11. Star Wars: Ahsoka

Ahsoka has potential. It picks up where animated series Star Wars: Rebels left off and switches over to live-action to give us our first-ever look at beloved characters in a different medium (Rosario Dawson as Ashoka Tano, Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Hera Syndulla, Natasha Liu Borduzzo as Sabine Wren, Eman Esfandi as Ezra Bridger). But that potential, like so many Star Wars projects, is only half-realized.

There are shining moments in the first season, like when Ahsoka meets Anakin (the Hayden renaissance is upon us) in the World Between Worlds, or whenever Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno) is on-screen. There are some great lightsaber fights, too, and David Tennant’s return as a sarcastic droid is perfection. But Ahsoka eventually falls victim to the persistent Star Wars curse, curling in on itself and the franchise’s established lore like a big nostalgia ouroboros. There are moments of delicious nostalgia for us Clone Wars and Rebels sickos, don’t get me wrong, but by the end of the first season it feels like Ahsoka is running on fumes.

A second season unburdened by the connective threads of Rebels could propel this series higher up the list. Stay tuned. — AM