SWNN Review: Star Wars Rebels – The Lost Commanders!

Rebels 04The long wait is finally over.  After getting a tease of what’s to come for season 2 via the TV movie, “The Siege of Lothal”, we finally will have new episodes for weeks to come.  While “The Siege of Lothal” offered everyone’s favorite Sith Lord and wall to wall action, the first official episode of season 2 was a little more subdued.  Read on to find out more.  Beware of SPOILERS 

 

 

Our story begins with our rebel crew needing to find a new base of operations to run missions out of, after Lothal has become too dangerous due to the increased Imperial presence there.  Commander Sato seeks advice on where they might go and Ahsoka Tano has just the idea.  She invites the Ghost’s crew to enlist the aid of some “old friends” of hers.  In order to find them, she dusts off an old severed tactical droid’s head.  Before parting ways with Kanan and company, Ahsoka urges the Jedi to trust the people they are seeking.

 

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Upon arrival at the Seelo system, our crew finds three old “geezers” aboard a modified AT-TE walker.  Kanan instantly becomes agitated and is clearly mistrustful of the three old-timer clones (for a perfectly good reason).  Rex, Wolffe and Gregor make it no secret that they consider their fighting days as being over.  Ezra implores them to help with the search for a new base for their rebel cell.  The clones agree to help as long as the Ghost’s crew help them to hunt a large monsterish caterpillar-type creature called a joopa. After some shenanigans including Zeb ending up trapped in one of the beast’s mouth, the task is complete.

 

Unfortunately, Wolffe who was fearful of the Jedi from the beginning, had sent a distress call to the Imperials.  General Kallus receives it and dispatches a probe droid to investigate the clone’s loony claim.  After Rex snipes down the droid, the crew get some information from the clones about some secret locations in the Outer Rim for a potential new base.  The episode ends with the crew fearing that the Empire is on the way.

 

The Light Side 

 

Seeing Old Friends with a Purpose – It was great to see some fan favorite clones returning.  While the PT didn’t do much to make fans relate to the clone troopers, TCW really did a great job in connecting us to them and actually caring about them as individuals.  The characters were re-introduced in a way that did not feel forced and actually drove the story along in a meaningful way.

 

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Getting New Important Characters – Yes we got to see some familiar faces return, but that doesn’t mean newer characters also won’t play an important role in the story as well.  While it’s fun to see the likes of Bail Organa and Ahsoka Tano, as I mentioned in the season 2 preview here … it’s also great to know that we will still be getting new, important characters such as Commander Sato and Phoenix Squadron.  I believe finding the right balance of old and new to be very important in SW stories going forward.

 

Ahsoka Still Seems Uncertain about the Sith Lord’s identity – I personally like the idea that Ahsoka isn’t flat out certain of exactly who the mysterious Sith Lord is.  The fact that she has some suspicions, yet must investigate further only builds the tension leading up to a more concrete revelation.  This will be one of the most interesting plot threads to watch developing.

 

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Learning More about Kanan’s Past and Inner Demons – If you’ve read “A New Dawn” or “Kanan: The Last Padawan” series, you’ve already gotten a lot of insight into Kanan’s psyche and what he went through post Order 66.  By the time we get to the Rebels show, Kanan is already in a much better place.  That’s not to say he’s completely exorcised his demons, as we see his bitter mistrust of the clones in this episode.  In A New Dawn, Kanan has esentially become a drifting drunk who avoids the Force like the plague.  We haven’t had the chance to delve too far into his past, yet this episode has started to illuminate us on this a bit.  Filoni has promised a lot more on the Ghost crew’s backstory this year.

 

 

The Dark Side 

 

Juvenile Humor – This is certainly a minor nitpick, as I realize Rebels is a cartoon for kids (and the big kid that still resides in every Star Wars fan’s heart).  Still, if I had to complain about one thing, it was Gregor’s loony behavior.  It wasn’t really that bad, perhaps just slightly annoying.

