It’s not uncommon for character redesigns to happen. Much has to change between animated series and live action releases. Remember the “fun” the internet had with the change of The Grand Inquisitor for Obi-Wan Kenobi? Some folks still haven’t gotten over that issue.
But we have to accept that we cannot make live-action the same as animated in every respect. No matter the number of prosthetics or the amount of makeup, some things just cannot be replicated perfectly. And sometimes, changes happen just for the sake of change.
According to recent LEGO releases, we are set for a pretty major character change to a character we met at the conclusion of Star Wars: Rebels. In the conclusion of the show, we see the image above of little Jacen Syndulla, and we hear Sabine Wren saying the following, “By that time, there had been a new member added to the crew of the Ghost—Spectre-7, Jacen Syndulla. Born to fly, just like his mother. And, well, we all know what his father was like.”
So it shouldn’t surprise us that Jacen Syndulla will look different from what we are seeing in merchandise releases. Lego has released toys and merch early before, and was right every single time. Remember when they released their Black Panther sets and gave the world the clue that Shuri was the next Panther to protect Wakanda? Yeah, they have a very solid track record.
You can see Jacen’s new look on the Lego website. We see that the green hair and nearly purple eyes are gone. Jacens updated look will have him looking a bit more like his father Kanan Jarrus, with brown hair and eyes.
Through trailers and still shots we have seen that this won’t be the only look change to characters. We see that there are changes to Space Mom, Hera Syndulla, as well as Sabine. Most of these are due to the necessity of going from animation to live-action and have no real bearing. Will the change of Jacen be important? Hard to say just yet. But, in my opinion, I love that the new look gives a nod to the Jedi we lost and loved before his loss, Kanan Jarrus.
You can look forward to seeing Ahsoka on Disney Plus starting August 23, 2023.