Elements Of 'Ahsoka' Inspired By Classic Adventure Stories Including ‘Indiana Jones’ And 'Treasure Island'

Star Wars

May 17

Disney adapted the classic Robert Louis Stevenson book about pirates and lost treasure, Treasure Island as a live-action film in 1950, starring Bobby Driscoll (Peter Pan) and a live-action Muppet-flavored adaptation starring Tim Curry, Muppet Treasure Island, in 1996. Some of Lucasfilm’s recent Star Wars projects created under the Disney banner, specifically Ahsoka and Skeleton Crew, have not only incorporated general elements of the Treasure Island storyline and plot of Treasure Island, but also seem to have been influenced by some of the technical and science-fiction elements of its updated adaptation, Treasure Planet

In 2002, Disney released an updated animated adaptation of the classic Robert Louis Stevenson book, Treasure Island, entitled Treasure Planet. Treasure Planet retells the classic tale of young Jim Hawkins unexpectedly coming into possession of a treasure map and joining a starship crew filled with cutthroat pirates to follow the map to the treasure. The leader of the pirates, Long John Silver, unexpectedly takes a shine to the troubled youth and starts to become somewhat of a friend and mentor to him before he and his fellow pirates launch their mutiny against the Captain and the rest of her crew.

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Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny — Image Source: Wallpapers Den

Star Wars creator George Lucas created the Indiana Jones films in the early 1980s. The popular movie franchise featured the globe-trotting adventures of notorious archaeologist Henry Jones Jr. (aka “Indiana Jones”). The early films, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1980), Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) were set in the 1930s. The remaining films, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023), are set in the 1950s and 1960s, respectively. One of the hallmarks of these films, except for Temple of Doom, was Indy and his allies racing against their evil competitors for ancient artifacts that would make the villains powerful enough to conquer the world. In most cases, however, the villains succeeded in capturing the artifact only to have the artifact ultimately destroy them or lead to their demise in the end.

Ahsoka features the continuing adventures of former Jedi Padawan and Rebel operative Ahsoka Tano. Season One of the series, set following the events of Star Wars Rebels, Return of the Jedi and concurrent with the events of The Mandalorian, featured Ahsoka, a Jedi Training Droid, Huyang, and former Rebel and Ghost crew member, Sabine Wren, continuing their quest to find their friend, Ezra Bridger, as well as Imperial Grand Admiral Thrawn. Both Ezra and Thrawn vanished into hyperspace years ago to parts unknown in the series finales of Star Wars: Rebels.

While not a traditional “Pirate story” in the vein of Treasure Island or Treasure Planet and a search for buried treasure, Ahsoka does involve a search in terms of both seeking both a Rebel friend, Ezra Bridger, and trying to stop a foe, Grand Admiral Thrawn, from returning from his exile in another galaxy and menacing the nascent New Republic. Additionally, Ahsoka’s adventure starts with Ahsoka finding a “treasure map” to help her find her way to where Ezra and Thrawn may be located.

The series opens with Ahsoka obtaining an orb with a star chart that operates very similarly to Jim Hawkins’ star chart orb from Treasure Planet. Unfortunately, the orb is later stolen and Sabine is left injured by associates of an Imperial loyalist, Morgan Elsbeth, who was sprung from captivity at the beginning of the series by her force-wielding allies, Baylan Skoll and Shin Hati. It is also very much an Indiana Jones-style race against time with Ahsoka and her allies on one side and Morgan Elsbeth and hers, seeking to bring Thrawn back to lead a military campaign against the New Republic in the hopes of restoring Palpatine’s fallen Galactic Empire.

At the end of Season One, Ahsoka and her allies succeeded in finding Ezra, but with the help of Morgan Elsbeth and her allies, Thrawn was able to escape his exile on Peridea, setting the stage for future conflict with the New Republic. Ezra made it back to warn the New Republic of Thrawn’s threat. Unfortunately, the adventure left Ahsoka, Huyang, and Sabine stranded on Peridea, along with former Elsbeth allies, former Jedi Knight Baylan Skoll and his apprentice, Shin Hati. Skoll seems to be drawn elsewhere on the planet, setting the stage for next season’s adventures, possibly involving the Mortis Gods, who were first introduced in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Other parallels between Ahsoka and Treasure Island and Indiana Jones may become evident in Ahsoka’s second season.