The history of Ahsoka's Baylan Skoll is largely unknown, including what he was doing during the era of Star Wars' original trilogy of films. Ultimately, the simple answer is that his character hadn't been created yet, hence why he didn't have a role in the first three movies. However, the most likely in-universe answer comes from the little information provided by Ahsoka itself and its setting during the New Republic era just after the original trilogy.
Played by the late Ray Stevenson, Baylan Skoll was introduced as a survivor of Order 66, having once been a Jedi during the Clone Wars who's since moved beyond the tenets of the Jedi Order. Working with Morgan Elsbeth to reach the extragalactic world of Peridea to bring Grand Admiral Thrawn back to the known galaxy, Baylan and his apprentice Shin Hati clashed with Ahsoka Tano and Sabine Wren who wanted to rescue Ezra Bridger and prevent Thrawn's return. To that end, there's one likely answer to what Baylan Skill was up to during the original trilogy of Star Wars films.
Baylan Skoll Was Likely Still A Mercenary During The War
He Wouldn't Have Joined The Galactic Civil War
Confirmed to have been working as a mercenary alongside Shin, it stands to reason that Baylan was simply working in the darker corners of the galaxy, offering his skills and service to whoever had the credits. While the exact timing as to when he found and began training Shin is ambiguous, it stands to reason that Baylan's training to make her "more" than a Jedi likely took up the majority of his time as well. Prior to being hired by Morgan, Baylan and Shin were likely operating as mercenaries while largely ignoring the greater conflict across the galaxy.
Based on what's known about Baylan from Ahsoka itself, it's understandable that he didn't play an active role during the original trilogy's Galactic Civil War between the Empire and Rebellion. After all, Baylan did share that he'd grown tired of the cyclical nature of galactic history, and his desire to break the vicious cycle of violence. Likewise, Baylan also revealed that he at some point learned the truth about Anakin Skywalker and his corruption into Darth Vader, having voiced to Ahsoka his disgust at her former master.
Not Much Is Known About Baylan's Life Before Ahsoka
A Mysterious Mercenary Who Trained Shin Hati
Ultimately, a vast period of Baylan history is a big question mark, about 30 years from the time the Clone Wars ended, when he was a Jedi general, and the start of Ahsoka which is about 5 years after Return of the Jedi. To that end, the best and most logical guess was that Baylan spent the time reevaluating the entire purpose of the Jedi Order following its demise before becoming a mercenary and eventually training Shin to become more than the Jedi he once was. With any luck, more of Baylan Skoll's history will become clearer in Ahsoka season 2.
Custom Image by Kevin Erdmann
:quality(85):upscale()/2024/02/20/759/n/1922794/6ced926565d4dda2135788.24126660_.jpg)
:quality(85):upscale()/2024/10/24/034/n/49352476/77b7cf81671add0adc63a2.54797453_.jpg)
English (US) ·