The Star Wars series doesn’t end with epic movies. It has spawned numerous spin-off TV shows that are equally, if not more, loved by fans.
From successful hits like The Mandalorian, Obi Wan Kenobi, and Andor to the more recent and well-received Ahsoka series following former Jedi Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson), Star Wars spin-off series have been captivating audiences since 2019 and there’s more to come. The Bad Batch returns with its 3rd season this year.
But Star Wars TV shows are by no means a new phenomenon. The first spin-off series, Droids, debuted in 1985 and was followed by more than a dozen spin-off animations, shorts, and microseries over the next four decades.
There will probably be more, but for now here’s a ranked list of our favorite Star Wars TV shows, from least good to best.
6. Star Wars: Bad Band (2021)
The Bad Batch are a group of clone troopers (the Empire’s infantrymen who have become a feature of the series) who are turned good due to a genetic mutation. They now have the ability to resist the influence of the killing protocol Order 66, meaning they can follow their own will and happily choose to go on missions to weaken the Emperor.
Set between Revenge of the Sith (2005) and A New Hope (1977), there’s no subtlety to the film and the script is a bit clunky, but the series is fun and action-packed, making it something of a winner. And best of all, you don’t need to know about Star Wars to dive right in. The first and second seasons of the animated series consisted of 16 episodes. The third and final season of the series premiered in February, and Disney+ will continue to release subsequent episodes every Wednesday until May 1, 2024.
5. Star Wars Rebels (2014)
We loved this 3D, more kid-oriented, animated spin-off series – and so did other Star Wars fans: it has a whopping 98 percent Tomatometer score.
Simon Kinberg (writer of Mr. & Mrs. Smith and X-Men: Days of Future Past), Star Wars mastermind Dave Filoni (director of The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett and the upcoming Ahsoka and Tales of Tales of It was created together with the author of . Jedi, Star Wars: The Bad Batch, and Star Wars: The Clone Wars) the story takes place ten years after the Galactic Empire seized power. It follows the Specters, a group of rebels who work to undermine many of the Empire’s operations.
4.Andor (2022)
Starring Diego Luna as Cassian Andor, this series tells the story of the birth of the Rebellion, aka The Rebel Alliance (a resistance movement secretly working to restore a liberal government to replace the evil Galactic Empire).
Unfortunately, despite a stellar cast (Adria Arjona, Stellan Skarsgård, Fiona Shaw and Kyle Soller also star) and incredible special effects and a potentially fascinating plot, the series failed to come together. There are confusing flashbacks, too much focus on routine activities and not enough action. Standard said it felt like “a slow-burning series that makes you feel like you’re trapped in carbonite.”
But it’s worth noting that others love it, too: Rotten Tomatoes, for example, gave the series a perfect Tomatometer score of 96 percent, and a second series is planned to air in August 2024.
3.Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)
Ewan McGregor returned last year to play Obi-Wan Kenobi in this hit series, which picks up ten years after the events of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (2005). Fans of the series will remember this as a very dramatic movie: The Jedi were all but wiped out after the lethal protocol Order 66 turned robots into Jedi killers. After all this drama, Kenobi escaped to the planet Tatooine, where the new series continues.
Kenobi now looks after the son of his former apprentice, the False Anakin Skywalker, aka Darth Vader (Hayden Christensen). But after Anakin’s daughter Leia (Vivien Lyra Blair) is kidnapped, he goes on a mission to save her. The series received mixed reviews; some enjoyed the action scenes and praised McGregor’s acting, while others said it did not bring anything particularly new to the franchise.
2. Tales of the Jedi (2022)
This six-episode animated anthology series is split into two parts, following the lives of Ahsoka Tano (Ashley Eckstein) and then Count Dooku (Corey Burton). Although the episodes fly by at just 15 minutes each, they still manage to fill in the two Jedi’s backstories, offering glimpses into some of the most important moments in their lives.
The series was widely praised (it has an incredible 100% Tomatometer rating), but was generally viewed as a treat for Star Wars devotees rather than a series created for people who were into the series: Empire rated the series saying it “reminds fans of why those animated depictions they fell in love”; The Hollywood Reporter said it was “purely for the fans.”
1. The Mandalorian (2019)
For most Star Wars fans, The Mandalorian was everything a spinoff series had ever dreamed of. “The Mandalorian is too cool to resist,” The Guardian said in 2020; “The Mandalorian is perhaps the ultimate expression of what George Lucas has been achieving all along… Star Wars was never supposed to be a movie set, just a TV show. Thank God for Maker, we finally got this,” Standard said of The Mandalorian season three.
Space Western, whose fourth season will air next year, is set after the fall of the Empire and stars Pedro Pascal as warrior and bounty hunter Din Djarin / The Mandalorian. The story focuses on the adventures of Djarin and Grogu (Baby Yoda). Action-packed, fun and exciting, with an all-star cast (starring Katee Sackhoff, Werner Herzog, Nick Nolte, Taika Waititi and Omid Abtahi) and music by Ludwig Göransson, it’s no surprise that this series was nominated for its 12th category. Emmy awards in 2020 (seven winners).
Ahsoka is available at: Disney+ From 23 August