 

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Not as Exciting as a 1st Ep. could be after such a long hiatus – Sure, there were some cool moments.  Yes, we had plenty of action in the Siege of Lothal.  Yet, this episode wasn’t necessarily as action-packed or intriguing as you might expect from a season premiere.  The July TV movie isn’t really considered the premiere and even it was, after such a long wait … it might have been nice to have a bit more happen in the episode.

 

Wolffe’s Behavior / Betrayal – Wolffe’s betrayal seemed awfully out of character, especially considering the fact that these particular clones were able to avoid betraying the Jedi.  It was odd that he would seek to save his own skin instead of working to seek forgiveness.  Also, the abrupt acceptance of his decision without any repercussions was a bit forced, in my humble opinion.

 

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Parting Shots 

 

– On the whole, the episode seemed a bit fluffy, yet there was still some interesting set-up for the continuing story.  We know that our rebel crew will spend the early-going parts of the season scouting out new locations for a base.  It will be interesting to see how many stops they make and where they go before finding a suitable spot.  We know Ahsoka will be on some kind of covert mission to get answers about Vader.

 

– The animation already has improved.  Not that the first season was bad, it just seemed like the motion was smoother and the details sharper.  We can only hope that Rebels will follow suit with the Clone Wars.  To me, both have been enjoyable from the beginning and solid from an artistic standpoint.  With TCW, the bar was continually raised and the show got steadily better.  The early returns on Rebels appear to indicate a similar upward trend.

 

– We did get to see another planet that isn’t Lothal, which should be more the norm this season.  Still, we essentially got another planet featuring a barren, desert-like location.  We’ve had plenty of these types already (Tatooine, Lothal, Jakku).  Here’s hoping we get some good variety as the crew searches for a new base.

What are your thoughts on the start of a brand new and longer season of Rebels?  Share in the discussion with us, either in the comments below or at the Rebels section of the Cantina.

 

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31 thoughts on “SWNN Review: Star Wars Rebels – The Lost Commanders!

  • October 15, 2015 at 10:46 pm
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    The soundtrack of this episode seemed weak to me. In season 1, Star War music amplified the mood and tone of each scene. But in this episode, the music (if any) seemed more like unnoticeable background noise. It also seemed less John Williams-inspired and more generic.

    • October 15, 2015 at 10:55 pm
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      I agree

    • October 16, 2015 at 1:25 am
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      I felt the same way. The music in season 1 gave it that classic Star Wars feel. I hope they continue it going forward in season 2.

      • October 16, 2015 at 10:34 am
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        My father was telling me that while he enjoyed the Clone Wars, he’s been enjoying Rebels a lot more because he really gets that “Star Wars” feeling while watching it.

        • October 16, 2015 at 5:55 pm
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          Same here for the same reasons. Also, Clone Wars seemed all over the place for me. Some episodes were really great and some were really bad. So far, Rebels has been either great or just OK, but nothing that I would call bad.

    • October 16, 2015 at 4:08 am
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      My guess is they are trying to be less dependant on the classic motifs to sell the show to us fans, but yes i do miss those rousing moments.

    • October 16, 2015 at 5:50 am
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      the middle part of the episode took music cues from Jaws.

      • October 16, 2015 at 6:00 am
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        Good Catch (no pun intended). I was thinking they should’ve used Williams’ the Den of the Rancor from ROTJ for that scene, but I can see why they didn’t if they were going for a Jaws Homage. I guess I missed the homage because I was busy comparing the scene to Tremors (1990).

        • October 16, 2015 at 4:21 pm
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          I am glad I’m not the only one that compared with Tremors. I loved that flick.

  • October 15, 2015 at 11:03 pm
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    What I’d like to find out is….where do they all get their haircuts? I mean at least Ezra, Kanan, Sabine, and Commander Sato need to get them. Right? But where? And how much do they cost? Do they come with a wash or is that extra?

