That Ahsoka lightsaber battle is a major milestone for Star Wars

Warning: The following contains spoilers for Ahsoka! Turn back now if you're not up to date! 

Ahsoka episode 1 sees new villain Shin Hati and Sabine Wren go head to head in a vicious lightsaber battle. It's been a while since Sabine was trained by Ahsoka Tano, and she's not actually Force-sensitive, meaning Shin gets the better of the Mandalorian and stabs her through the stomach. Luckily, Sabine survives thanks to Ahsoka arriving in time to get her medical help.

While the battle is pretty epic on its own, one fact makes it even better. This is actually the first time in live-action Star Wars that two women have had a lightsaber battle.

It's a major milestone for the saga that comes in a show that's putting its female characters first – as our Ahsoka review points out: "Ahsoka represents a groundbreaking moment for the women of Star Wars. This is a franchise that has always had strong female characters at its heart, but they've never been given the space to lead a story as completely as this. As I'm sure is the case for many other lifelong fans of the galaxy far, far away, it's especially moving to witness this with characters that are so fully fleshed out, flawed, and fierce."

We also saw Ahsoka duel Morgan Elsbeth in The Mandalorian season 2, episode 5 – though, crucially, Morgan was armed with a beskar spear rather than a lightsaber of her own.

The villains of Ahsoka are shaping up to be very interesting indeed. Thanks to an ominous connection to Norse mythology, Shin Hati and Baylan Skoll could turn out to be even more sinister villains than they already appear. Plus, the mysterious Inquisitor Marrok is spurring plenty of theories about his true identity, from Ezra Bridger to Starkiller (thanks to a key voice actor listed in the credits). What's more, we know that Morgan Elsbeth is a descendant of the Nightsisters of Dathomir.

Ahsoka is currently releasing weekly on Disney Plus. For much more on the show, check out our deep dives on:

• Who is Grand Admiral Thrawn?

• Who is Hera Syndulla?

• Explaining the mystical realm of the World Between Worlds

• The history between Anakin and Ahsoka explained

• Everything you need to know about Star Wars Rebels

• The Ahsoka end-credits clues explained

• Who is Clancy Brown playing in Ahsoka?

• Huyang explained

• What to watch before Ahsoka

• How to watch Star Wars: The Clone Wars in order

• The Ahsoka release schedule

• The Ahsoka timeline explained