The anthology series Tales of the Jedi is a wellspring of potential storytelling. While we’ve already covered different characters who could be featured in the series, there are still plenty of potential candidates from every era. Sticking with the prequel and Imperial era from Season 1, here are 5 more characters who would be fantastic additions to Tales of the Jedi.
1. Barriss Offee
A huge question mark of a character coming out of The Clone Wars is Barriss Offee. She is a character fans have been asking about since her last full appearance in Season 5 of the series. Pretty much anytime a mysterious new character or Inquisitor pops up, especially around Ahsoka Tano, the speculation mill starts to churn. She was a good friend to Ahsoka which is why Barriss' turn was so shocking.
This friend-turned-enemy is exactly what needs to be explained. It’s a big jump from The Clone Wars Season 2, when Barriss and Ahsoka bond during the Second Battle of Geonosis, to Season 5, when she frames Ahsoka for murder. The issue is that Barriss doesn’t have any significant appearance in almost three seasons other than the occasional background cameo. During the episode “Brain Invaders,” Barriss discusses with Ahsoka that Jedi are keepers of the peace. However, that’s the closest fans get to Barriss’ turn. Even then, in that conversation, Ahsoka has more dissenting viewpoints, not Barriss. Did Ahsoka’s words sinking into Barriss make her act out later? We just don’t know, though we did a fuller breakdown of that conversation here.
Tales of the Jedi is the perfect opportunity to close that gap between Season 2 and Season 5 of The Clone Wars, showing exactly how and why the Jedi Order disenfranchised Barriss. Was it a lack of care? Barriss nearly died twice during the Second Battle of Geonosis. She was almost crushed to death under the weapons factory and then taken over by brain parasites. We also know that her master, Luminara Unduli, wasn’t the warmest person, thanks to insight from the Martez sisters in Season 7. It’s all but stated that it was Luminara who looked at Trace and Rafa, two young girls who had just become orphans, and essentially told them, 'May the Force be with you,' before leaving them. She walked away from two girls grieving their parents’ deaths hours before, leaving the Martez sisters with no aid or support. It’s what turned them both to a life of crime to survive. Is this how Luminara treated her padawan when Barriss needed her, or was she compassionate like Anakin was to Ahsoka after Geonosis? We don’t know.
We also don’t know if Barriss survived Order 66. While she’s a prime Imperial Inquisitor candidate, I don’t see a world where she lasted too long. Her boss would be Anakin Skywalker turned Darth Vader, the king of holding grudges. As Anakin was the one who brought Barriss to justice for framing his padawan, I doubt he’d be willing to let that go as a Sith Lord. Escaping Order 66 would be escaping Darth Vader, which would be quite the story to tell.
2. Quinlan Vos
Quinlan Vos is one of the most prominent untapped characters from The Clone Wars, with so many unanswered questions about him that he is simply begging for some screentime. The novel Dark Disciple by Christie Golden covers the final months of the Clone Wars for Quinlan when he was both the love interest of Asajj Ventress and a Sith apprentice to Count Dooku. This book was crafted from scrapped scripts from The Clone Wars after Cartoon Network canceled it. During this time, Quinlan was tasked with assassinating Count Dooku. He sought out Ventress to aid him, and the two fell in love. But Quinlan slipped into the Dark Side and became Admiral Enigma, fighting against the Republic and Jedi he swore to protect. Eventually, Quinlan came back to the light side and rejoined the Jedi.
Dark Disciple also brought an end to Ventress’ story. While Quinlan would be the focus of Tales of the Jedi, it would also give a chance for the return of Ventress to help offer some on-screen closure to a fan-favorite character. Besides, Tales is no stranger to running over other novels. Why not Dark Disciple?
We also know that Quinlan survived Order 66 thanks to Charles Soule's run of Darth Vader comics as well as the Obi-Wan Kenobi series. The latter revealed that Quinlan was working with the Path helping to smuggle Force-sensitive children to safety, something that gave Kenobi the hope he was looking for to fight back. It could be a great chance to bring back Indira Varma, O’Shea Jackson Jr., and Kumail Nanjiani as Tala, Roken, and Haja too.
Quinlan is such a huge question mark in the Imperial period, with stories primed and ready to be on screen. This man could hold an entire season all on his own.
