Grand Admiral Thrawn Finally Made His Live-Action 'Star Wars' Debut

If you're a Star Wars diehard, Grand Admiral Thrawn is on a if you know, you know level of fan popularity. Officially a canonical figure by way of the Star Wars Rebels cartoon, the space military strategist first made his debut back in Timothy Zahn's trilogy of '90s novels. Fans have been eagerly awaiting his appearance in a live-action format ever since, with Rebels voice actor (Mads Mikkelsen's brother, Lars Mikkelsen!) finally making that a reality in Episode Six of Ahsoka.

For the uninitiated, Thrawn's appearance might come as a shock. The grand admiral looks like a member of the Blue Man Group, fully equipped with blue skin and piercing red eyes. Immediate comparisons easily fall on Nightcrawler from the X-Men or Watchmen's Dr. Manhattan. But his appearance, in whatever form, is a big deal for Star Wars fans. Mikkelsen is also granted the honor of becoming the first Star Wars actor to transition from voice-acting a character to playing them in the live-action version, showcasing Lucasfilm's respect to do Thrawn justice in the latest adaptation.

So, what does this new big bad have planned? According to Baylan (Ray Stevenson)—the villain we have been following throughout the series so far—power is a cycle and it's the Empire's turn once again. He believes that Thrawn can break that cycle by taking power forever... but that's not exactly how cycles work now, is it?

The Star Wars villain has yet to meet Ahsoka, but we do meet a rock-lobster alien who has stolen my heart. Apparently, they're called Noti, and they live in the "once great Witch kingdom." Cool! Cue up "Rock Lobster" by the B-52's, because my new favorite Babu Frik-type guy has arrived. We'll see what Thrawn is really up to next week, but he better not lay a hand on these cute little guys!

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