Spinoffs: Star Wars to zombies: Popular characters take the spotlight with own shows

If you are a fan of the Star Wars universe and its complement of characters, a new spinoff series may well be to your taste.

In 2008, the computer-animated TV series Star Wars: The Clone Wars premiered; the show detailed the events of the titular Clone Wars taking place between the (chronologically) second and third episodes of the Skywalker saga. Among the many characters the series introduced to the mythos was Ahsoka Tano (voiced by Ashley Eckstein), Jedi padawan (Jedi apprentice) to Anakin Skywalker.

The reception from the fanbase was, to put it gently, mixed, with the young Jedi considered to be “annoying” by many. However, over the past 15 years, which has included seven seasons of The Clone Wars along with multiple appearances across other Star Wars media, Ahsoka evolved from an inexperienced padawan into a skilled warrior, before leaving the Jedi order to eventually become a crucial part of the Rebel Alliance, and going on to help begin a new generation of Jedi.

Over the course of this story, it seems the Star Wars community has finally found something everyone can agree on, as Ahsoka has now ascended to the ranks of fan favourite. And now, the character finally has her very own show.

Portraying her is Rosario Dawson, who first brought the character to live-action in The Mandalorian. Joining her are Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Hera Syndulla, a former pilot of the Rebel Alliance, Natasha Liu Bordizzo as Sabine Wren, a Mandalorian training in the ways of the Jedi under Ahsoka’s tutelage, and Ray Stevenson (in what was to be one of his final roles before his passing in May) as Baylon Skoll, a former Jedi turned mercenary.

The Disney+ series Ahsoka follows the former Jedi knight as she works with old allies to get ahead of an emerging threat to the galaxy following the fall of the Empire. But what could this mysterious threat be? On the off-chance you happened to be a reader of the Star Wars novels that were produced in the void between the original and prequel movie trilogy (back when there were gaps between Star Wars projects), you may be intrigued to hear that Ahsoka also contains the live-action debut of Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen), mastermind tactician, and heir to the Empire.

One of the reasons I’ve been eagerly awaiting the arrival of this series is for the presence of Scottish thespian David Tennant, even though he only plays a droid (robot) in the series. Droids are, however, one of the most iconic aspects of the Star Wars franchises.

Anthony Daniels spanned 42 years as the gold-tinted anxietyprone C-3PO, Rogue One saw the brilliant-in-everything Alan Tudyk as the pragmatic K2-SO, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge was the robo-rights-activist L3-37. Now, in Ahsoka, Tennant returns to the role he originated 10 years ago in The Clone Wars (netting himself a Daytime Emmy award in the process), as Huyang, the 25,000-year-old droid who has spent millennia teaching young Jedi knights.

The character of Ahsoka is emblematic of one of the greatest strengths of TV shows. Even the most unliked characters can be turned into fan favourites when writers are allowed to give them a worthy story. We can only hope her own series will not be where that story concludes.

All Star Wars shows and films are available to stream on Disney+.

Characters can be turned into fan favourites when writers are allowed to give them a worthy story

Another supporting character with a dedicated fanbase to receive their own spin-off recently is The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon (AMC+), where Norman Reedus reprises his long-standing role from the original series.

After having mysteriously arrived on the shores of France – the origin of the zombie virus that has ravaged the world – Daryl tries to piece together what brought him here as he makes his way across the country in an attempt to return home. However, he soon finds himself on a mission to deliver a young child, who is intended to lead “the revival of humanity”. The Walking Dead lasted 11 seasons, so it will be interesting to see if this spin-off will be able to live up to that impressive legacy.

While the fourth season of Prime Video’s The Boys has been delayed due to the US writers’ strike, we do not have long to wait for the next serving of that show’s particular flavour of superhero pastiche, as the spin-off series Gen V arrives on 29 September. Young aspiring heroes have their physical and moral boundaries put to the test while competing for Godolkin University’s highly coveted top ranking. When the university’s dark secrets come to light, the students must come to grips with what type of heroes they are going to become.

Spin-offs are always a bit of a gamble. They have an existing audience from the original series, but run the risk of alienating loyal viewers if the spin-off doesn’t live up to viewer expectations.

Shows such as legal crime-drama series Better Call Saul (Neon), with the character of Jimmy McGill journeying to become Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk) originally from Breaking Bad, and Angel (Disney+), played by David Boreanaz, originally from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, are excellent examples of using new stories to expand on characters that simply didn’t have enough room to reach their full potential in their parent shows.

That being said, not all spin-offs are created equal, and in my opinion Joey – in which Matt Le Blanc reprised his role as Joey Tribbiani from TV’s popular series Friends – should be avoided at all costs.

More viewing options are given in the panel.

Nat Dolan is an Auckland actor and movie enthusiast