What is Baylan Skoll Searching For on Peridea? 

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Baylan is such an interesting character and Ray Stevenson is a legend. RIP.

I feel like Baylon and Qui-gon are different sides of the same coin. Different shades of grey, one wanted to save the universe that they had, while the other wants to re start it and try again

The way Baylon utters the words " it repeats again & again & again" is truly epic

I’m so glad Ray Stevenson won this role. He was perfect to play Baylan. I hope he’s at peace and proud with all of the work he left behind. If there is a season 2, there will be a huge hole felt with him gone.

Baylan really reminds me of Anakin had he not fallen to the dark side but still lived through the fall of the Order. He is from the same generation as Anakin, young Jedi knights that just passed the trials and were thrown into the meat grinder of War. He is a desabused Jedi that liked the memory of the Order and his friends but wants to end the cycle. Not through light or dark side but sheer power, something to force the Galaxy to be peaceful. Like Anakin his fear is making him lash out. He is not cruel or maniacal evil like a Sith and could even be considered a decent person. But he is working towards destruction. I really think he is there to remind Ashoka (and us) of Anakin, through his looks, his armor, his fighting style and strangely through his kindness and compassion.

'Most Norse gods like Odin, Hemsworth, Heimdall, Mikkelsen'... nice touch.

I first saw Ray in HBO's Rome and was blown away by how good this man was. He set the bar and gave it his all. RIP, Ray. You will be remembered.

i love how you constantly turn this star wars stuff into meaningful commentary about the real world and our problems and (possible) solutions.. GREAT stuff!

Ray did such an amazing job with Baylan. It's so sad that such a talented actor was taken from us

It's interesting that Baylan doesn't consider himself a Jedi. He even mentions that he's traing Shin for something more. He's villanous and that he seems more than willing to sacrifice others to acheive whatever endgame he's after.

its so sad that the actor passed away. this is the first media ive watched that hes in and i was instantly won over, and getting more of him in another season or his own series wouldve been amazing

There are echoes of Kreia in Baylan.

From the start I saw a lot of parallels between Baylan and Dooku, with their disillusion with the Jedi order and politics and having grand designs to "make a better galaxy," combined with charm and charisma. It makes me wonder if Baylan ever met Dooku.

Baylon has a fanatical righteousness to him that equates to real danger. He’s not a mad dog, he doesn’t enjoy even small moments of violence, but he also doesn’t give a shit if TONS of people get hurt. Against him, Shin is a mad chihuahua, she thinks she likes violence, but I think she will find her heart.

Alan, this channel has become my favorite TV show. The level of intelligence and thoughtfulness in your commentary is just amazing. I really enjoy and appreciate it, and hope it gets others to think about our world a bit differently, because god knows it’s needed.

Baylan reminds me so much of Kreia, and well, if you've played KOTOR II, you know that she is less than honorable and that does not bode well for Baylan or the crew in Ahsoka.

Absolutely tragic to lose Ray Stevenson. RIP. He would have been top of the A list after this performance

So happy Ray Got to play this character, he does such an amazing job with Baylon.

Baylan reminds me a little of Dooku in his efforts to find a middle ground between light and dark. Sadly Dooku slowly, bit by bit slipped too far into the darkness (Sidious's manipulations ensured that) but Baylan doesn't seem to be slipping up in the same way, he may still slip up eventually, but his attempt to find a unique perspective is what makes him one of this series best characters. He's like this weird mix of Qui-Gon, Dooku, and also to some extent, Kreia from KOTOR 2, only he's more ruthless than Qui-Gon, more merciful than Dooku and far, FAR more sane than Kreia who was a raving lunatic with several insightful ideas. I'd say he also reflects Revan a little, but Revan is one of those characters that everyone has their own preferred version of.

Well Said. "You have a Republic, if you can keep it." - Benjamin Franklin He knew there are problems, but he also knew it was the best shot and as long as one side held the other to account, it works. Like you said, when one side tries to silence and flip the board of the others is when we have issues. Losing sometimes is part of the game.

