Back at the end of October when I returned from my trip to Disney Hollywood Studios and specifically the Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge area of the park I came home with two Savi lightsabers and some spare scrap.
Long before taking my trip though I had been debating what goodies I wanted to come home with. Along with the customizable Savi’s lightsabers Galaxy’s Edge also offers a line of legacy hilts. These hilts range from characters throughout the Star Wars Universe and include Luke, Anakin, Mace, Maul, Ray, Kylo, Obi-Wan, and even Ahsoka. At the time I went I had in fact been eyeing the Ahsoka Tano Star Wars Rebels hilt set and was debating coming home with them though I ultimately shifted my focus and returned with only the Savi’s hilts and none of the legacy ones. However right after I came home two things happened. First the highly anticipated Ahsoka Tano Star Wars The Clone Wars color changing hilt set was released (which I missed by a day on my trip to the parks along with a surprise visit in the park by Ashley Eckstein) and second Ahsoka played by Rosario Dawson made her live debut on the Disney+ Mandalorian show.
I decided then that I wanted to rectify my choice and a new goal of getting both hilt sets was formed. Since the Rebels version had been out for a while securing a set was fairly straightforward if you know where to look and in fairly short order I had the Rebels set in hand. However the newness of the Clone Wars set caused them to sell out very quickly and due to their limited availability I was stuck waiting. But patience paid off and after a few weeks the set came into stock, in the Disney California shops no-less, and a friend was able to secure them for me. Finally after a few weeks mail delay the Clone Wars set made it to my house and I now have both sets in hand so I figured what better way to celebrate than to show both sets off and do a review of them!
So without further preamble let’s take a look at both the Galaxy’s Edge legacy Ahsoka Tano Star Wars The Clone Wars and Star Wars Rebels lightsaber hilts.
Packaging
All of the Galaxy’s Edge legacy hilts come with a storage case and while each case features the same design the size can vary based on the lightsaber. Since both Ahsoka Tano sets come with two hilts those cases are on the larger side. Other than size the only difference between each case is that the front features a symbol related to that character. In the Clone Wars set the front of that case features her symbol in blue and green detailing owning to the fact that in the show her blades changed from green (and green-yellow) to blue while in Star Wars Rebels set the symbol is the same but is white in color since Ahsoka had left the Jedi Order by then.
Though the exterior cases are made of plastic they are of decent construction and generally have a solid feel. That said I do feel the hinge for the cover isn’t quite as smooth when opening and closing as I would like and the clasp doesn’t quite catch as strongly as I would prefer either.
On the inside of the case two Styrofoam endpieces hold up a molded piece of plastic where the hilts rest when inside the case. This is all covered in a piece of silky cloth. It’s a bit of a flimsy feel but as an ancillary item to the hilts themselves the case is a nice bonus to the items.
Likeness
As I mentioned earlier the Ahsoka Clone Wars set only recently was made available by Disney while her first set based on the Star Wars Rebels design was available when the park first opened. Unlike the Darth Maul or Asajj Ventress hilts, where you need to buy both hilts separately, here you get both Ahsoka’s main hilt and her shoto hilt when buying either set. This however comes with the consequence of both Ahsoka sets having the highest price point ($199.99 plus tax) of any legacy hilt in the park.
While the designs are similar to each other Disney at one point tweaked the design of the Ahsoka Rebels set to be more faithful to the show. Therefore there are actually two versions of the set and I will be reviewing the newer version. Both hilts in the Rebels set are similar to each other and have a Samurai sword style showcasing a more curved and rectangular layout and unlike other hilts feature an almost seamless design from pommel to emitter; though the main hilt does have some extra detailing as compared to the shoto.
Because of the design flow of the hilts there aren’t many excessive features and rather the hilts rely on the detailing built into the design. For example the center body includes grip inlays on both sides of each hilt with the main hilt having a gunmetal grey rubber inlay with silver triangles while the shoto features a silver inlay with gunmetal grey triangles. Additionally the main hilt has extra detailing and the back bottom portion of the body has an extra etched in grip portion, though it is more for show than for actual hand placement. There are a few other accents on the hilts, such as, the emitter area for the main hilt featuring some gold detailing with a large black wheel on the bottom portion of the body while the shoto emitter is silver and has a large gold wheel. The pommels are identical though reversed and have a vent like look for sound.
With the press of a button on the upper portion of the body both blades ignite with a white color and a very tonal hum. With regards to the Rebels set Disney did a fair job of mimicking the blades as compared to the show, however I do think the hilts are not quite as faithful to the show as I would prefer and have some differences including being a bit rounder over rectangular and a bit thicker than as depicted in Rebels. I also believe that both blades are a bit longer than they should be and that the curvature of the shoto blade is more pronounced as compared to the show.
Note – when the batteries start to get a bit low the colors come out a shade off from normal which is why the blade on the right has a slight tinge to it.
