Since his introduction in Episode 1 of Ahsoka, fans theorized about what Ray Stevenson's Baylan Skoll's number one goal was in the show, and Star Wars finally confirmed it.
Ray Stevenson's debut in Star Wars came during the cold open of Ahsoka Episode 1, and from the very beginning, fans noticed that his character, Baylan Skoll, was a bit different than other Force users.
Since then, viewers have tried to figure out exactly what Baylan is up to, and what his true motivations are.
However, Episode 6 of the series featured a few key moments of exposition for Baylan's character, and it confirmed what fans suspected.
What is Baylan Skoll up to in Ahsoka?
As previously mentioned, fans immediately noticed that Ray Stevenson's Baylan Skoll was a different type of Force user when he appeared in the opening scene of Episode 1.
As the series progressed, multiple scenes of exposition revealed that Baylan and Shin were mercenaries working for Morgan Elsbeth.
It was also revealed that Baylan knew Anakin Skywalker and was familiar with the Jedi Order as he himself was a Jedi prior to Order 66.
Ahsoka also made it apparent that he still held a certain respect for the Jedi at the end of Episode 2 when he told Morgan Elsbeth that killing Ahsoka "would be a shame."
Even though he was hired by Morgan Elsbeth to help find Thrawn and bring him back to the Star Wars galaxy, that was just a job, and he seemed to actually care quite little about Thrawn and his return to power.
In Episode 4 Stevenson's character told Ahsoka that he was only there "to secure the future." When Ahsoka asked him if it was a future for himself, he responded by saying, "Something far greater."
This only furthered the idea that Baylan had little care about Thrawn or his return to power, but that he was seeking something else entirely.
Another hint at his true motivations came in Episode 2 when Shin asked him what would "happen when [they] find Thrawn," and Baylan told her they would achieve a type of "power" on a scale that she could "never dream."
However, Episode 6 finally revealed exactly what Baylan was after.
While awaiting Thrawn's arrival on Peridea, Baylan talked to Shin about the planet itself, calling it "a land of dreams and madness."
It was something he had only ever heard about at the Jedi Temple when he was young, but after they made it there, he could see that the stories were true.
What was in those stories wasn't actually revealed, but Baylan seemed to think that they had to be true.
Stevenson's character then opened up to Shin and told her how he "watched everything [he] knew burn" during Order 66.
After not being able to "make sense of it at the time," Baylan then figured out that everything was "inevitable," such as "the fall of the Jedi" and the "rise of the Empire."
Shin then asked Baylan if it was "[their] turn" since they were aligning with Thrawn, but Baylan told her that "that sort of power is fleeting."
Just after, Baylan verbally revealed his true goal - he told Shin that he wanted to start a new "beginning," one that could "finally bring [that] cycle to an end."
Baylan then revealed that the "beginning" would be there on Peridea "if the old stories [were] true."
This scene alone confirmed exactly what Stevenson's character was after, as well as the fact that he didn't care about Thrawn or the New Republic.
Later on in the episode, Baylan once again alluded to his intentions when he told Shin that he "[missed] the idea of" the Jedi Order, but not all of its flaws. He even said that he saw the potential for there to be a future there for him and Shin.
Shin told him that Thrawn and the others wanted to leave and that it may be wise for them to exit also, and then Baylan suggested to her that the others may be "[fleeing] a power greater than their own."
He then told her that "something [called] to [him]," and asked her if she could "feel" and "see" it.
How Will Baylan's Goals Play Out?
Episode 6 of Ahsoka also featured the debut of Lars Mikkelsen's Grand Admiral Thrawn, and at one point in the episode, after he sent Baylan and Shin to track down Sabine Wren, he told Morgan Elsbeth that it didn't matter if they returned or not - that leaving them stranded on Peridea wouldn't affect his plans at all.
This could directly foreshadow exactly what will happen to Baylan and Shin. It seems as though Ray Stevenson's character doesn't want to leave anyway at this point in the story because of whatever is calling him.
However, since he seems to have some sense of honor, he will at least go through with his mission from Thrawn and try to kill Sabine and Ezra Bridger.
It is likely, though, that he will at some point come into contact with or seek out this greater power, and may even be frightened of it once he finds it.
There is probably a reason that Peridea is now a wasteland and that Thrawn and the others fear what is there.
Baylan could find whatever it is and come to a realization that he and Shin need to get off the planet and return to the galaxy as well.
If this happens and the two get word that Thrawn is going to leave them, they may even band together with Ahsoka Tano, Sabine, and Ezra in order to try and get off the planet.
His ultimate motivations and goal of building something new probably won't change, but Stevenson's character seems like the type of person who would at least put his differences with the heroes aside in order for them all to be able to escape danger.
However, as his goals were finally revealed in Episode 6 of Ahsoka, it is likely that whatever will come of those goals will be played out in the final two episodes.
Episode 6 of Ahsoka is available to stream on Disney+.
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