I am genuinely worried that Baylan is being called by something truly malevolent. He's so compelling, I *want* him to turn to the light... but I worry he's going to embrace the ancient evil dolphin gods that destroyed the Nightsister civilization

One of the things that has Baylen's character that had always impressed me is his off-hand practicality. He never shows off, his apparel is less of a uniform than your average Jedi, and his whole demeanor revolves around getting what he wants with minimal effort. Rather than jumping to violence first, ask questions later, he talks to people and attempts to either discourage them from getting in the way or join his direction of thinking. This is very helpful when building a network of allies, or at least friendly contacts. If talking doesn't work, only then does he resort to violence. But unlike Darth Maul or the very early Darth Vader, he's not flashy. Instead of exerting an excessive amount of energy to accomplish the task of butchering an enemy, Baylen simply strolls around and kills everyone near him. Nothing flashy or extreme in his method at all. But what stuck out to me the most recently, was the size of his lightsaber hilt. It's longer than usual. One of the things that bugged me when I was looking for a lightsaber to call my own was how short the hilts were. I've done plenty of sparring with fencing blades and shinai sticks, all of which have a standardized space for your hands to counteract the weight of the blade, but replica Star Wars lightsaber hilts are always too short or too awkward. Baylen's lightsaber hilt though, is around the same length of a katana. This by itself makes it between 2"-4" longer than Anakin or Obi Wan's lightsaber hilts The longer hilt gives a much better advantage for both quick and powerful strikes. I know that lightsaber combat also involves a mental battle with the force, but it's also physical, and giving yourself an edge on the physical side will certainly allow you more time to focus on the mental aspect of the fight. Baylen is literally boosting his weaker aspect by making his physical side easier

I love the small references that you weave into your script. "Odin, Hemsworth..." or "Marx, Bannon"

His rivalry with dolphins is incredibly funny

In other words, Baylan seems like a "calm and reasonable person..." I'm glad he's not abusive to Shin. But he's probably not that nice to anyone else. I wonder why she has such a place in his heart.

Bro could have an amazing political career but instead he keeps us informed on starwars.... What a legend

Ashoka said something in episode 1 or 2 “I did the wrong thing for the right reasons.” I think this is a theme for the season and along with Baylan as a character are reminders of the fact that Filoni is an incredible writer.

I love your breakdowns and analysis of all things Star Wars, but something that continues to impress me is how you expose the humanity behind all of these characters. You allow us to sympathize and let go of our prejudices. Thank you for all of the amazing content and looking forward to more in the future!

I love the parallels between Baylan and Kreia so effin much. If they did some sort of clever reference to her in the series I will shit my pants until I die. The ominous music that plays really helps set the mood, taking me straight back to Peragus. Filoni probably loves Kreia as much as the next fan (who doesn’t love Kreia I’ll fight them) so I think it’s very possible we could see some of reference. Even if it’s as simple as Baylan saying something akin to “To destroy both the Jedi and Sith, and at last give this galaxy a chance at peace… Of course, I wouldn’t be the first to suggest such a thing…”

I've never been so hyped for an Ashoka's episode a bit strange since no big reveals are excpected. I guess your theory about Peridea did most of the job for me.

You really have grown as a person over the years, recently Ive been watching more and more of your videos and your tone is much more positive. im enjoying the content

Baylan reminds me a little of Kain from the Legacy of Kain game series... "On one side of the coin you have the Jedi and the Republic, the other side you have the Sith and the Empire... but suppose you toss the coin enough times... suppose one time, it lands on its edge."