On the other hand the newly released Clone Wars set feels much more accurate to the show as compared to the Rebels set. While both Ahsoka’s Clone Wars and Rebels sets are on the minimalistic side the Clone Wars set feels even more so especially as compared to almost all other legacy blades while at the same time, in my opinion, being the most aesthetically pleasing set.
Unlike the Rebels set the Clone Wars hilts have a more traditional round style. Starting from the bottom both hilt pommels feature a round end ringed with square detailing around the perimeter that tapers down before going into the body. Moving upward to the body of the blades the main hilt thickens before tapering down again with an additional black ring at the end around the perimeter for a bit more detailing while the shoto body stays the same thickness and doesn’t have much more in the way of excessive detailing with the exception that both hilts have a black accent button on the lower portion of the body similar to the Rebels set. The upper portion of the body of both hilts feature a black groove running down either side with silver accents in the emitter areas as well as ‘charging pins’ on the upper portion of the body. Since Ahsoka was also Anakin’s padawan her main blade has a bit more flair than her shoto and has some characteristics that mimic Anakin’s hilt including the wings at the top and the on/off switch.
The Clone Wars hilts are also the first hilts in the park that change colors between green and blue and while the blades have different sound profiles based on color and are different from the Rebels set they share the tonal hum sound in the background which I find refreshing. With the lone exception that in the show Ahsoka’s shoto lit up with more of a greenish-yellow color as opposed to true green there isn’t really anything negative to say about the layout of the hilts as compared to the show and based on images they appear to be as faithful as you can get to the Clone Wars series and more faithful as compared to the Rebels set.
Design Quality
The Ahsoka sets are almost at completely different ends of the spectrum when it comes to their design quality. While both are very well built from a design perspective the clear winner is the newer Clone Wars set.
The absolute first things you will notice about the Rebels set is its size and weight. Both hilts are significantly heavier than the Clone Wars set and much thicker and longer too. To put the disparity into perspective the main hilt of the Clone Wars set is smaller than the shoto hilt from the Rebels set. Personally I enjoy the weight of the Rebels hilts however I think the size should have been shaved down even more with the new version and they should have been made more rectangular. To me the biggest design flaw is the placement of the power button; fans of the show are aware that Ahsoka is often depicted holding the hilts with a reverse grip and oftentimes ignites them this way. But because the power button is on the same side of both hilts there is almost no good way to turn the hilts on regardless of whether you are holding the hilts with a traditional grip or a reverse grip. Regardless of whether the curve of the hilt is facing inward or outward the buttons are for the most part awkwardly out of reach and it is frustrating. Nevertheless, this is still probably the best and cheapest set you can get that is a mostly accurate Ahsoka Rebels set unless you go with a the third party set but that can become very pricey so I still give the Rebels hilts a thumbs up unless Hasbro releases a Force FX set to compete.
The newly released Clone Wars set on the other hand is really fun to own and as mentioned much more screen accurate as compared to the Rebels hilts. Also as previously mentioned they are also the first hilts in the park to feature the ability to change colors, which functions with the press of a very cleverly hidden button. While they are still metallic they are significantly lighter than most Galaxy’s Edge hilts.
Although Hasbro is set to release Ahsoka’s Clone Wars main hilt in the Force FX Elite line (which is looking really good) this is still the set to beat since you do get both hilts at the $199.99 price point whereas the Hasbro saber will set you back $249.99 for just the main blade and similar to the Rebels set going third party will set you back even more money. Outside the fact that in the series Ahsoka’s shoto blade is more of a green-yellow color and this shoto hilt flashes a true green I don’t have anything negative to write which would probably come as a shock to anyone that knows me. Because of its near perfect design and the fact that you are getting both hilts the Galaxy Edge set is the one to go with.
Final Thoughts
Before my trip to Disney at the end of October I didn’t own any higher end lightsabers but since returning I now have three Savi hilts and both Ahsoka Tano sets so while I wouldn’t say I am an expert in reviewing lightsabers I feel I can still tell what a quality product should be. While neither set is bad it’s very clear to me that the Clone Wars hilt set is overall better than the Rebels set. The Clone Wars set while light has a good feel in your hands, is aesthetically pleasing, and is accurate to the show. That said, in actuality I am generally more drawn in by the design of the Rebels hilts than those of the Clone Wars. The Rebels set is a really nice product to own at a price point you likely would not be able get elsewhere with that level of quality but the design issues mentioned above made did ultimately knock the set a peg or two down in my books. With the upcoming Disney+ Ahsoka show announced I am still happy I own the set I just wish the hilts design were a bit sleeker and less clunky than they currently are. You wouldn’t go wrong picking up either set but I think ultimately the Clone War would be most buyers safer bet.
One final note, while each hilt set are in fact only $199.99 that only comes with the hilts and not the blades. If you don’t have any Savi blades you would have to buy two blades in the parks in order to turn either set on, otherwise they are more decorative but all Galaxy Edge blades are interchangeable with all hilts so you do in fact only need two total blades.