  • October 15, 2015 at 11:07 pm
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    You may be in for some sadness if you don’t like barren, desert-like locations. We all know that the rebels at some point establish a base on Dantooine, and if you’ve played KOTOR, you know that the landscape there is not much more exciting than any of the above stated planets.

    Not that they will have to follow the landscape of Dantooine as depicted by the now-legends KOTOR. And, even if they did, there’s no guarantee that they would go to Dantooine this early on. Still, your comment about hoping to see new locales made me chuckle.

    Nice review, BTW. One of the reasons I don’t feel like I need to go elsewhere for new Star Wars news 🙂

  • October 16, 2015 at 5:16 am
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    I’m shocked that a “review” didn’t mention that the bait scene was a great Jaws homage, even down to the music. This review seemed like more of a “if this was my show” than it was an actual review of what we’re given.

    The instant I saw the front of the modified walker tank, i had a familiar feeling. Only to be confirmed by what followed it. Great moment.

    • October 16, 2015 at 6:48 am
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      Indeed, it was a great episode and i watched it with my son and i really enjoyed it as much as he did. I agree with you!

    • October 16, 2015 at 10:18 am
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      Sorry if it didn’t get covered the way you would have liked. It was my first review, so I appreciate the feedback. It’s certainly appreciated.

      • October 16, 2015 at 2:55 pm
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        Hey maybe i’m wrong- It just feels like you were watching it from the perspective that there is supposed to be something wrong with it and you needed to find it- In that regard I wish more people viewed Jurassic World that way- haha.

        • October 16, 2015 at 3:36 pm
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          No, I’m not saying you’re wrong. I appreciate your thought, we can all improve at whatever we do. Truthfully, I absolutely LOVE this show. I was trying to step outside of the box and be objective.

    • October 16, 2015 at 2:10 pm
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      I didn’t comprehend it as a Jaws homage.

      • October 16, 2015 at 2:49 pm
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        its not just me~ http://io9.com/ star-wars-rebels-second-season-kicks-off-with-a-great-s-1736739097

        • October 16, 2015 at 6:16 pm
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          I didn’t mean it was just you that saw it. I missed it.

          • October 16, 2015 at 7:15 pm
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            i know- I was just excited that there was a buzz about it- it actually goes back to april when they released some clips from the episode- so I was late to the game anyhow~

    • October 16, 2015 at 7:58 pm
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      Yeah, I noticed that as well. I liked that they gave the music at this point just a bit of the Jaws feel. I really cemented the homage to me.

    • October 20, 2015 at 7:35 pm
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      The Clones walker even had a set of jaws mounted on it, just like Quint’s Orca!

  • October 16, 2015 at 8:06 am
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    I’m a cheap skate so I’m waiting till the May the 4th marathon.

  • October 16, 2015 at 9:02 am
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    Enjoyed the episode a lot. It was a lot of setup, but I’m confident Filoni and crew will give us plenty of payoff for that setup.

  • October 16, 2015 at 9:34 am
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    That planet wasn’t by any chance, the planet the Droids crashed on where they first met Gregor in TCW was it? It looked awfully similar

    • October 16, 2015 at 2:09 pm
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      no it wasn’t that planet. It should have been. It makes no sense that they created a new world that looked so similar to one they used on TCW. And since that’s where Gregor lived during the war it seems totally logical that he and the other clones would retreat there after the war ended.

      • October 16, 2015 at 4:29 pm
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        Actually it could have been that planet. In TCW they never mentioned the system in which Abafar was. In this episode Ahsoka never mentions the planet name, only the system of Ceelo (sic?).

        So, this could be Abafar in the Ceelo system.

        • October 16, 2015 at 6:18 pm
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          okay I like that logic. I hope now that they specify it was the same place. 🙂

  • October 16, 2015 at 2:56 pm
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    anyone think that General Dodonna could be one of the clones?

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