Ahsoka Lives! Will the Fan-Favorite Return in Star Wars: Rebels Season 4?

The unexpected breakout star of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, #AhsokaTano was introduced as the Padawan to Anakin Skywalker himself. The minute she returned in Star Wars: Rebels, fans were fascinated with one question: what would happen when Ahsoka encountered her old Master?

The answer to that question was truly heart-wrenching, as Ahsoka exposed Darth Vader's identity, then seemingly sacrificed herself to allow Kanan and Ezra to escape the Sith Lord. And yet, here's the catch: we never saw the body. As any fans of fantasy and sci-fi will know, if you don't see the body, you can't be sure they're dead. Now, finally, we seem to have gotten confirmation that Ahsoka lives!

Blink and you'll miss it, but #DaveFiloni just gave us a wonderfully subtle hint. At today's Rebels panel, he was wearing a T-shirt that read, "Ahsoka Lives?" With all attention on the Rebels trailer, though, he subtly slipped offstage and changed clothes. He came on back with a T-shirt bearing a very different message:

Ahsoka Lives!

The question mark was gone, replaced by an exclamation mark. It's a brilliant way of announcing the return of the fan-favorite character, made all the more amusing because it uses the popular Twitter hashtag. Rather than just make an announcement, Filoni demonstrated his usual sense of humor, but also subtly involved the fans in the announcement. I love it.

What Role Will She Play?

Of course, Ahsoka may live - but she's unlikely to have escaped #DarthVader unscarred. What's more, should she be involved in Season 4 of Rebels, she'll add a massive complication given that she knows the secret of Vader's identity. As Ezra heard some cryptic dialogue suggesting Ahsoka and Vader had history between them, I'd be surprised if questions never got asked.

But there is another possibility. Dave Filoni revealed that Season 4 is the final season of Star Wars: Rebels, but he's also said that Lucasfilm isn't finished with animation. Maybe Ahsoka is indeed alive—and set to star in the next #StarWars animated series?

After all, just because Ahsoka is alive, doesn't mean she'll join up with the Rebellion again; frankly, I'd rather she didn't, as so powerful a Force-user would simply have to be killed before Luke joined up. Had Luke and Ahsoka been part of the Rebellion at the same time, there's no way she wouldn't have trained him a little, and the odds are high he'd have heard the name 'Yoda' somewhere, too.

Regardless of how it plays out, Ahsoka fans, take heart; Dave Filoni has answered your prayers. What does her survival mean for the future? Right now, we can only guess. But our wait for #StarWarsRebelsSeason4 just got a little more eager...