded more terrifying, she’s taken in by a mountain clan of witches and given the chance to heal. It’s a tight script, basically the first act of a story but one that gives Cathy Ang and Lydia Look as the leader of the mountain clan a chance to register. Look’s calm, measured approach is anathema to Morgan but is the only choice that doesn’t lead to damnation. Ang as Morgan has not got time for that and the clash between the two of them clever nests inside the war to show how Force-based ideologies conflict. It’s clever stuff, visually stunning and well acted.

The Path of Anger, directed by Steward Lee, slows things down even as it jumps into the future. We get the subtle shift from Republic to Imperial designs and follow Morgan as she presents the design for the TIE Defender. Now voiced by Diana Lee Inosanto (who in a witty move, cameos as Morgan’s mother in the first episode), Morgan is just as furious but now has the resources of a world behind her. The tragedy here is that she’s become what she fought: an occupying force intent on exploiting a world. One who has remarkable focus, remarkable ability and for all that is treated as no more significant than she was facing Grievous as a teenager. Inosanto is great here, imperious and plausible, the living embodiment of an abuser convinced she’s a heroine. Wing T. Chao is also excellent as the reluctant voice of reason she refuses to hear. Morgan is convinced she’s a leader when in reality she’s a weapon looking for a fight and just as open to being manipulated as she ever was. The episode culminates in a great standup fight between her and Rukh (voiced by Warwick Davis!) which serves as an audition for her recruitment by Thrawn. It’s a great sequence, notable for how her ‘subjects’ don’t raise a finger to help her. Also for the fact Thrawn talks to her as an equal, even as he puts her to work. It’s a great scene, and Amanda Rose Muñoz and Dave Filoni show how Thrawn weaponizes, and relates to, Morgan’s sense of isolation. The Empire has overlooked her and not gone far enough for him, a partnership is inevitable.

The Path of Hate jumps again. as the New Republic arrive to offer Corvus a chance to join them. Nadura, played by Shelby Young, is a former resident turned ambassador and embodies everything the world needs. She’s hopeful, principled, experienced and ready to help. Young is excellent here, as are Chao and Inosanto, the former because you can see him embrace hope so fervently and the latter because of how efficiently she dismantles that hope. Nadura is killed (but not before getting a distress signal away, intercepted by Bo-Katan Kryze) and Morgan reigns once again. It’s an intensely dark ending, and one that’s bookended beautiful by Villanueva. The first episode, and this one, both end with Morgan surrounded by fire. Only this time, she’s the one doing the burning.

Verdict: The tragedy and damnation of Morgan Elsbeth are one and the same and play out across these three episodes. The animation is top notch, the voice acting and writing are fantastic. The only problem here is, in honesty, the concept itself. Morgan’s story is not unknown and while we get context here there’s an inescapable sense of a box being ticked almost as much as a story being told. It’s a peril of continuity this vast and a small one, but still an issue you may want to consider. 8/10

Alasdair Stuart