Your videos make more sense than most other Star Wars content on here. I think this is because you understand that any "galaxy far far away" is still a creation of Earth-based civilization and the minds that spring from it. We of course have little idea what is out there beyond what we can see in the night sky, but we (mostly) understand it's nothing like what our fantasies of it are like, so despite that, we craft stories the tell us of extra-galactic worlds and those that inhabit them. The success (or failure) of these largely depends on the level of story-telling skill behind it all. George Lucas, and to some extent, Dave Filoni, have a fairly good amount of that skill, as does Stephen Spielberg. So to analyze someone like Baylan Skoll is to do so with an Earth-based sensibility. Skoll tells us (in Episode 7) that the cycle repeats, and what a waste that ultimately is. We cannot help but agree with it, but is destruction the answer? That cycle has surely repeated itself over and over in our planetary history, on a greater scale each time. But it seems little is learned from it. The powers that be - mostly in Europe - were able to create a "century of peace" from the defeat of Napoleon to the start of WWI. Along the way, they laid the foundation for the world we still live in today. Of course, now the stakes are much higher with the unlocking of the secrets of the atom and the potential for mass extinction. Maybe we tamed the nuclear genie, only to now confront the results of continued carbon burning and the ever-increasing danger it presents, and we are confronted with corporate greed - mostly by old men who will soon die - and its refusal to do anything about it.

Baylan is a awesome character

What if Shin Hati is intended to be a vessel for Aboloth in this universe?

I trust that Alan would only give us orders for a well-planned and coordinated offensive against the Dolphin menace

You do an absolutely amazing job on this. The thought you've put into this is really impressive.

Thanks for all your work Alan. Hope you’re doing good. Hope we get to see Baylan’s story fully play out.

Also, don’t forget Skårsgaard!

LMAO at the idea of ancient people trying to scare their god-dogs into dropping the sun and moon. I bet they took the drop it tone too. Drop it! Ehhh... Drop it!

What if Baylan Skoll's searching for Yoda's home world? It doesn't appear to be in the known galaxy, so why not this new one? You'd have to imagine an army of Yodas, Yaddles, and Grogus would be unstoppable.

So beautifully said in the wrap-up Allen! It’s good to have hope, even or especially when what we get is imperfect.

I often remind folks that the 2nd phrase in the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution says ‘in order to form a MORE perfect Union’, not ‘in order to form a PERFECT Union’. Perfection in this regard would be impossible because every individual is different. The best that can be hoped for is good organization and no oppressive policies.

Skoll and Doku would've gotten a long pretty well, men that forgot the saying the road to hell is paved with good intensions.

"I dont want to turn the wheel. I want to break it." Filoni obviously watched GoT and took notes.

Allen thanks for bringing up the short comings in all of us. Those whom wish to throw stones should examine there own flaws.

It took me quite a while to get into DisCount Dooku, but after episode 6 I'm all in. To me, he's a more "approachable" Thanos.

He sort of feels like an incredibly good filler for the fan's craving for trawn while they couldn't have him return in the first episode - testament to Dave Falonis writing

Excellent. I just recently discovered your channel and have been watching several of your videos, and have been impressed by your willingness and ability to analyze these SF concepts in the real-world contexts they are derived from. This is what a good analysis should do, and it's appreciated.

If Baykal Skoll took the longer view of human history then he would know he didn’t need to do anything, the current society is perfectly fine in destroying its self. Sure he could take the easy way out a fight for the smallest, incremental , change possible and just hope that it is so easily undone. But just like Plapatin with order 66, Luke with a proton torpedo, Ballen choose to take large action. And like with Luke if millions who are just following orders must die then that is the cost.

I have watched several channels about many different franchises and I have to say Allen, yours is by far the most insightful, interesting and well done. I love the in depth analysis with the occasional witty humor. On top of all this you're very easy on the eyes! Looking forward to more videos.

Baylan Skoll is Darth Treya, repeating the cycle again. Ironic, isn't it - it's like poetry. It rhymes.

Really enjoy your work and appreciate the nuance and thoughtfulness when drawing connections between the fiction we love and the world we are responsible for shaping.

Mr. Stevenson has always been a pleasure to witness when acting. Really unfortunate that he had to leave so early. He had a habit of elevating each series he was in.

These kind of videos are really the best of them. Thanks.

Sometimes I agree that we should just start over, it seems the only way to wash away the greed, hate and apathy. Thanks for reminding me that Im not always right.

