‘Ahsoka’ episode 3 slips in an emotional Easter egg guaranteed to reduce ‘Star Wars Rebels’ fans to tears

This episode contains spoilers for Ahsoka episode 3.

Ahsoka hasn’t been at all shy about being a direct continuation of Star Wars Rebels. The story has picked up where the animated show left off, the characters have survived the leap to live-action intact, and the focus of the Ahsoka plot is tracking down Rebels lead Ezra Bridger.

So, you don’t have to look far to spot a Rebels reference in Ahsoka, though one very subtle nod will have fans reaching for their handkerchiefs and insisting that there’s some dust in the air.

Midway through the episode, we get the live-action debut of Evan Whitten as Jacen Syndulla. He’s a human/Twi’lek hybrid, with his mom Hera Syndulla and his dad Jedi Knight Kanan Jarrus. Kanan sacrificed himself to save Hera, with their son being born after his death.

And, if you look very closely, Jacen is honoring the Jedi father he never met by wearing an armored shoulder plate with the same symbol he wore. Interestingly we don’t know precisely what this symbol means, though fans theorize it’s a mixture of a Mandalorian emblem combined with the Jedi Order logo.

One of Jacen’s first lines is “I want to be a Jedi”, which is yet more proof he idolizes his father. And, with Force sensitivity passed down from parent to child he may soon be picking up a training lightsaber and blocking some blaster bolts. Then again, old-school fans have good reason to believe that anyone called “Jacen” should avoid the Force altogether.

Here’s hoping we get to see more of him, as Kanan’s death still stings for Rebels fans so many years after that fateful episode aired.