Star Wars' Mon Mothma Became a Victim of Her Own Making
Ahsoka showed the cracks in the New Republic once again. But it may also prove how the government Mon Mothma made could lead to her downfall.
Star Wars' most important battles were, for the most part, fought during the Galactic Civil War. But of the many battlefields, one that was never discussed was the political realm. As the Rebels took the fight to the Empire, Senator Mon Mothma played both sides as she tried to make a difference on the political spectrum while playing multiple angles behind the scenes. But as Ahsoka showed, even a hero like Mothma wasn't immune to the faults of the New Republic that were born after the Empire.
Mothma is one of Star Wars' most complex characters, as her early years showed her as a fighter who couldn't stand the injustice of the Empire and the atrocities that resulted from its reign. But once the Empire was defeated, the New Republic grew to become so against conflict and villainy that they left themselves open to attack from splinter factions of the Empire. Even though there were elements of Mothma's actions that contributed to the rise of powerful enemies, it's more likely that the government she helped establish led to her becoming a scapegoat.
Mon Mothma's Evolution Painted Her in a Complicated Light
Before her live-action presence was more prominent, Mothma had sporadic appearances that made it easier to paint her in a less than favorable light when the First Order arrived. During the Clone Wars, Mothma was aligned with Bail Organa in their uncertainty over Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's rule. When Order 66 was enacted, she was far from surprised that the Emperor seized control and always questioned the validity of his claim that the Jedi were enemies. This was proven in shows like Star Wars Rebels and movies like Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, where she played a major role in uniting rebel cells against the Empire. But as Rogue One showed, she was also one to not go against the rules of diplomacy as Jyn begged for the Rebel Alliance to help take the Death Star plans, and Mohtma told Jyn that without full support, she couldn't allow it, even if she agreed.
With only a few moments to show the type of person Mothma was before Ahsoka and Andor, it made it easy to make her the prime culprit for decisions like the Military Disarmament Act, which left the New Republic defenseless. This choice also puts her at odds with Leia, who made her own Resistance as a result in Star Wars Bloodline (by Claudia Gray.) However, with this new perspective of Mothma's character, it's revealed that her greatest fault may have led to the New Republic turning on her in some capacity.
Andor and Ahsoka Showed How Mon Mothma Lost Her Way
When Mothma entered the live-action TV arena on a larger scale in Andor, it painted a new picture of the rebel and politician. For starters, it showed how even though Mon Mothma appeared to play ball with the Empire, she was really working as best she could to make changes behind the scenes. In return, she could offer information directly from the Empire and eventually be an unlikely leader of a spy network that included Cassian Andor. This also showed how every day she lived on Coruscant, she was at risk of being discovered as a traitor to the Empire. But, even with that risk to her and her family, she never stood by and let the Empire continue.
Years later, after the fall of the Empire and the rise of the New Republic, Mon Mothma finally achieved all she fought for and assembled a collection of Senators who worked with her in her role of Chancellor. But Ahsoka showed that the same thing that nearly doomed the galaxy has put the galaxy at risk again. When Hera Syndulla requested to follow a lead to Grand Admiral Thrawn, a senator questioned her validity and chose not to entertain the notion because he felt it was a failed attempt to find Ezra Bridger. Of course, the senator in question had never seen war and was the last person to interject about the desire to prevent another war. Nevertheless, the issue of the meeting was that Mothma, who was the leader of this group, chose not to overstep the laws of democracy and agreed that Hera couldn't move forward with her mission.
The scene showed that even though Mothma likely agreed and didn't want another war to occur, she felt that maintaining balance in the New Republic was more important. However, the problem that only the audience knows is that Hera's concerns are valid, and the choice to deny her a chance to investigate may have set up a major conflict that could lead to the First Order. In essence, Mothma's inaction set up the possibility that the same people she trusted may have led to her downfall in politics.
Ahsoka May Set Up Mon Mothma's Future as a Victim of the New Republic
Mothma has always been known as a character who made the right moves to save the galaxy but also the wrong ones that plunged it into turmoil once again. However, Andor and Ahsoka have shown more shades of grey to the character, which may have made her characterization more complex than ever. She's one to stand up, when applicable, to injustice, and in an Empire where democracy was dead, there was no structure to maintain. However, with the New Republic, maintaining democracy was what she felt she had to do, no matter if that made her look bad.
Considering this has already proven to be a wrong decision, it may also set up that those she's kept in her cabinet could be more interested in their personal comfort. As a result, she could've become the face of things like the Military Disarmament Act, which was the beginning of the end for the New Republic. Even though she was a tough politician who wasn't afraid to make sacrifices for the New Republic, she tried to stop things like the First Order. But being that her cabinet was filled with people who were either scared of war or uninterested in it, they may have consistently stifled her concerns until she eventually fell ill and resigned. In the end, there's more to Mon Mothma than meets the eye, and while she's to blame for her fair share of questionable choices, it's equally likely that those she allied with also set her up to fail.