47 seconds after posting. Y’all, the dopamine flowing

"We all know that an unprepared offensive against the dolphins will only make them stronger." - I feel we should have this on a T-shirt or something...

I get the feeling that this is gonna be a classic example of someone not truly understanding what they're looking for until they find it, only to realize too late that what they've found is more horrible than they imagined.

Great job ..Im very impressed by your thoughtful and correct commentary, keep up the good work. We need you.

Watching the series thus far, I don't think that any of the characters are "evil"...they aren't out to cause mayhem, pain, or destruction, and even Thrawn's ultimate goals seem different from what were originally the Empire's. Rather, I think we have a lot of very well written, even better acted, characters who have conflicting goals that set them at opposition to each other. I have to admit that Baylan and Shin have really become favored characters, more than I thought would be possible. Even Thrawn, with his ominous alliance with the Great Mothers doesn't come across as "evil"...just a person who has goals divergent from those of the "heroes".

Ah, the Kreia grindset. Interesting.

Skoll reminds me of a refined take on Kriea/darth traya's philopsophy on the nature of the galaxy and force

Great video, thank you

I love this video. Your commentary is beautiful and funny and insightful. Thank you.

This is one of your best videos and commentary. Excellent analysis.

I think all this talk of ending the cycle points toward Abeloth, because in legends she was a being so powerful the Jedi and the Sith had against her and for a brief time abandon their animosity toward each other.

People like Baylon Skoll are often charismatic and appear as thoughtful. When cornered, their brutal and merciless selves rise to surface. At this point, they will believe they will have nothing to lose. Masks will come off and the monsters will be front and center. (Like Jim Jones of Jonestown, Guyana)

I always like your videos, they are entertaining and thought provoking. Well done.

Thank you again for your insight and wisdom!

You know, Alan’s hate of Dolphins is understandable. They’re the only other species apart from Humans who kill for fun…

Baylan Skoll is the most neatly groomed Jedi in all of recorded history.

My money is that he is looking for a Bindu, and that there is one on Peridea. In fact I think that a Bindu is the reason why the night sisters left Peridea and the entire galaxy. I think Ezra has befriended the Bindu on Peridea. In our galaxy the nightsisters settled on planets that are nexuses in the Force. It is likely that Peridea is also a nexus in the force. The one Bindu we saw in the Rebels series was on Lothal, which was also a nexus in the force with a hidden ancient (and forgotten) Jedi Temple.

Love this take also how your showing the Norse mythology Filoni appears to be drawing on. Although one little bit at the end there “the best revolutions are incremental” I’m a history major I studied revolutions as part of my focus which was on Cold War Geopolitics I must say unfortunately incremental changes aren’t considered a revolution. It is the actual suddenness and explosive change that defines a revolution. It doesn’t have to be inherently violent there are examples of peaceful or mostly peaceful revolutions but yeah sorry being that guy

Two things…. 1. BEST Star Wars channel on the interweb. 2. Your dolphin schtick is hysterical.

Baylon Skoll is one of a very rare type of villian, done well. He is a Lawful Evil character. Most of the time we see a batcrap insane Chaotic Evil character, like Emperor Palpatine, or a Neutral Evil character, like Darth Vader, who is evil for evil's sake. Baylon is evil, but he has an overall purpose and method to being evil.

Man I love these videos Been here for years and hope to be here for a few more

well, i did not expect all of THAT when i clicked on this video. how well thought out and presented. subscribed.

Ok, back again just to say that you have a gift for this. I am SO impressed and I am not usually impressed.

Baylan has been the most relatable force user on screen for me. logical. Curious. Determined. Honestly a good complex character.

Tell you what, that soeech right there was thoughtful, well put, logical, common sensical, and actually quite inspiring. You recently popped up on my feed due too star wars and you got a subscriber in me. Very well done sir. 💪🏼🙂👍🏼

Someone else commented Balyan's similarity to Kreia from Kotor2 and i also see this. He witnessed the fall of the jedi, the corruption of the Chosen one and the ascension of the sith. His faith in the force has been broken and i think he blames the force itself. My guess is there us a force wound on Peridia and Baylan seeks to use it to kill the force to end the cycle of light and dark.

