Today's episode of Ahsoka takes us to the World Between Worlds (or somewhere very much like it) as the show's lead character finds herself facing a tough decision: live or die.
After something of a happy reunion, Anakin Skywalker ignites his lightsaber and engages his former Padawan in battle. However, confirming this is no dream sequence is the fact the Jedi Knight says "I've heard that before" when Ahsoka refuses to fight him; that is, of course, a reference to Luke Skywalker refusing to battle his father in Return of the Jedi.
During a flashback to The Clone Wars, a young Ahsoka (with her adult self's mind) is taught by Anakin - who is wearing his animated counterpart's classic armour - how to fight and clashes with her Master when he cracks jokes in the midst of a battle which sees them surrounded by fallen soldiers. His lesson is that, if she doesn't fight, she'll die, and as Ahsoka watches Anakin head back to war, she sees flashes of Darth Vader in his place.
We later catch up with Ahsoka during the Siege of Mandalore, a battle Anakin wasn't present for. He's proud to see she's become a warrior and suggests everything within him is now in her.
The Jedi flinches at that and disputes Anakin's claim that there's more to him than just war and death by pointing out how powerful and dangerous he was. Unhappy to have his failings pointed out in this way and convinced she's learned nothing, Anakin's darker side reemerges, and Vader - from Revenge of the Sith before he donned that iconic suit - returns.
Now wielding a red lightsaber, the Sith Lord proceeds to attack Ahsoka, only to be disarmed by her. She chooses to live and, with what appears to be a great deal of concentration, Anakin is able to suppress the evil with him to return to his old self. Even in death, he remains conflicted.
However, Ahsoka realising she's more than just a warrior and that she can choose life over fighting or dying may well have been the lesson he wished to impart. Her training is complete. Smiling at his Padawan, Anakin assures her that there's hope for her yet before vanishing. With that, Ahsoka is rescued and returns to the land of the living to continue her mission, albeit more in line to how she was portrayed in Star Wars Rebels than the far more stoic version this series has featured.
In terms of cameos, we do get to see Captain Rex during both battles but he never unmasks and Temuera Morrison has only a couple of very brief lines of dialogue. As for the young Ahsoka, Avengers: Infinity War and Barbie star Ariana Greenblatt does a terrific job as the young Jedi.
You can take a closer look at those big moments below.