3. The Grand Inquisitor
Depending on how old the Grand Inquisitor from Star Wars Rebels is, there could be a lot of ground to cover with him. The Grand Inquisitor is a Pau’an, which is an important factor. Pau’ans were nicknamed the “Ancients” because their average lifespan was 700 years. If the Grand Inquisitor is an older Pau’an, his lifespan is almost as long as Yoda’s. Even if he were half that age, it would stick him firmly in The High Republic era, meaning he watched the complete breakdown of the Republic and Jedi Order from their golden age to their darkest days. Fans have only seen The High Republic on screen in the preschool series Young Jedi Adventures, and we're waiting for the upcoming live-action show The Acolyte. Having a long-living character like the Grand Inquisitor could allow Tales of the Jedi to explore this new time period.
Granted, early Rebels reference books state he's the human equivalent of being in his mid-40s. That is wildly up for interpretation. He might look like the human equivalent of middle age, but for his species, who knows if that means he's centuries old. Also, the reference books are constantly being tweaked with the release of new shows and movies. Since Star Wars is a mythology, small details should be up for changes and retcons if they better a story.
His downfall is a fascinating one, too. The Grand Inquisitor was a Jedi Temple Guard, a title that, in my opinion, is one of the cruelest parts of the Jedi Order. The Order touted that Temple Guards were one of its highest honors. A Temple Guard had to give up all individuality. They wore masks to hide their identities. Their personal lightsabers were taken from them to give them a neutral lightsaber pike. It was total dedication to the Order and a lifelong commitment, which could be a long time for someone like a Pau’an who could live for centuries. Being unable to express one's individuality for that long could do a number on a person.
We also know the Grand Inquisitor was at the trial of Barriss Offee, and her words helped push him to turn to the Dark Side. Completely disenfranchised, his fall aided Anakin Skywalker turned Darth Vader to storm the Jedi Temple during Order 66. The Grand Inquisitor killed his fellow Temple Guards to clear the way.
There is also potential to showcase the daily lives of the Inquisitorius. These stories have been heavily featured in books and comics but not as much on screen. That would be a fascinating time to explore.
4. Crimson Dawn Maul
Yes, there are plenty of stories about Maul, but the same argument applies to Ahsoka, too, when she got her season for Tales of the Jedi. Most of Maul’s life has been covered except for one particular part, which is his time as the leader of Crimson Dawn.
The Clone Wars Season 7 was the earliest indication that he played all sides by pitting his own collectives against each other. Crimson Dawn came out on top as it’s still around during the time of Solo: A Star Wars Story. There are a few details about Maul from that time that we’ve gotten from Qi’ra during The War of the Bounty Hunters and Crimson Reign comics, along with the novel Crimson Climb, which is exactly the story I want to see onscreen.
Maul told Qi’ra everything about the Sith. He taught her how to hold her own against Darth Vader, where to find artifacts to defeat Emperor Palpatine, and essentially took her on as an apprentice. That’s an interesting relationship waiting to be explored. What kind of trust or fear is built for Qi’ra to take on this task for Maul after his demise to the point where she outlived all the Sith she was trained to beat?
Even before Qi’ra’s rise, anything about Maul's time in Crimson Dawn is scarce in this time other than the point he was alive and working in the shadows. Tales could even explain how and why Maul arrived on Malachor for the events of Star Wars Rebels Season 2. There are still plenty of stories to be told with Maul for fans to enjoy.
5. Kelleran Beq
I miss Jedi Temple Challenge. The all-ages game show was a highlight and a source of pure joy amid the darkest days of the pandemic. Ahmed Best delighted as Jedi Master Kelleran Beq, guiding the contestants throughout the competition. Along with his trusty protocol droid AD-3, played by Mary Holland, and his astromechs LX-R5, this trio was so much fun to watch. Also, Sam Witwer voicing the vague Dark Side spirit was a blast.
As a fan of the game show, the highlight of The Mandalorian Season 3 for me was seeing Kelleran Beq revealed as the one who saved Grogu. We witnessed the “Sabered Hand” in action, battling to protect the youngling from Order 66’s assault on the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Thanks to his bravery, they met up with the Royal Naboo Security Forces to get to safety.
Kelleran’s background is relatively a mystery other than the game show’s lore and the Jedi Master being canonized in novels. A series of Tales of the Jedi shorts could do wonders. Both Ahmed Best and Mary Holland could reprise their roles. One episode could focus on Kelleran, AD-3, and LX-R5 on an adventure together. Another could be the aftermath of Grogu’s rescue. I’m absolutely on board that it was Jar Jar Binks who aided Kelleran and Grogu if only to troll fans. Remember, Dave Filoni and George Lucas love that character; Jar Jar is in fact Lucas’ favorite Star Wars character.
From Jedi Temple Challenge lore to The Mandalorian, there is plenty to delve into with Kelleran Beq that Tales of the Jedi could tackle.