I’m thinking what we see in that tank is definitely meant to be a reference to Snoke. I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more references to the sequels, but I feel like Gideon maybe has his own plan. I think he’d rather become the new Emperor than revive the old one so maybe he wants The Child to transfer Force abilities to himself with a transfusion somehow. He doesn’t seem like a Sith cultist and I don’t think he reports to Exegol. He may just be using whatever cloning tech the Empire left behind, but he seems to be making his own power play. Those troops on the wall look like his own project.
I’m so mixed on this. It looks like Snoke, it sounds like Snoke (i.e. - the track ‘Snoke’ from TFA) but I still feel like it isn’t Snoke. Someone, possibly SW Explained or Eckhartsladder, said that they don’t feel that Gideon is involved with the First Order at all and it feels like this whole operation was his idea. I’m inclined to agree, and it makes him a better villain, too.
Both of them have commented on how unlikely it is that this show will tie excessively into the ST, and that its more likely that it will be a minor connection. Gideon’s experiments will probably only be an early link in the chain that will eventually lead to the creation of Snoke and Palpatine’s return. Eckhartsladder also pointed out that its not Snoke’s theme in the latest episode, but rather just a very similar eerie droning theme that is equally similar to the Plagueis theme from ROTS. I also think its wort pointing out that the scar on one of the test subjects’ head is quite different from Snoke’s. It even curves in the opposite direction.
I personally think this is just another case of fans assuming that everything has to be connected. I actually find it kind of funny how we just can’t seem to escape Snoke theories (though at least this one makes a lot more sense than the previous ones).