Baylan Skoll is the best written "Fallen Hero" that Star Wars has ever given us. The idea that someone goes from being a hero to a moustache twirling villain is just poor writing (or a retcon to achieve a pre-determined outcome). Baylan is what you'd expect of a hero who has lost their way and fallen to embrace dark methods to achieve what he sees as the best outcomes - he's still a hero in his own story and justifies his actions, but he's still doing evil all the same. Having Baylan and Thrawn (another well written villain) in this series is brilliant. I'd be happy just having one of these two but seeing the actions of both against one another gives the story so much more opportunity for strong writing and character development to come to the fore. Notable exceptions like Andor and Mando S2 aside, It's been a while since we've seen this in Star Wars and I like getting to see it.

Great take on things.

It takes a lot of careful attention to detail, and preparation to undertake a thorough Counter-attack on Dophins ... I know!! I'm a Veteran of both the Great Emu War, and the Great War on the Dolphins!

Dude you are amazing!

Hey, this was a really really good video!!

he's not searching for anything. He just wanted to get out of the galaxy. He's sick of being a lacky, so he sending Shin off to finish the job and he's walking away.

Y'know, this is one of your channel's best videos my friend. "HEXploration," and the great gods "Odin, Hemsworth, et al" I'm trying very hard to get drunk so I'm sure I missed a few, .... but damn if you didn't layer the shid out of this one. The philosophy (I'm very sorry, I'm actually a philomajor at uni sooooo) is very well represented, the historical breakdowns are precise (even if I sometimes disagree with what scholars have concluded are "The Interpretation" of those histories) and meaningful. Some would say you're giving Filoni too much credit. Great video.

What truly makes Baylan Skoll dangerous is that he is a BELIEVER. What he believes we don't know, but he is the one who will allow the galaxy to burn, to condemn billions to die, all in the name of *fill in the blank*. Baylan is the true villain of Ahsoka.

Great thoughtful video, as always. But do not lose faith, we shall stand ready for your word to throw back the dolphin hordes.

Imagine this: Baylan wants to end everything and start over, and the only way do that is in the world between worlds. After he gets his goal, the heroes are too late, as a giant black hole opens up and swallows everything in the entire galaxy. The final words of the entire star wars franchise and baylans next words: Let there be light. Imagine how crazy that ending would be

great content, thank you!!!

Wait a minute, are you saying i wasted $15,000 dollars on scuba gear and spear guns? Way to leave a guy hanging Alan! It's not an unhinged plan you can't trust any species that grins all the time like that!

I like how you put a civics/history lesson in with your Star Wars content. Really loved the history lesson about Samurai in the Ahsoka is a ronin video. Can't wait for the Ahsoka episode tonight. Awesome work, keep up the great content.

Amazing. "One must destroy in order to create"- Skoll

Your commentary on Baylon Skull's personality is very insightful. Indeed, some of these people can be the most dangerous. Baylon is actually very similar to Admiral Thrawn, even more so if referencing the original books that created Thrawn, the Heir to the Empirer series, written clear back in 1991-1993. Thrawn is not murdering everyone around him that makes a mistake, or disagrees with him. He takes input from others, and he treats his officers reasonably well. He doesn't expect to win every encounter. Sometimes he even expects to loose, but learns from it. He has loads of confidence, but not really ego, and he doesn't seek power for the sake of power. I suspect that if he was in charge of the empire,there is a good chance the rebels would have never been able to beat him. And yet... his end game is definitely not in the best interest of the galaxy. There are many cult leaders in our own history that have this charisma... they are likeable, calm, collected, and are intelligent, which is why normal people follow them... often in history into their own graves.

The most interesting character disney has made to date and the actor who plays him died. RIP. What a rip.

Baylan is a darck knight type, haven`t seen this type in ears